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Two questions I get a lot in camp from parents are
My childs English is really good but they still get 4’s and 5’s in school? Why?
Now that camps finished how can my child keep improving their English?
My child’s English is really good but they still get 4’s and 5’s in school? Why?
Last year I started tutoring a 12 year old boy called Felix here in Munich. His English was almost native level as he had English au pairs all his life but he was still getting 3s and 4s on his tests. Understandably his parents could not understand why.
I quickly realized Felix was losing a huge
amount of points because of grammar, spelling, tenses, and sentence structure
mistakes. English teachers in the Bavarian school system seem to be extremely
strict on these points and kids will lose marks very quickly for every small
error that they make even if their English is good. This is a common problem, I have heard many stories of native English speaking kids getting 3s and 4s on exams.
Its important to understand that in order for
your child to achieve good notes in school they must put time into studying the
very specific grammar, vocabulary, and spelling of what they are learning. My
recommendation is 15 minutes daily to cover this with lots of review and extra
study before tests.
https://www.englisch-hilfen.de/
Here is one website I like to use. It has a lot of good exercises with
which can check your childs English in specific areas of study (grammar/tenses
etc.)
Now that camps finished how can my child keep improving their English?
Kids today are surrounded by English influences. Last year in camp we had two sisters whose English was at a very high level for their age. When I asked them how their English was so good the answer was “youtube.”
“TELL ME AND I FORGET, TEACH ME AND I MAY REMEMBER, INVOLVE ME AND I LEARN.”
Kids learn best when they are doing something they are interested in or having fun. Here are a few ideas to keep your kids practising their English while still having fun.
Youtube/Movies/TV Series: Kids tend to watch a lot of YouTube encourage them to watch in English. For movies and TV series add English subtitles.
Books /Comics: Books really help kids with grammar, sentence structure, spelling, and tenses.
Games : If your kids are avid gamers change the language to English. They might complain a bit but they will still play ;).
Music: Music is a natural, rhythmic, and easy way to learn.
Exposure to native Speakers: If you are planning a Holiday consider an english speaking country or if you have English speaking friends invite them round for a Cup of tea.
Sticky notes around the house: Get your Kids to write and post sticky notes around the house. Its a great way to learn every day objects.