008 AUGUST 15

I think that one of the things that became clear...

Students Names - Elementary Level

Adilson Cesar
Adriano Silva
Ana Paula
Areta Santos
Bárbara Isla
Bruno Henrique
Camilo Viana
Cristina Almeida
Filipi Gomes
Joana D'arc
Jessica Rocha
João Claudio
Jorge Vidali
Laura Teixeira
Marcia Costa
Maria Elizeth
Patricia Vieira
Renata Souza
Ricardo Almeida
Roberta Cristina



Aim: Ss will be better able to use a/ some when referring to

countable and uncountable nouns in the context of food.

The lesson has a language aim.

2. Show pictures of different party foods. (They should be a mixture

of countable and uncountable nouns)

T then makes sure that the Ss remember

previously studied language needed to practice the new language by

eliciting it, and by doing a

choral drill.

3. Ask Ss the names of the food items, write the names on the board

under each picture and then do a quick choral drill on the

pronunciation of these words.

4. Say to Ss; “I’m having a birthday party this weekend, I’d like a

box

of sweets and a cake for my party. And I’d like some ice-cream,

some cola and some fruit. I’d also like some sandwiches, some

bananas and some chicken legs.”

T next presents the new language and the Ss

just listen.

1. Ask Ss what food and drink they like at birthday parties. T first

contextualises the new language

7. Ask the Ss: ‘Which of the food items on the board are countable/

uncountable/ singular/ plural?’

T asks the Ss concept questions.

6. Point out to the Ss that you can count some nouns but you can’t

others. These are called countable and uncountable nouns. You use

a(n) with singular countable nouns and some with uncountable/

plural nouns

T tells Ss about the grammatical use of the new

language

8. Ss do a written gap-fill exercise, filling the gaps with a or some.

Ss carry out another controlled practice activity.

9. Ss work in pairs and tell one another what they’d like for their

party.

Ss do a less controlled or freer practice activity.

Drill

A drill is a classroom technique used to practise new language. It

involves the teacher modelling a word or a sentence and the learners

repeating it. There are different kinds of drilling, such as choral

drill, which involves the whole class, and substitution drill, where

the teacher changes the cue words after each repetition.

Example

The following sequence is an example of a substitution drill

Teacher: I like cheese

Learners: I like it

Teacher: I like apples

Learners: I like them

Teacher: I like Sue etc

In the classroom

Drilling is a classroom technique which some teachers reject due to a

possible lack of communicative quality and its highly controlled,

teacher-centred nature. However, there are advantages to it also, such

as offering learners an opportunity to practise pronunciation in a

non-threatening dynamic.



http://www.bridgetefl.com/why-to-activate-your-esl-students-

background-schema/

This post was written by Laura Greenwood

Why should you activate your ESL students’ background schema when

teaching English as a foreign language?

When doing receptive skills work (listenings and readings) with your

students, it is important to take time at the very beginning of the

lesson to activate your students’ experiences with and knowledge of

the topic of the listening/reading. In TEFL this is called activating

background schema. Doing this immediately engages your Ss, gets them

using English, and sets them up for more successful listening/reading

comprehension. Read more about Schema Theory to understand why this

approach is successful.

• This component of a receptive skills lesson is called a ‘Lead In.’

• Include visuals, realia, discussion, and personalization – a broad

look at the topic/subject/content area of the listening or reading.

• Ask some general questions and have your Ss brainstorm

ideas/knowledge of the listening/reading topic or ‘What I want to

Know’ (about the topic).

• Read a background text, watch a video clip, listen to others discuss

the topic of the listening/reading, etc. to stimulate discussion.

• Make an explicit link between the topic of the text and students’

own lives and experiences in order to prepare them for successful

listening/reading.


If you don’t activate your Ss background schema when teaching English

as a foreign language, your Ss might not be interested in

listening/reading, have a purpose for listening/reading, or even be

ready to successfully listen/read.

Beyond all of the above excellent reasons for activating background

schema when teaching English as a foreign language, is the fact that

you will learn a lot of interesting and remarkable facts about your

Ss.