[For Overseas Residents/Returnees] (2) Things You Must Know Before Aiming for Eiken Pre-1st Grade in Lower Elementary Grades
What you should know first if you are aiming for Eiken Pre-1st Grade in lower elementary school
"Isn't Pre-1st Grade too early for a lower elementary student?"
This is one of the questions I am asked most often by parents of children living abroad or returnee children.
most frequently asked questions.
In conclusion,
"it is not impossible if you don't go about it the wrong way."
However, there are conditions.
Pre-1st Grade is a test that asks for "thinking skills" more than "English proficiency"
What is required for Eiken Pre-1st Grade is not
merely vocabulary size or conversational ability.
The ability to understand abstract themes
The ability to logically organize pros and cons
The ability to communicate one's own opinions structurally
This is content that even adults struggle with in Japanese.
The reason lower elementary students stumble is
not because of a lack of ability, but because their foundational understanding has not caught up yetwith the material.
3 patterns where failure is common in Lower Elementary x Pre-1st Grade
1. Just cramming in vocabulary
Even if you increase your vocabulary without understanding the meaning,
neither long-form reading nor writing will improve.
2. Relying too much on native intuition
Natural English does not always equal a high score on Eiken.
Pre-1st Grade is "test English."
3. Making them imitate high-level model answers right away
Because they do not understand the content,
it ends up being just "a sentence that sounds like it."
The first thing you should do for Pre-1st Grade preparation is not "English"
It may come as a surprise, but
if you are aiming for Pre-1st Grade in lower elementary school,
the first thing you should do isnot study English.
Understand the theme in Japanese
Think about 'why it is an issue'
Organize your stance for or against
Building this foundation for thinking is the top priority.
Try thinking with the example of environmental issues
Common themes in Pre-1st Grade include 'deforestation' and 'environmental protection'.
For elementary school students,
why trees are cut down
what the problem is if they aren't cut down
how it relates to people's lives
Just understanding this is a struggle in itself.
If you skip this and only teach English, it results in
writing that is empty of content.
Why [Eiken World] is strong for lower elementary students aiming for Pre-1st Grade
At our school, we take difficult Pre-1st Grade themes and
replace them with age-appropriate language
help them visualize with concrete examples
guide them step-by-step from Japanese understanding to English expression
We value this process.
As a result,
even lower elementary students stay on topic
Content starts to appear in writing
You won't panic during the secondary interview
These are the changes you will see.
Criteria for deciding whether to aim for Pre-1st Grade in the lower grades
If the following three conditions are met,
it is well worth challenging the Pre-1st Grade.
Vocabulary and reading comprehension at the 2nd Grade level are stable
Can express your own opinions in Japanese
Does not dislike thinking about difficult topics
Conversely, if any of these are missing,
not rushing for Pre-1st Grade is actually a shortcut in the end.
Finally
Aiming for Pre-1st Grade in the lower grades
is not about 'early passing'.
Cultivating thinking skills
Developing the habit of thinking logically
Improving the ability to 'think using' English
This is the true value.
👉 For those living abroad/returnees
👉 We offer study consultations for lower grades x Pre-1st Grade
👉 Let's start by re-evaluating your current position
