At Thanh Yên Primary and Secondary Boarding School in Thanh Yên commune, Vietnamese language enhancement hours begin with songs, games, or coloring activities, where teachers actively guide children from pronunciation, spelling, pen-holding methods, and sitting postures to initial coloring strokes.

For timid children unaccustomed to classroom environments, teachers patiently guide every operation to create a close atmosphere encouraging bold participation in activities, as initial lessons avoid heavy knowledge demands to focus on building necessary skills before entering grade 1.

Hoàng Thị Chung, a direct teaching instructor, noted that during initial days, many children felt bewildered, prompting activities to be organized appropriately to create comfortable mindsets for students, adding that alongside games and songs, she utilizes videos, images, and stories to engage children, guiding pen-holding techniques, posture, and basic strokes so that after over a week, students become sturdier as learning habits form and reading and writing skills progress noticeably.

In the 2026-2027 academic year, Thanh Yên Primary and Secondary Boarding School welcomes 70 grade 1 students, including 42 ethnic minority children. Starting August 3, the school organized Vietnamese language enhancement classes under sectoral guidance, with Principal Phạm Văn Phúc sharing that the program comprises 72 lesson periods encompassing listening, speaking, reading, and writing skill development activities in Vietnamese using integrated lessons, diverse teaching methods, and suitable materials to equip knowledge and hone learning skills ready for grade 1.

Young ethnic minority students - especially in remote areas - communicate primarily in native mother tongues and utilize Vietnamese only upon reaching school, causing many to forget after over two months of summer break, where language barriers would cause difficulties entering grade 1 without early preparation. This reality is reflected clearly at Trần Văn Thọ Primary Ethnic Boarding School in Mường Nhé commune, where in the 2026-2027 academic year, 134 grade 1 students requiring Vietnamese language enhancement are organized into 7 classes, including 2 classes at the central site and 5 classes across village sites.

According to Principal Phạm Văn Khiêm, most school students are Thái and Mông children communicating in native mother tongues at home, making the transition from play-dominated preschool environments to primary school learning routines a challenge alongside language differences, prompting teachers to learn and utilize national language flexibly combined with native languages in communication and guidance as a bridge language helping teachers and students understand each other prior to entering grade 1.

From that reality, inside classrooms, teachers combine Vietnamese flexibly with Thái and Mông languages to explain contents students struggle to understand, while utilizing images, videos, and visual learning aids to facilitate observation and memory.

Vàng Thị Thu, a Vietnamese language enhancement teacher, shared that prior to opening classes, teachers formulated lesson plans and prepared learning tools, vivid images, and videos to warm up and illustrate each lesson, helping students observe and practice strokes accurately while each teacher proactively learned native languages to communicate using familiar words to help children adapt quickly to the grade 1 curriculum.

Since early August, almost all grade 1 enrolling educational facilities across the province organized Vietnamese language enhancement for ethnic minority children, with schools proactively assigning experienced teachers, preparing learning materials, utensils, and age-appropriate learning environments, deploying content flexibly through lessons, games, singing, storytelling, and experiential activities while prioritizing vocabulary, listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, alongside guiding parents to boost Vietnamese communication at home to build additional practice environments.

The new school year approaches as small pupils carry confidence and initial skills from Vietnamese language enhancement classes into primary school, where clear reading sounds and neat writing strokes facilitate acquiring knowledge, communicating with teachers and friends, and taking initiative in subsequent learning and training activities.