Hi Penny and everyone, week 4 live session was also full of useful insights and interesting tips, I learned a lot!
Hi Penny and everyone, week 4 live session was also full of useful insights and interesting tips, I learned a lot!
Reading aloud
Most of my students like this activity. In some of my classes, most of the students are really enthusiastic when it comes to reading aloud, they would ask me if they could read the text for the class no matter whether it’s a new text or one that they had already been familiar with. And I always thought that reading aloud was more student-centered. So, whenever we had a reading lesson, I always asked students to take turns reading the text for the class.
After Penny’s 4th session I came to realize that it doesn’t always work that way (student-centered). Asking students to read aloud a new text (doing sight-reading) may not be very helpful as they may make mistakes in pronunciation, intonation, etc, and therefore they may not be able to understand the passage very well and at the same time they may also make it difficult for others who listen to have a good grasp of the meaning of the language. In this case, the sight-reading activity will not be very helpful for students’ learning and thus will be an ineffective use of class-time.
So, in response to this, after the 4th session, I’ve altered the way I introduce a new text to students, in which I tried it to different age groups (children to adults classes). As we started a new unit, I read a new text for students and they read along silently as they heard it. At first, I was worried that my students would lose enthusiasm and get disengaged as they’re usually the ones who would read first in turns. But to my surprise, as I read it, they were all in complete silence and gave full attention to the text. Next, we discussed some comprehension questions about it. They seemed to have understood the text better (rather than if the text was read aloud first by themselves). Then I put students in pairs / groups of 3 and asked them to reread the text, and this time, they did it out loud to their friends in the group. They did this in turns, and read one sentence or two, or a paragraph in each turn. I made this time as the opportunity for them to practice their reading skills (emphasizing on pronunciation, prosody, and fluency). I found this way to be more student-centered and thus it was an effective use of class time. By the time when they did this, they had already been familiar with the correct pronunciation of the words (as modeled by the teacher) and they found it easier to get the prosody right as they had understood the text well.
This experience was an eye-opener for me, thanks, Penny!
Writing – Using WhatsApp in class
This part reminded me of a fun and engaging writing activity that I’ve done recently. In our school, there’s no restriction for bringing mobile phones to class. However, the rules for using this gadget in class depends on the teacher. Many students cannot be separated from their cellphone and I take advantage of this fact by utilising it to enhance their learning experience. One of the activities that works really well for writing is ‘Emoji story’.
1. Students, using WhatsApp or any messaging / chatting platform, send a message to each other (in pairs or a group of three) using only emoticons (no text). They can send up around 10 different emoticon symbols that include some facial expressions and random objects such as a house, sunglasses, a bicycle, a tree, etc.
2. Students use these emoticons as prompts to create a story that they can either write it on a piece of paper (including the drawings of the emoticons sent) or type it on the reply box on their gadget. The teacher gives an appropriate time limit for them to finish their composition. The teacher walks around the class to monitor the activity and give necessary assistance.
3. Students can then send the story back to their friends (who sent them the emoticons) by using the same platform on their gadget, or if they write it on a piece of paper they can display the paper on class walls for others to read. This can also be shifted into a speaking activity in which students report orally to their group or the class the story they have created.
Reading aloud
Most of my students like this activity. In some of my classes, most of the students are really enthusiastic when it comes to reading aloud, they would ask me if they could read the text for the class no matter whether it’s a new text or one that they had already been familiar with. And I always thought that reading aloud was more student-centered. So, whenever we had a reading lesson, I always asked students to take turns reading the text for the class.
After Penny’s 4th session I came to realize that it doesn’t always work that way (student-centered). Asking students to read aloud a new text (doing sight-reading) may not be very helpful as they may make mistakes in pronunciation, intonation, etc, and therefore they may not be able to understand the passage very well and at the same time they may also make it difficult for others who listen to have a good grasp of the meaning of the language. In this case, the sight-reading activity will not be very helpful for students’ learning and thus will be an ineffective use of class-time.
So, in response to this, after the 4th session, I’ve altered the way I introduce a new text to students, in which I tried it to different age groups (children to adults classes). As we started a new unit, I read a new text for students and they read along silently as they heard it. At first, I was worried that my students would lose enthusiasm and get disengaged as they’re usually the ones who would read first in turns. But to my surprise, as I read it, they were all in complete silence and gave full attention to the text. Next, we discussed some comprehension questions about it. They seemed to have understood the text better (rather than if the text was read aloud first by themselves). Then I put students in pairs / groups of 3 and asked them to reread the text, and this time, they did it out loud to their friends in the group. They did this in turns, and read one sentence or two, or a paragraph in each turn. I made this time as the opportunity for them to practice their reading skills (emphasizing on pronunciation, prosody, and fluency). I found this way to be more student-centered and thus it was an effective use of class time. By the time when they did this, they had already been familiar with the correct pronunciation of the words (as modeled by the teacher) and they found it easier to get the prosody right as they had understood the text well.
This experience was an eye-opener for me, thanks, Penny!
Writing – Using WhatsApp in class
This part reminded me of a fun and engaging writing activity that I’ve done recently. In our school, there’s no restriction for bringing mobile phones to class. However, the rules for using this gadget in class depends on the teacher. Many students cannot be separated from their cellphone and I take advantage of this fact by utilising it to enhance their learning experience. One of the activities that works really well for writing is ‘Emoji story’.
1. Students, using WhatsApp or any messaging / chatting platform, send a message to each other (in pairs or a group of three) using only emoticons (no text). They can send up around 10 different emoticon symbols that include some facial expressions and random objects such as a house, sunglasses, a bicycle, a tree, etc.
2. Students use these emoticons as prompts to create a story that they can either write it on a piece of paper (including the drawings of the emoticons sent) or type it on the reply box on their gadget. The teacher gives an appropriate time limit for them to finish their composition. The teacher walks around the class to monitor the activity and give necessary assistance.
3. Students can then send the story back to their friends (who sent them the emoticons) by using the same platform on their gadget, or if they write it on a piece of paper they can display the paper on class walls for others to read. This can also be shifted into a speaking activity in which students report orally to their group or the class the story they have created.
Love to see an example of a story! My sister replied to a Messenger post from me only in emoticons (8 of them). I had to guess what she was trying to say! I also have become much more aware that getting students to "sight read"" was not "handing it over to the students". I'm going to try to listen to all the sessions again - another plus of an online course.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Claudie! next time I do the 'Emoji Story' writing I'll take some photos and send you ;)
ReplyDeleteNina, thank you so much for the emoji story idea! Looking forward to trying it with my students.
ReplyDeleteDear Julia, thanks! Happy to hear you wanted to try it with your students :)
ReplyDeleteInteresting, Nina. Are you teaching elementary or high school students? It is good to hear that your school allows the students to use gadgets for learning. That is not always the case with most schools here in my hometown.
ReplyDelete