workshop games yan

• Teaching of language as communication calls for an approach which brings linguistic skills and communicative abilities likewise into close association with each other (Widdowson: 1992, 145).

• Integrated skills can be defined as a series of activities and tasks which use any combination of the four skills in a continuous and related sequence (Matthews: 1991).

Integrating the four skills

There are two main reasons: • practise • extend the students’ use of a particular

language structure or function and develop the students’ ability in two or more of the four skills within a constant context.

Why integrating the skills?

How?

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Some models…

Continuity: tasks activities are not performed in isolation Input before output: it helps to ensure that there is a

presentation before production. Realism: it allows the development of abilities in a realistic

communicative framework. Appropriateness: recognise and redeploy the language they

are learning. Variety: it can help to move the class and maintain

motivation. Recycling: allows the recycling and revision of language

already taught and is therefore useful for remedial teaching Confidence: it may be helpful for students who are weak in a

skill and can compensate it with the others.

Some more reasons

Why games? (1)In real life, we do not stop moving because we are talking, and we do not stop talking because we are

moving.

Neither bad nor good. It is simply a structure.

An enjoyable way of learning.

Help and encourage students to sustain their interest and work.

Why games? (2)Create useful and meaningful contexts.

Cause practice in language use in many types of communication.

Vividly experienced and, therefore, better remembered.

Give practice in all skills and in all stages of the teaching/learning sequence.

Goals and objectives

• The four language skills. • Integration, interaction and participation. • Beginning to think in English:A student learns:- 10% of what he/she reads and says. - 20% of what he/she sees and hears.- 70% of what he/she sees, hears and says.- 90% of what he/she says while performing an action.

De Pous, D. (in Turtledove, 2004)

Games

Surface

Underneath

Rules of games

Agreement of players

CooperationHidden

processes

Ingredients for games

Purpose

Cooperation

Organization Challenge

Who are games for?

Activity 1

Purpose: builds self-esteem and relatedness by helping students get to know each other and to see themselves as unique members of a group.

Skills: speaking and listening.

Variation: students could write a poem, a story about his /her bug name.

Name bug

Activity 2Stop

Purpose: presentation and use of lexis

Skills: speaking and listening.

Variation: it could be adapted to forming sentences , spelling, using vocabulary in context, etc.

Activity 3

Purpose: encourage students to spell correctly in a kinesthetic way, introduce vocabulary, semantic fields.

Skills: listening and speaking, writing (spelling).

Variation: guess my word, hangman, scrabble, crosswords, word search (same color), etc…

Speed dictation

Activity 4

Purpose: Motivate students to cooperate in solving problems and the use of vocabulary.

Skills: listening and speaking

Variation: dictation, prompts for constructing sentences, presentation of vocabulary, mime and guess the word, body spell…

Body Maths

The crocodile

Purpose: reinforce and evaluate vocabulary use in context.

Skills: speaking and listening.

Variation: It could be adapted with synonyms, semantic fields and recommended for any level.

Activity 5

Orchestra games

Purpose: to make students aware of parts of speech.

Skills: listening and speaking.

Variations: try different speed and rhythm, intensity- for other purposes this can be related to the alphabet songs.

Activity 6

Mail Order Brothers & Sisters

Purpose: practice conditionals, future forms and filling out forms.

Skills: speaking, listening, writing and reading.

Variations: at the end, students could use reported speech (orally/written) to inform about the activity.

Activity 7

Alphabet songs and games

Purposes: to make students integrate through rhythms and tunes as well as make them aware of the importance of spelling.

Skills: listening, reading, speaking and writing.

Variations: this can be related to the orchestra game as the conductor (teacher or students) decides the tune, rhythm and intensity. For advanced levels, they can choose their own songs and adapt them.

Activity 8

“The following activities are about bookwork, so please open your books now!”…

Book work is fun work!!!!!!!

• Negative reaction• Confusion

• Bookwork: manageable and fun• Two ways: making sure the students are

warmed up before and make sure the feeling continues after books open.

Things to connect

Purpose: to introduce the topic (vocabulary) of the book in a funny and different way.

Skills: listening, speaking.

Variations: take advantage of the environment, evaluate compound words, phrasal verbs, words and phonetic representation, among others.

Activity 9

Spinning pen

Purpose: use the course book in a different ways.

Skills: all

Variations: you can use for identifying parts of speech, describing pictures (in case), making questions, statements, asking to name (or sing) a title of a song, a movie, a book which contains that word or miming the word, etc.

Activity 10

Recommendations

• Physical and mental warm up.• Seamless connection between bookwork and

workbook. • Preparation (language, a close related activity)• Make sure opening books is something useful.• Children: wear them out, so they want to sit

down and rest. • Avoid material rewards

References BATLLORI, J. (2001)

Gimnasia Mental: El juego como Elemento de Desarrollo. México: Alfaomega. CASE, A. (2006)

Bookwork is fun work! In English Teaching Professional, 45, July. U. S. Council. LEE, W. R. (1993)

Language Teaching Games and Contests. Hong Kong: Oxford University Press. MATTHEWS, A. et al. (1991)

At the chalkface, practical technique in language teaching. UK: BC RAFFINI, J. P. (1996)

150 Ways to Increase Intrinsic Motivation in the Classroom. New York: Allyn & Bacon. TURTLEDOVE, C. (2004)

Action Games: 101 Fun Ways to practice English Grammar. 3rd ed. Mexico: Delti. UR, P. (1992)

Five-minute Activities: A Resource Book of Short Activities. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

WRIGHT, A., BETTERIDGE, D. & BUCKBY, M. (1992)Games for Language Learning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

WIDDOWSON, H. G. (1990) Teaching language as communication. Oxford OUP

Thank you

Contact at:

María Guadalupe Peña Huerta fruitmx@hotmail.com

Miguel Reyes Contreraspoppaea.mrc@gmail.com