TEACHING MATERIALS

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TEACHING MATERIALS 

This observation focused on teaching materials in grade 4, in a class of 14 students. They are 10-11 years old, and they have the English language 3 times a week.

The lesson was on reading. The Ss have had a previous reading and the teacher handling accuracy in pronunciation.

The materials were the usual passages from a textbook, a projector a blackboard used to stress grammar structures or explain the meaning of some new vocabulary, scissors, and glue. But I was more captivated by the way the teacher used the materials. For the reading, she shared small pieces of paper with ss, who had to read the sentences written on their respective papers individually, while the other ss listened. Each time the ss made a mistake, like not pronouncing the “s” at the end of a word, or mispronouncing specific vowel sounds, the teacher would stop him or her, and if necessary, would go to the board to make herself understood.

I found this approach really interesting because the ss were all involved in the reading process, as each had to read his or her own part. This also enabled the teacher to evaluate the reading skill of each student, and it was less boring because a ss didn’t have to read a long passage all alone or listen to the teacher as she read. The teacher who was very cooperative later showed me some teaching materials used in previous reading lessons. They were printed colorful posters illustrating elements from the reading passage, with words which the ss cut and pasted inside their books, long ledgers with enough space. I loved this tip! The teacher didn’t have to copy lengthy notes on the board for ss to recopy inside their books, which looked very attractive, interesting, and dynamic. I will definitely adopt this method in all my teachings.

Moreover, I was very pleased to see how deeply the school embraces diversity which was reflected even in the teaching materials. I could see many exotic cultures and all the races represented in the illustrations of the books. It was heartwarming for me to realize that I would not be a complete strange stranger to the young kids who were already familiar with African people. This was important for me to help me create rapport with my future students.

I was very happy with my new discoveries, and to actually see how the teacher’s creativity can make the teaching/learning process really fun!

 









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