Forums

HY!!! I NEED TO KNOW, WHEN I DO THE ORAL TEST.

Thanks for your message Montse! Great activities - quizzes are a good way to make language practice fun. I have never heard about the song activity before. I guess it has a game-like element, as you turn it into a competition and there is a winner. That's a good strategy. I was just wondering about the song: do you use songs that they are familiar with? Are they course book songs? It seems to me that hearing a song once might be a bit difficult - how much can students understand from listening once, without a listening task? Off the top of my head I would probably do the activity in a different order: give the sentences to the students in groups. Let them try to order the song, then listen and correct the order if necessary? And the first team to finish wins? :) I don't know, I'd have to try it.
As for the receptive grammar practice: I agree with you. Especially at a lower level and with younger learners this is a good way to proceed.

I have chosen these two questions:

1. There are many games which teachers can use to make practice activities more interesting and motivating for students. Do you have any favourite games which you use to practise specific language items?

There are two games that we use in order to learn english in my classroom. One of them is based on Song reconstruction: Students work in pairs or groups. They all listen to a song and they try to remember it. Then the teacher gives the sentences and the pairs or groups have to try to put them in order. The first pair or group to do it properly is the winner. The second one is: Quizzes: Students are divided into teams. Team A asks a question to Team B. If the question is said correctly Team A gets one point. If the member of Team B gets the answer the team gets two points. Games and songs are great fun and provide practice in an amusing context. They encourage real communication in the classroom.

4. What are some of the benefits of providing learners with receptive grammar practice activities? What is the balance of receptive and productive grammar practice activities in your classes?

There are some benefits providing learners with receptive practice activities because they give the students the chance to encounter more examples of the new language, and to demonstrate their comprehension of it – but without having to use it productively. In my classes I try to have a balance between receptive and productive grammar practice activities, but the real thing is that we work more receptive skills instead of productive ones. One reason is that they are too young (2 ESO) to have a lot of vocabulary in order to work properly productive skills. So I can say that we haven't got a balance 50/50, but 70/30 receptive/productive skills, respectively.