An interview with Charlie Richards of Learning Tree English, a private language school for 16 and unders (sometimes far unders!) in Osaka.
“I first came across your school through your excellent examples of young learner lessons on YouTube. Typical lessons or selected highlights?
Thanks for the complement but I shudder when I watch certain clips – I like to think my lessons have improved since! Selected highlights of typical lessons would sum it up nicely.
Why did you decide to set up a YouTube channel? Has it had the effect you expected?
I opened a You Tube channel with a view to showcasing the school to potential customers. Until that time I offered a hand out video tape cassette of classes to take home – too much time and effort involved there so we upgraded to a digital camera and prepared to take a year’s worth of footage.
Desired effect? Yes, for sure. Over the years we have had many sign-ups from the combination of photos and videos on both embedded on the home page and on Flickr and YouTube.
Did it take a long time to do?
Yes, the short clips you see on the Tube is a very small selection of the footage we took over that particular year and handed out on DVD to existing customers. All the downloading and editing takes a lot of time but the results are always worth it! You might or not notice that a lot of footage is taken by either the teacher holding the camera or individual students taking turns – editing shaky camera work was often the biggest headache!
Any problems getting permission from parents etc?
We have a sign off clause on our entry form. Something like, “If you don’t wish your son or daughter to be portrayed on our school website or connected sites please check this box” . In ten years we only had one parent check the box – and that was way back in ‘99 when we started the home page and understanding of such media was weak.
In the chain of schools I worked for in Japan most teachers wanted fewer kids’ classes and more adults. How do you manage to get teachers who are happy to work with (very small) kids full time? Or does the limited times when kids can come mean you can only employ part time?
Personally, I don’t like to work mornings! Our working day generally starts from 2:30 and ends before 9 p.m. Only twice a week do we have morning classes – the really young ones. And then it is a long day, for sure. The more compact the working day the happier the teacher, in my experience. Until the recession hit I employed full time and paid by the month. Now I pay according to contracted days a teacher works. Baby classes pay time and a half.
What’s your staff turnover like? Is it a problem keeping teachers motivated to teach very small kids year after year?
I only ever had one staff member leave half way through a contract – and that person had been with us five years until that point. I look for career teachers – the ones who are happy and comfortable with the job description and work load although I am happy to employ unqualified, enthusiastic people who show themselves to have the right attributes but can’t convince themselves that this is their life’s work.
Do your teachers have any special qualification or training in young learners? What training, reading etc would you recommend for teachers who want to/ have to teach very little ones?
In my case taking the CELTA before anything set me up for my career. The course I went through at International House in central London covered all aspects of teaching practice and theory. I have never seen the need to waver from the very effective core teaching methods they inculcated in us over a four week period. Without the knowledge and confidence gained from such a course I am sure I would be like many others I meet who are still searching for the best teaching approach – five years or more into their careers. Save yourself time and money in the long run and get qualified, is my advice. A CELTA is surely the best choice, even now.
How well does the CELTA or equivalent set you up for teaching young learners and very young learners?
The methods and approach of the CELTA is, still I believe, primarily aimed toward adult classes but the whole course is about effective classroom methods and teaching – I found it logical and easy to transfer and extend the methods for young learners.
Who usually adapts better to your kind of teaching, a CELTA or equivalent teacher with no experience or training in kids, or a primary school teacher with no experience or training in ESOL/ EFL?
No question, a qualified CELTA teacher with no experience is better able to adapt and develop. In my experience a primary teacher is, in general, less thorough when it comes to the ruthless unwavering determination necessary to present and practice language in a limited time span. That is not to say the teacher teaches a poor lesson, just that compact, effective language teaching ends up taking a back seat to overall class happiness and camaraderie. ” We couldn’t cover it today because….. but we’ll get to it next week” comments abounding. An EFL qualified teacher is less inclined to let go of his or her lesson plan and target language goals for each lesson due to other considerations. Short time spans demand quality, compact presentation of language and high frequency practice of such. An EFL qualified teacher is, in my experience, better equipped to handle this style of teaching.
Why did you decide to start classes from two years old?
Until recently we only taught from 2½ – give or take a few days. In 2008 we started babies classes. We had a number of existing customers who wanted to start their younger siblings a year early. So we put together a curriculum based around songs with actions and started out. Six months later the kids who were eligible entered the next grade without the mums in presence in class.
If I could I would drop this class from the weekly curriculum – I want more mornings free! – but it does ensure kids feed through into the system – which could potentially keep them at the school for a further five years, or so.
How different are classes with two year olds from classes with three year olds?
We separate the age groups from the outset: two and a half year olds upwards we teach in our Tiny Tots class without a parent or guardian in the classroom. Children younger than that put in our Mother and Me classes with a parent in attendance, of course.
With a full Tiny Tots class (8 kids) at the start of the school year in April achieving anything can be quite a challenge (to put it mildly) so we allow the parent or guardian to be in the class but before the end of May we aim to have the children settled in and parents out of the class although available in a separate room for emergencies.
There are set curriculum goals for the year of course but the order everything is taught is flexible. No text used at this level.
Not tempted by mother and baby classes for even younger kids?
Yes, at this very young age we require a parent to be present in the class. The curriculum is steered less directly at the children but more toward teaching the adult to interact and enjoy using English with their child.
Do you do any unstructured play with the teacher just interacting with the kids spontaneously in English? Any comments on how this could work as a method of teaching the language to the very young?
Yes, allowing the opportunity for spontaneous interaction is extremely important to language and character development regardless of age. In my mind an effective teacher allows students the opportunity to interrupt proceedings at any time so long as the goal of language development is not veered away from. I myself always aim to ‘rap with the kids’ at any chance but I see this only as a complement to an established curriculum, not as a substitute – the teaching aims of a lesson should always be pursued each and every class although not too blinkered so as to prevent natural language use or expression.
Any problems with unrealistic expectations from parents?
(no answer given!)
I was really impressed with the YouTube video of kids fetching things from the open shelves to practice “long” etc, but I fear in my own classes they’d be pulling it all off at other random times in the class as well. Not a problem?
Funny that, not the first time I have been asked the same question. Other friends’ schools I visit I notice they put up curtains or similar in front of the shelves. To be honest, I have never had any worries regarding this.
I also noticed more chances for bumps and bruises than my present school would let me get away with. I found that Japanese parents are surprisingly tolerant of this considering the way the country seems safety obsessed in other ways. Would you say that is true?
I like and encourage activity in the classroom at all times. Perhaps this reflects my adversity to sitting down for any length of time, I don’t know. What I do know is that it is effective to intersperse physical activity with sedentary tasks to enable concentration levels to remain high. I figure, why not combine the two, whenever possible! My focus is on safety at all times but accidents do happen and yes, I do find parents here to be tolerant if safety concerns are always observed. In (and out of) school insurance is a necessity though, of course.
What are the best and worst things about teaching little kids in Japan?
In many instances I teach a child from age two until they leave at junior high school age. Although I don’t think about it too deeply, what other teacher has that opportunity? It is truly heart warming to see the children develop both socially and academically over such a period of time.
The worst? Zero. I love this work.
Why did you decide to use textbooks in your classes, and which ones did you choose and why?
You have to have a base curriculum. Good material enables you to create good lessons. How can you create lessons on a regular basis without a reference point for both yourselves and the students?
Choosing an appropriate text for each level can be really tricky not to mention the financial burden and time costs involved. Caveat emptor! A wrong decision here can ruin an academic year!
Since I have the opportunity to use computers in class I am also very pleased to use texts that provide multimedia CD’s. I currently use a text series that provides ample material to use in class – a workbook, student book, teacher’s book, flash cards large and small, the aforementioned CD ROMs and extra songs to accompany the whole series. The comprehensive Let’s Go Third Series is the text I use with my elementary school kids. Smart Choice with the JHS students and Tiny Talk 1A through 3B with the youngest ones.
I think I noticed a Super Simple Song on one of your YouTube videos. How much are these and other songs important for your classes? Any other recommendations for places to get good songs?
Yes, the Simple Songs people provide many great songs to complement any curriculum. Other kids songs I bought on tapes and CD’s on holidays around the world. I just throw onto an old iPod and leave it playing before class and the in-between bits sometimes. Otherwise I utilize songs from the Let’s Go series (past and present) and Carolyn Graham’s tunes from the Tiny Talk series for kindergarten levels.
Ditto for computer games, stories and crafts.
Computer games? I haven’t bought any in five years. The ones we use on the Macs were mostly bought ten years ago on a trip to Hawaii – Reader Rabbit, Stickybear, Disney stuff and Jumpstart too. Don’t use much of that as teaching material in class but the kids are welcome to play the games before lessons begin. The majority of games and story books are all saved onto the 3GB!! iMac hard discs ready for instant use.
Stories? Just visit the bookstores on each visit home or wherever. Tiring & time consuming but always worthwhile.
Crafts ideas generally start from a book or online site somewhere and then progress from there.
In an email you told me that you start phonics from very young. The Japanese government has decided to ban all reading and writing from state school primary classes. Any views?
Yep, phonics from age 2 upwards here. Almost without exception kids here are reading short vowels and easy sentences by age 5. I find teaching phonics and reading one of the most fun aspects of lessons for the really young – the methods I use have been tried and trusted in the USA for over twenty years now and are extremely effective. The government lacks expert advice!
I was very impressed by the number, range and usefulness of props (hoops, soft blocks etc). Must’ve cost you a fortune!
Yes, it cost a lot to tool up from the outset. Most of the classroom stuff I got from kindergarten suppliers – not much discount on offer there without the government grants etc. The curriculum based materials came from Hawaii (mostly) and the UK.
What would be the most useful and cost effective things to invest in for schools and teachers setting up very young learner classes for the first time (as I am at the moment, actually)?
Put on the spot I’d come up with: blocks to sit on, throw tables to place on blocks, a white board of some description, crayons and pencils and a few hoops, balls, jump ropes and a set of shopping baskets and plastic fruit & veg from Toys R Us perhaps! After that the hard work will be making the flash cards and assembling ample realia to accompany each lesson plan as you go progress week by week. A lot of dedicated work ahead!
Do specialist teachers, props etc mean that you need to charge more than your competitors?
No. What others around me charge is of a concern for me as a business owner of course. But for me to assume that my school might be worthy of higher rates when all around are just as competitive would be a fatal mistake. The current market is, sadly but inevitably in the current economic climate, very sensitive to price differences. And this being Osaka, especially so! I just plough ahead planting the best seeds in order to reap the benefits in the long term. Quality at a reasonable price would sum up what my school offers, I believe.
Does it take a long time to prepare those classes?
Depends on each teacher doesn’t it? For me a kindergarten class can potentially take longer than an elementary school class to prepare for simply because you have to assemble more materials for the really young ones. And, you cannot afford to have any glitches in your lesson plan at that age – things can get out of control really quickly! On average I’d say a K class would take between 5 and 15 minutes to prepare for. An elementary class ten minutes or a little more.
Do you need to be energetic, outgoing, musical or artistic to teach those kinds of classes?
Energetic – yes. But not necessarily physically energetic, just enthused towards successful teaching and putting your efforts into providing quality lessons.
Outgoing? – affable, jovial – for sure it all helps, yes. These attributes in a teacher are surely attractive to the majority of young learners.
Musical or artistic – I am barely musical but I use songs and taught myself to play many kids songs on a small keyboard. Artistic? My talent is virtually zero in this area – but the kids like to help out there, more often than not. And, I should mention, our office manager has contributed much to the school with her artistic abilities.
Are there any particular influences on the teaching style in your school, e.g. a theory, writer, book or defining personal experience?
Nope. Just did the four week CELTA course and pretty much got the whole understanding and concept from there. Tuning the teaching methods to kids took a few years to fine tune. In the early days of my career (the late eighties) waiting for the publishers to come up with good texts was a most frustrating time.
Personal experiences? I guess cub scouts and a few good youth leaders helped form my ideas of what a successful learning experience should entail. And the odd bad teacher along the way taught me what not to do too. In my mind you have got to be able to analyze what works and what doesn’t – and quickly! If you are able to see your mistakes and learn from them you’ll be successful in the long run I believe. At least that’s the way I approach things both in the classroom and in life.
What is your one all time favourite game for very young learners?
Always changing. Each new week brings a new idea to the class is the way it usually works out. I am always inventing new activities, more often than not using an idea a child introduced in class.
What I do treasure is my repertoire of ‘final five’ games – a way to send everyone home happy, if you like. Examples?
Group table tennis with a sponge frisbee around a large round table; group jump rope; dice spinning, balloon volleyball, blow soccer (on a large scale) – all very much not related to the lesson taught BUT a fun way to finish up a class when five minutes is in hand. Any game that can be instantly set up and played with the minimum of fuss is a favorite.
Any other hints for teachers and schools considering very young learners?
You should pretty quickly know if it is for you or not. I continued teaching adults whilst evaluating my potential career move towards kids – giving me time to assess my choice.
A good director of studies or a school offering training would be desirable, of course. In my case I got thrown in the deep end and luckily kept my head above water the whole time. Sink or swim? That’s both the dangerous and the exciting part, isn’t it?
Any plans to share your ideas other ways, e.g. blog or articles?
Have done the lecture circuit in the past and do enjoy the challenges of standing up in front of adults (sic) for a change! Written communication has never been a strong point but I do maintain a school blog, although recently all is posted in Japanese to ensure better hits. Twitter? Never want to go there!”
Thanks Charlie
Anyone one else want to keep me up nights thinking of good interview questions for them? Or anyone want to disagree with Charlie on sinking despite a CELTA, textbooks for little ones etc? To start it off, here’s my own.
Negatives about teaching kids in Japan- kanchou (trying to stick both index fingers up your arse), surely!??
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