Speaking activity- Job Interview

Here's a very simple, quick speaking activity that can be used to practise the present perfect and past simple with the theme of job interviews. Students complete the questions using 'have you ever' + the correct form of the verb then work in pairs to interview eachother about past work experience. If an interviewee answers yes to any of the questions, then the interviewer should ask them to elaborate further by saying 'can you tell me about it', in order for students to practise the difference between present perfect and past simple. 

Download the worksheet here 

Colloquial language practise that goes down a treat!

I’m always looking for fresh and fun ways to teach and practise colloquial language with students, especially as sometimes I feel that they go over students heads or in one ear and out the other, when in reality they are often vital for keeping your head above water when using English in certain social-cultural context. As a second language speaker myself (Portuguese), I’ve completely lost the thread of several conversations when I haven’t realised that a phrase wasn’t literal. Although they aren’t to everyone’s taste, I think the Violent Veg and Fred and Ginger card ranges (available in the UK) use colloquial language and expressions in a great way. I’ve used them several times with advanced students, many of whom have commented that the funny pictures helped them both understand the meaning and remembering the idiom for future use- a double result in my eyes! They are also good for looking at pronunciation patterns and words with the same pronunciation but different spelling. A word of caution- some of the cards are a bit risqué so choose the design and intended audience carefully. They might not be suitable for all cultures but have always gone down well with my young adult and adult students in Brazil. I’ve included a selection of the designs for you to download (disclaimer- I just saved these from the ones available on Google images) and below are a few ideas for how you could incorporate them into your class.

•     The Violent Veg pictures 2, 3, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12 use puns based on words with the same, or similar pronunciation. Put students in pairs or small groups and hand out / project a copy of each design onto the board. Set a time limit for students to work out the word that the pun has been replaced. Groups work in competition with each other and the first group to correctly identify all the words is the winner. To make it more difficult, ask groups to explain the meaning of both words, for example “the boat was full of leeks”. The word leek, which is a vegetable, has been used instead of the leak, which means a hole that allows liquids to pass through it or to release something accidently.
•    The remaining pictures use colloquial language and expressions. Make copies of the designs, hiding or covering the box with the writing. Print and cut out the strips with the message/expressions on. Put the students into pairs and name each pair Pair A or Pair B. Distribute the designs and corresponding expressions amongst the pairs. How you do this will depend on your class size and how much time you want to dedicate to the activity. You could separate the designs into A and B so that all the Pairs A have the same ones and all the Pairs B have the same ones, or you could simply give a couple to each pair so that all pairs have different designs. First, students work in their pairs to match the expression to the picture. Circle the room monitoring students’ language use and giving feedback on their answers. Once students have matched the pictures and expressions, they need to work out the pun. Working together they can use dictionaries or the internet to discover what stuck in a jam means, for example (Fred and Ginger 5). Then, match up all the Pair As with the Pair Bs. Each Pair must now show the other their designs and explain the meaning. To consolidate, Pair A can work together to write example sentences using Pair B’s expressions and vice versa. Each pair then reads the others’ sentences, to check understanding.
•    The Violent Veg Facebook page has weekly caption competitions, which I think is a great way to round off the lesson. You could give students all the same picture and set a time limit for them to work in pairs or trios and come up with a funny caption. At the end of the class, everyone votes for their favourite caption (obviously students aren’t allowed to vote for their own…). I find that most students really get in to this activity and try to play around with words to make it as original as possible.  

=  DOWNLOAD the pictures here (taken from Google images and facebook.com/violentveg)

1,2,3 write

It’s the fork in the road that all teachers face when they have to take the ‘writing route’ – should I incorporate into class time or set it for homework? Exit A means that I’ll be able to guide students through writing structures, register and provide instant feedback yet the result will also be, if popular opinion is to be believed, the persona non grata of the ELT classroom: silence. If you opt for Exit B then you can squeeze every possible opportunity of class time to practise speaking skills, which many students aren’t able to do outside of class, but you're denying students support that many of them may need. Once you’ve decided which way to go, there’s yet another obstacle to overcome – what type of writing should I do? Surely it would be better to focus on “useful” formats, such as formal e-mails and report? Am I doing my students a disservice I set them a silly or frivolous writing exercise, rather than one that may help them out in their professional sphere? Argh, so many questions! These are all ones that I’ve, and no doubt countless other teachers, have considered. If only our students knew…

Whatever your opinion, this blog post doesn’t actually aim to pinball opinions about the virtues (or not) of writing in ELT, but present one of my favourite creative writing activities. I am a huge fan of creative writing, but I admit that over the years not all of my students have shared my enthusiasm so I’ve taken to weaving it slowly into a lesson, like a mother cautiously hiding chopped up vegetables in a toddler’s dinner. Generally, beginners are the least confident in their writing abilities so this activity’s ideal because it’s scaffolded. However, I’ve also used it with higher levels by changing prompts, perhaps to begin with a conditional or even negative inversion. A very simple activity that’s a twist on an old favourite used in all types of educational institutions the world over, I hope you enjoy it and, as ever, please leave me feedback with your thoughts! 

Oh Grumpy Cat, why so grumpy?

•     Put students in groups of five and ask them to arrange themselves so that each group is sat in a circle. Give each student a piece of paper (I prefer to use scrap paper so we’re doing out bit for the environment).Show them a picture of a cute cat (like this one), wait for the inevitable collective ahh, then elicit some adjectives to describe the cat (cute, fluffy, fun, friendly, etc.)
•     Next, show them a picture of this cat. Given that he’s become an internet hit and will soon be the subject of a film, some of your students will probably have heard of Grumpy Cat. Elicit some adjectives to describe Grumpy Cat (grumpy, bad-tempered, ugly, unfriendly, etc.). Depending on students’ level, you may choose to show them some of the best Grumpy Cat memes.
•     Tell students to imagine that they are Grumpy Cat- why are they feeling grumpy today? Write first on the board and instruct students to write a sentence about what caused them to start the day feeling grumpy. Set a time limit (around 2 mins). I usually give students an example to help them, such  First, my owner’s alarm clock went off at 5am. 5am? Is he crazy?!”
•    When students have finished, they should fold over the top of the paper so that it covering the sentences. After the time is up, students pass their paper in a clockwise direction so everyone ends up with a different piece of paper.
•       Repeat the activity with then, next, later, finally. Students write a different sentence for each word and pass the paper round. At the end each student should end up with their original piece of paper and each student should have written one sentence on each piece of paper.
•      Instruct students to open their pieces of paper and read their stories- this part usually results in a few giggles!
•     Now it’s time to look at language. Put students in pairs (I like to pair students from different groups together). First, students read each other’s’ stories then they work together to correct any grammar, punctuation or lexical errors. If working with a higher level, they can also try and change the story to make it more cohesive.
•       Students can their share their stories by reading them out to the class or sharing them on a class social media platform or blog.

I have another, less controlled creative writing activity that has a few more surprise elements to keep students on their toes! It’s based on a calendar of an Art Deco couple I had a few years ago, but I’m still trying to find the pictures to share with everyone. Hopefully I’ll be able to upload it soon.