Teacher Discussion Forums

[mattyrburn]

I'm currently teaching at a summer camp for Spanish children.
The students have a pre-intermediate level.
They have been begging to watch a video, and I think it would be a good exercise for them. they have given me the names of some of the films that they want to watch. But I'm worried that their level is not high enough for them to follow a film. I want to show them a whole film - perhaps over two or three classes - preferably without subtitles in Spanish. Do you have any suggestions on how to approach this, any suggestions of ways to keep them focussed on the film without getting frustrated?

Thanks

Matt

[revel]

Hey there, matty.

Don't bend under their demands to see a video! They may sugar coat it with "it's a good exercise" but what they are really looking for is a passive activity. In the academy where I work (also in Spain) the kids invariably ask for "Scarey Movie 2", easy to enjoy even if you don't understand the language. Or they ask for other action films where there is more car engine reving than actual language in the soundtrack.

But well, perhaps the last day of class, or one evening after a heavy duty excursion, put on a film and let everyone relax.

In the class room I have used this exercise. You need paper and pencils. Students make several lists of numbers 1 to 10 on their paper. Then, while watching the film, they list every word they understand from the actor's mouths. Remember to tape a card over the subtitles or they will simply copy. When one student has ten, he/she says "ten" and the film is paused. He/she reads out his/her list. For every word that is original to that student they earn ten points, for every word that another student has on his/her list, there are five points. Only the student with ten words can win points. With this exercise you remove the focus from simply passively watching a film in English to actively participating in a listening exercise.

Or, don't show the entire film. Find a scene where two people are talking. Make up questions about the scene. Do a role-play before the scene, suggesting the situation and the characters. Show the scene with the volume turned down and have students create the sentences of the scene.

If the students actively participate in these types of exercises with film without protesting, then maybe after a couple of sessions they can be rewarded with a session of Cinema in English without any more task than a short discussion after the film. If, however, they protest, or decide they don't like the activity because they have to do something, then I repeat what I said in my first paragraph, they are looking for something to fill up the hour without having to do anything. It's understandable, who wants to study English on the summer vacation? I tried the summer English camp thing last year and it was a disaster in part because I felt sorry for these kids, but well, it was a disaster for many reasons. Hope your experience is fine!

peace,
revel.

[mattyrburn]

Cheers Revel,

I'm certainly making quite a dent in the brick wall I've been banging my head against.

I think I'll use your first idea with the 10 different words they understand. Maybe if they do the activity well, we'll watch the film in full at the end of the camp.

I'm not in line for any popularity awards, such is life.

Matt

[biju]

test 5