Presentation given at TESOL Italy's National Convention in Rome in 2019.

1. Grappling with grammar
in the
Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
Redesigning ELT
in the 21st Century
TESOL Italy 2019

2. 1 The Great Grammar Debate
2 When?
3 How?
4 How much?
Overview
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

3. ?
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

4. Should grammar be taught in the
Young Learner EFL class?
1 The Great Grammar Debate
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

5. Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019
Possible reasons
help children
use language
creatively
promote
accuracy ‘Indicazioni
Nazionali’
meet exam
requirements
fits with
teacher’s own
experiences
prepare for
secondary
school learning

6. 2 When?
Can grammar be taught to
Young Learners of all ages?
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

7. What age?
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019
● children aged 8 or 9 (although not
fixed)
● analyse the language
● divide into components
● form new expressions
● create meaning from context

8. 3 How?
How can we include grammar
in a young learner classroom?
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

9. How do children learn?
● take part in meaningful
activities
● learn by doing
● lots of practice
● learn by discovery
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

10. Sentence Making Machine
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

11. Sentence Making Machine
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

12. Words and Pictures
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019
DASHA’S WORKSHEET

13. A discovery approach
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019
● the grammar ‘sticks’ in the children’s
minds
● notice the grammar
● active thinkers and learners
● make connections
● understand small changes

14. If learners are not given opportunities to
explore grammar in context,
it will be difficult for them to see how and
why alternative forms exist to express
different communicative meanings.
Nunan (1998)
“
”
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

15. Providing contexts
Rainbow Bridge 2a, 3a, 5a OUP, 2017 Howell/Kester
Songs
Videos
Stories Dialogues
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

16. Form in context
● provide a model
● colour coded structures
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019Rainbow Bridge 4a OUP, 2017 Howell/Kester

17. Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

18. Civitas!
Briana and Dylan meet Ross, a man from the Celtic village.
He is on his way to a Roman city, Civitas.
Briana and Dylan want to go to Civitas and they climb
into the back of his cart.
It is a long journey and after three hours they arrive in Civitas.
They are in the city centre. Dylan sees a chef.
He is hungry. He jumps out of the cart!
Two Roman soldiers see him and run after him.
Mina helps Briana hide in the market.
But it is too late for Dylan! The Roman soldiers take him away.
Poor Dylan!
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019
meet
want
take
hide
run
arrive
see
sees
jumps
climb
Illustrations from Rainbow Bridge 5a OUP, 2017 Howell/Kester
is
is
are
is
helps
is

19. Civitas!
Briana and Dylan 1__________ Ross, a man from the Celtic village.
He 2__________ on his way to a Roman city, Civitas.
Briana and Dylan 3__________ to go to Civitas and they 4__________ into the
back of his cart.
It 5__________ a long journey and after three hours they 6__________ in Civitas.
They 7__________ in the city centre. Dylan 8__________ a chef.
He 9__________ hungry. He 10__________ out of the cart!
Two Roman soldiers 11__________ him and 12__________ after him.
Mina helps Briana 13__________ in the market.
But it 14__________ too late for Dylan! The Roman soldiers 15__________ him
away. Poor Dylan!
is take climb see jumps hide is
want sees is run arrive meet are Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

20. Grammar games
● fun language learning experience
● authentic language
● aid retention
● internalize structures effectively
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

21. Stretching sentences
she
has
got
braids
long
blond
not
?
.
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019 Illustration from Rainbow Bridge 5a OUP, 2017 Howell/Kester

22. ‘Soft’ Grammar Rules
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

23. Question & Answer Chain
(Dominoes)

24. Question &
answer
chain
(Dominoes)

25. 4 What?
How much grammar should
we focus on ?
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

26. Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

27. Today - Yesterday
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

28. Spinner
sing read
haveashower
have
breakfastwrite
goto
school
study English
play
in the
morning
on Sunday
inthe
evening
onTuesdayinthe
afternoon
on Monday
on
Friday
onSaturday
Do you…? Yes, I do. / No I don’t.
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

29. Spinner
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
? -
+Is he listening to music?
He’s playing football.
She isn’t swimming.
Illustrations from Rainbow Bridge 5a OUP, 2017 Howell/Kester

30. successful grammar lessons...
● offer a variety of models in different contexts
● encourage cooperative learning (groups)
● stimulate discovery through noticing
● develop thinking skills
● facilitate creative uses of language
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

31. GRAMMAR
SAVES LIVES.
Grappling with Grammar in the Young Learner Classroom
Lisa Kester-Dodgson
TESOL Italy 2019

32. Thank you!
Sarah and Lisa’s English for Young Learners Page
@sarahandlisaspage
lisa.kesterdodgson@gmail.com