Humanising Language Teaching
Year 4; Issue 5; September 02

Luxemburg Exercises

The activities that follow were shared by participants and the trainer at a teacher training workshop on the 28th of January, 2002 in the city of Luxemburg.

1. From visual focus to writing secondary and adult

Viviane Hansen

Ask people to notice their breathing, without altering it.
Ask each person to focus their eyes on one point in the room and ask them to count slowly up to 20.
Then they shut their eyes and count again from 1 to 20, mentally focusing on the point.
Then, with eyes still shut, they allow their vision to extend outwards, to see all they would be able to see without moving their head, were their eyes open.
Ask them to open their eyes and write a paragraph, that only they will see, about what they experienced.

[ Editorial comment: it is very useful for students to sometimes write something in the target language that will only be seen by them. This allows them to develop their "inner voice" in English. ]

2. Translating Jabberwocky Upper Secondary and Adult

Viviane Hansen

In preparation, have three of four verses of Jabberwocky read on tape by three different people. In class play the three readings and then give out the text.
Ask the students, working in pairs, to "translate" the text into English

Bring them together to compare what they have written.

3. Writing what the author left out secondary and adult

Anne Marie Reuter

Ask the class to read a very short story for homework.
In class, ask the students to individually choose an area the writer has not explicitly filled in, and to write from half a page to a whole page about what they reckon is not said in the text.

The students work in groups of 4 to 6, listening to what the others have chosen to write.

4. Associations with Colours secondary and adult

Annette Schroeder

Tell the students to turn their paper long-ways and rule four columns. Here are the column headings:

RED --- ORANGE --- YELLOW --- BLUE --- VIOLET

Tell the students to work in pairs and list the words, collocations and idioms they associate with each colour.

Group students in 6's to share their associations.

5. Correcting mistakes primary, secondary and adult

Angela

If you are teaching a low level class ask everybody, at certain phases of the lesson. to listen out for their classmates' mistakes.

When they hear a mistake, they friendlily chorus

Well done, good, you said " ………………". Nice mistake!

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