young learners. All of them can be copied from the pictures in the book or CD provided. Furthermore, the teacher’s guideline is presented in the
mother tongue language, Indonesian, so that the English teachers who are from non-English Education program can use it easily. It offers the
description of the book including the activities provided, and the course grid. In addition, the guideline to assess the students is also provided.
Since this book is aimed for very young learners who have limited language comprehension, the skills are only focused on speaking and
listening.
CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
A. Literature Review 1. The Characteristics of Children
Every child is unique. They have their own speed in learning something new. Pinter 2006 states that children change and develop new skills and abilities
in spurts. Vygotsky, cited in Cameron 2001:6, states development and learning take place in a social context. Therefore, the environment of the children’s
surrounding plays important roles in helping children to learn, bringing object and ideas to their attention, talking while playing and about playing, reading stories,
asking questions. With the help of adults, children can do and understand much more than they can on their own. Piaget, cited in Shin 2006, states children are
active learners and thinkers. They construct knowledge from actively interacting with the physical environment in developmental stages. They learn through their
own individual actions and exploration. Bruner, cited in Shin 2006, states children learn effectively through scaffolding by adults. The adult’s role is very
important in a child’s learning process. Bruner focuses on the importance of language in a child’s cognitive development. He shows how the adult uses
“scaffolding” to guide a child’s language learning through finely-tuned talk. Rivers cited in Broughten et al. 2003:169 points out, young children love
to imitate and mime; they are uninhibited in acting out roles, and they enjoy repetition because it gives them a sense of assurance and achievement. At this age,
young children should be provided with activities which are appropriate for them. 7
