1. One student stands near the wall and faces it, not too near the others.
2. Various students say in turn, disguising their voices, e.g. Good morning. The student at the wall replies, if he thinks he recognizes the voice.
3. If he cannot guess, or guesses wrongly, he changes place with the speaker.
Things people do to you
1. Put this verb list up on the board: advised / forbade / warned / compelled / persuaded / encouraged / begged / taught / tempted
2. Ask the group: Can you remember a person who once advised you to do or not to do something? Can you remember a person who tempted you to do something? etc.
3. Ask each student to write one sentence for each of the verbs above, drawing on their real experience, like this: Last year X warned me not to... In 1981 Y persuaded me to...
2. Ask the group: Can you remember a person who once advised you to do or not to do something? Can you remember a person who tempted you to do something? etc.
3. Ask each student to write one sentence for each of the verbs above, drawing on their real experience, like this: Last year X warned me not to... In 1981 Y persuaded me to...
Jumbled words
1. Write on the board words the students have recently learnt or ones they have difficulty spelling with the letters in jumbled order. It is best to have the words all associated with one given theme, otherwise the task of working them out can be too difficult and time-consuming.
2. Ask students to spell the words in the right way.
2. Ask students to spell the words in the right way.
Conflicts
1. Ask the students to think of times when they have an inner conflict between what they want to do and what they must do. Get them to tell the group about these situations.
2. Ask the students to think of themselves as 2 halves, like Siamese twins but with opposing feelings and opinions.
3. Put the following pairs on the blackboard: don't dare to – must; ought to - don't want to; can't - want to.
4. Tell each student to write a dialogue between the conflicting halves of him/herself.
2. Ask the students to think of themselves as 2 halves, like Siamese twins but with opposing feelings and opinions.
3. Put the following pairs on the blackboard: don't dare to – must; ought to - don't want to; can't - want to.
4. Tell each student to write a dialogue between the conflicting halves of him/herself.
Number snatch
1. Two teams of numbered players line up opposite each other. Either # 1 faces # 1, etc.
2. There is a stool half-way between the two teams, and on it an object.
3. A number is called out, for instance, eleven. #11 in both teams runs to the center and tries to snatch the object and take it back without being touched by his or her opponent.
2. There is a stool half-way between the two teams, and on it an object.
3. A number is called out, for instance, eleven. #11 in both teams runs to the center and tries to snatch the object and take it back without being touched by his or her opponent.
My district
1. Learners get into groups according to where they live. Two or three is probably best.
2. Explain to the learners that there will be a competition to choose which is the best district to live in from the point of view of the facilities it offers.
3. In their groups learners then prepare a list of things they can do in their district, for example, In Miami you can go to the beach often, You can go to a theater in the center.
4. In turn groups read out their lists.
2. Explain to the learners that there will be a competition to choose which is the best district to live in from the point of view of the facilities it offers.
3. In their groups learners then prepare a list of things they can do in their district, for example, In Miami you can go to the beach often, You can go to a theater in the center.
4. In turn groups read out their lists.
Open call
1. Student is given a monologue with a short description of a character he or she plays part of. The task is to prepare the speech for the first audition. The class decides whether to give this student a role or not.
2. As a variation: each student is a candidate for a newsreader job in BBC. He or she gets a text of current news to read.
2. As a variation: each student is a candidate for a newsreader job in BBC. He or she gets a text of current news to read.
Days of the week
1. Write the days of the week on the blackboard.
2. Ask the students to copy the days of the week on a piece of paper beginning with the day they like best and ending with the day they like least.
3. Ask the students to compare their lists and to comment on the reason for ranking the days as they did.
2. Ask the students to copy the days of the week on a piece of paper beginning with the day they like best and ending with the day they like least.
3. Ask the students to compare their lists and to comment on the reason for ranking the days as they did.
What is important for you?
1. Ask students: What is important for you when you use a dictionary?
2. Suggest the following: spelling, grammar information, pronunciation, examples, translations, explanations, meaning, illustrations, idioms, understanding when and how to use words and ask the students to put them in order of importance from 1 to 10.
2. Suggest the following: spelling, grammar information, pronunciation, examples, translations, explanations, meaning, illustrations, idioms, understanding when and how to use words and ask the students to put them in order of importance from 1 to 10.
Follow the tape
1. Find a short video recording in which one or more of the speakers are particularly expressive, (not more than two minutes).
2. Play the tape through once without stopping. Then play it through again, this time stopping after each utterance. Ask the students to imitate the way the utterance was said, as well as the accompanying body language.
3. Work slowly towards getting the students to reproduce a short section of the film and acting it out for the class, or in small groups.
2. Play the tape through once without stopping. Then play it through again, this time stopping after each utterance. Ask the students to imitate the way the utterance was said, as well as the accompanying body language.
3. Work slowly towards getting the students to reproduce a short section of the film and acting it out for the class, or in small groups.
What can you buy?
1. Ask students to think of 3 objects they can buy for 1£.
2. Tell them to continue this task with 5£, 10£, 50£, 100£, 500£, 1000£.
2. Tell them to continue this task with 5£, 10£, 50£, 100£, 500£, 1000£.
Follow the intonation
1. Teacher gives out the cards with sentences of different intonation patterns.
2. Students are to pronounce them right.
2. Students are to pronounce them right.
Team arithmetic
1. The teacher asks arithmetical cross-questioning, e.g. What are seven and four? or What is three times five?
2. The first student to answer gets one point.
2. The first student to answer gets one point.
Arguments
1. Divide the class into two even groups and give the topic of the discussion, for example 'Should prisons be abolished?'
2. Group A thinks of arguments for prisons and group B thinks of arguments against prisons. Each member of the group should write down all the arguments that come up in the discussion.
3. Elicit ways of disagreeing and introducing counter-arguments, for example, That's all very well, but what about...?; I am not sure I would agree with that; Don't you think...? If necessary suggest some other ways yourself, and write all of these on the board.
2. Group A thinks of arguments for prisons and group B thinks of arguments against prisons. Each member of the group should write down all the arguments that come up in the discussion.
3. Elicit ways of disagreeing and introducing counter-arguments, for example, That's all very well, but what about...?; I am not sure I would agree with that; Don't you think...? If necessary suggest some other ways yourself, and write all of these on the board.
No mistake!
1. Ask students to enumerate the letters of the alphabet.
2. If a student makes a mistake he or she is out.
3. The game can be played in teams.
2. If a student makes a mistake he or she is out.
3. The game can be played in teams.
Oh!
1. Give the students a series of exclamations ('Oh!', 'Ah!', 'Great!', etc.), and ask them what they think has just happened to make the speaker say them. For example, 'Oh!' might mean that: She has had a surprise. or: He has just remembered something.
2. They might brainstorm their ideas orally, or write them down. If possible, record the exclamations, or say them, rather than giving them in writing; this gives the extra dimension of intonation, and makes the meaning clearer.
List of exclamations:
Oh!
What?
Bad luck!
Thank you!
Ah!
Stop it!
Yes!
No, thank you!
Congratulations!
Wow!
Yes?
Rubbish!
Damn!
Great!
Hallo!
Thank goodness!
Cheers!
Well?
Hallo?
Touch wood!
My God!
Sorry!
(sigh)
Good luck!
Oh dear!
No!
Welcome!
Ups!
2. They might brainstorm their ideas orally, or write them down. If possible, record the exclamations, or say them, rather than giving them in writing; this gives the extra dimension of intonation, and makes the meaning clearer.
List of exclamations:
Oh!
What?
Bad luck!
Thank you!
Ah!
Stop it!
Yes!
No, thank you!
Congratulations!
Wow!
Yes?
Rubbish!
Damn!
Great!
Hallo!
Thank goodness!
Cheers!
Well?
Hallo?
Touch wood!
My God!
Sorry!
(sigh)
Good luck!
Oh dear!
No!
Welcome!
Ups!
Tennis elbow foot
1. Student A says a word.
2. Within a strict time limit (say three seconds), Student B must say a second word that connects with the first in some way.
3. Then Student C offers a third word to connect with B's word, and so on round the circle.
4. At any point a player may challenge the connection of another player. E.g. A: tennis - B: elbow (tennis elbow is an illness) - C: foot (elbow and foot are parts of the body) - D: ball (foot + ball = football) - E: fall (fall rhymes with ball) - F: autumn (Fall is US synonym for Autumn) - A: hymn (the last -n of hymn and autumn is silent)
2. Within a strict time limit (say three seconds), Student B must say a second word that connects with the first in some way.
3. Then Student C offers a third word to connect with B's word, and so on round the circle.
4. At any point a player may challenge the connection of another player. E.g. A: tennis - B: elbow (tennis elbow is an illness) - C: foot (elbow and foot are parts of the body) - D: ball (foot + ball = football) - E: fall (fall rhymes with ball) - F: autumn (Fall is US synonym for Autumn) - A: hymn (the last -n of hymn and autumn is silent)
Express your view
1. Near the beginning of term, tell the students that you want each of them to be ready to talk for exactly four minutes on a subject they care about.
2. Each week select a name randomly. That student must prepare his or her talk for the following week. At the end of the talk the other students can ask questions and express how they feel about the ideas expressed.
2. Each week select a name randomly. That student must prepare his or her talk for the following week. At the end of the talk the other students can ask questions and express how they feel about the ideas expressed.
Proverbs
1. Prepare individual copies of a list of well-known proverbs using the present simple.
2. Read through the list of proverbs with the class, clarifying any difficult vocabulary and making sure the significance of each is understood. Then divide the class into small groups, and ask each group to pick out proverbs they think are untrue or misleading, discuss what is wrong with them, and invent a version that seems to them preferable.
1 A rolling stone gathers no moss.
2 Still waters run deep.
3 Eavesdroppers hear no good of themselves.
4 Love makes the world go round.
5 Actions speak louder than words.
6 Too many cooks spoil the broth.
7 A bad workman blames his tools.
8 Every cloud has a silver lining.
9 Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
10 The early bird catches the worm.
11 A new broom sweeps clean.
12 Dreams go by contraries.
13 It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good.
14 Familiarity breeds contempt.
15 Bad news travels fast.
16 The more you have the more you want.
17 Nothing succeeds like success.
18 God helps them that help themselves.
19 Practice makes perfect.
20 Two wrongs don't make a right.
2. Read through the list of proverbs with the class, clarifying any difficult vocabulary and making sure the significance of each is understood. Then divide the class into small groups, and ask each group to pick out proverbs they think are untrue or misleading, discuss what is wrong with them, and invent a version that seems to them preferable.
1 A rolling stone gathers no moss.
2 Still waters run deep.
3 Eavesdroppers hear no good of themselves.
4 Love makes the world go round.
5 Actions speak louder than words.
6 Too many cooks spoil the broth.
7 A bad workman blames his tools.
8 Every cloud has a silver lining.
9 Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
10 The early bird catches the worm.
11 A new broom sweeps clean.
12 Dreams go by contraries.
13 It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good.
14 Familiarity breeds contempt.
15 Bad news travels fast.
16 The more you have the more you want.
17 Nothing succeeds like success.
18 God helps them that help themselves.
19 Practice makes perfect.
20 Two wrongs don't make a right.
How often do we do it?
1. Put these lists upon the board: buy - a magazine, a book, a lipstick, a pair of shoes, hi-fi equipment; borrow – money, pens, ideas, clothes; see – grandparents, boxing on TV, closest friend, a film in a cinema, boy/girl friend, a film on video, textbooks
2. Start asking the class questions like: How often do you go swimming? How often do you go to church? How often do you remember your dreams? Encourage precise answers like: Twice a week / Once a fortnight / Every couple of months rather than just 'often' or 'not often'.
3. Pair the students. Tell the students to find out how often their partner buys/borrows/sees the things in the lists on the board. Go round and supply extra frequency words or phrases that are needed. Tell the students to take note of their partners answers.
4. Call the students back together and ask them to guess how often a certain person does a certain thing. You simply say the name of the student and point to an item on the board. The group has to guess how frequency the person named does the thing pointed at. The person's partner then confirms or denies and corrects it.
2. Start asking the class questions like: How often do you go swimming? How often do you go to church? How often do you remember your dreams? Encourage precise answers like: Twice a week / Once a fortnight / Every couple of months rather than just 'often' or 'not often'.
3. Pair the students. Tell the students to find out how often their partner buys/borrows/sees the things in the lists on the board. Go round and supply extra frequency words or phrases that are needed. Tell the students to take note of their partners answers.
4. Call the students back together and ask them to guess how often a certain person does a certain thing. You simply say the name of the student and point to an item on the board. The group has to guess how frequency the person named does the thing pointed at. The person's partner then confirms or denies and corrects it.
Associations
1. Prepare a pile of smallish pictures depicting objects, animals, scenes. You can use simple drawings; but color photographs cut out of magazines are better.
2. Spread the pictures on a table in the middle of the class-room, and invite each student to choose one that arouses some kind of definite positive or negative reaction in him or her.
3. Then invite each to show his or her picture and say whether he or she likes it or not, and why. Start the ball rolling yourself: I like this picture of a dog - I love dogs, and this one reminds me of our own dog at home.
2. Spread the pictures on a table in the middle of the class-room, and invite each student to choose one that arouses some kind of definite positive or negative reaction in him or her.
3. Then invite each to show his or her picture and say whether he or she likes it or not, and why. Start the ball rolling yourself: I like this picture of a dog - I love dogs, and this one reminds me of our own dog at home.
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