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they can predict what they will hear and what they will need to say in response. Through interactive activities, teachers can give students practice in managing and
varying the language that different scripts contain.
Next, using language to talk about language. Language learners are often too
embarrassed or shy to say anything when they do not understand another speaker or when they realize that a conversation partner has not understood them. Teachers can
help students overcome this reticence by assuring them that misunderstanding and the need for clarification can occur in any type of interaction, whatever the participants
language skill levels. Teachers can also give students strategies and phrases to use for clarification and comprehension check. By encouraging students to use clarification
phrases in class when misunderstanding occurs and by responding positively when they do, teachers can create an authentic practice environment within the classroom
itself. As they develop control of various clarification strategies, students will gain confidence in their ability to manage the various communication situations that they
may encounter outside the classroom.
c. Problems during Speaking Activities in the Classroom
During the lesson, the teacher should be aware of the problems which occur in the class. The problems which occur may come from the students themselves, their
friends or the teacher. There are several problems which occur during speaking activities that influence students’ speaking fluency.
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Lawtie 2004 offers three problems which often occur during speaking class. Those problems are: 1 students do not want to talk or say anything because they are
afraid of making mistake or because they are not interested in the topic, 2 when students work in pairs or groups, they just end up chatting in their own language, and
3 when all the students speak together, it will be too noisy and out of hand, and sometimes the teacher loses control of the classroom.
d. Teaching Speaking in Elementary School
It is commonly believed that teaching children is much more complicated than teaching adults. To successfully teach children a second language requires specific
skills and intuitions that differ from those appropriate for adult teaching Brown, 2001: 87. Young children are natural language acquirers; they are self-motivated to
pick up language without conscious learning. Brown proposes five categories that may be effectively used to give some practical approaches to teaching children,
namely: 1 intellectual development; 2 attention span; 3 sensory input; 4 affective factors; and 5 authentic, meaningful language.
1 Intellectual development
Techniques and activities used in English teaching should fit the children’s intellectual development. In learning a new language, children depend on the world
around them as they are centered on the here and now and on the functional purpose of language Brown, 2001: 88. It means that presenting abstract notions will not
work well for children
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2 Attention span
According to Brown 2001: 88, short attention span occurs when children have to deal with materials that are boring, useless and too difficult to them. To keep
the children’s attention, activities should be designed to capture their immediate interest.
3 Sensory input The designed activities for children should cover the visual and auditory
modes. Since children need to have all five senses stimulated, physical activities like role plays, TPR, projects and games should be included. Those kinds of activities and
sensory aids help children practice meaningful language and internalize the language Brown, 2001: 89.
4 Affective factors According to Brown 2001: 89, children still have many inhibitions in
learning English even though they are often innovative in language form. It can make them reluctant to use the language in communication.
5 Authentic, meaningful language
Brown 2001: 90 states that children are should be driven to the real purpose of the language for the here and now, so they are less willing to deal with language
that is not useful. Storylines, real-life conversation familiar situation and characters will create a context in which language can be used to improve children’s attention.
In terms of their intellectual development, children are said to be in the period of function. They tend to be aware of to the purposes of language rather than on the
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rules and also explanations of the language items. Therefore, in conducting the teaching and learning in the classroom teachers need to avoid explaining grammar
explicitly and also stating the grammatical rules by using abstract terms. It would be better if they show their children certain patterns and examples in explaining the
grammatical concepts Brown, 2001: 88. Then, in order to have a successful English classroom, teachers also need to
think the category of authenticity of the materials as well as the use of meaningful language in their classroom. This is particularly in line with their students’
intellectual development. Children are commonly very aware to the language which is used in their familiar context of situation, therefore the use of story lines, familiar
situations and characters, real-life conversations, meaningful purposes in using language are strongly recommended in establishing the context of the language use as
well as improving children’s attention and retentionBrown, 2001: 90. Before the children can say words, there must be a time when they hear the
words said by someone else. Children imitate the pronunciation and intonation then they can say the words aloud. Children’s listening skills become the basis of their
speaking skills. Through listening to a language, they learn the way to speak it. After children have been exposed to English through listening, they soon want and are able
to participate in interactions with the teacher and each other Pinter 2006:56. It can is seen that teaching listening and speaking cannot be separated as children get their
language input in their listening activities then they can produce language in their speaking. Pinter 2006:62 also says that the development of listening can be the basis
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of initial speaking practice. There should be many opportunities in the class to combine listening and speaking through meaningful activities. Brown and Yule in
Nunan, 1999: 237 also says when children start learning English, they need to be given language before they can produce it. It means that before being able to speak,
they should start with listening first. Prior experience as a listener helps speakers to improve their performance as a speaker.
Based on the principles and statements above fun atmosphere must be created in order to help children learning. Children must also be given a lot of opportunities
to practice speaking English. Visual support is also important in the teaching of English to children. Those aspects must be taken into account before the speaking
technique and activities are designed.
e. The Curriculum in Elementary School
