The Role of Mistakes in Teaching Young Learners

Sentence	True
False
I lives in Tashkent		I live in Tashkent
It is a apple		It is an apple
My cat’s name is Tom
I writing a letter to my friend		I am writing a letter to my friend

Not only correction, but also encouraging the learners is essential during learning process. According to Anna Hasper (the teacher trainer for CELTA teachers),⁴ teacher should often tend to give personal praise ( e.g you are so talented, you can do it better than now etc.). Furthermore, teacher should give feedback after correcting every work. She/he does not need to write all her/his expressions, but just writing “well done” or “good job” is not enough for students to stay motivated. Teacher should give them specific feedback so they know where they stand now, and what action to take next to achieve their aim (e.g. you are not there yet, but you will get there)

Young learners’ psychology is very weak, so just a wrong sentence even word will be a cause for losing motivation and self-confidence. We should correct and encourage them in a friendly way. We should create a positive atmosphere and they feel that making mistakes is fine and will be a chance to get new knowledge. They should feel that without mistakes we won’t be perfect.

References:

• 
  Susan Halliwell “Teaching English in the Primary Classroom” Longman
  
• 
  Anna Hasper “English Teaching professional” Issue 96, January 2015
  
• 
  Luka Prodromou “Mixed ability Classes” Macmillan
  

1^ Susan Halliwell “Teaching English in the Primary Classroom” Longman

2^ Anna Hasper “English Teaching professional” Issue 96, January 2015, page 20

3^ Luka Prodromou “Mixed ability Classes” Macmillan, page 21

4^ Anna Hasper “Anna Hasper “English Teaching professional” Issue 96, January 2015, page 22