Natural english teacher training pack

Teacher Training Pack CONTENTS 1.Teacher Training Packs (HOW TO ) 2.Teacher's Development Chapter 3.Internet Lesson Plans Teacher Training Packs how toactivate … vocabulary natural English by Scott Thornbury teacher development detailed plan stage procedure stage Photocopy and distribute worksheet for stage and ask the trainees, working individually, to match the two parts of each extract warmer 10–15 minutes They should check their answers in pairs, and then go on to discuss, briefly, the implications of any of the statements that particularly interest them Allow time for an open class sharing of opinions Note: in the interests of time, this task could be set as a pre-sessional activity, with a brief check and discussion in class before moving to stage stage experiential task 25–30 minutes Copy and cut up worksheet for stage 2, so that there is one set of word cards per group of (roughly) four trainees – there are 15 words per set If the cards are mounted onto card, they will be more easily manipulated as well as more durable Write the following Maori* words on the board, or onto an overhead transparency, along with their English equivalents: kereru = pigeon makimaki = monkey hipi = sheep kaka = parrot tuna = eel kiwi = kiwi kuri = dog ruru = owl mako = shark wheke = octopus poaka = pig tohora = whale Ask the trainees first to repeat the words as you read them from the list (Note: the pronunciation closely follows the spelling, with vowels pronounced more or less as they would be in Italian, Spanish, or Japanese The wh- in wheke is pronounced as an f The stress is on the first syllable in every case.) Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … activate vocabulary detailed plan Now ask the trainees, working individually and silently, to try to learn as many of the words as they can in five minutes Then, with your hand or a piece of card, cover the English equivalents of individual words, in a random order, and see if trainees can tell you what its Maori equivalent means Then the same in reverse, i.e cover individual Maori words in random order, until satisfied that most of the class can recall most of the words Then, one by one, erase the English words, checking each time that the class knows what its Maori equivalent means Do the same with the Maori words, until the board is clear At this point, you might ask them how well they think they have learned the words, and what kinds of memory techniques they used to help them learn the words (e.g similarity with the English equivalent, word associations e.g hipi – hippie, etc.) Now, divide the class into groups of four Hand out the sets of word cards you have prepared in advance, one set per group Ask the trainees to work together, and to the following tasks one by one, checking in open class the results of each task in turn as the groups complete them (First point out that they learned twelve words but that there are fifteen in the set of word cards.) Eliminate the three words that weren’t included at the learning stage Put the remaining words in the order that they were originally presented on the board Match any pairs that rhyme Group the twelve words into three sets of four words each, so that each word in the set has something in common Decide which could be the odd-one-out in each set of four – and why Choose one member of each set of four that the group agrees would make a good pet – and why Choose one set of four and rank the four according to the probable results of a race i.e Who would win, come second, etc.? Then, individual members of the group take turns to either draw or imitate the sound or gait of one of the items, while the others try to guess which one it is – using its Maori name Finally, each group member chooses one of the 12 words and writes a true / false sentence (in English, but using the relevant Maori), which he or she then reads out to the group, who decide if it is true or false When students are doing these tasks, and when they are reporting the results to the whole class, they should be encouraged to use the Maori words rather than their English equivalents, embedding them in English sentences If at any stage a group cannot remember the Maori word, the teacher can be asked to supply it – but this should be done by giving the first letter, then the second, and so on, until someone in the group successfully recalls the word * Maori is a Polynesian language, spoken by the indigenous inhabitants of New Zealand If some or all trainees are already familiar with Maori, you should adapt this activity, using a language that is unfamiliar to the group Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … activate vocabulary detailed plan stage post-task reflection Ask the trainees, working in the same groups (or, if more convenient, in pairs), to recall, as far as they can remember, the sequence of activities they have just done in groups 15–20 minutes Then distribute worksheet for stage Ask trainees: a to classify the different task-types according to these categories: • ordering / ranking • matching • selecting • sorting • guessing b to rate each activity in terms of the amount of ‘cognitive depth’ involved (using the categories high, medium, low) c to decide if the focus of the task is primarily on form or on meaning d to decide if the task process involves word recognition only, or production Allow time for an open class discussion afterwards stage application task 15 minutes Distribute copies of natural English intermediate student’s book Divide the class into pairs or small groups Ask each group to look at a different wordbooster section (see, for example, pages 16, 25, 39, 48, 63, etc.) Ask them to study the sequence of activities and to identify how ‘deeper processing’ tasks are built into the sequence in order to support vocabulary learning Specifically, look for those features that were mentioned in the matching task (stage 1), i.e.: • manipulation • drawing connections to other words • personalization • recalling items for productive use • meeting or using the word in new contexts Ask them also to think of activities (such as those they experienced in stage 2) that could be incorporated into the sequence in order to optimize learning even further If there’s time, reorganize the groups so that each new group contains at least one member from each of the original groups, and ask trainees to share their ideas Spokespeople from each group can then report to the class on their findings Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … activate vocabulary detailed plan how toactivate … vocabulary natural English by Scott Thornbury teacher development A heading session overview aim to develop and apply criteria which can be used to evaluate material designed to activate vocabulary trainees will … materials • review some of the principles underlying the activation of vocabulary • natural English intermediate student’s book • experience a sequence of tasks designed to activate vocabulary • analyse activity sequences from the point of view of vocabulary learning principles • photocopies of worksheets for stages and 3, and word cards for stage • natural English intermediate teacher’s book pp.136–142 outline plan stage timing interaction warmer – matching task 10–15 minutes individuals; pairs; open class report experiential task 25–30 minutes open class; groups of 3-4 post-task reflection 15–20 minutes pairs; open class extension activity 20–25 minutes pairs / small groups; open class report www.oup.com/elt/teacher/naturalenglish Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … activate vocabulary session overview how toactivate … vocabulary natural English by Scott Thornbury teacher development trainer’s notes stage warmer The answers to the matching task are: 1–C; 2–E; 3–B; 4–A; 5–D Here are the extracts in full: ‘The human lexicon is believed to be a network of associations, a web-like structure of interconnected links … When students are asked to manipulate words, relate them to other words and to their own experiences, and then to justify their choices, these word associations are reinforced.’ Sökmen, A.J., in Schmitt, N and McCarthy, M (Eds.), Vocabulary: Description, Acquisition and Pedagogy (1997) pp.241–242 Reproduced by permission of Cambridge University Press ‘The act of successfully recalling an item increases the chance that the item will be remembered … It appears that the retrieval route to that item is in some way strengthened by being successfully used.’ Baddeley, A., Human Memory: Theory and Practice (Revised edition) (1997) p.112 Reproduced by permission of Psychology Press ‘The more one manipulates, thinks about, and uses mental information, the more likely it is that one will retain that information In the case of vocabulary, the more one engages with a word (deeper processing), the more likely the word will be remembered for later use.’ Schmitt, N., Vocabulary in Language Teaching (2000) p.120 Reproduced by permission of Cambridge University Press ‘When words are met in reading and listening or used in speaking and writing, the generativeness of the context will influence learning That is, if the words occur in new sentence contexts in the reading text, learning will be helped Similarly, having to use the word to say new things will add to learning.’ Nation, I.S.P., Learning Vocabulary in Another Language (2001) p.80 Reproduced by permission of Cambridge University Press ‘A learner’s active/productive vocabulary is always smaller than his or her passive/receptive vocabulary That is, learners might be able to recognize a given lexical item when it is presented to them or they may be able to infer its meaning, but this is not at all the same thing as recalling items for use.’ Carter, R., Vocabulary: Applied Linguistic Perspectives (Second Edition) (1998) p.213 Reproduced by permission of Routledge Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … activate vocabulary trainer’s notes The implications of these statements that should be highlighted in the open class discussion include: • The importance of activities that require learners to retrieve words from memory • The importance of ‘deeper processing’ tasks – that is, tasks that require learners to make decisions about words involving increasing degrees of ‘cognitive depth’, such as manipulating them, relating them to words they know, and personalizing them The more and the ‘deeper’ the decisions, the more likely it is that the words will be learned • The importance of activities that require learners to produce words (rather than simply recognize them) if the words are going to become part of their active vocabulary • The importance of meeting (and re-meeting) and using words in new contexts stage experiential task It is important that all learners are involved in this activity sequence, so that they can experience at first hand the problems related to vocabulary learning in a second language, as well as appreciating the benefits of having to make many different decisions about a set of pre-taught words It may be interesting to test memory of these words in a subsequent session, e.g by providing the English translations and seeing if trainees can correctly supply the Maori equivalent The three words that were not included at the introduction stage are: moko (lizard), ika (fish), and kiore (rat) Rhyming pairs are: kaka and poaka, ruru and kereru It is expected that the words will be classified accordingly: • kereru, kaka, kiwi, ruru (birds) • makimaki, hipi, kuri, poaka (land mammals) • tuna, mako, wheke, tohora (fish and other animals living in water) The odd-one-out task can be answered in any number of ways – the important thing is that a reason is given for the choice Possible answers might be kiwi (it’s flightless); makimaki (it’s not a farm or domestic animal); tohora (it’s a mammal) stage post-task reflection The table should be completed accordingly (see next page), although opinions may differ with regard to the amount of cognitive depth involved in some of the activities Note that the first three activities can be done without reference to the meaning of the words – that is, the mental processes involve simply recognizing and ordering the forms of the words, or matching forms that rhyme All the subsequent activities require learners to know the meanings of the words if they are to be able Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … activate vocabulary trainer’s notes to the task Note also that all the activities, apart from the last two, start with the forms (written on cards), and the learners have either to recognize these forms, ignoring their meaning, or to recognize the forms and match them with a meaning – in either case, they are recognition activities (Of course, in negotiating the task outcome with their colleagues, and in reporting the task outcome to the class, they will produce many of the targeted words, but this is a (healthy) by-product of working co-operatively, and is not intrinsic to the successful performance of the task It would be quite different if learners were working individually, and with no report stage The need to constantly recycle the targeted words in group work is one of the advantages of this kind of organization.) The final two activities (guessing the words, and writing true / false sentences) are production activities, however The true / false activity starts with a meaning (represented by a drawing, mime, or sound effect) and the learner has to produce the relevant form In the sentence-writing task, learners first produce the selected item in a mini-context Of course, when they read the sentence aloud to their colleagues, the focus becomes recognition again activity activity type: ordering / ranking, matching, selecting, sorting, or guessing? cognitive depth: high, medium, low? focus on form or meaning? recognition or production? eliminate words selecting low form recognition original order ordering medium form recognition rhyming pairs matching low form recognition categories sorting high meaning recognition odd-one-out selecting high meaning recognition a good pet? selecting medium meaning recognition race results? ranking medium / high meaning recognition guess the word guessing low meaning production true / false (sentence writing) medium / high meaning production Finally, it should be clear from the chart that the sequencing of the tasks is not arbitrary, but that there is a deliberate progression from formfocused to meaning-focused tasks, from recognition to production tasks, and in general, from tasks involving low processing demands to tasks involving relatively high processing demands Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … activate vocabulary trainer’s notes how to … use the Internet to develop vocabulary natural English www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish weddings – worksheet Use this worksheet to make your seating plan bride Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 groom how to … use the Internet to develop vocabulary natural use weblogs to motivate English how to … students www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish introduction Weblogs are online diaries or journals created by individuals, and they are continuously updated They are quite similar to the homepages that individuals create to publish information about their lives or hobbies One benefit of weblogs for both teachers and students is that they are easy to set up and maintain Weblogs act as a record of an individual’s thoughts, and they are interactive in that readers can add their own comments to what has been written A weblog can also be set up for a group of people For example, a teacher could encourage students to start individual weblogs and to use them as learner diaries, perhaps restricting access, so only the teacher and the student could read and add messages Alternatively, the teacher might set up a group weblog for students to post messages, and to share information and thoughts about homework tasks In this pack, you’ll find two ready-made lessons that show you how to use weblogs to motivate students Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use weblogs to motivate students natural use weblogs to motivate English how to … students www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish class weblogs – teacher’s notes overview procedure level intermediate and above timing 60 minutes aim to introduce students to, and familiarize them with, a class weblog, and to practise setting up weblogs students will … – join a teacher-led weblog – take part in a weblog – set up weblogs preparation before the lesson – Prepare a list of students’ e-mail addresses, and make a copy for each student – Set up a weblog by visiting a weblog site (see useful websites, below) and following the instructions for new users – Add students to the list of weblog members – Ensure that students sign up to the weblog before the lesson – Post an introduction on the weblog, explaining the weblog’s purpose – this could be, for example, for the teacher to post details of lessons, and for students to discuss and give feedback on the lessons, or it might be a homework weblog technical checklist – one computer per two to three students – also read: tips for success – communicating via the Internet useful websites www.blogger.com Blogger, a free blog website run by Google www.webcrimson.com Web Crimson, a free blog website www.bloglines.com Blog Lines – a free blog website Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 – Establish whether students have any experience of using weblogs, or if they have their own weblog account already set up If not, briefly explain what a weblog is – Direct students to the weblog you set up before the lesson, and ask them to log in using their member details and to read the introduction – Ask students to post suggestions about what they would like to see included on the weblog, and to practise responding to other students’ comments – Encourage students to think of ideas for other class weblogs – such as developing reading or listening, homework discussion, etc – Refer students to a weblog website, and ask them to work in pairs to create a weblog – Hand out copies of students’ e-mail addresses, so that students can add each other to the different weblogs (First, check that students are happy for you to give out their e-mail addresses.) – Ask students to post an introduction to their weblog, describing why they have set up the weblog – Tell students to visit the different weblogs and post comments on as many as possible follow-up ideas – Keep the original class weblog up-to-date, posting information about classes, homework reminders, etc., and ask each student to contribute to the weblog at least once a week – Suggest that students visit different weblogs to see what other people are writing about, and to find ideas for setting up and developing their own weblog, based on their own interests – Ask each student to set up an individual weblog to keep a record of their learning how to … use weblogs to motivate students natural use weblogs to motivate English how to … students www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish learner weblogs – teacher’s notes overview procedure level intermediate and above timing 60 minutes aim to set up a learner weblog students will … – set up their own weblog – start an online learner diary preparation before the lesson – Prepare a list of students’ e-mail addresses, and make copies – Set up a weblog by visiting a weblog site (see useful websites, below) and following the instructions for new users – Add students to the list of weblog members – Ensure that students sign up to the weblog before the lesson – Post an introduction on the weblog, explaining what a learner diary is technical checklist – one computer per student, if possible – also read: tips for success – communicating via the Internet – Direct the students to the weblog, and tell them to sign in and to read the introduction – Ask students to use the weblog to talk about learner diaries – encourage them to think about what sort of information would be included, why would someone keep a learner diary, how useful is a learner diary, and so on Students should post their comments on the weblog, and should respond to each other’s comments – Ask students to set up individual learner weblogs that only they and the teacher can access (they will need the teacher’s e-mail address) – Tell each student to begin using their learner weblog by reflecting on various aspects of their course and progress to date, and by considering how they might move forward – Explain to the students that you will respond to their weblogs after the lesson, and remind students to return to their weblogs to read the responses follow-up ideas – Encourage students to add to their weblog, each day or each week, by regularly visiting each student’s weblog and adding a comment – If students not find time to add to their weblogs out of class, allocate 15 minutes at the end of a lesson for them to access and update their weblogs useful websites www.blogger.com Blogger, a free blog website run by Google www.webcrimson.com Web Crimson, a free blog website www.bloglines.com Blog Lines – a free blog website Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use weblogs to motivate students natural use Word resources with English how to … your students in class www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish introduction The natural English teachers’ website offers Word resources that teachers can download and customize (www.oup.com/elt/global/teachersclub/products/nehome/) These resources are organized into units, and they include vocabulary lists, key phrases, tapescripts, and texts taken from the natural English coursebooks Because they can be downloaded in Word format, the resources can be saved and customized to suit the needs of different classes In this pack, you’ll find two ready-made lessons that show you how to use Word resources with your students in class Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use Word resources with your students in class natural use Word resources with English how to … your students in class www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish jumbled problems – teacher’s notes overview level intermediate timing 60 minutes aim to reorder three texts and practise giving advice students will … – sort out and reorder three jumbled texts – discuss how to cope with an annoying problem – write a letter giving advice to someone with a problem preparation before the lesson – Visit the natural English In Class resources section (www.oup.com/elt/global/teachersclub/products/nehome/) – Download intermediate unit reading ‘Best Behaviour’, from the customizable reading texts, and save as a Word file – Jumble up the text by cutting and pasting, similar to worksheet 1, then print it out and copy it for each student (alternatively, use worksheet 1) – Make a copy of worksheet for each student technical checklist – one computer per two to three students – also read: tips for success – searching – selecting and evaluating websites – saving and adapting natural English Word resources procedure – Hand out worksheet 2, and tell students to read through the reordered letters again and to complete the worksheet – Ask students to discuss the problems and how they could be solved – Tell students to choose one letter and to write a reply of between 80–120 words – Arrange students in three groups, according to which letter they replied to, and ask them to compare their replies and vote for the best advice Here are some examples: follow-up ideas – Ask each student to invent a problem and to write a letter to an agony aunt / uncle, asking for advice Tell students to exchange their letters with another student and to write a reply, giving advice, to the letter they have been given – Use the Internet to find other examples of problems to use with students and to provide them with more opportunities to give advice Here are some examples: www.problempages.co.uk Problem Pages is an online bank of problems and advice www.itsnotyourfault.org Website set up by the National Children’s Helpline charity to help young people with family problems www.ukcosa.org.uk Council for International Education website, which gives advice to students www.adviceguide.org.uk Citizens’ Advice Bureau website, which contains advice on a variety of problems – Ask students to think of examples of annoying things that their close friends or family – such as snoring, leaving the toilet seat up, etc – Elicit different solutions to the students’ problems – Check that the students are familiar with the concept of problem pages and agony aunts / uncles – Hand out the jumbled-up text and explain that it contains three letters that were sent to an agony aunt Tell the students to work in pairs to reorder the letters Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use Word resources with your students in class natural use Word resources with English how to … your students in class www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish jumbled problems – worksheet During the school holidays my teenage son spends most of his mornings asleep What can we about this? should not be woken up artificially by alarm clocks or people shouting at them in every way, but when we are out in public together, I always feel embarrassed uncomfortable We can’t afford a chauffeur or to travel in two separate cars He reacts angrily if anyone goes near his bedroom What can I do? My father, aged 65, used to be in the army He’s a lovely man and extremely kind unpleasant and we have awful arguments about the best route to take When she theory that people should wake up when their own body clock tells them to, and because he speaks so loudly all the time and everyone stares at us How can I My wife and I have a terrible time in the car When I am driving, she is incredibly stop him shouting without hurting his feelings? is at the wheel, she drives fast and dangerously and it is extremely in bed I think he’s unbelievably lazy, but he says it’s based on an American Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use Word resources with your students in class natural use Word resources with English how to … your students in class www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish jumbled problems – worksheet Use this worksheet to make notes letter letter letter Who is complaining? Who are they complaining about? Why are they complaining? Possible solutions (your ideas) useful websites www.problempages.co.uk Problem Pages is an online bank of problems and advice www.itsnotyourfault.org Website set up by the National Children’s Helpline charity to help young people with family problems www.ukcosa.org.uk Council for International Education website, which gives advice to students www.adviceguide.org.uk Citizens’ Advice Bureau website, which contains advice on a variety of problems Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use Word resources with your students in class natural use Word resources with English how to … your students in class www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish putting words into someone’s mouth – teacher’s notes overview procedure level intermediate timing 60–75 minutes aim to practise listening for specific information, and to practise using online dictionaries students will … – listen to someone describing their favourite film, and an a acompanying vocabulary exercise – use an online dictionary to find out the differences between words that may appear to be similar or which may be easily confused – Ask students to discuss their favourite film with a partner and to give a brief summary of the story – Hand out a copy of worksheet to each student, and ask them to read through the script and to choose the best word in each case Sometimes more than one answer is possible – Refer students to the list of dictionary websites Ask students, in pairs, to use the online dictionaries to check the differences between the words marked in bold – Play the cassette to the students, and tell them to listen and underline the correct words – Encourage the students to practise saying the words and to listen to their partners saying them preparation before the lesson – Visit the natural English In Class resources section (www.oup.com/elt/global/teachersclub/products/nehome/) – Download intermediate tapescript 7.6 (story 1) from the Tapescripts section, and save as a Word file – Make a copy of worksheet for each student (or create a new exercise using the tapescript) – Note: for this lesson you will require a copy of the natural English intermediate coursebook cassette technical checklist – one computer per two to three students – also read: tips for success – searching – selecting and evaluating websites – saving and adapting natural English Word resources useful websites www.freesearch.co.uk/dictionary Freesearch online British dictionary www.m-w.com/home.htm Merriam-Webster website, containing an online dictionary and thesaurus www.oup.com/elt/global/products/oald The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary website, which allows users to look up words online dictionary.reference.com Lexico Publishing website which accesses a number of leading dictionaries Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 follow-up ideas – Use the same script to produce a gap-fill exercise by removing all the words in bold – Use the Internet to find out more about the film Brief Encounter www.carnforth-station.co.uk Carnforth railway station website; Carnforth was used as a location for the film Brief Encounter and has information about the shooting of the film www.bbc.co.uk/films BBC film review website www.imdb.com Internet Movie Database website, which has a comprehensive collection of information about films www.allmovie.com All Movie Guide, a collection of information about films and the people who make them www.britmovie.co.uk Website dedicated to British cinema how to … use Word resources with your students in class natural use Word resources with English how to … your students in class www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish putting words into someone’s mouth – worksheet Choose the best option Well, my favourite film ever is about a marriage / relationship / relative Er, a man and a woman meet in a railway restaurant / carriage / station (Oh, yeah) because she has something in her eye, and he’s a lawyer / railway official / doctor, so he comes forward and helps her to get this out of her eye, and er, they meet / bump into / encounter several times after that, and eventually realize that they are falling in love with each other, but the trouble / problem / dilemma is that they are both married to other people (Oh, no!) And er, then one day / morning / evening she comes home / house very late from having met / seen / watched this man and her children are both ill / sickness / unhealthy so she feels terribly 10 guilty / sad / upset about this She thinks that somehow she’s 11 sensible / responsible for her children being ill, because she’s been having a relationship with this man, (Oh!) and she 12 thinks / realizes / recognizes it’s going to have to stop useful websites www.freesearch.co.uk/dictionary Freesearch online British dictionary www.m-w.com/home.htm Merriam-Webster website, containing an online dictionary and thesaurus www.oup.com/elt/global/products/oald The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary website, which allows users to look up words online dictionary.reference.com Lexico Publishing website which accesses a number of leading dictionaries Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use Word resources with your students in class how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills natural English www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish introduction The Internet offers many opportunities for students to practise writing E-mail projects are popular and provide the chance for students to communicate with each other or with their teacher Producing a class webpage gives students a chance to communicate something about themselves to the world outside the classroom There are also webpages that offer information about writing and exam practice for EFL students Another exciting aspect of the Internet is that it offers opportunities for ‘real’ communication – that is, a chance for the student to move outside the classroom to practise writing There are online questionnaires and forms to complete, or discussion boards to contribute to – and many websites invite users to send in questions and comments In this pack, you’ll find two ready-made lessons that show you how to use the Internet to develop writing skills Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills natural English www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish day trip to London – teacher’s notes overview www.madame-tussauds.co.uk level intermediate and above timing 60 minutes to complete the worksheet and write the e-mails, plus a follow-up session to compare information that students collect aim to research and describe tourist attractions, and to practise writing e-mails requesting information students will … – research London sights – contact museums, tourist information, and travel information offices via e-mail – complete a tourist attraction worksheet preparation before the lesson – Ensure that all students have an e-mail address, and that they know how to use e-mail – Make a copy of the worksheet for each student technical checklist – one computer per two to three students – printer – also read: tips for success – searching – selecting and evaluating websites – communicating via the Internet useful websites www.visitlondon.com Official London visitor website, with links to all major attractions www.nhm.ac.uk National History Museum website www.vam.ac.uk Victoria and Albert Museum www.royal.gov.uk/output/page554.asp Official British Monarchy website containing details of Royal residences www.nationalgallery.org.uk National Gallery website Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 Madame Tussaud’s waxwork museum website www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk British Museum website www.westminster-abbey.org Westminster Abbey website www.parliament.uk Houses of Parliament (House of Commons and House of Lords) website www.hrp.org.uk Historic Royal Palaces website (Tower of London, Kensington Palace, Hampton Court, and Kew) procedure – Explain that students are going to work in pairs to research two to three tourist attractions that would be suitable for a group of 50 language students to visit during a day-trip to London – Hand out one copy of the worksheet to each student, and allocate two to three tourist attraction websites for each pair / group to research – Tell students to use the websites to find the information for sections a to d – Explain that, in order to find the information for sections e to g, the students have to locate the contact details of the appropriate tourist attraction, and that they have to write an e-mail – Ask students to work in their pairs / groups to produce each e-mail, and to print out a copy before they send it so they can be given feedback on their writing – In the follow-up lesson, ask students to complete their worksheets with the information received in response to their e-mails, and then to compare tourist attractions and to vote on the three places they would like to visit follow-up ideas – Use a word-processor and the information collected on the worksheet to produce a leaflet or poster to advertise the tourist attraction – Adapt the lesson for different towns / countries Ideally, students would be able to visit the places they have voted for and write reviews based on their visit how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills natural English www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish day trip to London – worksheet Use this worksheet to make notes a name of tourist attraction b location c opening / closing times d things to / see (list at least four things) e special exhibitions / things of interest f length of time needed to visit g cost h information for groups useful websites www.visitlondon.com Official London visitor website, with links to all major attractions www.nhm.ac.uk National History Museum website www.vam.ac.uk Victoria and Albert Museum www.royal.gov.uk/output/page554.asp Official British Monarchy website containing details of Royal residences www.nationalgallery.org.uk National Gallery website www.madame-tussauds.co.uk Madame Tussaud’s waxwork museum website www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk British Museum website www.westminster-abbey.org Westminster Abbey website www.parliament.uk Houses of Parliament (House of Commons and House of Lords) website www.hrp.org.uk Historic Royal Palaces website (Tower of London, Kensington Palace, Hampton Court, and Kew) Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills natural English www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish postcards – teacher’s notes overview level intermediate and above timing 60–75 minutes aim to practise writing postcards students will … – complete a websearch – write a postcard – talk about holidays preparation before the lesson – visit the natural English websearch pages www.oup.com/elt/global/teachersclub/products/nehome/ne _afterclass/weblinks/, and print out one or more of the following websearches: – upper-intermediate unit 2, Tourism and Holidays – intermediate unit 2, Travel and Holidays – intermediate unit 1, Train Journeys – make a copy of the websearch(es) for each student – make a copy of the worksheet for each student technical checklist – one computer per two to three students – printer – also read: tips for success – searching – selecting and evaluating websites – communicating via the Internet procedure – Hand out the natural English websearches, and tell the students to use the websites given to locate the answers to each question Explain that to find the answers they will have to read carefully and explore the websites thoroughly – Check the websearch answers, and then ask each student to choose the holiday or journey that appeals to them most, and to return to that website – Tell students that they are in the middle of their chosen holiday and that it is time to send a postcard home Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 – Hand out the worksheet, and tell students to use their holiday website to gather enough information about the holiday to write a postcard to their best friend, including the following information: – where they are – how long they have been there – what they have seen – what they have done – who they have met – the best thing about the holiday – Put students into groups of four and tell them that they are now back home with a group of friends comparing holidays Explain that they have to tell each other about their holidays and ask questions about their friends’ holidays follow-up ideas – Ask students to use the Internet to find free virtual postcards (e-cards) to send electronically to the teacher or to each other – Encourage students to write outside the classroom by visiting virtual postcard websites Here are some examples: www.vnz.co.nz Virtual New Zealand website, which has New Zealand-related e-cards www.offbeatcards.com Offbeat Cards website, which has e-cards for many cities and countries around the world www.globosapiens.net/postcards GLOBO sapiens website, which has a gallery of pictures from around the world that can be turned into e-cards www.britainexpress.com/cards.html Britain Express website, including cards showing British castles and countryside how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills natural English www.oup.com/elt/naturalenglish postcards – worksheet Use this worksheet to write your postcard 1st Photocopiable © Oxford University Press 2004 how to … use the Internet to develop writing skills