Presentation techniques teaching English
An important part of teaching English is to introduce students to new language. This could be a new grammar structure or
new vocabulary. The introduction of these features is often called ‘presentation’. There are many different ways of
presenting new language and it is important to use a variety of techniques in your teaching. Whichever technique or
method is followed, there are important elements of any presentation.
These are:
Context - the language needs to be illustrated in a natural context. Showing a realistic use of the language helps to make
the meaning clear for the students.
Clarification of meaning/form - the students need to find out how the language is actually structured and what it means.
Controlled practice - the language point is reinforced through activities which usually involve repeated use of the target
language.
The main aim of presentation is to introduce students to new language by exposing them to it in a natural context. There
are different ways of establishing and developing contexts. In Planning we saw a presentation based on the use of realia -
the teacher’s shoes in our example from page 10.
Realia is a very useful classroom aid, but it’s not the only way of providing a context. Also in Planning we saw a
presentation based on the use of pictures. In that example, the teacher used the students’ own words and ideas to build up
a description of the person in the picture. These words and ideas became the marker sentences which highlighted the
grammar point.
Picture presentation
Pictures are a good resource for the teacher and can be used in a variety of ways. Here are some guidelines for the
procedure of using a picture in a presentation:
• Setting the scene
Pictures can be used as prompts to help generate interest in a topic and help establish a context. Generally the teacher
uses the picture to elicit responses from the students. The type of details the teacher elicits will depend on the language
point to be taught.
Student 1
Have you been to England?
Student 2
Yes I have.
(writes down name) When did you go?
Last year.
How long did you ... ?
etc.
• Elicit/feed marker sentence
Using the picture as prompt, the teacher tries to elicit the marker sentence, through asking questions and asking for
descriptions, for example. If the students do not produce the marker sentence then the teacher supplies it.
• Check understanding
Using concept questions the teacher checks that the students understand the meaning of the structure.
• Model and drill marker sentence
The students get controlled practice of the pronunciation of the form. Notice that drilling is usually done before the
students have seen the written form.
• Write up and focus on form
Now the teacher writes the marker sentence on the board and highlights the form.
The lesson now progresses to controlled and less controlled practice exercises.
Here’s an example of a picture presentation showing how the different stages fit into the E.S.A. (Engage, Study, Acti vate)
model. Look at the following pictures. What structure do you think the teacher is trying to present?
Pictures like these could be used in a presentation for the present perfect continuous.
Lead-in (Engage)
The teacher leads in to the subject by telling an (imaginary) anecdote about his or her terrible journey to school that day.
He asks the students about their journeys to school and other places. It’s possible here to do some vocabulary, maybe on
different kinds of transport - ‘by bus’, ‘a bus stop’, ‘by train’, ‘car’, ‘on foot’ and so on.
Elicitation (Activate)
The teacher shows picture A to the students and asks them to describe what they can see. This will establish the context.
Then the first picture is taken away and the second is shown. The students are asked to describe picture B in the same way.
The teacher then puts both pictures on the board and asks the students if they can think of a sentence to link the two
pictures. It may be possible for the teacher to elicit, ‘She’s been waiting for 25 minutes’. If not, the teacher provides it.
A B
To check the meaning, the teacher could ask the following concept questions:
Teach (Study)
The teacher says the sentence two or three times before indicating to the students to repeat. The teacher drills the class,
paying attention to the contracted ‘she’s’ and the weak pronunciation of ‘been’ - / /.
Then the teacher writes up the marker sentence on the board and elicits or highlights the form, in this case:
have/has (’ve/’s) + been + present participle.
This is then followed by controlled and then freer practice activities to activate the students’ use of the language.
In this example, the teacher has used a context established by the lead-in and the pictures to present the target language.
The teacher has tried to elicit the target language before giving it directly to the students. The advantage of this approach
is that the teacher can find out what and how much the students know before he or she starts to teach. This means that the
teach stage can be more closely directed at what the students actually need to know. It also has the advantage that it
engages the students and involves them in an active production stage early on in the lesson.
Another common technique for presentation is to let the students see or hear the target language in context and then get
them to work out the grammar themselves. This is what is sometimes called a ‘guided-discovery approach’. The teacher
doesn’t tell the students directly what the target language is, but leads the student to discover it themselves. Reading and
listening texts are often used for this.
Reading and listening presentations
For a reading or listening presentation the teacher needs to select or create a short text which contains the target
language. As the text is being used for presentation purposes, rather than as a resource for skills development, it should
not be too difficult for the students. It should not contain a lot of new vocabulary or structure.
The stages of the presentation are similar to those for most presentations. There should be a lead-in, to establish interest
and context. This may include some vocabulary work, particularly if there are any words in the text which the teacher feels
the students need to know. There is a focus on form and meaning and then controlled practice.
The teacher exploits the text following the stages listed below. (For a full description of this process see Exploiting
listening and reading texts on page 19).
Teacher
Where is she?
At the bus stop.
Student
What’s she doing?
Waiting for a bus.
When did she start waiting?
At 8.00/25 minutes ago.
What’s the time now?
8.25.
So, she’s been waiting for 25 minutes.
• Establish context
• Pre-teach vocabulary
• Set gist questions
• Listen/Read text
• Check in pair s
• Check answers in class
• Set more detailed questions
• Listen/Read again
• Check in pair s
• Check answers in class
The teacher can use the second set of questions for comprehension or to start focussing the students on the target
language.
As an example, to teach the structure ‘used to’ for past habit, the teacher could use a text in which someone is writing or
speaking about their life when they were younger compared to their life now. In the text, the speaker or writer actually uses
the target language in phrases such as:
‘I used to go swimming every day, but not now. I haven’t been swimming for 20 years!’
The teacher asks the students questions to clarify meaning:
When the meaning is clear, the teacher can tell the students to look at or listen to the text again and make a note of the
way that meaning is expressed. The teacher can then elicit from the students the form ‘used to’. This can then be
highlighted and practised in the normal way.
Using this technique the target language and it’s meaning have been presented without the teacher ever saying it. The
students have done the work of discovering the language through careful guidance from the teacher. Involving students in
their own language development like this is a very productive approach.
Dialogue build presentation
Another way to introduce new language is to use a dialogue build. A dialogue is a conversation between two people and in
this activity the teacher uses the conversation to show the students the language being used in a natural way. The students
listen to the conversation and have to try to remember and rebuild the dialogue.
As always, it’s very important to create a clear context for the students. For example, to present the present perfect with
‘for’ and ‘since’, a possible situation would be two people meeting in the street who haven’t seen each other for a long
time. The teacher establishes the context through elicitation, possibly using pictures or anecdotes and then the dialogue is
played or ‘performed’ by the teacher.
Teacher
Does she swim now?
No.
Student
Why not?
She’s too old.
Did she swim before?
Yes.
How often?
Every day.
The students listen to the dialogue again and then try to recreate it sentence by sentence. The teacher elicits the first lines
and writes them on the board. He then asks the students in pairs to try an rebuild the rest of the dialogue.
After a few minutes the teacher elicits the rest of the sentences to the board, being careful to point the students towards
the correct language. Following the complete rebuilding of the dialogue, the teacher asks concept questions to check the
students have understood the meaning of the language. He or she can then focus on the target form and continue with
practice exercises. For dialogue builds it is useful to get the students to practise the dialogue with their partners. First by
reading from their books or the board, but then from memory. This can then lead to further exercises.
A
B
Hello!
Hello.
I haven’t seen you for ages!
Well, I’ve been on holiday for three months.
Really, where did you go?
I went to London.
How wonderful.
How long have you been back here?
Well, since Saturday.
Really, shall we go for a coffee?
Why not!
In this glossary you can find definitions and clarifications of many of the specific terms used in this book. Items are listed
alphabetically.
aims (n)
The aim of a lesson is its goal or objective. It’s what you plan the students will learn during the lesson. The aim is usually
the first thing to consider when planning lessons. Aims need to be clearly expressed and need to be realistic and
appropriate for your class.
Here is an example of an aim - do you think it is suitable?
Aim: To teach the future
This aim would be an extremely over ambitious one! There are many ways to talk about the future in English and to ‘teach’
them all successfully in a single lesson would be an impossible task. When looking at introducing new grammar, the teacher
needs to restrict the aims to a single concept which can be covered in the time allowed. Here’s a more suitable way to
express an aim:
Aim: To present and give practice in the use of ‘going to’ for future plans.
concept (n)
Concept refers to the meaning of a particular piece of language, usually grammar. Many grammatical items are used in
different ways, they have different concepts. For example, the present simple. Here are some concepts of the present simple:
• For a timetabled future event - e.g. The train leaves at 10.30 tomorrow.
• For general or scientific fact - e.g. Water boils at 100º Centigrade.
• For habitual action - e.g. I get up at the same time every day.
• For ‘permanent’ conditions - e.g. I live in London.
Although the structure is the same, the concepts are different. When planning to teach a grammar point it is very important
to identify the concept you wish to teach and make sure that all your activities and examples fit that concept. If the
concepts are mixed up it can make it very confusing for the students.
Part of the teaching process is checking that the students understand what they are being taught. Unfortunately, the
question, ‘Do you understand?’ is not a reliable way of doing this! A far more productive technique is to use concept
questions. Well-phrased concept questions help not only to confirm that students have understood, but can also help those
who may be not so sure to reach that understanding. Concept questions are often of the yes/no type. For example, here are
some concept questions that could be asked for the Second Conditional:
e.g. If I had enough mone y, I’d buy a big house.
Possible concept questions:
• Can I buy a big house? No.
• Why not? Don’t have enough money.
• How can I buy a big house? If you had enough money.
• Do I have enough money? No.
If the students give answers similar to these, then it shows the teacher that they have understood the concept or the
meaning of the language you have presented to them.
Concept checking through the use of concept questions is a very important classroom skill to develop and use.
Glossary
context (n) contextualised (adj)
Context is a word for the situation in which language occurs naturally. Students will learn and remember better if the
language is presented in an appropriate context. For example, the phrase, ‘This is a pen.’ is often used as a model for
stating what things are. However, when do native speakers declare such things? Rarely, in fact. So, although the example
sentence shows the form of the language, because it has no context, it doesn’t help the students to learn when they could
actually use that structure.
Natural language always occurs in some context, so, when planning, teachers need to think of contextualised examples of
the language point.
controlled practice
A type of exercise that gives the students repeated opportunities to use, recognise and/or manipulate a particular language
point. Repetition is often a part of these activities. The aim is to develop accurate use of the form and fix it in the students’
minds.
elicit (vb) eliciting/elicitation (n)
Eliciting is a technique for encouraging the students to be involved in and actively contributing to the lesson. Rather than
the teacher telling the students everything, the teacher asks the students for responses and information throughout the
lesson. Eliciting can be done through questions, gesture, mime and pictures. For a good example of this, see the picture
presentation activity on page 9 where the teacher elicits the students’ ideas and uses them for her presentation.
Eliciting is also a good technique for correction, giving the student a chance to correct him- or herself, before offering other
students the chance to help. Only then, if there are no responses does the teacher supply the correction. For example:
Notice that the teacher responds positively, even where there is a mistake. The student is not left feeling embarrassed by
the correction as it has been handled sensitively with praise and encouragement.
feedback (n)
Feedback is a response from the teacher to the class after an exercise or task has been completed. It takes a number of
forms but could, for example, be praise or correction of errors the teacher has heard.
freer practice
Freer practice activities, sometimes called ‘less-controlled’ activities, are used to activate the students’ language. Through
these activities, students have the opportunity to use the target language in a reasonably natural contextualised situation.
This means that they may need to use a wide range of English as well as the target language. Role plays and discussions
are examples of freer practice activities.
Student 1
Yesterday I goed to the park.
Yesterday you ..., not goed, you ...
Teacher
Wented!
Good idea, close but no, not
wented, can anybody else help?
Went?
Student 2
Good yes, so (turning back to the first
student) tell me again about yesterday.
Student 1
Yesterday I went to the park.
Excellent.
general English
An expression used for e veryday English. That is, the students are not studying for an exam, or because they want to learn
business or other specialised vocabulary, for example. General English topics include, for example, going to the shops,
asking for directions, writing postcards, and so on.
grade (vb)
To grade your language means to simplify what you say so that it is understandable for the class. When teaching lower
levels, teachers need to grade their language carefully.
ice-breakers
Short, entertaining activities at the start of lessons to get the class ‘warmed-up’ or to get a new class working together.
Another word for ‘warmers’ (see page 30).
language laboratory
A room with individual booths where students have their own cassette player. The students wear headphones so they are
able to work by themselves. This means that listening exercises can be conducted at the students’ own pace. Students are
also able to record and listen to their own voices.
lead-in
A lead-in is a way to introduce the topic of a lesson. The teacher may use a story, anecdote or pictures to lead the students
into the subject of the day.
marker sentence
A sentence used by the teacher during the presentation or study stage of a lesson to illustrate the form of a piece of
language. It’s a model or example sentence.
monitor (vb)
When students are working together in pairs or groups the teacher needs to be aware of what they are doing. This is not
mainly from the point of view of discipline, although that is a consideration. Monitoring means walking around the class,
listening to the students and looking at what they are doing. If the teacher does this then they can get a good idea as to
how the class are progressing, they can make notes of any particular language problems and of course they can help
students on an individual or group basis if necessary.
realia (n)
A name for real-world objects that are brought in to the classroom as tools or aids. See page 10 for an example.
role plays
A kind of freer practice activity. A simulated situation designed to give students practice in real world English. Imagining the
class is a restaurant where some students play customers and some are waiters is an example of a role play.
syllabus (n)
The content of a course. Similar to the aims of a lesson, but usually the aims of a longer period. What the school expects
the students to cover during the period of the tuition, whether it’s a week, a term or a year. Syllabuses vary considerably
depending on whether they are aimed at an exam class or a General English class, for example.
target language
Similar to aims. The target language of a lesson is the language that you want the students to be able to use by the end of
the teaching sequence, whether it’s grammar or vocabulary, spoken or written.
An important part of teaching English is to introduce students to new language. This could be a new grammar structure or
new vocabulary. The introduction of these features is often called ‘presentation’. There are many different ways of
presenting new language and it is important to use a variety of techniques in your teaching. Whichever technique or
method is followed, there are important elements of any presentation.
These are:
Context - the language needs to be illustrated in a natural context. Showing a realistic use of the language helps to make
the meaning clear for the students.
Clarification of meaning/form - the students need to find out how the language is actually structured and what it means.
Controlled practice - the language point is reinforced through activities which usually involve repeated use of the target
language.
The main aim of presentation is to introduce students to new language by exposing them to it in a natural context. There
are different ways of establishing and developing contexts. In Planning we saw a presentation based on the use of realia -
the teacher’s shoes in our example from page 10.
Realia is a very useful classroom aid, but it’s not the only way of providing a context. Also in Planning we saw a
presentation based on the use of pictures. In that example, the teacher used the students’ own words and ideas to build up
a description of the person in the picture. These words and ideas became the marker sentences which highlighted the
grammar point.
Picture presentation
Pictures are a good resource for the teacher and can be used in a variety of ways. Here are some guidelines for the
procedure of using a picture in a presentation:
• Setting the scene
Pictures can be used as prompts to help generate interest in a topic and help establish a context. Generally the teacher
uses the picture to elicit responses from the students. The type of details the teacher elicits will depend on the language
point to be taught.
Student 1
Have you been to England?
Student 2
Yes I have.
(writes down name) When did you go?
Last year.
How long did you ... ?
etc.
• Elicit/feed marker sentence
Using the picture as prompt, the teacher tries to elicit the marker sentence, through asking questions and asking for
descriptions, for example. If the students do not produce the marker sentence then the teacher supplies it.
• Check understanding
Using concept questions the teacher checks that the students understand the meaning of the structure.
• Model and drill marker sentence
The students get controlled practice of the pronunciation of the form. Notice that drilling is usually done before the
students have seen the written form.
• Write up and focus on form
Now the teacher writes the marker sentence on the board and highlights the form.
The lesson now progresses to controlled and less controlled practice exercises.
Here’s an example of a picture presentation showing how the different stages fit into the E.S.A. (Engage, Study, Acti vate)
model. Look at the following pictures. What structure do you think the teacher is trying to present?
Pictures like these could be used in a presentation for the present perfect continuous.
Lead-in (Engage)
The teacher leads in to the subject by telling an (imaginary) anecdote about his or her terrible journey to school that day.
He asks the students about their journeys to school and other places. It’s possible here to do some vocabulary, maybe on
different kinds of transport - ‘by bus’, ‘a bus stop’, ‘by train’, ‘car’, ‘on foot’ and so on.
Elicitation (Activate)
The teacher shows picture A to the students and asks them to describe what they can see. This will establish the context.
Then the first picture is taken away and the second is shown. The students are asked to describe picture B in the same way.
The teacher then puts both pictures on the board and asks the students if they can think of a sentence to link the two
pictures. It may be possible for the teacher to elicit, ‘She’s been waiting for 25 minutes’. If not, the teacher provides it.
A B
To check the meaning, the teacher could ask the following concept questions:
Teach (Study)
The teacher says the sentence two or three times before indicating to the students to repeat. The teacher drills the class,
paying attention to the contracted ‘she’s’ and the weak pronunciation of ‘been’ - / /.
Then the teacher writes up the marker sentence on the board and elicits or highlights the form, in this case:
have/has (’ve/’s) + been + present participle.
This is then followed by controlled and then freer practice activities to activate the students’ use of the language.
In this example, the teacher has used a context established by the lead-in and the pictures to present the target language.
The teacher has tried to elicit the target language before giving it directly to the students. The advantage of this approach
is that the teacher can find out what and how much the students know before he or she starts to teach. This means that the
teach stage can be more closely directed at what the students actually need to know. It also has the advantage that it
engages the students and involves them in an active production stage early on in the lesson.
Another common technique for presentation is to let the students see or hear the target language in context and then get
them to work out the grammar themselves. This is what is sometimes called a ‘guided-discovery approach’. The teacher
doesn’t tell the students directly what the target language is, but leads the student to discover it themselves. Reading and
listening texts are often used for this.
Reading and listening presentations
For a reading or listening presentation the teacher needs to select or create a short text which contains the target
language. As the text is being used for presentation purposes, rather than as a resource for skills development, it should
not be too difficult for the students. It should not contain a lot of new vocabulary or structure.
The stages of the presentation are similar to those for most presentations. There should be a lead-in, to establish interest
and context. This may include some vocabulary work, particularly if there are any words in the text which the teacher feels
the students need to know. There is a focus on form and meaning and then controlled practice.
The teacher exploits the text following the stages listed below. (For a full description of this process see Exploiting
listening and reading texts on page 19).
Teacher
Where is she?
At the bus stop.
Student
What’s she doing?
Waiting for a bus.
When did she start waiting?
At 8.00/25 minutes ago.
What’s the time now?
8.25.
So, she’s been waiting for 25 minutes.
• Establish context
• Pre-teach vocabulary
• Set gist questions
• Listen/Read text
• Check in pair s
• Check answers in class
• Set more detailed questions
• Listen/Read again
• Check in pair s
• Check answers in class
The teacher can use the second set of questions for comprehension or to start focussing the students on the target
language.
As an example, to teach the structure ‘used to’ for past habit, the teacher could use a text in which someone is writing or
speaking about their life when they were younger compared to their life now. In the text, the speaker or writer actually uses
the target language in phrases such as:
‘I used to go swimming every day, but not now. I haven’t been swimming for 20 years!’
The teacher asks the students questions to clarify meaning:
When the meaning is clear, the teacher can tell the students to look at or listen to the text again and make a note of the
way that meaning is expressed. The teacher can then elicit from the students the form ‘used to’. This can then be
highlighted and practised in the normal way.
Using this technique the target language and it’s meaning have been presented without the teacher ever saying it. The
students have done the work of discovering the language through careful guidance from the teacher. Involving students in
their own language development like this is a very productive approach.
Dialogue build presentation
Another way to introduce new language is to use a dialogue build. A dialogue is a conversation between two people and in
this activity the teacher uses the conversation to show the students the language being used in a natural way. The students
listen to the conversation and have to try to remember and rebuild the dialogue.
As always, it’s very important to create a clear context for the students. For example, to present the present perfect with
‘for’ and ‘since’, a possible situation would be two people meeting in the street who haven’t seen each other for a long
time. The teacher establishes the context through elicitation, possibly using pictures or anecdotes and then the dialogue is
played or ‘performed’ by the teacher.
Teacher
Does she swim now?
No.
Student
Why not?
She’s too old.
Did she swim before?
Yes.
How often?
Every day.
The students listen to the dialogue again and then try to recreate it sentence by sentence. The teacher elicits the first lines
and writes them on the board. He then asks the students in pairs to try an rebuild the rest of the dialogue.
After a few minutes the teacher elicits the rest of the sentences to the board, being careful to point the students towards
the correct language. Following the complete rebuilding of the dialogue, the teacher asks concept questions to check the
students have understood the meaning of the language. He or she can then focus on the target form and continue with
practice exercises. For dialogue builds it is useful to get the students to practise the dialogue with their partners. First by
reading from their books or the board, but then from memory. This can then lead to further exercises.
A
B
Hello!
Hello.
I haven’t seen you for ages!
Well, I’ve been on holiday for three months.
Really, where did you go?
I went to London.
How wonderful.
How long have you been back here?
Well, since Saturday.
Really, shall we go for a coffee?
Why not!
In this glossary you can find definitions and clarifications of many of the specific terms used in this book. Items are listed
alphabetically.
aims (n)
The aim of a lesson is its goal or objective. It’s what you plan the students will learn during the lesson. The aim is usually
the first thing to consider when planning lessons. Aims need to be clearly expressed and need to be realistic and
appropriate for your class.
Here is an example of an aim - do you think it is suitable?
Aim: To teach the future
This aim would be an extremely over ambitious one! There are many ways to talk about the future in English and to ‘teach’
them all successfully in a single lesson would be an impossible task. When looking at introducing new grammar, the teacher
needs to restrict the aims to a single concept which can be covered in the time allowed. Here’s a more suitable way to
express an aim:
Aim: To present and give practice in the use of ‘going to’ for future plans.
concept (n)
Concept refers to the meaning of a particular piece of language, usually grammar. Many grammatical items are used in
different ways, they have different concepts. For example, the present simple. Here are some concepts of the present simple:
• For a timetabled future event - e.g. The train leaves at 10.30 tomorrow.
• For general or scientific fact - e.g. Water boils at 100º Centigrade.
• For habitual action - e.g. I get up at the same time every day.
• For ‘permanent’ conditions - e.g. I live in London.
Although the structure is the same, the concepts are different. When planning to teach a grammar point it is very important
to identify the concept you wish to teach and make sure that all your activities and examples fit that concept. If the
concepts are mixed up it can make it very confusing for the students.
Part of the teaching process is checking that the students understand what they are being taught. Unfortunately, the
question, ‘Do you understand?’ is not a reliable way of doing this! A far more productive technique is to use concept
questions. Well-phrased concept questions help not only to confirm that students have understood, but can also help those
who may be not so sure to reach that understanding. Concept questions are often of the yes/no type. For example, here are
some concept questions that could be asked for the Second Conditional:
e.g. If I had enough mone y, I’d buy a big house.
Possible concept questions:
• Can I buy a big house? No.
• Why not? Don’t have enough money.
• How can I buy a big house? If you had enough money.
• Do I have enough money? No.
If the students give answers similar to these, then it shows the teacher that they have understood the concept or the
meaning of the language you have presented to them.
Concept checking through the use of concept questions is a very important classroom skill to develop and use.
Glossary
context (n) contextualised (adj)
Context is a word for the situation in which language occurs naturally. Students will learn and remember better if the
language is presented in an appropriate context. For example, the phrase, ‘This is a pen.’ is often used as a model for
stating what things are. However, when do native speakers declare such things? Rarely, in fact. So, although the example
sentence shows the form of the language, because it has no context, it doesn’t help the students to learn when they could
actually use that structure.
Natural language always occurs in some context, so, when planning, teachers need to think of contextualised examples of
the language point.
controlled practice
A type of exercise that gives the students repeated opportunities to use, recognise and/or manipulate a particular language
point. Repetition is often a part of these activities. The aim is to develop accurate use of the form and fix it in the students’
minds.
elicit (vb) eliciting/elicitation (n)
Eliciting is a technique for encouraging the students to be involved in and actively contributing to the lesson. Rather than
the teacher telling the students everything, the teacher asks the students for responses and information throughout the
lesson. Eliciting can be done through questions, gesture, mime and pictures. For a good example of this, see the picture
presentation activity on page 9 where the teacher elicits the students’ ideas and uses them for her presentation.
Eliciting is also a good technique for correction, giving the student a chance to correct him- or herself, before offering other
students the chance to help. Only then, if there are no responses does the teacher supply the correction. For example:
Notice that the teacher responds positively, even where there is a mistake. The student is not left feeling embarrassed by
the correction as it has been handled sensitively with praise and encouragement.
feedback (n)
Feedback is a response from the teacher to the class after an exercise or task has been completed. It takes a number of
forms but could, for example, be praise or correction of errors the teacher has heard.
freer practice
Freer practice activities, sometimes called ‘less-controlled’ activities, are used to activate the students’ language. Through
these activities, students have the opportunity to use the target language in a reasonably natural contextualised situation.
This means that they may need to use a wide range of English as well as the target language. Role plays and discussions
are examples of freer practice activities.
Student 1
Yesterday I goed to the park.
Yesterday you ..., not goed, you ...
Teacher
Wented!
Good idea, close but no, not
wented, can anybody else help?
Went?
Student 2
Good yes, so (turning back to the first
student) tell me again about yesterday.
Student 1
Yesterday I went to the park.
Excellent.
general English
An expression used for e veryday English. That is, the students are not studying for an exam, or because they want to learn
business or other specialised vocabulary, for example. General English topics include, for example, going to the shops,
asking for directions, writing postcards, and so on.
grade (vb)
To grade your language means to simplify what you say so that it is understandable for the class. When teaching lower
levels, teachers need to grade their language carefully.
ice-breakers
Short, entertaining activities at the start of lessons to get the class ‘warmed-up’ or to get a new class working together.
Another word for ‘warmers’ (see page 30).
language laboratory
A room with individual booths where students have their own cassette player. The students wear headphones so they are
able to work by themselves. This means that listening exercises can be conducted at the students’ own pace. Students are
also able to record and listen to their own voices.
lead-in
A lead-in is a way to introduce the topic of a lesson. The teacher may use a story, anecdote or pictures to lead the students
into the subject of the day.
marker sentence
A sentence used by the teacher during the presentation or study stage of a lesson to illustrate the form of a piece of
language. It’s a model or example sentence.
monitor (vb)
When students are working together in pairs or groups the teacher needs to be aware of what they are doing. This is not
mainly from the point of view of discipline, although that is a consideration. Monitoring means walking around the class,
listening to the students and looking at what they are doing. If the teacher does this then they can get a good idea as to
how the class are progressing, they can make notes of any particular language problems and of course they can help
students on an individual or group basis if necessary.
realia (n)
A name for real-world objects that are brought in to the classroom as tools or aids. See page 10 for an example.
role plays
A kind of freer practice activity. A simulated situation designed to give students practice in real world English. Imagining the
class is a restaurant where some students play customers and some are waiters is an example of a role play.
syllabus (n)
The content of a course. Similar to the aims of a lesson, but usually the aims of a longer period. What the school expects
the students to cover during the period of the tuition, whether it’s a week, a term or a year. Syllabuses vary considerably
depending on whether they are aimed at an exam class or a General English class, for example.
target language
Similar to aims. The target language of a lesson is the language that you want the students to be able to use by the end of
the teaching sequence, whether it’s grammar or vocabulary, spoken or written.
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