First classes

My Ideal English class

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classroom memory

First day activity

Introduction

This is an activity inspired by some research done by my colleague, Marilisa Birello, (which you can download here). We used drawing as a way of revealing core beliefs in a teacher development exercise. When you draw spontaneously the first thing that comes into your mind on a given topic it can be very revealing of the thoughts you might not express given time to prepare and conscious of how others will perceive you.

I wondered if this activity would work equally well at encouraging learners to discuss their attitudes and expectations. I tried it with groups from A2 to C1 level and the results were very interesting! I’ve included some examples of my students’ pictures as examples, which could be used as a discussion point: which ones de your students identify with most?

Reference:

Borg, S., Birello, M., Civera, I, Zanatta, T. The impact of teacher education on pre-service primary English language teachers. ELT Research papers 14.03 British Council

Description

In this activity, learners draw pictures of their ideal English class, then compare and discuss their expectations and preferences. A further writing homework task can be used as the basis for class discussion in a follow-up class. This can help to raise learners’ awareness of the variety of different attitudes and wishes that can be found within the same group. Explaining their own preferences can help learners to undertand their own thought processes and lead to enhanced metacognition.

Materials

learner pictures

Learner pictures – teacher’s notes

learner pictures – examples

English and Me

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learner historiesFirst day activity

Introduction

This is probably my all-time favourite activity. I’ve used it with many groups over the years from A2-C2 level, in order to learn about my students’ attitudes, expectations and motivations. The information I’ve collected about my learners in this time has been so rich and detailed that I’ve used it as the basis for articles and conference presentations. The original idea came from an activity on Men and Women in Cutting Edge Advanced (Cunningham, 2007, Pearson) and follows a task-oriented methodology.

Summary

Students compare their past experiences, present motivations and future expectations of learning English and prepare a short survey to interview their classmates. The speaking and survey activities focus on question formation. These also allow learners to discover similarities and differences with their classmates, which can lead to enhanced metacognition and awareness of diversity within the group. The subsequent writing activity is an opportunity to explore individuals’ learner histories.

Materials

English and Me – student

English and Me – teacher