Workshop MI, TPR & TPRS

I joined a workshop at Edith Stein Hogeschool about what is the best way teaching children a foreign language. In this blog I will show you three ways how language is easier to learn.

Multiple Intelligences

"Everybody has it's own unique combination of intelligences"


Howard Gardner designed 8 Intelligences that should be considered in teaching a language.

I got to know through our workshop lecturer Alike Last that it is very essential to have this modell in mind when you are preparing a lesson. You have to think that every child has another strength, therefore it is important to advance every child in his own intelligence.


We heard about three key points of considering MI in the language lesson:

1) Matching - You use as a teacher materials and teaching methods
                         which supports childs MI combination

2) Stretching - You use other methods to stretch the children's combination
                           that they can develop new MI skills

3) Accepting & celebrating - Pupils should learn to accept and appreciate
                                                     the facilities they have


I can learn the best, when I can visualize the things that I have to learn. Because of this it was always useful when teachers made illustrations, images and drawings of the topic they taught.


Can you tell me which Multiple Intelligences do you have and how could it be supported by the teacher?

TPR

"Learning by doing"

 TPR means Total Physical Response and it is absolutely useful in learning a second language.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmfnrYerYbY&feature=related

We exactly did an example like that in the Workshop. We just listened to the instructions of Silvia (native Spanish speaker) and acted it out. The interesting thing was that it worked really good without knowing any words before in Spanish.

This example points out the characteristics of classical TPR:

> use of imperative form
> every word is attached to a physical action - becomes more visual
> no translation - that means they have to think in the target language
> listening befor speaking
> students don't speak in the beginning
> action and tangibility make learning easy, fun and clear
> stressfree learning

> using more senses

> for all ages

Have you already experienced a lesson like that and how was it? If not, do you think that is an effective way learning a second language?

TPRS

"Story asking"
TPRS = Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling

We did a lot of exercises how to get a numbers of questions from only one statement. To be honest during this workshop I did not realise  why TPRS is such a good methods learning a second language. In this post I will try to explain why it is so useful.

 Example:
The man drives to the store.

positiv Question:    Did the man drive to the store?
or - Question:          Did the man or the woman drive to the store?
negativ Question:   Did the woman drive to the store?
? Question:              Who drive to the store?
detail Question:      Did the old man drive to the store?

After the workshop I studied some literature and found out that the exercise we did can help us to guide the children in TPRS.

The aim of this was just to show us how important it is that pupils built their own story up. As a teacher you can begin with a statement, e.g. Anna was on holidays last week.
Then you will ask as a teacher where she was and what she did etc. Therefore the children have to lead the story and add details. At the end the story was just guided by the teacher with inputs but actually invented by the children.


There are 3 steps to clarify the meaning of TPRS:

Step 1: give meaning through gestures, translation, images, doing TPR
Step 2: asking the story
             - Give statements
               (one or more - depends on the level of language knowledge)
             - Ask questions
             - Give and ask for new information = details
Step 3: Reading stories

Quote: slideshow Workshop VVTOE minor, 31st of March 2011


It seemes to me that pupils have to concentrate to participate in the story. Throughout this they will learn new vocabulary and will get structure in the foreign language. I will try to use this methods in my future class.

What do you think about this method? Do you think you would use it in your future lessons?