Teaching Children English Using The Six Thinking Hats Technique

Teaching Children English Using The Six Thinking Hats Technique Finding the right way to teach English classes for children can be difficult. How do we keep them interested? How can we help them to remember information? How can we encourage them to want to continue learning?Six Thinking Hats, a teaching model promoting critical and creative thinking attributed to Maltese physician and consultant Edward de Bono, is a great way to get young learners stimulated. It is straightforward, versatile and popular with children, particularly around 8 years and upward, worldwide. So why not use it for teaching young  students English?The theory is that our thought processes (of both young and old) can be predicted in 6 steps and that classes be prepared in accordance with the structure of this 6-part thought processes.The six hats are:White: In this phase we think about the facts of what we are learning. We think about what facts we have and what facts we need to understand a given topic.Black: In this stage we use out judgment. We use our critical judgment. We think about problems, dangers, if we are wasting time with a topic, etc.Yellow: Here, we use our judgment again. However, now we are positive. We think about the advantages, benefits, hopeful side to what we are learning.Red: This stage is characterized by an emotional response to what we are learning. What do I feel about this issue?Green: This is the creative phase. What is my response to this?Blue: This is a development of the creative phase but here we consider the ‘overall’ picture. What are the consequences of what I am learning? What should I learn next?Diagram of The Six Thinking Hats model.How can this theory be applied to teaching children?Children can be given colored pages corresponding to the different hats and or even cut-outs of the hats in their different colors.Over a series of classes they can be taught the associations with each hat and how to express them in English:Objective terms (White hat):We know thatLet’s see what we have already learned…Creativ e terms (Green hat):I believe that…I think that…Positive (Yellow hat):I/We can…I/We shouldNegative (Black hat):I don’t think thatI wouldn’t doIntuitive (Red hat):I feelProcess (or Progress)I would continue by…We should proceed by…Then, present a series of questions for example:What would happen is the world was square?What would happen if your country won the world cup?What would happen if we were all grown up tomorrow?If you are working with a group of children, give them a different color hat each and ask each of them for their response based on the color of their hat.If you are working with an individual child you can rotate the hats and ask for responses to the question based on each one of the hats in turn.Watch this video to find out more:Did you find this lesson helpful? Feel free to share it on Facebook and Twitter. Also, contact us if you would like your child to take classes with us.Clases de inglés para niños

College Admissions Essay Crunch Time

College Admissions Essay Crunch Time College Admissions Essay: The Time is Now                                                             Its that time of year when students have to hand in their college admissions essay. For students whose SAT or ACT scores are a little bit on the low side or for students whose GPA is lower than they would like, its extra important to have a fabulous essay. So what is it that makes an essay well above average? One â€" The essay should be incredibly unique. It must be unique in content but also in writing style. Many students have similar life experiences at age 16 and 17. However, students can put a unique and original spin on their particular struggles, volunteer experience, or personal outlook on life. Students should also show originality and writing style. If it appears that the essay has an overly rigid structure it will appear less interesting to the reader. Two â€" The essay should have absolutely no errors. It is especially important for an admissions essay to have appropriate structure, proper grammar, and absolutely no spelling or punctuation errors. Student writers should have multiple people proofread their essay or hire a professional proofreader who can catch any and all errors as well as provide appropriate suggestions for structural improvements our Irvine English tutors would be more than glad to read it. Three â€" The essay should be about you as a person. College admissions departments do not want to admit students who are all exactly the same. US colleges and universities like to have diversity on campus and so its important that the internal “you” can shine through your essay. If theres something unique about your personality or what you would like to do with your life or something that you have a particular passion for, its important to mention that in the essay (READ: College Application Crunch Time). What to Do Now So what do you do now that your college applications, including your admissions essay, are due less than a month from today? Here is a last minute timeline that you can follow to allow yourself the best chance at success as a student writer. One â€" Start writing right now. If, for some reason, you have not yet started writing the first draft of your essay now is the time to get started. Seriously, stop reading this blog, sit down at your computer and start typing. There is not much time left but there is still enough time for a dedicated student to finish a first and second draft and to arrange for a proofreader. Two â€" Polish up the content. If you have already written a rough draft for your essay now is the time to pull it out of your binder, backpack, or the drawer that you stuffed it in and take a second look. Read through it and see whats working and whats not. Grab two different color highlighters and highlight the things that are really great and the things that you would like to keep, and then highlight the things that need improvement (READ: 7 Best Essay Contests). Ask a parent, a trusted and dedicated friend, or a tutor to take a look at your essay. Ask them to give you absolutely honest feedback. What do they like about it and what dont they like about it? Then go ahead and write your second draft. Remember to do all of your content edits before you start your grammar edits, otherwise you may find that youre simply correcting things over and over again when it wasnt really necessary to do so. Three â€" Polish up the structure. If you feel that your structure is rigid or if you dont have any transition sentences, arrange to sit down with a tutor for an hour or two and get it polished up. If it is an option, hire a proofreader to go through and give you suggestions. It may take a couple of proofreads because you may need to send it back for a final edit after you fix the first set of corrections and suggestions. The college admissions essay is incredibly important and should not be overlooked and it is especially important for students who have lower SAT scores or a lower GPA. A fabulously written essay can often take a student’s application from the ‘maybe’ pile to the ‘yes’ pile in the college admissions department. For students who would like to attend a small liberal arts college, keep in mind that the essay is given a heavier weight on acceptance than at larger universities. There is still time, so start writing and get it out of the way so that you can enjoy your winter break. All blog entries, with the exception of guest bloggers, are written by TutorNerds. Are you an education professional? If so, email us at pr@tutornerds.com for guest blogging and collaborations. We want to make this the best free education resource in SoCal, so feel free to suggest what you would like to see us post about. Applying to college this fall? Don’t hesitate to sign up with one of our experienced Orange County college admissions consultants. Call us today and we’ll get you in!