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| When you plan is failing. |
For you, maybe, students have a very weak awareness of the past participle verbs during your present perfect lesson. Or a good chunk of students have missed lessons and you have to update the others to carry on to the next unit.
Or worse, the internet shuts off. The computer decides to have a rest day and you are unable to use the tips and materials I have for you here. Ultimately, a complete nightmare with 13 to 25 students staring at you for instructions into what to do next.
Either way, disaster is known to strike. So prepare for the worst and pray for the best.
If you can't get anything to work out the way you've planned, its time to channel your creative flexibility.
As such, teachers must learn two things: when to divert from the plan and how to create an effective learning activity. Thus, welcome to my segment: A Change of Plan.
This week, during my movers' class, I had planned to finish the grammar point for the infinitive of purpose.
I had been using the book exercises to lead students into an alternative way of giving a reason to do something. Example: I went to the bookshop to buy a book.
The energy in the room was dropping and there was a clear division in who understood it, who got the grammar yet came up with unclear content (I had one student say: "I look in the dictionary to play football". The grammar is right even though it made no sense.🤷🏾♀️) and I had students who were completely lost. So instead of my original plan to have a mountain of more worksheets. I changed it up.
First, I wrote on the board: "I go to school to..." Then, I elicit phrases to complete the sentence. We stayed with "I go to school to learn more things." Next, I took the last phrase to create a new sentence. "I learn new things to..." I pointed to a student to complete the sentence. Then I used her last phrase to create a new sentence for the student next to her to complete.
A chain was developing and I went around the class following that chain format. Some sentences were crazy ideas but it didn't matter I was trying to get the structure down. In this way, I could fix the mistakes certain students kept making and they were getting models of corrected phrases from their peers.
At this point, the students had verbally practiced it with a good amount of success. They were getting it but they needed more exposure to the grammar and making the content connect.
The next step was writing relays. Writing relays work with students sitting in rows of 4 or 5. The first person in each row copies and completes the sentence I provide for them. Once done they pass their notebook back and the second person writes a new sentence with the last phrase of the previous sentence. What we had done in our chain format.
When the last person in the row completes it, I check for grammar and reasoning. If any of those mistakes are there, I underlined them. Then I'd hand it back and tell the group to get together and fix it.
This does three things: trains students how to self- correct, peer teaching is established (classmates explain the process in their young folk language) and this process also gives others a chance to finish, in hopes I will see theirs before the other group fixes their mistakes.
The point goes to the team that has completed all their sentences correctly before the other teams. Once that round is done, I point out the mistakes the other groups were unable to fix. I do three rounds of this. And the team with the most points win.
Now, the class needs to settle and I have to access if any of these activities have worked by doing independent practice. So, I give them a couple of exercises.
I monitor and support the weaker ones. Through my encouragement guidance, I remind them of some example phrases. And with patience, they complete the task. Their ideas are unconventional but the structure is there.
Plus, I feel confident to move to the next unit for the following class but I've noted that this grammar will need to be revised in warm-up exercises in the future. this way the students don't forget it and it will improve their concept of how the relationship of purpose should be between the two clauses.
This particular class ended on a good note. And, with creative learning tools from my teacher's toolbox, the aim of my lesson objective was met, regardless that the plan had changed.
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This is a resource for teachers in ESL. To help the community, please leave comments about other ideas that have worked for you, or how some of these ideas have been successful in your classroom. Thank You.