…because a picture is worth a thousand words or so they say.
My plan is to show the pictures one at a time and encourage pair discussion and then whole-class discussion. That’s the magic of a good visual.
Source: Getty Images
Source: Knoff
Note: I don’t know the source for some of these pictures. In most cases, they have been uploaded to Pinterest and I have stored them in Topic-based folders.
Should the author of any of these pictures require attribution, kindly let me know.
Back to the grind with an engaging lesson on Science and Research.
Warm-up: Scientists and their discoveries and inventions
1. In pairs: In 1 minute, write as many scientists as you can think of together. Do you recall what they are known for?
2. Whole class. Display the exercise and do it as a whole class. Students should rank the 3 most important discoveries or inventions in pairs, giving reasons for their choices.
Vocabulary. The words you need.
Listening:Many Clinics Use Genetic Diagnosis to Choose Sex
Step 1. Pre-Listening:
Read the beginning of the news and ask students to discuss what the news is about
Prenatal genetic testing: A growing number of doctors are pushing the ethical limits of the procedure called pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, or PGD.
Some say doctors are going beyond the edge of ethics. Some doctors analyze an embryo’s DNA so parents…
Step 2. Listening Comprension.
TRUE or FALSE?
Source and transcript: https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6654619&t=1641299618264
Step 3. Now, on the board, write the question: “ Is it ethical to choose the sex of your baby?” and ask students to, individually, list some reasons to defend their position. Put them in pairs to discuss their opinions and then do a whole-class debate.
Note: You will also find this question (slightly modified) in the exercise below.
Speaking: Activating vocabulary
Display the first question and have students, as a whole class, come up with the word that best fits in the gap.
Further practice: Word building here (Serena’s blog)
Introducing movement in my lessons is one of my favourite things to do when I am teaching.
On most days, when I am preparing my lessons, I really hate how this pandemic has put a stop to some of the most fun dynamics to engage our students. Fortunately, the headmaster in my school has had the bright idea to convert the staff room into a more flexible kind of room and pushed tables together, got rid of unnecessary furniture and provided teachers with a space to give free rein to our creativity, a place big enough for students to move around and keep their distance.
I am not going to lie. This lesson has required preparation, like a lot. The good news is that you can use my lesson if you like it.
Before the class
In the class
Brainstorm vocabulary related to the Arts and write on the board. Add to their suggestions, the vocabulary listed below and drill pronunciation.
Revising vocabulary with a crossword
Speaking: Warm-up. Here we go.
Stirrer:
Show this picture and ask students to guess what it is. Someone will probably come up with the right answer. Ask: Do you like this painting? How much would you pay for it?
Before displaying the image, it might be a good idea to read the news here. (Robert Ryman’s Untitled sold for $20 million)
News here
Speaking: Battle of Wills (so to speak)
For this activity, I have used two corners of the classroom and labelled them AGREE and DISAGREE. You will find the PDF for the posters above.
Procedure:
Step 1. Explain they are going to see a poster with a debatable statement about art and they will need to choose the corner that best represents how they feel about the statement.
Step 2. Explain that in their corners, they will need to talk about the reasons for their choice and develop strong arguments to support their opinion as they will be challenged by students with opposing views. Encourage the use of vocabulary.
Step 3. Give them enough time to come up with their own arguments to justify their position.
Step 4. After a 10-minute discussion, ask students from both corners to face each other.
Step 5. Battle: This is the part I like best. Ask students to choose someone from the opposing corner. Pair them up and tell them they have 5 minutes to try to convince each other, using strong arguments, to switch corners. For drama, ask them to use the phrase: “I challenge X”. ) Have a look at the picture above to see the position they take when they start the challenge. This is also important. “The magic behind every outstanding performance is always found in the smallest of details.”
These are the 3 posters I have used. Get the printable version here
Note: After Step 3, I have helped students build more solid arguments by handing out the cards below, which they had to read and comment on before the battle.
Get the printable version here
Art posters here Art cards here
I have never been politically correct so let’s not mince words. For an exam, you need to follow these three tips:
I know you are able to maintain a conversation at a decent level but this is not what an exam is about. An exam is about impressing the examiner. Yes! You heard me correctly! You need to make a strong, though not necessarily lasting, impression on the examiner(s).
Disclaimer: this is the way I would do the monologue. This does not necessarily mean it is the only way to approach it.
So, now that we are on the same page, the big question is…Do you want to ace your exam?
Assuming you have followed tips number 1 and number 2 above( I would reconsider taking the exam if you have not studied or practised, like a lot. ), here comes the most difficult part: bringing to mind vocabulary specific to the topic you have been given, which is part and parcel of tip number 3 and this brings us back to tip number 1.
Am I making any sense?
Tip 3: About being smart. General TIPS
I could go on and on but I think you get the gist.
NOTE: These are some ideas and you should be adding to this list the items you feel most comfortable with. You don’t have to use these ones, what you need to bear in mind is that you have to use advanced vocabulary and structures. So, you need to pull your weight and add to this list or cross off what you don’t feel confident using. It is up to you, now.
It is important to practise key phrases, which you can use no matter the topic in the exam. What I like to call the “skeleton” of your monologue and you need to write it down and say it and try it with different topics and figure out a way to make it work with whatever topic you land yourself with.
So, here you have some ideas for your “skeleton”:
Download the poster here
I know that taking an oral exam is a nerve-wracking experience but, if you practise and study, I cannot promise it is going to be a walk in the park but it will certainly be easier.
NOTE: my students will be using Flipgrid to record themselves doing a number of topics.
Is there a limit to how long you can spend teaching and talking about a topic? I wonder, how many subtopics are there to talk about? It’s been one month since the course began and I am still doing lesson One. OMG! At this pace, I am never gonna reach the end of the textbook.
Here is a little something I did with my C1 students. Unit 1 was about cities, but how do we talk about cities and not about Housing? My thoughts exactly, we cannot.
Optional lead-in: Speaking
Students get into pairs and talk about these 2 questions.
Revising Vocabulary
It is always a good idea to give students some time to come up with vocabulary they already know. You can do it in different ways.
Fun extension: ask pairs to write a sentence using as many words as possible from the board. Score pairs a point per word and award a bonus point for the longest.
Introducing Vocabulary
Listening and Speaking. Video: Affordable Housing
Time to listen
Before watching the video, ask students to predict the answers to these questions. This will hopefully lead to some discussion where students will be encouraged to use some of the vocabulary above.
Play the video and ask students to check their predictions. Comment on the answers. Were their predictions accurate?
Reading and speaking
Divide students into pairs for this activity
STUDENT A: cohousing
Cohousing, which is a form of intentional community, originated in Denmark in the 1960s Intended to recreate an “old-fashioned sense of neighbourhood” through resident participation in the design and operation of their communities, this type of community model allows families and individuals to occupy private homes while at the same time contributing both time and money to common facilities that are owned and managed by the larger community.3 Community members pay monthly or yearly membership dues and often help with tasks such as cleaning and repairing shared resources. While residents contribute to the financial responsibilities of acquiring and maintaining common facilities and resources, each member maintains an independent economy and personal income.
Source: https://ala-apa.org/
Summarize what you have just read and give your opinion
STUDENT B: Squatting
Squatting has a long history in Spain, often fuelled by high rates of homelessness. But there is now a darker phenomenon too – squatters who demand a “ransom” before they will leave a property. And this has led to the rise of private eviction companies, some of which use threats to achieve their goal.
Source : https://www.bbc.com/
Summarize what you have just read and give your opinion
Speaking: Conversations questions+ Board game
Driven by my obsession to make students use new vocabulary, I am constantly thinking and trying different ways to “force” new vocabulary into my students’ speeches. In this case, I have created a board game here using the vocabulary above. A dice, some counters and some conversation questions and they are ready to go. Students throw the dice and try to use the word/chunk in the square they have landed on. They can also try to use the word/chunk in the previous and following square. If they do so, they can move forward one square.
Source https://www.nytimes.com/
Exam-oriented task using vocabulary
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In this case, I gave them this task and asked them to discuss the prompts in pairs. Needless to say, encouraging them to use the new vocabulary,
Exam-oriented: Oral Mediation Task
Here’s the PDF for the lesson.I hope you find this lesson useful.