list, highlighting potential areas of difference with regard to how teens (age 13-19) tend to learn languages:
- multi-sensory approaches (auditory, kinaesthetic, visual, etc. stimuli - e.g. using songs, mime, games, role-playing, drawing especially with bright colours, realia, flashcards, post-its, etc.)
- capable of lower- and higher-order (e.g. analysing, evaluating, creating) thinking skills
- forever curious about the world
- relaxing environment for learning
- immersive and entertaining content (fun, stories - real or fictional, surprises, silliness)
- variety of activities
- structure (of teaching, of ways of working together, of assessment)
- frequent change of pace due to limited attention span
- inductive approaches (hands-on practice, i.e. learning by doing/discovery over rules: they don't learn in abstract or linear ways)
- strict but fair teaching
- interaction (pair and group work)
- use of English (it can be presented as game-like to use the L2 in class)
- positive feedback
- inclusion
- care, kindness and enthusiasm (they are quick to reflect enthusiasm back at teacher)
- sufficient time to copy from board
- repetition of instructions due to short attention span
- speaking and listening over writing and reading
- appropriate levels of challenge (if interested, they don't avoid work)
- short, less complex instructions
- lots of exposure to L2
- regular recycling (they learn fast and forget fast)
- formative assessment
- may need attachment more visibly than, say, teens
Careful with rewards - they can be as destructive as they can be constructive! Check out this read, for instance:
