Proposal of communicative activities to expand vocabulary in 4 th graders from "Ramón Pando Ferrer" Primary School

Texto completo

(1)University of Pedagogical Sciences “Félix Varela Morales” de Villa Clara. Faculty of Humanities Foreign Language Department. MAJOR PAPER Title: Proposal of communicative activities to expand vocabulary in 4 th graders from "Ramón Pando Ferrer" Primary School.. Authoress: Keyla Anagua Yarari Adviser: MSc. Diana Rosa Morales Rumbaut. Co-adviser: MSc. Rebeca Cabezas de León Course: 2012-2013. “Year 54 of the Revolution”.

(2) . To God for his love, care and fidelity in my life.. . To my parents for their constant love and worry, as well as for supporting my life.. . To my family for their affection and help when I need it.. . To my friends Maria Cárdenas, Abba Barka, Esther Weimar, Margarita Ramos and Tola Pheng, for their unconditional friendship and help in every difficult moment.. . To my tutor Diana Rosa Morales for her patience, love and help.. . To my teachers: Rebeca Cabezas and Deyse Fernández for their help to accomplish this major paper.. . To all my teachers of the Foreign Language Department, who have always taught and helped me all these years.. . To Cuba to be my second homeland during these years and to its people..

(3) ABSTRACT The Cuban National System of Education is under processes of transformation aimed at the multilateral formation of students as a way of increasing and developing their cultural level. English is in the curriculum of Primary School and its goals are to get familiar with and sensitize girls and boys with the characteristics of the English language, but the results obtained are not yet the ones expected. This investigation presents a proposal of communicative activities to increase 4th grade students’ vocabulary in English from "Ramón Pando Ferrer" primary school. It consists of six communicative activities, two of them adapted from the current workbook to fit in the English program and 4 are created by the authoress. To achieve the objective of this research, it was necessary to employ several methods of investigation. From the theoretical level, the authoress used the analytic -synthetic, the inductive-deductive and the historic-logic. From the empirical level; the observation, pedagogical test, and analysis of the student’s notebooks, as well as the percent analysis from the mathematic level. The sample was selected intentionally out of a population of 20 students from fourth grade students from “Ramón Pando Ferrer” Primary School and it was due to the fact that it is the group where the authoress of this investigation does her practicum..

(4) RÉSUMÉ Le système national d’éducation à Cuba est sous quelques processus de transformation qui sont dirigés à la formation multilatérale des étudiants pour qu’ils augmentent et améliorent leur niveau culturel. L’anglais est une matière à l’école élémentaire et elle est orientée à la familiarisation et à la sensibilisation des filles et garçons avec les caractéristiques de la langue anglaise, mais les résultats qui o nt été obtenus ne sont pas les attendus encore. Cette recherche présente une proposition d’activités communicatives pour augmenter le vocabulaire en anglais que les étudiants à l’école "Ramón Pando Ferrer" ont. Cette proposition consiste à six activités communicatives, mais il y en a deux qui ont été adaptées du cahier d’exercices, et quatre ont été créés par l’auteur. Pour atteindre l’objectif de cette recherche, il a été nécessaire d’employer plusieurs méthodes d’investigation. Du niveau théorique, l’auteur a utilisé la méthode analytique synthétique; la méthode inductive – déductive; et la méthode historique-logique. Du niveau empirique, des autres méthodes ont été utilisées: l’observation; le test pédagogique, et un analyse des cahiers des étudiants. On a utilisé aussi l’analyse de pourcentage, une méthode qui appartient au niveau mathématique. L’échantillon a été sélectionné intentionnellement sur une population de vingt étudiants de la 4eme année de l’école élémentaire "Ramón Pando Ferrer". L’auteur a choisi ce groupe parce qu’elle a fait ses pratiques pédagogiques avec ce groupe..

(5) THINKING We work for children, because children are the ones who know what is needed, because children are the hope of the world.. José Martí (1889) The Golden Age.

(6) INdexes Introduction……………………………………………………………………………...1 Scientific Questions and Tasks ……………………………………………………..3-4 Methods…………………………………………………………………………………...5 Scientific contribution of the major paper……………………………………………..6 Structure of the major paper……………………………………………………….…....6 Development………………………………………………………………………….....7 1.1. A brief historical overview ……………………………………………..………..…7 1.2. The Teaching Learning Process of English Language…………………… .. .14 1.3. Speaking Ability…………………………………………………………………...16 2. Needs and assessment…………………………………………………………….26 2.1. Characterization of the sample………………………………………………….27 2.2. Definition of the Dependent Variable…………………………………………..27 2.3. Dimensions and indicators………………………………………………………28 2.4. Methods used for the Diagnostic………………………………………………..27 3. Proposal of communicative activities ………………………………………….....30 3.1. Characteristics of the proposal ………..………………………………………...30 3.2. Proposal of activities ……………………………………………………………...31 3.3. Evaluation of the proposal……………………………………………………….32 Conclusions……………………………………………………………………………53 Recommendations……………………………………………………………………54.

(7) INTroducTIoN: The English language, which takes its name from its origins as the native tongue of the people of England, is today the most widely spoken language in the world. It is spoken as a first language by a majority of the inhabitants of several nations. Due to this fact, the English language has such a great presence nowadays in science, technology, international commerce, telecommunications and internet. Multiple efforts are aimed at improving Cuba´s education system and one of them is the role given to the teaching learning process of English by the Ministry of Education in different levels, from the elementary to the upper ones so as to achieve high standards of general culture in the Cuban population. The main objective in teaching English as a foreign language is to prepare children and young people to communicate themselves and to be ready for a future of increasing exchange of services among nations. In Primary Schools, English is part of the education of every child, they receive the subject since 3rd grade as part of the curriculum using TV lessons as a means. These lessons are guided by an English teacher or the teacher of the grade, taking into consideration Cuban reality i.e. the lack of English teacher in several parts of the island. In this level the purpose of the curriculum, as it is stated in the guidelines for the teaching learning process of English 2011, is to get familiar with and sensitize girls and boys with the characteristics of the English language. In the process of gradual development of basic communicative habits and abilities they learn to express themselves about their closed family, their everyday activities at home, in school and in their neighborhood focusing mainly in the oral expression in an elementary level. Speaking is a productive skill that belongs to oral communication. It is considered the most important of the four language skills, if the purpose is to use the language orally: to speak. In this process the speaker interacts with a listener where both change their roles in the conversation. I.e., the speaker may become a listener and the other way around. The first one encodes the message while the listener decodes or interprets it..

(8) This ability includes pronunciation, fluency, grammar and vocabulary as its components – and feedback, choice and information gap as its processes. (Adapted from Garcia, S.2010). But what has been happening to the fourth “D” graders in the primary school “Ramón Pando Ferrer”? These students in the previous course have been taught just few English lessons due to the irregular attendance of the teachers to the school; as a result they did not build up the required framework to express ideas for this level. The students make many mistakes in pronunciation, especially in those sounds that are absent in their mother tongue, they often omit the subject of the sentence, they do not pay attention to the sentence word order and mainly mix their mother tongue with English language. TV classes are focused on presenting new vocabulary, but neither time nor activities are enough for practicing it. Besides, the activities designed in the books not always follow an appropriate communicative situation. The causes affecting this situation are multiple, but what is obvious is that the activities that are being used do not help to assimilate and expand vocabulary related to the students´ particular needs in the limited time established. What has been stated before corroborates the fact that these students do not possess the adequate vocabulary to express intelligibly related to the topics declared in the program and that it is a must to use the time available efficiently. The authoress’s interest for this investigation is due to the experience gotten in the practicum during the previous course, and to the situation facing this course. This reality was corroborated by the authoress in her practicum by means of the observation of classes, the diagnostic test administered to the students, interviews carried out to them, and the analysis of documents. In an attempt to find a solution that meets the challenge, revisions of some previous researches were carried out. Papers such as: Telor Sotoukee (2012), Dayana Machado (2012), Trang Nguyen (2011), José C. Martin (2011), Roberto Barrera (2008), Damarys Alonso (2008) and Didier Quiroga (2003) dealt with the topic of the speaking ability, but only Damarys Alonso´s Major Paper.

(9) entitled: Proposal of a system of actions to develop vocabulary in 9th grade students from ESBU “Neftalí Martínez” emphasizes on the teaching of vocabulary. The contradiction between what is expected and what is happening regarding the teaching learning process of English, particularly, regarding vocabulary reveals the existence of the following Scientific Problem: How can the teacher contribute to the expansion of English vocabulary in 4 th “D” students from Ramón Pando Ferrer Primary School? Object of research: The teaching learning process of speaking in 4 th“D” students. Field of research: The teaching learning process of vocabulary in 4 th”D” students. General Objective: To propose a system of activities to expand the 4 th “D” students´ vocabulary from “Ramón Pando Ferrer Primary School” so as to contribute to the development of their English speaking ability. Scientific questions: In order to give answer to the scientific problem of this paper, the following scientific questions are formulated: 1. What are the main theoretical and methodological foundations that back up the expansion of vocabulary in 4 th graders of the primary school “Ramón Pando Ferrer”? 2. What is the real situation in 4 th grade students from the primary school “Ramón Pando Ferrer” regarding the expansion of vocabulary in English language? 3. What system of activities should be proposed to contribute to the expansion of students´ vocabulary in “Ramón Pando Ferrer” Primary School? 4. What are the specialists’ criteria regarding the system of activities? 5. What results are obtained at the time of partial application of the designed proposal? Scientific tasks:.

(10) 1. Determination of the main theoretical and methodological foundations that back up the expansion of vocabulary in 4 th graders of the Primary School “Ramón Pando Ferrer”. 2. Diagnoses of the development of the expansion of vocabulary in the students from 4 th grade in the Primary School “Ramón Pando Ferrer”. 3. Designing of the system of activities to contribute to the expansion of English Vocabulary in the students from 4 th grade in the primary school “Ramón Pando Ferrer”. 4. Evaluation of the proposal by the specialists consulted. 5. Results obtained after the partial application of the designed proposal Population: The population consists of all the students from 4th grade in the primary school “Ramón Pando Ferrer”, with a total registration of 99 students. Sample: The sample is composed of 20 students from group 4th “D” from the primary school “Ramón Pando Ferrer”. It is an intentional sample because it is the group the authoress of this study followed during the teaching practice period. Variables: Independent variable: The system of communicative activities. Dependent variable: The speaking ability. The following research methods have been used in this paper: From the theoretical level: Analytic - synthetic: It was applied during the study of the problematic situation and the study of different sources containing information about the development of communicative abilities in general and specifically the process of expansion of vocabulary in the students and in the selection of the necessary information to understand it..

(11) Inductive - deductive: It favored the study of the strengths and weaknesses of the students of the sample in relation to the expansion of the vocabulary as well as the analysis of the data obtained through the empirical instruments appli ed during the diagnosis. Historical logical: It was used to evaluate the antecedents, evolution and tendencies of the problem declared in this study. System approach: It was used to guarantee the internal structure and coherence of the system of activities . From the empirical level: Analysis of documents: It was used to know the treatment of vocabulary in the program and textbook of the English subject in fourth grade. Observation: It was applied to determine the expansion of English vocabulary in the students of the sample. Analysis of the student’s notebooks: it was applied to determine the student’s strengths and weaknesses in the spelling of the vocabulary studied. Pedagogical test: It was applied to assess the expansion and pronunciation of the students’ vocabulary. From the mathematical level: Percent analysis: It was used to process the information obtained in each instrument applied. Scientific contribution of the term paper: This paper offers a variety of motivating communicative activities to contribute to the expansion of vocabulary in 4 th graders in Ramón Pando Ferrer Primary School so as to contribute to the development of speaking ability. Structure of the term paper.

(12) This paper is structured in the following way: Introduction, Development, Conclusions, Recommendations, Bibliography and Annexes. The first part of the development is dedicated to a brief historical overview about the treatment of the speaking ability focusing on vocabulary, and to the theoretical and methodological foundations that back up the development of this ability from a communicative perspective. The second part of the development was destined to the analysis of the results obtained through different empirical methods applied during the realization of this research; the regularities that gave motive to the design of the proposal of activities and the proposal itself. The conclusions, recommendation, consulted bibliography and annexes followed for more information..

(13) deVeLoPMeNT: 1. Theoretical and methodological background that supports the expansion of English vocabulary. 1.1. A brief historical overview about the teaching of English vocabulary. Teaching English vocabulary is an important area worthy of effort and investigation. Recently methodologists and linguistics emphasize and recommend teaching vocabulary because of its importance in language teaching. Vocabulary is needed for expressing meaning and in using the receptive (listening and reading) and the productive (speaking and writing) skills. “If language structures make up the skeleton of language, then it is vocabulary that provides the vital organs and the flesh” (Harmer). Analysis of the different methods applied worldwide in the teaching of foreign languages will be enough to understand how each of them has treated the development of the teaching of vocabulary for the development of the speaking a bility. The Grammar Translation Method The principal characteristics of the Grammar-Translation Method were this: 1. The goal of the foreign language study is to learn a language in order to read its literature or in order to benefit from the mental discipline and intellectual development that result from foreign-language study. Grammar translation is a way of studying a language that approaches the language first through detailed analysis of its grammar rules, followed by application of this knowledge to the task of translating sentences and texts into and to the target language. It hence views language learning as constant and manipulate the morphology and syntax of the foreign language. “The first language is maintained as the reference system in the acquisition of the second language”( Stern;1983:455) 2. Vocabulary selection is based solely on the reading texts used, and words are taught bilingual word lists, dictionary study, and memorization. In typical Grammar-Translation text, the grammar rules are presented and illustrated, a list.

(14) of vocabulary items are presented with their translation equivalents, and translation exercises are prescribed. Cognitive Approach (1940s-1950s) This approach introduced the four principle language skills for the first time: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Oral communicative competence became the focus. Pronunciation is one of the components of speaking and though it may not have the necessary practice, it should have been given some emphasis. In this approach, language learning is viewed as a rule-acquisition, not habit-formation. Vocabulary is important, especially at intermediate and advanced levels. In this method, a distinction is made between several classes of vocabulary items. As cited in Richards and Rodgers (1986), the first class consists of common expressions in the daily life, the second class consists of words used in communicating more specialized ideas such as politics and the last class consists of more functional words of language. The Direct Method. The Direct Method, also called the Natural Approach, developed towards the end of the 19th century. The general goal of the Direct Method is to provide learners with a practically useful knowledge of language. They should learn to speak and understand the target language in everyday situations. In practice it stood for the following principles and procedures: 1. Only everyday vocabulary and sentences were taught. 2. Concrete vocabulary was taught through demonstration, objects, and pictures; abstract vocabulary was taught by association of ideas. General vocabulary and structure of the language were inculcated to a large extent by the teacher and answered by students..

(15) The Oral Approach and Situational Language Teaching (1930s -1960s) The origins of this approach began with the work of British applied linguists in the 1920s and 1930s. Beginning at this time, a number of outstanding applied linguists developed the basis for a principled approach to methodology in language teaching. Two of th e leaders in this movement were Harold Palmer and A. S. Hornby. What they attempted was to develop a more scientific foundation for and oral approach to teaching English than was evidenced in the Direct Method. Vocabulary Control: One of the first aspects of method design to receive attention was the role of vocabulary. The impetus for this research came from two quarters. First, there was a general consensus among language teaching specialists, such as Palmer, that vocabulary was one of the most important aspects of foreign language learning. A second influence was the increased emphasis on reading skills as the goal of foreign language study in some other countries. In fact, vocabulary was seen as an essential component of reading proficiency. This led to the development of principles of vocabulary control, which were to have major practical impact on the teaching of English in the following decades. Harold Palmer, Michael West, and other specialists produced a guide to the English vocabulary needed for teaching English as a foreign language, The Interim Report on Vocabulary Selection (Faucett et al. 1936), based on frequency as well as other criteria. These efforts to introduce a scientific and rational basis for choosing the vocabulary content of a language course represented the first attempts to establish principles of syllabus design in language teaching. The Audio-Lingual Method The Audio-Lingual method had its origins during World War II when it became known as the Army method.

(16) The direct method highlighted the teaching of vocabulary while the Audio-Lingual approach focus on grammar drills Here are some of the objectives: . knowledge of sufficient vocabulary to use with grammar patterns .. . The meanings that the words of a language have can be learned only in a linguistic and cultural context and not in isolation.. The Natural/Communicative Approach (1960s-2000s): The Natural Approach was developed by Tracy Terrell and Stephen Krashen, starting in 1977. It came to have a wide influence in language teaching in the United States and around the world. The importance of the vocabulary is stressed, for example, suggesting the view that a language is essentially its lexicon and only inconsequently the grammar that determines how the lexicon is exploited to produce messages. Terrel quotes Dwight Bolinger to support this view: The quantity of information in the lexicon far outweighs that in any other part of the language, and if there is anything to the notion of redundancy it should be easier to reconstruct a message containing just words than one containing just the syntactic relations. The significant fact is the subordinate role of grammar. The most important thing is to get the words in. (Bolinger, in Terrel 1997:333) The Communicative Language Teaching The Communicative Language Teaching or CLT was first proposed in the 1970s. In the 1960s educators began to question if they were going about meeting the goal in the right way. Some observed that students could produce sentences accurately in a lesson, but could not use them appropriately when genuinely communicating outside of the classroom. Others noted that being able to communicate required more than.

(17) mastering linguistic structure, due to the fact that language was fundamentally social (Halliday 1973). British saw the need to focus in language teaching on communicative proficiency rather than on mere mastery of structures. In 1971 a group of experts began to investigate the possibility of developing language courses on a unit-credit system, a system in which learning tasks are broken down into "portions or units, each of which corresponds to a component of a learner's needs and is systematically related to all the other portions" (van Ek and Alexander 1980: 6). The group used studies of the needs of European language learners, and in particular a preliminary document prepared by a British linguist, D. A. Wilkins (1972), which proposed a functional or communicative definition of language that could serve as a basis for developing communicative syllabuses for language teaching. Wilkins's contribution was an analysis of the communicative meanings that a language learner needs to understand and express. Rather than describe the core of language through traditional concepts of grammar and vocabulary, Wilkins attempted to demonstrate the systems of meanings that lay behind the communicative uses of language.. He. described two types of meanings: notional categories (concepts such as time, sequence, quantity, location, frequency) and categories of communicative function (request, denials, offers, complaints). The work of the Council of Europe; the writings of Wilkins, Widdowson, Candlin, Christopher Brumfit, Keith Johnson, and other British applied linguists on the theoretical basis for a communicative or functional approach to language teaching; the rapid application of these ideas by textbook writers; and the equally rapid acceptance of these new principles by British language teaching specialists, curriculum develop ment centers, and even governments gave prominence nationally and internationally to what came to be referred to as the Communicative Approach, or simply Communicative Language Teaching. Both American and British proponents now see it as an approach (and not a method) that aims to (a) make communicative competence the goal of.

(18) language teaching and (b) develop procedures for the teaching of the four language skills that acknowledge the interdependence of language and communication. Different authors have written about the communicative language teaching principles that any teacher should follow to teach any of the communicative abilities. Among those studious people, one can find Neil Neiman who suggested some of those principles (1989) 1. Meaningful practice beyond the sentence level This principle instructs us that language operates at levels higher than isolated wo rds or sentences, that language acquires meaning in context; that practice in the classroom should provide for the students to experiment with whatever bits of language they know in order to convey real communicative purposes (orally or in writing); and to process stretches of language as they occur in real life (listening and reading). This principle also has implications in terms of students’ motivation since it implies asking them to communicate and to process real meanings of language. 2. Student-centered class This principle claims that if students are expected to develop skills they should be given lots of opportunities to participate in pairs, in groups, and for the whole class. In other words, this principle implies that teachers should be “leaving the stage for the students to act.” 3. Task orientation of classroom activities This principle is related to problem-solving teaching. It states that students should learn by solving close-to-real life tasks and problems. In real life one does not watch the news for the sake of doing it, but rather to follow up on a current issue. 4. Development of strategies for learning beyond the classroom This principle acknowledges the need for students to develop skills and mo des of learning on their own. In other words, they should not only acquire knowledge and.

(19) habits but also develop abilities, since it is impossible to teach people everything that they need to know; rather, people should be helped to be able to learn on their own. 5. Peer correction and group work It considers that, to help the students to develop accuracy, teachers should use feedback correction techniques. By using these techniques, students develop selfcorrection and self-monitoring skills. If they are able to correct their own mistakes they will certainly have the ability to correct their partners’ mistakes while working in groups or pairs, and even in situations beyond the classroom. Task Based Learning Task-based language learning (TBLL), also known as task-based language teaching (TBLT) or task-based instruction (TBI) focuses on the use of authentic language and on asking students to do meaningful tasks using the target language. Such tasks can include visiting a doctor, conducting an interview, or calling customer service for help. Assessment is primarily based on task outcome (in other words the appropriate completion of tasks) rather than on accuracy of language forms. This makes TBLL especially popular for developing target language fluency and student confidence. Although the teacher may present language in the pre-task, the students are ultimately free to use what grammar constructs and vocabulary they want. This allows them to use all the language they know and are learning, rather than just the 'target language' of the lesson. Pedagogically, task-based language teaching has strengthened the following principles and practices. . A needs-based approach to content selection. . An emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction in the target language.. . The introduction of authentic texts into the learning situ ation..

(20) . The provision of opportunities for learners to focus, not only on language, but also on the learning process itself.. . An enhancement of the learner’s own personal experiences as important contributing elements to classroom learning.. . The linking of classroom language learning with language use outside the classroom.. 1.2. The Teaching Learning Process of English Language. 1.2.1. Communicative approach. (2000 onward): The communicative approach in language teaching starts from a theory of language as communication. The goal of language teaching is to develop what Hymes (1972) referred to as “communicative competence”. Hymes coined this term in order to contrast a communicative view of language and Chomsky´s theory of competence. Chomsky held that linguistic theory is concerned primarily with an ideal speaker-listener in a completely homogeneous speech community, who knows its language perfectly and is unaffected by such grammatically irrelevant conditions as memory limitation, distractions, shifts of attention and interests, and errors. Finocchiaro and Brumfit´s (1983) stated the major distinctive features of the communicative approach which are shown below: -. Contextualization is basic premise.. -. Language learning is learning to communicate.. -. Comprehensible pronunciation is sought.. -. Attempts to communicate may be encouraged from the very beginning.. -. The target linguistic system will be learned best through the process of struggling to communicate.. -. Communicative competence is the desired goal (i.e. the ability to use the linguistic system effectively and appropriately).. -. Fluency and acceptable language is the primary goal: accuracy is judged not in the abstract but in context..

(21) -. Students are expected to interact with other people, either in the flesh , thorough pair and group work, or in their writings.. 1.2.2. Communicative competence. The Communicative Competence is understood as the capacity that should be developed in the students to produce and process written or oral texts in a coherent way. The focus of the teaching of FL in Cuba should be on communicative competence, which is a high – level concept that implies the expressions, interpretation, and negotiation of meaning involving interaction between two or more persons, or between one person and a written or oral text. The teaching of FL should contribute not only to functional language proficiency, but also to the ability to construct and reconstruct new knowledge. Therefore the dimensions of communicative competence to be considered are: Cognitive: The ability to construct and / or re – construct knowledge through language. Linguistic: the ability to use and interpret linguistic forms accurately. Sociolinguistic: The ability to produce appropriate utterances according to the rules of use, the communicative situation, and the participants in the communicative act. Discursive: The ability to produce and interpret different types of discourse and interpret and produce coherent texts. Strategic: The ability to use verbal and non – verbal strategies to avoid breakdowns in communication. Sociocultural: The ability to understand the cultural meaning underlying linguistic forms and to understand the culture of the people w hose language is studied. (Taken from English Curriculum K – 12).. 1.3. Speaking Ability 1.3.1. The teaching of English vocabulary..

(22) Speaking is a productive skill that belongs to oral communication. The last one is a twoway process between speaker and listener, and involves the productive skill of speaking and the receptive skill listening with understanding. Both speaker and listener have a positive function to perform. In simple terms, the speaker has to encode the message he wishes to convey in appropriate language, while the listener has to decode the message (It should be kept in mind that the listener´s interpretation will not necessarily correspond to the speaker´s intended meaning). The main goal in teaching the productive skill of speaking will be oral fluency. This can be defined as the ability to express oneself intelligibly, reasonably, accurately and without too much hesitation. To attain this goal, you will have to bring the students from the stage where they are mainly imitating a model of some kind, or responding cues, to the point where they can use the language freely to express their own ideas. (Taken from Teaching Oral English, 1989). What happens in a speech situation and incidentally, therefore, what is involved in oral ability is described in Annex 1. Thus, in improving the speaking ability, the learner must assimilate its components: pronunciation, fluency, grammar and vocabulary. During the last three decades, the outlook on vocabulary has radically changed and researches have shown outpouring interests towards this area. Therefore, the movement toward effective methodologies for teaching vocabulary has emerged and researches and language teachers have also suggested many strategies and techniques for vocabulary learning, which are dependent on the efforts of each learner (Cohen & Macaro, 2007; Mizumoto & Takeuchi, 2009). For effective communication within any or all the four language skills, vocabulary is a basic premise. Consequently, teaching vocabulary has been one of the primary concerns of many language teaching methods since we cannot communicate our ideas with an anemic vocabulary nor can we grasp the ideas transmitted to us by others. Inefficiency in communication is often associated with a limited vocabulary. So, students must learn the items within the lexical subsystem as well as the other subsystems (sound, grammar and cultural elements) which are interrelated in any.

(23) communication act of listening, speaking, reading and writing . However many theories about vocabulary learning process were written, it still remains the matter of memory. Thus, there are several general principles for successful teaching, which are valid for any method. According to Wallace, 1988 the principles are: - aim- what is to be taught, which words, how many - need- target vocabulary should respond student´s real needs and interests - frequent exposure and repetition - meaningful presentation-clear and unambiguous denotation or reference should be assured Learning vocabulary is a complex process. The students´ aim to be reached in learning vocabulary process is primarily their ability to recall the word at will and to recognize it in its spoken and written form. Generally, knowing a word involves knowing its form and its meaning at the basic level. In deeper aspects it means the abilities to know its (Harmer 1993): 1) Meaning, i.e. relate the word to an appropriate object or context. 2) Usage, i.e. knowledge of its collocations, metaphors and idioms, as well as style and register (the appropriate level of formality), to be aware of any connotations and associations the word might have. 3) Word formation, i.e. ability to spell and pronounce the word correctly, to know any derivations (acceptable prefixes and suffixes), 4) Grammar, i.e. to use it in the appropriate grammatical form. Vocabulary can be defined, roughly, as the words we teach in the foreign language. However, a new item of vocabulary may be more than a single word: for example, post office and mother-in-law, which are made up of two or three words but express a single idea. There are also multi-word idioms such as call it a day, where the meaning of the phrase cannot be deduced from an analysis of the.

(24) component words. A useful convention is to cover all such cases by talking about vocabulary ‘items’ rather than ‘words’.. 1.3.2. Methodological suggestions to teach vocabulary items. 1.3.2.1. Important aspects to be considered.. 1. Form: pronunciation and spelling The learner has to know what a word sounds like (its pronunciation) and what it looks like (its spelling). Example: pronunciation: Teacher / / / spelling: teacher (appearance) These are fairly obvious characteristics, and one or the other will be p erceived by the learner when encountering the item for the first time.. 2. Grammar The grammar of a new item will need to be taught if this is not obviously cover ed by general grammatical rules. The teacher needs to teach in this item the part of the speech if the word is a verb, an adjective or a noun. Regarding a verb: its form: present and past; if it is regular or irregular; if it is transitive or intransitive. Verb: think, thought…call,called…want to…enjoy-ing Adjective-preposition: responsible for Verb-preposition: remind someone of Teachers should also teach plural of nouns. Example: mouse-miece...wife-wives No plural: advice,information. 3. Collocation The collocations typical of particular items are another factor that makes a particular combination sound ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ in a given context. When introducing.

(25) words like decision and conclusion, for example, we may note that someone take or make the one, but usually come to the other. More examples: throw a ball-toss a coin…do the homework-make a cake…tell a story-say a word. Collocations are also often noted in dictionaries, either by providing the whole collocation under one of the head-words, or by a note in parenthesis.. 4. Aspects of meaning (1): denotation, connotation, a ppropriateness The meaning of a word is primarily what it refers to in the real world, its denotation; this is often the sort of definition that is given in a dictionary. For example, dog denotes a kind of animal; more specifically, a common, domestic carnivorous mammal. A less obvious component of the meaning of an item is its connotation: the associations, or positive or negative feelings it evokes, which may or may not be indicated in a dictionary definition. The word dog, for example, as understood by most British people, has positive connotations of friendship and loyalty; whereas the equivalent in Arabic, as understood by most people in Arab countries has negative associations of dirt and inferiority and for the American society is means:bitch son of the bitch. A more subtle aspect of meaning that often needs to be taught is whether a particular item is the appropriate one to use in a certain context or not. For example, the teacher may know that weep is virtually synonymous in denotation with cry, but it is more formal, tends to be used in writing more than in speech, and is in general much less common. Other example is: hi, hello.. 5. Aspects of meaning (2): meaning relationships How the meaning of one item relates to the meaning of others can also be useful in teaching. There are various such relationships: here are some of the main ones.. Synonyms: items that mean the same, or nearly the same; for example: smartintelligent..

(26) Antonyms: items that mean the opposite; for example: rich-poor. Hyponyms: items that serve as specific examples of a general concept; dog, lion, mouse are hyponyms of animal. Co-hyponyms or co-ordinates: other items that are the ‘same kind of thing’; red, blue, green and brown are co-ordinates. Super-ordinates: general concepts that ‘cover’ specific items; animal is the superordinate of dog, lion, mouse. Translation: words or expressions in the learners’ mother tongue that are (more or less) equivalent in meaning to the item being taught.. 6. Word formation Vocabulary items, whether one-word or multi-word, can often be broken down into their component ‘bits’. Exactly how these bits are put together is another piece of useful information — perhaps mainly for more advanced learners. Teachers should teach the common prefixes and suffixes: for example, if learners know the meaning of sub-, un- and -able, this will help them guess the meanings of words like substandard, ungrateful and untranslatable. Another way vocabulary items are built is by combining two words (two nouns, or a gerund and a noun, or a noun and a verb) to make one item: a single compound word, or two separate, sometimes hyphenated words (bookcase, follow-up, swimming pool). (Taken from Penny Ur, in CD) 1.3.2.2. Techniques to present vocabulary There are lots of ways of getting across the meaning of a lexical item. . Illustration. This is very useful for more concrete words (dog, rain, tall) and for visual learners. It has its limits though, not all items can be drawn. . Clines. These are graphs showing degree and they can be really useful for sets of words like, love, hate, don't mind, fond of, detest, enjoy or things like adverbs of frequen cy..

(27) They rely on students' existing knowledge and extend that knowledge. If teachers know that their students understand love and hate then they can place these at extremes on the graph and get their students to decide where the other words in the set should be in relation to those. . Mime. This lends itself particularly well to action verbs and it can be fun and memorable. . Realia or the real thing.. This relies on the words you are teaching being objects and you being able to bring that object into class, but it can be really effective for students who are tactile learners and who need to touch. This can be particularly effective for teaching words like fluffy, rough, smooth, furry, hairy, which have very subtle differences which would be hard to explain. . Synonyms/Antonyms/Gradable items. Using the words a student already knows can be effective for getting meaning across. . Word formation or to be accurate breaking down complex words to their root parts. This method can also help students to understand how some o f the suffixes and morphemes of the language work.. . Dictionary. A mono lingual dictionary can be really useful in helping to build up teacher learner’s independence. Using a monolingual dictionary well is a skill and one that you may well need to work on in order to help your students get the best out of it. . Explanation. Being able to explain what a word means in the target language can be a really useful skill for students. By giving students concise and accurate explanations.

(28) of words we can help them to develop the ability to explain words that they want to know . Translation. If you know the students' L1, then it is fast and efficient. Remember that not every word has a direct translation. . Context. Think of a clear context when the word is used and either describe it to the students or give them example sentences to clarify meaning further.. The teacher can choose any of them depending on the item that is going to be presented. Some are more suitable for particular words. Often a combination of techniques can be both helpful and memorable.. 1.3.2.3. Implications for teaching vocabulary. 1. Teachers get better results if the words to be taught have clear, easily comprehensible meanings. 2. Teachers get better results if items can be linked with each other, or with ones already known, through meaning- or sound-association. 3. It is better to teach vocabulary in separated, spaced sessions than to teach it all at once. In other words, words will be learnt better if, for example, they are taught briefly at the beginning of a lesson, reviewed later in the same lesson, and again in the next than if the same total amount of time is used for learning the words all at once. This needs careful lesson planning, but will repay the effort.. 1.3.3. Characterization of the Teaching Learning Process of English Vocabulary in Primary School: Vocabulary teaching and learning is a constant challenge for teachers as well as students. Due to this, an increased emphasis on vocabulary development is crucial for the English language learner in the process of language learning. According to Colorado (2007, as.

(29) cited in Adger, 2002) the average native English speaker enters nursery school knowing at least 5,000 words while the average English language learner may know 5,000 words in his/her native language, but only a few words in English. The reality is that native speakers continue to learn new words while English language learners face the double challenge of building that foundation and closing that language gap. Children learn to listen and to talk long before they learn to read and write. The same sequence should be followed in classroom teaching. Extra difficulty would be created if one would try to develop English reading and writing skills before children can speak the language. In order to be able to speak the language, students need to know some vocabulary first. Teachers in the primary grades introduce many new concepts, and direct instruction is necessary to build up the understanding of new concepts and the vocabulary words that represent them. There are four stages involved in obtaining new words: . The first stage is that the learner is going to notice the word with the help of the teacher. That is an observation will be done by the brain of the language learner that something new have been introduced.. . Second stage that comes up is that student would start to be familiar w ith the word. Now the teacher would help student out to start recognizing the word.. . Third stage is when learner would start to recognize words on his own. This is when they would be able to analyze the word themselves and develop better understanding for it.. . The fourth and last stage is when the learner would not only be capable to recognize the word, in fact would also start to use and reproduce it in his conversation and use of language. This is the stage where there is successful transmission completed by the teacher to students towards learning a new word.. 2. The teaching of English vocabulary in 4 th grade in primary school in Cuba..

(30) In order to start with this Major Paper, a diagnostic test was applied to the students to assess their needs and weaknesses regarding the English language learning process. 2.1. Characterization of the Sample The sample is constituted by a group of 20 students from “Ramón Pando Ferrer” Primary School including 6 girls and 14 boys. They show interest in common issues that are related to child behavior, such as games, toys, etc. The level towards the knowledge of English vocabulary diagnosed through the test administered to the students showed a low rank. Only 3 students were able to use basic vocabulary taking advantage of what they had achieved in the previous grade. 4 students reached a medium rank and 13 students showed a poor rank in English vocabulary. 2.2. Definition of the Dependent Variable. Vocabulary definition: Dr Rosa Antich, (1986) argues that “vocabulary seems to be the easiest aspect to acquire in learning a foreign language, but also the easiest to forget. When teaching at the elementary level, these basic principles must be observed: the number of words should be kept low, so that students can acquire the sound system and grammar without overload of words and vocabulary always must be taught in context. The assimilation of vocabulary may be more or less easy depending on, the context in which they are presented, form, number of times that is used in lessons and times the teachers reiterate and practice later in the course. In the assimilation of a word enter : hearing (when listening), speaking (when they repeat and used the word), sight (when they see it written) and the kinesthetic sensation (when they write it). 2.3. Dimensions and indicators. The Dimensions are: •. Student’s knowledge about the different vocabulary areas studied.. •. Spelling of the vocabulary studied.

(31) •. Pronunciation of the vocabulary studied. The Indicators are: Student’s knowledge about the different vocabulary areas studied: •. School objects. •. Adjectives to describe objects. •. Family members. •. Occupations. Spelling of the vocabulary studied: •. Combination of letters that do not exist in the students’ mother tongue (Spanish). •. Double consonants. Pronunciation of the vocabulary studied: •. Pronunciation of sounds that do not exist in Spanish. •. Pronunciation of vowels. •. Pronunciation of Final sounds. The selected dimensions and indicators revealed the ways to operate with vocabulary during the research and covered the elements that were interested for the researcher to meet the objective of this investigation. The following scale shows the categories to evaluate the students regarding vocabulary acquisition. (See annex 2) Scale of the qualitative medition: 1° High level: the students can make mistakes, but those mistakes can not affect the communication; they should speak fluently and have the knowledge of the vocabulary that has been taught..

(32) 2º Intermediate level: the students can make mistakes and use the vocabulary limitly, but those mistakes and lack of vocabulary should not affect too much the communication. 3º Low level: the students speak with too much hesitation, limited vocabulary and making pronunciation mistakes mixing their mother tongue with English. The communication in this case does not come across. 2.4. Methods used for the Diagnostic. In correspondence to the empirical methods chosen, the following instruments were applied: 1. Analysis of documents: The documental analysis was carried out to examine the 4 th grade program, the distribution of contents ”Dosificación” and the text book of the English subject to know what was officially established in these documents in relation to the teaching of vocabulary. (see annex 3) 2. Participant observation: the observation guide was used to assess the use and pronunciation of the vocabulary studied. (see annex 4 ) 3. Analysis of the student’s notebooks: to know if the students use and spell the vocabulary correctly. 4. Pedagogical test: to know about the students´ strengths and weaknesses in the use and pronunciation of the vocabulary studied. (see annex 5) 2.5. Analysis of the results of the diagnostic. 2.5.1. Analysis of documents. Syllabus for the English teaching of 4 th grade The syllabus of the subject includes educative and instructive objectives which goal is to familiarize and sensitize the students with the English language. The program is organized taking into account the communicative functions and the different vocabulary.

(33) areas to be taught in the grade. The objectives of this grade include the knowledge of the contents learned in the previous course and some new ones. The students’ text book: The student´s text book is well designed. It is characterized by a lot of illustrations to practice the vocabulary. The contents of the book are in correspondence with the student´s age and interests. The exercises are varied, motivating and support the TV lessons; however, most of them are not communicative. In spite of having exercises to practice the speaking ability focusing in vocabulary they are not enough. The contents are organized in relation to the communicative function and the vocabulary needed to express them. 2.5.2. Observation. Participant observation: It was detected that the students lacked vocabulary related to the specific communicative functions worked at this level. Due to the lack of vocabulary they cannot communicate ideas and mix English and Spanish. It is showed when students hesitate so much at the time of speaking. Besides that, they usually forget about the English contents that were already taught. When checking the exercise orally the students pronounce the words as they are written. Moreover, the students showed difficulties in the following vocabulary area: School objects and family members. It could also be noticed problems in word order, mainly in the position of colors. Besides that, they presented problems with the pronunciation of vowels and final sounds that do not exist in Spanish. Further, it was noticed that the students had problems with the spelling in combination of letters that do not exist in mother tongue. So, 3 students could be placed in the high level, 4 students in the medium level and 13 students in the low one. 2.5.3. Analysis of the student’s notebooks ..

(34) The students´ notebooks were checked regularly and it was noted that they write the words as they are pronounced. The difficulties they present is due to the fact that there are combinations of letters such as: th, wh, double consonant, etc that do not exist in their mother tongue. It was noticed that the students present difficulties in the spelling of several family members: uncle, aunt, brother, grandmother,etc. 2.5.4. The Pedagogical Test. The pedagogical test was applied before implementing the proposal to the sample. The objective of this pedagogical test was to diagnose the students’ strengths and weaknesses in the acquisition of the vocabulary. In order to apply the diagnostic, the teacher prepared a set of questions to interact with the students. The result of this instrument proved that they showed lack of vocabulary that affects communication according to the level of this grade. It was detected that out of 20 students, 3(15%) are high level students, 4 (20%) are medium level students and 13 (65%) are low level students. The most common mistakes are in sounds derived from combination of letters that do not exist in Spanish, for example: mother, how, name. The areas of vocabulary most affected are school objects and family members. 2.6. Regularities. Taking into account the results previously obtained and analyzed through the application of different instruments during the diagnosis stage, the following regularities were stated: 1. The students have difficulties in using School objects and family members. 2. The students cannot express ideas fluently according to the level they are because of the lack of vocabulary. 3. The most common mistakes in pronunciation are those sounds derived from combination of letters that do not exist in Spanish, vowels and consonants. 4. They do not follow the phoneme-grapheme relationship in order to write correctly..

(35) The regularities detected confirm the problemic situation that is present in this scientific investigation. This state of affairs let the authoress of this study to propose a system of activities to transform the reality of the class regarding vocabulary. 3. Proposal of communicative activities for the development of vocabulary. 3.1. Characteristics of the proposal. The proposal has been designed with the objective of helping students from 4th “D” at “Ramón Pando Ferrer” Primary School to expand their vocabulary in English. It is a system of communicative activities. PhD Josefa Lorences defined in her PhD paper, 1996 system as: “a set of interrelated parts forming a complex whole, a regular union of principles or parts forming one entire thing”. This proposal consists of 6 activities, one or more activities for each unit, they are considered as system because they are interrelated among them. Every single activity was organized from lesson 1 to lesson 6 taking into consideration the English syllabus for 4th grade students and the distribution of contents. The activities are aimed at the expansion of the student´s vocabulary. The first activities are easier than the last ones. (see annex 5). In detail, the proposal covers six communicative functions; all the activities were either taken from authentic reference or adapted by the authoress. This system of activities is intended as a reference material that teachers can consult and find exercises to expand 4th grade students´ vocabulary. Most of the activities are designed for controlled stage and some of them for the free practice stage, in which the students are supposed to manipulate and use the new vocabulary taught in the classroom..

(36) The exercises were applied in the last 15 minutes after the TV lesson. In some of the units it is offered more than one exercise in order that teachers who are going to consult this major paper can choose the one their students need. 3.2.. Proposal of activities. Activity 1 Lesson 1: What´s your name? Communicative function: Talking about someone´s name. Objective: To manipulate the communicative functions “asking about names”, “asking about age”, “Greeting someone and saying good bye” by doing pair work, so as to show habits of courtesy and respect. Stage: Controlled practice. Organization: Pair work. Time: 15 minutes. Grammar: Simple present tense, possessive pronouns his/her. Vocabulary: numbers and greetings. Material aids: Cards. Gap dialogue: En el primer día de clases dos alumnas de 4to grado están conversando en el patio de la escuela. Alice no puede escuchar muy bien lo que Katherine está diciendo. Ayúdala a entender lo que Katherine dice completando el siguiente diálogo. Practica la conversación con tu compañero(a). (En el caso de los varones usar los siguientes nombres: Charles and Joseph).

(37) A: Hello! B:_______. What´s your name? A: _________. And yours? B: Alice. ________________? A: I´m 10. What about you? B: ___________. What´s your teacher´s name? A:_____ name is Martha. B: Good-bye A:________.. Lesson 1: What´s your name? Communicative function: Talking about someone´s name. Objective: To produce the communicative functions “asking about names”, “asking about age”, “Greeting someone and saying good bye” by doing pair work, so as to show habits of courtesy and respect. Stage: Free practice. Organization: Pair work. Time: 15 minutes. Grammar: Simple present tense, possessive pronouns his/her..

(38) Vocabulary: numbers, greetings. Material aids: Cards. Role Play The teacher gives the students cards containing orders given to each member of the pair. A Te encuentras con un niño canadiense en el parque Vidal. Pregúntale su nombre y su edad. Por último pregúntale el nombre y la edad de su papá/ mamá. B Eres un niño canadiense, estás en el parque Vidal, se te acerca un niño y te realiza varias preguntas. Debes estar preparado para responderlas y hacerle a él/ella preguntas similares. Activity 2 Lesson 2: What´s your school´s name? Communicative function: Talking about personal information. Objective: The students should be able to produce the communicative function “Talking about personal information” while working in groups, so as to show the values of friendship and courtesy. Stage: free practice. Organization: group work. Time: 15 minutes..

(39) Grammar: - Simple present tense. Vocabulary: Numbers, family members: father, mother. Material aids: a balloon. The teacher gets a ball and explains what the students are supposed to say, she/he will be the first one who plays this game. The teacher throws the ball to the group which has formed a circle. Then the teacher plays a song, when the music stops, the person who is with the ball will have to start talking about his/her personal information adding the school´s name. Activity 3 Lesson 3: What is this? Communicative function: Talking about school objects, describing objects. Objective: The students should be able to manipulate the communicative function “Talking about school objects” by doing pair work, so as to show solidarity and respect. Stage: controlled practice. Organization: Pair work. Time: 15 minutes. Grammar: the use of this and that. Vocabulary: School objects, colors. Material aids: pictures and cards. Procedure: pair work and individual work. Game.

(40) The teacher divides the class in two groups. Then, he/she gives a card to each student. In some cards appear sentences describing objects and in the others appear only the objects as illustration. The objective is that the students find their couples. For example: The student A has this card:. So, the student B has this one:. After the students find their couples they have to read aloud the sentence and show the picture to the whole class. The first two couples that read the sentence correctly are the winners. Then, those couples have to perform a mini -dialogue in which they have to use the vocabulary they already know adding the new one. Finally, they have to perform it in front of the class and their classmates will give them a mark, so the winners will get extra points..

(41) Answer the following questions according to the illustrations. See the following illustrations. Write on your notebook the sentences that describe the objects. Put into practice what you have learned in today´s class in order to please your 3th grade friend. So, when you finished read the sentences for him/her loudly.. The student should write and say: that is a red book.. The student should write and say: this is a brown table..

(42) The student should write and say: this is a green ruler.. Activity 4 Lesson 4: Family members. Communicative function: Talking about family members. Objective: To manipulate the communicative function “Talking about family members” by doing repetition, pair work, group work and individual work, so as to develop the value of love for the family. Stage: Controlled practice Organization: pair work, group work and individual work. Time: 15 minutes. Grammar: verb get and simple present tense. Vocabulary: Family members..

(43) Material aids: pictures, video, blackboard, chalks. Video 1 Before watching the video: The teacher asks the students the following question: Who do you live with? The students should answer in English the members of their families that they live with. Before playing the song the teacher explains to the students the following phrases that appear in the song: I´ve got…I have…tengo And we love each other…y nos amamos unos a otros. Cousin…primo(a) who flies a plane…que vuela un avión. Who´s got 12 cats….que tiene 12 gatos. While watching the video: The teacher asks the students the following questions: How many members of the family are mentioned in the video? How many brothers, sisters, fathers and mothers are mentioned in the video? Then the teacher has the students repeat the song in small groups and individually. After watching the video: When the students are singing they have to change the quantity of the members of the Family mentioned in the video according to the order of the teacher. (The teacher using his/her fingers shows the students the quantity they have to say)..

(44) Then, the students have to write on their notebooks the members of the family mentioned in the video, so as to work with the spelling of the new vocabulary. Video 2 Before watching the video: The teacher asks the students the way they call their: fathers, mothers, grandmothers and grandfathers. After the students give their answers the teacher explains to them that they are going to learn how to call those family members already mentioned in other way. Then, the teacher explains to the students the new vocabulary that appears in the video by drawing a heart on the board. And she/he asks the students if they have seen a heart in t-shirts, posters, illustrations, etc and ask its meaning. If they do not know the meaning, the teacher writes the whole sentence on the board, and translates it. “I love my family” While watching the video: The teacher asks the students: -How many people appear in the video? Then the teacher writes on the board the following family members and says the students that they have to tick only the ones that are mentioned in the video. Mommy___. aunt_____. sister______. Brother____. daddy_____. grandpa______. Uncle_____. granma____. cousin______.

(45) The teachers ask to the students: What is the main topic of the video? Then the teacher makes the students sing in small groups and individually. After that, the teacher writes on the board the simulated transcription of th e new vocabulary learned and makes the students repeat them. After watching the video: The teacher asks the students to say the first way that they have learned to say mommy and daddy, grandma and grandpa. The teacher will spell some of the family members mentioned in the video, so as the students write them on their notebooks. For example: d/a/d/d/y Recognizing exercises: Identify the family members in the following picture: Father, mother, son, daughter, uncle, aunt, cousin, grand father, grand mother..

(46) In the following soup of letters find the members of the Family that you studied in class. A U N T. T G J K. F. S N M H H K X A. A. I C. T. O J. T R G B. S L T. H J. V Z Q H. T E H. H Y. A W P E. E H E Q. B Z. R X R. H J. L. D R E. H T O. C W R R W X R B. N. Activity 5 Lesson 5: Occupations. What does mom do? Communicative function: Talking about jobs. Objective: To manipulate the communicative function “Talking about jobs” by having students interacting among them and the teacher, so as to highlight the value of professions. Stage: controlled practice. Organization: Pair work. Time: 15 minutes. Grammar: the articles a/an Vocabulary: Occupations. Material aids: pictures, video, chalks and blackboard..

(47) See the following pictures. Then, tell your classmates what occupation you can see in each picture and write the occupation on your notebook. Then, the teacher tells the students that they have to write a short paragraph mentioning different members of their family and their occupations. Doctor, nurse, carpenter, pilot, teacher, mechanic, housewife, actor, dentist, actress, plumber, cook.. She is a _____________________. He is a__________________.

(48) She is a________. He is a ________. She is a________. He is a ______________. He is a ______________. He is an ________.

(49) She is a_________. She is an_________. He is a____________. He is a____________. Video 1 Before watching the video: The teacher asks the students if they know how to say in English: bomberos, astronauta, bailarina, policía y payaso. Then, the teacher tells the students that they are going to learn those occupations or jobs in a video that they are going to see..

(50) While watching the video: The teacher asks the students the students to tell him/her what they have seen in the video. So, the students should tell him/her: firefighters, astronaut, ballerina, policeman, and clown. Then, the teacher writes those jobs on the board with their simulated transcriptions and makes the students repeat them. After watching the video: The teacher asks the students to write a paragraph about one of the characters they have seen in the video and creating their personal information and occupation. For example: He is Charles, he is 23 years old and he is an astronaut. Activity 6 Lesson 6: What does Dad do? Communicative function: Talking about jobs. Objective: To use the communicative function “Talking about jobs” by doing pair work, so as to highlight the value of professions, cooperation and responsibility. Stage: Free practice. Time: 15 minutes. Grammar: Verb be, the use of what. Vocabulary: Occupations. Material aids: cards.

(51) Role Play A Usted está en el Parque infantil con sus padres y se encuentra con un niño(a) de su edad después comienzan a jugar. Mientras juegan el nuevo amiguito(a) le hace algunas preguntas, respóndalas cortésmente y haga pregunta similares. B Usted está en el Parque infantil con sus padres y se encuentra con un niño(a) de su edad que también está con sus padres, después comienzan a jugar. Usted está interesado en conocer sobre él/ella y sobre sus padres. Hágale todas las preguntas necesarias para obtener esta información. Sea cortés.. 3.3.. Evaluation of the Implementation of the proposal:. Before applying the proposal only 3 students (15%) were able to use basic vocabulary taking advantage of what they had achieved in the previous grade. 4(20%) students reached a medium rank and 13 (65%) students showed a poor rank in English vocabulary. The document analysis revealed that the objectives of the previous grade were not fulfilled. In the observation, the students presented problems with the pronunciation and the lack of vocabulary which did not allow them to express their ideas. In the analysis of the students´ notebooks it was revealed that they had problems in the spelling of words. Those difficulties detected were confirmed with the pedagogical test which showed that the student’s main problem was the lack of vocabulary. After applying the proposal it was observed that there are still 3 students with low level because they continue having problems with the following vocabulary areas: School objects and family members. It was hard for them to learn the word order of colors to describe objects and the pronunciation of the vocabulary belonging to these areas. The rest of the students are placed in the high level because the showed progress in r elation.

(52) to the pronunciation of the new vocabulary due to the repetition and videos used in the proposal which helped them to try to imitate native patterns. Though, they continue having some problems in pronunciation mainly in the middle sound in the word mother and it is still difficult for them to remember and use family members such as: aunt and uncle. In relation to the spelling of vocabulary before applying the proposal 17 students presented problems in this dimension and it was because they were not familiar with the combination of letters and the double consonants which do not exist in Spanish. That was why it was difficult for them to improve their spelling. However; after the application of the proposal it was noticed that only 5 students still pre sent problems in that indicator, but the rest of the students are able to write with less mistakes. Conclusions: 1. The teaching of vocabulary seems to be the easiest aspect to acquire in learning a foreign language, but also the easiest to forget . Hence vocabulary is best learnt in context and while using illustrations, videos and songs to catch the student´s attention making it memorable. 2. The results of the diagnosis applied revealed that the main difficulties of the 4 th grade from the primary school “Ramón Pando Ferrer ” regarding vocabulary learning are related to: a) Exercises to practice and use vocabulary are not enough. b) Most common mistakes in pronunciation are in those words having consonant sounds that do not exist in Spanish, vowels that are pronounced as diphthongs and final sounds. c) Lack of vocabulary to express the student´s ideas. d) Limited time to practice the new vocabulary presented. 3. A system of communicative activities can contribute to the expansion of vocabulary if it provides enough practice so as to widen their lexicon..

(53) 4. Recommendations The system of activities proposed can be a consulting material for teachers who need to find activities to expand the vocabulary of 4th grade students in classes..