Materials development for young learners

114 ABSTRACT This study which consists of five chapters intends to analyze the need for materials development and the usage of additional materials besides the currently followed materials which may sometimes be insufficient or not entirely appropriate for the learners. It also aims to develop sample activities through worksheets as additional aids in the process of teaching of English as a foreign language to young learners. Private Yüce Primary School in Ankara is taken as the case school in order to collect and evaluate the data. The first chapter of the study is the introduction. It gives a general background to the study, explains its aim and the scope, and makes some assumptions about it. The second chapter has three sections. The first section deals with the young learner's identity and the general features of young learners. The discrimination of the young learners from the teenagers and adults is also mentioned in this section. The second section is pertaining to the English language teaching materials which are used in the teaching of English as a foreign language. These materials and the ways of using them in the teaching of English are explained both in general and from the point of view of young learners. The third section discusses the materials development and adaptation and the use of additional materials in the teaching of English. The importance of specifically prepared activities in the worksheets by the teacher is explained in this chapter. In the third chapter which has two sections, the characterisitcs of young learners are given. The115 first section is concerned with the needs and expectations of young learners while the second section deals with the factors affecting young learners. Motivation and the classroom organization which are the most important ones of these factors are mentioned in this section. In the fourth chapter, the data collection procedure and its analysis are given. The explanation about the questionnaire which is the data collection device of the study and the participants as well as their features are mentioned. The answers to the questions are given alongwith their statistical evaluation and the results are anallyzed and interpreted. In the fifth chapter, in the light of the findings gathered, the sample activities are developed and introduced. The last chapter is the conclusion of the study. This study has two appendices: full versions of the questionnaire -one in English and one in Turkish. ^^SSSv*1**