Phonetics

I taught a woman how to read today. She has been in the beginning English class all summer, and I just started working with her this week. I realized immediately that she could not read, but for a few days we just worked through the class material verbally. She copied from the board without understanding what she was writing, and she repeated sentences after me not knowing what she was saying.

But today, we started at square one. I showed her how to hold a pencil. Then I wrote a capital A and made her write it correctly (I’m really into writing properly after having to write Chinese characters in proper stroke order; it really does matter!).

Then, I did a major throwback to when I was about three years old and would sit on my mom’s lap and do Hooked on Phonics every evening (Thank you, Mom!). Over and over, I had my student repeat “A, ah, apple; B, buh, ball; C, ck, cat, etc.” We went through the whole alphabet, learning to write, learning the names of the letters, learning the sounds each letter makes, and learning new words, too.

Next, I used a random worksheet the student had from class. It happened to be a lesson about health. I circled a word. First she said each letter: S-I-C-K. Then she slowly made the sound of each letter. Next, she put it all together.

She learned to read!

I had her read several words, and after each one she squeezed my hand and thanked me. After class, she gave me a big hug and kissed me on the cheek. Teaching her took a lot of patience. But she was so attentive and persistent. I’ve never seen anyone so happy before. I was pretty happy, too.

TESOL

(Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages)

This summer, I’ve been volunteering teaching English in Columbus. The free classes are offered four days a week at a community center. They are sponsored through a federal grant, and any adult who wants to learn English as a second language can attend.

Most of the students are from various countries in Africa: Sudan, Senegal, Guinea, Mauritania, and Ghana. (I had to study a map after my first day of class!) The students generally can speak their African languages and French – and I’ve become pretty decent at BS-ing my way through French.

Each class is two hours and is taught by a teacher employed by the community center. My job is to work one-on-one with the students who need extra help in the class.

Teaching is hard work. Not only do the students have no English skills, some of these adults are illiterate in their native languages. All of the students work hard; the class is free, and they wouldn’t be there if they didn’t want to come. But how do you explain English sentence structure to someone who doesn’t know what a verb is? How do you describe the difference between “we” and “they” if their language doesn’t distinguish between them the same way English does? How do you make them copy off the blackboard when they don’t know the alphabet? These are things I am learning how to teach. (It’s not impossible!)

Every day is a new challenge. But I’m learning a comprehensive method for teaching English. When I go back to China in September, I plan on offering free, elementary English courses. I taught English last time I was there, but I had no method… and I think I failed. But this time, I’m determined to succeed.