Some experiences on using flashcards to teach English vocabulary for grade 3 students

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Content
 Page
1. Introduction
1
1.1. Rationale for chosing the topic
1
1.2. Objectives of the study
1
1.3. Objects of the study
2
Methodology of the study
2
Development
2
2.1. Literature review
2
2.2. Reality of teaching and learning vocabulary at some primary schools in Tho Xuan district
4
2.3. Solution to the problem: using flashcards
6
2.4. Effectiveness of the study 
17
3. Conclusion and suggestion
18
3.1. Conclusion
18
3.2. Suggestion
18
	1. Introduction
1.1Rationale for chosing the topic 
	It’s high time to identify that vocabulary learning is crucial for learning foreign languages. According to French Allen (1983), if teachers use visual materials, students’ learning will be better than the time when they use other materials. Of all the foreign language teaching visual aids, flashcards have been proven to be an incredibly useful and flexible resource for teaching vocabulary. 
Some researchers also discovered that teaching with flashcards help learners, especially young learners to acquire words more effectively. This is completely true to children who always have great love for visual things and games. Therefore, flashcards are an effective tool for teaching primary students vocabulary. Specifically speaking, flashcards are great for introducing new vocabulary, memorising, revising and consolidating vocabulary.
	We are all aware of both benefits and the way of using flashcards to teach children English vocabulary. But there is a fact that flashcards are a simple, handy, versatile, valuable, yet often an underexploited resource. Being aware of the essential role of flashcards in teaching children vocabulary is the first reason why I do this study.
	 Children love flashcards very much but using flashcards is also one of difficult teaching techniques for Vietnamese primary teachers to master and apply it into their teaching English effectively. Besides, it’s not cheap at all for teachers to buy one set of flashcards. And it’s not easy at all for teachers to find out their suitable flashcards that can meet their aims as well as the topic of a specific lesson. Therefore, in this study I provide teachers of English with steps of using flashcards as well as some suggested activities and games using flashcards to teach children English vocabulary. In case the teachers are unable to find suitable ready-made flashcards, I also suggest here the way of making up their own flashcards to teach with the hope that they can create more effective lessons and help their children learn new words better through flashcards.
	Using flashcards to teach English is really a broad issue because flashcards can be used to teach not only vocabulary but also other aspects of language. Furthermore, flashcards can be used effectively for learners of all ages and language levels and they can be useful at every stage of the class. In addition, “children” is also a broad object, so I just focus my study on grade 3 students, who are mostly in the first year of learning English and find learning new words difficult because their methods of learning vocabulary haven’t been formed. Under the limitation of time and for the main reasons as above, I decided to carry out this study and present here “ Some experiences on using flashcards to teach English vocabulary for grade 3 students”.
1.2. Objectives of the study:
This study aims at clarifying the benefits of using flashcards to teach children English vocabulary and suggesting the way flashcards can be used to help children learn new words better.
1.3. Objects of the study:
Flashcards can be used to reinforce and practice vocabulary or grammar patterns as well as giving students interesting and challenging speaking practice based on the pictures shown in the flashcards. And flashcards can be used for students of all ages and all levels. However, the main focus of this study is looking at the reasons why and the ways how flashcards should be used to help children in general and grade 3 students in particular learn new words better.
1.4.Methodology of the study:
	To attain the mentioned objectives, a number of techniques will be used during the process of carrying out the study. Theoretical background of the study is based on reading, analyzing and synthesizing of the materials and relevant books. Investigating the reality and collecting the data of grade 3 students learning new words before and after using flashcards to teach vocabulary are also applied. And according to applicative approach, some activities using flashcards for some units in the textbooks Tieng Anh 3 are also applied in teaching practice. 
2. Development
2.1. Literature review: 
2.1.1. What is a flashcard? 
According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, a flashcard or flash card is a card bearing information, as words or numbers, on either or both sides, used in classroom drills or in private study. One writes a question on a card and an answer overleaf. Flashcards can bear vocabulary, historical dates, formulas or any subject matter that can be learned via a question-and-answer format. Flashcards are widely used as a learning drill to aid memorization by way of spaced repetition.
2.1.2. Types of flashcards 
 Haycraft (1978: 102-106) states two types of flashcards. They are word flashcards and picture flashcards. Word flashcards are cards on which words have been printed. When practicing word order, the teacher can use a number of cards representing all the words in a sentence. The cards can be fixed to the board, or given to a student, and arranged correctly either by the class a whole or individual students. The word flashcards also can be used to practice structure. Then, picture flashcards are useful for presenting, practicing and revising vocabulary or as prompts for other activities – for example, to illustrate the characters in a dialogue, to help students improvise. A picture flashcard is a card which has a picture on one side and the word in the other side, or the picture and the word in one side. Picture flashcards are used for teaching and practising basic vocabulary through games. They could be pictures of animals, household objects, places, people, story characters or action verbs. 
Thus, I strongly suggest we should focus on picture flashcards which can help teachers a lot with improving their students’ vocabulary. You can use small sets for individual or group activities or larger sets for display or for whole class activities.
2.1.3. Where to get flash cards? 
Buy them. Some course books provide a supplementary pack of flash cards or they can be bought in sets.
Make them yourself. If you don't have access to professionally produced flashcards, don't worry, it's really easy to make your own even if you're not very artistic. You can use pictures from magazines, draw simple pictures or copy from the internet or clip art. The most important thing is to make sure they are all of the same size, on card (different colours for different sets) so you can't see through them. If possible you can laminate the sets as you make them and they will last for years. The advantage of making your own, apart from the fact that they're cheap and yours to keep, is that you can make sets for your specific needs. You may like to make a set to use in conjunction with a story book or graded reader, or even to accompany project work.
Students make them. I have recently begun to incorporate the production of flashcards into the classroom. After introducing a new lexical set, using realia or the course book, ask students to produce the flashcards for you. Give each one an item to draw. They can be mounted on card to make the set. By creating flashcards, students began to set their own learning goals. Students are offered a learning environment in which they are active participants rather than passive recipients of information. First, they clarify their objectives. Then they select words relevant to those objectives, choosing not only the information best suited to the flashcards, but also the level appropriate to their ability. Second, they exercise their responsibility for their own learning by developing their own flashcards. 
2.1.4. The advantages of using flashcards to teach children vocabulary: 
Generally speaking, flashcards are extremely benefical for teachers to teach English. Flashcards are effective that can be used for all students with different levels and learning styles. Howard Gardener's multiple intelligence theory reminds teachers that there are many types of learners within any one class. Gardener's research indicates that teachers should aim to appeal to all the different learner types at some point during the course. It is particularly important to appeal to visual learners, as a very high proportion of learners have this type of intelligence. Flashcards can be bright and colourful and make a real impact on visual learners. Many of the activities outlined below will also appeal to kinaesthetic learners.
Flashcards are motivating and eye-catching. Flashcards can be taken almost everywhere and studied when there is any free moment. Flashcards have a great power in motivating and stimulating the students. Meanwhile, flashcards are easy media to help students and teacher in learning process, especially to teach the students of elementary school. Teacher can use it at any time and in any situation when he wants to teach.
	One of the most important advantages of using flashcards is they are easy and fast to reproduce. Thus, they’re inexpensive. Making flashcards can be your art project with kids, students and family members. With just crayons, color markers, paper boards, and scissors you can produce your unique set of flashcards that friends, family, or students can enjoy and learn from. Flashcards can be one of the least expensive ways to study.You don't need to buy a set of fancy illustrated cards. Instead, create your own flashcards.Furthermore, flash cards provide students with a portable learning tool. Rather than having to carry around a book or notebook, flash cards allow students the opportunity to transport as many cards as they need. The portability of flashcards can improve efficiency when learning new material. By taking the cards everywhere, students can make effective use of their time such as using them while walking. Flashcards are useful because the teacher and children can pick them up, move them and display them in different places and different sequences. Since you can shuffle the order, flash cards prevent students from simply memorizing the order of the answers in long-list items. Reverse the flash cards so the answers can be seen first and students must surmise what the original questions were.
In term of vocabulary mastery, flashcards are effective memory-aid tools that can help students learn new material quickly because children love pictures, posters and other visual aids. They allow for repetition and proper scaffolding of the learning. Learning with flashcards can be a fun and interactive educational experience for both children and adults because they have the advantage of enabling you to turn a learning activity into a game. Besides, they are quick and easy to use. Flashcards are simple media of instruction used commonly for the basic education of children. If the flashcards are particularly designed for guessing games, the information written on the reverse sides are answers or literal references of the images on the front. Most teachers, lecturers and parents find that learning with flashcards is quick and direct. They let you avoid using the mother tongue to translate. You show the image and the kids know immediately what the new word means. Their diverse and colorful designs attract children and adults alike. The images printed on the cards and the manners in which they are used to stimulate the mind to quickly look for references to identify the flashed images.The real difficulty of a certain subject matter or problem can also be lessened by choosing flashcards of varying difficulties, or it can be made more unpredictably challenging by employing a random flash method. This is why flashcards are ideal to use as educational games as well as ideal teaching aids to teach children vocabulary effectively.
2.2. Reality of teaching and learning vocabulary at some primary schools in Tho Xuan district:
From preobservation, the situation of the class was not conductive for teaching and learning activities. Students did not focus on the learning process, they were busy doing something outside the learning activity (talking with friends, drawing picture). Moreover, they tended to be passive and ignore the teacher’s instructions. In addition, some students were not active when they did tasks in groups. From the situation above, we know that the students just acquire a few vocabularies. This situation also found in some primary schools in Tho Xuan district where the English teachers did not use the right media or method that can increase the interest and achievement from the students. So it’s high time to find out and implement a media that can improve the students’ interests in learning English vocabulary.
Most of the students in elementary schools get much difficulty with learning English, especially with vocabulary mastery. In my opinion, it is caused by many reasons. Firstly, the students do not have interest in the teaching and learning process. At school, the teachers often find that the students are not interested in learning a subject matter. It also happens in learning English, because the students do not have knowledge about the correlation between the subject matter and themselves. Secondly, the teachers are still having less creativity when teaching English. Usually the teachers just explain the material without any game, so it can make the students bored. As teachers, they must build the interest of students to learn English by using varieties of methods. For example, the teachers use games in teaching learning process because the students like to play. Finally, the uses of media and method are not appropriate with the situation of students. In order to use a right method or media, a teacher must make it suited to students’ hobbies. 
	 Flashcards are one of the teaching aids that can improve children’s vocabulary mastery effectively as shown above. Usually the students are able to remember English words easily if the teacher shows cards that consist of words or pictures. By using flashcards, the teachers are able to teach English by employing many methods too, such as cards game, puzzle, roleplay, etc. So the student can be more interested and enjoy in the English learning process.
 Here are some figures of adjusting how my grade 3 students learn new words at the beginning of the first term: 
Total students
60
Percentage
Number of students can pronounce the new words correctly with its sounds
30
50%
Number of students can pronounce the new words correctly with its sounds and stress
6
10%
Number of students can remember the new words’ meaning
30
50%
Number of students can remember the new words’ spelling
30
50%
- Only a half of my students can remember how to write any new word together with its meaning.
- It’s even worse when 50% of my students can pronounce the new words with its sound but only 10% of them can do correctly with its stress. This fact is really worth worrying because we all know the importance of word stress in developing listening and speaking skills for children according to communicative teaching approach.
Why not using flashcards to teach children vocabulary? For the main benefits of using flashcards as above, I tried on using flashcards to teach vocabulary and I have found that flashcards can be really useful, and the kids enjoy them too.
2.3. Solution to the problem: using flashcards
Remember to make flashcards large enough so students at the back of the class can see what they are. Store the flashcards so that they can be reused in future lessons.  It will save you time in the long run. Make your own library of flashcards and keep them in either a folder or within envelopes so that they are easily accessible. Create a magazine drop-off box in the staffroom so that teachers have ready access to a range of magazines for pictures, text, etc for flashcard making. Also, the key to success is: just involve the kids in the process of learning. So...don't keep the flashcards to yourself! Let your students play with them, touch them and look at them closely. Apart from the flashcards, you can add wordcards.
2.3.1. The stages and procedure of using flashcards to teach vocabulary:
*Stages of using flashcards to teach vocabulary:
 The first stage is introducing new vocabulary by showing the flashcards to the kids and attach them to the board. Then, put the corresponding wordcard next to them. Teachers may let the kids guess what the objects are by revealing the picture slowly, uncovering it step by step. You can also use this method for revisions.
	The next stage is practice. The teacher leaves the flashcards as they were and mix up the wordcards (or you can do it the other way round). Individual students have to come to the board and match the words with the pictures again. Instead of moving the wordcards, they can also match them by drawing a line. Here are more ideas to break the routine. Teachers can let students play a ''what's missing'' game by telling your pupils to close their eyes. When they are ready, remove one flashcard or wordcard (or both). The first person to guess what the missing word or picture is, wins. After two or three times, you may invite one of the students to take off the word/picture they want. I use the following commands for this game:
one, two, three....close your eyes!
one, two, three... open your eyes! Look at the board. What's missing?
	Another activity to try is inviting some students to come to the front of the classroom. Ss form a circle. Play some music and pass the flascards. Students have to keep passing the flashcards until the music stops. Then, they have to name the objects on their flashcards. If they don't know them, they have to leave the circle. Student who last leaves the circle, wins. Or you can play a memory game on the board. Display the flashcards and the wordcards with their faces down. Children  have to uncover the cards and they get a point if the uncovered picture matches the word.
	The last stage is production. Slowly, take off the wordcards and ask children to name the pictures on the flashcards. When you finish, ask the kids if they can name all the objects. Help, if necessary. For more ideas to break the routine, kids can prepare their own flashcards. Then, they play with them in pairs. 
*Procedure of using flashcards to teach vocabulary:
Step 1: Sit comfortably facing your students.
Step 2: Arrange the flash cards in the order you would like to present them.
Step 3: Starting with the first flashcard, hold it up so your students can
clearly see the front. Keep the back of the flash card toward you so your child cannot see it.
Step 4: Shows the flashcard front to your students that consist of picture. 
Say in English and ask the students to repeat after several times to
make sure that they could say it in a correct pronunciation.
Step 5: Give question to them by showing flashcards one by one randomly,
if your students give a correct answer, place the correctly answered
flash card in a pile on your left.
Step 6: If your students give an incorrect response or no response, tell him
the correct answer, and place these flash cards in a pile on your right
side.
Step 7: After you have finished showing your students all of the flashcards,
you may continue your flashcard teaching session by using the stack
of incorrectly answered cards. Continue in the same manner, placing
correctly answered flashcards on the lef