The role of meaning, form and pronunciation when teaching new language cannot be underestimated. But what comes after that? Use. Using English is perhaps the ultimate goal – the reason why you teach correct pronunciation and verb forms.
What are they?
It is the practical use of English that makes what you are teaching worthwhile. What is needed if your students are going to use the language you are teaching them? Practice activities are an ideal way to get your students to use new language.
Practice activities should be:
- Pitched at the right level for the ability of your students
- As relevant and realistic as possible
- Monitored by the teacher, with corrections given at suitable points
Alter your methods
Practice activities vary tremendously. It could be in written or spoken form, using a traditional exercise, or a communicative task with an open-ended goal as its aim. They key thing is to help your students realize how the language fits into the framework of what they already know, and give them the ability to call on this new language when appropriate.
Traditional exercises include such things as:
- Gap-fill exercises
- Word choice exercises
- Matching sentence halves
- Jumbled sentences
Using materials
Most coursebooks include a variety of ways to practice language, so try to implement these as best you can in the class.
Any other tips on practice activities would be most welcome, so please leave a comment below.
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