The Full English
an a - z handbook of
English teaching activities
by Julie Blake
|
The Full English has 130 tried and tested classroom activities covering a wide range of English skills and knowledge to engage students in English activities which are enjoyable purposeful creative. It has new ideas, and some new ways of looking at old ideas, all flexible enough to be used by teachers in an individual way, with a wide range of students. The activities are also flexible in the way they can be used: Þ As the basis of a lesson Þ As a part of a lesson to fill gaps Þ By relieving teachers Þ As the catalyst for other ideas and activities
|
Introduction
A
Actioning Movements and gestures to fit the words
Adaptations Long live the BBC and/or Merchant Ivory
Additions & omissions Bits in and out of alternative editions
Anthologies Creating ones worth reading...
Archaeological dig Discover culture/society from the fragments shored against our ruins
Art attack Pictures as stimulus for writing
B
Balloon debate Get rid of the dross
Betting Only fake ££, obviously...
Bingo Eyes down
Blockbusters 'I'd like a P please, Bob.'
Brainstorming Or whatever PC name it's got now
C
Card sorts The simple pleasure of a pair of scissors
Carousel Discussion that goes round in circles
Circuit training A workout to tone up a variety of intellectual muscles
Cloze Popularity stranger than fiction
Creative retelling The infernal Lady Macbeth's diary
Cut ups Sequencing activities (and more scissor action...)
D
Debate Let rip the tub-thumping passion
Decision trees Kind of diagram showing options/decisions
Degrees of belief Different types of scales for weighing opinions
Director's cuts Cutting scenes and doubling up actors
DIY study guides Put the rest out of business...
E
Eagle eye Spot the deliberate mistakes
Echoing Experimenting with multiple voices
Endings Rewrites and alternatives
Examples... examples Because you can never get enough
Exchange and mart Collective and cooperative exchange of ideas
Eye witness Visual memory and attention to descriptive detail
F
Family trees Genealogy for beginners
Feel the rhythm Clapping, banging and running around
Film makers Hands on story-making
Finger puppets Don't mock it till you've tried it...
Flowcharts Diagrams to represent plot processes at work
Freeze frame Getting them to stand still for a second
G
Gained in translation Old text into modern
Game of chance Dice throwing on types of questions/comments
Game design Board/computer game based on text or issues
Goldfish bowl Participants and observers
Graphs and charts Plotting with a purpose
Guided tours Imagining self into a situation
H
Half baked ideas Tinkering around with stuff to make it better
Hangman My exciting Christmas special
Headlining Adding the chapter/section/scene titles the publishers obviously forgot
Highlighter heaven Fun with fluorescent pens
Hole filling Creative insertions
Hotseating Putting a character in the hot seat – or the electric chair
I
Illustrated editions Exploring through drawing
Imitation Flattery and parody
Improvisation Making stuff up and acting out
Intercutting Cutting and pasting for creative enlightenment
Interviewing Real and role play
In the manner of Experimenting with different ways of saying and doing
J
Jackets Create them/explore literary interpretations
Jigsaw discussion Discussion technique for maximum participation
Jigsaw puzzles Find the pieces, put them together
Journals Reading logs, learning logs and blogs
Jumbled texts Mix it up then sort it out
Juxtapositions Comparisons without the jumbling...
K
Kangaroo court Conducting a mock trial
Killjoys A focus on exam preparation techniques
Kim's game That lovely QUIET parlour game...
King or Queen of the
classroom Spelling intimidation fun
Kiss of life Or how experienced teachers manage to roll with the punches
L
Labelling Variation on the cloze theme
Lectures Because A Level students sure do need the practice
Letters Falling in love with stamps and envelopes
Listing Simple but still useful
Literary critics Adopting different theoretical perspectives at AS/A2
M
Maps Of places and journeys
Masks What lies beneath
Matching The rice and pasta of the English teaching profession
I
Mind maps How to do them properly
Models 3D concept building not skinny girls on catwalks
Music Creative thinking around the text
N
Networking Mapping the connections between people and characters
News desk Sleaze and scandal - read all about it!
News wall Classroom walls papered for free (Just don't let the caretaker see)
Ninety second versions Reassuringly difficult
Noughts and crosses One of the simple pleasures in life
0
Obstacle race Finding information with your pants on fire
Odd one out A cunning little actiyity to keep 'em guessing
Opinion cards Ways of eliciting higher quality critical opinions
Order from chaos Classification activities to soothe the soul
P
The play's the thing Bring out your inner Hollywood/Bollywood/RSC/London Palladium
Postcards home Those Martians trying to make sense of human life
Posters Ahh, kick back and drink tea lesson (in your dreams, anyway...)
Predictions All the what -iffy stuff
Presentations How to get decent ones
Prove it Find evidence and test it to destruction - not for the faint-hearted
Pyramids Building class discussion step by step
Q
Question cards To find out what students really want to know
Questioning So much more difficult than it looks...
Quick on the draw Parlour game fun with tricky texts
Quiz The obvious plus student DIY
Quote quest That hoary old chestnut...
R
Ranking Simple, diamond, triangles and bulleyes
Reading comprehension How to make it less boring
Readings By teachers, students, writers and performers
Right to reply The underdog speaks
Role-play and simulation Walking a mile in someone else's shoes
Round robin Discussion technique to get everyone involved
S
Slide show As exploration of the cultural context of the text, mainly for AS/ A2
Spot the difference Oh, for the lost puzzle books of one's youth...
Stage directions Exit, pursued by a bear
Still life Photos and screen shots from productions and telly
Storyboard Seeing narrative sequences
Summarising Taking the pith...
T
Thinking hats De Bono's thing
Thinking keys Thinking upside down and inside out
Thought tracking Dealing with divided selves and two-faced weasels
Time lines At last, a legitimate classroom use for velcro
Treasure hunt Collect stuff, answers, or photos
True or false The eternal question
Trump cards Card game to assess characters' virtues/vices
U
Under pressure Force field analysis, diagrams
Using corpora Very cool language gizmo
V
Venn diagrams To explore similarities between characters
Verbal collage The spine-shivering effect of choral speaking
Visits A few top tips
Voting Techniques to liven it up
W
Watching telly Go on, you know you want to...
Webquest Adventures in cyberspace and/or the ICT suite...
Website DIY Or, how not to do them, having learned the hard way...
Word bag If only you could get the shoes to match...
Wordsearch Makes a change occasionally. ..
Writing kick starts Teacher's Emergency Survival Box
Z
Z to A Or A-Z if you really insist on it...
Zimmer frames Love 'em or loathe 'em
Zombie killers Keeping students alert during videos/lectures
Zooming in and out Focusing on small details by getting rid of the rest