Communication Human communication is an act by which we establish contact with others to share some information.

Human being is constantly participating in processes of communication. Interactions take place via spoken or written language, which use words, although we can use other means such as gestures, the voice pitch, etc.; even our silences connote some intention. Communication is the most powerful tool in the learning/ teaching process. Learning other languages increases our potential to communicate, meet people, other cultures and therefore becoming more competent in this globalized world. Communication is a process of production and comprehension of messages so it should be represented as a cycle instead of a lineal process. Communication elements:

Message: Information to transmit. Messenger: The person who sends the message. Receiver: The person who receives the message. The code: The set of signs and rules that both sender and receiver share. Channel: The means of communication. Noise: The noises are those barriers that affect the quality of the communication. Feedback is the reaction (verbal or non- verbal) from the receiver. Context plays an important role since depending on the context the same message can be interpreted in different ways. It is the situation in which the conversation takes place and includes all the elements surrounding: - Field refers to the situation in which the text is functioning. E.g. Formal or informal. - Mode refers to the function of the speech within the conversation, i.e. the way the message is expressed. It includes also the channel. - Tenors are the participants within a given communication and the role they play (friends, colleagues).

Language as the main communicative system Verbal communication uses both oral and written words to exchange messages. Language is the most important instrument of communication. Royal Decree 1513/2006 defines language as the principal vehicle for human thinking, the most powerful tool to interpret and represent the reality, and the main responsible of the learning process. Communicative competence includes the mastery of four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) for a wide range of situations and purposes. Communicative competence could be defined as the ability to use the language in a practical and successful way depending on the context, situation in order to achieve our communication goals. Learning another language implies the mastery of four communicative skills, two orals (listening and speaking) and two graphics (reading and writing), but also the knowledge of different sociocultural aspects. Spoken language Spoken language requires the phonological and auditory system and brain areas to associate sounds with their meaning (objects or situations). The development of spoken language will follow three periods: 1. Pre- linguistic period: During the first year of life the children imitate sounds, cry, whisper 2. Linguistic development period: From the 12th to the 18th month the children produce isolated words. Up to the 24th month involves the two- words period. 3. Perfecting period: From the age of 4 onwards, acquisition of the syntactic rules allows children to produce an unlimited number of new sentences. Oral skills, both listening and speaking, have associated: rhythm, intonation and stress. In order to develop oral language we can use a wide range of activities. We can find the followings: Listening activities: Songs, podcast, stories, poems, jokes, commercials, etc. Activities based on dialogues: Role plays, interviews, discussions, expositions, telephone conversations, board games as Taboo, etc. We can support the students comprehension with the combination of different visual and auditory aids such as draws, pictures, gestures, sounds, noises, onomatopoeia, flashcards or guessing games. Written language Written language is the representation of language in a textual medium through the use of a set of signs or symbols. It requires mastering 4 main aspects: 1. Reading is a process of interpreting; a sender encodes information that a receiver must decode using the same code. 2. Writing is the process by which a person encodes textual information. This technique or mean of expression can become an art. 3. Spelling is the writing of a word with the necessary letters and in an accepted standard order. 4. Composition is the process of creating written works or pieces of literature. E.g. Poetry.

A comparison between spoken and written language SPOKEN LANGUAGE Human language is mainly oral. It uses sounds through the voice. Requires human link, since at least two interlocutors must be present to communicate. Requires more fluency, is more spontaneous and allows real- time modifications. WRITTEN LANGUAGE The command of oral language is necessary for the later acquisition of written language. It uses textual signs or symbols. Can be done alone.

Requires more accuracy. Its basically a conscious process since gives us more time to think what we want to say, and the text can be planned and edited. Its more elaborate and literary (nonetheless, with respect to), avoids redundancies and uses Complex sentence structures.

Its less elaborate (but, about), repetition is common and uses Simple sentence structures: Subjectverb- object. Feedback is immediate.

May or not to have feedback.

Graphic 1.Differences between spoken and written language Non- Verbal communication Non- verbal communication has been defined as communication without words. According to recent research, more than 90% of we want to communicate relies on nonverbal components. It includes body movements, postures, gestures, facial expressions, eye contact, touch, distance between interlocutors and tone of voice among others. Nonverbal communication enriches and completes the message among the interlocutors. Non-verbal behavior cannot be controlled easily so messages are usually more genuine. They express inner feelings, thoughts and in many areas non- verbal communication is more effective than verbal. E.g. To explain directions, shapes This kind of communication is very important in foreign language area because improves comprehension, especially at the first levels when the linguistic competence is still low. Activities to work non- verbal communication Here we have some activities to work non- verbal communication. Most of them are based on Total Physical Response method. TPR activities imply as it name says that students must respond physically to words and vocabulary connected with actions.

For example: Classroom daily language: Students follow rules and routines established in the class at the beginning of the school year. E.g. Open the book, write the date Imperatives/ Instructions: Children are asked to do different actions. E.g. Stand up, close your eyes Games: We can play identification games, guessing games, memory games, sound games, drawing games Drama: Representation and mime of actions, words, feelings, storytelling, short video clips Extralinguistic strategies Extralinguistic learning strategies focus on how learners manage a conversation when their knowledge of the target language is limited. We can distinguish between: Reduction strategies: The learner avoids taking risk when using the language through minimal expression or non- interactive listening role among others. Achievement strategies: The speaker uses all his or her language resources to convey meaning. A learner using achievement strategies would be more successful in an interactional situation. Achievement strategies are vital in case, for example, of inability to retrieve a word or not knowing a technical term. For instance: o Improvisation. o Looking for a substitute. o Literal translation. o Simplification. o Generalization. o Paraphrase. o Non- verbal communication (body language): gesticulation, mime, point out etc. A learner chooses from these strategies according to the situation he or she is in, the meaning he or she wants to convey and the impression he or she wants to give among others.

Functions of language A language is a system of units, rules and relations shared by the members of a linguistic community. Language is not just a mere tool to exchange ideas; it is an instrument for different purposes or functions: Representational: Focused on the context of the message, it mainly uses statements and questions. E.g. Its sunny today. Expressive or emotive: When expressing own feelings. Intonation plays an important role. E.g. Nice to see you again! Conative: When the sender wants to alter the receivers behavior. E.g. Come here, please. Aesthetic or poetic: When searching beauty. E.g. Poems. Metalinguistic: When the language is used to talk about the language itself. E.g. The verb is in the subjunctive. Phatic: The purpose of the message is to check that the communication circuit is still in place. E.g. Hum.

Classification of the language skills

Listening (Oral comprehension) Listening is a receptive skill which involves understanding of a message that has been sent through oral means (sounds). Understanding English language is difficult for our students because has more and different sounds then Spanish and little soundgraphic correspondence. In the classroom we can use a great variety of audio resources/ files in order to develop this skill. E.g. The teacher own voice, radio, podcast, songs, stories, poems, jokes, dialogues, videos, games ; We can search them on the internet and store them in computers, CD, DVD, memory sticks, etc. Visual and mimic aids such as flashcards or gestures, written support for example scripts, subtitles and other context- building tools are helpful for better comprehension. Listening strategies to develop oral comprehension Predicting: students are encouraged to guess the meaning of unknown words they have listened from the context and/ or situational clues. Visual aids (pictures, flashcards, etc.) and activities such as gestures, acting out or miming new words are useful for better comprehension. We can even translating especially difficult words. Recognizing discourse patterns and markers such as first, then, finally Teaching oral comprehension (listening) 1. Pre- listening activities: the presentation of new vocabulary should be prior to any listen. Visual aids and other context- building tools are helpful. 2. While listening activities: to check if they understand, are following the explanation and remain active. Information should be presented in short and simple sentences. The activities should be graded from easiest to most difficult. Pupils should be exposed to different kinds of native accents. We can use questions, asking students go out to the blackboard.

3. Post- listening activities: all activities should have a specific aim, in this case to understand the general meaning of the listening activities. We can use match activities, multi choice activities, fill the gap activities or even retain short conversations, refrains and usual expressions in order to greeting someone, asking for directions, etc. We can also use the script of the material listened for role play activities. Speaking (Oral expression) Speaking allows students to produce and express oral messages that contain information about ideas, feelings, thoughts and infinite number of topics. Children firstly produce words, then simple sentences and later a wide range of new sentences more complex. To maintain the motivation high students need opportunities to speak English as soon as possible. First lessons could consist of routines or patterns which children memorize and enable them to communicate with a minimum of linguistic competence. For example, greetings and introductions, classroom language, asking for permission, etc.; as this type of language is repeated regularly children learn it quickly. We shouldnt forget to use body language as one of the most important communicate strategies to express meanings, especially in the first levels when the communicative competence is still low. Oral skills, both listening and speaking, have phonetic elements associated: stress, rhythm and intonation. The stages of oral production 1. Presentation. Input precedes output (listening before speaking). The students need a silent period to assimilate the language and discover phonetic, structural and lexical meaning. 2. Controlled practice. Pupils use the materials presented in the previous stage. At the beginning, the teacher chooses the context, situation or function to be practiced. The basic structures to use are questions, dialogues and discussions. The teacher main role is to correct. 3. Creative or free production stage. During this stage, the students choose themselves the context, situation or function to be practiced while the teacher is an animator and assistant. Reading (Written comprehension) Reading is a cognitive process by which people translate a series of written symbols into meaning. Reading involves liking written symbols with their meaning or interpreting the meaning of written symbols. Written symbols are called characters which combine to form words and structures. Reading should be developed after oral skills and before writing. There is a positive relationship between L1 reading skills to the L2. At the first level is more important to develop good oral skills in L2. Due to the low sound- graphic correspondence in English, its better to show the word first in its oral form and then in its written form. Teaching written comprehension (reading) guidelines: Traditionally reading has been taught in the class through doing it aloud and correcting pronunciation by the teacher, but nowadays in the primary education the main objective is a global comprehension of the texts meaning through meaningful activities, and not simply decoding or meaningless repetitive activities. To use significant materials, contextualized and related to a real- life situation.

To read the text in a very active manner, and in a variety of ways. To ensure that reading is a purposeful and enjoyable activity for children.

The teacher should support pupils association of letters, sounds and pictures through combining songs with the lyrics (karaoke), visual support, comics, stories, letters and games such as dominoes, bingo, the hangman, puzzles, word searchers, crosswords, etc. All these guidelines help learners to become familiar with the typical letter combinations to form words, sentences and to interpret the overall meaning of the texts. Reading stages methodology 1. Pre- reading exercises: to show the word first in its oral form and then in its written form. Visual and mimic aids, contextual cues, guessing games, etc. allow students have the necessary background information before beginning to read a new text and know the meaning of unfamiliar words. 2. While reading exercises encourage active reading by asking students to summarize, interpret, evaluate, discuss and situate the text in a personal context. To underline, highlight and take notes facilitate memory and comprehension. 3. Post- reading exercises check if students have understood the text in a general way before moving onto a deeper analysis. We can use questions and other activities such as gap- filling in order to get feedback about students comprehension. Writing (Written expression) Writing is the act of encoding a message using symbols according to certain rules. Its very important to use writing to learn and not learning to write. According to Brewster and Ellis (2007) children shouldnt be asked to write something that they cannot say in English. Stages and strategies to teach writing skills Progressive writing practice focus on meaning helps gradually to widen and consolidate the vocabulary, spelling, and grammatical structures, and sentence patterns because their use becomes familiar and more automatic. 1. Controlled practice use of words and sentences. Here the students use pre- selected materials (which have already learnt orally) to practice with the language by manipulating, organizing, completing or editing. The teachers control is complete. The most traditional and widespread activities to develop writing skills are mechanic exercises such us drills, gap- filling and copying. We can use also crosswords, the hangman, word searchers, etc. These activities provide opportunities to practice handwriting, grammatical structures, vocabulary and spelling. The content should be adapted to our students level and interests. 2. Directed production stage is based on definitions, descriptions and easy written compositions. We can use more than one word to express one, paraphrase long texts, simplify difficult ideas or use templates to write letters, messages, emails, comics 3. Free production: personal writing and expressions with a general teachers guide. Students produce short articles about subjects they find interesting, using their own language. We can work with pen pals, older children can produce written work for others to read; its a good idea to display childrens work on the wall.

Communicative competence Communicative competence includes linguistic aspects like phonology, orthography, grammar, vocabulary and textual discourse, and pragmatic aspects like functions, variations, interactional skills and cultural framework. Also includes the following subcompetences: Grammatical competence: Ability to use the rules of the language system. Discourse competence: Ability to use different types of discourse depending on the communicative situation and the interlocutors. Sociolinguistic competence: Ability to adapt statements to a particular context. Strategic competence: Ability to change the course of the communicative situation depending on our purposes. Sociocultural competence: To know the social and cultural context in which the language is used.

The didactic intervention of the communicative competence in foreign language area has to be functional which means the command of oral and written language skills in a variety of contexts and the representation of other cultural and social realities. This competence helps to create constructive relationships with others and is fundamental in the resolution of conflicts and making sense of other cultures. Language learners more than grammatical competence, need to know how language is used by members of a particular speech community to accomplish their purposes. The importance of knowing foreign languages Nowadays plurilingualism and bilingualism are valued positively. The Royal Decree 1513/ 2006 insists on preparing pupils for living in this more and more international, multicultural and multilingual world. Nowadays we consider that to know a foreign language is a social and educational need: The knowledge of foreign languages is necessary for communication among people from different places and countries. People who know foreign languages have more possibilities to communicate. Knowing other languages gives students a vision of the external world, to step inside the mind and the context of other cultures. Students not only will be able to communicate, but also to know and value different lifestyles and cultural ideas in a positive way and to develop feelings of social and cultural tolerance. Knowing other languages is a good way to keep our brain on fit. It helps to develop the memory and is a good training for our mind. It facilitates the ability of changing the linguistic code so learning other foreign languages becomes easier. Learning another language opens up new personal, professional, social and economic opportunities. Children who learn foreign languages show better development of thought, which means that are able to solve the problems much easier.

Factors that make a language influential

Lingua franca can be defined as any language that is widely used as a mean of communication among speakers of other languages. Nowadays, English is the most widespread language in the world, not only for the countries where English is the official language, but also for the great number of countries that study it as foreign language. English language continues growing since absorbs aspects from other cultures worldwide. The importance of English language is not just how many people speak it, but what it is used for: English is the major language of news and information in the world, of international business, government, diplomacy, science and the professions. It is often used as a mean of communication between people who have different native languages. It is the language of maritime communication and international air traffic control. It is also the official language of many international organizations, including the United Nations. It is frequently the language of international conferences, and it is the language of international sport events. Popular American and British music and movies are heard and watched in almost every country. Books in English are available even in countries where few people actually use it. One reason that students give for learning English is to understand these songs, movies and books. English is also very important for international travel. Most of Internet websites are in English.

Our main objective will be the use of languages as communication instruments among people and countries.

Sociocultural aspects Communicative competence is also related to the ability to establish links and constructive relationships with other people, the environment and new cultures. Language is an essential component of the culture of a country; its part of its identity. Language shapes the thought and regulates the behavior of the community. Learning other languages gives the learner the ability to know other cultures which are valued and respected when are known. When we teach a language we should teach also the culture of the places where the language is spoken. The teaching of culture involves the conventions, customs, geography, traditions, songs, games, beliefs and system of meaning of the countries. In this way it is easier for our students to learn foreign languages and helps to avoid the stereotypes that many people have from other countries and cultures, which mean to educate for a more tolerant world. The new didactic materials incorporate information and activities about both linguistic and cultural contents. These contents will motivate our students to know other life styles and sociocultural aspects of the countries where the language is spoken. Sociocultural aspects stated in the current educational legislation Objectives: To value the foreign language and languages in general as a mean of communication and understanding among people from different places and different cultures and the use of languages like a tool of learning different contents. Basic competences: a) Linguistic competence in communication. c) Competence in the knowledge about and interacting with the environment: A language is the main vehicle for human thinking, the most powerful tool for interpreting and representing the reality and the learning instrument par excellence. e) Social and civic competence: Languages are also vehicles of communication and cultural transmission; knowledge of a culture different from their own, contributes to the respect and acceptance of behavioural and cultural differences, promoting tolerance and integration. f) Cultural and artistic competence: Linguistic production has a cultural component. It involves knowledge of monuments and other art expressions, festivities, celebrities, etc. Contents Block 4 Sociocultural knowledge and intercultural awareness Languages are vehicles for communication and cultural transmission. Learning a foreign language involves knowing other cultures and fosters the respect and acceptance of behavioural and cultural differences, promoting tolerance and integration. Methodology is based on the development of students communicative competence through meaningful and communicative situations close to our students interests. We will promote a critical attitude toward sociocultural information and we will avoid the creation of stereotypes. Evaluation criteria: To show interest and respect toward the people who speak the foreign language and its culture. To identify some features, costumes and traditions from the countries where the foreign language is spoken. To recognise the linguistic diversity and the value of learning foreign languages as an instrument of communication with other people from other countries.

Geographic framework of the United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a political union of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and also controls several smaller islands. It is located in the British Isles off the northwest coast of the European main land, surrounded by the English Channel, the Irish Sea, and the Celtic Sea, and shares a border with the Republic of Ireland. The word British in its broadest possible definition it applies to a person or object from the whole United Kingdom. The nationality of the Northern Irish, Scottish, English and Welsh people is British. England: The capital and largest city is London. Scotland: Edinburgh is the capital, but more people live in Glasgow. Wales: The largest and capital city is Cardiff, in South Wales. Northern Ireland: The capital is Belfast. Other important cities are Derry and Armagh.

Historical framework of the United Kingdom By the year 1000, England and Scotland had consolidated themselves from many small kingdoms. In 1066, Harold II, the last Anglo- Saxon monarch, was defeated and killed by the Norman conquerors. In the 13th century, the principality of wales became a part of England, and the Magna Charta began the centuries- long process of putting checks on the monarchs then vast powers. From 1649 to 1660, following the war of the Three Kingdoms, the traditional monarchy was briefly interrupted by the Republican Commonwealth of England. In 1707, the Kingdom of England and Scotland were merged to create the Kingdom of Great Britain and, in 1801, the Kingdom of Ireland joined to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Further colonial expansion put the British monarch in charge of the vast British Empire. After World War II, formed colonies separated from Britain and the monarch became Head of the Commonwealth. Cultural framework of the United Kingdom The local currency is the pound. Vehicles drive on the left. Of all cities in UK, London has the greatest number of theatres, galleries and museums. The citys most famous museums include the British Museum, The National Gallery, The Natural History Museum, The Science Museum, the Tate Modern, etc. The UK has many of the worlds best universities, including Oxford and Cambridge. Britain is responsible for many inventions, including the telephone, the internal combustion engine, the jet engine, television and vaccinations among others. The UK was important in the formation and evolution of rock and roll through bands like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. The Sun (a popular newspaper) has the widest circulation and The Guardian is probably the most respected for its content. The BBC is the UKs public radio and television broadcast service. Sports are an important part of British life. A number of major sports originated in the UK including tennis, soccer, rugby, boxing and cricket. The most popular sport is soccer, usually called football while the most successful is rowing. They have the Wimbledon Tennis Tournament and the Premier Football league among other important competitions.

Geographic framework of the United States The United States of America is a republic comprising 50 states and the District of Columbia (Washington DC). The country also possesses several territories in the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean. The US is by all accounts a very large country, the third largest by both land area and population. The continental US is bordered by the Pacific Ocean on west, the Atlantic in the east, Canada in the north, and Mexico and the Gulf of Mexico in the south. Alaska borders Canada ad has the Pacific Ocean to the south and the Arctic Ocean to the north. Hawaii is located in the Pacific, approximately 2000 miles (3200 kilometers) southwest of the mainland.

Historical framework of the United States Timeline of important events: 1607. The first successful English settlement was established in Jamestown (Virginia). 1620. The Pilgrims settled in Plymouth (Massachusetts). 1776. The thirteen original colonies declared their independence, which was ratified on July 4th at the Second Continental Congress. 1787. The United States Constitution. 1861- 1865. The Civil War ratified the abolishment of slavery.

1898. The Spanish- American War resulted in US control of former Spanish colonies in the Caribbean and Pacific. Some have remained US territories (Puerto Rico), while others achieved their independence relatively quickly (Cuba). 1917. The US entered in the First World War, which European nations had been fighting since 1914. 1929. The Great Depression started. The worldwide downturn lasted though most of the 1930s. 1930- 1937: The New Deal. A lot of US infrastructure was created through work programs designed to improve the economy during these years. 1941. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor brought the US into the World War II. 1947- 1991. The Cold War was a struggle between capitalism and communism that emerged after World War II. 1960s started the Civil Rights and equal opportunities for African Americans Movement. 1968. Civil Rights Leader Martin Luther King was assassinated. 2001. Terrorist attacks on September 11th led to increased US military involvement in the Middle East. 2008. A record turnout of voters elected Barak Obama, the first African American president. Cultural framework of the United States The United States of America is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations. In general, the culture shows the strong influence of Northern Europe, but also influenced by the waves of immigrants from many countries that make it their home, first from Europe and Africa, then Asia and Latin America. A key component of America culture is the so- called American Dream: that through hard work and perseverance a person can become successful. The US has many of the worlds best universities, and leads the world in the research and development. Though the most popular inventions may be the coke and the jeans, they also invented the light bulb, the refrigerator, the microwave oven, the airplane, the personal computer and the Internet among others. The diverse cultural roots of the US have led to it being at the forefront of the most important musical movements: Jazz, Blues, Soul, Rock and Roll, Country, Disco, Hip Hop, House and Techno. Today the US is probably best known for its movie industry based in Hollywood (California) which has a large international influence. Sports in the US area are an important part of American culture. The four most popular team sports are ones that developed in North America: Baseball, American Football, Basketball and Ice Hockey.

Activities that promote cultural contents Language learning cannot simply focus on the development of communicative skills, but also on the cultural, historical, sociological and geographical context in which languages are used. The teaching of sociocultural aspects is related to cross curricular elements such as respect for other cultures, tolerance of diversity and co-existence. There are a lot of opportunities for English teachers to present sociocultural contents in their classrooms if we plan our classes carefully. Books, newspapers, handouts, magazine articles, web sites, holiday, festivities, foods, music, movies, cartoons, comics, games, radio or TV shows, commercials, pen pals, etc. Probably the most popular aspects for children at the primary level are the festivities celebrated in English speaking countries: Easter, Christmas, Halloween, Thanksgiving Day, etc. It is important to further their understanding of these festivities and focus on those they may not already know (Guy Fawkes Day, Pancake, July 4th, etc.) to keep them motivated. We can work in a cooperative way with native speakers and other work mates. For example the math teacher could learn dollars and pounds. The artistic teacher could learn music and pictures from English speaking countries, the PE teacher traditional games and the social studies how the Americas were colonized by Europe. This extralinguistic dimension will make the language more real, desirable and will motivate our students to learn it in a more natural way. Contributions of linguistics to foreign language teaching Linguistic is the scientific study of natural language. It is not concerned with how people should speak, but how they speak. In other words, its descriptive, not prescriptive. Linguists have improved our understanding of the process of language acquisition, making important discoveries and advances related to foreign language learning and its methodology. Contributions from the field of linguistics: Bloomfield and Behaviourism. Lado and Contrastive Linguistics. Chomsky and Transformative- Generative Grammar. Contributions from the field of psycholinguistics: Corder and Error Analysis. Selinker and Interlanguage. Contributions from the field of sociolinguistics: Labov and Variationist Sociolinguistics. Gilles and Smith and Speech Accommodation Theory.

1. Contribution of the field of linguistics. Linguistics has to do with observing and describing the nature of human language. Its concerned with what is universal to all languages, but also with what is different from others. A central point of interest is the way humans acquire language. All human achieve competence in the language during their childhood. Most linguists agree that language ability is innate. 1.1 Bloomfield and Behaviourism. Behaviourism states that all human activity, including learning, can be studied scientifically only through observable behavior. Bloomfield adapted these ideas to second language learning and treated language as a set of externally conditioned habits through a process of repetition, imitation of native speakers, drilling and reinforcement. 1.2 Lado and Contrastive Linguistics. This field studies through systematic comparisons, the ways in which languages are different, its grammar, phonology, lexicon, etc. Comparative linguistics, on the other hand, focuses on similarities. Contrastive analysis allows linguists to predict and explain learning difficulties, transfer errors and interferences between learners first language (L1) and the target language (L2). The result of such comparisons where used to improve teaching materials and methods. 1.3 Chomsky and Transformative- Generative Grammar. Chomsky distinguished between external performance and internal competence. According to Chomsky linguistic behavior is innate. He argued that in the brain already exists at birth a language structure (Universal Grammar) which explains the speed and ease with children acquire language, and consequently develop linguistic competence. Language Acquisition Devices (LAD), are innate mechanisms that facilitate language learning. They tailor Universal Grammar to a persons specific language environment and allow the creation of an infinite number of new sentences.

2. Contributions from the field of psycholinguistics. The field of psycholinguistics concerns with the study of the psychological mechanisms that allow learners to understand and produce second language utterances and how learners acquire the progressive knowledge of the language necessary for the above understanding production.

2.1 Corder and Error Analysis. Corder made the distinction between errors (unconscious lapses due to communicative incompetence) and mistakes (conscious lapses). Corder treated students errors as a source of information about language learning processes and as a proof that students knowledge, however imperfect, was systematic. Errors show teachers a clear view of what learners know about the target language. 2.2 Selinker and Interlanguage. Selinker attempted to distinguish and describe stages of L2 learning. Interlanguage refers to stages of knowledge that a second language student develops during his or her learning process. Interlanguage will be influenced among others by students first language, aspects of the target language and language transfer between L1 and L2. According to Selinker, language learning is a systematic and dynamic process since new input about the target language and the feedback received via output cause learners to revise continuously their hypothesis about the target language. Fossilization refers to learners who stop short of mastering the target language, this can happen for lack of motivation, sociocultural reasons, physical impediments, and affective barriers. 3. Contributions from the field of sociolinguistics. 3.1 Labov and Variationist sociolinguistics. Willian Labov studied how language varies systematically among speakers of different social backgrounds and different contexts. He argued that all speakers (to varying extents) shift their style (to converge or diverge with their interlocutors) depending on the social context and the topic of conversation. Vernacular speech is natural and cannot be observed in a formal setting. 3.2 Gilles and Smith and Speech Accommodation Theory. Gilles and Smith attempted to identify different types of speech shifts and explain why they occurred. They argued that, in the communication process, we continually interpret the speech intentions (the motives behind) and our interpretation affects, whether we see them positively or negatively to converge or diverge consequently. Similarities and differences between first and second language acquisition First language acquisition (L1) refers to the way people acquire their mother tongue whereas second language (L2) deals with the acquisition of additional languages both in children and adults. Second language learning in a formal context is a different, less spontaneous and more structured process. Normally L1 acquisition happens quickly and naturally, without explicit instruction in how to use the language.

According to Krashen, the process of foreign language acquisition is the same that first language acquisition with a few important differences: The Acquisition/ Learning hypothesis: Acquisition is an unconscious process, and learning is a conscious one. Traditional formal grammar lesson will not have any direct influence on the way a student speaks during spontaneous communication, where only the naturally acquired system operates. The Monitor hypothesis: Formal learning is important for monitoring whether what someone is saying is grammatically correct and socially appropriate, also when writing. The Affective Filter hypothesis: Our moods can facilitate or restrict acquisition. All students have an affective filter (emotional states) that can make language acquisition less or more effective. - Less effective: low motivation, self- esteem and nervousness influence. - More effective: we can help our students success by creating a fun, communicative, trusty and relaxed environment in which students feel safe, confident and comfortable. The Input hypothesis: Taking into account Vygotskys ZDP, stimuli students are expose require comprehensible input, nut too easy, just beyond of their abilities. Stimuli also should be meaningful, related to students needs and presented in context. This is not an easy task given the diversity of the classes. The Natural Order Hypothesis: Each language is different, but the process of grammatical structures acquisition is the same and proceeds in a predictable (natural) order regardless students L1 background. This natural order is not necessarily the order in which the language should be taught. Factors that affect second language acquisition According to Krashen, the acquisition processes of L1 and L2 are governed by the same principles. There are however some factors that can affect both: The level of cognitive development: Language acquisition highs the childs capacity to reason and vice versa. The level of social development: The language acquisition is tied up in the creation of our moral, social and cultural identity and community. Second language acquisition (L2) implies also awareness of other cultures. Some students benefit from this immensely and enrich their own culture, while others may feel not confortable (blocked) negotiating their own identities, cultural traditions and moral values. Languages acquisition devices (LAD) tailor universal grammar to a specific language. The abundance of errors in foreign language students is due to interference with their native language. The critical period: The best age for language acquisition is during the childhood because children have more cerebral plasticity and their lives are organized around their personal development while adults have more occupations. An early start is decisive to allow students developing a good accent.

Context: We learn to speak our native tongue at home, in a real, authentic and sustained setting. Foreign language acquisition is most often confined to specific times governed by artificial conditions. Motivation: The motivation to acquire L1 is near absolute, while learning a foreign language the people dont have the same natural motivation. The acquisition of L1 is an urgent matter in order to establish social relations, express feeling and ideas. A child must learn to communicate so that he or she can satisfy his or her wishes and primary needs. L2 learning process is often governed by external motivations. Oral comprehension (Listening) and oral expression (Speaking)

Organic Law of Education (LOE) states that foreign language should have a special oral focus allowing students to express and understand simple messages in the context of everyday situation. When we organize lessons, we should consider that input precedes output; that is, listening precedes speaking and then reading precedes writing. Teachers should give preference and precedence to the oral mode of communication, especially with younger students that may not have mastered the alphabet. In first language acquisition children can only produce expressions (output) after comprehension which means substantial exposure to the language (input). This involves a silent period in which the students dont speak much at all. According to Krashen, second language acquisition should happen alike. Teaching oral language is more difficult than teaching written language because oral language is produced spontaneously, needs special training of phonation and involves at least two interlocutors present in real time. Explanation of written grammatical rules will not have effect on students speech, even if they have understood the rule completely because, according to Krashen, only the naturally acquired system of communication operates. Listening is not a passive activity. Comprehension and production are complicated processes in which meaning must be constructed. In production, the speaker actively creates a message by selecting specific words to represent his or her intended meaning; in comprehension, this process moves in the opposite direction, to an interpretation of the message. Methodology of oral comprehension (Listening) The aim of listening comprehension exercises should be understand the global meaning, the main idea, rather than every specific word. The presentation of material: To provide contextual information: the topic, the location, the relationship between speaker, etc. through visual (flashcards, posters, etc.) and mimic aids (body language), and guessing games. To combine both technology as real materials and a variety of accents and speakers, not just teachers voice.

Ensure an appropriate level, either too easy or too difficult with structures and vocabulary that people use in real life and close to our students interests. Materials: Dialogues, podcast, videos, songs, stories, radio, TV programs, poems, and so on. Activities: Yes or no, true or false questions, multi-choice questions, to predict responses, to put in the right order chunks of dialogues, total physical response Methodology of oral expression (Speaking)

The assimilation stage - Presenting language. Input precedes output (listening before speaking). Students need a silent period to assimilate the language and discover phonetic, structural and lexical meaning. - The controlled practice phase. In this phase students use elements presented in the previous stage in different situations. Practice is essential for the full acquisition of structures. The most widespread controlled practice activities are questions, role plays, dialogues, discussions and mechanical substitution drills whose content should be adapted for classroom use.

The production or creation stage Directed production. The students produce language on their own, and the teacher limits to provide guidance through contextual information, functional cues or situational description. Student can complete gap- filling activities, correct sentences that have been modified or finish sentences with a few words. Free production phase. Students use the new structures independently. They choose everything. Methodology of written comprehension (Reading)

Written language is a practical and common form of communication. Input must always precede output; lesson plans should offer a careful balance between the skills. Reading and writing are the last skills students develop when learning a language. Due to the complex relations between the sounds of the words and their graphic representations, students are often less motivated to practice written language than they are to practice oral speech. We should make an effort to convey to students how much reading and writing matter. When beginning with reading and writing activities, its especially important to use materials that interest them (newspaper, subtitles, comics, stories, Internet tools such as chats, emails, pen pals, forums, messages, social nets and so on) in order to motivate and maintain a positive attitude about the process.

Stages of reading development 1. Pre-reading (Ages 0-6). During this stage, reading involves a great deal of contextual information. Firstly, the reader relies heavily on visual information e.g. the pictures of a book. 2. Initial reading and decoding (6-7). The student now focuses heavily on the text, attempting to decode it recognizing the meaning of the words. 3. Fluency (7-8). Fluency (decoding the words immediately and effortlessly) allows them to pay more attention to the meaning of what they are reading. 4. Reading for learning (8-14). As fluency increases, the readers mind focuses on the contents of what is being read, allowing him or her for the first time to acquire information by reading. In English are often different spelling for the same phonemes (way/ weigh), and different pronunciations for the same letter and letter-combinations (lose/ lost/ low). We must remember that when our students begin to read and write in English as a second language, they already are familiar with the native alphabet and have made associations between the sound and letters, which means they are not a tabula rasa in that sense. When we teach English, we should always teach the spelling of the words once students have been exposed to them and practiced in their oral form. In the language classroom, peoples reading skills have been traditionally exercised by having students read aloud and evaluated by checking/ correcting their pronunciation. Nowadays, one of the challenges of teaching reading skills is to develop comprehension. There are different ways to read depending on our purpose: Skimming. The readers eyes move linearly to identify the main ideas in a text. Scanning is the skill we use to locate specific information (names, dates, etc.). The readers eyes roam across the page searching for specific words or phrases. Extensive or global reading techniques. The goal is to acquire a general understanding of the overall meaning of a text. Intensive reading, on the other hand, directs student interest to a specific part or aspect of the text by way of a series of questions that check their comprehension. Activities to develop reading comprehension Pre- reading exercises allow students have the necessary background information before to read a new text. We can use pictures, flashcards, and contextual cues, mimic to guess the meaning of unfamiliar words. While reading exercises encourage active reading by asking students to summarize, interpret, evaluate, discuss, and situate the text in a personal context. To make predictions, associations between previous knowledge and the information presented in the text. To underline, highlight and take notes to facilitate memory. Post- reading exercises check if students have understood the text in a general way before moving on to a deeper analysis. We can use questions and other activities in order to get feedback about students comprehension.

Methodology of written expression (Writing) Writing plays an important role in reinforcing concepts. For many years writing has been taught through the reproduction of mechanical structures seen in class. Writing is an important skill for travel and business. Current jobs involve reading and writing English documents, emails, web pages, projects or reports. Students use them in their daily encounters with books and Internet (chats, messages, etc.), and they are an important mean to learn and widen our own knowledge. 1. The controlled practice stage. Here the students use pre- selected materials (which have already learned orally) to practice with language by manipulating, organizing, completing or editing. 2. The directed production stage. During this stage, students use writing to consolidate what they learned orally attempting to express themselves. The teacher orients these activities through reading or listening exercises in which students must to respond. Letters and stories are ideal for a solid foundation of writing. We should use an example and structure template to help students. For example: to write an email to a foreign pen pal. 3. The free production phase. We give students freedom to produce a short article related to a listening exercise, a video clip, or a classroom discussion about a subject they find interesting, using their own language.

English phonetics and phonology Communication implies knowing the correct pronunciation of the words. 1. Phonetics studies physical properties, how sounds are produced by the articulator organs (lips, jaw-tongue complex and vocal tract). 2. Phonology studies how sounds alternate to form meaning. Phonology has two main branches: - Segmental: Vowels and Consonants. - Suprasegmental: Stress, Intonation and Rhythm. 1. Phonetics is the study of the physical aspects of speech and it has three branches: - Articulator phonetics studies how the sounds are produced via the interaction of different physiological structures (position, shape and movement of the speech organs). - Acoustic phonetics investigates properties of sound waves (amplitude, duration, frequency). - Auditory phonetics concerns with the learning of speech sounds and with speech perception by the brain.

2. Phonology 2.1 Segmental 2.1.1 Vowels Vowels can be defined as linguistic sounds produced with a relative open vocal tract and little impedance to airflow. Daniel Jones in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) distinguishes between quantity and quality of the English vowels: 1. Quantity refers to the difference between long and short vowels. 2. Quality pays attention to the place of articulation, tenseness and height of the tongue, nasalization, lip rounding and jaw opening.

2.1.2 Diphthongs There are combinations of two vowels which form a single syllable. They have the same length as long than pure vowels. The stress in diphthongs appears on the first element.

2.1.3 Semivowels We can find two consonants that share characteristics of vowels and consonants. They are /y/ and /w/. They are pronounced like vowels but we use them like consonants since they appear before vowels.

2.1.4 Consonants A consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the upper vocal tract. Each consonant can be distinguished by several features: a) The manner of articulation describes how the consonant is articulated, such as nasal (through the nose), stop (complete obstruction of air), or approximant (vowel-like). b) The place of articulation is the spot in the vocal track where the obstruction of the consonants occurs, and where speech organs are involved. Places include: bilabial (both lips), alveolar (tongue against the gum ridge), and velar (tongue against the soft palate). c) Position of the soft palate. When it is lowered the sound is nasal and when is raised is oral. d) The phonation of a consonant is how the vocal cords vibrate during articulation when the vocal cords vibrate fully, the consonant is called voiced. When they do not vibrate at all, its voiceless.

2.2 Suprasegmental phonology Nunan (1999) notes that the improper use of stress, rhythm and intonation present more difficulties for comprehension in communication than a poor articulation. 2.2.1 Stress. Stress is defined as the auditory prominence of a vowel or syllable. We can identify stress according to how perceive it and how we produce it. - From a production point of view, the speaker has to make a big muscular effort to produce a stressed syllable. - From a perception point of view, we have to pay attention that the stressed one are usually the longest, the most high-pitched and the loudest. 2.2.2 Rhythm. Rhythm is defined as the regular succession of strong and weak stress in utterances. English is a stressed-timed rhythm language since the stressed syllables are produced in irregular intervals of time.

2.2.3 Intonation. Intonation is defined as the variation of pitch when speaking. Pitch (tones) is the most relevant part in the intonation. Human beings change pitch movements rising and falling to convey different meaning in the sentence. For example: questions, to express emotions (greetings, surprise, doubt, etc.). Proper use of intonation is an essential part of fluency. Models and techniques The mother tongue affects L2 phonological acquisition and production; transfer is usually detected through errors in speech. English pronunciation has sounds Spanish doesnt have. To learn a foreign language with and appropriate accent, we have to concentrate on the differences between the students L1 and L2 when working on pronunciation, especially the sounds we dont have in our language. Its a good idea to show them real situations on TV, Internet, or listening materials to improve the native traits of their accent. There are a lot of techniques to study phonology in the classroom. The most common one is listening (to sounds, words, sentences or texts.) a) Sounds: Repetition of sound after listening, students can sing songs with the lyrics (karaoke); distinguish between words that have similar sound or pronunciation. b) Stress: We can use the Phonetic Bingo, in with the students cross out from a card the words that teacher says; clap on the stressed syllable of a word, etc. c) Rhythm: Jazz chants, tongue twisters, riddles, jokes, poems, nursery rhymes, clap on the stressed word of the sentence. d) Intonation: Role plays, reading a text the students stand up when they hear a rising tone or duck when hear a falling tone. Perception, discrimination and production of sounds The phonological system of L1 is a filter through which all the sounds of L2 are perceived and classified. The difficulties in the production of the sounds of peoples L2 arise from the influence of the L1 phonological structure. Human beings follow a pattern when learning to produce a sound. First they have to listen to it and understand what they are hearing. Then, they have to discriminate it from other sounds. Once they do these two things, they will be able to produce the desired sound. Errors and mistakes Human learning is a process that involves the making of mistakes. They provide evidence of how language is learnt or acquired. Errors and mistakes: Errors are those lapses that are the result of incompetence in the language. These can be pronunciation errors, grammatical errors, etc. Mistakes refer to performance errors that arent the result of a deficiency in competence, but the result of lapses in the process of producing speech. All people make mistakes in their mother tongue or in the second language but speakers are capable of recognizing and correcting them.

Correction techniques If we are practicing pronunciation we have to correct instantly, but if we are doing a speaking production activity (where the importance is fluency) we have to allow students to finish the sentence or the intervention. Errors in the most cases should be corrected in an indirect and subtle way. For example: - Students repeat after the teacher or listening track. - Students can record themselves while they are speaking about a topic, play it back to appreciate their mistakes and errors, and finally correct them. - Teachers can show their students conversations to see if they can find errors and correct them. Differences between English and Spanish Phonologically, English is more difficult than Spanish due to the low correspondence between sounds and its graphic representation. Vowels, Spanish learners tend to equate the twelve English vowels with its five. We dont have long and short vowels. Consonants: Its difficult to differentiate between voiceless and voiced. Our Spanish /t/ is dental and the English one is alveolar. Stress: English has more variability with respect to the position of word stress than Spanish. Spanish prefers to stress in the penultimate syllable and English on the first syllable. Rhythm. Spanish is syllable-timed, whereas English is stressed-time. Intonation. Spanish has three intonation patterns (declarative, interrogative and explanative) whereas English has more. Orthography Orthography is an essential part of written communication. A languages orthography is the body of standardized rules for its written system. Orthography deals with spelling but also other elements such as punctuation and capitalization. English has relatively complicated spelling rules when compared to other languages. Writing (and therefore spelling) is a graphic representation of the spoken word. English orthographic rules did not begin to solidify until around the time of Geoffrey Chaucer and the advent of the printing press. English language has often little correspondence between spoken (pronunciation) and written (spelling) because of its complex history. We are going to highlight three important facts: The eclipsing of English by French during the Norman Conquest where a large number of loan words, without Anglicized, were incorporated into the lexicon. The great vowel shift was a period of radical changes in English pronunciation taking place between 1450 and 1750. Shakespeare looking for rime in their poems.

Consequently, nearly every sound can be legitimately spelled in more than one way, and many spellings can be pronounced in more than one way.

According to Templeton and Morris (2000) misspellings are often the result of inconsistent and irregular phoneme-grapheme correspondence. The following rules can help to decode English spelling, but even the best rules have their exceptions: To form past simple of the regular verbs adding ed or ing to create the gerund form e.g. work/ worked/ working. Irregular verbs are unpredictable and have three forms e.g. eat/ ate/ eaten. Many adverbs are formed adding ly to adjectives (manner adverbs) e.g. slow/ slowly. To form most comparatives and superlatives adding er and est to adjectives e.g. fast/ faster/ fastest. We use more and most when an adjective has more than one syllable. To form the plural, add s to the end of the word e.g. dog/ dogs. Capital letters: the first letter of a word is capitalized, in proper nouns (specific person, place or thing e.g. London) and when is followed by a point.

The American lexicographer Noah Webster is responsible for many of the differences between British and American English which were a result of his nationalistic effort to separate the language (and therefore the culture) of the former colonies from their former colonizer.

The smallest units in a writing system are their graphemes or written symbols: Vowels can be defined as linguistic sounds produced with a relatively open vocal tract ad little impedance to airflow. Diphthongs are combinations of two vowels which form a single syllable. Semivowels: We can find two consonants that share characteristics of vowels and consonants. They are /y/ and /w/. A consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the upper vocal tract.

Didactic proposal for the written code English orthography is often difficult for native Spanish-speakers to learn, since theyre used to a fully phonetic alphabet and as a consequence are accustomed to writing words according to how they sound and vice versa. Writing exercises will follow closely related to reading exercises, therefore, written production cannot happen prior to written comprehension. 1. Controlled practice: the teacher concentrates on the usage of words and sentences. We can use games such as Bingo, match the picture with its word or definition, Hangman, order the letters of a word, order the words in a sentence, spelling dictation, crosswords, word searchers, etc. 2. Directed practice: the teacher concentrate on definitions, descriptions, letters and easy written compositions. Students can create language on their own by following certain patterns or using templates e.g. pen pals. They can complete a text with words from a word bank (fill the gap activities), punctuate a text, find mistakes and correct them, order parts of a text, etc. 3. Free practice: the teacher gives freedom to students to write without a pattern or guide. They can use the dictionary to check words, write about the topic they prefer and use this information to create a poster to be hung on the classroom wall, etc. Teachers strategies for correcting mistakes Spelling mistakes are among the most frequent. Instead of correct all mistakes; teacher should give the students techniques to avoid orthographic mistakes in future compositions. Most spelling mistakes may come from carelessness; therefore, we should encourage our students to always review what they have written. The words that frequently appear printed in texts or reading activities are easy for them to remember and, therefore, they dont often make mistakes when spelling them. Correct all mistakes is not very good for the students since they have little incentive to think about what they did wrong. Emphasize the mistakes that we consider the most important. Point out the errors, providing only basic information about the type of error, allowing the students to correct them themselves. We can mark grammatical errors (gr), spelling errors (sp), etc. Once we have decided which errors to correct, we can ask students to: Associate it with an image. Write down the misspelled word several times. Look up its definition in the dictionary. Add it to his or her personal spelling dictionary for quick future reference. Additionally, teachers can provide a list of the most commonly misspelled words for the students.

Vocabulary The vocabulary of any language is made up by the group of words it recognizes. Learning vocabulary is very important in the acquisition of languages. As much as we know, better will be our communication. Vocabulary has an important role in helping us to create and understand new messages, when people travel they dont carry grammar books, they carry dictionaries. This highlights its importance for learning a new language. The lexical field refers to words that belong to the same group especially for its grammatical and syntactical aspects. For example, neighbour, neighbourhoodThe lexical field shows the distinctive features of the words and lets us determine the identity whereas the semantic field is about the meaning behind the words that have been used in the lexical field. Nowadays i t is commonly accepted that grouping vocabulary into lexical fields makes its learning easier. The semantic field refers to the meaning of a set of related words. The words in a semantic field share a common semantic property. We can find the following cases: a) Synonyms are different words that share meaning e.g. student/ pupil. b) Antonyms are words with the opposite meaning e.g. tall/ short. c) Hyponyms are words whose semantic range is included within another word. For example: scarlet, vermilion, carmine and crimson are all hyponyms of red which in turn is a hyponym of colour. d) Polysemy is when a word has more than one meaning depending on the context the conversation is taken place. For example bank can be a place to save money, the edge of a river, a place to sit, etc. For this reason, context is really important; it influences the interpretation of words. e) Homonymy, in turn can be divided in homographs when a word shares the same spelling and therefore the same pronunciation but have different meanings e.g. bear: animal/ carry. Homophones are those that have the same pronunciation but different written form and of course meaning e.g. to/ two/ too. At sentence level depending on how we use it its meaning can change. We can find: a) Pragmatic meaning: depending on the context the sentence is produced, it can have a different meaning. For example: I have to iron the clothes can answer to a question to get information or an order. b) Social meaning: sentences can express social meanings which affect the relationship between the interlocutors depending on the intonation you give the words. For example: What are you doing? can convey politeness or rudeness. c) Prosodic meaning: the emphasis of certain words can modify the sentence. For example: I am tall, meaning not you; I am tall meaning not short.

Vocabulary to socialize Greetings of welcome and farewell, seasonal greetings, etc. For example: Hello, good bye, happy birthday and so on. Asking feelings: How are you? Im fine. Introducing and being introduced: Nice to meet you! Inviting and offering: Would you like some? Congratulations, well done Permission: Can I go to? Asking for things: can I borrow? Vocabulary for asking information Whats your name? My name is How old are you? Im years old. Where are you from? Im from Where is the? Whats the weather like? Its sunny. What time is it? Its half past three. How much is it? Its (price) dollars, pounds, euros Whats your (favourite, telephone number)? My is Can you (actions)? Vocabulary expressing attitude Likes/ dislikes: I like, hate, love Giving thanks: Thank you very much, you are welcome. Providing intentions: I am going to; I will Apologizing and granting forgiveness: Im sorry; dont worry about it, never mind Expressing preferences and desires: I prefer, wish, would like; my favourite

Steps to teach vocabulary Teachers should select the most relevant words and phrases depending on its frequency of appearance in text and listening activities, taking into account the students characteristics and interests. Vocabulary should be taught in context to avoid problems of understanding. 1. Presentation: New vocabulary must be presented orally; we can use some contextual aids such as realia, flashcards, pictures, students can draw the vocabulary in cards and play with them, mime the words or actions, make noise for example of animals, identify the words in a song and raise their hands when they hear a word they know, etc.

2. Practice: Exercises that allow students to work with the oral form: Symons says, picture dictation, guessing the object, telephone; and written form: Matching pictures with words, write the word on your partners back and he or she has to guess it, crosswords, bingo, dominoes, puzzles, running dictation 3. Production: Students can create flashcards, picture dictionaries, posters Morphosyntactic In this topic I will explain the way morphemes combine to create words and the way words come together to form sentences. Morphemes and syntax are primarily the elements concerned with the creation of meaning in language. A morpheme is the smallest linguistic unit that has meaning or a grammatical function. A morpheme does not necessarily have to be a word. For example in the word cats there are two morphemes cat and s. We can find: Allomorphs are variations of a morpheme which are pronounced differently but they all indicate the same. For example: looked (t), wanted (id), and argued (d). Homonyms, in turn can be divided in homographs when a word shares the same spelling and, therefore, the same pronunciation but have different meanings e.g. bear: animal/ carry. Homophones are those that have the same pronunciation but different written form, and of course meaning e.g. to/ too/ two. Free morphemes are those that cannot stand alone as a word. They are typically affixes (in-, -ness, -ly, etc.). These can be of two cases:

- Derivational morphemes change the meaning of the word creating other new word. For example, paint (V) + er: Painter (N). - Inflectional morphemes create a change in the function of the word. English has only seven inflectional morphemes: 3rd person singular: -s/ -es. Regular verbs past tense: -ed. Progressive: -ing. Plural: -s/ -es. Possessive: s. Comparative: -er. Superlative: -est.

Morphological processes Prefixation: an affix is added before the base, e.g. uncomfortable. Suffixation: an affix is added after the base, e.g. happily. Conversion: a word changes its class category but it doesnt change its form, e.g. book (noun), to book (verb). Compounding: two base forms are put together, e.g. blackboard. Reduplication: it is similar to compound where the both elements are the same or slightly different, e.g. bye bye/ wishy- washy. Clipping: when the word is shortened, e.g. bicycle (bike); gasoline (gas). Blending: two words merge into a new one, e.g. breakfast + lunch: brunch. Acronym: words are formed from the initial letters of the word that form a name, e.g. North Atlantic Treaty organization (NATO). Words are the smallest free forms in a language. They may be uttered in isolation. Words may be spoken or written. Spoken words are made up of phonemes, and written words are composed of graphemes. Classification of words: a) Nouns are those words whose meaning and use are decided by determiners; they are the head of noun phrases and change to express singular, plural or Saxon genitive. There are many types of nouns: proper (London), common (village), countable (euros), uncountable (news) and collective (the herd of pigs.) b) Verbs express actions, events or states of being. We have two groups of verbs: - Lexical verbs or full verbs: the main words in a verb phrase. These verbs can be regular (they form the past simple and the past participle adding the suffix ed e.g. booked) or irregular (these are unpredictable and have three forms e.g. eat/ ate/ eaten) - Auxiliary verbs give further semantic or syntactic information about the main or full verb following it e.g. to have run. c) Adjectives are words that describe or modify a person or thing in the sentence e.g. the woman was brave. The inflected suffixes er and est form the most comparatives and superlatives. We use more and most when an adjective has more than one syllable. d) Adverbs are words that modify verbs (providing information about time, place and manner), adjectives or other adverbs. Manner adverbs are formed by added the suffix ly to adjectives e.g. slowly. e) Determiners are noun modifiers, such as articles (the, a/ an), demonstratives (this, that, these, those), quantifiers (some, many), etc. f) Pronouns. A pronoun can replace a noun or another pronoun. We can find personal (I, you, he), possessive (my, your, her), demonstrative (this, these, that, those), interrogative (who, which, what), etc. g) Prepositions link nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in a sentence. A preposition usually indicates the temporal, spatial or logical relationship of its object to the rest of the sentence e.g. the mouse is on the table. h) Conjunctions connect two words, phrases or clauses together. For example: and, but, if, because, therefore

Syntax is the study of the principles and rules for constructing sentences in the languages. A sentence is a grammatical and lexical unit consisting of one or more words combined to form a meaningful statement, question, request, command, etc. A simple complete sentence consists of a subject and a predicate. The subject is typically a noun phrase. The predicate is a finite verb phrase alone or with objects, complements or adverbs. We should pay attention to both the grammatical structures of sentences (form) and how sentences are used in context (function). Classification of sentences based on their structures: Intransitive: subject + verb: I ran. Transitive: subject + verb + object: I read a book. Intensive: subject + verb + complement: I am tall. Complex transitive: subject + verb + object + complement: I go to school every day. Classification of sentences based on their purpose: A declarative sentence commonly makes a statement: Im going to leave. A negative sentence denies that a statement is true: Im not going to the school. An interrogative sentence requests information: when is your birthday? An exclamatory sentence is a more emphatic form of statement: Nice to see you again! An imperative sentence or command tells someone to do something: go to the supermarket.

We should teach our students from words to sentences and from oral to written form (input precedes output) with the enough vocabulary by way of funny activities. At the primary level, we shouldnt teach English language grammar directly. A good way to expose students to a grammar rule is through focus first on the usage (function) and then the form (grammatical structure). Leading our students attention to what matter most, they will learn aspects of morphology in the same way that native speakers do: by examples. A teacher provides examples and structured sentences, and can ask questions to encourage consciousness of a given grammatical rule. Oral expression methodology: From routines patterns, e.g. How do you say in English?, to free language production. Presentation: Listening activities with contextual cues to support the comprehension (flashcards mimic, etc.). Practice: Drills, role plays, gap-filling activities Production: Dialogues with students own words and sentences. Presentation. From oral or reading activity. Practice: Drills, gap-filling activities, written production with examples and templates e.g. asking information to pen pals about his or her name, age, city, etc. Production: Freedom to write whatever they want using their own words and sentences.

Written expression methodology

STRUCTURAL DOMAINS OF LINGUISTICS From its smallest elements (phones) to full utterances used communicative acts (pragmatics) Phonetics: the study of the sounds of human speech (phones) and the related physical and physiological processes of production, audition, and perception. Phonology: the study of the patterns of sound and gesture of any specific language (how sounds become meaningful in speakers mind). Phonology is interested in the distinctive units which make up a language (phonemes), as well as how they are patterned to encode meaning. Morphology: the study and analysis of word structure. It is concerned with patterns of word formation and modification in a language. Syntax: concerns with the rules or patterned relations- of sentenceconstruction. It studies how different parts of speech (nouns, verbs, adverbs, etc.) are combined into clauses, and then sentences. Semantics: the study of meaning in communication. It is concerned with the meaning of words (lexical semantics), fixed word combinations (phraseology), as well as larger units of discourse such as sentences and texts. Pragmatics: the study of utterances and how they are used in communicative acts, usually in the context of conversations. It is principally concerned with structural ambiguity, the ways in which word and phrase- arrangement can alter the meaning of a sentence, and pragmatic competence ones ability to understand a speakers intended meaning.

Methodology Methodology refers to the way that we are going to teach for reaching the objectives according to our students characteristics and resources available. Along the time, there have been lots of different views about what is the best way to teach and to learn a foreign language. This catalogue of methods is more than just a historical summary of the evolution of English language teaching ideas and practices; it is a toolbox that we can use to adapt our contents to the specific style and taste of our classroom. Edward Anthony (1963) proposed three levels of conceptualization and organization: An approach is a set of pedagogical tenets based on a theory of language learning (philosophy). A method is procedural. It is an overall plan for the systematic presentation of language contents and materials (as set of classroom practices). A technique is an implementation term. It refers to any specific activity or particular trick, stratagem or contrivance used in the English lessons to achieve an immediate objective. The organization is hierarchical; within an approach can be many methods which, in turn, are carried out by techniques. Here I will review the most significant methods, techniques and approaches in chronological order, noting their contributions to the acquisition of communicative competence. 1. Transmission learning approaches. From ancient civilizations to the 18th century. During the Roman Empire, Romans were taught Greek by teacher-slaves. During the Middle Ages, Latin as second language was acquired through the memorization of grammar rules, vocabulary lists and translation. In the 16th and 17th centuries, as vernaculars (French, Italian, English, etc.) were on the rise. In the 18th century, foreign languages entered into the curriculum of European schools and were taught in the same way than Latin. Oral practice consisted of reading texts aloud.

The grammar-translation method. During the 19th century, the grammar-translation method was the primarily method for teaching foreign language in Europe. Grammar-translation method consisted on memorization of vocabulary, grammatical rules, and orthography which enabled students to read, understand and write texts. Lessons were conducted in learners native tongue to explain one to one equivalencies. Exercises consisted primarily on the translation of texts from students native language to the target language and vice versa. Emphasis was placed on accuracy instead of fluency. The direct method. At the end of the 19th century, the direct method proposed that languages should be taught through interaction via the written and spoken word in the target language, creating associations between new vocabulary and objects, actions, etc. Grammar was not presented directly, but learnt inductively. -

The oral situational method and the audio-lingual method.

These methods were on the rise at the beginning of the 20th century. Both methods are quite similar, based heavily on the direct method but they developed independently and maintain their distinct names. Situational language teaching The meaning of words and structures is not given through explanation but induced from the way is used in a situation. The context in which vocabulary is presented plays a very important role e.g. at the supermarket, at the train station, etc. The audio-lingual method Bloomfield adapted behaviourist tents to second language learning and treated language as a set of externally conditioned habits. Language learners were conditioned to respond correctly to specific stimuli through a process of repetition, imitation of native speakers, drilling and reinforcement. Though these two methods did not consider communication a priority (emphasis was on internalizing correct structures and pronunciation), their systematic approach was the basis for the new student centred approaches. 1 Humanistic approaches. The focus of these approaches is placed on the students and pays special attention to their needs, emotions, interests and classroom environment. In humanistic approaches, students play an active role in their own learning processes. The foreign language is used as a vehicle of communication in the classroom. 2.1 The silent way. The silent way method was developed by Caleb Cattegno. The teacher remains in silent giving students the room to speak and experiment with the target language through participation in various situations created in the classroom. Learners are not allowed to speak in their native language. The teacher is just a source of careful feedback and uses ample visual aids in order to help students linking sounds and meanings. 2.2 Total physical response (TPR) TPR was developed by James Asher. TPR asks students participation by way of motor activity, so students can give non-verbal answers by mean of movements. 2.3 The notational-functional syllabus. The Council of Europe in the 1960s suggested that language syllabi should be organized in terms of notions and functions. Notions are particular contexts in people communicate, and functions are modes of speech e.g. greetings, asking for permission, express feelings and so on. The overall goal is to help students communicate in a variety of real life situations.

2.4 The natural approach. According to Krashen, language acquisition is different from language learning. Acquisition refers to the natural, unconscious development of second language competence through meaningful exchanges, while learning refers to the conscious study of the language and memorization of grammar rules. According to Krashen, only acquisition can increase students communicative competence. Learning process has an important function particularly in writing. 2.5 Task based approach (TBA). Tasks are the central unit of planning and teaching. Students perform a series of preparatory tasks in order to build the necessary competence to perform the final task. Tasks provide both the input and output processing necessary for language acquisition. 2.6 Suggestopedia. This method developed by Lozanov is based on the creation of a safe and positive classroom environment. Relaxation atmosphere helps foreign language learning since minimize the negative effects of learners affective barriers. This method utilizes classical music and rhythm to help learners enter a highly relaxed and receptive state. 2.7 Communicative language teaching (CLT). CLT is one of the most important approaches to language teaching in use today. In CLT classrooms, the teacher functions more as a facilitator and is responsible for creating learning situation helping learners create meaning, and therefore learning, in their own, individual ways and at their own pace. It includes also sociolinguistic aspects of the language: David Nunans (1991) five features of CLT: An emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction in the target language. The introduction of authentic texts into the learning situation. The provision of opportunities for learners to focus, not only on language but also on the learning management process. An enhancement of the learners own personal experiences as important contributing elements to classroom learning. An attempt to link classroom language with language activities outside the classroom. Techniques focused on the acquisition of communicative competence As we have seen before, a technique is much more specific than an approach or method. The following techniques help to develop communicative competence: Miming new vocabulary. The best way to get new vocabulary meaning, when is unclear from its context, is using visual aids, voices, sounds or even miming or acting out the new word or expression without recurring to equivalences with their first language.

 Mouthing new vocabulary. We can help students pronunciation of new words mouthing the word slowly, exaggerating slightly the position of the tongue, lips, mouth, etc. to draw attention to the parts of the words that need more attention. Pretending to not understand L1 speech. This trick can motivate students to speak English, even trying to explain very complex ideas beyond the reach of their vocabulary. This increases practice time and will help them develop communication strategies. Conducting business in English, even when giving directions, coordinating activity or classroom changes, or responding to students behaviour. Through the use of paralinguistic cues, routines, and consistent predictable classroom behaviour, teachers can make themselves understood in these situations. Students will begin to understand more and more these natural communication opportunities. Step by step art projects are very good for developing listening and communication skills during the silent periods. Students show that they understand by completing the instructions. For example: when you finish cutting out the moon, glue it in the middle of the sky. Teachers check students comprehension seeing what they have done. Reading in different voices. Teacher often need to read text several times to full comprehension of the students. We can do it using different rhythms, voices, reading at half speed, or in a whisper, dramatically or with character voices to do each repetition more interesting. Turn it into a game. Any content can be converted into a game with the necessary materials: dominoes, cards, dice, game board, etc. Team games like taboo are especially useful for the development of communicative competence. We should be careful not to use the same games style too often to keep each possibility fresh and interesting. Literature From an educational point of view, literature can be used as a powerful tool for teaching both linguistic and sociocultural elements. We should encourage students reading habits. Books are very appropriate for our classroom, stimulate students imagination, and help to begin reading and to build learning language contexts. A brief history of childrens literature The idea of childhood is quite recent. Until the 17th century children were considered as miniature adults. Childrens literature began in second half of the 18th century. Additionally, the advent of the printing press made childrens literature economically possible. Early childrens books were heavily influenced by the church doctrine, warning young readers of the terrible consequences of bad behavior e.g. James Janeway (1720), Joyful deaths of several young children. John Newberry (1744) published the first book written for children without an overall didactic or religious aim: A little pretty pocket book.

In the 18th and 19th century began to emerge the book adaptation of collected stories from the oral storytelling traditions of the Middle Ages such as Snow white, Hansel and Gretel, Little red riding hood, Sleeping beauty, Cinderella and Puss in boots among others. The mid-19th century is when totally original works of childrens literature really began to appear. Denmarks Hans Christian Anderson published a great number of beloved fairy tales including, The ugly duckling (1844), The snow queen (1845). English writer Lewis Carroll published Alices Adventures in wonderland (1865). There is also a long and important tradition of adult literature that, over the time, becomes regarded as classic childrens literature e.g. the tales of Robin Hood (c. 1450), Mark Twains novels The adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and The adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884) and Robert Stevensons Treasure Island. Some important works from the late 19th and the early 20th century include Johanna Spyri (1880) Heidi, Beatrix Potter (1902) The tale of Pitter Rabbit, L. Frank Baum (1900) The wonderful wizard of Oz, and Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little house on the prairie series (starting in 1933). Selection criteria The successful use of literature in the classroom depends on the careful selection (and often adaptation) of the materials, as well as their integration into lesson plans. The selection of a determined text depends on outside factors such as the specifics of the group, their language level, their needs, interests, etc. and intrinsic factors: Content: Is the content age- appropriate? Will students find it interesting and relevant to their lives? Will they find it amusing and easy to remember? Does it have any sociocultural or cross-curricular content? Design and visual aspects: Does the book have adequate contextual support i.e. illustrations and pictures? Is the design attractive? Participation: Can it be used to promote classroom participation via content predications, repetitions, etc.? Does it build confidence and self-esteem? Motivation: Does the book arouse student interest in English? Does it create a positive response to English cultures? The difficulty of the language: How complex are the sentences? How advanced is the vocabulary? Is it level- appropriate? Educational potential: Will the story help students gain new structures and sociocultural knowledge? Previous knowledge: Will students need to know a lot of specific information to get the story? Authenticity: Was the material produced for native speakers, or was it designed for foreign languages students?

Our students will not enjoy or identify with a text that is too difficult to understand. Difficult has two components, linguistic and stylistic. Linguistic level: If we want our students to enjoy a text the use of idioms should be kept to a minimum. The vocabulary used should be more or less familiar to them. Stylistic Level refers to the use of common or difficult words, metaphors, the length of the sentences, etc. If the text deviates from a simple stylistic level, it probably will not be appreciated by our students. Genres Fairy tale is a type of short narrative that typically features such folkloric characters, such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, dwarves, giants or gnomes, and usually magic or enchantments. They are very appropriate for primary students because are short, repeat words and stimulate the imagination. A fable is a fictional story about allegorical characters (animals, mythical creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature) which are anthropomorphized (with human qualities) that contains a explicitly moral lesson (a "moral") expressed at the end. Stories are based on the conveying of a sequence of events. It is defined as narrative or tale of real or fictions events. Stories or narratives have been shared in every culture as a mean of entertainment, education, cultural preservation and in order to instill moral values. Crucial elements of stories and tales include plot, characters and narrative point of view e.g. Beatrix Potters The tale of Peter Rabbit and Dr. Seusss The cat in the hat, are ideal for learning to read. Nursery Rhymes are traditional songs for young children. They are especially appropriate for our classrooms (particularly at the beginning of primary education) because their limited vocabulary, rhythm and intonation make them easy to memorize. Short novels should be carefully graded and adapted, interesting, with very short chapters and illustrations e.g. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Gullivers Travels. Important English- language authors Dr. Seuss (1904-1991): The cat in the hat, Hop on pop. J.K Rowling (born 1965): Harry Potter series. Eoin Colfer (born 1965): The Artemis Fowl series. Roald Dahl (1916-1990): James and the giant peach, Matilda. C.S Lewis (1898-1963): The Narnia chronicles. J.R.R Tolkien (1892-1971): The Hobbit and the Lord of the ring.

Different literary forms and genres: 1. Poetry According to Mark Flannigan poetry is an imaginative awareness of experience expressed through meaning, sound and rhythmic choices so as to evoke an emotional response. It sometimes makes use of meter (patterns of stress syllables) and rhyme (patterns of similar sounds), but has in recent times largely taken the form of free verse. 2. Drama. Plays are literary works that are used as scripts/ guides for dramatic performances. It consists on dialogues between various cases, and in some cases also includes instructions for the movement and the expression of actors (called stage directions). Comedies are light- hearted and have happy endings. Tragedies bring ruin upon protagonists. 3. Non- fiction. Nonfiction is an account of something that is understood to be fact. It has traditionally been used as a categorizing principle of all writing, which is understood as fiction (creative work) or nonfiction (true fact) particularly in libraries. 4. Creative Nonfiction. Creative nonfiction approaches whats the true through an authors personal point of view, usually using the first person pronoun I as narrator storyteller. 5. Prose fiction. The word prose refers to any writing that doesnt adhere to the meter, rhyme, or line breaks of verse. Prose fiction refers to narrative works concerned most often with characters and plots usually novels and short stories, through there are other forms. How books can be effectively used in the classroom Literature not only helps to develop the two receptive skills (listening and reading comprehension), but also is a very rich source of sociocultural content and an opportunity for aesthetic education. Today it is inevitable that young people are more captivated by cinema, television, a colourful poster or a flashy photograph than by books. This is the imagebased world. We should promoting and developing reading habits as a form of entertainment and source of personal pleasure. Its important that stories are age and level appropriate, interesting and motivating, but also take care to create ideal classroom situations in which the stories are used (to make sure students have the support they need to build confidence as readers).

Listening comprehension The goal of extensive (global) reading techniques is to acquire a general understanding of the overall meaning of a text. Intensive reading, on the other hand, directs student interest to a specific part or aspect of the text (vocabulary, structures and phonetics). The communicative purpose of our classrooms makes extensive reading more likely focus. 1. In the first stage, we should always provide ample contextual information to help in their comprehension and interpretation of the story. As we listening, we can use gestures and visual aids. 2. Following the first listening of the text, we can have students complete a basic activity for instance, choosing the pictures that best illustrates the story (of five), putting four picture panels detailing the major actions of the story in order or answering yes no questions about the plot. 3. We should take steps to make sure that these activities are fun. We can get students involved by asking them to put themselves in the characters shoes and make the whole process more dynamic, participatory and interactive (not just reading skills). The stories should be syntactically suited, neither too difficult nor too easy, and close to our students interests. Promoting and developing reading habits Most of what Ive said above can also be applied to reading. We should begin with more extrinsic activities relating to context and the illustrations (comics, stories, magazines). Many students dont have much reading habit in their native language, let alone in English. The selection of materials for reading activities is very important. Students need to feel excited about reading, and also feel confident that they can do it. To this end, we should allow students to choose their own books, stress reading for pleasure and never use reading as a pretext. Among the educational benefits of reading (acquiring new skills, access to new information, personal growth, etc.) we should highlight its value as a form of entertainment and source of pleasure. Sensitizing students to the poetic use of language All languages have the ability to provoke feelings of pleasure through artistic use of words and sentences. We should participate in students aesthetic education and help them perceive the value and beauty of literature and understand that stories are artistic achievements. We can show students that language has an artistic value all its own, and help them to differentiate between different uses of language, i.e. narrative (by which the author transmits literal messages) and poetic (through which the language is more important than its content). Eventually we can even do this by encouraging students to create their own narratives using strategies (the use of certain words, places, rhyme, alliteration, etc. to create intended effects). We should encourage our students to express their feelings and moods through the use of the language (either written or spoken). The use of poems, fables, stories, rhyming and rhythmical texts in our lessons, increase the students appreciation for poetic use of language.

Music and songs Throughout history, all cultures on the planet have recognized the powerful effects of music. Nowadays songs are important tools for teaching a foreign language as we will see in this topic because are important sociocultural contents and help to motivate our students, and, in words of Royal Decree 1513/ 2006 contribute to the development of positive and receptive attitudes towards other languages and cultures, and take part in the development of the cultural and artistic competence (MEC, 2006). Songs are essentially poetry (lyrics) set to music. Literature in particular, poetry- is language made art; since incorporates elements such as rhythm and rhyme. Benefits to language learning They highlight the prosodic features of the language (stress, rhythm and intonation). Since they are often read out loud, repeated, contemplated and interpreted, facilitate memory. Through repetition, grammatical structures, vocabulary and pronunciation can be internalized easily. They are wonderful tools for teaching the four language skills, especially listening and reading. They constitute and important sociocultural content. As cultural expressions, also bring creativity. They offer an element of fun and a welcome change from routine classroom activities. As students love music, songs are one of the most motivating resources that can be used in language classrooms. Additionally music can create a relaxed and positive classroom atmosphere and fostering mental states. Selection criteria Poems are usually constructed in a high level of syntactic complexity and can be difficult for a foreign language learner to understand them. Contemporary poems that reflect cultural themes, universal features, humanistic values, or emotional aspects are more appropriated for our students. Teachers should select them according to the students age, level and interests, as well as the language being used. Age: Younger students prefer short songs with a few words and a lot of repetition while in the third cycle may already have their favourite groups or singers who sing in English, and may be more interested in understand their favourite songs. Level: Songs should be neither too difficult nor easy. Interests: Students can participate in the selection of the songs and bring their favourites, but the content should be relevant to what they are learning.

Typology of songs Songs for festivities, celebrations, special occasions and holydays such as Birthdays, Christmas, Halloween, New Years Eve, etc. These songs can be easily tied into cultural lessons but excessive repetition can be avoided. Carolyn Graham developed the Jazz Chant technique (rhythmic poems with an enjoyable swing to them). These raps like poems can be read and recited by teachers and students to teach prosodic elements of language. Jazz rhythm makes structures or fixed patterns easy to remember. Adapted songs are made up for classroom use and are easy to integrate into Didactic units. They are carefully level graded and make use of the vocabulary, expressions and structures being taught e.g. routines songs related to the alphabet, weather, colour, food, numbers, actions, etc. Authentic songs. There are many originals songs with potential use in our classroom. As always, we have to make sure they are level and age appropriate before using them since often are more difficult for students and their topic arent always the most suitable for lessons. Ways to use music in the classroom Reason why music is important in our job as foreign language teachers: To facilitate learning and memory. Music increases student interest and attention. When information is put to rhythm and rhyme (songs, chants, poems and raps) are easier to remember. Music also increases students motivation and concentration. To create a positive and productive learning environment. Background music provides a welcoming atmosphere and helps to motivate students. Music an energize attention levels e.g. Mozarts music, or calm when necessary e.g. Bachs music. To stimulate creativity. Music facilitates personal expression in writing, art, movement, and a multitude of projects (sing, dance, etc.). Background music can be used to facilitate creativity, to lower the affective filter, and to encourage personal reflection.

Song-based activities for teaching phonetic, lexical and cultural elements Activities for teaching phonetic elements (stress, rhythm and intonation).

Listening English songs give students access to native speech in a funny and interesting way. The pupils can listen and repeat the words or chants after the cassette, sing the song once they have listened to it previously, practice in groups, complete the song with the missing sounds of the words, karaoke, etc. Activities for teaching lexical elements.

Songs can be used to help students learn the meaning of new words. They can look for the synonym or antonym of words in the songs, mime some words of the songs to see if the understood the meaning of them, complete a lyrics sheet with the missing words, put the verses of the songs in order, etc.

Activities for teaching cultural elements.

We use songs to show them the cultural elements of the English speaking countries such as their customs, festivities, etc. Students can watch video-clips where these elements appear, draw pictures of the cultural elements of the songs, create a book about the parts of the culture they know or have learnt throughout the songs, create a presentation with pictures and images about the English speaking countries. Conclusion Music has a special connection with human emotion and thought. Music greatly affects and enhances our learning and living. Songs are wonderful texts for classroom use. They motivate students; can be used to develop all four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing), and can facilitate memory. Most people can remember rhymes and songs learned when they were children. They are especially well- suited for teaching vocabulary and structures, as well as prosodic elements (stress, rhythm and intonation). In other words, they are essential tools for developing the communicative competence but it is also an invaluable sociocultural content and can be used to calm students, create focus, signal routines, etc. Games Nowadays with the advent of the new student-centred approaches educators recognize the importance of creativity and play in learning, and games have taken centre stage in classrooms. Games are a natural media for students. They increase students motivation and participation making the target language fun and attractive; with them students will have the sensation of learning in an unconscious way. Carefully designed, implemented and monitored, games are powerful tools for teachers in order to achieve our didactic objectives. Creativity Creativity is a mental process that involves the generation of new ideas or concepts often from others already existing. According to Piaget, games play an important role in helping children to learn. We can use them in our foreign language area to stimulate students creativity, motivation, participation and many others benefits. We should bear in mind a careful design and/ or selection of the games, a proper organization of the students and presentation of the rules among others. In order to develop creativity, we must create a positive learning environment that allow children to feel confident, relaxed, motivated, involved, etc. Definition A game is an activity carried out inside or outside the classroom, with established rules that students know beforehand, a specific goal, and an element of fun. The fun is of course essential. Martin (1995) defines a game as any fun activity that gives young learners the opportunity to practice the foreign language in a relaxed and enjoyable way.

Characteristic of games according to Roger Caillois: Fun: games have a great leisure character. Separate from everyday life; it is circumscribe in time and place. Uncertain: the outcome of the activity is unforeseeable. Non productive: people play just for the pleasure to play. Governed by rules that students know beforehand and that we can adapt to them. Fictitious: games are accompanied by awareness of a different reality. Classification of games Competitive games, players play against others for the same goal; consequently there are winners and losers. Cooperative games in which players work together in a collaborative way in order to get a common goal. According to their overall language goals: Linguistic games focus on accuracy (right language usage) Communicative games focus on fluency (development of communicative strategies). According to the kind of activity they involve: Ordering games: put in order or classify given information. For example, classify cards into categories (animals, vegetables, minerals, etc.) Information gap games. Students have to find the missing information of a text or picture from another person or group. Guessing games, in this sort of games, students have to guess the meaning of unknown words or sentences through mimic and other contextual clues. Search games. In this games students are encourages to search some information about a chosen topic with the help of computers, books, etc. Matching games. Students form pairs matching for example the written form of words with their pictures, definitions, sounds, etc. Exchanging games. Students have to exchange cards, objects or ideas. Board games. For example: noughts and crosses, scrabble, puzzles, taboo, etc. with the necessary adaptation. Role plays games involve students performing roles. We can find scripted performances or improvised ones. Advantages and functions of games Communicative approach uses the foreign language as a vehicle of communication by means of careful planning in which elements must be adapted to the specific characteristics of our group of students.

Slattery and Willis (2001) note that primary students, in general, learn in a variety of ways (watching, listening, imitating, playing and by doing things), are no able to understand language grammatical rules through explanations, are naturally curious, love to play and use their imagination, etc. So the use of games is especially suitable for our lessons. The use of games in English language teaching encourages children to see the foreign language as something fun. Games are natural media for students and by way of games, the teacher can work all four basic skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) and consequently help in the development of the communicative competence. Advantages of using games: Games help to create a positive learning environment. They offer a welcome change from classroom routine and variety to the lessons. They provide hidden practice of the contents which means that students enjoy while they learn. Games improve students motivation, creativity, participation and attention. They establish links between the classroom and our students daily life, making the foreign language useful. They provide fluency practice since increase communication between peers, and reduce the distance between teacher and pupils. We can vary the level and the rules in order to attend diversity. We can use games for a wide range of functions: Depending on the placement in the lesson we can find: warm up games, review games, consolidation games, etc. Games provide excellent practice for all four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing). Intercultural and traditional games from English speaking countries such as cricket, baseball and so on, help to develop sociocultural contents.

As we can see, games are the main resources for developing childrens language learning experiences and the most attractive tools to complete the tasks with creativity. Games help teachers to create contexts in which the language is useful and meaningful, making a real use of the foreign language, essential factor to develop communicative competence. Games improve students motivation, creativity, participation and attention, which means that they enjoy while learn. Drama-based activities This unit is about ways to enliven our foreign language classrooms using elements of dramatic performance. Drama has been used throughout history to entertain and educate people, but really began to take hold in classrooms as a pedagogical tool in the 20th century with the advent of new student centred approaches.

The dramatic arts offer a wide range of techniques for the primary school teacher in which students can participate. These techniques are essential to develop our students communicative competence practicing the four language skills, and to maintain classroom interest and energy. Peter Slade (1954) recommended that teachers use drama to promote the natural process of communication in the classroom: Body language reinforces oral messages. Facial expressions (sad, happy, etc.). Tone of voice e.g. to express surprise. Miming gestures e.g. different actions. Total physical response activities. Dialogues and role plays (with script or improvised). And other paralinguistic cues provide valuable contents for language learners. Advantages Dramatic performance increases student attention and motivation since make the content of English lessons more desirable. These techniques are essential to develop students communicative competence practicing the four language skills, and to maintain classroom interest and energy. Drama is an important tool for the development of different areas such as Art, Physical Education, Language and Literature or Foreign Language among others. Its a powerful instrument for developing social skills and education in ethical values due to its strong interpersonal and relational character. They develop communicative strategies such as non- verbal communication and other paralinguistic cues. They help in the creation of a positive learning environment. Students tend to find acting a fun and welcome change from other activities. It provides a nice segue from scripted role play activities to improvisation. It develops students imagination and spontaneity. Performance stresses the importance of prosodic elements (Pronunciation: stress, rhythm and intonation). Such activities can close the distance between teachers and students. Students learn new structures in an unconscious way while reading, writing, rehearsing and acting the dialogues. Problems to be aware The classes can become quite noisy and chaotic. Shy and introverted students may find performing in front of their classmates overwhelming. Such activities tend to take a lot of time to organize.

A big space without tables, chairs, etc. is needed. The decoration has to be created and the costumes found/ made. The students and the teacher have to find the music for the different scenes. Keeping everyone involved can help avoid discipline problems. Everybody has to have a role in the performance (actors, direction, music, etc.)

But even all these things can become important learning experiences if we work in a coordinative way with other areas. Everyday situations Activities based on dramatization of everyday situations are around scenarios (e.g. the supermarket) and dialogues that we hear, see or read frequently in our common life (e.g. the weather, family and friends, leisure time activities, etc.). We can also plan drama activities dealing with typical classroom interactions since nothing is more common for our students than going to the school. We can also imaging that we are tourists asking for the time or directions. We should bear in mind our students interests such as pets, music, sports, etc. Techniques Role plays can be guided ones and free ones. In the first one the teacher provides the structures to use, the vocabulary, etc. and in the second variety, when the students feel confident can create the dialogue on their own. In role plays the characters adopt a role, within a wide range of topics, which they will perform. For example a group of friends who go to the cinema and they have to buy the tickets, popcorn, ask for the seat, etc. Stories and characters. Depending on students individual tastes, we can adapt a story book into a script or they may find creative fiction more motivating than daily lives. Children also show interest in very imaginative stories, characters and scenarios such as pirates, the moon and so on. We can use the following characters within a play: actors, flats characters, main and minor characters, round or dynamic characters, scripter, protagonists, antagonists, decoration, set director, costume/ make-up artists, music responsible, etc. Jokes provide lessons with a bit of humour. They can be used to practice prosodic elements (stress, intonation and rhythm) and also tend to carry significant cultural information, but we should take into account that if the joke is difficult for our students, it becomes humourless. We should select jokes level appropriate for our students, and tasteful. Visual aids and/ or mimic the action can help to joke comprehension. Puppet plays. Usually children love puppets. They can create own puppets in art class. This is a good technique for shy students since they can speak without their faces being seen.

Play reading. The purpose of this technique is reading aloud to practice pronunciation and interpretation e.g. monologues, poems, charades, etc. We can select a group of students to interpret the text in front of the class. Creative group work activities

Pairs and group work are ideal for drama activities in the English class. Drama based activities include a wide range of tasks we can work in group e.g. to write or select the dialogues, practicing and rehearsing, to select the music, scenarios, etc. Group work encourages fluency and helps to create a positive classroom atmosphere. Pair works and group work create the opportunity for each student to practice their roles and dialogues many times in a single lesson. It gives them a chance to use the target language in a meaningful exchange of ideas and information, enhances student cooperation and provides natural feedback and motivation to learn. Group work creates a good opportunity for discussion. When the students are working collaboratively on a group project it requires them to communicate and cooperate, as well as to elect and be involved in other creative roles: script writers, costume design, direction, music, timekeeper, casting director, etc. It is an ideal way for students to take responsibility for their groups performance. Roles to be performer by the teacher The teacher as organizer: Drama based lessons will quickly collapse into chaos if the activity is not well organized. Routines are particularly important for classroom management. Confusion and time wasting often result from inadequate planning. When organizing a drama activity it is important to give very clear and unambiguous instructions. It is a good idea to demonstrate or show them an example of what is expected from them. We should take into account the space, the script, the learners role, the music, the costumes, etc. Every student has to have a role in the performance to avoid behaviour problems. The teacher as a prompter facilitates the learning experiences in a non intrusive way. This involves giving suggestions to the students towards the desired outcome. To challenge those students who are most capable, as well as show constant support to more introverted students. The teacher as participant. There is no reason why a teacher should not participate in activities but obviously he or she should avoid dominating the task. The teacher as a resource. Students have access to the teacher as an assessor when required. Conclusion Nowadays, drama -based activities usually form an integral part of our lessons. Drama is a great teaching tool because the many linguistic elements incorporated into a dialogue (words, sentences, grammar rules, vocabulary, prosodic elements, etc.) through repetition will be memorized more easily. Students will feel a sensation of progress from more scripted plays to other based on improvisation by way of these fun activities with the motivation of making the play as good as possible and without the awareness of language items are being practiced.

Introduction Nowadays, with the expansion of the European Union, the ability to communicate in a foreign language is very important for social, educational, and economic reasons. Learning another language is a way of approaching to other cultures, and, it is a way to gain access to the wider labour market. The command of a new language involves the development of four main language skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing, but also sociocultural aspects of the different language speaking countries. Nowadays, English is considered as a lingua franca in the world, it is usually used as second language among people who arent from English speaking countries. For these reasons the area of foreign language has special consideration within schools; it is included in each of the three cycles of the Primary Education and it is given the status of an instrumental area (MEC, 2006). The curriculum is sufficiently flexible and decentralised to allow schools and teachers adapting it to their specific teaching context and their particular students, paying attention to differences and diversity. The area of Foreign Language in the curriculum The educational system proposes different levels of curriculum design: Royal Decree 1513/ 2006 in Spain and the Order of August 10th in Andaluca contain the guidelines for Primary Schools and are a required point of reference in writing a School Educational Project. In order to guarantee high quality education, each school must contextualise the law according to their particular reality and philosophy of teaching. Then this is carried out by the teacher at class/ group level since its clear that every student have different characteristics and needs. There is also a final (4th) level of curriculum design, Individual Curricular Adaptations (ICA), for those students who present some specific need of educational support.

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Relationship between English and other areas Castilian language and literature: English learners develop new expressive nuances and communicative strategies. With the use of different literary genres such as stories, fables, poems, short novels, fairy tales, etc. Drama-based activities. Physical education: TPR activities, mimic games, role plays, body language, etc. Artistic Education: Music, art projects, role plays, monuments, festivities, puppets, etc. Maths: The hour, distances, converting pounds or dollars to , miles to Km and vice versa. Sciences (Environmental knowledge): Knowledge of other cultures, maps, history, searching games, etc. Many of our contents are related to the nature, animals and plants. The Foreign Language area Royal Decree 1513/ 2006 specifies that Primary Education comprises three cycles which are organized into areas with a global and integrating character. This means that the teaching in one area will integrate experiences and learning from other areas. The area of foreign language is included in each of the three cycles and it is given the status of an instrumental area which means that has special consideration. Specific development of the curriculum of the area is made in Annex II of Royal Decree 1513/ 2006, in the chapter entitled the Foreign Language.

Objectives Objectives refer to the aims that guide the learning process. 1. To listen and understand verbal messages. 2. To express and interact orally in simple, day to day situations through verbal or non-verbal procedures. 3. To write texts about topic previously dealt with. 4. To read different types of texts, related to their experiences and interests, and be able to extract general and specific information. 5. To learn to use all the methods they have to obtain and communicate in a foreign language, such as new technologies. 6. To value the foreign languages as a means of communication and understanding among people from different cultures. 7. To have a receptive and confident attitude towards the learning process and the use of foreign languages. 8. To use the previous knowledge of other languages to learn the new one in a more effective and autonomous way. 9. To be able to properly use the phonetics, rhythm, stress and intonation, and the linguistic and lexical aspects of the foreign language in communication. Contents Contents are means required in order to develop the objectives and competences. Block 1. Listening, speaking and conversing: the teaching will focus on learning the linguistic elements and on developing the capacity to use them. To achieve this, the children must be provided with a rich, varied and suitable input. Block 2. Reading and writing: differences in the graphical representations between the known language and the foreign language. Block 3. Language awareness: this block includes the reflections over the learning process, to establish which elements are similar to the language they know and which strategies will help them learn. Block 4. Sociocultural knowledge and intercultural awareness: language constitutes a vehicle for communication and cultural transmission. Learning a foreign language involves knowing other cultures and fosters the respect and acceptance of behavioural and cultural differences, promoting tolerance and integration. Cross curricular contents. Education in values Peace: Cooperative activities and group work. Dialogues as the main way to solve problems. Respect towards the rules of the classroom and diversity of cultures and opinions. Health: Healthy habits such as hygiene, feed, physical activity, daily activities Coeducation: Mixed group work with the same materials and activities both for girls and boys. Environmental: Respect towards the nature, animals and plants. Education for responsible consumption, recycle. Vial: Look left- right, traffic signals, means of transport, etc.

Basic competences Basic competences refer to students ability to perform specific tasks. a) Linguistic competence in communication. People who know foreign languages have more possibilities to communicate. English learners develop new expressive nuances and communicative strategies. b) Competence in maths, the hour, converting pounds or dollars in euros, miles in kilometres and vice versa. c) Competence in the knowledge about and interacting with the environment: A language is the main vehicle for human thinking, the most powerful tool for interpreting and representing the reality and the learning instrument par excellence. d) Digital and information processing competence: The incorporation of the information and communication technologies to the school (ICT Schools 2.0) makes communication possible in real time with any part of the world. Children will also have easy and immediate access to a continuous and never ending flow of information. E.g. Projects or reports, web pages, blogs, forums, data bases, etc. e) Social and civic competence: Languages are also vehicles of communication and cultural transmission; knowledge of a different culture from their own contributes to the respect and acceptance of the differences, promoting tolerance and integration. f) Cultural and artistic competence: Language itself has a cultural component. It involves knowledge of monuments and other art expressions (music, books, and movies), customs, traditions, geography, conventions, festivities, celebrities, etc. g) Learning to learn competence to continue learning in an autonomous way. E.g. The use of dictionaries, searching games and other internet tools. h) Competence in personal autonomy and initiative (tightly related with learning to learn competence): The inclusion of a content block devoted to the reflection on language which makes the children conscious of their own way of learning and aware of the most efficient strategies for them to use. Methodology Methodology refers to the way that we are going to teach for reaching the objectives according to our students characteristics and resources available. Decree 230/ 2007, establishes some guidelines for the teaching of Foreign Language area: Teachers must adapt their didactic programs in response to schools characteristic and students needs, interests, learning styles, and so on. The main referent in the methodology is the communicative approach that uses the foreign language as a vehicle of communication. Integration of the four language skills, but giving priority to the oral ones (listening and speaking). Create communicative context as real as possible and use contextual support for facilitating students comprehension. Students are active participants; they should be at the centre of the process. To relate new knowledge with previous knowledge by means of warm up activities. Take into account Vygotskys Zone of Proximal Development theory. Methodology should be active and participatory based on tasks, games, pairs and group work, dialogues, etc. Respect the silent period. The pace of the classroom must be natural, not forced. Comprehensible input is very important, either too difficult or easy. During this period TPR activities are particularly useful. We can also develop non- verbal strategies of communication (body language).

Resources should be authentic when possible. We can use ICT, songs, stories, videos, etc. The teacher and students can design materials, making students more involved in the process. Grouping and management of space should be considered carefully. Pairs and group works, U- Shape and circles are ideal organizations in order to develop communication. We can have an English corner where keep all materials: dictionaries, stories, posters, maps, flashcards, books, DVDs, etc. Creation a good learning environment in the classroom to avoid anxiety and encourage students motivation. This implies: Consider errors a useful and natural part of the teaching-learning process. Using interesting and enjoyable learning activities such as games. Games are very useful in dealing with the diversity of the class since we can vary the type and level of activity. To establish a code of conduct with the agreement of both students and the teacher and display the rules on the wall. We can also display pupils works. Its very important to establish routines for a good classroom management and because students feel confident with them. Evaluation process The evaluation of the students learning will be global and continuous. The evaluation will take place in different elements of the curriculum. The evaluation criteria of the areas will be the reference by which the teachers evaluate the degree of acquisition of the basic competences. Throughout the process, if the teacher realises that the students are having problems, he or she will have to remedy the situation with extra activities. Teacher will evaluate their own teaching procedures. Evaluation criteria Evaluation criteria are the places where objectives and contents meet. They are guidelines which help teachers to check the type and level of learning that students have acquired within a given period. Evaluation criteria in the area of foreign language area are based on the proposed objectives: Comprehension of spoken and written messages. Production of messages in communicative situations. Comprehension of reading. Self learning. Sociocultural aspects. The school educational project The Educational Project, the Managerial Project and the Rules of Organization and Functioning (ROF) form the School Plan (Junta de Andaluca, 2010). As we have seen before, the curriculum is flexible and decentralised to allow schools and teachers adapting it to their specific teaching context and their particular students, paying attention to differences and diversity. Teachers must identify their particular school context in the School Educational Project in order to analyse the starting point for their particular teaching and learning situation. The educational project expresses the philosophy of education that each school wants taking into account the values, objectives, and priorities for action, from a cultural point of view, for the area where it is located based on its reality and with reference to the law (Junta de Andaluca, 2010).

The educational project addresses among others: Own objectives for improving school performance. General lines of pedagogic performance. Education in values. The form of attention to student diversity. The Orientation Plan and Tutorial Action. The procedures to establish links and commitments with families. The Coexistence Plan to prevent disruptive behaviours. The Teacher Training Plan. The procedures and criteria for evaluation and promotion of students. The criteria to organize and distribute school time. Internal evaluation procedures. The criteria for grouping of students and the allocation of tutoring. The general criteria for developing the curriculum of each of the areas. The strategic plans developed in the school.

Why do we need to program? According to Decree 328/ 2010 (Junta de Andaluca, 2010), Didactics Programs in Primary Education are specific planning instruments, development and evaluation of each area of the curriculum established by the legislation. It will address the general criteria in the educational project and take into account the needs and characteristics of the students. Programming within teachers functions is a planning tool for classroom activity Some teachers consider the program as a bureaucratic task that wastes time. However, we should consider the need to collect, in a minimally structure, the daily task of a school and/ or classroom to be aware of what we are doing, and to compare and contrast the work done during the academic year. To ensure coherence between the educational intentions of the centre and teaching practice. Its an adapted and coherent guide for teaching. It avoids improvisation, saving time and unnecessary effort. It promotes meditation on the teaching practice about possible adaptations we can make in our objectives, contents, methodology and activities. It makes us more aware of how to evaluate. To attend the diversity of interests, motivations, needs and characteristics in general of the students. Planning the Foreign Language area According to Decree 328/ 2010 (Junta de Andaluca, 2010) didactic programs in Primary Education are specific planning instruments, development and evaluation of each area of the curriculum established by the legislation. It will address the general criteria in the educational project and take into account the needs and characteristics of the students. Programming is primarily a planning tool for classroom activity: Its and adapted and coherent guide for teaching with respect to the objectives. It avoids improvisation, saving time and unnecessary effort. It promotes meditation on the teaching practice about possible adaptations we can make in the curricular elements to attend the diversity. It makes us more aware of how to evaluate.

The units to plan have a fixed pattern and include the following elements: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Title. It should be attractive. Justification of why the teacher is going to teach the unit. Context: characteristics of the school and the students. The objectives. The aims that guide the learning process. Capacities that students have to develop. They respond to the question of why do we teach? Basic competences. Students abilities to perform specific tasks. The contents are the means by which the capacities are developed. The things that we are going to teach for reaching the objectives. They respond to the question of what are we going to teach? The methodology refers to the way we are going to teach for reaching the objectives according to our students and resources available. It responds to the question of how are we going to teach? The methodology includes activities, materials and resources, timing, guidelines, techniques, the organization of the classroom, etc. The evaluation is the way of measuring the acquisition of the competences, objectives and contents. It responds to the questions of how, what and when we are going to value our job and our students? It includes for that instruments, criteria and timing, and involves to the students, teachers and the didactic plans. Bibliography.

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Timing refers to the sequence of activities throughout the year and responds to the question of when are we going to teach? Objectives and contents have to be graded according to the level of the students. What is really important is to start from their previous knowledge and level to help them realize they can learn a foreign language. In the first cycle to start working with listening comprehension and speaking. In the second cycle, one they realise they can communicate simple messages and get confidence in the foreign language; the teacher can introduce reading and writing skills. In the third cycle the teacher can concentrate more in the development of those four skills dealt previously working with writing some compositions, reading full text, create five minutes conversation, etc.

The selection and sequencing of contents is of extreme relevance. We have to choose and adapt them according to the students characteristics and interests. Royal Decree 1513/ 2006 proposes a guide to follow based on four elements: Oral skills (listening and speaking). Writing skills (reading and writing). Knowledge of the language. Sociocultural aspects of the English speaking countries.

Methodology in the learning process Teachers should teach in different ways in order to reach all the students level, interests and learning styles. In the TBA, students perform a series of preparatory tasks in order to build the necessary competence to perform the final task: 1. The Pre-task is the time to introduce the topic and to show the activities that are necessary to complete the task. 2. The task-cycle is the moment when students work on the task in pairs or group to prepare the oral exposition. The teacher must to promote foreign language as a vehicle of communication. 3. In the language focus, students display the task in front of the class. TBA is designed to develop the four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing) concentrating on more communicative activities rather than grammar exercises. For example, if the topic is about clothes, the final task could be a fashion show. The learning/ teaching process is centred to students who are active participants, with decision and initiative, and the teacher is a guide providing new situations, developing students autonomy and stimulating communication and learning strategies. To get a good result, the task has to: motivate, be useful for real communication, contemplate flexible and negotiable contents adapted to students interests and characteristics, pay attention to the process and the product. If everyone knows exactly what to do, how to do it, and why they have to do it, the final product will be a success. Planning is not a mere bureaucratic task. A well-planned and organized unit helps the teacher to think about the best way to develop the students learning process. The evaluation in TBA shouldnt be the usual one based on a test at the end of the unit; we have to start evaluating from the beginning paying attention to: The evolution from previous knowledge. The students comprehension and participation. Cooperation within the group. The development of the activities to complete the final task. The use of foreign language in the process. The creativity. The students opinion about the group. Self- evaluation. The final task.

The organization of the English classroom From the teacher as a controller to the teacher as a guide, a wise teacher should play different roles throughout the year depending on the activities, students characteristics, goals, etc. but always taking into account a communicative way of teaching and the student-centred approach. The roles of the teacher: Controller: The teacher controls all aspects of the process, what students do, when they must speak and in what language. Assessor: The major part of the teachers job is to assess the students progress. Feedback occurs when students have performed a task and they are waiting for the teachers opinion or guidance about how they might improve. Correction is to point out errors and mistakes for helping students to see what is wrong. The teacher as assessor must decide when is the right moment to correct the students depending on the goals for example he or she shouldnt interrupt the flow of a dialogue. Errors should be considered as important parts of the learning process and corrected in a subtle and indirect way.

Organizer: To establish rules and routines is very important for a good classroom management. When we organize an activity it is important to give very clear and unambiguous instructions. The children must understand why they are doing the activity, and the teacher must be sure that they have understood the instructions. Its a good idea to demonstrate or show an example of what is expected from them. Guide: The teacher as a guide facilitates learning experiences and gives students suggestions about the desired outcome through participatory and challenge activities. Participant: There is no reason why teachers shouldnt participate in activities but he or she should avoid dominating the task. Teacher must judge when they have to interfere and when they have to let students to work at their own pace. The teacher as a resource helps students when required. The teacher as a tutor incorporates parts of the other roles. Its a counseling role offering advices to the students. The teacher as investigator tries to look for the best way to improve his or her own language learning/ teaching process. It could be through action-research about our daily job or attending courses and seminars. Students grouping Lockstep refers to a class grouping where all students are working on the same activity, at the same pace, and the teacher controls all the session.

Pair work creates the opportunity for each student to speak many times in a single lesson and allows using the language in a meaningful exchange of ideas and information; it enhances student participation, cooperation and provides motivation to learn, this helps to create a positive learning environment. Group work provides collaborative learning situations, gives students more opportunities to communicate and creates a good opportunity for discussion. We can give students the opportunity to work in flexible and mixed ability groups. The number of students within the group should not exceed of five. The teacher needs to be mobile and visit all areas of the classroom providing feedback, while staying aware of what is happening overall. The use of the space

We should have an English corner where keep all materials: dictionaries, stories, posters, maps, flashcards, books, videos, etc. Different possibilities for grouping and organizing the classroom depending on the type of activity: Class in rows e.g. exams. Class in U- Shape e.g. role-plays and games. Class in circle e.g. discussions. Classes in pairs and in group encourage social interaction between peers. The use of the time Analysis of actual time spent on the different classroom activities can be useful indicators about how to improve our work.

Graph 1. Different times within the lesson. Adapted from Piron (1988)

Program time is assigned by the Administration. Useful or Functional time starts when we begin to explain the activities. Time available for practice, once the pupils begin to work after teacher explanation and materials distribution is the amount of time students are working on the activities. Communication time is the time that pupils are speaking in English. Time devoted to the task is the time that pupils are speaking in English about the topic we are working on and therefore fulfill the objectives.

The time organization should be flexible and natural following the rhythm of the class instead of the syllabus or the lesson plan itself. Our main objective is to maximize the time of communication. We have to think about the time that students need to pass from one activity to another, to set up student groupings, to explain the activities, to distribute and collect the materials, if we use computers, technological problems, etc. Routines are particularly very important to maximize our teaching, create students stability, security and avoid discipline problems. Discipline Its really important to design the classroom rules, routines and procedures from the beginning of the school year. When children internalize the rules is the first step to develop self discipline. The children are more likely to obey their own rules; the best way to negotiate a code of conduct is through discussion, once done, the rules should be displayed on the wall. Causes of discipline problems and how to avoid them The behaviour and attitude of the teacher. To create a positive learning environment, respect the rules, be fair, planning the lessons The time of the day. In early morning classes students may be sleepy while in the last hours tired. The students attitude. A bored student is a discipline problem while an interested one not. Everyone has to have something to do. Routines are very important for good classroom management and because the students feel confident with them. Tasks should always be interesting and motivational. The difficulty of the English lesson. The tasks should be meaningful, either too difficult or too easy (ZDP Vygotsky) To designate Bosses of Peace. Discussions about problems and disruptive behaviours.

Materials and resources Materials are quite important in the learning process since they help teachers to develop the contents and consequently to achieve the objectives. Our classroom materials are essential to create learning scenarios and experiences. They increase students interest and motivation.

Nowadays, there are a great variety of materials available for teaching English. Teachers should take into account a careful selection and design in order to attend different learning styles within the same classroom. We know that groups, like people, are different and learn in different ways. Beside, we have to take into account that even within the same classroom there is a lot of diversity. For this reason, the teacher is the most important learning resource that a class can have because has to decide what kind of materials are better for their particular students. As we have seen materials are quite important in the learning process and facilitate not only our job but also the students learning process. They can serve for a wide range of purpose: To present new language. To revise known language. As a controlled practice of new language and known language. For creating free communicative scenarios. Materials available for teaching English: Printed materials: textbooks, magazines, newspapers, handouts, dictionaries and other publications. Visual materials: posters, murals, flashcards or maps. Audio materials are essential for the teaching of listening: songs, radio, podcats, stories, dialogues, etc. Audiovisual materials combine visual and auditory content. E.g. videos, movies, cartoons, commercials, video clips, TV programs, etc. These can be reinforced with English subtitles to develop also reading skills. Computer materials nowadays are the most interesting materials for our students. As ICT Schools 2.0 we can use computers with a wide range of both online and offline activities, laptops and the digitalboard in the 3rd cycle. Realia are materials that come from the real world. For example if you are teaching foods bring in an apple, a banana. Textbooks Textbooks are the most common and traditional resources used in classrooms. Developing communicative competences involves the command of four language skills. This is the reason why nowadays most of textbooks include additional materials such as CD or DVD, flashcards, videos and other support with a wide range of possibilities for our foreign language lessons. The selection of a suitable textbook: They should be attractive for the students. They should fulfill the objectives proposed in the curriculum. They should provide content appropriate to the students level and interests. They should use a variety of activities. They should be based on an active methodology.

They should provide diverse supplementary materials. They should have a strong multicultural focus. They should illustrate cultural elements of English speaking countries. They should work the basic competences.

Textbooks are designed for a general group of students without taking into account their sociocultural differences, previous knowledge, interests, etc. Teachers should skip over the exercises that they dont consider important for the students. Disadvantages of using textbooks Textbooks are designed for a general group of students without taking into account sociocultural differences, previous knowledge, interests, etc. Textbook contents can be idealistic, giving the impression of a world where everything is safe, clean, harmonious and undisturbed. Many students find textbooks boring. Textbooks give the impression of preparing students to pass exams. Textbook structure is quite repetitive, fixed and general.

Advantages of using textbooks The students feel secure. The pupils can feel a sense of progress and achievement. They always have the book as a tool for review and study. The textbooks meet the requirements set by the government. The show the material in an organised and coherent way. They often have activity books to reinforce learning and supplementary material like CD with songs, videos and computer games.

Adapting the textbook Its necessary to create strategies to adapt the materials to the specific contexts and students. Materials adaptation involves changing some features from the original materials that we dont consider suitable for our specific students and purposes. We should take into account the context and students age, level, learning styles, needs, attitudes and interests among others. Procedure to adapt materials (Masuhara, 2004):

1. To select the unit we want to adapt. 2. To think the reasons why we want to adapt the unit (the objectives for the adaptation), taking into account the specific context and the students characteristics. 3. To evaluate what and how we are going to change the unit. 4. To adapt the unit and teach your class with it. 5. To evaluate (during and post) for checking the success of the adaptation, and if the objectives were achieved. Authentic materials have not been edited or designed for classroom use but for the use of native speakers of the target language. They enable students to gain a perspective on the way they use their language. Authentic materials include for example: radio or TV programs, songs, adverts, books in their original form, newspaper, travel guides, hand outs, web sites, blogs, etc. As they can be difficult to understand for our students we can adapt them by: Converting them into workshop activities. Adjusting the length and difficult to our students. Simplifying or explaining key language elements. Changing authentic materials into a variety of exercises.

Adapted materials are designed and created for language purposes and are carefully graded. Students love reading and listening to adapted materials since they can understand them perfectly and this fact motivates them to learn. For example, adapted versions of classic stories usually have activities at the end to review vocabulary in context, check reading comprehension, etc. We must encourage students to participate in the selection, design and even creation of materials. To design our own materials allows students to feel part of the process. This motivates them and, consequently, they learn while doing in a fun way. The process of creating materials can help the students to: Develop strategies of communication, since they have to work in groups and share information, negotiate, etc. Become more autonomous since they have to think about how to create the material, make it attractive. Develop the sense of responsibility necessary to finish the work on time, to do a good job, etc.

For example: Create a school news magazine with pictures, etc. Make small books in which they have to draw a picture and write a description. Make a picture dictionary related to the unit topic. Create posters with the vocabulary or the grammatical points dealt with in the lesson. Create their own flashcard with pictures they have taken, illustrations they have drawn, etc. Record dialogues to be listened to by students of other classrooms. With the teachers help, create a wiki or blog where they can share classroom projects, etc.

As we have seen in this topic, the textbook is just a resource more within a wide range of possibilities at the reach of teachers. We should consider a careful design and selection of materials according to our students characteristics. The creation of material by the students is a very good option since they are learning at the same time they are doing, creates learning experiences, builds motivation, develops creativity, etc. Technological materials With the advance of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), it is clear that a new society is emerging worldwide. This society is primarily characterized by its ability to access information and use it to create new knowledge. We live in the image based world; therefore, our students are more motivated and captivated by images than by books. Nowadays, Educational technologies are indispensable resources for English learning/ teaching (ELT). They offer a wide range of possibilities for practicing the four language skills, but we must take into account the way we use the technology since not all information available is suitable for our students. With the advent of new technologies, the expression audio-visual refers to the use of machines as means of diffusion and communication (Computers, TV). The use of audio-visual materials is crucial to develop the Information and Digital Competence. Adell (2007) states that the ease with which our students handle technology is a result of having been born into this new society as digital natives while adults have had to acquire these important skills retroactively as digital immigrants. The widespread incorporation of ICT into schools has given teachers a powerful tool for developing our lessons.

Television: By way of a combination of images and sound on its screen, television puts an enormous amount of visual and audible information. This content can be reinforced with English subtitles. TV is an effective mean to develop listening and reading abilities and sociocultural elements. Video: The use of videos in the classroom has many advantages: Its informative, motivational, recreational and expressive.

There are a great number of videos available that have been made specifically for the ELT classroom. Some videos contain songs and rhymes e.g. Play it again!, and others present cultural aspects of English speaking countries e.g. This is Britain. There are also a great number of authentic suitable videos such as cartoons, TV programs, documentary, self-made videos, etc. Cassette/ CD: Nowadays all the books include CD which in turn include oral texts, video clips, stories, songs and other activities. They are very useful to consolidate and extend vocabulary and to improve oral skills and comprehension. Use of cassettes and CD has the following advantages:

They present a great variety of native accents. They focus on oral language. They make the realization of many communicative activities possible. They are easy to use and dont cost much. They can be elaborated by students. The Radio is an auditory means of communication that sends and receives signals (information) by way of electromagnetic waves. The Radio can help us to develop listening skills since it broadcasts many programs, songs, etc. and sociocultural contents. Tape recorder allows register the students voice in order to play it back and listen to our performance. We can check pronunciation, correct mistakes, record dialogues for others to listen, etc. Newspaper: Reading and writing newspapers offer a multitude of didactic possibilities. In digital or print format, newspaper can be used for many activities and projects with a lot of contents at any level. The use of newspaper is more than a mere classroom activity and has the following advantages: It provides a wide range of possibilities to develop language skills. It integrates communication, teaching, motivates apprenticeship and encourages the development of cooperative work It encourages research since allows students to obtain information about English speaking countries.

Computers complement and reinforce the learning process. Nowadays, all the resources and materials above mentioned are available in computers and Internet as multimedia resources. As ICT Schools 2.0 we have at our disposal computer room, and in the third cycle, the students have their own laptops and the classrooms are equipped with projectors, computer, digital board and Wi-Fi access to Internet.

Computers offer a wide variety of tools for classroom use. We have offline and online activities which offer a great amount of materials and didactic possibilities for English classrooms. We should adapt our methodology and materials to the characteristics of our students and check before the lessons that they are suitable for them and our proposals. With the combination of technological, pedagogical and human resources, we can better respond to the interests and needs of each student making a much more autonomous and personal learning process. The operative system available for our schools in Andaluca (Guadalinex) includes Openoffice software such as Writer and Impress which help us for elaborating templates, worksheets, texts, presentations, etc. Most textbooks come with CD ROM that contain: the multimedia version of dictionaries, exercises, pronunciation practice, texts, dialogues, games, videos, songs, stories, etc. Internet offers online tools such as, web pages, blogs, forums, communities to share exercises, searchers (Google), videos (YouTube), chats, emails, social nets, databases, podcast, games, the possibilities are limitless. Moodle platform allows us to design distance learning courses. Hot Potatoes, includes six interactive applications: multiple -choice, short answer, jumbled -sentence, crossword, matching/ ordering and gap-fill exercises for the World Wide Web. Jclic allows teachers to design, implement and evaluate multimedia educational activities e.g. puzzles, word search.

Advantages Computers contribute to a more active and personalized apprenticeship for students. It makes possible for everyone to choose the time and place for training, and allows them to complete the activities at their own pace. Students can choose their own learning itinerary. It Increases the level of control students have over their own learning. Internet is a great resource for developing the four language skills since it provides access to a great amount of multimedia information.

ICT give teachers a powerful motivational tool. Because de images, the information found is more attractive. It increases teacher student and peers communication through email, chat, forums, social nets, etc. It allows establish contact with English speaking people and schools. Internet facilitates the continuous formation and collaboration between students. There is no limit to information, communication, imagination and exchange of ideas. Audio-visual materials will help students comprehension of the world and the changes happening in it.

Disadvantages We may sometimes have trouble accessing web resources. Being prepared to use new technologies requires additional effort of the part of the teacher and the students. Having good machines that work comfortably and quickly supposes additional infrastructure and maintenance costs. There are contents, practices, activities, etc. that can not be done by internet. Not all information is suitable for our students. Occasionally, we may overuse the website and frustrate or even alienate students who dont have access to Internet. Links sometimes break and computers sometimes freeze.

It is really important to protect our pupils from distasteful pages. Our computers should be equipped with program designed to filter out inappropriate content. Our children should be supervised by the teacher while they work with computers. Its recommended to have a document signed by children and parents detailing how the Internet can or con not be used. The uses of Internet: For developing projects or reports searching specific information related to a topic. Creating a school website or blog with the main content of the different didactic units. A class design web page doesnt need Internet connection; it can be done directly and accessible from the hard drive. To establish contact with pen pals from English speaking schools. Reading and following instructions and answering questions.

Accessing a site to produce a quiz for other pupils. Doing language activities. Creating new materials, Jclic, hot potatoes. Computer management rules:

Make children know what will happen if they disobey the rules. Establish basic rules for using computers. Always, as teachers, visit a site before using it with our pupils. Check the computers before using them (connection, CD, software, web pages, links, etc.). Ensure children understand the purpose of the activity with the computers. Use computers for a limited time. Always to present children a clear task to focus their attention.

The use of technological resources offers students with special educational needs compensatory instruments that allow them to complete the same activities as the rest of the students. We should consider their needs and, above all, what he or she is capable of doing, then determining what kind of technology adaptations requires. For example: voice recognition software for motor deficiencies, a special screen where images can be substituted by sounds, or Braille keyboard or printer for visual deficiencies. Listening deficiencies dont need special adaptation although in some cases a sonic message can be substituted for a visual one. Technological learning contributions for the students Psychological: It stimulates childrens motivation since they find it fun. Linguistic: It combines sound and vision, provides a full context for language, includes non-verbal communication, develops all skills, introduces new words and phrases or helps to revise them. Cognitive: It develops childrens power of observation, curiosity, information and research skills as well as independent learning. Social: Pupils working together on a computer project will develop collaborative skills. Cultural: It provides background information about English speaking countries.

It isnt technology per se that matters; it is the didactic use we give it, combined with practice with the materials. As English teachers, we should be at the forefront of the changes. The motivation that ICT awaken in students and the advantages they offer can become a very powerful educational tool. Students will think they are playing with the computer, drawing graphics, changing colours, etc. while we know the true learning potential of these games and activities. The student- centred approach The student centred approach is based on constructivism tenets since students actively construct their own learning. This approach departs from students previous knowledge and experiences and takes into account their needs, abilities, interests, and learning styles. The teacher function is mainly to facilitate learning experiences instead of dispenser of knowledge. The learning process is creative and active, and the teacher is a collaborator. Students motivational orientation is important. The learning environment will be open, dynamic, trusting and respectful, and will promote the natural desire and curiosity to learn. Students will collaborate on meaningful, authentic problems which serve to further their understanding of the subject. Students participate in the evaluation of their learning.

Teaching requires the difficult task of adapting our lessons to the diversity of the classroom. Even within the same classroom there are a lot of differences. Teacher should pay attention to: Age. Children are better for learning a second language than adults since the brain lose plasticity and have less interference of the mother tongue. Emotional factors. If the person is motivated and relaxed, his or her learning process will function much better than if a persons brain detects anxiety. When students feel stressed, thinking and memory are affected and inhibited. This is one of the reasons why we should create a positive learning environment. Language aptitude. Not everybody learns a language in the same way or with the same effort. Some people have more aptitude than others to acquire foreign languages. Learning styles are individuals natural ways for acquiring knowledge, absorbing, processing, retain information and skills. The knowledge of our students learning styles allows us to analyse, motivate and assist students in school. When we plan our lessons, we should introduce a wide variety of activities and teach in different ways to reach all the students and motivate them.

Visual learners are those who learn through visual images, charts, pictures, posters, flashcards, etc. Auditory learners are those who remember better when they listen to the teacher, follow oral explanations, listening activities, etc. Kinaesthetic learners are those who need movement and manipulate to acquire information; they are good doing things. These are those students who cannot sit still for more than half an hour. Howard Gardners Multiple Intelligence Theory

The more motivated students will learn a new language easier. Motivation is not a fixed pattern. It varies from one moment to the next depending on the learning context, topic or task. There are two types of motivation: Intrinsic motivation refers to inner factors e.g. likes. Extrinsic motivation. The students are motivated by external factors e.g. gifts. We should better talk about what is motivating for our student and what is not. There are both negative and positive learners attitudes towards the L2. These attitudes are shaped by social factors. If students are interested in the countries, or something related with them, where the languages are spoken, they will be more motivated to learn the language. On the other hand, negative attitudes van are usually the result of lack of interest on the subject, with the teacher, low self-esteem, learning difficulties, low expectations, rejection of the culture, etc.

Students attitude can change if they realize the importance of knowing a new language for their future. Here the role of the teacher is extremely relevant. A pleasant atmosphere We can find two options in the schools. The first one is to have our own English classroom and the students come in, and the second one, the most widespread, is that the teacher goes to their students classroom and, consequently, has to carry all the materials from one classroom to another. If we had our own English classroom, we could hang or display on the walls maps and flags of the different English speaking countries, posters and pictures of important speaking people (actors, singers, athletes, etc.), cities, monuments, etc; hang on students works, the important vocabulary of the topic, routines and common sentences such as Whats the meaning of?, Can I?, the rules, and so on. We could arrange the materials in the different corners e.g. the library with dictionaries, books, stories, DVD, etc. However, the reality is that teachers have only an English corner where the space is quite reduced. The interaction between peers and teacher students has to create a communicative environment, fun, respectful and tolerant. Active and participatory, we should ensure that everyone has the chance to speak and express what he or she feels. The teacher should negotiate with the students the contents and methodology of the course encouraging them to formulate their own objectives. Reality: situations related to the students lives, habits and experiences. Variety: to use a wide range of contents, materials, topics, games and activities, structures, vocabulary and accents. Safety: students should feel confident expressing themselves and not worried about errors. Errors are natural part of the learning process. To design the classroom rules, routines and procedures at the beginning of the year or the didactic unit. If everyone knows exactly what to do and how to do it and why they have to do it, the final product will be a success. ZDP Vygotsky: Comprehensible Input is very important, neither too difficult or easy. To adapt the lessons to our students characteristics. Interesting lessons with enjoyable materials, activities, games, English songs, etc. To change their seating arrangements depending on the type of activity.

It is vital than students be motivated and have good attitudes towards the target language. Students must learn the language and the culture of English speaking countries in a context that is not real. The teacher should show them the importance of the language in the world of communication. Attitudes are shaped by social factors. Students attitude can change if they realise the importance of to know a new language for their future. Motivation is not a fixed pattern. It varies from one moment to the next depending on the learning context, topic or task. The more motivated students will learn a new language easier. The student centred approach and the creation of an English and positive learning environment will help them to be motivated and have positive attitudes towards the target language. Here the role of the teacher is very relevant through the activities we propose, the environment we promote and the type of lessons we carry out. Practice application Miming new vocabulary. Mouthing new vocabulary. Pretending to not understand L1 speech. Conducting classroom business in English. Step by step art projects. Reading in different voices. Turn the activities into games. To provide them with English names; it is a funny and interesting for them and it is an excellent way to teach pronunciation.