About AIM

Do you know about AIM?

AIM is a wonderful methodology that uses iconic gestures to accelerate Student fluency. It has really rejuvenated my teaching when I began using the program over 15 years ago.

For 20 years of my teaching I would hear; “Madame McKinney, why can’t I speak fluent French? I have been studying French at this school since I was 5…I am now in grade 6 and can’t speak a word or understand a thing!”

The Accelerative Integrated Methodology (AIM) is being used in thousands of schools around the world and has been referred to as a revolution for second language teaching and learning!

AIM is a unique, multi-faceted program in that it uses gestures, a specifically researched ‘pared down’ language, stories and music to rapidly develop students’ fluency.

AIM is...

A verb-based rather than noun-based approach allowing teachers and students to be able to function solely in the target language from the outset of the program.
An inductive approach, providing students with the vocabulary and grammatical structures they require on an 'on needs' basis.
A multi-sensory approach and considers all the multiple intelligences in its use of visual, musical, maths/logic, kinaesthetic etc making the language accessible for all types of learners.

Jen McKinney

My classroom is a veritable laboratory whereby the students, NOT the teacher do the speaking. This is facilitated by the use of gestures to ‘conduct’ the children…just like the conductor of a choir conducts his orchestra. We sing, dance, rap and speak for 100% of our class in the target language. There are no longer the traditional little rows of children learning little rows of words! No textbooks…and we actually learn the language through listening and practicing the language through speaking…just as we learned our first language! This is fun learning, and my students are rapidly developing a functional fluency that will be useful for life. Every year, we run conferences to teach language teachers how to use AIM techniques successfully, so they too can lead their students to success. Last year over 200 teachers from Asia, New Zealand and Australia came to learn about teaching second languages successfully. For the past 8 years, I have been responsible for developing a gesture-based program in Mandarin Chinese, which is having an huge impact on students across the globe. We have also developed Japanese AIM over the past 5 years and have French and Spanish programs also.

YouTube Videos

Here are my grade 4s after three weeks of French! It’s a verb-based approach so forming questions is easy for them!
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Here’s a fun way we learn the gestures using opposites:
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Secondary students responding to Teacher-Led Self Expression! (TLSE)
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Nathan, the boy who didn’t want to learn... until AIM:
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A verb-based approach so structures such as questions can form within weeks of beginning to learn Chinese:
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Conducting the class with gestures to develop fluency!!
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Following gestures to tell a story:
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How to enter a classroom:
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A Spanish AIM classroom:
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Publications and Authored Books
by Jen McKinney

PUBLICATIONS

2014 Babel (co-written with Dr. Paul Molyneux) Abstract: The retention of secondary school-aged students in languages education classes remains an ongoing concern in Australia, as does the level of proficiency achieved by students who continue their languages studies through to Year 12. The Accelerative Integrated Methodology (AIM), a gesture-based approach has sought to address both motivation and achievement in language learning but the results of such programs have been under-researched.

AUTHORED BOOKS

2013 Dònggǎn Gùshi! (Shào’ér bǎn) 动感故事!(少儿版) Kit DGSB1A: Xiǎojī 小鸡

2014 Dònggǎn Gùshi! 动感故事! Kit DG1A: Sān zhī xiǎozhū 三只小猪

2014 Dònggǎn Gùshi! (Shào’ér bǎn) 动感故事!(少儿版) Kit DGSB2A: Xiǎomāo zhǎo jiā 小猫找

2014 Dònggǎn Gùshi! 动感故事! Kit DG2A: Wǒ zěnme qù nàli? 我怎么去那里?

2015 Dònggǎn Gùshi! 动感故事! Kit DG1B: Xiǎomāo hé yuèliang 小猫和月亮

2015 Akushon Banashi! アクションばなし Kit JAIM1A: Douyatte ikimasu ka? どうやって行きますか?

2015 Youjiyou no Akushon banashi! 幼児用のアクションばなし! Kit YJAIM1: Hiyoko no Emiko ひよこのえみこ

2016 Dònggǎn Gùshi! (Shào’ér bǎn) 动感故事!(少儿版) Kit DGSB3A: Wǒ de gǒu zài nǎli? 我的狗在哪里?

2016 Akushon Banashi! アクションばなし! Kit JAIM2A: Ookami Shounen 狼少年

2017 Youjiyou no Akushon banashi! 幼児用のアクションばなし! Kit YJAIM2A: Koneko wa kazoku o sagashimasu こねこはかぞくをさがします

Media

Sydney Morning Herlad article - 2013

Sign of the times: school finds success with new way of teaching languages

ABC RADIO- Lingua Franca with Maria Zijlstra

https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/linguafranca/gesture-based-language-learning/3588156