The Big Idea
Give vocabulary a useful job: make a statement, ask a question, or prepare a request you can actually use.
The Four Finger Rule — Grifter’s Edition
Dog. Cat. Monkey.
Fine words. But if a child can name three animals and can’t tell you how they feel, we may be missing an opportunity.
Vocabulary gives us material to work with. A sentence lets us do something with it.
Give the words a job
In my Japanese classrooms, I began with am, is and are and simple sentences:
- I am [name].
- I am three years old.
- I am happy.
- Are you happy?
The goal was a first useful exchange. A child could say something about themselves, ask a question and hear another person’s answer.
That is a different experience from pointing at a picture and supplying its name. Both can have a place in a lesson; I wanted the words to lead somewhere.
Change one piece, keep the useful structure
Here is a small practice sequence based on that approach:
I am happy. → Are you happy? → Yes, I am.
Try it slowly. Then change happy to tired. Keep the exchange short enough that the learner has room to think and answer.
This isn’t a claim that one sentence pattern covers the whole language. It is a starting point. The learner gets to experience making a statement, asking a question and responding.
Older learners, real situations
With older learners, I used the same practical principle and moved toward the Four Finger Rule’s four preparation prompts:
WANT TO. HAVE TO. NEED TO. MIGHT.
Imagine preparing for a train journey:
- I want to catch the train.
- I have to leave by eight.
- I need a ticket.
- I might miss my connection.
Now there is a situation to prepare for. The learner can think about what to ask, what they might hear and what could go wrong.
Notice the wording: I need a ticket uses a thing. I need to buy a ticket uses an action. We want natural, useful sentences, not a formula forced into every gap.
Turn preparation into a request
“I want to buy a ticket” explains your goal. “Could I buy a ticket to Vancouver, please?” makes a request.
That gives a practice partner something to respond to. They might ask when you want to travel. You can prepare that answer, too.
Start with the short exchange. Once it feels manageable, add the next piece. You don’t need to perform the whole journey perfectly on the first try.
Your turn
Choose one place you actually go. Write one sentence about what you want to do there. Turn it into a polite request. Practise the exchange aloud, then change one detail and try again.
Stop memorizing English. Start using it.
The children’s am/is/are approach is an introductory sentence-building technique. It is separate from the Four Finger Rule’s four preparation prompts. The train journey is a practice example.
THE FOUR FINGER RULE
Stop memorizing English.
Start using it.
52 weeks. 52 real-world missions.
US$52 once.
Keep Practising
Before You Teach a Word, Earn Their Trust
Want To, Have To, Need To, Might: Four Ways to Prepare a Conversation
AI-assisted illustrations used for learning.
