ADEVELOP CHILDRENS’ UNDRESTANDING OF E MEANINGS

The following activity develops the children’s understanding of the meanings of the above two terms, while increasing their range of vocabulary.

1) Begin by explaining the two terms, giving examples to illustrate the point.
2) Have a list of words which have lots of synonyms / antonyms. Some are listed here:

3) Split the class into an even number of groups. Label half of the groups “Synonym” and half of the groups “Antonym”.

4) Say one of the words on your word list. Each group then has to think of as many synonyms and antonyms for that word as possible (depending on the group’s label given earlier). The children can have a fixed time limit to do this, or can continue until they run out of words.

5) Now count up the number of words each group has produced and award points to the group with the longest list.

6) Repeat using different words. You could also swap the groups, so the “Synonyms” groups now find antonyms and vice versa.

7) This would also be a useful exercise in using a thesaurus, so if there were enough for one per group, the children could use these to add to their own lists.

Antonyms: Students fold a piece of construction paper in half. They look through the newspaper to find and cut out words or pictures that are antonyms. They write or paste the antonym words or pictures on opposite sides of the construction paper[3].

A CHOOSE THE CORRECT ANSWER

Please check to see if the question is asking for an antonym or synony

1.	Give the antonym for ‘forward’ (1 pt)
	[A] advance [B] ahead [C] backwards [D] behind
2.	Are the following antonyms or synonyms? (FEARLESS/BRAVE) (1 pt)
	[A] Synonyms [B] Antonyms
3.	What is the antonym of ‘no’ ? (1 pt)
	[A] yes [B] forget [C] eat [D] know
4.	True or False: An antonym is a word that has the opposite meaning of another word. (1 pt)
	[A] True [B] False

CONCLUSION

The process of teaching a foreign language is a complex one: as with many other subjects, it has necessarily to be broken down into components for purposes of study: the teaching acts of (1) presenting and explaining new material; (2) providing practice; and (3) testing.

In principle, the teaching processes of presenting, practicing and testing correspond to strategies used by many good learners trying to acquire a foreign language on their own. They make sure they perceive and understand new language; they make conscious efforts to learn it through; and they check themselves.

In the class, it is teacher’s job to promote these three learning processes by the use of appropriate teaching acts. Thus, he or she: presents and explains new material in order to make it clear, comprehensible and available for learning; gives practice to consolidate knowledge; and tests, in order to check what has been mastered and still needs to be learned and reviewed.

These acts may not occur in this order, and may sometimes be combined within one activity; nevertheless good teachers are aware which is their main object at any point in a lesson.

In modern teaching materials now in use the words pupils are to learn pass through the following stages:

1. Pupils listen to the words in sentences arranged in a structural group.

2. They learn the meaning of the words in various contexts.

3. Pupils learn the forms of the words.

4. They perform various exercises with the words in phrases and structures to assimilate the usage of the words.

5. Pupils use the words in speaking in various situations.

The rules, techniques, methods and structures mentioned in this paper are available for teaching any unit of vocabulary and antonyms as well. Following these learning processes you will achieve a step and will be successful in teaching antonyms and vocabulary in the whole.

THE LIST OF LITERATURE:

1. Общая методика обучения иностранным языкам в средней школе. М., 1967.

2. Методика преподавания иностранных языков за рубежом. Сост. М. М. Васильева и Е. В. Синявская. М., Прогресс, 1967.

3. Старков А.. П. Обучение иностранному языку в средней школе. М., Просвещение, 1978.

4. Программа по иностранному языку для средней школы. М., Просвещение, 1981.

5. Хэкболдт П. Изучение иностранных языков. М., Просвещение, 1963.

6. Костиникова О. А.. Basic English Lexicology. Сочи, 2000.

7. Flower J. Berman M. Build your vocabulary 2. LTP, London, 1998.

8. Ur P. A Course in Language Teaching: Practice and Theory. Cambridge University, 1997.

9. The All Nations Dictionary (International Phonetic Alphabet). All Nations Literature, Colorado Springs, 1992.

[1] See: Общая методика обучения иностранным языкам в средней школе. М., 1967

[2] LINGUIST List 6.86 p.-32/1995/ Dr. Alex Eulenberg USA Department of Speech, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK

[3] This idea contributed by Mrs. Amada Pérez