Teaching English (ESL Classroom Activities)

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08/22/2017 Notes

- Games can help adults feel less anxious and enjoy learning, POSITIVE EMOTIONS = RELAXED and CONFIDENT!

CHINESE PROVERB: "I hear, I forget. I see, I understand. I do, I remember."

- Games help students from being too exam-focused

THE CULTURE QUESTION

- Start with "Get-to-know-you" Games (which allows students to examine their new settings)

- Riddles (INTERMEDIATE Students) -- Students can try to translate riddles their own language to English OR, Students can solve riddles in teams

- Initially, may need to use role-plays (to get students to step out of their comfort zones)

IN A CLASSROOM

- Set up a "CULTURE ZONE"

-- Decorate walls, if possible

-- Bring in English news, magazines, comic books, etc.

-- Share "American" snacks from home

08/23/2017 Notes

TENSIONS IN THE CLASSROOM

- Types of tensions:

1. Mix of Cultural Backgrounds

2. Current Events (war, immigration, etc.)

3. Students' Personal Difficulties (learning disabilities, etc.)

4. Tensions between students because of nationalities (Ex: Koreans and Japanese)

*Games can maintain balance and break the tensions*

***In very touchy situations, such as with war victims/refugees, AVOID getting-to-know-you games that use personal information *** Instead, USE MADE-UP SCENARIOS...

- Always best to start with games that have MORE STRUCTURE and then loosen up...

-- SCRIPTED GAMES (Drill/grammar point, such as the game THINGS WE DO -- teacher gives a category and the students come up with sentences using all of the associated verbs they can think of --- Good way of practicing in a neutral way!)

-- BOARD GAMES (English Trivia, like Trivial Pursuit, good for reviewing both language and cultural information in a neutral way)

-- Very structured activities also include: 1. Crossword Puzzles, 2. Find the Pairs Memory Game

Less Structured but still Structured Games Include:

1. Goal-Oriented Role Playing (Ex: Shopping Game -- Students try to buy a particular set of ingredients) -- (introduces more freedom but still sets boundaries for interactions)