Hello,
I need some help (obviously) with my class. As I have read from the other posts, there is always someone out there that gives great ideas, so I hope I get the same response.
I am teaching an English conversation class to only 7 university students. Although I do have several ideas as far as games go, I need to build a solid curriculum for them to learn.
They are relatively shy and lower-intermediate. I can get them to converse sometimes, but it is basically two word responses. And as with all classes, some of the students are more enthusiastic than others.
Although I feel they will overcome their shyness with games, I want to make sure I can keep them interested in learning. The reason why it presents itself to be difficult is because the class is one hour, five times a week. That is a lot for the same class.
I am unsure how I should approach this class. I am debating between having a set theme every week (although I run out of ideas after four weeks) or if I should have specific days of the week designated for an activity. For example, Mondays- Phonics
Tuesdays- article and discussion
Wednesdays- games
etc.
Any suggestions will be very much appreciated.
Thanks!
Adult conversation class everyday!!!!
Moderators: Dimitris, maneki neko2, Lorikeet, Enrico Palazzo, superpeach, cecil2, Mr. Kalgukshi2
-
Chercheuse
- Posts: 19
- Joined: Thu May 27, 2004 1:50 am
To me (as a teacher), 1 hour classes pose a challenge because they are too short!! Just when you get warmed up and really going, it's time for
class to end! I'd much rather have three 1.5 or 2 hour classes per
week than five 1 hour classes; if an activity goes on longer than you expect, the time frame will allow it and you don’t have the awkwardness of rekindling the energy the next day to finish the task....But five 1
hour classes is what you were given, and you CAN make it work. If
you’re worried about it being too much of the same for the students, I
would say from a student’s point of view, they're more likely to hold
their interest with the 1 X 5 timeframe. Look at it this way: it's like just
having a little “taste” of class every day. 1 hour seems less threatening
to a student, so they're more likely to feel refreshed by the class and
looking forward to it the next day.
I wonder if you have already started the class? Because, for me, what
seemed like a long class session to fill often turned into not enough
, once I got into the class. It also might be helpful if you could
list the 4 themes you thought of here. People here can help you come up with more themes - there are plenty of themes out there, you just need to be reminded of them! You can also check out ESL books (if you have access where you are) for ideas for themes - it doesn't have to be a a conversation book either; many grammar and writing and reading books are organized this way and it may give you some ideas, even if you can't use all of the actual material in the book.
I do think you need to have some themes in mind, but I don't think filling class time is so much about having lots and lots of themes as it is learning to S-T-R-E-T-C-H them, that is, milk each to its fullest. I think you could do a combination of what you listed: have a theme each week or so and devote a day or two to a different acitvity on the theme. Pronunciation lessons can sometimes be geared toward a theme. For example, a reading/discussion/listening activity on interviews (job interview, celebrity interview, etc.) could be combined with pronunciation lessons on intonation and pitch of statements vs. various types of questions, or perhaps emphasis of key words. Sometimes there isn't a clear pronunciation topic that will go with the theme you’ve chosen, so in that case you can pick whatever you want and just make the practice of the pronunciation point about the theme ( so the example words and sentences the students practice to master the point are related to the theme. ) That's usually enough to relate the pronunciation to the theme in the students' mind. I wouldn’t discount grammar as a possible short activity in a conversation class either; a short lesson and oral or even written drill work on a structure that seems relevant to the theme (e.g. question forming for interviews) or a structure that was seen in a reading the students have to do before discussion is very helpful and usually appreciated by students, especially if it's a structure that will prove useful as they are discussing the theme for the week. I've found that the term "game" has a broad meaning in the ESL world, but I would think that games should (in general) not be “random” games for Wednesdays, but built into whatever you're doing if possible so, for example, a pronunciation game (There’s a book by that name if you 're interested) that practices what they learned that week, a vocabulary game with the words they learned (lots of options on that one), a grammar game with the grammar point you highlighted that week, a review game based on material from the past month, etc.. There are some general games you can learn as a teacher that can be adapted to a variety of different teaching areas and lessons.
Getting back to the idea of S-T-R-E-T-C-H-I-N-G, you just have to think about every possible thing that can be done with a topic and activity. Break themes down into subtopics. Identify skills that can be learned (asking for information, keeping a conversation going, asking for clarification, introducing oneself, good oral presentation skills, etc..) Identify vocabulary and grammar and pronunciation points that are useful for the theme. Incorporate some kind of short structured practice after every subpoint you teach. (And put it all together at the end with a less structured application activity like a skit, presentation, or focused discussion.) Find a reading or two and a listening about each theme. Incorporate pair and small group discussion, as well as whole class discussion, after each reading or listening. Give students questions to answer after each listening or reading. Give them questions that require factual answers and some that require creative answers. For some activities, have them report their answers to the class or write up a report or make an illustration for other students to look at. Occasionally work with students on how to use the new words you’re giving them in sentences (time consuming and difficult but more effective than just giving them the words and definitions). And the list goes on. You can do these things with every theme. It would probably take me at least two weeks (10 hours) to complete a theme if I were stretching it in this way. If the theme is interesting enough and you vary the activities enough, I doubt it will get boring. A medium length reading and discussion alone would probably take me two hours because there is so much to pull from this and students need time to answer questions and express their opinions.
Stretching the themes is really the answer ,I think, and means you will be able to fill class time without the "fluff" that teachers rely on when they can't think of anything else. But if you have trouble s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g at some point and are desperate to fill some class time, there are some tried –and- true activities (not meaningless fluff if you relate them to the theme) that by their nature take up A LOT of class time. You can use these (see below) when you're desperate. I would resist the temptation to on a regular basis do things like spend longer than 10 minutes defining words for students. I think we often want to do that in particular because we think it will help pass the class time and is useful for students, but really, if you think about it, this is not usually a productive use of time, especially when there are other "time killers" that are much more interesting and actually develop students' skills. (I mean, instead of telling students what each and every word means and taking the time for everyone to write it all down, you can print the definitions for them on a handout, or if you don’t want to do that, students can look up words in the dictionary on their own time at home. If they don’t want homework, have them divide up the task amongst themselves)
Anyway, Here's my list of "time killers" that are also fun for students and useful for building skills:
* Students plan a skit in class and present it. (You can kill loads time with that one
) Dialogues, commercials, etc.
* Individual Student presentations (speeches). These can be really fun for students. Even low intermediate students can do this if you make it doable for them and give them lots of instruction on how to do it, plenty of prep time, and chances to get individual help from you and classmates. How to…, opinion speeches, stories, personal experiences, teaching a new word, show and tell, etc.
* Debates (For low level students, there would have to be a lot of prep for this and the debate would have to be very structured for them to be able to handle this, but it's possible. Group debates with two teams are great for lower levels.
* Interviews (students interview each other on an interesting topic, not just: who are you?)
*Taping sessions (take students outside to tape them speaking)
* Teacher-Student Conferences
* Brainstorming activities
Good luck!
class to end! I'd much rather have three 1.5 or 2 hour classes per
week than five 1 hour classes; if an activity goes on longer than you expect, the time frame will allow it and you don’t have the awkwardness of rekindling the energy the next day to finish the task....But five 1
hour classes is what you were given, and you CAN make it work. If
you’re worried about it being too much of the same for the students, I
would say from a student’s point of view, they're more likely to hold
their interest with the 1 X 5 timeframe. Look at it this way: it's like just
having a little “taste” of class every day. 1 hour seems less threatening
to a student, so they're more likely to feel refreshed by the class and
looking forward to it the next day.
I wonder if you have already started the class? Because, for me, what
seemed like a long class session to fill often turned into not enough
, once I got into the class. It also might be helpful if you could
list the 4 themes you thought of here. People here can help you come up with more themes - there are plenty of themes out there, you just need to be reminded of them! You can also check out ESL books (if you have access where you are) for ideas for themes - it doesn't have to be a a conversation book either; many grammar and writing and reading books are organized this way and it may give you some ideas, even if you can't use all of the actual material in the book.
I do think you need to have some themes in mind, but I don't think filling class time is so much about having lots and lots of themes as it is learning to S-T-R-E-T-C-H them, that is, milk each to its fullest. I think you could do a combination of what you listed: have a theme each week or so and devote a day or two to a different acitvity on the theme. Pronunciation lessons can sometimes be geared toward a theme. For example, a reading/discussion/listening activity on interviews (job interview, celebrity interview, etc.) could be combined with pronunciation lessons on intonation and pitch of statements vs. various types of questions, or perhaps emphasis of key words. Sometimes there isn't a clear pronunciation topic that will go with the theme you’ve chosen, so in that case you can pick whatever you want and just make the practice of the pronunciation point about the theme ( so the example words and sentences the students practice to master the point are related to the theme. ) That's usually enough to relate the pronunciation to the theme in the students' mind. I wouldn’t discount grammar as a possible short activity in a conversation class either; a short lesson and oral or even written drill work on a structure that seems relevant to the theme (e.g. question forming for interviews) or a structure that was seen in a reading the students have to do before discussion is very helpful and usually appreciated by students, especially if it's a structure that will prove useful as they are discussing the theme for the week. I've found that the term "game" has a broad meaning in the ESL world, but I would think that games should (in general) not be “random” games for Wednesdays, but built into whatever you're doing if possible so, for example, a pronunciation game (There’s a book by that name if you 're interested) that practices what they learned that week, a vocabulary game with the words they learned (lots of options on that one), a grammar game with the grammar point you highlighted that week, a review game based on material from the past month, etc.. There are some general games you can learn as a teacher that can be adapted to a variety of different teaching areas and lessons.
Getting back to the idea of S-T-R-E-T-C-H-I-N-G, you just have to think about every possible thing that can be done with a topic and activity. Break themes down into subtopics. Identify skills that can be learned (asking for information, keeping a conversation going, asking for clarification, introducing oneself, good oral presentation skills, etc..) Identify vocabulary and grammar and pronunciation points that are useful for the theme. Incorporate some kind of short structured practice after every subpoint you teach. (And put it all together at the end with a less structured application activity like a skit, presentation, or focused discussion.) Find a reading or two and a listening about each theme. Incorporate pair and small group discussion, as well as whole class discussion, after each reading or listening. Give students questions to answer after each listening or reading. Give them questions that require factual answers and some that require creative answers. For some activities, have them report their answers to the class or write up a report or make an illustration for other students to look at. Occasionally work with students on how to use the new words you’re giving them in sentences (time consuming and difficult but more effective than just giving them the words and definitions). And the list goes on. You can do these things with every theme. It would probably take me at least two weeks (10 hours) to complete a theme if I were stretching it in this way. If the theme is interesting enough and you vary the activities enough, I doubt it will get boring. A medium length reading and discussion alone would probably take me two hours because there is so much to pull from this and students need time to answer questions and express their opinions.
Stretching the themes is really the answer ,I think, and means you will be able to fill class time without the "fluff" that teachers rely on when they can't think of anything else. But if you have trouble s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g at some point and are desperate to fill some class time, there are some tried –and- true activities (not meaningless fluff if you relate them to the theme) that by their nature take up A LOT of class time. You can use these (see below) when you're desperate. I would resist the temptation to on a regular basis do things like spend longer than 10 minutes defining words for students. I think we often want to do that in particular because we think it will help pass the class time and is useful for students, but really, if you think about it, this is not usually a productive use of time, especially when there are other "time killers" that are much more interesting and actually develop students' skills. (I mean, instead of telling students what each and every word means and taking the time for everyone to write it all down, you can print the definitions for them on a handout, or if you don’t want to do that, students can look up words in the dictionary on their own time at home. If they don’t want homework, have them divide up the task amongst themselves)
Anyway, Here's my list of "time killers" that are also fun for students and useful for building skills:
* Students plan a skit in class and present it. (You can kill loads time with that one
) Dialogues, commercials, etc.* Individual Student presentations (speeches). These can be really fun for students. Even low intermediate students can do this if you make it doable for them and give them lots of instruction on how to do it, plenty of prep time, and chances to get individual help from you and classmates. How to…, opinion speeches, stories, personal experiences, teaching a new word, show and tell, etc.
* Debates (For low level students, there would have to be a lot of prep for this and the debate would have to be very structured for them to be able to handle this, but it's possible. Group debates with two teams are great for lower levels.
* Interviews (students interview each other on an interesting topic, not just: who are you?)
*Taping sessions (take students outside to tape them speaking)
* Teacher-Student Conferences
* Brainstorming activities
Good luck!
Chercheuse has obviously solid experience in tackling such classes. For me as another East Asia resident teacher, the opportunity that presents itself to you would be an invitation to force these students to deliver speeches to their classmates.
It should be possible to assign a theme or topic to each student in turn, so they can make a presentation of something the others are not prepared for.
Such presentations could take anywhere from 10 minutes to half an hour, with the reaming time being reserved for Q & A time, plus, if you deem it necessary, a brush-up of English where you feel it is needed.
You could choose topics related to their university subjects but gleaned from an English language source.
Or if they like, you could talk with them about world events; I am sure they would be amenable to talking about the world's views on issues related to North Korea.
It should be possible to assign a theme or topic to each student in turn, so they can make a presentation of something the others are not prepared for.
Such presentations could take anywhere from 10 minutes to half an hour, with the reaming time being reserved for Q & A time, plus, if you deem it necessary, a brush-up of English where you feel it is needed.
You could choose topics related to their university subjects but gleaned from an English language source.
Or if they like, you could talk with them about world events; I am sure they would be amenable to talking about the world's views on issues related to North Korea.
Chercheuse has obviously solid experience in tackling such classes. For me as another East Asia resident teacher, the opportunity that presents itself to you would be an invitation to force these students to deliver speeches to their classmates.
It should be possible to assign a theme or topic to each student in turn, so they can make a presentation of something the others are not prepared for.
Such presentations could take anywhere from 10 minutes to half an hour, with the reaming time being reserved for Q & A time, plus, if you deem it necessary, a brush-up of English where you feel it is needed.
You could choose topics related to their university subjects but gleaned from an English language source.
Or if they like, you could talk with them about world events; I am sure they would be amenable to talking about the world's views on issues related to North Korea.
It should be possible to assign a theme or topic to each student in turn, so they can make a presentation of something the others are not prepared for.
Such presentations could take anywhere from 10 minutes to half an hour, with the reaming time being reserved for Q & A time, plus, if you deem it necessary, a brush-up of English where you feel it is needed.
You could choose topics related to their university subjects but gleaned from an English language source.
Or if they like, you could talk with them about world events; I am sure they would be amenable to talking about the world's views on issues related to North Korea.
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Sally Olsen
- Posts: 1322
- Joined: Thu Apr 08, 2004 2:24 pm
- Location: Canada,France, Brazil, Japan, Mongolia, Greenland, Canada, Mongolia, Ethiopia next
You didn't say what facilities you have but it you have a DVD player and TV:
There is a neat new game called "Scene It" which shows short scenes from the movies and then has a Trivial Pursuit type question and answer format after that. You could get them to make up questions for each other about the scene.
How about taping the news in English and then going through it slowly with explanations of terms, words and so on and then discussions on the topics brought up.
Have them bring in favourite things to talk about. It works for all ages.
Have them bring in photo albums and talk about it. That will give you many more ideas for themes.
Make a movie and exchange it with similar classes in other countries.
Do a lot of pair work using the stronger students as "teachers" for the poorer students.
Do a lot of hands on activities such as cooking, going to a restaurant where you have bribed the waiter to speak English only, visiting the library to discover where they hide the English books (write local officials if they don't have any), shopping trips, etc.
There is a neat new game called "Scene It" which shows short scenes from the movies and then has a Trivial Pursuit type question and answer format after that. You could get them to make up questions for each other about the scene.
How about taping the news in English and then going through it slowly with explanations of terms, words and so on and then discussions on the topics brought up.
Have them bring in favourite things to talk about. It works for all ages.
Have them bring in photo albums and talk about it. That will give you many more ideas for themes.
Make a movie and exchange it with similar classes in other countries.
Do a lot of pair work using the stronger students as "teachers" for the poorer students.
Do a lot of hands on activities such as cooking, going to a restaurant where you have bribed the waiter to speak English only, visiting the library to discover where they hide the English books (write local officials if they don't have any), shopping trips, etc.
One of my techniques to get students talking is to introduce a topic like past perfect. I show them the typical form
Ex. I had been living in America for five years before I moved here.
Then I create a question that students can ask one another like..
What had you been doing before you started this class?
I show them what the answer might look like and then let them talk to a partner of their choosing for about 15 min.
Then I ask them in front of everyone what their partner said. I will often ask additional questions, make jokes, and sometimes include my own two cent.
Creating as open an atmosphere as possible seems to be the key. Try not to correct when they have free conversation unless they ask or are making a mistake you have heard them make over and over.
Ex. I had been living in America for five years before I moved here.
Then I create a question that students can ask one another like..
What had you been doing before you started this class?
I show them what the answer might look like and then let them talk to a partner of their choosing for about 15 min.
Then I ask them in front of everyone what their partner said. I will often ask additional questions, make jokes, and sometimes include my own two cent.
Creating as open an atmosphere as possible seems to be the key. Try not to correct when they have free conversation unless they ask or are making a mistake you have heard them make over and over.
If you use the Spectrum series books as a guideline, you have something that they can use to see how grammar is explained, plus there are authentic (or at least realistic) dialogues and articles they can read (and practice), PLUS there is a running story of continuing characters (presented in dialogue form) to provide something personable and interesting (like a soap opera, perhaps), and to give you something to use for idiomatic expressions and cultural explanations.
it works
Monseul ,
I was once an ESL student. My teachers didn't always give out 'yes or no questions', so we student had no choice to just response with a single word, but a sentence or a couple of sentences. This really worked for me.
Feng Qin
I was once an ESL student. My teachers didn't always give out 'yes or no questions', so we student had no choice to just response with a single word, but a sentence or a couple of sentences. This really worked for me.
Feng Qin
Interesting...
Interesting...
I just started teaching a group of about 12 adult ESL students here in Pusan myself..
I have the same problems teaching mainly conversational english. I have about an hour 5 times a week also. I chose a topic everyday such as greetings, family and hobbies, etc... and teach them new phrases in each of these topics and have them practice sentances using these phrases. They repeat after me in a group then I have them converse with each other using the phrases and sentances I taught them. I never feel like I'm getting them to talk enough though. I make jokes and talk about myself in those topics also, but I can't have each student talk one at a time because there's not enough time....
I just started teaching a group of about 12 adult ESL students here in Pusan myself..
I have the same problems teaching mainly conversational english. I have about an hour 5 times a week also. I chose a topic everyday such as greetings, family and hobbies, etc... and teach them new phrases in each of these topics and have them practice sentances using these phrases. They repeat after me in a group then I have them converse with each other using the phrases and sentances I taught them. I never feel like I'm getting them to talk enough though. I make jokes and talk about myself in those topics also, but I can't have each student talk one at a time because there's not enough time....
University Students... One Hour a Day
Of course there are many ways to structure such a class.... here's another idea:
30 Minutes of Storytelling to introduce vocab and grammar (see http://www.blaineraytprs.com).
20 minutes of reading together from authentic materials (newspaper articles, whatever) and discussing the article.
10 minutes of silent sustained reading... students bring their own books to read quietly at the end of class.
30 Minutes of Storytelling to introduce vocab and grammar (see http://www.blaineraytprs.com).
20 minutes of reading together from authentic materials (newspaper articles, whatever) and discussing the article.
10 minutes of silent sustained reading... students bring their own books to read quietly at the end of class.
I would suggest using some discussion questions at the beginning of class. You can change them to reflect the level of the class and only 3 or 4 good questions are needed per lesson. If you are discussing a situation at airport immigration for example start with pairing them up (or 3 person groups depending) and have them ask each other a discussion question like "Have you ever had a bad experience at an airport?" The person answers and the students have to each ask one or two follow up questions. Even yes/no questions work usually because if the answer is no, the follow up questions will elicit more speaking ie "What countries have you been to? What was your favorite country?" They can be simple or complex depending on the level. I found this gets the students warmed up and they are talking a lot and they get to know each other more personally as the class goes on. Students will find they have done the same things and like the same things as other students. This generally betters the class atmosphere and lets everyone feel its ok to talk in front of the class.
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rabienvenu
- Posts: 5
- Joined: Mon Aug 15, 2005 9:25 pm
- Location: New Orleans, LA USA
- Contact:
Ideas for Teaching ESL to Adults
I teach 3 one hour adult ESL classes five days a week. Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced.
I have a range of material at my fingertips that I can use from day to day. Sometimes I go into class with a few things I could do and choose what I do depending on how the class feels.
Now you are teaching in Korea. My experiences with Koreans that come here is that they want a lot of structure and expect it. Now I don't know if this is your experience or not.
Anyway, the way I like to structure my classes, and it doesn't always work like this, is to split the one hour into two 30 minute sessions. I do one thing for the first 30 minutes or so and then for the second I do something else.
I usually start all my classes with some conversation which can take up anywhere from 5 minutes to twenty or more depending on the topic, who is in class and the way the class feels that day.
If you have shy students, well, that makes it a little difficult. So one interesting technique you can use to get the people in class talking is to have them write a short composition about something. Here is a list of some topics you can use:
What do I love about my life?
What's fabulous about my life?
What inspires me?
What the best thing that happened to you in your life, your day, your week, your weekend?
What's exciting about my life?
What's the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to me?
What's the most amazing thing?
Who do I love in my life and why?
What do I like about Korea (or whatever country you are teaching in)?
What don't I like about Korea?
What's the most bizarre thing that ever happened to me?
What's the scariest thing that ever happened to me?
If I won the lottery what would I do with all the money?
Top 10 things I like about...(my life, my job, my family, my spouse or mate, my country, money)
Top 10 reasons that I...(study English, got married, like money, want money, my job, like my country)
If I could choose one person in history to be on a desert island with who would it be and why.
If I could choose one person in pop culture to be on a desert island with who would that be and why.
Note: It's OK to repeat any of these in the same course. And although the students might say "we already did that" it's good to review and have them do the same exercise over again.
Sometimes it's best to give them a number like "what are the top ten things you like about Korea?" That forces them to come up with ten.
Then when they are finished have them read their own out loud in class. This usually will start up some nice discussions.
If you want more ideas you can check out the lesson planning pages on my site.
Hope this helps,
All the best,
Richard Bienvenu, MFA
Author-Publisher-ESL Teacher
www.english-teaching-info.com
I have a range of material at my fingertips that I can use from day to day. Sometimes I go into class with a few things I could do and choose what I do depending on how the class feels.
Now you are teaching in Korea. My experiences with Koreans that come here is that they want a lot of structure and expect it. Now I don't know if this is your experience or not.
Anyway, the way I like to structure my classes, and it doesn't always work like this, is to split the one hour into two 30 minute sessions. I do one thing for the first 30 minutes or so and then for the second I do something else.
I usually start all my classes with some conversation which can take up anywhere from 5 minutes to twenty or more depending on the topic, who is in class and the way the class feels that day.
If you have shy students, well, that makes it a little difficult. So one interesting technique you can use to get the people in class talking is to have them write a short composition about something. Here is a list of some topics you can use:
What do I love about my life?
What's fabulous about my life?
What inspires me?
What the best thing that happened to you in your life, your day, your week, your weekend?
What's exciting about my life?
What's the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to me?
What's the most amazing thing?
Who do I love in my life and why?
What do I like about Korea (or whatever country you are teaching in)?
What don't I like about Korea?
What's the most bizarre thing that ever happened to me?
What's the scariest thing that ever happened to me?
If I won the lottery what would I do with all the money?
Top 10 things I like about...(my life, my job, my family, my spouse or mate, my country, money)
Top 10 reasons that I...(study English, got married, like money, want money, my job, like my country)
If I could choose one person in history to be on a desert island with who would it be and why.
If I could choose one person in pop culture to be on a desert island with who would that be and why.
Note: It's OK to repeat any of these in the same course. And although the students might say "we already did that" it's good to review and have them do the same exercise over again.
Sometimes it's best to give them a number like "what are the top ten things you like about Korea?" That forces them to come up with ten.
Then when they are finished have them read their own out loud in class. This usually will start up some nice discussions.
If you want more ideas you can check out the lesson planning pages on my site.
Hope this helps,
All the best,
Richard Bienvenu, MFA
Author-Publisher-ESL Teacher
www.english-teaching-info.com