Why would Chinese parents pay to have their young children learn English? The following are some reasons and tips for English tutors and teachers in China.
Children Learn Very Quickly When Young
It is no secret that children’s brains are like a sponge when they are little. Most kids take in more information before they even enter kindergarten than they will take in during the remainder of their education before high school graduation. Because they learn almost effortlessly when they are young, it is a great time to introduce them to a foreign language.
English is arguably one of the tougher languages to get a handle on. However, because children have no fear and have not been programmed by society to avoid things that appear difficult, they are much more receptive to learning any foreign language. So a great time to have them learn English is before they have had the opportunity to learn that people think it is hard to do.
What Benefit Will Learning English Give to Children
The English language is a global language. This does not even include the fact that more businesses and politicians are required to converse with English-speaking businessmen, delegates, and customers. This trend is not expected to reverse. Because of this, children that learn English now will have a major jump on those that do not when they are old enough to enter the business world.
Again, due to learning this language at a young age, kids tend to retain their early knowledge better and more permanently than things that are learned as adults. They will more likely have opportunities to regularly continue to practice and perfect their skills throughout their lives.
Creating a relaxed environment can also aid to make the learning process for children easy. Keep in mind that every parent needs to teach clearly and regularly arouse the kid’s enthusiasm. How can parents make learning the English language compelling for their young ones? Know some helpful tips on how to achieve this goal.
Start Simple and be Consistent
Each of us starts learning new things with the basics. This provides a strong base for everyone to be able to progress to the next complex level. This is the same when it comes to kids learning English. To begin, let the child know the basic units of the language.
Another point to take note of is to be consistent. To be consistent, a particular time needs to be set every day to practice.
Choose the Right Material and Practice
To guide the child in his or her learning process, there are books, audio, video, and music in English that you can purchase. Sounds and attractive pictures can arouse the interest of the children and promote enthusiasm for learning the language. They enjoy stories that you can read to them in English.
Encourage the child to practice his or her English whenever possible. This aids them in retention and recall. During this age, it is also an advantage to let them learn the language and practice it since they are not afraid to commit mistakes. They can explore using new words without the fear of being corrected.
Enjoy the Process Together
Enjoying the process of learning is extremely vital for the child. This can make his or her learning easy and effortless. Have fun learning with the child by reading them some stories or watch an English movie together. If you love songs, you can also opt to translate Chinese songs to English.
In letting your kid learn the English language, he or she can harvest the benefits in the future. This can give them opportunities to communicate with a wide range of people and can be useful throughout their lives. Commit your kid to learn the language, and you might just be glad that you did.
The English language is a critical language to know in the world today. Children today are learning Chinese in school. However, many Chinese cannot speak English well. Teaching a child English at a young age will give them a head start and open the doors to opportunities abroad.
China has emerged from a period of stagnation and is again taking it’s place as one of the great powers of the world. China currently has the second largest economy in the world and has a huge growth rate averaging 10% per year. As Thomas Friedman has written the world is becoming flat, so communication, ideas, and goods are traveling faster and faster between countries including the US and China.
Most English speakers know when to use the words “under,”below,” and “beneath.” However, most native English speakers probably do not know the rules for when to use those words in the right context. They know the difference intuitively, but these three words can be confusing to anyone who’s trying to learn English as a foreign language. This is another reason why children should learn foreign languages from a young age.
Another way to deal with the inner critic is to set realistic expectations. Adults tend to hold themselves to a set of standards that they would not normally place on children. Does one expect a 3-year-old child to recite all of Shakespeare’s sonnets? Does one expect him or her to write a 20-page single-spaced literary critique of The Iliad? Then why does one expect to teach a child all its nuances in just three weeks?
Even if the child does not know what is being said, the important thing is to get used to hearing the language spoken as it is spoken in real life and not some stilted unrealistic dialog in a textbook. The human brain is indeed a marvel. When we constantly expose ourselves to a foreign language, the brain begins to pick up on syntax and basic grammar. The focus of Chinese learning, or any other learning, should be an improvement, not perfection.
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