Summer English course (short duration) for 4-6 year old children (cont.) - The 23rd and 24th of July 2014

(...)

Because most of the children couldn't read I had them identify and circle the animals as I pronounced them, together with having them randomly take a plastic animal out of a bag and say its name in English, which proved to be quite  an amusing activity for them.

I had them watch the animated film based on Prokofief's  Peter and the wolf, which they absolutely fell in love with. Ana took some photos as they were watching it and their expressions seem to say more than what they might have been able to express though some of them even attempted to give voice to the untitled film by using the vocabulary they already knew.

Knowing the importance artistic works played in my kindergarten and school life I decided to once more introduce some of those works, bearing in mind the age of the children, their personal interests and whichever skills I felt they already had together with some I believed they could further develop. The youngest ones ended up doing mosaic sticker art works, whilst the elder used brushes to carry out their paintings or and paper to do their 3D animals.

This activity helped them memorise, without much difficulty some of the animals referred to in the lyrics of the song I had envisaged them singing for the parents and relatives in the final day 's presentation.

They looked really proud when we had them take a photo with their "works of Art".

Because after the auditorium rehearsal we still had some time left I decided to bring them out onto the strips of grass outside the Navigation Centre and show them images which they had to put words to and find a story sequence. One of the covers Ana had brought to lay down on the grass for them to sit on had to be wrapped around their backs as the cold wind started to blow and many had brought no cardigans, but we still enjoyed ourselves.

(To be continued)

Summer English Course (short duration) for 4-6 year old children - The 21st and 22nd of July 2014

I must confess that despite being tired out I was looking forward to starting the Summer English courses in which the young relatives of many of my fellow colleagues had been enrolled as part of their vacation activities. 

Among the list of children attending the first course, which started yesterday, I noticed there were three newcomers, whose family names did  in fact ring a bell (I had been their parents' teacher as well). If I was feeling tired the moment I walked into the classroom I fairly soon forgot about it all, once the children's enthusiasm fuelled my inner drive. 

After having learned how to properly pronounce a few of the animals of the forest, which is this season's theme, the children gathered around a table playing a memory card game, whose cards had many of those "new" animals printed on them.

Three of the "older" children still had some time to play a "cautious" oriented game involving a rather difficult penguin track, which they had to control by adequately adjusting some side lines.

Whenever they got something right children were handed some animal stickers they are proudly showing in the group photograph underneath.

Back row (Inês, Diogo and Salvador) from left to right; Front row (Clara, Martina, Teresa and Madalena) from left to right.

The morning breaks have also proved to be "enthusiastic" moments over the last two days, particularly after having got engaged in slightly more demanding activities, like today's.

We were so committed to what we were doing that I got carried away and didn't take but two photos during the whole morning today ..., namely the one prior to them leaving (underneath), in which we can see them smiling (... still a good symptom, I would say).

(To be continued)