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[El_Che]

some of my high intermediate - advanced students have expressed an interest in watching an english original language DVD in class.

i've identified a 30 minute drama, which i think will be suitable material. i also have a copy of the script. how should i plan the class?

my initial thoughts are to first pick out any vocabulary which may be unfamiliar, and to go over it prior to viewing. secondly, i plan to compile a list of questions about the programme as a comprehension test. should i give them a copy before or after the viewing.

any thoughts or additional ideas on how to plan this exercise would be much appreciated.

[Glenski]

Give them only the title and have them brainstorm/guess what they think it will be about, or what genre it is. If they really need a hint, and the movie isn't too popular, show them a picture (download a movie ad).

Once you've got the answer (even if you give it to them), use 10-15 minutes to ask related questions.

Example: Home Alone (for lack of a better choice)
1. Talk about a time you were alone at home as a child. Or alone in a store, or on the bus for the first time.
2. Talk for 1 minute about your brothers and sisters. If you don't have any, talk about whichever one you would like and why.
3. How do you celebrate Christmas?

Then, have a print with faces of the most common characters, their names, and one cool line they might deliver. (Or have them match the line during the movie).

Better still, have more than one line, and have them match during the movie. Have a set of questions about who does what (what does Kevin play on the VCR to scare the thieves?), where he goes (Where does Kevin run to escape the policeman?), or when something happens (What time of day does Kevin see his neighbor in church?), etc. Go over the questions before you play it, to be sure they understand the vocabulary.

Depending on how long your class is, play the movie in parts and stop to recap. Have students recap in groups, then compare notes. After the first time, let students decide whether they want to see the rest of the movie with or without Japanese subtitles (or with English subtitles).

Have all students write a summary on a prepared list of questions you make. One question is how they rate the movie; make it an even number (1-6, so they have to choose one side or the other of the 50% mark instead of dead even "so-so"). Explain why. One question is to write X words on something they saw that surprised them or gave them the biggest emotional feeling (good or bad). X words should be a range, not a set number. One question should definitely be whether they want to do this again, and how they want to do it differently.

[El_Che]

Glenski, many thanks for your suggestions. just the kind of thing i was looking for! lots of great ideas.

much appreciated.

[spiral78]

It's probably also useful to plan to watch it more than once (in case you hadn't already planned it this way!).

Recycling the material, and adding different focuses can be pretty useful.

[Serious_Fun]

[gaijinalways]

Have students also sometimes have a 'blind' partner, in other words, a partner who doesn't watch the movie (but can hear the dialogue). Have the students who viewed it explain what happened. You may need to put related vocabulary on the board, but in any order. This helps them find the words they need to fill in some of the details if they don't have the vocabulary.

Also you can have them watch the movie and fill in cloze exercise within the script. Again, focus on content vocabulary or grammar that you want them to notice from the movie.

Have students act out short scenes from the movie, including props. Great way to understand the mannerisms that go with certain expressions.

Have students predict what will happen next in the movie. Great for discussion about what has happened and what characters are planning to do or are likely to do in the future.

I love showing videos, haven't done it a lot this semester, though I'm not one for showing movies (more short clips), but depends on your style and your students (and the class title).

[Jetgirly]

I just did a very brief film study in my class, to supplement the work students were doing in another English class on expressing facts and opinions (intermediate level). First, I printed a few different reviews of the film (www.rottentomatoes.com is a good source) and had the students read the reviews and answer a variety of questions based on the information they got from the review. What actors are in the movie? What genre is the movie? What did the reviewer like about the movie? What did the review not like about the movie? Who is the intended audience?

First, I gave them the assignment. Basically, they were to write a film review that was at least x sentences long, including at least y facts about the film and z of their personal opinions. I gave them a bunch of things to consider, such as characters, plot, casting, special effects, costumes, etc. Then, I had the students create Active Viewing logs. I told them that they should be taking notes all through the film. They all moan and groan and say they'll remember everything, but they will not and I prove it by pausing and asking a basic question that only about 10% of the class can answer. That usually motivates them to take notes. As we watched, I paused quite frequently and asked them questions- 5W questions like "What is this character's name?" and more advanced questions like, "Tell me one characteristic of Character A and give me an example of something she has said or done to demonstrate that trait. [...] Other Student, do you agree?"

When the assignment was due, the student stapled their notes to their reviews. Then, I had them go back and underline all of the facts in their review with a straight line, and all of their opinions with a wavy line (makes my marking easier). I graded their work using a rubric I made on Rubistar. I put all my rubrics online and just draw a basic grid on the students' papers. Since most of my students just glance at their numerical score and then toss their handed-back work on the ground, I have found that putting the rubric online so they actually have to search out their score actually gets them to think about what they wrote.

And then I Google suspicious-sounding reviews to weed out the ones that are copied from other sources!

[leslie]

Bye

[gaijinalways]