emphasis is on exposin g students to a “highly contextualized” second language
environment by using the subject matter as the content of language learning Wesche Skehan, 2002:220. It is an approach to language teaching in which
the whole course is structured around certain themes or topics. Brinton, 2001. Cameron 2001 believes that new vocabulary items can be learned easily,
with the theme providing a meaningful context for understanding, and for the natural use of a wide range of discourse types, both written and spoken.
Moreover, Cameron 2005:180 states that in theme-based teaching many different activities are linked together by their content; the theme or topic runs
through everything that happens in the classroom and acts as a connecting thread for pupils and teachers. Freeman and Freeman 2006:64 also suggest that when
the content of the lesson is relevant and interesting, students are more likely to try harder to understand and to stay focused.
In addition, children can be encouraged in learning English if they find their learning activities are interesting that finally make them become more
interesting in English. In conclusion, theme-based teaching brings the children to learn English naturally in meaningful context that increase children’s motivation
in learning.
2. Language learning materials
a. Definition of materials
Teaching learning process cannot work without using any materials. A material refers to anything which is used by teachers or learners to facilitate the
learning of a language. Tomlinson 1998:13 mentions that good materials vary in style, mode, medium and purpose, and should be rich in features. Similarly,
Hutchinson and Waters 1987:107 propose that good materials should provide a clear and coherent unit structure which will guide teacher and learners through
various activities in such a way as to maximize the chances of learning. Designing materials belongs to instructional process. All of the planning
and devising of an instructional process are known as instructional technology. Borg and Gall 1983:774 state that the instructional technology can be defined as
the use of research-validated techniques to bring about prespecified learning outcomes. By conducting a series of instructional technology, the materials can be
developed right on target so teachers can reach the goal of the teaching systematically. A technique of instructional technology which is related to
materials development can be said as an instructional design. An instructional design plan is designed to supply the needs of teaching-learning in structural
ways. A material design also has a model that can provide and accommodate
various aspects of learning and enhance knowledge and creativity from the developers. Hutchinson and Waters 1987:108-109 provide the model in four
elements: input, content focus, language focus and task. The input provides stimulus materials for activities, new language items, correct models of language
use and opportunities for learners to use their existing skills and knowledge that may be in the form of a text, dialogue, video-recording, diagram or any piece of
communication data, depending on the needs. In the content focus, non-linguistic
content should be exploited to generate meaningful communication in the classroom. In language focus learners have the chance to take the language to
pieces, study how it works and practice putting it back together again. Whereas task leads the learners to use the content and language knowledge they have built
up through the unit. These four elements are combined in the model as follows:
Figure I: A material design model by Hutchinson and Waters 1987
As the conclusion, the materials are an important facility for teachers to deliver knowledge for their learners; and preparing good materials are necessary
to maximize the teaching- learning process. It has to correspond with learners’
needs and interests, so it can help them to understand and grasp the new knowledge effectively.
b. Materials for language young learners
For young learners, the materials should expose them to real life experiences and suit their needs and interests. The materials being used also need
to be adjusted with the goal of the teaching. Preparing good materials is necessary for conducting the teaching because the achievement of the indicators is
INPUT
CONTENT
TASK LANGUAGE
determined by given materials which are appropriate and effective to be delivered to the young learners. Selecting materials to children is not an easy task;
especially for teachers whose their concentration is not from children education. However, there are still many teachers even from children education who
still do mistakes in choosing appropriate materials for their little students. Many of them still deliver materials in the form of structural and grammatical views. It
is inappropriate to teach formal grammar to young learners Brewster, Ellis, and Girard, 2002:26, in line with one of the objectives of the English primary
teaching and learning in Indonesia that is to develop student s’ communicative
competence Depdiknas, 2008:21. To teach some kinds of materials like vocabulary, Hatch and Brown in
Cameron 2005:84 also describe five essential steps in vocabulary learning based on research into learners’ strategies: having sources for encountering new words,
getting a clear image, whether visual or auditory or both, for the forms of the new words, learning the meaning of the words, making a strong memory connection
between the forms and meaning of the words and using the words. Materials being developed for young learners or very young learners also have to be varied.
Materials can be in the form of a textbook, a workbook, a cassette, a CD-Rom, a video, a photocopied handout, a newspaper or a paragraph written on a
whiteboard Tomlinson, 1998: xi. As this case, the developed materials for children are not the same as
materials for adults because they are different on their stages of developments.
The materials can fit children’s needs if they are delivered appropriately both in their content and amount. Finally, to develop and deliver materials for language
young learners, it needs specific skills that a teacher has to master. c.
Material developments Grassick 2007:147 states that there are no guidelines given by the
Indonesian Ministry of Education on the selection criteria, which means that schools often have difficulty in selecting the most suitable materials for their
students. Moreover, he said that research data show inappropriateness of learning resources and lack of creative and stimulating materials for the primary English
teaching. Brewster, Ellis and Girard 2002:161 explain that the main features of
worksheets are: they are clear, simple, and attractive; the instructions are clear or in the pupils’ own language; each worksheet provides an activity which lasts a
designated period of time; there are opportunities for the worksheets to be personalized, for example, colored, labeled, and so on; each worksheet practices
one particular language point, for example, a structure or a lexical set, and involves pupils in different skills and possibilities for linking English with other
subjects in the curriculum. Therefore, conducting the instructional design in the form of materials
development can help the teachers in the teaching-learning activities if the design is adjusted with their learners’ needs. By providing good materials, the teaching-
