Finally, the last practice arrived. For this class my tutor was not present, but another teacher was a substitute for the day. In the warm-up, the "lady in red" (song) was used to recall the present perfect tense. To make it different, I created a worksheet, so they would fill in the spaces of missing lyrics (we checked answers later).
I focused on practice because students had been studying present perfect simple & progressive for some days. The second activity was about having speaking practice with the question "have you ever + present perfect". They got pictures and 6 different cases. They were to interview a couple of classmates, write down their names and answers. In the end, I asked some students to provide some of their answers, and they got the target structure right.
I only developed one more activity for the substitute teacher told me I only had 5 more minutes (when I had only taken half an hour). I think the problem was that the class started at 9:10, but that's because students arrived late (I got 15 minutes earlier, 8:45). Anyway, I was able to develop activities that involved the 4 macro-skills, so it was a well-rounded class.
The last activity consisted of students working on a worksheet that contained matching, fill in the blanks, forming present perfect sentences using some fragments, making questions, and "since" & for" exercises. I checked their answers and they did alright. This final experience was not as good as the prior class, but overall, not bad either. It's been a challenging and meaningful time for me in the practicum II, thanks for your comments.
In this third experience, the activities were developed without any trouble. For the warm-up, I handed out lyrics and students sang one song that contained target conjunctions for the class. I did it following a suggestion from my tutor, because last class, the group liked the song but did not get a chance to sing.
For the presentation, I used a "holidays" listening from the student's book that was suitable. There were a couple of questions and students were asked to select the most adequate conjunction for each case.
Then, for the grammar focus, I pasted a chart on the board. It served to contrast the differences, uses and examples of "since" and "for", as well as present perfect simple vs continuous. I also gave definitions and explanation of new terms from the vocabulary section.
Afterwards, students worked on exercises from a "since" or "for" worksheet. When the time limit was over, they helped me to check the answers. They only got one wrong answer, which showed their understanding.
In the final activity, students got in pairs and I gave them "places" flashcards. They were to use "since" and "for" in the present perfect tense. They had some speaking practice, came up with a couple of sentences, wrote them down and shared them with the rest of the class.
I was able to include activities for 3 macro-skills and the students' performance was decent, so I felt satisfied with results. In addition, students felt comfortable asking me questions about new words and grammar. I hope my last class turns out fine too, thanks for reading.
I got early to the University. However, students from a prior class were still there and I couldn't start doing anything in advance (they left until it was past 9, I don't know why). Anyway, I handed out copies of song lyrics to students and they identified a couple of modals there while they listened to the song.
I liked the presentation activity as it was a reading and a listening at the same time. The audio was a narration of a passage found in the book. Afterwards there were questions including "could" and "have to". Furthermore, they discussed how much life has changed in their families, generation-wise, like in the reading.
The grammar focus aimed to explain the common uses of modals for advice (should, must), obligation (have to, must) and permission (could). I wrote down some example sentences. I clarified the structure of sentences using modals and the third person form. Introduction of new vocabulary was also a part of the class that I developed as new words came up from the practice and their inquiring.
In the following activity, students worked on a worksheet in which there were exercises that included a list of possible modals to write in each item. So, students selected the most fitting one for each case. I checked the answers with students and they got most of them right. They grasped both the affirmative and negative forms.
For the last activity, they worked in pairs. I handed out actors' photos that had a situation pasted in the back. Students pretended to be the manager of one celebrity. They were to give pieces of advice regarding the actor's training for a movie role. I prompted them to use "should" or "must" and to write down their ideas. In the end, they shared one of their advices with the rest of their classmates. The group seemed to be pleased with the class.
My first practice went well enough. It was a lot of work, but it turned out better than expected. The warmup consisted of having them read in an auxiliary language that does not need to be studied to be understood. Students were able to read it and found it amusing.
For the presentation, I played a song that had quantifiers and afterwards, I formulated questions from it. The song had a fun rhythm, so they seemed to like it. Subsequently, they read one passage aloud. There were questions and underlined quantifiers. They participated and identified the key elements.
The grammar focus followed. I got to the classroom before time and made a chart on the board. I included a definition of quantifiers, examples, and a percentage scale to organize them. I also added a vocabulary section for the new words found in the practice.
I handed out copies of a worksheet consisting of a "fill in the blanks" activity. They worked on selecting a proper quantifier for each sentence, and I monitored their progress. Then, when their time to answer was over, I had them check along the exercise with me. They got most answers right, so I was pleased.
To wrap up the class, I guided a speaking activity. They were to get in pairs and answer some questions that were meant for discussion and usage of quantifiers. Students engaged in the task and shared some of their ideas with the rest of the group, which was nice. So, I hope the remaining practices work out as well.
My last practice with Intermediate I went well. I expected it to turn out fine because I prepared more material than in previous classes. The class was to be a general review focused on practice. The warmup was a song that had comparative and superlative adjectives.
Once again I used flashcards, this time as suggested by my tutor, so students could form sentences comparing the landmarks in the pictures. They even learned the name of some famous places they did not know about before. I wrote the spelling on the board and pasted the flashcards there too. I asked them to give me some example sentences, and they did.
I handed out over 20 celebrity posters. Students got in pairs, but everyone got one picture. I asked them to make comparisons between the celebrities. In addition, they came up with sentences using superlatives. The group liked the activity, as the visual aids made it more appealing. Each couple shared one sentence of theirs.
Finally, the class worked on a worksheet about the topic. There were two pages and not much time. So, I had them solve the first page of exercises along with me. They worked on the second one by themselves. In the end, we checked the answers.
A few new words were also introduced for the vocabulary section. Again I did some drawings on the board, provided definitions, example sentences in common context and had them repeat for pronunciation. I must say that because it was the last class, people were quite eager to ask questions and there was a very comfortable environment, just like it often happens in the last classes. This was a rich experience for my teaching practicum.
My third practice with the group was satisfactory, as I developed lots of activities. In order to engage students and diagnose whether they knew about simple present & present continuous, I used daily routines flashcards, asking what the people were doing and then to turn that answer into a simple present statement. They quickly got a general idea, answered chorally when I asked and the warm-up served its purpose effectively.
I gave a concise grammar explanation, contrasting both tenses for the class. I talked about their most common uses, and converted sentences from one tense to another, so the difference would be clarified. I also gave them tips for them to differentiate gerunds from present progressive.
Students worked on a multiple-choice reading activity, in which they were to circle the right option, choosing between simple present or present continuous according to the context. They got most answers right, and I explained those cases that were more troublesome.
I combined a TPR activity: "miming" with "guessing". The class got in pairs and got one strip of paper containing a prompt like "to walk". Then one of them would mimic and the partner had to guess the action by using the present progressive: "you are walking". Furthermore, they wrote a sentence using the same prompt, but in simple present tense.
Then, I wrote two possible discussion topics on the board, and they were to discuss using the two tenses from the class. I tried to relate the topic to national context: "What is happening at the Coatepeque lake?", and the other question was: "What are your parents doing right now/what to they do on their daily routine?".
Some new vocabulary was introduced as usual, using synonyms, providing definition, explanation of meaning, writing example sentences on the board, etc. In conclusion, the teaching dynamic is alright with this group, and I intend the last class with them to be a meaningful experience as well.
Fortunately, this second class went better than last time. The rapport improved and everybody seemed to be more comfortable. They were more eager to ask me questions, expressing their doubts on meaning of words, etc. The warm-up was simply listening to a song containing gerunds, and they were to focus on listening. I did not provide them with lyrics, so they had to pay attention and write down gerunds as they listened to the track.
I made a quick review from last class and reminded some new concepts regarding gerunds/infinitives and the verbs they follow. After re-connecting to prior knowledge, they worked on a worksheet I gave them. Most of them grasped the topic because they got almost all the answers right.
In this class, I had some vocabulary that was difficult to explain using plain words. Therefore, I did a couple of drawings on the board to complement the definitions, which worked effectively by showing them a clearer picture of the meanings.
Afterwards, they had some reading practice that included a "fill in the blanks" activity. Once again, they succeeded in the completion of the task and when they did not, I would provide further explanation on why they needed to consider the case and the context to decide whether to use an infinitive or a gerund, based on factors like probability, certainty (or lack of), and what verbs only accept either gerunds or infinitives.
To finish the class, I developed a listening activity. Before playing the audio, they tried to solve the exercise based on context and what option in parentheses was the most fitting one. Then, they listened and checked if their answers were correct. There were some new words and I took some time to introduce them, sometimes relating the vocabulary from the same lesson and talking about their opposites or synonyms.
