skkn SOME EFFECTIVE WAYS IN TEACHING WRITING GRADE 12

Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 SOME EFFECTIVE WAYS IN TEACHING WRITING-GRADE 12 PART A: REASONS FOR CHOOSING THE RESEARCH In learning English, writing is considered one of the most difficult skills learners are expected to master When students write English for a genuine purpose, they need to write more than good sentences; they need to write a whole text that will convey what they mean successfully Since writing is a productive skill, it is not easy for teachers to teach and for students to master It is the fact high school students are very weak at writing Most of the students not only have limitation of English vocabulary and grammar but lack ideas and social knowledge to write With the hope that teachers can help their students to write better, I suggest some appropriate teaching strategies and useful activities I hope that the topic "Some effective ways in teaching Writing" of Grade 12 – will be interesting in order to attract students' excitement during writing periods That is the reason why I choose the topic PART B: REAL SITUATION BEFORE THESE SOLUTIONS ARE CARRIED OUT Advantageous conditions - High school students have learnt how to build a paragraph, how to make outlines, how to organize ideas etc in their Vietnamese Literature classes - English is one of core subjects, which are compulsory in GCSE This will encourage students to spend more time learning and practising English Difficulties - Most of high school students are lack of language knowledge such as grammar, vocabulary and structures Besides, they not have writing techniques Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 They don’t know how to begin, make an outline, provide evidence to support or develop the point of view - For many students writing is probably the most boring but the least important of the four skills, so they lack motivation to write - Teachers not have enough time to correct students’ writing work in class PART C: CONTENTS Let’s have a look at the national curriculum High school students are required to write letters both in formal and informal style They are also asked to write some kinds of paragraphs including narration, exposition and description of some kinds Syllabus overview English 12 Unit Topic Homelife Ways of socialising Writing Writing about family rules Building sentences based on given words Reordering given sentences to make complete School education system Higher education Future jobs Life in the future Endangered species paragraph Describing school education system in Vietnam Writing a letter of request Writing a formal letter of job application Describing the world you would like to live Writing about measures to protect endangered 11 12 13 14 Books Water sports The 22nd SEA GAMES International species and possible results Describing a book Giving instructions Describing a sporting event Writing a short description of an international 15 16 organizations Women in society The Association of organization Describing a chart Writing a letter of recommendation 10 Southeast Asian Nations Writing seems to be a challenge to both teachers and students Identifying approaches in teaching writing can help teachers find out effective techniques to Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 overcome difficulties in teaching, therefore help students improve writing skill To implement effective writing lessons, I have conducted the following stages: - Warm-up - Pre- writing - While- writing - Post- writing I WARM-UP Most classes should start with a “warm-up” activity to help the students relax and increase their motivation in the lessons The warm-up is often a game, listening to songs, watching a video clip, etc… just to start things on a “fun and relaxed” level  CHARADES GAME: - Students work in small groups of - Teacher asks the students to think of one thing they are allowed or not allowed to at school and write it on a piece of paper - Representatives take turn to act out thing they are allowed or not allowed to at school with gesture (without speaking or writing).The others in the class try to guess what thing it is - Each correct answer gets point  Unit 1: HOMELIFE – Part D: Writing Ex: We are not allowed to smoke Illustration (CD included) - Teacher leads to the new lesson: Today, you will write about your home rule: What you are allowed to do, what you aren’t permitted to  CUT-UP SENTENCE KABADI GAME Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 - Teacher prepares some cut up sentences and places them on a table at the front of the class - Teacher arranges the students into two teams, standing behind a line or marker - The students have to run to the table and arrange the words into correct sentences - They are not allowed to breathe in To prevent this the students have to repeat “kabadi” over and over If they stop saying the word they have to return to their teams - The first team to arrange all their sentences correctly is the winner  Unit 3: WAYS OF SOCIALIZING – Part D: Writing Ex: an expression / for something/ An apology is/ of remorse/ wrong / you've done Expected sentence: An apology is an expression of remorse for something you've done wrong - Teacher leads to the new lesson: Today, you will practise building sentences based on the given words and putting jumbled sentences into correct order  QUICK THINKERS GAME - Teacher chooses two volunteers - Teacher reads the questions and asks the two volunteers to write the answers on board - The winner will be the quickest  Unit 4: SCHOOL EDUCATION SYSTEM – Part D: Writing Ex: Write the name of your school The age when you started to go to school Write core subjects Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 Double your age and write the result Draw a big circle Put a small square in the circle If it is Monday, write X; if not, write the letter X in the English alphabet Expected answers: Nguyen Huu Canh Maths, Literature, English 34 x - Teacher leads to the new lesson: Today, you will write a paragraph about education system in Vietnam  PICTURE GUESSING GAME - Teacher divides the class into groups - Teacher reads clues, one by one about the picture and asks the students to guess what the picture is about - The first group calls out the name wins the game  Unit 5: HIGHER EDUCATION – Part D: Writing Ex: - It’s one of the most famous universities in the world - It was established in 1636 in Cambridge, Massachusetts Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 - Bill Gates used to study there - It begins with letter H - Teacher leads to the new lesson: Harvard University is one of the most famous universities in the world If you plan to continue your study at Harvard University, what will you do?  VIDEO CLIP WATCHING - Teacher asks the students to watch the clip - The students answer the question: “What’s the clip about?” - Teacher leads to the new lesson Ex:  Unit 8: LIFE IN THE FUTURE – Part D: Writing  Unit 6: FUTURE JOBS – Part D: Writing Illustration : (CD included) Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 - Teacher leads to the new lesson: Today, you will write a paragraph about the world you imagine in the future  MIMING GAME - Teacher gets one student to the board The teacher gives him/her list of words - The student uses actions to describe the words He/she cannot speak or spell the word in the air - The other students watch their classmate and try to guess the words  Unit 13: THE 22ND SEA GAMES– Part D: Writing Ex: A student uses actions to describe some sports He/she cannot speak or spell the word in the air The other students watch their classmate and try to guess the words Illustration : (CD included) - Teacher leads to the new lesson: + Which of the sports above you enjoy watching most? Expected answer: football + Do you ever watch a football match? Expected answer: yes - Teacher : Today, we’ll learn how to describe a football match  TREASURE HUNT GAME - Students work in small groups of - Teacher tells students to follow the given instructions to the treasure and collect the letters on the way - The first group to find out the treasure (the word) wins the game Ex:  Unit 15: WOMEN IN SOCIETY– Part D: Writing (Describing a chart) Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 The first letter is on the car A H C T The second letter is next to the pine O H I The third letter is under the dolphin A U E The fourth letter is next to the rabbit The last letter is on the left of the treasure chest E Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van T Y Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 Expected answer: Chart - Teacher leads to the new lesson: Today we will learn how to write a chart description II PRE- WRITING Pre- writing stage is the time for students to think and develop ideas about a topic If students not prepare well enough they cannot write well The pre-writing stage lessens students’ anxiety and builds their confidence Therefore, pre-writing is the most important part of the writing process As we know, the nature of learning is moving from easy to more difficult things Experience shows that in writing, the difficulties students face with come from their poverty of language resources In other words, they lack ideas to write If teachers not guide them what to write, students would probably find it difficult and make many mistakes However, it is very time-consuming for the teacher to correct their work paper by paper Meanwhile, the best time of correcting work is correcting mistakes immediately in class rather than returning it the next day To solve the problem, the students’ lack of ideas to write, I suggest some solutions Step 1: A model is given Step 2: Students work on the model, analyze its typical features, and pay attention to the language and structure of the model Step 3: Students work in groups/ pairs to find out the ideas for the writing topic and produce an outline Teacher gives out the checklist And then students their own writing based on the format, ideas, the outline and the checklist Ex:  Unit 5: HIGHER EDUCATION –Writing a letter of request - Teacher asks students to read the model carefully and work out the format based on the model Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 475 Le Thanh Ton St, District Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam September 15th, 2012 Mr Micheal Swazz - The University of Birmingham Edgbaston ,Birmingham B15 2TT United Kingdom Dear Sir, I am interested in applying to an undergraduate course in Computer Science at the University of Birmingham in England so I am writing this letter to ask what the requirements are to be eligible for the course I would be very grateful if you could send me information about tuition fee, accommodation and exams Now I am in the last year of the high school and will finish secondary education in months And I have got 7.5 for the last IELTS test Could you please send me information as soon as possible so that I can start the course next year? I look forward to hearing from you soon, Yours faithfully, Nguyen Nhi Expected format: Heading - Writer’s address - Date of writing Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 10 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 + I am writing in reply to your advertisement in SAI GON times……… + I think I meet all the qualifications that you specify + I enclose a full curriculum vitae As you can see , I have had considerable experience as an………………… + I am very interested in …… + I’m rather keen on… + If you feel that my qualifications meet with your requirements , I shall be pleased to come for an interview……… + If you consider that qualifications and experience are suitable , I should be available for interview at any time Checklist Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 33 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 Checklist  The letter has parts  Your address is at the top of the right hand side of the page  Their address is on the left hand side of the page  The date is on the right hand side of the page, underneath your address  Paragraph to introduce yourself  Paragraph to explain why you are writing  It begins and ends in appropriate ways Ex: Dear sir /Madam, => Yours faithfully, Dear Mr Smith, => Yours sincerely,  All sentences begin with capital letters  There is a punctuation mark at the end of each sentence  All words are spelled correctly  The verbs are in correct tenses  Your signature - Students start to write the draft of the writing first, they can refer to the outline and the checklist - Students exchange their writing with their partners’ WHILE – WRITING (15 minutes) - Teacher asks students to write the draft of the writing first POST WRITING (12 minutes) - Teacher asks students to exchange their writing with their partners’ then correct the mistakes then correct the mistakes by using the checklist - Students read the partner’s comments in the draft and discuss with the teacher if they not agree with the comments Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 34 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 - Teacher asks students to take their own drafts back and read the comments - Teacher encourages the students to discuss about the comments Expected letter 324 PhanVan Thuan St Bien Hoa, Dong Nai 16th October, 2013 Hanoi Vinatour 259, Nguyen Du street, Hanoi HOMEWORK - Teacher asks the students to finish the letter at home Dear Sir or Madam, I am writing in reply to your advertisement in the Vietnam News for experienced Englishspeaking local guides to accompany foreign visitors on trip throughout Vietnam I think I meet all of the qualifications that you specify I was awarded High School Certificate two years ago After leaving high school, I worked as an accountant in a small travel agency for one year, where I was given a training course on tourism Then I had one year of experience as a tour guide so I know many tourist areas in Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 35 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 Vietnam and have a basic knowledge of Vietnamese culture, history and geography I speak English fluently In addition, I am a sociable and confident person and can work hard for long hours I would like to work for you and would appreciate the opportunity to discuss this position with you in person I am looking forward to hearing from you at your convenience Your faithfully, Nguyen Thanh Unit 11: BOOKS Part: Writing I Educational aims: By the end of the lesson, students will be able to write a description of a book Language: + Words related to the topic + The tenses + Connectors (time expressions) Skills: writing a book report II Method: Integrated, mainly communicative III Teaching aids: Posters, board, chalks, textbook, handouts,… IV Procedure: Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 36 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 Teacher’s activities WARM-UP (3 minutes): Students’ activities “WHO AM I ?” GAME - Teacher divides the class into two groups, chooses students in each group - Teacher prepares red cards and blue cards with the name of some famous books One of these is pinned to the back of each chosen - These student students try to discover their identity by asking yes-no questions - These students wander around, asking yes-no questions such as: + Was I written by Vietnamese writer? +Am I in “Ngu Van 12” ? + Have you studied me ? - Teacher leads to the new lesson: Today, you will learn how to write a description of a book you have read PRE- WRITING (14 minutes) a Brainstorming (5 minutes) - Teacher asks students to think of what they will write in a book report - Teacher divides the students into groups What information you want to mention in a book report Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 37 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 - Students discuss in groups to complete the chart BOOKREPORT REPORT BOOK - Some representatives give the answers Title Title Author Author BOOK BOOK REPORT REPORT Type Type Characters Characters Plot Plot Opinion Opinion - Teacher asks the students to give the format of a book report - Students work in groups to discuss Expected format of a book report General introduction: title , author Summary of the book’s Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 38 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 content: main theme, main characters, the plot of the book Conclusion: personal opinion Tenses: simple present or simple past Connectors: and, then, before, b Making outline (5 minutes) after,… - Teacher has the student write the outline of a book report - Students write the outline of a book report Expected outline: General introduction + the title of the book + the author + type of the book is it Summary of the book’s content + the setting of the book + the main theme of the story + the main characters + the plot of the story - Teacher gives feedback and comment Conclusion - Teacher can supply some useful expressions + your opinion of the book Useful expressions: + It was written by……………… + It is considered as a/an………… + It’s set in ………… Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 39 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 + The story is about + The main character is………… + The story has a/ an……………ending + I think the story is c Checklist (4 minutes) - Teacher provides and explains the checklist Checklist  The first line of the paragraph is indented  The title of the book  The author of the book  The setting of the book  The type of the book The main character Plot summary Your opinion  There is a concluding sentence  All sentences begin with capital letters  There is a punctuation mark at the end of each sentence  All words are spelled correctly  The verbs are in correct tenses and forms WHILE -WRITING ( 15 minutes) - Teacher asks students to write the draft of the writing first - Students start to write the draft of the writing first, they can refer to the outline and the POST WRITING (13 minutes) Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van checklist 40 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 - Teacher asks students to exchange their writing with the ones of the other groups, then correct the mistakes - Students exchange their writing then correct the - Teacher asks students to take their own drafts back and read the comments - Teacher encourages the students to discuss about the comments mistakes by using the checklist - Students read the comments in the draft and discuss with the teacher if they not agree with the comments HOMEWORK - Teacher asks the students to finish the book report at home An expected report: I would like to introduce you Frankenstein, a horror story It was written by Marry Shelley in 1818 Victor Frankenstein, a student from Geneva, is a person who discovers the secret of life He collects bones and bodies from graveyards, and constructs a creature which is more like a monster than a man: People are frightened of it The poor monster feels lonely and depressed because Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 41 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 he has no friends, so it asks Frankenstein to make it a wife He refuses to this Then the monster attacks and kills not only Frankenstein’s friends, but also his brother Frankenstein is heart-broken and is determined to kill the monster However, he is killed first by the monster, and then it kills itself Frankenstein is really an interesting story due to the strange character of monster Nowadays, teachers can use some softwares such as PowerPoint, e-mind map in teaching English to make the lessons more interesting Ex:  Unit 10: ENDANGERED SPECIES (CD included) Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 42 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh the Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 43 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 44 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 PART D: CONCLUSION Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 45 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 - I have applied these techniques for three years and realized some positive effects Since being guided carefully, my students can write better and feel more confident in writing They also learn more from both their teacher and their friends - Below is the result after my students are guided carefully The first test Class Number of 12A1 12A4 12A8 students 41 40 42 Mark and over total rate 12 14 17 29.2% 35% 40.5% Under mark total rate 29 26 25 70.8% 65.% 59.5% The third test Class Number of 12A1 12A4 12A8 students 41 40 42 Mark and over total rate 26 29 33 63.4% 72.5% 78.6% Under mark total rate 15 11 36.6% 27.5% 21.4% In short, teacher should combine teacher’s correction with peer correction Students can get great benefit from correcting each other’s work They can avoid making the same mistakes They can learn the way of expressing ideas in their friends’ writing Bien Hoa, May 15th, 2013 By Nguyễn Ngọc Khánh Vân REFERENCES Teaching Writing Skill (Donn Byrne)- Longman Handbooks for Language Teachers 1993 – ISBN 0582746515 Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 46 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade12 Writing tasks : an authentic-task approach to individual writing needs (David Jolly) - Cambridge University Press 1984 _ ISBN 0521289726 Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom (Tricia Hedge) - Oxford University Press 2000_ ISBN 9780194421720 Techniques in teaching writing (Ann Raimes)- Oxford University Press 1983 _ ISBN 9780194341318 Play Games With English (Colin Granger, John Plumb )- Macmillan Education _ ISBN 0435250183 Tiếng Anh 12 – NXB Giáo dục Việt Nam -2008 Thiết kế giảng Tiếng Anh 12 (Trần Thị Ái Thanh- Hồ Thị Tân Hoa )- NXB Đại học Quốc gia Hà Nội-2008 Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 47 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh [...]... Van 20 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 - Writer’s address - Date of writing - Receiver’s address 2 Greeting 3 Body 4 Closing 5 Signature - Teacher has the students outline the required letter, teacher supplies language input Expected outline of an informal letter 1 Heading - Writer’s address - Date of writing - Receiver’s address 2 Greeting Dear Mai, 3 Body - The.. .Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 - Receiver’s address 2 Greeting 3 Body 4 Closing 5 Signature - Teacher has the students outline the required letter, teacher can supply language input Expected outline of a request letter 1 Heading - Writer’s address - Date of writing - Receiver’s address 2 Greeting Dear + Sir or Madam, 3 Body a Introduction b Request c Further information... sentences begin with capital letters  There is a punctuation mark at the end of each sentence  All words are spelled correctly Nguyen Huu Canh highare school Nguyen Ngoc Khanh The verbs in correct tenses 26 Van  Your signature Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 III WHILE- WRITING Students begin to write their ideas referring to the outline and checklist individually/ in pairs or in groups... - Topic sentence 2 - Supporting ideas … III Conclusion - Giving opinion - Teacher has the students outline the description Expected outline of a chart description I Introduction (Introducing the topic) What the chart is about II Body (giving details) - Topic sentence 1 Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 14 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 It is clear from the chart... mentioned in an advertisement 2 PRE- WRITING (15 minutes) Activity 1 - Teacher asks students to work in pairs to read the ad carefully and fill in the notes + Type of job: - Students read the ad and fill in + Level of education needed: the notes + Work experience: + Character and interests: Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 29 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 VINATOUR... women are to gain social quality, they should first be liberated from familial responsibilities This can only be done if men lend a more helpful hand to women in doing domestic chores Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 13 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 Expected format: I Introduction (Introducing the topic) II Body (giving details) - Topic sentence 1 - Supporting ideas... high school Van 27 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 Warm-up (3’) (To increase motivation) Oral preparation /brainstorming (5’) Students make suggestion Edit the writing at home (Take comments from peer into consideration) Discuss comments with teacher (3’) (If not agree with the comments) Outline (5’) Students build up an outline Correct work (peer correction) (10’)... Skills: writing a letter of application II Method: Integrated, mainly communicative III Teaching aids: Posters, model letter of application, video clip, board, chalks, textbook, handouts,… IV Procedure: TEACHER’S ACTIVITIES Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 28 STUDENTS’ ACTIVITIES Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 1 WARM-UP (3 minutes) Aim: To motivate the students’ interest... three grades from grade 10 to grade 12 - GCSE Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 23 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 4 A school year: + two terms: term 1 (Sep-Dec), term 2 (Jan-May) - Teacher can provide the checklist Checklist  The first line of the paragraph is indented  The topic sentence ( There are two levels of education in Vietnam )  There is a concluding sentence... discuss in groups the outline of a letter of job - Teacher asks students to give the outline of a application letter of application - Some students give the answers 1 Address and date : Nguyen Huu Canh high school Van 31 Nguyen Ngoc Khanh Some effective ways in teaching writing – Grade1 2 • Your name, address and date of writing • Name and address of the company 2 Greeting: Dir Sir, / Madam, 3 Body : • Introduction: