A key teaching skill is to

successfully:

 prepare
 set up
 run a single classroom activity
or task
A task is ……
……something that learners do that involves
them using or working with language to
achieve some specific outcome.

The outcome may:

 reflect a “real-world” outcome (a communicative act
we achieve through language in the world outside the
classroom) e.g. learners role-play complaining
about food service at a restaurant).
 be a “for-the-purposes-of-learning” outcome (a
piece of classroom work focusing learners on, and involving
learners in manipulating some aspect of the language)
e.g. learners change sentences to questions
A Task (Scrivener-41) Not a task (Scrivener-41)
(explicit outcome) (no outcome)
 Learners listen to  Learners read an
four conversations, article about the
and number the best cities to live in
pictures as they on page 43.
listen (in order to  Learners find new
become better words in a reading
listeners). passage.
 Learners read a
newspaper article to
prepare for a
discussion.
 CLASSROOM DYNAMICS
(arrangements to run an activity)
 Individual work
 Pair-work
 Small groups (three to six people)
 Large groups
 Whole class: mingle (all stand up, walk
around, meet and talk)
 Whole class: plenary
 Basic Route-Map Plan
for Running a Simple EFL Activity
1. Before the lesson: familiarize yourself with the material
and activity; prepare any material or texts you need.

In class
2. Lead-in/prepare
for the activity

3. Set up the activity: give

instructions, make groupings, etc

4. Run the activity: students do the

activity, maybe in pairs or small
groups while T monitors and helps
5. Post activity: do any
appropriate follow-on work

6. Close the activity and invite feedback

from the students
Analyzing a Coursebook Activity

Questions to be kept in mind when

analyzing an activity on content and
classroom procedures:
1. Language content - What language
systems and skills will the students
probably be practicing when they do this
activity?
2. Other content - What other purposes
(apart from getting students to practice
language) might this activity serve?
3. Preparation - What preparation needs to be
made? Are any special material or visual aids
needed?
4. Steps - What are the various steps to be
followed?
5. Instructions - What are some important
considerations when giving the oral
instructions?
6. Organization – What organizational
arrangements could you use in class?
The Importance of Information
Gap in group/pair work
 One person knows something that the
other doesn’t.
 There’s a genuine need and desire to
communicate with each other.
 Most real communication comes about
because of gaps of information (or of
opinions or ideas, etc.)
 By creating classroom activities
that include information gaps:

 We can provide activities that mimic a

reason for communication
 It may be more motivating and useful
to language learners than speaking
without any real reason for doing so.
 Designed as a companion for “Learning
Teaching” Methodology I by C. Moscoso -
Office of Academic Research - ICPNA