Goal-oriented English for Children.K to 9.

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Name: David Staggs
School name: Family Tree
Area: Fujieda, Shizuoka
Number of students: 50 children and 45 adults

■Material used:
With children between the ages of 3 to 6, Family Tree uses WE CAN! Book 1 along with Superstar Songbook Book 1. WE CAN! Book 2 along with WE CAN! Phonics Book 1 is used with children between the ages of 7 to 9 and WE CAN! Book 3 along with WE CAN!　 Phonics Book 2 is used with children between the ages of 10 to 12.

■How your students are enjoying learning English:
Our students truly enjoy learning English with the WE CAN! series. Children particularly like the wonderful songs and activities in the student books along with the beautiful and engaging artwork. Students like reviewing and repeating popular songs and activities during the warm-up section of each lesson because they are fun to do! The activities in the series are simple and straightforward so our students never feel overwhelmed.

The assignments in the workbooks are challenging but not out of reach of the children’s abilities. In particular, the workbook pages in WE CAN! Book 1 are truly achievable for students who have not yet learned how to write the alphabet. The stickers included in the workbooks for books 1 and 2 have proven to be very popular with young learners and are a great motivational tool.

■Your teaching philosophy:
Learning and having fun are NOT exclusive – they definitely go together! All lessons must be enjoyable and students should have plenty of fun playing games and doing other activities but learning and practicing English must take place in every lesson. Continuous review of past teaching points is essential for students to truly acquire the language and feel comfortable with communicating in English. Measurable progress in English acquisition through achieving goals is essential for students and parents to maintain motivation.

■Message to WE CAN! users
The WE CAN!　series has been very successful at my school because children really like the artwork, songs and activities used in the student books and workbooks. It is by far the easiest set of textbooks I’ve ever used due to the quality of materials. Parents LOVE that CD’s of the songs and activities used in the student books and workbooks are included so their children can review and practice listening skills at home