How can I get my students to interact in the language?
Language lessons often begin with an activity in which the teacher's role is fore-grounded. At this stage of the lesson, the teacher reviews previously learned vocabulary and structures and introduces new ones. The teacher may also be checking for understanding and modelling pronunciation. The students' role may simply be listening and repeating the vocabulary items and language structures being introduced and presented by the teacher. Selected students may be answering questions from the teacher. Many students may be silent. Interaction may be between the teacher and just one student at a time.That kind of introductory stage of the lesson is followed by time for the students to be more active learners, to interact with each other using the language which the teacher has reviewed or introduced. The teacher needs to set up an activity to ensure that students have opportunities to practise with each other. Sometimes teachers are nervous about allowing the learners to interact with each other because they may make mistakes. However, taking risks and making mistakes is actually a good way to learn. Pair and group work supports maximum use of the language by the students, and is essential to increasing their chances of developing their ability to use language.
Examples of interactive activities which teachers can design include the following:
- 'Speed dating' interviews. In this activity students are sitting in two lines facing each other. They have a set of questions to ask and answer. They talk in pairs until the teacher rings a bell. At that time the student at the head of one of the two lines stand up and moves to the chair at the end of his/her line. Everyone in that line moves along to the next chair. Then all students have a new partner to talk with in the language.
- Celebrity heads. One student in each group of 3-4 students picks up a picture card, shows it to the other students in his/her group but does not look at it himself/herself. S/he must ask the other students in the group yes/no questions to find out who/what is on the card. For example, for animal picture cards the questions might be: Am I big? Am I small? Am I soft? Do I eat grass? Can I jump? The picture cards might be a set of geographical features, e.g. river, hill, mountain, lake. So the questions might be: Am I tall? Am I flat? Am I blue? Am I brown?
- Puppets are a way to get students to talk with each other in pairs or small groups to develop their communication skills in the language. The puppets may be soft toys, finger puppets, from a shop or home made.
- Circle game. The first student begins a story with a sentence. Each student around the circle takes a turn to add to the story. The story could be imagined, or it could be based on a set/sequence of pictures which the teacher shows the class, based on vocabulary and structures the students have been learning.
- Board games. Teachers can create and laminate a board game with dice and cards based on the theme/topic or grammatical structures the students are learning.
- Use pictures, e.g. use a comic strip or a sequence of pictures and ask the students to talk to each other about what they see happening in the pictures and/or what the characters are saying to each other.
- Picture dictation. Students work in pairs. One has a picture of a person or creature to describe; the other student listens and draws him/her/it.
- Use photos, e.g. a teacher might have the students talk in pairs using a picture of an extended family or the students' bring their own family photo albums to class, or use drawings of their families. To participate in this activity the students need to be able to use a number of:
- vocabulary items, e.g. younger sister, older sister, young brother, older brother, mum and aunt, dad and uncle, mother's mother, father's mother and
- language structures, e.g. Who's this? It's my cousin. What's his name? His name is Jimmy. Is this your aunty? Yes it is - she's my dad's sister. Is this your younger sister? No she's my older sister.
- Use the present-practice-produce cycle.
- Reading-writing activities can also be interactive, for example students learning the same language in two different towns emailing each other, asking and answering questions they have been learning in the language.
What are information gap activities?
Information gap activities are a way of getting students to interact in the language. They are also known as barrier games. It is similar to the game of battleships. Students work in pairs. Student A has information that student B doesn't have, and vice versa. They need to talk to each other to complete the activity. For example:Student A:
Here is your picture of a beach scene. Make sure you don't show it to your partner.
In your version of the picture three birds are flying to the east, two children are running on the beach, the sun is setting in the west and a woman is fishing on the beach.
Your partner has other details of this scene.
Ask student B about an old man, rocks and a dolphin.
Ask questions (e.g. where, how many, doing what) to find out the details missing from your picture and draw them in.
Student B:
Here is your picture of a beach scene. Make sure you don't show it to your partner.
In your version of the picture an old man on the beach is making a fire, there are three rocks on the shore and a dolphin is swimming through a wave.
Your partner has other details of this scene.
Ask student B about birds, children, the sun and a woman.
Ask questions (e.g. where, how many, doing what) to find out the details missing from your picture and draw them in.
What are guided role plays?
Guided role plays are a way of getting students to interact in the language. They are also known as guided interviews. Students work in pairs. Student A has information that student B doesn't have, and vice versa.For example, before attempting the following guided role plays, the teacher has modelled the language and provided students with controlled practice with the sentence frame: pronoun + action + transport + companion. Students have substituted various words and phrases into that sentence frame: pronouns (I, we two, we all), actions (run, walk, skip, ride), transport (on the bus, on foot, in the car, by bike) and companion (with mum, older brother, younger sister, cousin, friend, alone/myself). These structures include inclusive and exclusive pronouns, verb tense, instrumental and commutative suffixes in Australian languages.
Students are given role play cards for short conversations such as the following. They need to talk to each other to complete the activity.
Student A: Student B: Greet your partner Respond to the greeting Ask where s/he lives William Street Ask how s/he came to school today By bus Ask who s/he came with With older sister and younger brother
Student A: Student B: Greet your partner Respond to the greeting Ask where s/he lives George Road Ask how s/he came to school today By bike Ask who s/he came with With older brother and younger sister
