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Teaching Vocabulary in Outdoor Language

Camps (OLC)™

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OLC

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Abdul Ghani Abu, Ph.D

Che Ton Mahmud, Ph.D

Ahmad Zainuri Loap Ahmad

Leela Chakrabarty

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Enhancing teaching and learning of vocabulary

through fun and interesting activities in outdoor language camps.

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• Camp participation can actually enhance

the students’ cognitive abilities

• Camp activities with focus on:

Incidental Vocabulary Acquisition (IVA)

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It was worth noted the fact that:

• …recent research has shown that the neglect of vocabulary acquisition not only makes for poor reading comprehension but has a very

negative effect on language communication in general. The adoption of what may be called

‘communicative’ approach to language learning has meant that all levels of language are now accorded equal importance. (Ministry

of Education Malaysia, 1991: 70)

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• So, it was established that vocabulary has an important role in language learning and

teaching.

• It shows that the education system had started to give importance to vocabulary.

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However, students learning a second

language in a classroom situation are prone to anxiety

attacks.

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• More than half of foreign language learners experience some kinds of anxiety in their

learning (Worde, 1998).

• It is also argued that language anxiety may pose potential problems for language learners

(Kondo & Ling, 2004).

• Learners who feel anxious in their foreign language learning may find their study less

enjoyable (Gregersen, 2005).

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Dornyei (2001) had stated that teachers can reduce classroom anxiety by making learning

context less stressful.

• In regard to this,

• it is essential that teachers not only need to create activities that are entertaining

and interesting but also motivate students to learn the language.

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To ensure prolonged interest, teachers need not confine the teaching of vocabulary in the

classroom.

• One way of enhancing teaching and learning vocabulary is through fun and interesting activities

in for instance outdoor language camps.

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Defining OLC (Outdoor Language Camp)

• Outdoor Language Camp is a place away from the classroom and school where students live in

tents or huts and participate in language activities planned by their teachers.

• This institutionally organized camping is distinct from family camping or personal camping.

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IVA (Incidental Vocabulary Acquisition)

• the learning of new words as a by-product of a meaning-focused communicative activity, such as reading, listening, and interaction.

• It occurs when students are repeatedly encountering the same word in different contexts (Huckin and Coady, 1999).

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Advantages of IVA• It is contextualized, giving the student a richer sense of

word’s use and meaning than can be provided in traditional paired-associate exercises,

• it is pedagogically efficient in that it enables two activities – vocabulary acquisition and reading – to occur at the

same time,• it is more individualized and student-based because the

vocabulary being acquired is dependent on the student’s own selection of reading material

• presentation, consolidation and lexical/semantic development occur at the same time

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Sample Activities

DURATION: 1 HourSUGGESTED NUMBER OF STUDENTS:

20

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POETRY IN EMOTICON

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Description

• This activity is a fun way to allow students to use creative thinking skills towards

incidental vocabulary acquisition. Students’ vocabulary will grow with this

activity which also provides many opportunities for extensions.

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Materials

• Plastic knife, spoons, fork, plates and any other kitchen utensils and Ingredients used for cooking; for example: butter, sugar, flour, etc

• Emoticon stickers. • A sample of emoticons :

• Vocabulary word list for emotions. • Star Stickers

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Preparation

• Gather all materials and paste emoticon stickers.

Make copies of the word list for emotions for each student.

• Prepare a sample poem

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Vocabulary word list for emotions. A sample is as follows:

• A : additive adorable, affectionate, aggressive• B : blunt, bold, bored, brilliant• C : caring, cautious, careful, compassionate• D : dejected, delight, doubtful• E : elated, evil, excited …

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Procedures

• With the materials, such as the cutleries in front of you, ask students to imagine that all these objects have feelings and thus

able to do things to display their emotions.

• The word list for emotions is given but students need to add the verbs on their

own.

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Recite your own sample poem to give students an idea on what the task is all

about.Sample:

The bored kettle signals,As the dejected spoons wrestle with the forks

On the tired crowded plateswhile the butter melts away between

Slices of crispy tempting bread And the adorable cups danced with their

saucers!

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Procedures

• Students are divided into groups of four. Allow about twenty minutes to write.

• Students present in their groups. Everyone in the group must take part. Suggest to students

to try choral reading. They can use the techniques of ‘echoing’ ‘solo’ group’ alternating

and so forth as they do in choral speaking. They are allowed to use acoustics.

• The best presentation will be awarded 5 stars.

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CRAZY TREK

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CRAZY TREK• This activity is an exciting adventure game aimed to motivate students to race or hunt for clues to be able to get to the next clue. Anxiety

level would be at its lowest. • The element of a game is also the fun element.

Students have to solve clues based on vocabulary exercises such as looking for

antonyms, synonyms, spelling, meanings and so on.

• It evokes fun, adventure and excitement to even the most drab, boring life!

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Materials

• Envelopes- (22cm X 11 cm)- one set per station

• Cards/paper

• Scoreboard

• Dictionaries- one per group

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Preparation

• Prepare ten sets of cards for ten stations.

• Prepare ten sets of exercises on vocabulary –paste the exercises on the

cards- exercises may be in form of crossword puzzles and so on.

• Prepare a scoreboard

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Procedures• 1. Divide students into groups of four.

• 2. Provide each group with a dictionary

• 3. Explain what to do- each group will be given an envelope each. There are two cards in the envelope. One has the exercise to be completed and the

other one with the clues to the next station. All members of the group must be together at all times. Groups must complete all the exercises before

reaching the pit stop,

• 4. The group that reaches the pit stop first wins the race.

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PêêK and TeLL

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PêêK and TeLL

• Group work is a fun way to practice vocabulary.

• Students have to come up with a story. Three to four students per group provides for enough

characters to lend variety and depth to the presentation without overwhelming the

students.

• Students are required to think and plan quickly

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Materials

• A paper bag per group• Assortment of objects- toothbrush, rock,

feather, etcetera.• Star stickers• Paper plates

• Scissors• Markers

• Glue• Rubber-band (2 x per student = 40)

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Preparation

• Gather all materials

• Prepare one filled bag per group• Prepare paper plates with cut out eyes

• Prepare one or two sample stories.

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Procedures.

• Distribute the bags to each group.• Read some tall tales.

• Explain to the students that they have to come up with a story. The details of the story should be realistic enough to believe

but the story itself should be made up.• Divide them into groups of three or four

• One student will be the narrator and the others will act out their characters (wearing the masks)

• Hold a contest• Allow students to have about twenty minutes to write the story

• Students present in their groups.• The winning group will be awarded 5 stars!

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CONCLUSION

• The activities can be modified to fit any age group or level.

• Students were seen able to learn quickly on almost any subject when they were

having fun and learning English became an interesting experience to them.

• This is how IVA works in OLC.