Level B: Conversation 1.2

Activity 2 (Preference Chart):

Students working together during Activity 2 (Preference Chart):


Today we finished talking about what makes a successful English student by reviewing the modals for necessity and suggestion and learning new sentence structures with "rather" and "prefer". I did not include the by + gerund structure for explaining manner because I wanted students to fully absorb the main lesson. The following is what I have processed about the class:

1. Review old sentence structures; do not teach too many new structures; apply the structures I teach to different contexts.

Activity 1 (speed ball) was not quite as effective with the adult class as with the student class - perhaps because the question and response structures were more varied and complex, or because I did not give the activity long enough to gain momentum. Either way, it emphasized the need to review and incorporate last week's sentence structure. My current plan is to use warm-up periods to review all former grammar structures, giving most weight to those that are recent, but attending to the oldest structures, as well.

Today, I put former structures on the board, but this looked cluttered and will not be an option as we get more. My alternative is to hang them on posters around the room. The walls are currently empty, so I'll have to see if that's allowed. Posters would be a helpful visual reminder, particularly as we move to new structures and conversation topics.

I am still evaluating the method of teaching through sentence structures. So far, it seems to be suitable for beginner and advanced students because the former can learn something new and the latter can work toward competency. Unfortunately, grammar lessons do not build on each other, as they would in a traditional class. Instead, each sentence structure is a key to deal with a different situation - or the same situation differently - requiring a basic English foundation which most students have. Despite the choppy nature of information, I hope to establish continuity in my lessons to earn students' trust.

I also need to evaluate whether it's too passive for students to come to class with the grammar structure on the board, and, if instead, I should elicit the structure from students. It is difficult for me to write on the board and not turn my back to the class. I'm also not entirely comfortable explaining the reasons behind some grammar rules. Both are important and attainable skills, and I imagine that active contributions when forming sentence structures would be more effective than not.

2. When an activity is working, don't stop.

Activity 2 (preference chart) was very effective at getting students talking in pairs and small groups. I interrupted several times- though it pained me because students were so engrossed in conversation. First, I told students to probe for more by asking "why". Second, I highlighted a common mistake I had heard regarding verb forms for "rather" versus "prefer". Third, I gave a time check and challenged students to stop looking at the sentence structures on the board and try to speak from memory. Overall, I let the activity run for about 20 or 25 minutes. After students had returned to their seats, I de-briefed by saying "Who preferred X to X? Who would rather do X than X? Why?..." "Did anything surprise you in this activity?" "I heard a lot of laughter in this activity. What made you laugh?"

In the future, I will have more conversations like this as a class. Students have gotten more comfortable speaking, so it is not a struggle to get volunteers. It's helpful for students to listen to my pronunciation as I facilitate, and it's an opportunity for everyone to listen and build off of ideas.

3. As much as possible, address individual students' needs.

During activity 2, one of the most advanced students, who also holds a top administrative position at the college, sat down early. Sitting and thumbing through a dictionary looked less awkward than standing without a partner, as many people seemed too intimidated to practice with him. Having already talked through the structure together, I decided to sit with him and try a different approach. I know that he's interested in pronunciation, and since the class was off on its own, I showed him some minimal pairs exercises. We worked one-on-one for five minutes, and I assured him that we would have a full class on pronunciation after the next conversation topic. Shortly thereafter, everyone came together and moved to the next exercise. I glimpsed a special spark in the man's eye, a sort of thank you for seeing and supporting his needs.


Lastly, a self-evaluation: