My name is Lucija Briski and at the moment I am a student at Paris Institute of Childcare Training, where I am doing the CAP Petite Enfance. While doing this training, I am also taking care of 3 children with whom I speak in English. In this blog I will talk about how I combined the children’s love for nature and memory games into an interactive and fun way to learn English and expand their vocabulary!
Exploring nature together!
Children use their senses to explore, they observe the world around them and use touch and taste (when appropriate) as a way of learning about the nature surrounding them. That is why going out daily to the park is so important for them – it is not only good for their healthy development but also it is a way for them to actively engage in learning by naming the things they see and smelling the scents of nature.
Another great way of getting your little learners to know more about nature is through books! You can visit the local library with the children and let them choose some interesting books describing animals, plants and bodies of water in the world – all in English!
MAKING THE CARDS WITH CHILDREN
To combine our mutual love for nature and playing memory I have decided to create our very own cards with nature elements. This is a great way for them to expand their vocabulary and you can always reuse these cards in many different activities.
For making these cards I had help from the children.
Firstly, we went to the parc and explored nature and the smells around, after that we started reading some books describing animals – all of this helped the children make their choice about what they wanted to use on the cards. After making their choices I printed out the pictures and then the children cut out the animals.
Next, we started making another deck of cards which contains the names of what is represented on the picture – the kids would name the animals and the older one would write down the name – great way to include writing in English!
After having made our cards, it was time to play and learn! The children loved to name all the different animals and felt happy when they saw an animal that they chose – they even picked their favorite ones!
These type of cards can be a great way for your little learners to learn English and a great thing about this is you can reuse them – you can play memory, do flash cards or what we love to do is go to the park and take the cards and try to search for the object on the card! We don’t always find everything but if you are working with a child who likes to explore and know about nature, this is a great activity for them and you!
Lucija Briski, CAP Student 2023-2024
