LISTENING

It is considered the first step on communication and as human beings we are used to listening since we were born (even before it). Children acquire this skill and our role is to provide a meaningful and relevant input. Without listening there is no interaction. It is an active and not a passive operation where students make effort to understand and later speak, trying first to imitate sounds and simple words.
In our country, it is important to reinforce this skill because our environment is pretty much in Spanish so students don´t have the opportunity to interact in the second language. In my experience, I try to speak in English all the time so they must try to understand and follow the instructions. It is not an easy process and there is a big difference between bilingual and not bilingual schools. The accomplishment of this skill is not only based on listening exercises. It is this and more.
This is my advice to all teachers:

• Use a vocabulary according to the level of our students.


• Do not speak all the time. Give some instructions with bodily expressions, gestures or drawings. Don´t translate into Spanish.


• And even make mistakes to find out if the students notice them


• Give the students the chance to repeat after they hear


• Teach songs, rhymes and chants that are very useful with children


• Practice at home listening exercises. I started using this web page http://www.esl-lab.com/

WRITING

Writing as a skill that allows people to communicate through distance and time. History and all we know nowadays is possible because of writing and of course, because of a writer. Personally, I enjoy writing, more in Spanish but with this exercise (blog) I started feeling at ease with English too. I try to remember that the more I write, the more I learn and improve my skills and that´s the reason for doing this reflection with each module.
Writing must be a tool in order to identify what our students know about any topic you are teaching. But we have to be careful. To spend all classes doing writing exercises or copying from the board is not enough and doesn´t mean you are a good teacher. What is really important is to promote writing with a purpose and use games in which students are producing and having fun at the same time.
Finally, what happens with the mistakes? To make mistakes is part of the process - I need to be aware of this idea – We should let students produce a text and depending on the objective of the activity, you can correct them or not. I think is the way you do it that helps the student not to feel frustrated and as teacher we are not smiling and friendly all the time.
Some examples to introduce in our lesson planning:
§ Running dictation: in pairs, one student goes and reads a text that is pasted on the wall and dictates what he/she finds to the other student
§ Ping pong writing: write a word and the next person have to write another one with the last letter of the one you wrote
§ Journals: start with a question so students can write and express what they think and feel
§ Questions on the wall: write some questions and let students write their answers
§ Create a story with some words
§ Write, read and rewrite

Since this class at the university, I created a place in my classroom to paste students production because I know it is important for them to show and celebrate their process.

Reading

To understand how we are supposed to teach Reading in our class, I consider important first to have clear what Reading means. As humans we read all the time and not only words but also gestures, signs, symbols, bodily expression and so on.
Am I a good reader? This question must be answered to ourselves as we must be honest and aware that we can´t demand something we do not practice. Reading is a skill that allows people to obtain knowledge and later communicate or transfer its content in a meaningful way, especially in our daily activities. In order to develop the habit of reading it is necessary to be consistent with our students and share with them the importance of doing it in their lives.
Some aspects to take into account as teachers:

• Let students participate in class, Reading aloud and silently too
• Use a text to introduce new vocabulary and recognize pronounciation
• Invite – if you can do it – students to be part of the selection of the book
• Select the Reading exercises according to your students´s needs, interests and level
• Internalize Reading as part of your life and not only as an academic task
• Be clear with the purpose of the Reading exercises and share it with your students
• Know about Reading strategies and guide students to use them properly in their process in order to improve it

I agree learning can’t happen with a passive attitude so Active Learning means an approach where it is possible to engage material from the students according to the four skills that we teach in English class.
In the past – but still in some schools – teachers used to give all knowledge and students automatically repeated and memorized it, without any sense. Nowadays in our society, there are many requirements and as we read in the other module, competences are the skills students need to develop in order to be successful. During the process, we guide and incorporate student’s needs and interests.

More about AUTONOMY

I can’t ask my students autonomy if I don’t have autonomy first. That means, if I want to educate in the development of autonomous behaviuor, it is essential to be aware of it in my life. Our planning lessons, our classes, our activities… everything that we do reflects the point of view that we have about education, knowledge, teaching and pedagogy.
Autonomy is a tool that helps us but you can’t confuse it with freedom or with doing what you want. It is not necessary to exclude the traditional teaching skills but it is really important to improve the learning experiences of our students. Most of the teachers try to repeat their own experience at school and we all know that everything is changing, even people and strategies to teach. We should be “true believers” that learning in an autonomously way is the opportunity to create a meaningful environment in which students will learn with joy and pleasure.
Finally, I hope I won’t forget all these reflections. It could be interesting to abandon some ideas that we still carry, confront them and decide, having always in mind all the things I can strengthen in those kids that visit everyday my classroom and give sense to my career.

Learning strategies. Sharing an activity

Learning strategies are tactics or different ways that you can choose according to your personality or experience in order to learn something. It is also to learn in an easier, faster and more enjoyable way.
Teaching English can be a wonderful adventure for both, students and teacher. We must motivate and guide the process of learning in a meaningful and useful way so students can achieve the goals they are supposed to reach.

Name of the activity: Learning about tickets
Objective:
- Recognize a kind of text
- Associate what they know with new words
Grade Level: 3rd grade
Preparation: Organize all the materials previously. Introduce the activity with a listening exercise about a dialogue in a theater and show a picture too.
Presentation: Draw on the board a ticket and ask students to give me information that they think must be writen in a ticket. Show different real tickets and compare with the one designed by the group.
Practice: Give a piece of cardboard and let students individually design a ticket for a special activity. It could be a festival, show, concert or a party.
Evaluation: Share the tickets with the whole class. Admire the creativity and check if it is clear and complete information. If it is necessary, show some tickets and identify by groups what is missing. Celebrate and ask them: Did you like it?
Expansion: Small Project. Celebrating our birthday. Each student will create a ticket according to the party and will choose a peer to give it.

• How can I reinforce autonomy in my students?

I think autonomy is an attitude in which you are able to be independent, having the skills to do it and being in charge of your own process. It is the ability for making decisions with responsability.

How can I reinforce autonomy in my students?
This is a very important question that I always try to have in mind when I am planning so that reminds me that I don’t have all the knowledge and I won’t even pretend to promote a passive attitude in my students. The following are some ideas I will share:
- Ask students to participate. They always know something about any topic
- Do not give all the answers. Ask some one in the class and finally you can talk about what you know
- Have extra material for those students interested
- Let students decide. And if it not possible in your school, try to give the opportunity in each topic, to create sub topics taking into account what students need and want
- Give responsibilities to your students, such as helpers in the class. Use and channel the energy of those that have plenty.
- Provide an environment that encourages reflective attitude

- Help them accept their own process and try not to compare.The most important comparison is the one you make with yourself.

- Return to them the questions, especially those ones that include decisions

Autonomy is the key to be owners of our process and that means that you can open many doors if you feel able to do it.