Beginner Classes
Beginner classes are a special set of slides aimed at Japanese students who are new to English or can only construct basic sentences. These slides have both Japanese and English on them and are generally taught by bilingual students. The slides follow an entirely different and easier topic to the other Daily slides.
A crucial thing at this level is to build student confidence.
Beginner classes are aimed at Entry students (see our Level Guide). The slides are in the following order:
- Front Page
- Words
- Phrases/Sentence Building
- Picture Description
- Skit
- Conversation Corner
- How Do You Say This In English?
- Next Lesson
1. Front Page
Just like with other slides, the front page contains the title, an image and a warm up question. But in the case of beginner, the question has a Japanese translation and a suggested phrase to help the students express themselves.
At this level, it's good to model and give examples. You can even explain a little in Japanese. Allow the students to answer the question and encourage them to use the example phrase.
You may have to repeat the question and give additional examples to make sure the students understand.
You may change or alter the question or ask follow up questions if the situation demands. But be careful with going into deeper discussions in these classes.
2. Words
The words slide is used to teach students some useful language related to the topic. Each slide has a list of English words and their Japanese equivalent. The slide also has helpful phrases at the bottom.
Use this slide to warm the students up and get them speaking English. You could ask them to explain definitions or get them to construct simple sentences using the words. Sometimes it's good to drill pronunciations too.
3. Phrases/Sentence Building
This slide has a list of example sentences with the weekly phrases highlighted in red. Below each is a translation in Japanese. At the bottom of the page, the phrases are repeated so the students can fill in the blanks with their own words.
You can get the students to read through the example sentences. Maybe you could talk through the meaning of the sentences in simple English or Japanese.
Get the students to create their own sentences using the sentence building. If students struggle, encourage them by giving examples or offering words they could use.
4. Picture Description
This slide has a single picture and a list of phrases to help describe what is happening in the picture. The slide will also have a question to help ellicit answers and a helpful phrase.
Encourage the students to use the sentences to describe the situation. You can use the prompt question, or you could ask your own questions, but be careful with low level students as they rely on the slides a lot more. You can also encourage them to create their own sentences from scratch if you think they are handling the task wll.
3. Skit
The skit is practice conversation with key phrases. Each line has a Japanese translation below it. It's a good chance for students to see an example conversation and practice speaking English.
The skit is great to help less confident students start talking and a good opportunity to teach new vocabulary. Don't be afraid to correct student's pronunciation and drill it with them. Beginner classes are the perfect opportunity to get the students understanding basic pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary. Be careful not to overwhelm the students with too much information.
Try to ensure each student gets a chance to read each role. If you have a 6-person class it can be challenging, so in that case make sure each student gets a go speaking.
4. Conversation Corner
This slide is a simplified version of what you see in the Daily Slides. It has a list of questions and answers with blanks for the students to fill in with their own words.
This is your chance to get the students using their own English and build a conversation. Get 2 students to read this through and alternate to get them to practice.
This is a great chance for the students to practice talking to each other without too much help from the teacher. Use this to build their confidence.
5. How Do You Say This In English?
This slide has a list of Japanese phrases numbered 1 to 5.
Encourage the students to try and translate the phrase into an English sentence. You can then provide corrections and help them make a natural sentence.
This is another great slide for building student confidence with English.
6. Next Lesson
This is a simple slide showing next lesson's topic and giving the warm up topic question. Just like the front page Japanese translations and an answer phrase are provided.
Most classes don't get time to use this slide, but feel free to show them it at the end or suggest they start prepping for the next lesson.