教师说 I 创造富有吸引力的全英环境，让孩子自然爱上说英语 An All-English Environment, Naturally Spoken

让学英语的孩子开口说话，有时确实不太容易。他们可能会觉得用第二语言表达太难，于是不自觉地缩回母语的“安全区”。要改变这种情况，关键在于创造一个让孩子感到安全的环境——在这里，他们敢于练习，也敢于说出真实的想法。

实现这一目标的一个有效方法，就是充分发挥班级团队协作的力量。当孩子们听到老师之间用英语交流时，他们便获得了更多接触真实口语的机会。听到同伴也在使用这门他们正在学习的语言，有助于建立孩子内心的安全感，从而慢慢对开口说话产生好感。在K2B班，我们团队努力做到：凡是孩子们能听到的老师之间的对话，都只用英语进行。这不仅为他们提供了良好的听力输入，也帮助他们积累了日常用语的真实词汇。

孩子学习语言，核心在于“多听、多模仿”。当他们发现身边的中外教老师在日常生活中都用英语交流——问好、聊天、讨论午餐、沟通活动——他们会逐渐意识到：英语不是一门需要刻意去“学”的课程，而是生活中自然使用的沟通工具。

Rena和我初次见面时，我们的第一句话是她用中文对我说：“我不会说英语，你也不会说中文，我们怎么交流呢？”而现在，她的英语水平在班里可是数一数二的。

除了老师之间说英语，我还有一个习惯：我会尽可能多地出现在孩子的各种场景里——不光是上课，还有户外活动、吃饭、自由玩耍。这样做的好处是，孩子有更多机会和我自然对话，而不是“被叫起来回答问题”。我也能在孩子情绪不好、玩玩具、不小心摔倒的时候，用英语自然地安慰、引导。

久而久之，孩子们便不再觉得 “和外教说话” 是一件紧张的事，英语交流也成了日常里的自然小事。

更为重要的是，孩子们不仅应该学习英语，更应该“在英语中学习”。其实，在我的外教课上，我们已经在这样做了——孩子学习英语最好的方式，就是置身于用英语授课的环境。这样的课堂会带给他们尚未掌握的词汇和句型结构，也能教会他们用目标语言去思考，而不是只会复述背过的短语。

在我看来，有一类课程最为重要，却常常被忽视，那就是圆圈时间。它让我们有机会教给孩子那些真正能帮助他们自由表达的日常用语。在圆圈时间里，我会通过“转身交流”等活动，鼓励孩子们彼此对话——不依赖老师，而是依靠他们自己的语言积累。这也是一个很好的时机，让孩子们去了解同伴的情绪、探索对世界的理解，并在人与人之间建立真实的连接。

圆圈时间就是大家围坐成一个圈，聊一些日常的话题，比如“你今天开心吗？”“周末做了什么？”。

但这里有一个关键：不是老师说，孩子答；而是让孩子跟孩子说。

我会让他们“turn and talk”——扭头跟旁边的小伙伴用英语聊几句。刚开始，有些孩子会愣住，不知道该说什么。但慢慢地，他们会说“I'm happy（我很开心）”、“I played with my dog（我和我的小狗一起玩了。）”。

有一次，一个小朋友说“I'm sad because my mom didn't let me eat candy（我很难过，因为妈妈不让我吃糖。）”。旁边的小朋友居然拍了拍他的肩膀说“It's ok”。

那个瞬间，我觉得比教会他们一个单词更有意义——因为他们开始用英语表达情绪、安慰别人了。

我们幼儿园的课程基础是IEYC（国际早期教育课程）。在IEYC里，我最看重的不是孩子“记住”了什么，而是他们会不会把已经知道的东西，用到现在正在学的事情上。

通过有趣且富有吸引力的活动，再加上深入的讨论，我们一起探索每一个主题。比如学“交通工具”的时候，我不会直接告诉他们“这是公交车、这是飞机”。我会先问：“你们来学校坐的什么呀？”“周末爸爸妈妈带你们坐过什么？”

孩子们会抢着说：“car！”“bus！”“airplane！”

然后我们再一起用英语讨论这些交通工具的区别、哪个快、哪个可以坐很多人。

不仅如此，我还将IEYC的主题进一步延伸，设计成了每周一次的“展示与讲述”（Show & Tell）环节。这让孩子们有机会在适合自己水平的层面上，去思考并运用语言。每个孩子带一件自己喜欢的东西来，站在大家面前讲一讲。

Cici第一次上台的时候，脸红红的，声音小得几乎听不见。但她一直坚持每周都讲。到学期末的时候，她已经能大大方方地讲两分钟，还会自己做动作。

她妈妈后来跟我说：“她现在在家也主动要‘演讲’，让全家人坐好听她说。”

这就是Show & Tell的意义——不是练英语，是练胆量、练表达、练自信。

最后想说说英语读写。

很多家长会问：“孩子认识多少单词了？”但在我看来，比认字更重要的是——孩子理解他读的是什么。

读写能力，不仅仅是指能认字、会写字，更是要理解我们所读、所写的内容。在晨间阅读时，我会花时间向孩子们提出“概念检查问题”，考察他们对所读内容的理解。比如读完一页，我会问：“你觉得接下来会发生什么？”

当他们回答时，我会鼓励他们用完整的句子来表达。有时候他们会给出天马行空的答案，甚至完全跟故事没关系——但我还是会欣然接受。因为这说明他们听懂了我的问题，并且在动脑筋。

在我们的“高频词故事”活动中，我会引导他们在阅读页面下方的句子之前，先描述图片中的内容。我会先让他们看图片、描述图片里有什么，然后再读下面的句子。这样做，孩子不是“照着念”，而是先猜测、再验证。这鼓励他们更自由地表达，并展现自己日益增强的预测能力。

有一个小男孩，每次读到“I see a...”的时候，都会自己编一个词填进去，有时候是“dragon”，有时候是“pizza”。全班都会笑，但他特别得意。

我觉得，敢猜、敢说、不怕错，比认识一百个单词更重要。

Encouraging children learning English to speak up can indeed be quite a challenge at times. They may find it too difficult to express themselves in a second language, and so unconsciously retreat to the ‘safety zone’ of their mother tongue. To change this, the key lies in creating an environment where children feel secure -one in which they dare to practise and dare to voice their true thoughts.

An effective way to achieve this is to harness the power of teamwork. When children hear teachers communicating in English, they gain more opportunities to be exposed to authentic spoken language. Hearing their peers using the language they are learning helps to build a sense of security within them, gradually fostering a positive attitude towards speaking. In Class K2B, our team strives to ensure that any conversations between teachers that the children can hear are conducted entirely in English. This not only provides them with excellent listening input but also helps them build a repertoire of authentic everyday vocabulary.

The core of a child’s language learning lies in ‘listening and imitating’. When they observe both Chinese and foreign teachers using English in their daily interactions - greeting one another, chatting, discussing lunch, and planning activities - they gradually realise that English is not a subject to be ‘studied’ deliberately, but a natural tool for communication in everyday life.

When Rena and I first met, our first conversation was her saying, in Chinese, I don't speak English and you don't speak Chinese, how will we communicate? And now she has some of the best English in the class.

Aside from the teachers speaking English, I have another habit: I make a point of being present in as many of the children’s daily situations as possible—not just during lessons, but also during outdoor activities, mealtimes and free play. The benefit of this is that the children have more opportunities to converse with me naturally, rather than simply being ‘called upon to answer questions’. It also allows me to comfort and guide them in English naturally when they’re feeling upset, fighting over toys, or have accidentally fallen over.

Over time, the children no longer find ‘speaking to a foreign teacher’ a nerve-wracking experience, and communicating in English has become a natural part of their daily lives.

More importantly, children should not merely learn English, but rather ‘learn through English’. In fact, we are already doing this in our lessons with native-speaking teachers - the best way for children to learn English is to immerse themselves in an environment where lessons are conducted in English. Such lessons expose them to vocabulary and sentence structures they have not yet mastered, and teach them to think in the target language, rather than simply parroting memorised phrases.

In my view, there is one type of lesson that is of paramount importance yet is often overlooked: circle time. It gives us the opportunity to teach children the everyday expressions that will truly help them express themselves freely. During circle time, I use activities such as ‘turn and talk’ to encourage the children to converse with one another - not relying on the teacher, but drawing on their own language skills. This is also an excellent opportunity for children to understand their peers’ emotions, explore their understanding of the world, and forge genuine connections with one another.

Circle time involves everyone sitting in a circle and chatting about everyday topics, such as ‘Are you happy today?’ or ‘What did you do at the weekend?’.

But here’s the key: it’s not the teacher speaking and the children answering; rather, it’s the children talking to one another.

I get them to ‘turn and talk’ - to turn to the child next to them and have a few words in English. At first, some children freeze, not knowing what to say. But gradually, they’ll say things like “I’m happy” or “I played with my dog”.

Once, a little boy said, “I’m sad because my mum didn’t let me eat sweets.” The child next to him actually patted him on the shoulder and said, “It’s OK.”

In that moment, I felt it was more meaningful than teaching them a single word - because they had begun to express their emotions and comfort others in English.

Our nursery curriculum is based on the IEYC (International Early Years Curriculum). Within the IEYC, what I value most is not what the children ‘remember’, but whether they can apply what they already know to what they are currently learning.

Through fun and engaging activities, combined with in-depth discussions, we explore each topic together. For example, when learning about ‘means of transport’, I don’t simply tell them, ‘This is a bus, this is a plane’. Instead, I’ll start by asking: “What did you take to come to school today?” or “What did your mum and dad take you on at the weekend?”

The children will eagerly shout out: “Car!” “Bus!” “Airplane!”

Then we’ll discuss these modes of transport together in English – what makes them different, which is faster, and which can carry lots of people.

Not only that, but I also expanded on the IEYC themes to create a weekly ‘Show & Tell’ session. This gives the children the opportunity to think and use language at a level appropriate to their abilities. Each child brings in an item they like and stands in front of the class to talk about it.

The first time Cici went up to the front, was bright red in the face and spoke so softly she was barely audible. But she persisted and spoke every week. By the end of the term, she was able to speak confidently for two minutes, even adding her own gestures.

Her mother later told me, ‘Now she asks to “give a speech” at home too, making the whole family sit down and listen to her.’

This is the true meaning of Show & Tell - it’s not about practising English, but about building courage, honing communication skills, and fostering self-confidence.

Finally, I’d like to talk about reading and writing in English.

Many parents ask, ‘How many words does my child know?’ But in my view, what matters more than recognising words is whether the child understands what they are reading.

Literacy is not merely about being able to recognise and write words; it is about understanding the content we read and write. During our morning reading sessions, I take the time to ask the children ‘concept-checking questions’ to assess their understanding of what we’ve read. For example, after reading a page, I might ask, ‘What do you think will happen next?’

When they answer, I encourage them to express themselves in full sentences. Sometimes they come up with wildly imaginative answers, or even ones that have nothing to do with the story at al l- but I still welcome them. Because this shows they have understood my question and are using their brains.