Teacher Discussion Forums

[Richardavie]

Hello All,

I'm writing to make you aware of a video activity library I'm working on. They follow the format of: 2-3min video clip, script and discussion questions. The idea is that students can listen, listen and read, then discuss and answer questions.

They are very simple and easy to use. Try them out! I'm aiming for something slightly provocative, something that will grab the students' attention and spark discussion. So far all of these have been tried out and worked very well.

http://www.tefl-iberia.com/resources/video-activities/

I'm updating them and adding more regularly.

Thanks,

Richard

[longshikong]

Great resource, Richard and just what I need for this week.

You've done much of the preliminary work by adding the pertinent vocab for each clip. I'm definitely going to bookmark this site. Thanks!!!

I looked at the clip "How to fit in on your first day at work". Seems more appropriate for up'r int. than int. students. How did you actually teach that lesson? Did you start by eliciting experiences and advice?

And what about the vocabulary/idioms? Did you give them a chance to use such language on their own and how did you introduce it? I'd be reluctant to have int. students practice language such as: spiel, jitters, bite the bullet, come across in isolation. I'm actually planning on having them translate phrasal verbs and synonymous verbs back and forth. So for example, if they hear a sentence with 'come across as intelligent', I'll have them translate it as 'appear intelligent'. I'd suggest the same for idiomatic expressions and infrequent vocabulary such as jitters. Keep in mind the intent of those who write such video scripts is to sound authoritative, not necessarily authentic in their choice of language.

If you want to add something provocative, you might consider more movie monologue clips like the Shawshank Redemption one you already have. I've been thinking of using clips from TV interview talk shows or documentaries. You can really span a number of topics that way.

Have you thought of turning your site into a wiki for anyone to post such clips?

Once again, thanks!

[Richardavie]

Hi Longshikong, thanks for your interest and comments in the video activities! The 'how to fit in on your first day of work' is a classic as it seems to work well with everyone and has some challenging / interesting vocabulary.

You can start easily with 'do you remember your first day of work?' 'Did you have a good / bad experience?' and take it from there.

The most challenging words to explain and achieve understanding from my experience are 'spiel' and 'negate', the students don't seem to understand those ones so easily.

I'll be adding a couple more this week and we'll also be having our TEFL students prepare videos too, which will be published.

Thanks again for the feedback,

Richard

TEFL Iberia