Genki English Newsletter

April 2001

OK, I've got far too much new stuff to go on the homepage that I'm hoping to send out 2 newsletters this month!!

Another Free MP3!!

We start our shows with the Genki Rocket Launch song, the idea being to get the kids all genki and active. On CD volume 2 there is a version that teaches numbers 10 to 100, but this month there is the version from the shows that goes from 10 to 1. It's fun, it's lively and it's a great warm up for a lesson! You can download it for free as an MP3 file, or have a quick listen as a Realaudio file!
http://genkienglish.net/rocket.htm

Speaking of our shows we have ........

Genki English LIVE - Unbelievable Offer!!

You've probably heard about our famous shows and seminars, as featured in loads of newspapers last year. If for some reason you haven't, check out this article from the AWA Life magazine ( http://www.tk2.nmt.ne.jp/~topia/awalife/january01/genki_eigo.html ). Anyway, we've just worked out an unbelievable special offer for schools, teachers' groups and other non-profit organisations! If you can provide our travel expenses and and we can sell at least 10 sets of CDs at the show, (one set is only 8400 yen as you don't have to pay postage fees, plus of course you'll still get the free worksheets!), then we can do the show and a seminar for FREE!! Yep, FREE of charge!! Get in touch as soon as you can as our schedule is filling up very quick!! Email: shown@genkienglish.net or http://genkienglish.net/show.html for more details!!

New feature: Lesson Plan - a fun 45 minutes!

On the site there are loads of ideas, but how do you use them in a lesson? On this new page I go through a typical lesson structure showing:
Warm UP/Review (3/10 minutes) : Using games, songs etc.
Intro of New Language (15/20 minutes): How to get the kids to learn new stuff.
Practice of the material (15/20): The use of games!
and Goodbye's: finishing the lesson on a high so the kids think "Yeah, I can't wait for the next lesson!

. There are loads hints and tips that I'm sure you'll find useful!
http://genkienglish.net/lessonplan.htm

New Articles

On the articles page ( http://genkienglish.net/articles.htm ) you'll find links to the English versions my monthly column from "kids com" magazine. They are designed to present an ALTs viewpoint to Japanese teachers, but you might also find some useful ideas in there for yourself!

Reader's Ideas

Regular Genki English viewer Oliver Cox says he is indebted to Genki English for the success of his Shogakko teaching (in his words, not mine!), and has put together this series of excellent hints and tips!!

1) Teaching numbers 1-12, not just 1-10, is good not just because you can then jump easily to telling the time, but also because you can also get the 5th and 6th grade students to tell you how old they are.

2) Playing the lines game ( http://genkienglish.net/Lines.htm ) : this has come to be known as "Saigo-san, dare wa saigo -san! " amongst my lot. As a forfeit, the last person must do an impersonation, with me, or alone, of an animal of my choice. Always seems to amuse the rest of them!

3)"What colour do you like?" Game Similar to your "Where are you from?" Game ( http://genkienglish.net/whereRU.htm ). Knock up a template with eight blank circles on it, having taught the requisite 1-4 nensei eight or more colours. Give a sheet to each student. Hold up your template, which has all the circles coloured in different colours. Tell the students to copy it. When done they decide which is their favourite of the eight colours and write their name next to it. Then teach the brief dialogue with volunteers/your alter ego:

A: Hello!
B: Hello!
A: "What colour do you like?"
B: "I like _____. What colour do you like?"
A: "I like _____."
B: "Thank you, goodbye!"
A: "Thank you, goodbye!"

All must go around and perform this dialogue with their peers, and can write down a name next to a circle each time they encounter someone who likes a colour for which they haven't yet written a name. The aim is to get a name next to all eight circles then come to the front, practice the dialogue with you, and get a prize/that's it.

With smaller classes, nominate who likes what in order to avoid all of them liking only blue and red. Do the game with them and keep an eye out in case no-one likes "white", for example, and you have to step in and pretend that you do! Getting the older children to use only Romaji (roman letters)when writing names can be an interesting challenge too.

4) Koala Game( http://genkienglish.net/koala.htm ) I have several additions to extend it and make it even more fun. Tell them the English for “TO” (“AND”) “HAI”(YES) “IIE”(NO). Then you can practice saying “koala AND dog PLEASE” or “cow AND ball PLEASE”. Use YES and NO to refuse/accept someone’s request for an item. When you say NO to someone’s request for an item you are holding they will all laugh like drains if you do it in the fashion of a spoilt kid who doesn’t want to play (!). Say YES to the nicer, quieter kids. Let them practice all of this on their own/with each other. Can be reviewed at a later date too.

5) Coin Toss Game ( http://genkienglish.net/janken.htm )Materials: Coins from home. Play: Tell the kids that in your country children don’t play janken as much as in Japan. The way they settle arguments is to toss a coin. Pass said coin around the class for all to see. Meanwhile at either end of the blackboard draw a silly representation of each face of the coin (e.g. an ugly looking Queen, a happy looking lion, some pretty flowers etc. etc.). Take the coin back and say that it is a present for someone in this class, but we must play the game to decide who that someone is. Demonstrate a “coin toss” several times so they understand what you’re going to do. Have them all stand-up and move to the side of the room which corresponds to the face of the coin they think will come up. In other words, if they think it will be “heads” then tell them to move to the side of the room on which heads is drawn on the b.board. Those who are correct after the first toss get to carry on to the next toss. Those who get it wrong have to sit down. Eventually only one student will be left. They get the coin and are pronounced “Lucky-san!” [Good for showing them the occasional benefit of striking out and doing their own thing...perhaps].

These are great! Thank you very much Oliver. And if anyone else has any good ideas/additions etc. then please email me or put them on the discussion board!

Japanese Newsletter

If any of your friends or colleagues are interested, there is also a Japanese version of this newsletter. They can either sign up on the homepage, or by sending me an email to newsletterj@genkienglish.net

New for later in April!

Waiting for uploading later in April are two new games, "Animal Hats", and "Throw a Six", as well as some new Phonics worksheets. I'm working on them now, so keep checking back to find out when they'll be on the site! The Phonics page ( http://genkienglish.net/phonics.htm )has become hugely successful and one project I'm working on is a set of groovy "Phonics Cubes", I'll upload these on the worksheets ( http://genkienglish.net/worksheets.htm )section of the site, so anyone who has our CDs will be able to download them for free!!

And Finally,

Well, that's it for this newsletter, there'll be a new one out in a few weeks, so keep checking out the site!!

Be genki,

Richard!

======================
Richard J. Graham B.Sc. AMInstP
Primary School English Games, Songs and Activities
Email: richard@genkienglish.net
http://www.genkienglish.com

Previous Newsletters:

March 2001 Newsletter
February 2001 Newsletter
January 2001 Newsletter
December 2000 Newsletter!
November 2000 Newsletter
September/October 2000 Newsletter
August/September 2000 Newsletter
July/August 2000 Newsletter
June/July 2000 Newsletter
May/June 2000 Newsletter
April/May 2000 Newsletter
March/April 2000 Newsletter
February/March 2000 Newsletter
January/February 2000 Newsletter

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