Development of Children’s Cultural Awareness in English Teaching Materials

The paper focuses on the concept of cultural awareness in the context of teaching languages to young learners. The whole language approach and aspects of intercultural learning are popular in educational policies as children by the age of 10 develop holistically. Namely, young learners gain knowledge about social conventions, customs, and lifestyles and develop understanding of similarities and differences between different communities. They develop their attitude to their own culture and foreign cultures. Then, early foreign language education involves teaching culture. The following research problem was formulated: What are the ways in which cultural awareness is introduced in English materials for young learners? The idea is to analyse a selected number of syllabuses and course books to identify the latest approaches to teaching culture through English in Polish primary schools. The project will involve the analysis of goals, content and activities with a cultural focus in English teaching materials.