A journey through learning

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Here are the four lesson plans I planned for the two groups:

    Escuela 154 is an elementary public school located in Frutillar, a low-income neighborhood in San Carlos de Bariloche. 408 students are attending the school this year. There are nine groups from 1st to 6th grades in the morning and eight in the afternoon. There are two 7th grade groups which are in the school full time, from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm Monday to Thursday and from 8:30 am to 1:30 pm on Fridays. The teachers are Cristina Duran and Natalia Reggio. The students rotate between one group and the other, so my practicum involves both groups.  Here you can find the institutional report and the group analysis:  

I had to face a new challenge this year. From teaching very young learners on a bilingual school, I moved to teach 7th graders on a public school.  I had two groups of 7th graders simultaneously. The topic the English teacher was working on was food and drinks, so I planned for different lessons (two for each group) related to this topic. With division 18º, the work was based on healthy and unhealthy choices of meals. They were able to get to know the Eatwell plate, classify foods and drinks, write a food diary and draw their own plate. Games were part of the classes as well, and they got engaged.                            With the division 19º, the lessons focused on tastes and traditional food from other countries, so students had the opportunity to learn about other countries and nationalities. As a final project, they designed a banner with their information: name, age, nationality, li kes and dislikes.

The learning path is not linear and integrating skills, grammar, and vocab is essential to motivate students.  The activities must be meaningful to students and go beyond the linguistic approach, integrating other areas. The projects I worked on with primary school students brought biology, geography, and arts to class.  Moreover, the activities went from more controlled ones, with vocabulary related to the topic and grammar focus, to a project work.     Pinter (2016) sustains that vocabulary and grammar should be learned in a holistic way. This method is also exemplified by authors like Moon and Roth (2001), who emphasize the role played by context in teaching young learners. According to Slattery and Willis, “young learners acquire language unconsciously” (2001). The activities done in class should help this kind of acquisition. A project, for example, is a valuable resource to the integration of skills and it offers children a word of supported meaning t