Introduction Chapter I. Teaching basic speaking skills in English to Young Learners

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2.2 Teaching grammar

Grammar is an important part of language learning. In order for students to have a functional knowledge of a language (in other words, that they can spontaneously produce language) they must have at least some knowledge about the grammatical constructs of the language in question. There are several ways in which the teacher can go about presenting grammar to students. In this section we will look at why grammar is often seen in a negative light, how grammar can be taught and whether or not students need to learn grammar at all.
How should grammar be taught?
Although there is a strong emphasis on inductive grammar teaching, particularly in communicative language teaching approaches, both inductive and deductive strategies are required in the classroom given the many learning styles of students. The more similar the grammar structure is to the L1, the easier it is for students to grasp. Questions to consider in relation to the teaching of grammar include:

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  Should the item be taught deductively (giving the rule and then getting learners to produce examples of target structure) or inductively (giving examples of the target structure and getting learners to generate the rule)?
  
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  Is the explanation clear?
  
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  Are there sufficient examples?
  
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  Are teachers themselves sure of the rules? (Nunan, 1999)
  

One way of teaching grammar to beginners is to use minimal grammar but to show patterns and help these students see that there are patterns, so that when they get to more intermediate and senior levels of learning they will be able to transfer the word ‘pattern’ to the label of a grammar concept.
For more information on teaching grammar click here.