Applying five - Minute warm up activities in teaching lessons 1. getting started (unit 1 - unit 5),...

THANH HOA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HOANG HOA HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE INITIATIVE APPLYING FIVE-MINUTE WARM UP ACTIVITIES IN TEACHING LESSONS GETTING STARTED (UNIT 1-UNIT 5), ENGLISH TEXTBOOK 11 Author: Nguyen Thi Hoa Position: Teacher Subject: English THANH HOA, 2019 SangKienKinhNghiem.net TABLE OF CONTENTS Contents INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Aims of the study 1.3 Objects of the study 1.4 Methods of the study 1.5 New ideas of the study CONTENTS OF THE STUDY 2.1 Theoretical background 2.1.1 What is a warm-up activity? 2.1.2 Some popular five-minute warm up activities in Page 1 1 2 2 teaching English 2.2 2.3 Practical background Applying five-minute warm up activities in teaching lessons Getting started (Unit - Unit 5), New English textbook 11 2.4 Results of applying method CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION Reference books SangKienKinhNghiem.net 7-8 8-16 16-17 17-18 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale Up to now, English which is used popularly in Vietnam is an indispensable international language English is one of the compulsory subjects at high schools It has been used for Final Examinations to evaluate students’ level of knowledge Therefore, whether students are proficient at English or not Being proficient at English means students are good at both received skills – reading and listening, and productive skills – speaking and writing These four skills are integraded in a lesson to improve all these skills for the students because one certain skill can be used to improve the others But it is very hard for students to begin learning English Therefore, it is necessary to have good English teaching and learning methods and techniques To make students interested in a new lesson is very important for teachers, especially English teachers How must teachers that? This is the responsibility of all teachers! Warm – up activities are the ways in which teachers can take interest, encourage the students and prepare them to learn by stimulating their minds and their bodies Warm – up activities are essential teaching techniques for good teachers and trainers But how English teachers in high schools apply these activities? There are many ways to make good warm – up activities at high schools However, it is a matter of fact that finding the most suitable and excellent warmup for each lesson is not easy and many teachers find it rather time-consuming Therefore, instead of using a five-minute warm up or ice breaker, they usually start new lessons immediately to save their time and effort Basing on these facts, I present the theme “Applying five-minute warm up activities in teaching Lessons Getting started (Unit - Unit 5), New English textbook 11” that I have applied in teaching English for many years with the aim of helping students focus on English at High school 1.2 Aims of the study My theme focuses on making clear about some issues below: - What is a warm-up activity? - How many popular five-minute warm up activities are there in teaching English? - How are five-minute warm up activities applied in teaching lessons Getting Started, new English textbook 11 1.3 Objects of the study 11th grade students in classes 11A1 and 11A4 in Hoang Hoa High school, Thanh Hoa province are the objects chosen for my study The students are in the second year of high school, tending to focus only on their main subjects in the National Examination and English is not really their interest; therefore, they complete the tasks in their English text book in a passive way SangKienKinhNghiem.net 1.4 Methods of the study In order to collect a number of information, compare, and then, analyse data my study is conducted by qualitative methods By using the combination of these methods, my theme will make clear the questions in this topic, and reach effectively the targets of the essay 1.5 New ideas of the study Only with five minutes to start new lessons are students motivated by warm-up activities applied These activities make students pay more attention to their lessons and, as a consequence, the lessons become more attractive and students can comprehend knowledge better CONTENTS OF THE STUDY 2.1 Theoretical background 2.1.1 What is a warm-up activity? According to Allwright , warm-up activities are designed to attract students’ attention, to help them put aside distracting thoughts, and to get them ready to focus individually and as groups on whatever activities that follow They will cause people to stop whatever they are doing or thinking and refocus their attention We could say a warm up activity is a motivating starting point that will lead students to become animated to work efficiently in the language class It was the activity used to encourage students’ involvement and permeate the development of the whole lesson, so we avoided looking at them as isolated activities These kinds of activities might also be called zealous, enthusiastic or suggestive activities “Warm up is an effective way to help the students begin to think in English and to review previously introduced material Different types of warm ups help provide variety and interest in the lesson.” (p.vi) A warm up to prepare students for a period of concentration may involve physical movement with activities that keep them active by standing up, walking, jumping, matching pictures with sentences or vocabulary, drawing or writing personal experiences or stories, and singing or listening to familiar songs and chants These are, among others, enjoyable and motivating warm ups Diagram shows some of the principles that a teacher must consider when preparing a warm up activity The principles contained in this diagram make us realize that warm up activities are not only processes to begin the class, but tools that help us catch students’s attention If you start with an exciting and interesting activity you can be sure the other steps can be developed easily This warm up must also be short (should last about minutes) because it is like a preparation for the other class stages That is why it has to be related with the topic and centered in communicative aspects which could involve activities that emphasize the practice of different skills SangKienKinhNghiem.net Go at the beginning of the class Be short Be related to the topic Be useful to continute the class Principles for warming up activities Be an interesting and enjoyable activitiy Focus student’s attention Help students begin to work Prepare students for a period of concentration Diagram Aspects to be considered in a warm up activity In addition, a warm up must be prepared taking into account the students’ learning styles According to Cardenas (2001), “Students learn best when they can address knowledge in ways that they trust They will learn best through doing, rather than reflecting” Learning English highly depends on students’ positive attitude toward the class Consequently, learning must be stimulating and enjoyable through breaking what might cause monotony in this process and strengthening what makes tasks more interesting, as well as what increases students’ involvement The use of warm - up activities implies features as the ones previously described in order to get students’ attention, to make them interested in what is going on, to focus on language items and to increase learners’ expectations by consciously arranging the conditions in a way that they put the learners in a more positive or optimistic mood 2.1.2 Some popular five-minute warm up activities in teaching English Depending on the contents of the lesson and students, teachers should design a suitable five-minute warm up for each lesson Below are some warm ups often used to start a new lesson 2.1.2.1 Guessing topic 2.1.2.1.1 Hangman This classic game is a favourite one for all students but it can get boring quite quickly SangKienKinhNghiem.net Teacher thinks of a word related to the topic of the lesson and write the number of letters on the board using dashes to show many letters there are He/she asks students to suggest a letter If it appears in the word, write it in all of the correct spaces If the letter does not appear in the word, write it off to the side and begin drawing the image of a hanging man Teacher continue until the students guess the word correctly (they win) or you complete the diagram (you win) 2.1.2.1.2 Jumbled word This is a great game to encourage team work and bring a sense of competition to the classroom Teacher gives students some jumbled words related to the topic of the new lesson Students must rearrange them in the correct order 2.1.2.1.3 Guessing topic Teacher divides class into some small groups and delivers the list of items related to the topic of the lesson to groups Students discuss in groups The group first guessing the topic is the winning group 2.1.2.2 Describing the picture Show a picture and have students take turns saying one descriptive thing about it Beginners can make simple observations like “three cats” while advanced students can make up a story to go with the picture They aren’t allowed to repeat what someone else said, so they need to pay attention when each person speak Variation for individual: take turns with the teacher 2.1.2.3 Shark attack Teacher uses the template to present a new learning topic This activity is a variation on the popular Hangman warmer Instead of building a set of gallows and hanging the villain, a boy or a girl moves down the steps and falls into the mounth of a waiting shark SangKienKinhNghiem.net 2.1.2.4 Sing a song or play the music song If you’re musically inclined, or even you’re not, song can be a lively way to get everyone involved 2.1.2.5 Finding information 2.1.2.5.1 Brainstorm race A brainstorm race is a great way to review topics you’ve already covered, and have some energizing fun in the process Divide the class into two teams or more Teacher gives a topic and asks learners to think of anything related to it They will have about 30 seconds to brainstorm and list as many items as they can in a certain amount of time-without speaking Each student must write his or her ideas on the board or paper you’ve provided The team with the most ideas after the prescribed time wins that round Ask the winning team to present their ideas Ask remaining teams to add any ideas the winning missed and to correct any mistakes the winning team may have made 2.1.2.5.2 Networks Teacher draws a network on the board with the topic of the lesson in the middle of the network Teacher asks students to work in two or four groups to find information related to the theme 2.1.2.5.3 Lucky number Teacher divides the class into two teams and lets them name their team Teacher asks teams to choose the number If they choose the number that is lucky, they will not have to answer the question but they still get mark In contrast, if they choose the number that have a question, they will have to answer that question At the end of the game, the team getting the highest mark will be a winner SangKienKinhNghiem.net 2.1.2.5.4 Chatting Teacher asks students questions relating to the content of the new lesson Students give their ideas From this information, teacher leads to the new lesson 2.1.2.5.5 Kim’s game This is the memory game It helps students find out the information for the new lesson Teacher divides the class into two teams Let students see a picture with objects or 8-10 words, word phrases related to the topic of the lesson in 20 seconds Students must remember them without writing After that, students go to the board and write down all the objects or the words, word SangKienKinhNghiem.net phrases they can remember The team which has the most objects or the words, word phrases is the winner 2.1.2.6 Remind knowledge 2.1.2.6.1 Bingo Distribute to each student one 5x5 Bingo card with a vocabulary word typed into each square If teacher have time, he/she could distribute blank Bingo card and present the students with a list of vocabulary words they should recognize The students write in the words themselves to practice writing Draw a randon word card from a bag and call out the word (alternatively, Teacher could show the students a picture that corresponds with a vocabulary word) The students search for the written word on their cards and cross it off Continue until a student calls out, “Bingo!” This student is the winner Again, students can only call out, “Bingo!” when they have crossed out five boxes in a row vertically, horizontally, or diagonally 2.1.2.6.2 Matching Teacher asks students to match words in column A with their meanings in column B, words in column A with pictures in column B or a half of sentence in column A with its rest half in column B, … 2.1.2.6.3 Crossword puzzle Teacher asks students to work in pairs or groups He/She gives them a “crossword” and asks students to find the objects related to the lesson 2.1.2.7 Other five-minute warm up activities What and where, slap the board, survey, true/false statement, picture drill, find someone who, chain game, gap fill, hot seat, mystery object, nought and crosses, … 2.2 Practical background Hoang Hoa high school is located in Hoang Hoa district, Thanh Hoa province It was built in 1989 At present, school has 32 classes with nearly 1.500 students Almost all students in the school live in the countryside and not have many opportunities and conditions to practice English regularly as well as take SangKienKinhNghiem.net part in extra English classes Although they are studious and obedient students, they not raise the sense of initiative in learning English They need the teacher’s help If a teacher uses a five-minute warm up, which is a short, fun game, he/she can encourage the students, wake them up - first thing in the morning and after lunch they are often a little sleepy, mark the shift when students have finished one subject before starting on a new topic Furthermore, a five-minute warm up helps learners put aside their daily distractions and focus on English If they haven’t used English all day, they may take a little while to shift into it Warm-ups also encourage whole class participation which can build a sense of community within the class We all know that starting the lesson with a good hook activity sets us up for a better chance of success It captivates the students and draws them into the lesson – giving us the opportunity to “do our thing”! A warm up at the beginning of the lesson takes only five minutes but it brings us a variety of benefits as I presented above 2.3.Applying five-minute warm up activities in teaching Lessons Getting started (Unit - Unit 5), English textbook 11 Below are some five-minute warm ups I have used in teaching new English lessons, English text book 11 in the last few years, many teachers can also apply them in their teaching 2.3.1 Application Unit THE GENERATION GAP LESSON 1: GETTING STARTED  Warm up 2.3.1.1 Hangman Teacher thinks of the phrase word “the generation gap” and writes 18 letters on the board using dashes to show He/She asks students to suggest a letter If students suggest the letters: g, t, e, h, r, t, i, n, o, a and p, write it in all of the correct spaces If students suggest other letters, write them off to the side and begin drawing the image of a hanging man Teacher continues until the students guess the word correctly THE GENERATION GAP B, Q, C, Y, F 2 5 2.3.1.2 Network Teacher draws a network on the board with the topic of the lesson After that, he/she asks students to work in groups of four to complete the network about some words relating to the topic SangKienKinhNghiem.net Conflict Nuclear family Extended family Generation gap Childcare Viewpoint 2.3.1.3 Jumbled word Teacher divides the class into four groups and gives some jumpled words related to the topic “our families”: ofitcnlc xeddaiyetnefml nceraiyulafml cidaehlcr wepitiwon eeainagnrtogp Suggested answer: conflict Extended family Nuclear family Childcare Viewpoint Generation gap 2.3.1.4 Matching Teacher asks students to match a word or word phrase in column A with its corresponding picture in column B A B a Extended family SangKienKinhNghiem.net Generation gap b Conflict c Nuclear family d Childcare e Suggested answer: 1.b 2.a 3.e 4.c 5.d Lead-in: We are going to listen to a conversation between two friends about the generation gap and family rules 10 SangKienKinhNghiem.net 2.3.2 Application Unit RELATIONSHIPS LESSON GETTING STARTED  Warm-up 2.3.2.1 Describing the picture Teacher shows some pictures about Romantic relationships and asks students to describe them Teacher can give some questions to make this activity easier: What are the pictures about? What can you see in the pictures? Should a student start a romantic relationship with a boy or a girl? What are we going to learn today? Suggested answers: They’re about romantic relationships We can see two persons, a boy and a girl They are getting involved in romantic relationships No, she/he shouldn’t If she/he falls in love with someone, it will distract her/his attention from studying We are going to learn some vocabularies related to relationships 2.3.2.2 Play the music song Teacher plays the music song “Love story” The song is a lively way to get everyone involved 11 SangKienKinhNghiem.net https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xg3vE8Ie_E After students listen to the piece of music, teacher asks them some questions: What is the song about? What can you see in the video? What are we going to learn today? Lead-in: You are going to listen a conversation between Mai and her grandma about the topic of romantic relationships 2.3.3 Application Unit BECOMING INDEPENDENT LESSON GETTING STARTED 2.3.3.1 Kim’s game Teacher divides the class into two teams Let students see a picture with phrases related to the topic of the lesson in 20 seconds Students must remember them without writing After that, students go to the board and write down all the phrases they can remember The team which has the most phrases is the winner AN INDEPENDENT PERSON Being self-reliant Being determined Can be trusted Able to make decisions quickly Having a lot of knowledge Being confident Not allowing any difficulties to prevent you Can rely on 12 SangKienKinhNghiem.net 2.3.3.2 Guessing topic Teacher divides class into some small groups and delivers the list of items related to the topic of the lesson to groups Students discuss in groups The group first guessing the topic is the winning group self-reliant Topic of the lesson? determined confident Lead-in: You are going to know more about the topic of becoming independent 2.3.4 Application Unit CARING FOR THOSE IN NEED LESSON GETTING STARTED 2.3.4.1 Guessing game Teacher divides the class into six groups, shows the back of a picture of disabled people and gives some information about the picture Students discuss in groups The group first guessing the picture is the winning one The back of the picture Some information about the picture: They can’t hear They can’t walk They see nothing 13 SangKienKinhNghiem.net They need a lot of help to get around The front of the picture Expected answer: The picture is about disabled people 2.3.4.2 Chatting Teacher asks students some questions about the picture in the textbook and students give their ideas The picture in the textbook What can you see in the picture? What are the students doing? Who you think some gifts are being prepared for? Are the students in the picture happy or not? Suggested answers: I see four students and many gifts They are preparing some gifts 14 SangKienKinhNghiem.net I think they are being prepared for students who need help Yes, they are very happy Lead-in: You are going to learn about helping students in need 2.3.5 Application Unit BEING PART OF ASEAN LESSON GETTING STARTED * Warm-up: 2.3.5.1 Brainstorming Teacher divides class into two groups and has students brainstorm words and phrases related to ASEAN’s – its aims, member states and activities to answer the question “What you know about ASEAN?” They will have about minutes to brainstorm and list as many words and phrases as they can in a certain amount of time without speaking After three minutes, a representative of each group writes the words and phrases on the board The group with more words and phrases wins ASEAN Aims * improving member states’economies * maintaining regional peaces and stabilities Member states * Vietnam * Thailand * Singapore * Philippines * Lao * Myanma * …… Activities * improving the business environment * offering the ASEAN scholarships to students * … 2.3.5.2 Guessing topic Teacher divides class into groups and delivers the list of items related to the topic of the lesson to groups Students discuss in groups The group first guessing the topic is the winning group 15 SangKienKinhNghiem.net It has 10 member states (Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, …) Its aims are to improve member states’ economies and maintain regional peaces and stabilities It holds sports activites like the Southeast Asian Games, the ASEAN Para Games, … … The list of items related to ASEAN Lead-in: You are going to listen and read a conversation between Bao Thy and her father, Mr Lam about ASEAN and the ASEAN Charter A picture of a period applying five-minute warm up activities at Hoang Hoa high school 2.4 Results of applying five-minute warm up activities in teaching Lessons Getting started (Unit - Unit 5), English textbook 11 In order to assess the effectiveness of applying this method to teaching new lessons, I have compared my work with many classes (11A1, 11A2 & 11A3 - school year 2017-2018, 11A1 &11A4- school year 2018-2019) for two years Before using this method, most of my students could traditionally start all the lessons in the text book without five-minute warm-up activities at the beginning of the lessons Therefore, the atmosphere at the class was boring and not exciting, students were passive and not enthusiastic, they could complete all the 16 SangKienKinhNghiem.net tasks but they easily forgot the vocabularies, the topic as well as the contents of the lessons immediately It is a matter of fact that after applying five-minute warm-up activities at the beginning of the lessons, my students are very interested in taking part in the warm-up activities, students seemed to be very eager for new lessons BEFORE APPLYING NEW APPROACHES: Students’ English proficiency Number of students Percentage Excellent 7/141 5% Good 15/141 10,6% Average 72/141 51,2% Weak ( bad) 47/141 33,2% AFTER APPLYING NEW APPROACHES: The frequency of English speaking Number of Percentage Compared with students year ago Excellent 6/95 6,3 % Increase 1,3% Good 15/95 15,7% Increase 5,1% Average 65/95 68% Increase 16,8% Weak ( bad) 11/95 11,8% decrease 21,4 % CONCLUSION 3.1 Conclusion The best lessons, books, and materials in the world won’t get students excited about learning and willing to work hard if they are not motivated Motivation, both intrinsic and extrinsic, is a key factor in the success of students at all stages of their education, and teachers can play a pivotal role in providing and encouraging that motivation in their students Of course, that is much easier said than done, as all students are motivated differently and it takes time and a lot of effort to learn to get a classroom full of kids enthusiastic about learning, working hard and pushing themselves to excel Whether you are a new teacher or an experienced one, try changing teaching method to motivate your students and to encourage them to live up to their true potential Changing teaching method, from my point of view, is changing the role of the teacher from the provider into a consultant; students will fulfil the demand of knowledge themselves It is clearly that in my class, with five-minute warmup activities learning English is getting more and more exciting, students are voluntary participants in teaching process, I myself find it is relaxing to be a guide instead of being a translator, for all the activities in the classroom In order to apply this method effectively, the teacher should spend time designing a suitable and closed five-minute warm-ups for each lesson so that students can participate in these activities actively 3.2 Suggestion Basing on practical teaching English text book 10, 11, 12, I suggest that there should be a projector and a computer or a laptop in each classroom in 17 SangKienKinhNghiem.net order to motivate students in learning English and help them start new lessons effectively because some five-minute warm ups should be organized with them This is my little experience in finding methods to motivate students in learning English thoroughly and actively I hope to receive your reading and comments as well as contribution to make this theme more perfect so that it can be applied widely Thanks for your reading! THE CONFIRMATION OF THE HEAD MASTER Thanh Hoa, May 29th 2019 I, the undersigned, certify my authority of the experiential initiative entitled “Applying five-minute warm up activities in teaching Lessons Getting started (Unit - Unit 5), English textbook 11” Except where the references are indicated, no other person’s piece of work has been used without due acknowledgements in the text of initiative Author Nguyen Thi Hoa 18 SangKienKinhNghiem.net ... 2.3 .Applying five- minute warm up activities in teaching Lessons Getting started (Unit - Unit 5), English textbook 11 Below are some five- minute warm ups I have used in teaching new English lessons, ... warm- up activity? 2 .1. 2 Some popular five- minute warm up activities in Page 1 1 2 2 teaching English 2.2 2.3 Practical background Applying five- minute warm up activities in teaching lessons Getting. .. applying five- minute warm up activities at Hoang Hoa high school 2.4 Results of applying five- minute warm up activities in teaching Lessons Getting started (Unit - Unit 5), English textbook 11