Korean Job Discussion Forums

[typo]

I have a friend wanting to visit my school classes, and all my students and co-teachers are excited about having her visit. The problem is, my (high school)_ students are too low a level to gain a whole lot from a question/answer session. I'm thinking about writing a script for me and her to read in class, and have a worksheet after, but I don't know how well that would go over, either. Any suggestions on what I could do? I mean, I could always just say sorry, she can't come but the students are super excited about it.

I feel it's a good opportunity to hear two real live native speakers in conversation with each other (outside of a tape player).

[pkang0202]

Show pictures of your friend, where she lives, and things she likes to do. Have the students try and guess the location, or what she is doing, things like that.

After, your friend can explain some of the pictures and why she wanted to show them.

[thunderbird]

so in other words your too embarassed by how crappy your class is to have her come, then go back home and tell everyone what a joke your job is. hey it couldn't look less like "school" than what i do.

[I'm no Picasso]

If your students are too low level to do a spontaneous Q&A, then why not teach them how? The lesson the week before can focus on the fact that your friend is coming -- show pictures, like the above poster suggested, and get the students talking about what they would like to ask your friend. Teach them the basic questions, and help them form their own. They can write them all down. Practice them in class, so they can have confidence in speaking when they raise their hands to ask them. Problem solved.

We don't always have to use what the students already know -- we can actually teach them sometimes. It would be extremely rewarding for your students to feel like they've had a successful "conversation" with a brand new foreigner, and would do wonders for their English confidence. As my co-teacher puts it, "The students get so excited when their English works!"

Plus, you get two lesson plans out of it.

[I'm no Picasso]

Oh, also. Just be sure to prep your friend for the students' level. It's easy to forget how we've adjusted our speech for the students over time, and a foreigner who hasn't spent a lot of time around low level non native speakers might not be so sensitive to it. Emphasize the need to speak slowly, in simple sentence structure, and using easy, basic vocabulary. If the students can *understand* his/her answers, it will be that much more effective. If she/he loses them completely, it might have the opposite effect.

Maybe even collect some of the questions the students form to go over with your friend first, working out good simple answers he/she can give that the students have a chance at understanding.

[typo]