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We live on the planet, which population is about 8 billion people. Approximately 1 billion of people speak English. But what is the most interesting thing in this number? It is estimated that over 1 billion of people are currently learning English worldwide. Besides, almost 375 million are learning English as a Second Language. So, it`s not clear, how they learn it: online or offline, in the class or alone, but it`s obvious how much common difficulties they have. First of all, ESL students have problems with the pronunciation and listening. I guess, the roots of these problems grow from the native language of learners. In other words, for student, who belongs to Sino-Tibetan language family, learning of English will be a real challenge, than for Indo- European native speakers. Nevertheless, listening and speaking skills carry equal importance as writing and reading skills. That`s why ESL teachers have the variety of approaches for the listening and speaking development from the acquired habits. For example, we can use minimal pairs to solve pronunciation problems in the class. This is one of the way to focus on particular pairs of sounds. In brief, this game act as Bingo cards, but it also helps to hear the difference between the minimal pairs, recognize the different words. Also, there are another games, but I want to highlight Odd One Out. In a word, this game helps learners to identify how words with the same vowel sound can be different. As far as we know, gambling games make the learning process more interesting for learners, especially for children. So, it`s important for me, because most of all I want to work with children. So, let’s take a close look at the listening skills as the important aspect of learning English. Certainly, we have lots of fun and interactive ways to provide listening practice during the lessons, except listening podcasts and videos. For example, a teacher can read a story in a class, while learners listen it and draw scenes from this story. Also, we can use a game, which is known as «Who I Am? ». More then that, I want to add that as a teacher I should remember that different approaches are appropriate for different levels of knowledge, and what is more important every technique has own meaning during the lesson on the different stages. But what about writing and reading? Some people suppose that they are more simple for learners than speaking and listening tasks, but others believe that it`s not right. I think, that these two opinions are partly true, because as a learner of English I had to face with similar problems. In the first place, problems with reading and writing are based on poor vocabulary. Secondly, English language as the any other language have own idioms, slang and etc. which can lead to obstacles during learning. Anyway, these problems can be overcome, too. Obviously, as a teacher I should help students to extend their vocabulary. First of all, there are some tips for writing down the words. For instance, to record the word in context, and with its synonyms and antonyms. Also, as a teacher we can describe the word using images, gestures or mime. Its vitally important to use different sources to intend vocabulary. I think, it`s obvious that the beginners require more simple texts with daily lexicon, while advanced learner can read more specialized literature with rarer words. Anyway, the process of reading is an essential part of the lesson. It`s simple to give a task, which is based on this activity, but what about writing? Of course, as a teacher I can give a lot of homework, which will be focused on the writing activity and then check it. If we`re talking about classwork, we can use dictations, too. Also, I can use my lovely games, which will add fun in the daily routine, for example, fill the bubble in the comic’s book, or rewrite story, and etc. In conclusion, I want to say that it doesn`t matter what kind of the problems the learners can face with. What is really important: to know how to help them to solve them. That means to be a teacher – to make the process of learning be interesting, fun and informative, and always – supportive.
