August | 2018 | passion4theprofession

Because of the highly visual nature of many authentic resources, they can easily be used to introduce and reinforce new vocabulary because they provide a context for learning the words and phrases. Using authentic resources for the input phase of the lesson adds interest for the learners and injects real world connections.

Infographics

Infographics that illustrate results from a survey often provide visuals for the theme of the survey and give the context of what peoples’ preferences are. They offer the opportunity for students to make predictions about survey results and compare and contrast them with their own opinions.

Here is an example in Spanish about sports preferences around the world:

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Here’s one for leisure time activities in French:

And one for favorite foods in German:

And one for most ideal occupations in French:

And one for most trusted occupations in German:

And one for Italian for which region of Italy offers the best job opportunities:

Instead of learning about or practicing vocabulary related to body parts by looking at a drawing of a nondescript person, think about how much more engaging it will be for students to talk about body parts in the context of a famous soccer player’s injuries.

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Some examples of strategies for introducing and reinforcing thematic vocabulary through infographics include:

Initially covering up the labels on an infographic as the teacher introduces the new vocabulary and then revealing them while checking for understanding.
Students have a version of the infographic with blanks where the vocabulary words are and a word bank with the new words. As the teacher introduces the new vocabulary, students write the appropriate words and phrases into the blanks.
Students are given a version of the infographic in pieces. They assemble the “puzzle” as the vocabulary is introduced.

More examples:

A. School supplies in the context of shopping for back to school (Spanish):

B. Food in the context of what your pet can and cannot eat (Spanish):

White wooden wall texture, old painted pine board.

C. Clothing in the context of packing a suitcase (Spanish):

D. Modes of transportation in the context of how people get to work (French and Spanish):

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E. Rooms of the house in the context of saving energy in your home (French):

I invite you to visit my Pinterest boards, many of which are organized by topic, to find infographics aligned to your vocabulary themes for introduction and for reinforcement:

Using authentic text with young language learners can present multiple challenges. Students in Pre-kindergarten, Kindergarten and the primary grades are often not yet literate in their first language. As a result, using authentic resources that are heavy in written text are not appropriate to use with most young learners.

Picture books

Early language learners can benefit from being read to by the teacher. Picture books provide visuals that support the students’ understanding. Through picture books, teachers can model ways to derive meaning from text using reading strategies such as guessing meaning using pictures and guessing words that look or sound like their English equivalent. In addition, young language learners can interact with websites and apps that offer picture books that, in some cases, can be read to students. Some examples include:

Epic books (Spanish and Chinese)

Children’s Books Forever (multiple languages)

Songs, Rhymes, Finger Plays and Poems

Because songs, rhymes, and poems often have repetition and rhyming words, they are very user-friendly for young language learners. Adding gestures to songs, rhymes, and poems will assist students in comprehension of the text.

One source for target language songs and rhymes for multiple languages is called Mama Lisa’s World:

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https://www.mamalisa.com/

On YouTube, you can find children’s songs in the target language (but can be difficult to verify as authentic) which contain a video component, like the following example:

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https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2xjgvWb9cx5F637XjsUNxw

Cartoons

At the very heart of the raison d’être of cartoons is to engage young children. Cartoons in any language appeal to young language learners. There are many target language cartoons available online through YouTube and can be aligned to thematic units such as family, celebrations, travel, and making friends.

Click the image below to visit my webpage where I have linked several cartoon series in various languages.

Visuals for Speaking and Writing

Although not all visuals can be verified as “authentic text,” there are visuals available that have target language contexts. The Pinterest board linked below offers a selection of visuals that can be used for practicing the interpretive mode, leading to both speaking and writing prompts.

Infographics

The best infographics to use with young language learners are those that are highly visual balanced with minimal written text. Here is a link to my Pinterest board called “Authentic Text for Young Language Learners.”

Fine Art

Interpreting pieces of art can be the basis for speaking and writing prompts for young language learners. Not only are visuals a type of text, but by being fine art, a cultural context is added. When students describe a painting, they can talk about the colors, the items in the picture, their location in relationship to one another (prepositions of location), the time of day, weather, describing the people in the painting, etc.

A great example is VanGogh’s Bedroom at Arles: