What’s out there? Books and articles

A reading list for the pre-primary EFL teachers (an attempt:-)

Here is a new project.

Deeply rooted in the fact that I keep losing things and if I start piling the resources here, I will also be able to find them myself easily. Selfish, as usual.

But, here’s to hoping that this post will come in handy to all those teachers who are looking for things to read about the very young kids and the ways of approaching them.

P.S. The list is highly subjective. So are the mini-reviews.

P.P.S. It will be continually updated!

P.P.P.S. Make sure you also have a look at the Bibliography Part 2: Webinars Treasure Chest.

Books: EFL

1. Sandie Mourão and Gail Ellis (2020), Teaching English to Pre-Primary Children: Educating very young children, Delta Teacher Development Series. About: Waiting for my delivery but based on the IATEFL presentation in Liverpool, this book is dream come true.
2. Vanessa Reilly and Sheila M. Ward (1997), Very Young Learners, Oxford University Press. About: Some nice practical solutions but, beware, the VYL world has moved on since 1997. Take it with a pinch of salt.
3. Herbert Puchta and Karen Elliott (2017), Activities for Very Young Learners, Cambridge University Press. About: Lots of practical ideas for the beginner VYL teachers.
4. Opal Dunn (2014), Introducing English to Young Children: Spoken Language, Collins. About: Some insights on what teaching pre-primary should be (although I cannot agree with all the approaches include here)
5. Opal Dunn (2014), Introducing English to Young Children: Reading and Writing, Collins. About: Some theoretical background in a reader-friendly mode and some practical ideas.
6. Lynne Cameron (2001), Teaching English to Young Learners, Cambridge University Press. About: Not really VYL-focused but an excellent introduction to the world of the non-adult learners.
7. Sandie Mourão (2015), Discover with Dex, Teacher’s Book, Macmillan About: The best pre-primary Teacher’s Book so far (the overview of the age group, the implications for the classroom, the solutions).  

Research articles EFL

1. Sandie Mourão (2014), Taking play seriously in the pre-primary English classroom, ELT Journal, 68 / 3, p 254 – 264 About: On the importance of play in the EFL/ESL environment.
2. Sandie Mourao (2018), Research into the teaching as a foreign language in early childhood education and care, In: Garton, S. and F. Copland (eds), (2018), The Routledge Book of Teaching English to Young Learners, Milton Park, New York: Routledge, pp. 425 – 440. About: For those interested in a more academic look at EFL in pre-primary. Start your reading here! Spoiler alert: very little research in the area. Surprise surprise!
3. Daeun Song and Jang Ho Lee (2019) The use of code switching for very young EFL learners, ELT Journal, 73 / 2, p. 144- 153. About: The results of a small scale study from South Korea on the benefits of the bilingual instruction in the pre-primary EFL classroom.
4. Pawel Scheffler and Anna Dominska (2018), Own-language use in teaching English to pre-school children, ELT Journal, 72/4, p. 364- 383. About: The results of a small-scale study on the use of L1 in the pre-primary classroom in Poland (they do and they don’t mind).

Books: Early Years Education

1. Tina Bruce (2015), Early Childhood Education, Hodder Arnold About: An absolute must. Nothing to do with EFL, lots and lots about the youngest learners in general.
2. Tina Bruce (2001), Learning Through Play: Babies, Toddlers and the Foundation Years, Hodder Arnold About: A little more on play and why it matters.
3. Tina Bruce (2004), Developing Learning in Early Childhood, Paul Chapman Publishing About: An introduction into the cognitive development, the social skills development, communication and the importance of play in early years education.
4. Janet R. Moyles (1989), Just Playing, The role and status of play in early childhood education, Open University Press About: Even more on play, its types and value, including play with and through language.

Research articles: Early Years Education

1. Developmental Matters in the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), Early Education (2012), The British Association for Early Childhood Education, https://www.foundationyears.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Development-Matters-FINAL-PRINT-AMENDED.pdf   About: If you’ve never worked with the little people, have a look at this summary. This is how they operate. This is what they need.

To be continued…