Teaching EFL Listening via FUN WITH ENGLISH Books/7A/The Seasons

Lesson

 * identify: opinion / fact and argument / conversation
 * Briefly review context.

Definition

 * Opinion = What a person thinks.
 * Fact = What a person knows.
 * Context = What a person or people is/are talking about.

Why?

 * Because knowing the difference between fact and opinion is important for making decisions.

Example
Questions:
 * Draw two stick figures on the board. Explain that the two of them are having a conversation. These are not questions for the students.
 * A: "Winter is cold. Do you like it?." B: "Yes! It's great!"
 * What is fact?
 * What is opinion?
 * What is the context?

Lesson Question

 * Is this fact or opinion?

Word(s] of the Day

 * extinct
 * Animals that are all dead.
 * endangered
 * Animals that are few in number and may all die, soon.

Question of the Day

 * What season do you like?

Contact Information
QQ ID 867996874 QQ Name Danoff e-mail danoff.charles@gmail.com

Teaching Materials

 * FUN WITH ENGLISH 7A Textbook
 * Lessons Notebook
 * Stopwatch

0 Before Class

 * In classroom at least 30 minutes before my first class of the day.
 * Before class, make sure chairs are set up correctly
 * Write Lesson plan, Lesson, Definitions, Example, my contact info, words of the day and that it's OK to say "I don't know" or "No reason" on the board.
 * Ask if everyone has their textbooks and pens. If they don't tell them to go get them.
 * Have the students write down where they sit on my seating chart.
 * Depending on who is in the class, hand around my notebook and have them write down their names. Do not announce it, just give it to one student.
 * Stopwatch ready to go before class.

1 Coversation
6 Minutes
 * If the kids don't respond, ask them the questions directly.
 * Are you tired?
 * Are you hungry?
 * Is it anyone's birthday today in class?
 * What are you going to do this weekend?
 * Any questions for me? Add that the longer we talk here, the less time we have to spend on the textbook.

2 Minutes

 * Red Sea joke.

3 Introduction
4 Minutes
 * Make sure they understand the word "introduction."
 * Point out the Lesson Plan, mention if we move fast, we can get to the game quicker.
 * Tell them my contact info, and say that "I am busy. I want to talk to you, but if I can't it is not because I don't like them, it is because I am busy. I like all of you. Please say hello again or e-mail me. E-mail is much better."
 * Mention that if ask a question and they don't know the answer, it's fine to say "I don't know". Write "No why" and "No reason" ask which is correct if I ask "Why?" cross out "No reason" explain that it is Chinese, not English.
 * Words of the Day
 * Lesson - Ask if they remember what we did last week? Mention we will be talking a little about the same idea again.
 * Definitions
 * Example
 * What season do you like? ... "OK, well what do you do during the winter?"
 * Ask directly to 1 to 3 students?
 * Ask for any questions.

4 Page 30 Let's get ready A & B
7 Min
 * Walk around the class, help the students who are struggling.
 * Ask the students if the statements are facts or opinions.

5 Page page 31 Let's listen 1 A
2 Min
 * I read it through. Stop at the end of each section and ask the students the answers.
 * Ask the students if the statements are facts or opinions.

6 Page 34 Let's get ready A & B
6 Min
 * I read it through.
 * Ask the students if the statements are facts or opinions.

7 Page 35 Let's listen 1A
6 Min
 * I read it through.
 * Ask the students if the statements are facts or opinions.

8 Page 36 Let's listen 2A
6 Min
 * I read it through.
 * Ask the students if the statements are facts or opinions.

9 Page 37 Let's listen 3A
6 Min
 * I read it through.
 * Ask the students if the statements are facts or opinions.

10 Competitive Hangman
8 Min
 * Divide the class in half.
 * Draw two hang man diagrams.
 * Explain the two halves will be playing against one another with the goal of finishing Hangman first.
 * Give each team one word with the same number of letters and a similar level of difficulty.
 * Start with one side, then alternate back and forth with the questions.
 * First team to finish or the last team to be hung wins.

Extra Time

 * Rows & Columns
 * 20 Questions
 * Soccer Dialogue Illustrating Argument vs. Conversation
 * Ball Self-Introduction Game
 * "How high can you clap?" Game
 * Simon Says
 * Telephone

g8c4 AFLS TJ3 Page 35

 * Getting more kids involved with the conversation.

Next Week

 * identify: argument / conversation
 * Review:
 * identify: opinion / fact
 * Context
 * formal v. informal discussion

Thoughts

 * with these types of classes I really think it might be better to do some sort of activity that gets everybody talking

Acknowledgments

 * Two Grade 8 students at Anqing Foreign Language School who gave me the idea to play competitive hangman.
 * The comics I used in class were from the Chicago Sun-Times and the Chicago Tribune, kindly sent to China by my father.
 * 20 Questions from the ITESLJ
 * http://iteslj.org/games/9996.html

0.1 11 Nov 2009

 * Chose the textbook questions to use in a meeting with Mr. Brown.

0.11 17 Nov 2009

 * Crafted the lesson plan around the questions.
 * Changed the question of the day to reflect the lesson

0.12 20 Oct 2010

 * Adjusted the formatting to make it Mediawiki friendly.
 * Removed some copyright material.

0.13 17 Feb 2011

 * Added lesson detail box, removed some blank material and did some wikignoming for publication.

Page 38 Let's get ready B
4 Min
 * Walk around the class, help the students who are struggling.
 * Select two or three students to talk about what they selected, and ask some follow up questions.

Contact Information
I am actively seeking feedback on how to improve this lesson, please email me at, danoff.charles@gmail.com