Activity 1 Listening: Lets go to a movie

Step 1. What needs to be agreed on when you plan to do something with your friends?
Discuss with your partner and make a list.
What needs to be agreed on:
example: time
__________
__________
__________
__________
__________
__________
Step 2. a) Listen to a conversation between two friends making a plan. What do they
agree on? Use your list to take notes when you listen.
b) After listening, check your notes with your partners. What are different
between you and your partners? Look at the following statements. Underline True
if you think it is true; underline False if you think it is false.

True
True
True
True
True
True

False
False
False
False
False
False

1. Furious 7 starts at 7:30.

2. It costs $12.00.
3. They look at the local newspaper for movie information
4. They are going to watch a movie at AMC.
5. They are going to invite another person to go with them.
6. The movie they are going to watch starts at 8:00.

Step 3. Listen again and pay attention to the things you dont agree with your partners
and take notes. Check answers and tell your partners about their plan without
looking at the notes.
Step 4. Listen again and pay attention to the things you miss in Step 2 and 3.
Step 5. Complete your listening journal and discuss with your partners.

 What did I miss when I was predicting the information in the listening?

What did I find the most difficult to understand?

What should I pay more attention to next time?

Script of Lets go to a movie

Kathy: Im tired of studying. Let's take a break.

Norman: Okay, what shall we do?
Kathy: How about a movie?
Norman: Good idea. Whats showing?
Kathy: Lets google. It says that theyre showing The Age of Adaline at AMC at 7:00 tonight.
Norman: Nah, I dont like romance. Its boring.
Kathy: Okay, theyre also showing Rocky at the Ruby at midnight. And, its only $5.00 to get in!
Norman: Thats really cheap, but Ive seen it already. Whats on at State?
Kathy: They're showing Furious 7 at State. It starts at 7:30.
Norman: That might be good. How much does it cost to get in?
Kathy: Its not cheap. It costs $15.00.
Norman: Thats too expensive for me. Anyway, Id rather see Home Alone. They're showing it at the
Cathay. It starts at 7:00.
Kathy: That sounds good. How much does it cost to get in?
Norman: Only $8.00.
Kathy: Okay, well go see Home Alone. Lets text Lisa to see if she wants to go with us.

Grading task / task complexity

According to Ellis (2003), there is not a precise procedure to grade tasks even though
there are informative criteria to refer to. It is more often the case that designers use

criteria as well as their experience of working with particular groups of learners. Since
the target learners of this task are low-intermediate level, in order not to overwhelm the
students, it is necessary to take a less complex approach to design the activities.
First, since the input medium of the activity is oral a more difficult medium to
process, it is necessary to use high frequency vocabulary, short and simple sentences to
balance the complexity. Going to a movie is a familiar topic to young adults, so it is
easier for them to process information too. Second, learners interact with each other and
dialogically, which takes off some of their pressure to work out the exercise alone. Third,
there are multiple steps in the listening activity, and students are given time and an
opportunity to plan before they listen to the conversation. Finally, students provide simple
written and closed outcomes, as well as more complex oral narratives.
Learning outcome
Students will be able to understand a conversation about making a plan to go to a
movie. They will understand what information is needed to make a plan. They will learn
what questions to ask and what phrases to use to make a plan.
How/Where learning happens
Learning happens when students employ their background knowledge, i.e., what
needs to agree on to make a plan, to anticipate information presented in aural text.
Learning also occurs when students pay attention to the gap, i.e., differences between
their and their partners notes, and things they miss when listening. Finally, learning
happens where students are asked to evaluate their listening comprehension and set goals
for next time.
Research support
This activity is primarily based on Vandergrift and Goh (2009)s different stages of
listening instruction. The first step of the activity is to activate students background
knowledge of going to a movie. Having related schema activated, students will be able to
predict and process information quicker in the listening (Flowerdew and Miller, 2005).
Step 2 applies a top-down listening strategy, where students use their prior knowledge
(activated in step 1) to construct reasonable interpretation without focusing too much on
linguistic forms (Izumi, 2003). Step 3 requires a bottom-up listening strategy, where
students need to pay attention to places they miss and focus on linguistic features. Written
forms of the listening activity are not provided until next activity so students will pay
more attention to aural forms (Eastman, 1991). A post-listening step is embedded in this
activity and students are asked to reflect on their performance and plan strategies for
future listening (Goh, 1997; Lio & Goh, 2006).