ESCUELA DE MAESTROS
2015 In Service Training
HANDOUT No 1
More Effective
Lessons without a Coursebook
PART A – Theoretical Framework
A coursebook is regarded as a vital
tool. Both teachers and students feel secure and have a clear sense of progress
and achievement when they work with a coursebook. For teachers, a coursebook is
an essential guide which provides a syllabus, a logical order to the material
presented, a graded sequence and a clear balance of materials for the four
skills. For students, the coursebook is their guide too. They provide students
the opportunity to go back and revise what they have done.
However,
there are many occasions in which teachers have to make do without a
coursebook. In this scenario, teachers have to find alternative materials to use
to design effective lessons for presenting new grammatical structures or
vocabulary areas or for recycling language already seen or for working the
different skills.
Task 1- Group discussion
Effective lessons – what makes an
effective lesson?
Teachers
work in groups and discuss this issue. The different groups then report to the class.
Find below a summary of the items presented.
If
teachers succeed in doing the actions described in points 2, 3, and 4, their
lessons will be effective. These teachers show their care about their students
and their progress (point 1) and, as a result, they earn respect (point 5).
Other
items discussed in the session were the following points:
Task 2 – Group work
Teachers
read a lesson plan and add elements to increase the effectiveness of the
lesson.
In the different sessions,
teachers suggested
-
adding a “hello song” or “feeling moment” (mini
activity in which students say how they feel) or “what is the weather like?”
after the greeting in order to bond with students and help them get ready for
more thorough work;
-
asking students to write a mini plan of the lesson
on the board. Once an activity is finished, students tick off the item on the
agenda;
-
including a lead-in task before the photocopy is
presented (this may be a game-like task in which the vocabulary in the task is
revised before actually presenting the task);
-
presenting the task on the photocopy and doing one
or two sentences together;
-
asking them to compare their answers with a partner;
-
checking the work altogether;
-
adding a post photocopy task in which students make
a sentence or express their ideas using the vocabulary in the task.
Materials that can be used instead of a coursebook
Ø Video clips
Ø Articles edited to suit the level of the group
Ø Stories
Ø Chants and songs
Ø Comics and cartoons
Ø Web materials
Reasons for using storybooks
§ Stories are a useful tool in linking fantasy and the imagination with
the child’s real world. They provide a way of enabling children to make sense
of their everyday life and forge links between home and school.
§ Listening to stories in class is a shared social experience.
Storytelling provokes a shared response of laughter, sadness, excitement and
anticipation which is not only enjoyable but can help build up the child’s
confidence and encourage social and emotional development.
§ Children enjoy listening to stories over and over again. This frequent
repetition allows certain language items to be acquired while others are being
overtly reinforced. Many stories contain natural repetition of key vocabulary
and structures. This helps children to remember every detail, so they can
gradually learn to anticipate what is about to happen next in the story.
Repetition also encourages participation in the narrative, thereby providing a
type of pattern practice in a meaningful context.
§ Listening to stories allows the teacher to introduce or revise new
vocabulary and sentence structures by exposing the children to language in
varied, memorable and familiar contexts, which will enrich their thinking and
gradually enter their own speech.
§ Listening to stories helps children become aware of the rhythm,
intonation and pronunciation of language.
§ Storybooks cater for individual interests and diverse learning needs by
allowing children to respond at their own linguistic or cognitive level.
§ Storybooks cater for different learner types and intelligences and make
learning meaningful for each child.
(adapted from “Tell it again- the
story telling handbook for Primary English Language Teachers” by Gail Ellis and
Jean Brewster).
If we decide to use a storybook,
these are items to be considered:
The work presented in this
session is based on a bedtime story for children called “Funny Bones”. It was such
a popular story that a TV series was then made based on the main characters:
Big Skeleton, Little Skeleton and Dog Skeleton.
Suggestions
Ø Pre teach new words
(skeleton – skull – dark, etc).
Ø Arouse suspense by asking
students what they think the story is about.
Ø Present the rhyme that
starts the story – see attachment (In the dark, dark wood from the British
Council Site can be done before presenting the story www.youtube.com/watch?v=4x7ewDWR6NQ)
Ø Divide the book into parts
and read a couple of pages in each lesson.
Ø Present and/or practise the
new language items that appear in each part.
Steps to follow when introducing a new grammatical bit
(in this story “Let's take the dog to the park” // “Good idea!)
v Step 1 – Presentation & Systematization
We should present different
examples with the new language and draw students' attention to the scenario in
which the structure is used.
Help students understand in
which scenarions “Let's” is used (when people give ideas, suggestions).
Encourage students to repeat
the different examples presented.
Draw their attention to the
language bit. Ask them what elements are common in the examples presented.
(students notice that “let´s begin the suggestion and that a verb follows).
Draw their attention to the
answer to the suggestion “good idea”.
Ask student to copy one
example onto their folders with the title “Giving suggestions/ideas”
v Step 2 – Practice
Students should now be
presented with tasks in which they have the opportunity to manipulate the
language bit presented. These tasks should be presented in a sequence that goes
from very controlled tasks to free production.
Task a – matching
You can ask students to provide other
options to the sentences given.
Similar tasks can be presented.
v Step 3 – Free Production
Students are presented with
a scenario and they have to provide their own suggestions.
CONCLUSION
Good Teaching can't happen
without student learning. Whatever the scenario you have today, effectiveness
can always be boosted. It is simple. Set short and long term aims and have
carefully planned lessons to achieve those objectives. If obstacles arise, do
not despair. Assess the situation, reflect and plan new strategies. Teaching is
an art. As Scrivener says “There are teachers who teach and teach. Period. And
there are teachers who teach and learn all the time to maximize their students'
learning opportunities. Be one of those. Better results are really worth the
effort and the challenge.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Brewster J., Ellis G., Girard D. (1992) The Primary English Teacher’s Guide.
Penguin English Guides.
Ur, P. (1996) A Course in Language Teaching. Cambridge: CUP.
Harmer, J. (2007) How to teach English. Pearson.
Brewster J., Ellis G., Tell it
again- the story telling handbook for Primary English Language Teachers. British Council (pdf version at http://englishagenda.britishcouncil.org/sites/ec/files/D467_Storytelling_handbook_FINAL_web.pdf
ATTACHMENTS
Funny Bones (power point
presentation)
First page of Funny Bones (pdf)
Funny
Bones (finger pupptes- pdf)
