500 hoạt động dành cho lớp học tiếng Anh cấp độ vỡ lòng

Cuốn sách bao gồm 500 hoạt động trong dạy và học tiếng Anh dành cho đối tượng là thầy cô giáo, phụ huynh của các bé bắt đầu học tiếng Anh. Cuốn sách được viết đơn giản, dễ hiểu dành cho việc dạy các bé tiểu học, mầm non. Hy vọng cuốn sách là nguồn tài liệu hữu ích cho các bạn và quý thầy cô.

Macmillan Books for Teachers

500 Activities

for the Primary

Classroom

ContentsAbout the authorAbout the seriesGeneral introductionSection 1: listening and speaking 17

section3:Vocabulary and grammar 85section 4: Storytelling and drama 114

section6: Rhymes, chants and songs 182

Section 8: Content based learning 236

Index:

language structures and grammar 310

8et"em To""ns Road, QxfordOX4JPP

A dMSlOtl of Macmillan Publishers LlIUlted

Allnghl$ rncned;110panOfthlSpubhcatlOll maybe

rqxvt!uced storedm mrienlsystml, tral1Sl111tledinMy

fOl'm.orbyanymeans.electronic, n=hanlcal pIIotocopying,

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thcpublrshcrs,

Onglnal design by Anthny Oodber

Illustrated by Kathy Baxnldale

Extraets·'Food Groups 'and '11u- Kal"rCJ'Cfe'fromThe

Magic Peocil wcbsltebyCarol Read and TImothyAckroyd

copynght (e)The British Council reprinted by penniSllion of

the pubhslln_GO/1lg/0fhe~-Words by Tom PUIOII

copyngblClI/ImlOnyMusic LimJtedICherry LancMusic Inc,

rqIIlnted bypmnissionof8ocks Music Group UK All nghlS

rewn·ed.AdapiMrbyme'IWiggle.t-6'F"rg~'fi'omBrighl

ldeali~Raoun:e.byUonono.\'lC:SandfrankJe

Labe,copynghlOLeononI>a\·iesandfrankiel t1be 1981,

rqIIlnledbypmnlSSlOIloftheauthon.Poml'''(}W -eOl"C,a·

byA.A.MJIne.copyright:CTheTrusteaofthePooh

I'ropertIC:S., publlS!ledbyEgmootUI<.,London.rqIIlllled by

pmnlSlllOllofTheTI\IStCC:S Extrae1from'AIanQg'ngClrUd1"Cr!

POIIII\-e!y'byCarol Read, c:opyright.O Keywa)" PublIShIfl8

limIted 2005,firM publislled in English Ttaehllli Professional

magazine May2005 www.etprofessionaJ.com.rqIIlntedby

permiSllionofthepublisher,AdaptnleJOtr.JCtSlTomllello

RobbyRobbll I Tcacher·sBookby Carol Read&;Ana Sober6n,

copyrighlC Macmillan Publishers limited2002, rqmnled by

permi"ion of the publisher Adapted extnlCts fromSIJpe, o,./d

I Teoche,.) Book byCarol Read and Ana Sobemn, copyright

CMacmillao Publishers Limited2000,rcprintedbypcrmission

of the publisher SongTwo Lil/!eB,merflies 'from Supcrwodd

/ Pupils Rook-by Carol Read and Ana Sober6n, copyright

OMacmillan J>ublishers Limitcd2000, reprintcd by permission

of the publishcr.Adaptcd song'Pmyo,,,liller m Ihebin! 'from

Superworld } Pupils Boot by Carol Read and Ana Sobcmn,

copyright CMacmillan Poblishers Limited 2000, reprlnledby

CarolRe~andAna Sober6n,oopynghl OMacrml1an Publ~Limlted2004.rtpnnledbypenrIlSStOnofthepublisher Photocopi.bkWorUbeets &omBNP I and Bugs 5

SpanIsh edl1lOll.bys.emsauthorsCaroI Rcad,AnaSoberOn.,E1iscndaPapioland ManaToth.,COJl)nglltCMacmillulPubhsbcrsLlmlltd2004and200SrespeCIJ\'ely,rtpruttedbypermlSlIOll of the pubhshcr Extract'PlaylMrotr>- .? Game' from EngllSlr CM, IStwkIt,sBootbyCarol Read andSagranoSabbcm, fU'P published by Hl:1nemann 1992.COJl)TighlOMarnullanPublisheJ's Limited rq,nnIed bypmmssion ofthe publISher Exh1K:1fromEnglislJ Cl"bl TeoclJUs BootbyCarol RcadandSaglarioSalaberri,firstpublished by Ikiocmaon 1993,copyrighICMllCmlllanPublishers Limited rcpnntedbypermission nfthe publisher.Adapted extl'3(:t fromMucllulla" Childrens Reader 'PenK"i",'

The RocelO Ihe$Qu/1JI'ole,original tCJOt by Lutber RClmer,oopyrightCMacmillanPublishcrsLimitcd2005.reprintedbypennission of the publisher Pocm '{'ma Grow" MO'l Now'

by Roger McGough, copyright C Roger McGough 1983,reprimedbypcrmiS!lionofPelerFrasc:rlllldDuolop,(www,pfd,co.uk)onbehalfofRogerMcGough.Adapledpoem

fromAc/;on Rhymes& Games from Bright Ideas for Early

Years series, copyright C MaxDeBoo 1992, reprinted bypmnlssion ofMn; MuDe Boo, Ex\nlCI from TheInceflli,-e

IW_o!n.CO'l'"Teochn£durolion byH,G Widdo" son,

copyrightCOJOford UmvmillyPras 1984, fltSl published IIIELT Joumall984, Volume 38 usedbypmnissiOll ofOxfordsUnl\erstIyPras Ex.trae1frorn 'MonhyPl=k"byJulllDooaldson andAJOeI Scheffin, copyright:C2000 PanMacmillan Childrm's8oob.reprintedbypmnission ofthepubhslln Extract from'Dror~'byRodCampbell,oopyngItI:02001Pan Maettll11all Childml's Books, rtpruttedb).pmnissionofthepubhslln.MMerialfrom7JteGn<ffido'

by Julll Dooaldson ""'AlIel Scheftkr,oopynght:C 1999 PanMacmJlianChJldrm's Books, rqIIlnted by pmnlSSlOOofthepublishtr-.Eli1Bctfrom7tJndc", PI , {Teoc'- Rnowu Mo/er-wl) 'by Carol Read andAlan MaltI)e ''S copyright

C Pcanon EducalJon 1991, rtpnnledbypmniSlliOll ofthepublisher Poems'A T1towand Ho;ry S7vnga'and '11 Baby

Sordine'bySplkeMilhgan.oopyright:CSpikeMilliganProdllCtioonsLimlled.,reprlntedbypcnnissiooofSplkeMilligan Prot!OC1J0n5 Limited Material reproduced fromTheU,oorfleF,nlCiXMbooIr'by~rmissionofUsOOmePublishing, 83·85 S3ffron Hill, London ECIN 8RT, UK www.usbome.eom, copyright C Usbome Publishing Limited 1981,1991,reprintcdbypermissionofthepublisher.AlthOllghwehavctnedlotraceandoontaclcopyrightholdenbeforepublicalion,III SOIneeasesthishasn01been posslblc.If

at theearliCSlopporlulllty

Printed in Thailand

2011201020092008

1098165432

Iom aneducational consultant, teacher trainer ond writerbased inMadrid I amalsoon assessor

of courses leading to the Cambridge ESOL youngleomer teocherqualificotlons, the CllTYL ond YLExtension 10 CllTA AsQteacher, I hove worked with young learners In several different countries,including Venezuela, Portugal ond Spain Teacher education has long been one ofmy main Interestsand I hove mony years' experience working with teachers, teacher trainers ond educational managersin0wide range of contexts in both the private ond stale sectors I have also frequently run teachereducation courses for organizations such astheBritish Caundl ond the Council of Europe,aswellas

Mini5tries of Education ond other leaching Institutions, in many different countries in Europe, LallnAmerica ond Asia Overthe years, I have (o-authored several coursebooks(Including0 mulU-mediaproject,Bugs,which won a British Council Innovation Award) as well as written supplementarymaterials and numerous articles about teaching children,

Thanks

Thisbook reflects over twenty years of working with children and owes much to the many people whohaveshapedmy thinking andclassroompractice both directly and indirectly I would specially like

to acknowledge and thank the following people who, through their books, conference sessions and/

or seminars, have hadatangible influenceatparticularly formative times: Lynne Cameron, BruceCampbell, Robert FIsher, Howard Gardner, Edie Garvie, Carolyn Graham, the late Suson Halliwell, andPennyUr

In turningclassroomexperience Into a book, I would like to thank theseriesEditor, Adrian Underhill,and everyone at Maanlllan who have given mesomuch help: in particular, Kate Melliss for hercommitment to the project; Anna Cowper for her sensitivity in helping to shape the moteriollnitlallyQnd for her support throughout; lill norent for her wise gUidance and understanding at every stage ofwriting and for her dedicated help on the Index; and Alyson Maskell for her superbly insightful andmeticulous editing,Iwould also Ilke to thank Karen White for managing the editorial process, BalvlrKouro for managing the design, Hazel Barrett for managing the perrnlsslons and Cindy Kauss for verykindly stepping in beyond the call of duty to help with these

Huge thanks are also due to the follOWing colleagues for generously contributing their expertise andinsight in comments on draft versions of the introductions to different sections: Kay Bentley, Gall81is, Or lanet Enever, Chris Etchells, layne Moon, Shelogh Rixon and SCott Thombury, although anyremaining shortcomings areofcourse myown.Ishould also like to thank the two anonymous readers

of the draft for their useful feedback and constructive odvice

last but not least, very special thanks to my family - to my husband, Alan Matthews, whoactedas aninitial reader of the introductions toeach section and who, together with our (now grown up) children,lamie and Hannah,gaveme constant encouragement and support, and without whom the book mightnever have got beyond being an idea

Dedication

fort'Very teacher who triestobring out the bestInevery child.

About the series

Macmillan Books for Teachers

Welcome to Macmillon Books for Teachers The lilies are written by acknowledged and innovativeleaders in each field to help you develop your teaching repertoire, practical skill and theoreticalknowledge

Suited to newer and experienced leachers, the series combines the best of classic teaching methodologywith recent cutting-edge developments [nsights from academic research Ofe combined with hands-onexperience to create books which focus on real-world teaching solutions

We hope you will find the ideas in them a sourceofinspiralion in your own teaching and enjoyment inyourprofessionalleaming

Roger Gower, Diane Phtllips&Steve WaIters

Teaching Reading Skills

General introduction

Noprinted word TIfX spoken plea

Can/eochyoong minds what thty shouldbe.

NoI all the booksonall/he shelves

But what the teachers ore themseWfi.

RUOYARD KIPUNG

There aretwophrases which are quite commonly used

by teachers, as if they were in SQme way conclusive.

One ofthem is 'Tt works' The ,eaction to this ought

always10be'Why?' The fact that something works

isno more interesting Ihan the (act Ihot something

does not work Whatweneed10doin both cases is

to enquire about the conditions for sucressor failure,

and lomoke them as eAplicit as possible so thol they

can be tested by a/her teachersindifff'T'l"nt teaching

situations Theph~'ItWOfb'mould mOlt the

~Jnningo(enquily, not its condusion.

Hl;NRY W10OQW5ON I

1 About the book

Aiml of the book

This book is a compendium of activities for

primary language teachers of children aged 4-12

The main aims are:

• to proVide a wide-ranging resource of practical

ideas which are easy touse and which canbe

adapted flexibly and creatively in different

contexts and situations

• to provide support for primary language

teachers in their own professional development

through encouraging them touse the activities

as a springboard for personal investigation

and enquiry Into what 'works' for them In their

own classes

Whothe book is for

The book Is suitable for:

• primary language teachers working in the

state or private sectors

• candidates following teacher education courses

such asthe Cambridge ESOLCELTYI , the YL

Extension to CEllA and Ihe Trinity Certificate

inITSOl

• language teachers who have been trained 10

teach adults and who ore beingasked to teach

children for the first time

Theapproac.hofthebook

The main approach oflhe book is 10 provideimmediate, workable ideas and50lutions to theperennial question ofWhat011earth om I going

ta do with mycfasstomOfl'OW? Parallel to this, the

approach emphasizes developing on awareness

of the complex factors involved in workingeffectively with classes af children and laying asolid foundation In primary language teachingskills

The activities are deSigned to take into accountthe learning and development of the whole child,rather than Simply to provide0series of'redpes'for narrowly focused language practice This Isreflected in the aims and procedures, os well as inthe comments and suggestions that follow eachactivity, and in the scope of the Index, which also

as well as language, topics and lexical sets Theactivities are designed tobeused creatively and togenerate a range of further personalized teachingideas.Theyare also designed to act as a guideand support in developing your own criteriafor selecting and usIng activities appropriately

in class

Descriptionofthe materialsGeneral introductionThisIs divided Into two parts The first poll,

Aboullhebook,indudesanoutlineoftheairnsand approach,as well as a brief description ofthe materials and how tousethe book The

second part, Working with children, contains

sections on creating optimal conditions forchildren's learning, managing children positivelyand general guidelines for setting up and usingactivitles in class

Sections of the bookThe book is divided Into ten sections which reflectkey areas In primary language teaching Theseare:Listening and speaking, Reading and writing, Vocabulary and grammar, Storytelling and drama, Games, Rhymes, chants and songs,Artandcroft,

C01Itent·based learning, /CTandmulfi-media,and

Learningfalearn Each section introduction gives

onoverviewofmethodologicollssues related tothe topic and invites you to reflect, anolyze and

from doing the activities.

Activities within each section

The activities ore organized to reflect the topic

and titleofthe section 10 which they belong

However, there Is also some overlap between the

sections in the sense that, for example, listening

skills (section I) ore also developed through

activities in other sections such asStorytelling

and drama(section 4) andRhymes, chants and

songs(section 6); reading and writing skills

ore also developed through activities In other

sections such as Content-based learning(Section

8) andfCT and multimtdia(Section 9) Similarly,

activities which involve drama ore also included

InGames(Section 5) andRhymes, chams and

songs(5ectlon 6) and activities which contribute

to the development of children'sVocabulary and

grammar(section 3) also appear in several other

sections of the book

Overall, throughout the sections, there Is 0

balance in activities suitable for children of

different ages and levels This balance varies

depending on the section For example, the

sections onReading ondwritingandICT and

multimediacontain fewer activities for very

young children, whereas the sections onRhymes,

chants and songsandStorytelling and drama

contain more For each activity, information is

given under the following headings: ltvel, age,

organization, ainu, language focus, materials,

procrdure, COfflmemsand~stions.TIme Is not

included os part of this information since this Is

very variable and depends on the level and ogeof

the children, the size of the class, as well asother

factors relevant to individual activities suchas

the number of vocabulary items inagame or the

length ofastory or text

level The level ofactivities iSSpedfied in relation

to the Council of Europe's Common European

Framework (CEF) bands and these are sub-divided

IntoAI.I, AI.2.A2.1, A2.2, BI.I, Bl.2 However,

since the CEF has~ndeveloped with older

learners In mind and the learning contexts and

domains for children are somewhat different,

and likely to be more limited in scope, this

specification Is approXimate The levels given for

activities In each section are those that children

ore currently working towards, and not levels

which they hove actually attained Forexample,

bedone by children who ore almost completebeginners and just beginning to work towardslevel A1.1, rather than having already reached it

In terms of recognized public Yl exams whichchildren may be working towards, the specifiedlevels correspond In the following way: levelAI.1~equivalentto Cambridge ESOl Starters orTrinity ESOlGrade I; level Al.2-toCambridge

- to Trinity ESOl Grade 3; and levelAl.2-toCambridge ESOl Ryers and Trinity ESOl Grade

4 Level 81.1 Is equIvalent ta Trinity ESOlGrade

5 and level BI.2 to Cambridge ESOl PreliminaryEnglish Test and Trinity ESOl Grade 6.Age Each activity Includes theagerange forwhich it is likely to be appropriate It needs to

bestressed, however, that this is likely to vary In

different contexts and cultures, depending on

a range offactors such as theagechildren startschool and the approach to literacy in their firstlanguage (ll) For many activities,theage rangespecified Is quite brood,eg6-12 This indicatesthat the some technique or procedure may besuitable for different ages depending on either thematerials used, or the way It is realized, or both.Organization This explains how each activity

Is oqJOnized,egwhole class, pairs Alternativeforms oforganization ore also given, whereappropriate, in the comments and suggestionswhich follow each activity

Aims The aims specified for each activity Includelanguogealms as wellasbrooder educationalaims suchascognitive, content, sodal andattitudinal aims Through considering learningalms In 0 holistic way, activities go beyond thenarrow confines of Isolated language practice andtake into account children's overall educationand development In 0 more rounded way.language focus This shows the main languagethat children will use dUring an activity Wherealternotive language may be used, this Is alsostated and additional explanations proVided inthe comments and suggestions as necessary.Materials These ore designed to be easilyavailable andJoreasyto prepare Photocopying

is not usually necessary Examples of materials touse or adopt ore frequently proVided, includingsample texts, simple Illustrations, diagrams, grids

or mind mops to copy

example, puppets, real objects or other props are

also suggested

Procedure The procedure for activities is set out

in steps which areeasyto follow and/or adapt in

ways which are suitable for your class In some

cases, the procedure described is for a generic

activity, illustrated by an example, which you can

then either use or apply in otherways

Comments and suggestions These include

of the activity, guidelines and tips for doing it

successfully in class, ideas for variations and

follow· ups, suggestions of whenitmay be

appropriate to use the activity and ideas for

adopting it for older or younger children and/or

different levels

The Index

The Index is arranged into four alpQabelically

organized sections:Language, Topics and lexical

sets, Learning skills and attitudes, Activity titles The

Index is designed to help you identify and select

appropriate activities The inclusion of learning

skills and attitudes as part of the Index underlines

the relevance of these in children's overall

education and learning References to these link

in with the alms which are specified for activities

Further reading

Suggested further reading is included on page 320

How to use the book

The baokcan be used in a number of ways

If you wanta general overview of a range of

methodological issues on different topics related

to leaching children, then you might like to read

the general introduction first, followed by the

introductions to each section, and familiarize

yourself with the kind of issues and activities

that each one contains.As a compendium, the

book can be used flexibly to supplement a wide

range of course books and syllabus-types (eg

structural, functional, story, content- or

topic-based) and dipped into whenever you wont ideas

for activities

You con find what you need easily, either by

looking in a specific section or under an

appropriate heading in the Index For example,

if youhavedecided to use a specific story book

with the childrenand are looking for ideas of how

to exploit it, then it willbe best to go directly to the

activities that you think will be most suitable If,

on the other hand, you ore doing a specific topicwith the children, eg rainforests, or a unit of workwhich focuses on a particular lexical set, eg portsofthe body, oran aspect of grammar,eg

comparative adjectives, thenyou can find

potentially suitable activities to use by lookingthese up in the Index Alternatively,you can also

use the Index to access activities which developparticular cognitive skills, eg classifying, or

eg collaborating, or activities which developchildren's confidence and self·esteem.Before using on activity in class,you might like

to read the general guidelines for setting up andusing activities (seeGeneml guidelines on pages

14-15).After using one or more activities from

o particular section, you might like to reflect,analyze and evaluate the children's response

to the activity, and your own, by answering thequestions inReflection time which ore included at

the end of the introduction to each section Thesequestions ore also suitable to use as the basis ofworkshop discussions with colleagues If you getinto the habit of regular refl«:tion as on integralpart of the way you approach teaching-learningprocesses with children,you will find that over

time you will build up conscious awareness ofyour own personal theories of teaching andlearning In this way you will develop a set ofprincipled beliefs about what 'works' best inyour classroom which is rooted in your ownprofessional practice

2 Working with children

Creating optimol conditions for children's leorning

There is no definitive research evidence oruniversol agreement about the bestage to start

learning 0 foreign language and, as has beensaid 2, it is optimal conditions rather than anoptimalage which counts All children are

unique in what they bring to the classroomand in their ability to process information andlearn through different facets of their MultipleIntelligences3 They are also unique in theirpersonal preferences and emerging learningstyles Whether youoreworking with four-year-aids or twelve-year-olds orany age in between,

youmay like to consider the ingredients of the

to creole optimal conditions in order to maximize

children's looming and enable everyone in your

dossesto blossom and thrive, bothasengaged,

responsible learners andas people

Educolion&cullurol

context

Figure1TheC·Wheel

The C-Wheel takesasits starting polnl the

centrality of the child and the child's learning.I1

is made upof elghl prindpal segmenls showing

a range of factors which contribute to creating

optimal conditions for children's language

looming A1llhe ingredients of the C-Wheel

slart with Ihe lener'C', hence the name There

are also subordinate'C' ingredients included in

the description ofsome segments The C-Wheel

segments clockwise round the wheel are as

follows:

IContext

Children make sense of the world and of

language Ihrough the context they find

themselves in Children pay for more anentlon

to the whole situation Ihan to language, and the

younger Ihey are, the truer this iss,ItIsonly as

children gel older Ihat Ihey are able 10 deal with

dlsembedded language, and thiS Is often one of

Ihe problems wilh the lransition from primary to

secondary school The conlext in which children

carryoul activities in the primary classroom

needs to:

• be natural, real or understandable

• be relevant and make sense 10 the child

meaning

• allow for learning to be active and experiential

• encourage the use oflanguogeasa vehicle to

do things which have0real purpose

• support children's understanding, for example,

In the way visuals in a story book or bodylanguage, mime and gesture cando

2ConnectionsOptimal conditions for learning may be createdwhen you actively look to buik! in connectionswithin and between lessons In a number of ways.These include connections:

• to other areas of learning,egscience, moths(that Is, when you build in realcontent, another

'C'ingredienl)

• to the child's reollife experience01home and

at school

• to the way the child's life, language andculture

(also a 'C' ingredient) compores and relates 10English-speaking peoples and cultures

• to what has gone before and what will follow inthe teaching-learning sequence

• between what the child already knows, aboutthe language and'about the world, and whal is

to be learnt

• between what is learnt and howit is learnt

(thalls, when there is also on integrated focus

on helping children leam how 10 learn(see5ection 10)

3 CoherenceCoherence isa factor In creating optimalconditions for learning in both the short andlonger term One way of making learningcoherent Is through creating meaningfulcontexts and making connections to otherareas of children's learning and experience inways described above In terms of the internalcoherenceofwhalls being learnt,itis importantIhat learning should never seem bitty orfragmenled 10 chlldren At the same time, 11needs to be broken down inlo appropriatelysequenced steps, so that children don'l feeloverwhelmed Over the course of the primaryyears It is Important 10 ensure that Ihere oreplenty of opportunities for children 10 acquire andlearn language In meaningful, comprehensibleand supponed ways You also need 10 ensure thatlearningdoes not become fossilized at the level of

patterns and regularities in the language system

grodually emerge once the child is conceptually

ready10pera'ive them (see also introduction to

section 3)

Coherence Is also achieved when activities

provide reasons for doing things that children con

undersland and perceive os relevant, and when

the relationship of the outcomes to Iheir own

learning Is made explicit and explained (see also

introduction to Section 10)

4Challenge

It Is Important to gel the level and balance of

Ungulstic and cognitive challenge right for

children (andcognitionis another C-Ingredient

here).lfactivitiesaretooeasy, children will

simply become bored, de-motivated and possibly

disruptive If activities are 100 difficult, children

ore likely to become anxious, and also

de-motivated and possibly disruptive

The cancept of the zone of proximal

development (ZPO)6 (see figure 2)ishelpful In

pitching activities and learning sequences at an

appropriate level of challe'nye for children In

on everyday classroom conlext, theZPD con be

paraphrased simply os the gap between a child

being able to oorry out on activity without any

help or support and an activity which is Simply

out of reach for the child01the moment and

cannot be attempted without gUidance from

someone whoismore knowledgeable or skilled

ZI'O

Actuol clevelopmenlollevelos determined

byindependent problem-solving

Figure2 ThelPD (basedonVygotslcy,1978: 76)

There is no point teaching below the bottom of

theZPD because the child oon already function in

o compelent and independent way here and no

new learning will take place Equally there is no

point leaching above the top of the ZPD because

level of competence is too great In this way thefor situating the level of challenge in activitiesthat may be appropriate for children at anyone time - activities which stretch and extendlearning, but at the $Clme time are also achievableand allow for success

'Flow'1isanOlher relevant factor in relation

to challenge and creating optimal conditionsfor children's language learning 'Flow' Is10do with feeling emotionally positive andmotivated lowards a learning activity and yourown performance It's the feeling you havemay have to do suchoswriting a report oranessay, or even preparinga lesson! 'Flow' Iso

kind of feeling towards an activity and your ownperformance that says something along the linesof'yes·it's-o-dlallenge-but-l'm-into-it-and-I'm-detennined-to-do-it-and-I'II-feel·great-when-l·do-it' Preconditions for creating 'flow' have beendescribedos'a perfect balance between availableskills and challenges'S When children experienceand self·motivatlon towards their own learning.This drives and inspires them from within, ratherthan as a result of any external reword, and con

be a powerful motor for sustaining perslslenceand effort in learning over Ihe longer term.When the level of challenge is right andchildren experience 'flow', this leads10a sense

of achievement and success As the $Clylnggoes,

'success breeds success', and this in turn helps tobuild upconlidena (another C-ingredient) and

self-esteemand also often to positively Influencebehaviaur and heighten levels of performancel~.

5 CuriosityClosely related to the conceptsofchallenge and'flow',itis also Important to arouse and maintainchildren's curiosity, to generale a desire to learnand find out about Ihings and to make the act oflearning interesting, relevant and enjoyable Inits own right In order to maximize learning weneed to sustain children's interest and curiosity inappropriate age-related ways This curioslly oonextend10all kinds of topies, as well as10otherpeople, cultures and language itself The way yourealize different classroom techniques, activitiesand procedures should provide opportunities

experimental.ilshould also create a climale

in which asking questions and finding out for

yourself is encouraged rather Ihan suppressed

6 Care

Another essential foetor in creating optimal

conditions for learning is the affective climate

created in children's learning environment As

has been said, 'Children don't care how much

we know untillhey know how much we care.'9

All children need to feel treated and cared about

as individuals rather than asagroup to be

controlled In large classes this may sometimes

be difficult, butcanbe got round by developing

strategies for finding time for personalized

moments in which you can convey that you know

and care about each child (see alsoRelationships

p.ll andRespect p.13).

Core for children also manifests itself in the

extent and nature of the support you give

children while they are learning Scaffolding 10

is the metaphorical term often used to describe

anyone time 10 make it possible for Ihe child 10

progress from imitating, repealing or copying,

to being able 10 perform more compelently and

independently, in other words 10 cross the ZPD

referred to earlier In language classes, support

or scaffolding for children's understanding and

developing language use maybeprovided by, for

example,

• using visuals and real objects

• using mime and gesture

• modelling processes to carry oul activities

• recasting and expanding children's language

in a natural way

• providing opportunities for rehearsal and

experimentation

• asking questions appropriately

• responding to children's meaning

• providing encouraging feedback

• appropriate and constructive praise

Using positive language is another important

factor in creating an environment of care You

may like to reflect on the number of negative

or critical comments, as opposed to positive or

supportive comments, Ihal you give children

during lessons In the findings of a small-scale

receive 460 negative or critical comments and

Through thinking about ways in which we cancomment positively and supportively aboutwhat children are doing appropriately or gettingright, rather than focusing and commenting

on what they are not doing approprtately orgetting wrong,itis possible 10 create 0 shift inthe emphasis of care we give children This canpotentially have 0 hugely beneficial impact both

on their attitudes and their learning

7 CommunityCommunity is the superordinate (or Ihreeother important C.ingredients:communication, collaboratioll and cooperation In order 10 create

optimal conditions for learning, we need to worktowards creating a sense of community in theclassroom where:

• activities are shored experiences and events

• children are encouraged to cooperate andcollaborate, and to help and respect eoch olher

• diversity is positively valued and Ihere isrecognition that all children will contributeand participate in uniquely different ways

• there is natural and real interaction andcommunication in a social environment

• children are given opportunitiestQrespond inpersonal, divergent ways and to choose whatthey wont to say ordo

8 CreativityThe mention of personalized, divergent responsesleads naturaIIyto the last, but not least, segment

of the wheel - creativity All children come to classwith creative potential,anddeveloping creativethinking skllls as an integral part of languagelessons:

• allows 'hidden talents' to emerge

• increases personal investment and ownership

- thus helping learning to become morememorable

• develops fluency and flexibility in thinking

• allows for humour and fun

Oppommities for creativity are often lost aschildren get older In order to create optimalconditions for learning, we need to includeactivities which develop creativity, fantasy andofpnmary-aged children and which con lead

to positive new learning Even when childrenonly have very limited linguistic competence in

develop creativity, fantasy and imagination (see

references to developing creative thinking skills in

the Index for some examples) and the outcomes

are frequently both inspired ond inspiring

Around the C-Wheel

Teoching and learning never take place in

a vacuum Around the edge of the C-Wheel,

therefore, are factors which provide the

parameters and filters for shaping the ways in

which optimal conditions for learning may be

realized appropriately in different cultures and

contexts

As a reflective activity, you may like to think

teaching and children's learning where you

currently work As you use the activities in the

book, you may also like to extend, adapt or

reinvent the C-Wheelto show the factors that,

from your own experience ofclassroom practice,

seem to provide optimal conditions for children

learning in your context

Managing children posihvely

The main aim of managing children positively

is to create and maintain a happy working

environment in which the norms and rules of

classroom behaviour are respected and children

are engaged in purposeful activity and feel secure

and motivated to learn Maintaining a balance

between children's enjoyment and acceptable

behaviour is often one of the greatest challenges

primary language teachers face

As children move up through the primary years,

it can be helpful to see classroom management as

acontinuum At one end of the continuum, with

very young children, classroom management

is essentially implicit, with the main focus on

socializing children who ore new to 0 school

environment This includes establishing

learning routines and the formation of good

habits, such as loorning to pay attention and

learning to share By contrast, at the other end

of the continuum, once children ore in upper

primary and familiar with school life, classroom

management con be much more expliCit, with

well-established expectations of behaviour, and

reference to rules and norms which children

understand and are largely willing to accept

With any age group, however, it is important

tobe aware that managing children positively

isa complex, interactive process in which a

patterns of behaviour ore built up over lime Aspart of managing classes of children positively,

it is important to take initiatives to establishclear working parameters as soon as you meet

a new class for the first time In order to do this,you may find it useful to consider the seven'R's 12: Relationships, Rules, Routines, Rights,Responsibilities, Respect and Rewords

Relationships

The relationships that you establish with the class

as a whole, and with the individuals that make

up each class, lie at the heart of establishing ahealthy and happy working environment andsurvey conducted with children between theages ofsix and eleven in Spain 13, children mostfrequently identified qualities of good teachingthat reflected their relationship with the teacher.These included someone who is fair, patient,caring, affectionate, kind, funny, listens toyou, helps you, makes you work, treats you as

a 'person' tells you off if necessary, but doesn'tget angry or shout These qualities, identified

by children themselves, prOVide a useful basisfor thinking about the kind of relationships youintend to establish with your classes Althoughevery teacher has their own unique personalityand 'teaching persona' and will go aboutestablishing relationships in different ways, thefollOWing general points help in getting off to apositive start

• Learn the children's names as soon as you canand always use them

• Avoid having favourites (or at least make surethat this doesn't show)

• Listen to what children have tosoy.(Ifachild wanls to tell you something at anInappropriate moment, postpone till later butthat you're not really interested.)

• Build up children's confidence and self-esteemand encourage them to belleve they cansucceed

• Be patient if you need to explain org[veinstructions more than once

• Create lime for personalized moments in

which you convey that you know and care

abouteachchild as an individual This may

be, for example at the start or end oflessons,

children are working individually.

• Madel behaviour that you would also like the

children to adopt For example be polite and

you ask them to do things, smile and greet

them whether in or out of the classroom

• Use praise apprapriately to provide

constructive feedback and encourage

participation and effort

• Use inclusive language egLet'sH 'I Today we're

going 10

• Use humour and show a sense offun

• Be fair and firm about enforcing rules and

insisting on children's adherence to classroom

norms,

• Keep calm at all limes; try not to raise your

voice or shout

• [fyou tell a child off, make it clear it's their

behaviour that you don't like, not them

• Be consistent [fyou say that you or the class

will do something make sure it happens

• Mark and retum work promptly Be

constructive in your comments and respond to

language accuracy or spelling

As you develop your relationship with different

classes and children, it isa good idea to get into

the habit of monitoring yourself and how things

are going Through reflection and analysis of your

behaviour you can actually change), you will

be able to identify aspects of this that make your

relationships work better and produce 0 more

positive response in the children

Rules

Rules may either be imposed by the institution or

established as port of your working parameters

Itis usually best to have as few rules os possible

and to make sure that the rules themselves, egWe

must put up our hands ifwe wan! to speak, os well

as the rMsons for the rules.eg/fweall talk 01 once

no-onelistens 10 what we have to say, are clear to

everybody

Itis important that any rules you establish are

perceived as fair by the children and that you con

actually enforce them For example, 0 rule which

statesWe must always speak English in class may,

at some moments, be perceived as unfair by the

they desperately need to say.Itmay also atlimes be neither desirable nor possible for youformulated differently, egWe musl ask if we need taspeak Spanish (May1speak Spanish, please?) may

be more effective, This version of the rule will notonly establish English as the main language ofcommunication in the classroom but will alsoencourage the children to think twice beforegiving you a signal that they need to resort totheir mother tongue

The most effective rules are ones which areexpressed using inclusive language(our rules

forour classroom) and for which the children

feel ownership It also helps when rules can beorder to highlight desired behaviour For example,

in a rule such as Wemustn't shout in our classroom,

the immediate association is to think of shouting,wherMs ifitis expressed positively, egWe must talk quielly in our classroom the same rule is more

likely to work to better effect

The best way to establish rules as part of yourworking parameters is to involve the children indecisions about which ones will apply Dependingyou use to do this can vary (see 10.14 for anexample)

Routines

Routines are established pattems of behaviour inwhich everyone knows what is expected of themand what they should do The introduction ofclassroom routines is instrumental in setting upworking parameters which function effectivelywith all ages With very young children they play

a particularly important role In order to introduceand establish routines successfully, you need tohave a clear plan of the arMS these will cover andthe form they will take For example, you may like

to think of routines for such things as:

• greeting the children

• takingtheregister

• starting lessons

• getting into pairs or groups

• moving from one port of the classroom toanother

• doing particular activities,egones involvingmovement or stories

• starting and stopping activities

• giving out and collecting in materials

• looking at and/or correcting children's work

• collecting in and returning homework

• going to the toilet

• tidyingup

• ending lessons

Familiar routines help to make children feel

promote cooperation as, for example, when we

all help tidy up together They also foster asense

of community and belonging, in thesensethat

we 011 know and share the way we work and

do things together in the classroom Routines

con olso ploy on important role in providing

opportunities for natural language acquisition

For example, in 0 routine at the start oflessons

where you ask and talk about the weather,

over time children will naturally acquire the

language to do this without being formally

taught As children become Increasingly famillar

with routines and what is expected of them at

different stages of learning, they act with greater

autonomy This helps you to manage your dasses

positively.Italso helps save your energy and

voice (highly important if you ore teaching full·

time) as, In some areas at least, once routines ore

established, children will only need 0 prompt to

knowwhat to do

Rights and responsibilities

Rights and responsibilities are often two sides

of the some coin Here ore some examples from

the children's perspective.Ifyou have theright

to tain in the lesson, then you also have the

responsibilifyto remember to bring your books.If

youhave therightto speak In the classroom and

have others listen to you, then you also have the

responsibility to listen to others when they do the

some If you have therightto use the classroom

scissors, crayons and glue, then you also have

theresponsfbilitytoshare them with others when

they need to use them as well.Ifyou have theright

to hove 0 turn in games, then you also have the

responsibility to respect the turns of others when

they ploy If you hove therightto see the pictures

when the teacher tells a story, then you also have

the respomlbilify not to block the view of others If

you have therightnot to be mocked or laughed at,

or lough at others, and so on

Althoughitis unlikely to be appropriate totalk about rights and responsibilities explidtlywith children, it is Important to model throughyour own behaviour the way you value these.Forexample, with responsibilities, if a childconstantly forgets their book, it may be necessaryfor the teacher to issue frequent reminders andreprimands However, what typically happens isthat on theoneday the child remembers to bringtheir book the teacher maywennot comment atall If you wish to positively reinforce the child'ssense of responSibility in this area then you need

to show explidtly that you value this A quietword of praise.egWell doneforremembering your book today, Juan! is much more likely to reinforce

the behaviour you want than saying nothing,which may leave the child wondering why hebothered to bring hisbook.anyway or whetheryou even noticed or cared

Similarly with children's rights, it is important

to show through your behaviour that you valuethese and ore wUllng to protect them If, forexample, a child mocks or laughs at anotherchild in the doss, you need to make it dear thatthis behaviour is completely unacceptable In thiscase, itmayalso be worth explidtly discussingthe reasons for this, pos5ibly in a private momentafter the closs, and Inviting the child to considerthe situation from the other child's point ofviewbyasking how they would feel if the samehappened to them In encouraging children toreflect on their behaviour and see things fromothetS' point of view, they are more likely to acttowardsothetS in 0 responsibleway.

Respe<t

Respect is the glue which holds together all theother 'R's Respect cannot be taught explidtlybut it can be modelled In 011 your behaviour,such as using the children's names, being polite,respecting personal space valuing diversity,recognizing that children contribute andpartidpote in dIfferent ways and understandingthat they have feelings and 'off days' just likeyou The most important thing about fostering

an atmosphere of mutual respect as part ofmanaging children positively is to remember thatrespect works two ways If the children feel thatyou respect and treat them like individuals ratherthan 0 dass to control, they will also respect and

collective group mentality which is always much

harder to manage positively

Rewards

[t is usually best not to use any system of extIinsic

rewards to raise motivation levels and/or ensure

opositive message that you expect everything

some classes when introducing 0 reword system

can be an effective way to reinforce appropriate

behaviour and/or to add an additional,

motivational, feel-good factor to things that are

already going well

Reward systems can be devised in all kinds of

different enjoyable ways, eg using stars, stickers,

points, smiley faces, raffle tickets or marbles in

collaboration, appropriate behaviour and

individual as well as class effort However, if

used without core, they may alsohove the

opposite effect and create a divisive atmosphere

become obsessed by collecting stars or points, or

whatever it is, while others adopt a strategy of

opting out, which has a correspondingly negative

class

The kinds of reward systems which generally

work most effectively are ones where individuals

are rewarded and the reward contributes

cumulatively to a prize which is won by the

whole class For example, in the case of collecting

marbles in a jar, individual children, pairs or

groups may be awarded marbles dUIing lessons

for, for example, working well, making an effort

to speok English, helping others, completing their

work carefully As soon as the jar is filled with

marbles, the whole class gets a pIize This may

be something assimple os watching a favourite

video, haVing a quiz, playing a favourite game,

or whatever else you and the children choose

The jar for the marbles should not be too big,

so that the pIize or pay-off is attainable over a

reasonably short peIiod of time, eg a week or,

maximum, two Ifittakes a whole lerm (a long

time in the life of a child!) to fill up the jar and

earn the prize or pay-off, then they are likely to

lose interest and enthusiasm When giving a

reward, this is best done instantly as on ongoing

part of your teoching, so that the association

fresh in the children's mind, egGreat work, Daniel and Anlonio./ only heard Englishinthe game! Two marbles in the jar for youl

The effect of individuals collecting rewards for thebenefit of the whole class creates an atmosphere

in which there is positive peer pressure to make

an effort, work well and produce appropIiatebehaviour A collaborative reword system likethis con also be mode fun by your challenging theclass, egCan youfillfhe jar by Friday? / don'llhink so!Show me I'm wrong!

If you do decide to use a reward system such asthe one above, it is0good ideo to regularlyvary

the system you use for accumulating rewards,

eg marbles, raffle tickets, stars,os, if you always

use thesome, it is likely after0while 10 lose itsassociations of pleasant expectation, surpIiseand fun It is also essential always to use rewardsystems in the positive way In which theyore

intended, ieos rewards, rather than negatively or

punitively, for example, by taking, or threateningbeen awarded

When planned for and implemented together,the seven 'R's provide an integrated frameworkfor managing children positively and creating ahappy working environment in which teachingand leorning take place in an effective andharmonious way As a reflective activity, you maylike to note or think of practicalways in which

you can implement the seven 'R's in your ownclasses

General guidelines for setting up and using a(tivities

Once youhove selected the activity oractivities

youore going to use in class, the follOWing is a

general checklistofthings youmayneed to do:

• Prepare the language you will use to set upactivities before going into class

• Use 0 familiar signal to get the children'sattention (this may be a gesture, a tambourine,

o clop of thehands, 0bell,0rhyme, slanding

in0spedal place or putting on a special hot)

• Wait until everyone is quiet and attentivebefore starting to explain what 10 do Try

anduse neutral body language and facialexpressionos you do this Don't give up - at

least one child will notice that you are waiting

to start and do your management for you

purpose orthe activity, egWe're going 10

play a game/do agroup survey / act oul a role

play in order 10

• Establish or create a context and use this

as an opportunity to, for example, pre-teach

vocabulary, elicit what children know,

encourage them to predict or guess answers,

etc

• Divide the class into pairs, groups or

teams, if this is relevant for the activity Use

gesture, names and/or numbers ta reinforce

children's understanding of intended

groupings and to show the physical

organization if necessary, eg if children

need to turn round their chairs

• Give clear Instructions appropriate to

the language level ofthe children Keep

instructions short and chunked Into

stages Use simple language patterns and

accompany your Instructions by gesture,

mime orvlsuals to clarify meaning

• Demonstrate how the activity works In

practice In the case of a palrwork game,

for example, this may mean Inviting one or

two children to the front of the class either to

play part of the game with you or each other

while the rest see how it works, or playing

the game with the whole dass once or twice

before they play In pairs

• Check that the children understand what to

do before they start the activity Ifrelevant,

It Is also worth double-checking that they

know their partner, group, team or role.If

you speak the children's Ll but don't want

to use it yourselfin doss, you may like to

ask a child to tell you the instructions briefly

in their own language This enables you to

check the children have understood and has

the added bonus of giving those children

who may need it the opportunity to hear the

• If appropriate, model aloud procedures or

thinking processes that children will need to

carry out an activity or task successfully

• Assoon as you are sure everyone dearly

understands what to do, give a signal to

start the activity

• Allow the children to carry out the activilyindependently and responsibly and make itdear that you expect them to do this

• Monitor discreetly and be ready to encourage,give help or stop any trouble developing ifnecessary, but don't make the children feel youare watching them too closely

• Train the children to look up in order to let youknow when they have finished doing a task oractivity and always be ready with somethingelse for them to do while others finish

• Use a signal for stopping the activity beforemoving on Always stop while children are stillengaged and enjoying the activity and beforeinterest has waned

• Vary the way you give feedback, check answers

or invite individual children to report back ortell/show the rest of the class what they havedone Keep up a pace to this in order to avoidthe children becoming distracted or losinginterest Actively look for positive things tocomment on about the way individual children

or the whole class has worked in order to conveyhow much you value this

• Conduct a learning review (see introduction

to section la) as a follow-up to the activity ifappropriate

Condusion

Every teacher, every class and every child isdifferent This is what makes primary languageteaching a unique and dynamic ongoing learningexperience, not only for the children but for you.This book suggests ideas for creating optimallearning conditions for children, ways to managechildren positively and over 500 activities to use inclass - at the end of the day, however, in mediatingand making It all 'work' successfully, your bestresource is most definitely YOU!

1This quotation is from Widdowson H 'The

incentive value of theory in teocher education',

ELTJ Vol 38, 1984

2Rlxon, S 1999Yoong LeamersofEnglbh:~

Resftlrch PersptCtiva.Harlow: Longman

3 Gordner, H 1983FramesofMind;TMT~of

MUltipkIntelligences.London: Fontana

Gordner, H 1999lntelligenu Rdromed: Mulliple

Intelligmasforlhe21SlCmfury.New York: New

York Basic Books

Howard Gordner's theory of Multiple

Intelligences currently identifies eight different

intel1lgences These are: verbal· linguistic,

klnaesthellc, interpefSOnal, IntrapefSOnal and

naturalist

4 I Originally developed the (.WheeJ to use

on teacher education courses with primary

language teachers See also Read, C 'Towards

Whole Learning' inCreating a Positive and

Practical Learning Enyironment,Eds.Gika

&-Superfine, IATEFL 1998

5 Donoldson,M.1978Children's Minds.London:

Collins/Fontona

6 Vygotsky,L.1978MindinSociety Cambridge

Moss:Harvard UniversityPress

7 'Flow' Isoconcept originally developed

byOikszenlmihalyi and other American

psychologists working at first on the

peakperformances ofathletes.see

Cslkszentmihalyi,M.1990 F/ow: the Psychology

ofOptimalExperience New York: Harperand

Row

8 van Uer,L.1996lnteraetion in theLangu~

Curriculum: Awareness, Autonomy& Authentidty.

Harlow: Longman

9 Andres, V de 1999 'self·esteem In the

Classroom or the Melaporphosis of Butterflies.'

In Arnold,I.(ed.)AffeclinLanguage Learning.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

10Wood,D.,Bruner,I.&-Ross,G 1976'Therole

of tutoring In problem·solving.' Injournal of

Child Psychology and Psychiatry 17/2: pp89-100

Hemacki,M.1995 QuanlumLearning.London:PialkusBooks

12 Read, C 'Managing Children PosItively.' InErP Issue 38, May 2005

13 Read, C 'What makes a teacher special foryou?': unpublished survey of 120primaryschool children thatI carried oulinSpanishInJanuary ZOOOat ArturoSoria School, Madrid,with the help ofAnaSober6n

Section 1 Listening and speaking

When children start learning English at

primary school, there is usually an emphasis on

developinglislening and speaking skills Through

listening to English, children are led naturally

into speaking From using single words and

formulaic language, children gradually develop

the ability to produce language and 10 interact

with olhers in a more extended way

Learning to listen

When learning to listen in English, children are

actively engaged in constructing me<lning and

making sense of what they hear To do this, they

use not just language but their knowledge of

the world ond clues proVided by the context, for

example:

• theirexpeetations about the intentions of the

speaker

• predictions about what they wil1listen to

• the speaker's use ofvoice,mime and gesture

• the reason and purpose for which they are

listening

• other features in the immediate environment

which support their understanding, eg flash

cards, story or course book illustrations,

posters, real objects, puppets, sound effects on

a CO, or the visual setting of a DVD

Essentially, young children need plenty of

opportunities to listen to language embedded

in engaging and meaningful contexts Through

listening, children become familiar with the

sounds, rhythm and intonation of English

LIstening also allows children to recognize,

verbally before they produce it themselves

Classroom talk as, for example, when you give

instructions, organize and manage different

classroom Qctivities and give the children

feedback, encouragement Qnd praise is Q mQjor

source of listening materiQI for children As

for thiS kind of classroom IQnguQge Through

repetition and routines, you will build up an

expanding repertoire of language thQt children

understand and respond to QS port of everyday

communication in class

In addition, you CQn use: Storytelling and drama(Section 4) Games (Section 5) Rhymes, chantsand songs (section 6), Art and croft (Section 7),Qnd Content from other areas of the curriculumIdeas for these are included in each section Thelistening activities in this section include lde<lsand also ideas which canbeadapted and Qpplied

to listening texts from other sources such os thecourse book

Developing listening skills

In L2, os in Lt, children develop listeningskills before speQking skills It is enriching

to expose them to language that is ahead oftheir productive competence, as long os theirunderstanding is guided and supported, foreXQmple through mime, illustrations and/or theactivity they ore asked to do From the oUlset, it[s important to use0vQrlety of different spokentext types: instructions, rhymes, stories, songs,dialogues, conversations, descriptions, It is alsoimportQnt to build up confidence and showchlldren thQt they can be successful listenerswithout necessarily understanding every word.The use of longer texts, such as stones, can alsohelp develop children's extensive listening skills,where listening Is motivated by pleasure ratherthan information (see Seetlon4, Storytelling anddrama)

When you do a listening activity it is often useful

to plan for the following three stages:before, while

andafterlistening

StagelBefore listening, you need to create a clearcontext which interests and motivates thechildren and you need to estQblish a reason Qndpurpose for listening.ItmQybeQppropnate tointroduce new lQnguage or vocabulary whichoccurs in the listening text at this stage too.Children can also be encouraged to predict andmake active guesses about the listening, based onpictures orother clues

Stage 2While listening children do one or moreQctivities to develop listening sub-skills such

as listening for global understanding or gist,

listening for mood or attitude, and to show their

understanding either verbally or non.verbally or

through a written response, such as completing

a grid

Stage 3

After listening, It may be appropriate !oask

children to report back, express their opinions

or relate the text to their ownlives in a speaking

activity using at least some of the languageit

contoins

Learning to speak

SpeakingIs a complex skill and the difficulty for

children learning a foreign language should not

be underestimated Although children aregoodat

imitating and may acqUire better pronunciation

than older learners, they are still developing

language and discourseskllls In theirll Their

age and level ofsodal, cognitive and emotional

development need to be taken into account when

planning speaking activities In English

Spoken interaction and spoken production

Speaking skills can be broadly divided into two

areas: spoken interaction and spoken production

Spoken interaction refers to the ability to ask

and answer questions and handle exchanges

with others, whereas spoken production refers

to the ability to produce language, for example,

in a rhyme, a description oran account, such

asretelling a story It is Important to develop

children's competence in both these areas in order

future learning

Initially children will benefit from activities which

require lots of repetition and which help them to

memoriz.e vocabulary and 'chunks' oflanguage

and acquire pronunciation In a natural way

Many such activities can be found In the sections

(section5)andSongs, rhymes and chants (Section

6).Much of the language children produce In the

short formulaic utterances, eg I'm line.There moy

also be a tendency to mix languages, eg in the

case ofSpanish·speaking children,Dameelrubber

(giveme the rubber),M/ra! El monkey eSla alii

(look! The monkey's there) Rather than expllcttly

correcting language mistakes, it is best to respond

to children's meaning and what they are trying

or recast what they soy, egYes You'rt>right The monkey'sthert>!

Very young children may be reluctant to speaklisten and absorb the sounds of English beforeparticipating actively InSiSting on participation islikely to beoounter.productive The best strategy

is usually to provide lots of opportunities forspeaking activities In averysecure and non-threatening way, eg through choral repetition

of action rhymes or choral counting games, andallow children to join in when they are ready

In order for children with only minimal linguisticcompetence to start learning to communicate

in English, itIs important to establish Simpleclassroom routines from the outset Theseindude, for example, greetings and goodbyes

at the beginning and end of lessons, asking forpermission, eg togoto the toilet, sharpen pencils,getO'Oyons, etc and classroom language, eg

I don't understand JCanyou rt'PftJI lhat, please?

Even very young children can be taught thefollowing three phrases formulalcally:Ilhink ,

Mayb<e ••• 1doIl'lknowand then beenoouroged to

usethese regularly in class 'discussions', egT: (pointing10picture) Who'! bc!hind the bwhl

Pt:I think il's lion P2: Maybeilstheelephant P3:/don'Iknow.

FrameworksfOfspeaking octivitiesWhatever the children's age, It is Important10provide frameworks for speaking activities whichencourage them touseEnglish for real purposeswhich they can relate to, rather than simplypractise language for its own sake As childrenbecome increasingly capable of interactingwith each other in pairs and groups, it isal.soimportant to ensure Ihal speaking activities aredesigned to foster active listening, turn.takingand respect for other people's opinions Noneofthese can be taken for granted because childrenare still developing these skills and attitudes aspart of their general educational and personaldClvelopment Speaking activities which arepersonalized and offer choice tend to Increasechildren's willingness to participate Suchactivities give them 'ownership' of language,thus helping to make learning more memorable.Whenever possible, it is benefldal10establlshframeworks where children are motivated tospeak and feel that they have something theywant to say

It is Important to set deargoalsand establish

what the outcome(s) of the activity will be It

Is also Important to ensure that the language

demands are within the children's current level of

competence and to prepare for, model, rehearse

and demonstrate the language children will need

to use before they begin.Itmay also be appropriate

to introduce explicit rules to ensure that the activity

is done In English, rather than in Ll, and toellcll

and talk about the reasons for this (See section 10,

Learning to learn)

Overtime, through speaking activities which

usedifferent interaction panerns and provide

opportunities for meaningful practice of0range of

discourse types, children will develop confidence In

others Indass

Pronunciation

Through exposure to English In the form of

classroom language, Instructions, games, stories,

dialogues, conversations, rhymes, chants and

songs, children develop familiarity with the

sounds, rhythm and intonation patterns of English

and imitate these features in a natural way It is

important to provide lots of models and to build

up children's confidence through the acceptance

of appro:ldmate pronunciation Thlsglves them

lime to acquiregoodhabits in an unforced

way Insistence on correct pronunciation with

very young children Is likely to prove

counter-productive

With older children, In addition to an Implicit,

global approach to pronundation,itis often

appropriate to do activities designed to raise

awareness of particular features of pronundation

that may bedlfferent from the children's own

language Pronundation activities included in

thlssection canbeadapted to cater for particular

difficulties that speakers of different languages

may have (See also Section 6, Rhymes, songs

and chants, for further activities to Improve

pronunciation, and Section 2, Reading and writing

activities, for ideas on developing awareness of

sound-spelling correspondences

inwards.)

Asyou use the listening and speaking activities

in this section with your dosses, you may like tothink about the following questions and use yourresponses to evaluate how things went and planpossible improvements for next lime:

IMotivation: Did the children want to listen!speak during the activity? Why? ! Why not?

2Purpose: Was the purpose of the activity dear?Was it a purpose that the children could relateto?

3Preparation: Were the language demands ofthe activity appropriate? Was there suffidentlinguistic preparation and practice beforehand(if necessary) to enable the children to do theactivity?

4learning support: What support did yougive to help children understand and/or uselanguage during the activity (eg pictures,actions, prompt words,0chart to fill in)? Wasthe learning support appropriate?

5 Personalization: Did the activity provide anopportunity for personalization? If so, how didthisaffectthe children's response?

6Timing:Wasthe activity a suitable length tosustain interest and Involvement? Did it need

tobetimed?

Gym sequence

LevelALl, A1.2 Age4-10 Organizationwhole class

Aims To listen and respond to instructions; to focus attention and harness children's physical

energy in a positive way

Language focusimperatives, action words, parts of the body

MaterialsEssential:noneI Optional:aerobic music

Procedure

I Ask the children to stand up

2 Give instructions for a shortgymsequence in 0 rhythmic way and do the actions with thechildren in time with the music, if you use this, 1"9Handsin1111" air One, two! Touch your toes.

One, two! Bend to thelefl One, two! Bend 10 Ihe right One, two! Run on Ihespot One, two! Turn around One, two! And sit down One, two! (Let's begin!)

Comments and suggestions

• This activityworkswell os 0 routine for starting lessons Change oradd to the instructionsregularly but always remember to demonstrate new actions first

• Ask the children to put their choirs under their desks and move away from these beforestarting This is important for safety reasons

• Avoid actions like stretching arms out Sideways in order to prevent physical contact betweenthe children and possible disruption

• Increase the level of challenge either by giving more complex instructions, egPut your left elbow to your right knee! or by going foster, or by not modelling the actions yourself.

• With older children,youcan ask pairs to prepare their own instructions fora gym sequenceand take turns in different lessons to do these withthe rest of the class

• With younger children, keep the sequence short, introduce variations less frequently andavoid using 'right' and 'left' Alternatively, you con Simply say, egDo this! One, two!Dotllis!

One, two! in a rhythmiC way and children copy your actions.

• This activity can also be used in conjunction with10.3 in order to create a state of readinessforlearning

LevelA1.l, A1.2 Age 4- 8 Orgonizationwhole class

AimsTo listen and respond non-verbally to instructions; to develop concentration Skills,confidence and phySical coordination

language focusIn the examples: imperatives and:

1.2b classroom objects

1.2c, i.2e classroom objects, toys, any vocabulary on flashcards

1.2d classroom objects, prepositions of place

1.2f any vocabulary on flashcards,eganimals

Alternatives: any other familiar lexical set,egparts of the body, food, colours, clothes

Materials Essential: classroom objects, (1.2t) flash cards I Optionol: flashcards

new octions gradually to the sequence,egfly! walk on tipt«! March! Stop doing the actions

yourselfoschildren become familiar with the language and can respond confidently.l.2b Show me

Soy,egShow me yourbook/yourpmdl/your sh«sand hold up or point to the items with thechildren as they respond at first

l.2e Bring me

Ilayout classroom oblects, toys or flashcards on a table away from you and the children

2 Ask pairs of children to bring you the objects or flash cards In turn,egBringmethe red crayon,

please! /Thankyou.

l.ldPutithere

IAsk the children to hold up a crayon (or other small classroom object)

2Soy,egPutthecroyon on)'OUr book/inyourbog/underJ'OUrdeskand children respond with you

at first

3 Speed up the instructions os children become more confident

1.2e Take a photo

1Ask the children to Imagine they haveacamera and demonstrate this

2Either stick flash cards on the walls around the classroom or use real objects or furniture,

3 Give Instructions to pairs of children in turn,egTake0photo oflheelephant, please!

4Children walk over to the flashcord of the elephant and pretend to take 0 picture They conalso sayClick!each time they do this

5Encourage the rest of the class10clop and say, egfantastic!if theytake0'photo' of the oblectyou say

1.2f Jump to the elephanl

i Stick flashcards on different walls around the classroom

2Give instructions10pairs orgroups of children in turn,eg/ump to the elephant! / Hop to the

tiger'

3 Encourage the rest of the class to clop and say, egHurray!If children do the correct action and

go to the correct f1ashcard

Comments and suggestions

• Short activltiessuchosthe above give children lots of opportunities to listen to the teacherand respond non-verbally Thisisnon-threatening and builds up children's familiarity wilhlistening to English in0natuml way

• Youcon vary the instructions to fit In with whatever you ore teaching,egTOUChyoornast'/ eyes/mouthfor parn ofthe body;Touchsomelhing blld/rtd/greenfor colours;Pointloyour

trouser.s / shoes/shirt for clothes; Eata(n)banana / apple/iceCTt'CIm for food The instructionscan also form part ofsimple action games(eg5.9 Musical instructions)

• You con also increase the challenge by varying the type of instructions,egJump three limes!!

Touch your nose! / Poin/to the window!or by saying,eg/fyou're wearing something blue, wave your anns! !lfyoo'rewearingsomething red, touch your toes!

1.3 True or false?

Level All Age 4-12 Organization whole class

Aims To listen and respondnon.verballyor verbally to sentences which are true or false; todevelop concentration and poy anention

Language focusany,depending on the topic, story or unit of work,eg present simple,pastsimple,can (for ability), thenW~

Materials~ntial:noneJOpfional: nashcards, poster or course book pictureProcedure

1Decide an the non-verbal or verbal response you want the children to give in the activity andexplain and demonstrate this Forexample, non-verbalresponsesfortme sentences couldbefor children10put their hands on their heads and for false sentences to fold theiranTIS Verbalresponses couldbeto sayYes!or repeat the sentence for true sentencesandto sayNo!ortumthe sentence intoa tmeone, for false sentences.

2Soyaseries of true or false sentences based on the unil of work, loplcorstory Ihat you arecurrenlly doing and children respond verbally or non.verbally In the way you have set up.Comments and suggestions

• With very young children, thiS activity needs to be done with reference to real things, pictures

or actions in the children's immediate environment,egusing nashcardsThe duck is yellow / The horseisred.With older children, sentences can be longer and need nOI necessarily refer

to the immediate environment Forexample, sentences may relate to topic or content-basedwork,eg Mammals lay eggs/ Bearscan swim, or to a story or other listening or reading texl thechildren have done

• You con vary the non-verbal responses in the activity depending on the age of the children,the space in your dassroom, as well as the stage in the lesson and whether or not physicalmovementisappropriate For example, In a more ldnoesthetic version of the activity, youcan ask children to jump three times for true sentencesandturnround on the spot for falsesentern:es

• Thisactivity gives you an opportunity to observe and evaluate Informally which childrenrespond confidently and appropriately each time, and which children wait and copy whattheir friends do, and who may need more individualized anention and help

• The activityisalsosuilable tousefor visual observation ofQposter or picture in the coursebook,eg There'sa mandriving a bJuecar.

levelAll Age4-10 Organixation wholedass

Aims To listen10a sequence of events;10show understanding Ihrough mime; to supplymissing language in the sequence

Longuage foc:us Inthe example:present simple, clothes, places, actions, food, personalposseSSIons

AlternatIves:past simple, any other famlllarvocabulary

Materials Essential: none

enonnous ice cream Mmm, it'sdelidous! Suddenly you look atyourwatch./t's time tago home! Yoo pick upyour bicycle and wave goodbye to your friend Yoorideyour bicycle home.

2 Repeat the sequence This time, Ifappropriate, do the mimes butleavegapsIn the telling.Children do the mimes and also supply the words,egT:Oneday it'sVt'1)'(mimes shivering) pp;cold!

Comments and suggestions

• This activity can be graded depending on the language you useaswellaswhelher you modelthe actions for children to copy

• Through miming the events, children associate language and meaning kinaesthetically,which helps to make it memorable

• With younger children, it is best not to Include more than four to six short sentences to mime,

as more than this Is likely tobeconfusing,egOne doy yougo foro walk in the jungle You hear a noise You look behind ,he tree Oh, no! There's alion!You run oway as fast asyou con Phew! Now )'Du're safe!You also need to do the mimes each time you repeat the sequence with this agegroup

• With older children, you con repeat the sequence, leaving more and more of the language forthem to supply, until they are reconstructing the events independently Asa follow-up, youcon ask them to write or complete a version of what happens or to prepare another similarsequence ofevents to tell the doss In the some way

1.5 Colour dictation

LevelALl Age 4 8 Organizatianindividual, wholedass

AimsTo listen and colour a picture follOWing instructions; to develop concentration skllls; tonome colours and/or describe a picture

Language focusbE-, present simple, colours, familiar vocabulary

Materials Essemial:crayons /Optional;a photocopy ofanyline drawing depicting knownvocabulary (one for each child)

Proc:edure

I Draw a simple picture on the board,egasbelow, and ask the children tocopy this, or give outphotocopies of the picture

2 Say sentences 10 describe the picture,egThe house ispurpk Children colour the picture

following your Instructions

3 Once the children hove finished, either ask questions,egWhat rokJur i.s thehouse?orget

children to describe the picture,egThe house ispurple.

'\ 1 , /

~O.:: I

• [f you draw a picture on the board for children to copy rather than use a ready-preparedpicture, encourage the children to predict and guess what you are drawing as you do this.

• With younger children, using a ready-prepared picture is recommended, as copying one fromthe board will be too challenging and time-consuming

• As you describe the picture, gel the children to put only a dot of colour on each item Theythen finish colouring at the end This avoids the problem of children colouring at differentspeeds It also helps you to manage the class if the children are sharing crayons

• Alternatively, you can make the dictation collaborative by asking the children to suggest thecolours This also enables you 10 provide richer language input as you negotiate these, egT:Tile houseis PI:Orange! P2:Pink!T:O.K! Great! How many think it's orange? How many think it's pink?(children raise their hands)FanrasOc! The house is orange What a beautifulhouse!I'd

liketoliveinanorange house! Would youliketo live in on orange house?

• The speaking part of the activity can be turned into a memory game by asking children toturn over the completed picture before describing it Alternatively, If you colour the picture

on the board differently from Ihe instructions you have given or, if you prepare a copy ofIhe same ready-prepared picture coloured differently, children can be asked 10 find thedifferences between Ihis picture and Iheirown

1.6 Visualization

level All Age8-12 Organizationwhole class

AimsTo listen 10 a description and creole a picture in your mind; to develop the imagination;

to settle the class and create a quiet, reflective mood

Language foc:U5In the example:present simple, present continuous,can(for ability), places,adjectives of description, adjectives offeeling

Alternatives:any familiar language and vocabulary

Materials Essential:noneI Optlonol:a CD of slow, relaxing music

Procedure

1Ifyou have music, play Ihis softly as a background 10 the actiVity

2 Ask Ihe children to pul down Iheir pens, relax and close Iheir eyes Ask them to try andimagine Ihe scene as you describe it, egIt's a beautiful, sunny day You're a/the seaside The sun

is shining brighrly and the sea is deep blue-green You're lying onatowelonthe sand Your whole body feels warm Youconfeel the sandinyour fingers- it's soft and worm You can hear the sound and rhythm offhe waves breaking on the beach - splash, splash, splash You can hear the soundsof

birds in the sky In the distance you can heor some small children playing Now a dog is barking and

youcan hear theengineofo small boot passing by.

3 When you finish, give Ihe children 0 few moments 10 come out of the fantasy you havecreated and back into the world of the classroom.Ifyou like, youcanask questions about thevisualization, egWhere were you? What could you see!hear? How did you feel?

Comments and suggestions

• This activity is not suitable for all classes - you need to have a good ond trusting relationshipwith the group

• Itis important either not to include unfamiliar language or to make sure that any language

is comprehensible, egNowa dogisbarking (Woof1 Woof1)

• It helps to modulate your voice softly and rhythmically and to speak quite slowly as youdescribe Ihe scene you want the children 10 imagine

• With younger children ills advisoble 10 keep Ihe visualization short

switch suddenly from a very lively activity to a quiet reflective one and so you need to leadthem to this gradually.

• As youdo the activity notice the different responses of the children Although some may feelrestless and find It hard to create pictures In their minds, you can tell that others can imaginethe.scene very vividly

1.7 Sentence round

level All Age 4-12 Organization whole class

Aims To complele sentences following a given starter; to take turns; to develop confidence andself-esleem

Language focus any, eg present simple adjectives 10 describe feelings:1like /1 feel happy when /Whenlgrowup, /wontto

MaterialsEssential:a small object,eg colaured handkerchief, soft ball, toy, stone or puppet topass round the ctrcle

Procedure

IAsk the children to sit in a drde

2 Choose a sentence starter for them to complete which relates to the topic or language of thelesson and either say this orwrtte It on the board

3Give one child Ihe object to pass round the drcle and invite Ihem 10 complete the sentencewith something which is true forthem

4They Ihen pass the objeClto the child next to them, who completes the sentence In 0 similarway, and so on round the circle

Comments and suggestions

• This activity proVides a framework for practising a particular language pattern in apersonalized way

• Through passing the object, a dear protocol Is established for turn-laking and when10 lislenand when to speak

• The repetition of the senlence starter provides repeated modelling for children who may

bemore hesitant about speaking.Ifyou like you can also build in0convention wherebychildren con say 'pass' the first time the objectgoesround the drele If they are not ready tocontribute

• With very young children,youmay like to pass round a familiar puppet andask the children

to lell their sentences to Ihe puppet rather than10 the whole group This is more Intimate andmay feel less threatening for some children Alternatively, if youusea soft ball, you may find

itworks better to roll the ball to different children In thedrcle, who say a sentence and thenrolltheball back to you each lime, rather than passingitround the circle This also keepschildren alert os they do not know who youwill roll the ball to each time

• With older children, you may lik.e10 precede the sentence round with a pair work task Inwhich children find oul about their partner and use the sentence round to report, egWhen Elena grows up, she wants to beo famous bal/erino.

• seealso,eg7.8, 10.1and 10.2 for olher activities to develop children's confidence and esteem

LevelAI.I, At.21 A2.1,A2.2 Age6-10 Organizationwhole class

Aims To say your favourite thing in a particular category; to build up a bar chart on the board;

10 understand how 10 read 0 bar chart; to show interest and respect for other people's opinions

Language focusIn rhe example: sports, be present simple, questions with Who, What, How

many, like, numbers

Alternatives: animals, colours, food, fruit, school subjects, types of music,egpop rock, classical.jau, rap reggae, types of stories, eg animal stories,adventure stories, detective stories, ghoststories, fairy tales, science fiction

Materials Essential: pieces of paper or card tofitin the bar chart on the board (one for eachchild), blu-tacIOptional: large piece of paper or card

3 Draw a vertical line and write numbers going up the board on the left side of the chart

4Give each child a piece of paper (the same size as the sections in the chart on the board) andask them to write their name on this in large letters

5 Ask individual children to say their favourite sport in turn, egMy favourite sportisswimming

and to come and stick the card with their name in the appropriate place on the chart

6When all the name cards are in place, use the bar chart to talk about the dass's favouritesports, egWhat's t/leclass's favourite sport? Who likes karate? How manygirls/boys like judo? What's David's favourite sport?

Comments and suggestions

• This activityisuseful in helping children understand how a bar chart works Point to thenumbers on the left of the chart and the name cards children have stuck in each section todemonstrate how to read the chart

• Asa follow-up, children can write or complete sentences about the chart, egIn our class, the fovourifeSportis / girls/boyslike

• If you wish to display the bar chart after the activity, build it up ona large piece of paper or

card instead of the board For best effect, the chart and the pieces of poper with children'snames should be in contrasting colours

• With older children, it may be appropriate to ask them to make a version of the borchartusing computers and PowerPoint (see 9.13)

Classroom shop

LevelAl.l, A1.2 A2.1, A2.2 Age6-10 Organixationpairs,wholeclass

Aims To ask for and give things to people: loask and soy prices; to take turns; to usePI~ond

Thank)OU.

language focusIn the example: present simple havegotcan (for requests), How much ?,

shops, shopping, classroom objects, numbers, colours

Alternatives: I'd like ,clothes, pets, toys

MaterialsEssential: classroom objects,egrulers, pens, scissors pendl cases; pieces of paper 10

display prices(6-8for each pair or group);JXlpeTmoney(eg10 x I euro paper 'coins' for each

child)I Opliono/: plastic toy money 10 use instead of paper money

Procedure

1 Divide the dass inlopoil'50rgroupsoffour

2Askeach pair or group to choosesixclassroom objects from among their possessions togo

into their classroom shop

3 Ask the children to decide the price for each item, write the prices ond mokeo display on theirdesks (Make sure the children realize that the shop is only pretendand thatthey are nOIreolly going to sell their possessions!)

48icitandproctiselanguageyou want the children10use and demonstrate the activity withone poir, e9T:Goodmorning.P:Good morningT:Hove you gol any rubbers?P:Yes, we have Loo/(.

T:How much art' therubbers? P: Twoeuros.T: CanI have (his rubber, please?P:Yes, ofcourse Thaf's

twot'U1'O$,please.T:Hereyouare.P:Thankyou.T:Good~.P: Goodbye.

S Askthe children individually to write a shopping list of three Ihings they want to buy

6Giveoul paper money (the some amount to each child,eg x1 euro paper 'coins')

7 Divide the class In half and assign the role of'shoppers' to one hair and 'shopkeepers' to theother half

8Children visit the shops and buy three things

9 Atthe end, ask the children to showandtell what they have got,egI've got art'dpen,a grt'en pencil sharpener and a rubberand how much money they stlll have left, egI've gol two euros.

10Children lhen change roles and repeatlhe activity

Commenb and suggestions

• Thisactivity needs careful management If you are concerned about having half theclassas'shoppers' 01 the some time, It isbest to ask fewer children to taketurnsto visit the 'shops'

• The O1rrency for the classroom shop con eitherbe the currency of the children's country or,

egAmerican dollars, Australian or British pounds With younger children, itIs UMlally better

to use the currency they are familiar with and,egoneandtwoeurocoinsonly With olderchildren, itmay be appropriate to use dollars or pounds, especially iflhey are likely to travel

to these countries

• After the activity, older children con compore dollars or pounds with their own currency andl

or use the Internet to find out current conversion rates (see9.20)

• This activity canbedone In a similar way for a variety of different shops, eg clolhes shop, petshop, toy shop, grocers shop For these, you willneed to either prepare ordownlood from theintemet pieturesofitems to sell in the shops or use plastic fruit or real toys, etc

Find a partner

LevelAI.I,Al.2 Age8-12 Organizationwhole class

Aims To findapartner by asking and giving personal information; to logically deduce who isyour partner from the answers to your questions

Language focusWhat's your name? Howold are you? Where are you /hlm? I'm countries,

nationalities cartoon choracters

Materials Essential:a set of pairs of cards, one card for ooch child, with invented informotlon;for a class of 24, you con make two each of the following cords

1 Give out one card to each child

2 Instruct them to look at the information on their card and to keep this a secret

3 Tell them to imagine that this is their name, age and the country where they are from

4 Explain that the object of the activity is to find a partner who has exactly the same identity osthemselves

5 Elicit the questions children will need to ask, ieWhal's your name? / How old are you? /Where areyou(rom?

6 Demonstrate the activity by asking one or two children questions, eg T:What's your name? P: I'm Asterix,T:Oh.Me loo.Howold are you?P: I'mten.T:Oh,I'mnine So we can't be partners.

7 Ask the children to stand up and walk round the class taking turns to ask and answerquestions until they find their partner

8 As soon as they find their partner, ask the children to sit down togetherand write a short

description of themselves, egMy /lame is Snoopy I'm len years old and I'm American/from the

USA

• This activity can be made shorter or longer and more or less challenging, depending on howmany pieces ofinfonnation you include on each card Forexample, you could just includenames or you could odd additionallnfonnotion,egthe month of their birthdays or theirfavourite food.

• If necessa.ry you can build in an additional rule10the activity which is that children shouldonly answer questions i(these are asked in English

• As soon as children find their partner ills important to give them a short task to do(egasdescribedin the procedure above) in order to senle them down and to ensure theydon'ldisrupt others who are still doing the activity

• If you aredesignlng your own cards you need to ensure that there are at leasttwopairs ofcards with characters of the samenameand only minimally different Information

• Instead of cartoon characters, you can also use the names of real ftlm, pop or sports stars thalthe children know

1.11 Three things about me

Level All Age8-12 Organization whole class (mingling) or groupsAims Tosoythings about yourself; to ask and find out about other people; to show interesl andrespect forthe opinions of others,

Language focusIn the example: like+-Ing, sports and free-time activities

Alremalillt's: presenlslmple,can (for ablllty), want to going to, food, places, countries

MaterialsEssential: sticky paper notes, or small pieces of paper and paper clips (one for each

child)

Pnx:edure

IGlvea sticky paper note (or small piece of paperandclip)10each child

2 Ask them10draw three small pictures10show what they like doing in their free time,egaTV,

a book, a football, and anach the paperto their fronts

3 Explain and demonstrale that children should walk round the class, look at each others'drawings and talk about them,egPI:llib:watchlng Tv.Doyou?P2:No,l don't/like reading.

P3:Metoo

-4At the end, ask children losland next to the person they've talked10who they have most incommon with

S Ask a few pairs to report back to the class,egWe both like playing football.

Comments and suggestions

• This activity personalizes language and the pictures play an Important role In providinga

focus and prompt for children tospeak.

• It Is advisable to get the children to rehearse the language they are going to use before theactivity,egthrough choral repelltlon,

• [\ may be a good jdea to set a time limit for both parts of the activity,egdrawing the pjctures-two or three mjnutes, and mingling - five minutes

• Iflhe class Is large, you may prefer the children to remain sealed and do the activity ingroups Alternatively, If the childrenareseated in rows, you may ask them to just mingle withthe children In their TOW

• The activity can be used to practise a variety of different language structures and vocabulary,

egI can play the piano.!1 want to go to PeI1l.!1 /ikechlcken.!l'm goi"9IO the dnema.

Describe and draw

level All Age 8-12 OfoganiIation wholedass, pairs

Aims To draw and describe a picture;10listen and drawapicture from0description; to noticesimilarities and differences between pictures

languagefocus Intheaample:I~Warr,presenl continuous,have got,actions, things in thepark, prepositions of place,ont~~ft/righl,01 tfttoloplboltom,intManlre

Alternatives: any lexical set suitable to draw in a picture, eg furniture, parts of the body (people

<IWhen the children are ready, divide the class into pairs

5 Explain that they should take turns to describe their picture to their partner and draw theirpartner's picture in the second frame

6 Draw a frameonthe board and demonstrate the activitybygetting one child to draw whatyou describe, egT:There'sat~onthelelt Two boys arr playing foofbollnearthefrte.On therighf

there'sapond There'so boalonthe pond A childisflying0kifea~thepond.

7Children take tums10describe anddrawtheir pictures

8 At the end, they compore their pictures, identify the sImilarities and differences and reportback, egWe've both got flowers in ourpicrures./ln my picture, Ihere aren't any boys.

Comments Clnd suggestions

• This Is a well-known activity whIch con also work well with children

• It's advisable to familiarize children wIth phrases such as onIhe lell/rlghl, 01 the loplbottom, in

the centre before Iheactivily.lI may also be helpful 10 label a frameon the board with Ihese

phrases for reference during the activity

• It's important to insist that children draw simple pictures, using stick figures, and 10 set a timelimit for drawing,as otherwise some children may draw elaborate pictures which are difficult10describe

• Othercontexts that work well forlhls activity are; drawing a room al home, eg a bedroom orliving room, or drawing an imaginary animal, person or monster

photo of me

LevelAll Age 8-12 Organization pairs whole class

Aims To identify friends in photos; 10describe what you were like when you were younger; toshowinterest in others; to develop self-esteem; to become aware of the way you change os you

grow older

foc:U$In lhee.mmpk: be, hovrgot, present simple, parts of the body, adjectives 10

describe people toys, favourites

Alternatives: wa-Vwere, past simple, used to

MaterialsEssential: photos of the children when they were babies or toddlers (one photoof

eochchild)

Procedure

1 During the previous week, ask all the children 10 bring in 0 photo of themselves when theywere babies or toddlers

2 Giveeachph()(oQnumber and stick them on the walls round the classroom

3 Divide the class into pairs

4 Askthechildren to write the numbers loQlist in their notebooks

5 Ask them togoround the doss together identifying who they think is in each photo,egI think if'.s ••• /Metoo!/No,1fhinkit's

6 Ask the pairs to report back to the dass who they think is In each photo AskWhy?andencourage them to juslify their answers,egSht'sgot bigqE'S.

7 Giveeach photo back 10 Ihelrowneras ills Identified

8 If children are A1 level, ask Ihem 10 hold up Ihe photo and tell the class one or two thingsabout themselves, egIn Ihis photo I'mlwoyears old I've got my fallOurite teddy bear.If childrenore A2 level or higher ask egWllal were you like when you were younger?and children respond,

eg1was fat / I had curly hair / I liked milk./ I used fa cry a lot / My favourite lay was ayellow duck.

9 Alternatively, divide the class into pairs and ask children to lell each other five things aboutwhen they were younger

lOThey then report back to the class and/or wrile a description of themselves oreach olher

Comments and,ugges~ons

• Afew children may either forget to bring a photo or nothaveone Inthiscase, you con askthem to draw a picture of when they were0babyor toddler instead

• Children usually find il very enjoyable lookingat each others' photos and talking about

when they were younger Interest and curiosity in each others' post also helps develop esteem

self-• This activity can alsobedone in conjunction with Ihe rhyme 'When [was one' (see6.14)

Level All Age 8-10 Organixation groups whole class

Aims To prepare0fashion show; 10 describe whal people are wearing

Languogefocuspresent continuous,hOl'egof,clothes and accessories, coloursMaterialsE~'JaI:clothes for the fashion showI Optional: dressing up clothes and accessories.

eghandbags, scarves, hats, lies, fake jewellery;Qcamera or videocamem

1 In the previous lesson, ask the children to prepare ond bring in (or wear) clothes from homefor the fashion show These can either be thelrown clothes or dressing-up clothes borrowedfrom members of their family.

2k, part of the preparation, ask children to bereadyto describe themselves in the clothes theychoose egI'm wmringalong, purpleskirt,apink scarfandawhitt T·shirt.I'vt gat a block hondbag ond 0 while hot.

3 Divide the class into groups of 4-6 children

4k,k each group to decide the order for their show and who is going to present the 'models'

Ifthere are any children who do not want to partidpate In the fashion show themselves,they can beasked to do the commentaries Ask the children to prepare and write thecommentaries fortheir foshion show in their groups, using a framework,egThlJ IJ He! She's wearing HelShe's gol

5 When the children are ready, move the desks, if necessary, to create a 'catwalk'

6 k,k the groups to take tums to present their fashion shows to the rest of the class.Comments and suggestions

• At higher levels children oon prepare more detailed commentaries with morecomplel(vocabulary,ega striped/checked shirt, a v-necklpolo-neck jumper,ahat/cop!berel.

• Asthe groups do their fashion shows, youcangiveatask to the rest of the class in order tofocus their attention while they watch,egFind!Wothings that are the sameosyour showor

Beready to soy the clothesyou likebest

• Youcanalso organize aclassvote to find out which fashion show the children think is best(children con vote for any group apart from their own) However, it isbestnot to do this if youthink Itmaylead to disappointment and loss of self-esteem

• If you have a digital camera with a video function, you may like to video the 'shows' anddownlood and watch them later with the sound downsochildren con reconstruct thecommentaries Alternatively, you con take photos of the children and they can subsequentlyuse these to write descriptions and make a display of their 'show'

1.15 My ideal bedroom

Aims To plan, draw and describe your ideol bedroom; to ask and find out about other people'sideal bedroom; to compare ideal bedrooms

Language focus furniture, preposilionsofplace, asking questions, but

Matertalsfssential:noneI Optional:picture of a child's bedroom,A4paper for each child

","<low

choir

o

I Show children the picture ofa child's bedroom if you have one.

2Ask them10name bedroom furniture,egbed, table,desk.chair, rug, lamp,~,chestofdmwer.s,mirror,wtvn,bedside tabk, notltt boardand write the words they suggest in a list on

one side of the board Remind them of others ifnecessary

3 Draw a plan ofa bedroom on the board and ask the children toropythis onto 0 poge In theirnotebooks~glveout sheets of plain A4 poper for them to do Ihls.

4 Explain that you want Ihem10design their ideol bedroom and to decide where each item offurniture should go on the plan

SDemonstrate thiS by drawing shapes and labelling them on the plan on the board

6Children work Individually and desIgn their bedrooms set0time limit,egfive minutes

7 When they ore ready, divide the children into pairs

8Without looking at each other's plans, get them to ask each other questions and find fivedifferences, eg PI:Where's your bed? P2: ft'sopposiff! the window.PI:Oh, my bed Isnearthe door.

9 At the end, children compare theirplansand check the differences Ihey have found

10Ask a few pairs to report to the class,egMywordrobeisoppositethewindowbut Dovid'swardrobe

isnextto lhedesk

Comments and ugge.tion

• Children frequently enjoy the 'design' side of this activity However, It maybeimportant10stress that Ihe plan is 'Ideol' and tobesensitive to the fact thai, inreallife, children'srooms

may wellbesmall and/or shared wilh siblings

• At lower levels, Ihe activity canbedone with as fewassix items of furniture and theprepositions nexfto,near,opposite,bt'fwt'E'n

• As0follow-up, children can be asked to draw and label plans of their real bedrooms at home.They can either take turns to descrtbe these in the next lesson Or write0short descrtption

• This activity can alsobeused for children to design.egtheir Ideolliving room or their Ideolgarden

1.16 Machines at home

level All Age10-12 Organization individual, pairs, whole class

AimsTo identify machines at home and whousesthem; to ask and answer questionsoboulmachines members of your family use; tobeaware of gender differences in machines thalmembers of your familyuse

Longuage focu.present simple, questions and answers in third person, machines01home,members of the family (adverbs of frequency,because)

MaterialsEssen/iol:none

washing

I Drowa simple grid on the board, as above, and ask the children to copy this.

2 Elidt the names of machines at home,egdishwasJw>r, washing machine.

3 Ask the children to write the words at the top of each column In the grid

4 In the column on the lle'ft, ask the children to writle' mle'mbers of their family,egMymother.

S Ask the children to think individually about who uses the machines In their family and towritle' ticks(,I)in the correct spaClC'S in thle' grid

6 Divldle' the doss into pairs

7 Children taketurnsto ask questions and find out about their partner's families,egPI:Does

roorfatheruse the dishwasher?P2:Yes, he does Does roor sisler use the iron? P2: No, shedotsn't.

8 At the end, ask some children to tell the doss,egMy molher uses theromputer./ My father

doesn'tusethe ironandjor to write sentences about their familles using the grid.Comments and suggestions

• Try and find out machines children have at home and only use these In the activity

• Show Interest but make sure you never respond judgementally to things children tell youabout their families

• Children can also use adverbs of frequency as part of the activity,cgDoes your mother use the microwave? Yes, sometimes./ My brother never uses the iron./ My fathero!ten uses the computer.

• As a follow-up,you maytiketo ask children why they think some people in their familiesuse the machines and others don't,egMybrother uses the microwave because he can',cook.!My fa/her uses 'he vacuum cleanerbecausehe likes cleaning/he /loose.

1.17 listening grid

level All Age 9-12 Organil:ation individual,wholeclass

Aims To listen to a dialogue or text fordetail and complete a grid; to use the grid to reconstructthe information

language focusIn theuamJ*: present simple, doily routines, times

Alternatives: any other suitable language and vocabulary

Materiols Essential· a text or dialogue for children to listen to,egfrom the children'sooursebook, a prepared gridbasedon the text ordiaiogue (see example below) /OptionaL-cassette/CDand player

oome get"!' ""'" go'"

1 Drow the grid you have prepared on the board and ask the children to copy it

2 Explain that they should listle'n to lhe text you are going to read and note the limes in the grid

3 Give on example,egVa~ssageUup at halfpaslseven and write this in the table

4 Play the cassene/CD or read the children the text yourself once or twice,egVanessagets up at

halfpast.snoen She hos a shower and cleans her tff:'lh and then she has breakfost at eight o'clock.

goes homeon lhe busatquarter10fOur Alter school Vanessadoes herhomE'WOl"kand watchesTv.

She has dinnerat.KWno'dodcwith hermolherand father Shegoes10bed at halfpast nine.

S Children note the times inthe grid and compare and check their answers

Comments and suggestions

• Listening grids provide a flexible means of checking comprehensionoftexIS or dialoguesabout two or more people, places, animols or things They are easy to prepare

• The use ofa grid provides an alternative to asking Who questions afterlistening Instead youcan say,egTell meabout Vonessaand children reconstruct key information in the text usingtheir completed grids

• The use ofa grid avoids children having to write complete answers and enables them to focus

on listening, whIch is the target sklll, rather than writing during the activity

• The completed grid provides a framework and prompt for oral and/or written reconstructionfollowing Ihe activity

• In many cases, all the activity requiresIsthat children write ticks ondlorcrosses In the gridas

they listen,egin texIS or dialogues obout people's likes and dislikes ordescriplionsofdifferenlanimals and features that theyhave or haven't got.

1.18 Follow the route

Level Al.2,A2.1,A2.2 Age 9-12 Organixation pairs

Aim To give and follow directions on a Simple plan or map.

Language focusimperatives, directions, places inadty or town, ordinal numbers

Materials Essenlial:noneI Optional:photocopies of a pion or mop (one foreoch child)

•

- Start

1 Divide the class Into pairs

2 Draw 0 simple plan or map on the board (see example above)

3 Ask the children to copy this and individually decide where their house is (or thesupermarket, 0 lost puppy, treasure,aparty,aconcert etc, depending on the context you wish

to use), and 10 draw an X in Ihe place on the map, keeping this secrel from their partner

4 Whenthe children are ready, explain that they should lake turns to give each otherdirections and 10 draw the roule to their panner's house (or other place) on theirmaps.

S Mark the start position on the map on theboard and draw arrows loshow left and right

the bridge Turn first right and ask them to draw the rouIe on the mop on the board.

7 Once both children in each pair hove had a turn giving directions, ask them to compare their

mops and routes

Comments and suggestions

• Make sure that the childrenhave their maps thle' same way up astheydo the activity so thatthere is no confusion between whichIs left and which is right when they give directions

• Thisactivity con bemode less challenging if you do not odd ony additional elements to the

map (children just say Turn ldt/right./Gostraight 011 IS/Gp.) or more challengingityou do,eg

Turn rightafthetrafficlights /Go un<krlpasl!he bridge.

• With higher levels and older children, the activity can also be done using enlarged copies ordownloodsofmops or plans from the internet and directions 10 reallocol places,egtouristsites such asa castle or theme park In thiscase, it may alsobesuitable to link theaetivity toplanning an itinerary fora visitor(see9.21) or a dass outing (see 1.26)

1.19 Prize holiday course

Level All Age 9-12 Organization individual,wholec1ass(mingling)Aims To ask about holiday plans; to deduce ifsomeone has the some holiday plans as you.language focusgoing to,months, countries, holiday activities, sports(because,expressingopinions)

MaterialsEssential:noneI Optional;photocopies of the table below (one for each child)

E'9a oo

""""" Rock; dirrbingcourse

5<ot/ood A~ Riding course

Procedure

1 Ask the children to imagine that because they are sogoodat English they have won a holidaycourse in an English.speaking cauntry

2 Draw a table on the board os above

3 Ask the children each to choose a country, a month and a course and note their choices on apiece of paper Explain that they must keep this secret

4 Ask children logo round the class asking questions to try and find someone who is going to

do the some course, in the some country, at the some time as themselves

5 Elicit and practise the questions before they begin, eg Where are you going? When are you going?

What are you goingfodo?

6 Once children find one or more people who have chosen the same course in the some monthand countryasthemselves, ask them to sit down together and write sentences about whatthey're going to do

7 At the end, ask some pairs to report hock

Comments and suggestions

• The Information in the table can be built up collaboratively, with the children suggestingoptions for countries, months and courses rather than you This makes the activity moremotivating, os It is thenhosedon things the children really want to do

Ihey're going, you can ask them to think of reasons for their choices and then report back tothe doss,egP:W~'rtgom9to IrrlandOfl 0 riding course in August T: Why? P:W~think thm art

OOJutifiJlhorsesinIrtland./We think the wmther will be better!n August.

• Thiscan alsobelinked toosing theintemet to find out about real holidaycourse5 (:see 9.23)

1.20 Transport survey

level All Age 8-12 Organization groups, whole class

Aims To ask and find out how people come to school: to ask and find out how long the lourneytakes; (to compare journeys and means of transport)

Language focus InIhee.o:ample: presentsimple questions with How ?,means of Ironsport,journey times, preferences (comparative adjectives)

Allemalives:can.skllls and activities; havegol, pets, toys; like, food, fruit, vegetables

MaterialsEssential: none I Optional: photocopies of survey table (one for each child)

""" bybus by"" byb,,, by motorb;I<e wolk(oron foot) bytroin ~' '

Proc:edure

I DIvide the class into groups of 4-6

2Drawthe toble on the boardosabove

3 Ask the children to copy the table (or give themeach 0copy) and to writethe names of the

members of their group in the first column

4 E1idt and practise questions children need to ask to complele lhe table

5 Demonstrate the activity with one child, egT:Howooyou come10school,/o? P: Byblls T: How

long does iltake?P: (About) 45 minules.

6 Children take turns to ask and answer questions in their groups and complete the table

7 At the end, ask some children 10 report back 10 the dass, eglocomr.s to school by bus It takes 4S minutes.Ifappropriale, children con alsocompore journey times, egIt's (oster bycar than by

train / It's slower by bike than by bus.

Comments and suggestions

• With higher levels, you can ask children to say which means of transport they prefer and

why,egJpre(ercars They're fasler.IJ prefer trains You can readon Cllrain.

• With lower levels, you can omit the lost column and the question obout journey time

• Children can use their completed tables to write sentences about the members of their group

• This activity conbe used as 0 lead-in to topic work on, for example, traffic, road safety,personal trovel safety or air and noise pollution

• Group and doss surveys conbe done on many topics, such as skills and activities childrencan do, pets orolher things they have got, or food they like (see also 9.13 forcreoling charts

on computer 10 show the results.)

1.21 Find a friend who

level All Age10-12 Organizationwhole doss

Aims To ask and answer questions giving personal information; to find and note the name of

one person who onswers 'yes' to each question,

language focusInthe example:present simple questions and answers, free-time activities

sports

Alternatives:any famlliar language and vocabulary, eghave got,pets; past simple, free-timeactivities;can (faT ability), sports, skills; like+-in9;want to,countries, jobs; present perfect,ever

MaterialsEssential: none I Optional: photocopies of a table to complete (one for each child)

Finda friendwho

reads inbedat night

has cereal for breaKfast

plays football on Saturday

has piano JeSSOflS

goestobedat ten o'clock

watchesTV after sChool

Procedure

1 Prepare a table for children to complete (see above)

2 Write thiS on the board and ask the children to copy it into their notebooks, or give them each

a photocopy

3 Elicit the questions children will need to ask

4Explain and demonstrate that children should walk round the class, find a friend whoanswers 'Yes' to a question and write their names in the table They should try to finda

different friend for each question,egT:Doyou read in bedal night?PI:No, I don'l.T:Doyou roodinbed at night?P2:Yes,1do.

SChildren sit down once their tables are complete

6Ask, egWho readsinbed 01 night?and children reply with information they have collected

Comments and suggestions

• This is a well-known activity which can alsobe used with children if it is not too long - nomore than 6-10 items in the table

•Itis not usually suitable for younger children,asthe mental operation of changing thestatements in the table into questions can be confusing

• If you havealarge class, it maybe best to get the children to mingle In rows, orin two halves,rather than the whole class together This limits the amount of movement and helps toprevent over-excitement

• In order to ensure children use English dUring the activity, youmay like to build in a rule that

they should only answer questions if these are asked in English

• When children have completed their tables, it Is Important to setafurther task to settle themond keep them engaged while others finish This could be, for example, writing sentences

mend who goes10bed at midnight I likes cowboy moviesl comesto schoolby bike.

• Some examples of language you can use in variations of this activity are:Findafriend who has got 0 goldfish I went to the cinema (last weekend) I candoahandslQndl likes reading I wants tobe a doctorl wants togotoAustralial has been to London.

level All Age 7-12 Organization pairs, whole class

Aims To say what you can use something for; to develop crootive thinking skills; (to develop

reference skills)

language focuscan(for possibility), any vocabulary children need

MaterialsEssential:frisbee or other objectIOptional: picture dictionaries or bilingualloornerdictionaries (class set)

Procedure

1 Show the children the object you have chosen for the activity, 109 a frisbee

2 Elicit or suggest one or two things you can do with a frisbee and demonstrate these, egYou can

llse afrisbee asaplate.YOllcanllsea frisbeeas ahat.

3 Divide the class into pairs

4 Ask them to see if they can think often more things to use a frisbee for and to write a list

S Explain that if they don't know the words in English they should write them in theirownlanguage Set a time limit for this, eg five minutes

6 When the children are ready, go round the class getting one idea from each pair in turn, 109

YOllcan use0frisbeeosa shield.

7 Count up the idoos as different pairs contribute

8 Write words childrensayIn LIon the board

9 At the end, ask the children to use bilingual or picture dictionaries with their partner to findtwo of these wordseachand then report back to the class

10As a follow-up, ask children to draw and label pictures of all the things that you con do with afrisbee

Comments and suggestions

• By doing an activity like this, children ore

encouraged to think flexibly and to develop their

imagination They also feel a sense of achievement

and 'ownership' of Ideas ond this helps to build

self-esteem and make learning memorable as well os

enjoyable

• You maybesurprised by how many crootive ideas

children have An example by a seven-year-Old child

I once taught Is 'You conusea frisbee as a swimming

pool for ants'

• Other everyday objects which are suitable to use for

this activity are 0 ruler, 0 stone, 0 pot or a CD case

Marco,age7