sáng kiến kinh nghiệm tiếng anh tiểu học EXPERIENCE INITIATIVE SOME EXPERIENCES TO LEARN VOCABULARY EFECTIVELY FOR PRIMARY STUDENTS

EDUCATION AND TRAINING DERPARTMENT
CITY EDUCATION AND TRAINING OFFICE
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EXPERIENCE INITIATIVE
SOME EXPERIENCES TO LEARN VOCABULARY
EFECTIVELY FOR PRIMARY STUDENTS

Writer:
Position:
School:


1. INTRODUCTION
1.1. Reasons for choosing the topic:
English is an international language, it has a great role in many fields such
as diplomacy economy, commerce, science and technology. Because of opening
policies of our state and party and globalization, many and many people use
foreign languages, especially English. English is used by many classes in our
society. Following that trend, there has been an increare in teaching and learning
English at primary schools in Viet Nam. It gives students chance to learn an
international language.
English is a new and difficult subject for primary students. When they first
learn English, they must learn vocabulary. And vocabulary is one of the
important part of a foreign language. In all skills such as: speaking, listening,
reading and writing, we need to have vocabulary. In order to have good
vocabulary knowledge, we must learn hard and enrich our vocabulary day by
day. It is very difficult for primary students because they have not been the
awareness of learning a foreign language and just because they do not feel the
importantce of learning English. But they have strong points such as: They can
memorize the words well and they easily imitate their teachers but they don’t

memorize long. This makes them afraid of vocabulary and have wrong writing
of vocabulary and pronounce the words incorrectly or they are not eager to
communicate with each other in English in each English lesson. So how can
they enrich their vocabulary? How can we make them eager to learn English?
This is a question for all of us - English teachers.
With my experience of teaching, I would like to introduce "The
experience in learning vocabulary effectively for primary students"
1.2. The purpose of research:
Before going into the specific issue, we agree that the mainstream methods
of teaching foreign languages is integration, meaning that new words should be
taught in context. Students should learn how to use new words and new
structures for communication in foreign languages.
Right from the beginning, teachers should consider the various procedures
for teaching, testing and consolidating vocabulary.
Should all the new words be taught or not? How should teachers teach
vocabulary effectively? The purpose of this initiative is to help:
- Construct intuitive tools to introduce new words.
- Ensure that students understand the structure, vocabulary applied to the
structure to improve communication functions.
- Deepen vocabulary in memory of students through the sample questions
and practice exercises.
- Help the lessons become more vibrant and lively.
- Students understand the new words in the classroom.
- Students' vocabulary significantly increase.
- The weak students use the vocabulary in simple sentences and then in more
complex sentences.
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1.3. The subject of research:

I have applied alternately to the lessons to the lessons in English textbook
grade 1,2, 3, 4, 5 and have performed for students in grade 2 at Quảng Tâm
Primary school.
1.4. The methods of research
In order to implement this initiative, I have chosen some of the following
methods:
- Reading documents that relate to the research issue.
- Survey method for comments.
- Testing method.
- Pedagogical observation method
- Method of assessment.

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2. CONTENT
2.1. Rationale
The purpose of foreign language teaching is not to give students knowledge
of the language, but the ultimate goal of teaching foreign languages in general
and English in particular is teaching students the ability to communicate in
English. The ability of students to communicate through skills: Listening,
Speaking, Reading and Writing.
- For any languages in the world, to communicate with it, we are required
to have vocabulary. Vocabulary is an indispensable component in the language
used for communication activities and an important part of the language
learning.
- In English we can not train and develop the four skills of listening,
speaking, reading and writing of students without basing on the foundation of
vocabulary. Indeed, without a necessary variety of vocabulary, students can not
speak, listen, read or write well however good they may be at structures.

The findings of the “National Reading Panel” indicate that vocabulary
instruction does lead to gains in comprehension, but that methods must be
appropriate to the age and ability of the reader. Using both indirect and direct
teaching methods to build students’ oral and reading vocabularies should be a
part of a balanced reading program. Indirect methods would include read-alouds,
shared reading and writing experiences, and independent reading. Direct
teaching of vocabulary should respond to the needs of the students and should
actively engage them in the process (National Reading Panel, 2000).
Learning vocabulary may not be the most exciting thing students do school,
but by using interesting and fun ways to teach vocabulary words, teachers can
increase student interest and help with both memorization and retention.
2.2. The situation of the problem:
Under the current curriculum distribution, English accounts for four
periods per week in primary school. Each lesson of units normally has new
words. In oredr to teach vocabulary more vividly and effectively, teachers
should use pictures or flashcards for illustration, which enables students to easily
remember words and attract their attention to the lessons.
Of course, there are few difficulties in vocabulary learning. I believe
vocabulary is the most comprehensive and most difficult aspect of English for
foreign learners to master thoroughly. Students should concentrate first on
learning the most frequently used and therefore most important English
vocabulary for their practical real life needs.
However, besides a number of children who learn vocabulary seriously,
many students are still lazy at learning vocabulary.
Moreover, it is also very difficult to check or guide them to learn at home.
Because English is a foreign language and parents do not always know it well. It
is also very difficult to the manage students' learning at home.
Also, the way students learn vocabulary is also worthy of attention.
Students often learn vocabulary by reading words in English and trying to
remember them in Vietnamese. They are easy to forget and get confused with so

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many words. As a result, many students get bored with learning. Therefore,
teachers need pay attention to the psychology of students.
I have taken a small recent survey among 4th grade students at Dong Ve II
primary school by this exercise to test the students’ memory of words.
*Exercise: Write a dictation
My best friend is Hoang Ha Linh. She is ten years old. She lives at 150 An
Dương Vương Street in ThanhHoa city. She lives with her mother, father and her
younger brother. She is a student at Quảng Tâm primary school. He is tall and
thin. She has long black hair. Her close friends are Van, Dung and me. Her
telephone number is 0918 292 545.
I obtained the following results:
Class
Total
Wrong writing of words
Correct writing of words
2A
2B
2C

42
38
42

15 students (35,7%)
19 students (50%)
17 students (40,5%)

27 students (64,3%)
19 students (50%)
25 students (59,5%)

The result showed that the number of students who are not good at
vocabulary is still comparatively high. To improve the situation, I decided to try
to apply some my teaching experience to vocabulary teaching.
2.3. The solution to the problem
As a English teacher, I always encourage my students to learn English and I
use more interesting pictures and educational equipments and teach my students
many English songs in order to get the students’ attention to their learning.
How can teachers help them learn vocabulary well? Here are some
techniques
2.3.1. Learn the vocabulary by real images
When I teach lesson about the weather, there are some words about the
weather: cloudy, sunny, rainy…., I draw the picture of the words about the
weather
Eg: Teacher draws

 

Students:

có mây

- T reads
cloudy
- Ss repeat (twice) cloudy
- T writes and reads cloudy
- Ss read again

cloudy
After students read in chorus, I
individually.

có nắng
sunny
sunny
sunny
sunny
call each student to

có mưa
rainy
rainy
rainy
rainy
read the words
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I listen and correct their pronunciation and ask them to read again the words
they pronounce incorrectly. And then I ask them to play the game “ What and
Where”. The aim of this game is to help students remember the pronunciation of
the words immediately.
When the period has five minutes left I guide them to play the game "Slap
the board". By the end of this lesson, students will be able to help students
remember the meaning of the words. I divide the class into 2 groups.
Eg: The questions with “How”
Group 1
Group 2

wide
metre
long
deep
thick
heavy
high
fast
bridge
well













2.3.1.1. Learn vocabulary basing on the structure:
- When I teach comparative adjectives, I call some students to go to the
board or use some pictures and ask the rest of the class to look at them then
describe their friends.

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The girl is taller than the boy.

The boy is bigger than the girl.
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Or I use the real things to make comparison
eg: I pick two rulers and ask the students to make comparison
2.3.1.2. Learn vocabulary according to the topic
In this lesson, students remember all the words, I ask students to write
down the words they have learnt:
Sports
Clothes
Fruits
Subjects
Food
- football
- jacket
- bananas
- English
- bread
- swimming
- blouse
- apples
- Music
- rice
- badminton
- shirt
- oranges

- Vietnamese
- fish
- tennis
- trousers
- mangoes
- Mathematics
- meat
- table tennis
- T- shirt
- pine- apple - Art
- beef
- basketball
- jeans
- grapes
- Scien
- chicken
- base ball
- shoes
- lemon
- A.T
- noodle
-

Or I give some vocabulary of the topic combining real pictures. This way
helps them remember quickly and fully accurately.
Ex: shirts, trousers, jeans, shorts, dresses … are clothes

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- bananas, apples, oranges….are fruits

8


- rice, meat, fish . …are food

(download pictures from Internet: www.google pictures of clothes; www.google
pictures of food; www.google pictures of fruits)

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I also ask students to revise the words they have learnt by playing games
Eg: I write down one word on the board and ask students to write all the
supporting words

Summer

Spring

seasons
Winter

Autumn

By doing this, I think students remember the words easily and they find no
difficulty in doing “choosing exercises”.
2.3.2. Revising words by learning songs
Basing on the original songs, I can compose the other songs and ask students

to remember the words in these songs. They can sing along and learn new words
easily in their lessons such as: warm- up, consolidation …or when they have a rest.
Students can sing individually, in pairs, in groups or all class…
Eg: Revising the colour words by singing “Bac Kim Thang” song:

- Revising the words by singing “ Family Member” song:
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2.3.3. Revising words at home:
“Study must be together with practice”. That saying is always true.
Learning words is not enough in class but also at home. I ask them to learn some
new words each day or spend thirty minutes each day learning new words. This
helps them form their good study habbit.
After a period of learning vocabulary, I ask them to write down the words
at home, each word must be written down five times until they remember the
meaning, the pronunciation of these words. By doing this, I think students will
remember all the words they have learnt. Beside asking them to write down the
words in their book, they can write the words down anywhere if it is possible
such as: a piece of paper, a board… so that they can learn the words anywhere or
any time.
eg:
Traffic lights
Health
Đèn giao thông
Sức khỏe
Headache

Đau đầu

Turn left
Rẽ trái

2.3.4. Learning vocabulary anywhere
Beside learning vocabulary in class or at home, I also advise students to
have a piece of paper or a small notebook, whenever they study or find new
words they can write the words down in a piece of paper or a small notebook in
both side: one side is in Vietnamese, the other is in English. By doing this, they
can learn vocabulary anywhere so they can remember the words easily. It is one
of the best ways to enrich their knowledge of vocabulary. Beside that, I
encourage students to watch foreign films or cartoons in English so that they can
practice their listening skill and they have chance to imitate the way each word
that is pronounced correctly. So they have good memory, pronunciation of the
words.
Eg:
The front side
The back side
Sports
-

football
swimming
badminton
tennis
table tennis
baseball
basketball

Thể thao
-

bóng đá
bơi
cầu lơng
quần vợt
bóng bàn
bóng chày
bóng rổ

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2.4. The effect of initiative application
Above is my experience of teaching vocabulary that I have had after many
years of teaching and studying. Here is the reasonable result:
I find that students are more confident, they are eager to write words. They
pronounce the words correctly, they are better at reading and writing skill,
especially they are more self-confident in communication inside or outside
classes. By taking this survey, I can find each students’ weak points and strong
points so that I can have the best methods of teaching which are suitable for
each student’s level.
Excellent
Good
Average
Below average
Class
Total %
Total

%
Total
%
Total
%
2A
12
28,6
15
35,7
10
23,8
5
11,9
2B
7
18,4
10
26,3
14
36,9
7
18,4
2C
10
23,8
12
28,6
17
40,5

3
7,1
* The experience:
By taking this survey, I have drawn some experiences:
In order to improve the quality of teaching, each teacher must be
enthusiastic with career or try their best to study, to find the interesting methods
of teaching which attract students so that they get interes ted in each period of
learning English.
We should encourage students to learn English especially we must pay
much attention to the weak students. We should combine knowledge of many
other subjects to provide the best periods of learning English to the children. We
can use cartoons, beautiful songs, interesting games…to help students remember
the words easily.

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3. THE CONCLUSIONCONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
3.1. Conclusion:
This is only the first step results in the implementation process to improve
teaching methods. I have learnt more from collegues, teachers who have
extensive experience in teaching and education and from my own reality of
teaching English in classes 4, as well as theoretical study. I have experienced in
innovative teaching methods.
Use songs and music, real life objects, or puzzles, but the more teachers
mix the better. Remember the difference between recognizing and producing
words: to practice recognition the words have to be supplied by teachers; then
students use them to fill in blanks or match them. For students to effectively and
accurately produce vocabulary, they have to spontaneously recall the words.
3.2. Recommendations:

3.2.1. To the leaders:
- I would like leaders to facilitate teachers study conditions, reference, selflearning, self- training to improve and enhance the quality of teaching.
- The school should provide some additional equipment for subjects like
English: the pictures of each lesson in the textbook and, if possible, please
provide players, video tapes, lab for English subject.
- English clubs or thematic sessions on innovative teaching methods,
information technology application to teaching as well as sample lessons for
hard lessons should be organized regularly for teachers to be able learn and
exchange experience with each other.
With the positive and satisfactory results I have obtained, personally, I
would like to propose to the Staff of Administrators at Dong Ve 2 primary
school to facilitate the school-wide application.
3.2.2. To the teachers:
- Be positive more every day, creat more gentle and comfortable learning
environment.
- Teacher should prepare lessons carefully before class.
- Prepare content for students by establishing discussing questions and the
possible suggested answers.
- Play a role as a guider who helps student in learning activities.
- Have students work in pairs or groups so that students can help each other
as much as possible.
I also would like to encorage Vietnamese teschers to have more confidence
and experience in teaching vocabulary even though we are not native speakers
of English. With full advanced preparation, we can all be experts in teaching
English.
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This is an initiative by my personal experiences drawn from practical
teaching, thus, it would not be surely avoid deficiencies. I personally expect the

interest and comments from the leaders and colleagues.

Headmaster’s signature

Quảng Đông, March 30th 2021
I swear this thesis is written by me
without copying content from others!
Written by

Lê Thị Yến
Nguyễn Thị Thúy Hồng

REFERENCES
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1, Use melody of " Bac Kim Thang" “Family Members” songs
2, Download images from Sach mem
3, Download images for www.google pictures of fruits from Internet
4, Download images for www. google pictures of food from Internet
5, Download images for www.google pictures of clothes from Internet

THE RESULT OF EXCELENT EXPERIENCES ACHIEVED
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The implementer: Nguyễn Thị Thúy Hồng
Position: English Teacher
School: Quảng Tâm Primary School
STT

1

NAME OF
EXCELENT
EXPERIENCES

LEVEL

The experience in learning
vocabulary effectively for
primary pupils

Nothing

TIME

2020- 2021

INDEX
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Content
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1. Reasons for choosing topics
1.2. The purpose of research
1.3. The subject of research
1.4. The methods of research
2. CONTENT

2.1. Rationnale
2.2. The situation of the problem
2.3. Matter content
2.4. The effect of initiative application
3. THE CONCLUSION AND RECOMENDATIONS
3.1. Conclusion
3.2. Recomendations

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