How to encourage students to stand up in front of the public and perform.

Getting students involved in school activities like poem recitation, singing , storytelling or public speaking is a good way to increase self confidence in them but the problem is, many do not want to try. We always hear them say, " I'm scared teacher",  "I do not want" or "My English is not good ." I think  the ideas below are helpful for the beginners.

 1. The text must  be short and simple but suitable for the students.
 2. Encourage them not to be afraid and teacher must support them.
 3. Listen attentively to what they  have to say and correct them if they are wrong immediately so they would   not repeat the mistakes on the presentation day.
 4. Don't push them so hard  and expect them to be good in a few days. Give them time to memorize the text.
 5. Give credits for their achievements. Seen as a small gift but valuable to them.

The video shows how confident and courageous the girl was when delivering her speech.

Congratulations to adik Rosie for being brave on the stage. You did so well. Your speech was so eloquent and articulate.
Thank you to my friend, Aneesa Jonathan-Abdullah @ Dorothy Grace for allowing me to post this video in my blog.

Many students do not understand the use of  a client, a customer and a consumer. I have difficulty to explain to them ( they're primary students) because it means more or less the same. Don't you think so?
After searching for the meanings, I think this is the best answer I can give them.

Well, they are all customers really but a client is more of a business term for a person who returns again to their business and who they have regular dealings with, including lawyers, doctors, beauticians, banks etc. 

A consumer is someone who uses the products, this includes eating, drinking or buying make-up or food and general goods. 

A customer is anyone who is spending the money!

Domestic Animals And Their Young

CAT  -  KITTEN

CAMEL  -  CALF

SHEEP  -  LAMB

 Learning through games. Suitable for teachers who love using technology in the classroom. Visit http://makeeducationinteractive.blogspot.com/2012/09/free-interactive-sites.html

I am a big fan of this film. I will never miss it every time it's shown on TV . It is not because of Amir Khan  ( my favourite actor...wink...wink... ) but this film teaches me not to misjudge the students without looking  deeper into their problems. If you don't understand Hindi ( so am I ), there is English subtitle to help you understand the story. Take your time to watch the film and you'll learn something from it.

Tongue Twister

Most people think tongue twister is a childhood game but it is not just a game. It is a fun game which help students to improve their pronunciation . Try it in the classroom and you will find lots of fun and laughter because students enjoy it very much.

Here are a few common tongue twisters you can try.  Repeat them a few times and see how fast you can say it. Have fun !

Red lorry, yellow lorry.

If you want to buy, buy, if you don't want to buy, bye bye!

If two witches were watching two watches, which witch would watch which watch?

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.

If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,

Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

She sells seashells by the seashore.

The shells she sells are surely seashells.

So if she sells shells on the seashore,

I'm sure she sells seashore shells.

While searching materials for my PowerPoint presentation, I have found a very useful website, which can help students in increasing their knowledge of the animal kingdom. Its presentation is very interesting and informative. My students really loved it. 

http://www.kbears.com/farm/

Group Work

In the process of teaching and learning, activities must be based on the students and not just for teachers. Every student should be given the opportunity to actively participate in all the activities provided. In addition, teachers should strive to meet the needs of pupils with different abilities that can enhance their level of achievement. 

They should also be given the opportunity to assess the work of their friends as to build up their confidence.

Native Speaker Program

Among the government programs to raise the standard of education in Malaysia is native-speaking program. It is one of the programs under Policy Strengthening English (MBI) Ministry of Education. It is implemented for selected primary level 1 in all states from 2011 to 2013. This program is one of the strategies to strengthen the standard of English in schools.The teacher involved should attend professional input sessions outside of formal schooling to be carried out by native-speaking. This program makes teachers of English as a target level and become part of a method to improve the standard of English among teachers in schools. About 300 native-speaking English from the United States have been brought into the country for local students guide in English subjects.

Getting involve in extra co-curricular activities like Action Songs will help students to complement and strengthened their academic learning. It doesn't only help to build up their confidence in dealing with the public but also help them learning the language skills. 

Writing is one of the skills in learning English.For young learners, you may start with a simple poem. Think about what you're going to say. Don't be afraid in expressing your ideas. For a beginner, use simple words. It doesn't have to be a long poem because poetry is a piece of art that is entirely unique which does not bound by the constraints of sentence, paragraph structure, context or even grammar. Below is an example of a short poem wrote by Muhammad Ikhwan Bin Abdul Aziz, my year 3 student.

Blue sky..... High up in the sky..... I wonder how..... I wonder why...

One of the ways to learn English is through songs. Let's sing together.

TIPS TO LEARN ENGLISH

 There are many ways to learn English. Here are a few tips you can do to improve your English.

1. Practice every day. Practice makes perfect.
2. Think positive. Don't be afraid to use English daily.
3. Surround yourself in English speaking environment .
4. Don't hesitate to get help if you are in doubt.
5. Speak without fear. Stop worrying about your accent perfect as English is  
    English.
6. Watching English movies, listening to English songs and  reading English  
    books will help you to improve your pronunciation and intonation.
7. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. Learn from the mistakes as nobody is 
    perfect.
8. Don't translate into English from your own language. To improve your 
    fluency, you need to think in English.
9. Write a few sentences in English a day in your diary. This will lead you into 
    the habit of writing.
10.Study as often as possible. There are many internet sites teaching English 
     language for the beginners.  

WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF ENGLISH