Group items tagged

"Image Based Speaking Activity for IWB This is a quick image based speaking activity that any teacher with an IWB or just a data projector in their classroom can do." Nik Peachey's quick lesson plan could be done with your own photographic slide show--or have students in groups make slideshows for other groups to use in describing and discussing.

"...There is scope to engage the pupils in a structured debate to challenge misconceptions, structure arguments and encourage independent study. Additionally, participating in debates can develop confidence and public speaking skills." A good practice for critical thinking and listening speaking skills. This article does not give classroom tips for setting up debates, but you might want to have a judging panel, and also help students prepare while focusing on the factual as well as the rhetorical side of debating.

"Until recently, devices that help children like Enrique speak used modified adult voices. The effect can be startling to those listening because it doesn't sound like a child's voice. Most existing children's voices sound "like adults on helium," said David Niemeijer, chief executive and lead developer at AssistiveWare, which developed the software Enrique tested. "

An interesting way to have an instant conversation partner (currently only in English and Spanish). You are paired with a native-speaking partner, select a level, and speak in Spanish for 5 minutes, then in English for 5 minutes. Your conversation partner then responds. You rate each other's speech. And then choose another partner. Though a little artificial, this could work very well with class assignments on set topics. (Thanks to Sandra Rogers, WiA, for this info.)

The teacher poses an open-ended question based on actual historical documents that demonstrate opposing or differing views. Philosophical Chairs has students discuss the opposing texts. Each student expresses and opinion and then others "take sides" by physically moving to join the group where the idea they favor has been expressed. At least three students must express an opinion in the group before movement is allowed. The teacher puts notes on each opinion on the board as students speak. Combines reading with listening and speaking; preparation for a writing assignment

You can download the slides from this talk by R. Stannard at Oxford University. Stannard speaks about 3 great ICT tools - Jing, BrainShark, and Present.ME -- and how they are used for feedback, speaking, and reflection.

This site allows you to practice speaking with any video (previews, ads, short clips) listed on the site. A speech recognition platform awards a score on how well your pronunciation matches that modeled in the video clip. Has quite a few categories, e.g., business, daily life, news & politics, technology, etc. So you can practice in specific subject areas.

"Watch interesting, authentic videos. Learn the vocabulary that matters to you. Speak and get instant pronunciation feedback." Nice short videos with captioning for listening/speaking practice.

This site has added more videos and seems a great way to get additional English pract.

"Sometimes, it is just necessary to stand in front a group of children and speak to them. It's not the strongest tool in a teacher's box of tricks, but speaking to groups of pupils is hinged with one notable problem - keeping their attention - especially if you are trying to get key points across to help their learning. However, these ideas - adapted from spring.org.uk, can easily be amended for classroom situations, and are worth exploration in ensuring attention is kept by the majority of pupils:" These are some simple, but effective ideas to keep the motivation going.

Rachel Stokes tells how she finds and uses YouTube video for listening-speaking classes. Great information.

Explains how to use Dragon Naturally Speaking (by Nuance), a speech-to-text tool, to leave narrative feedback on student work. Though not free, Dragon can considerably reduce teacher time in making comments and vastly improve feedback to students on their writing.

This avatar based text-to-speech gives students a chance to making talking characters for their website, and give themselves practice in listening and speaking. Fun, too.

A nice example of how you can have students use VoiceThread for a simple listening/speaking activity.

Very short videos--36 sec--may be good for low level students to practice initial speaking/listening. Also has apps for various smart phones. Might be good for a quite pronunciation quiz, for example. The teacher can then send back a short video message with corrections, modeling, etc.

"Drawing and recording your voice is not an easy task. What I've discovered is that once you start drawing, and your focus shifts to the image, there are few barriers to speaking. "The tool I'd like to share today is EDUCREATIONS . I haven't explored it to its full potential but what I've seen so far is good enough. The free tool allows you use your mouse or your finger (ipad) to draw stick figures while you record your voice. You can also upload an image and draw and record your voice at the same time. Once finished, look at the right side below the twitter and facebook buttons for the URL and the embed code which allows you publish the recording."

Virtual Presentation Assistant http://www2.ku.edu/~coms/virtual_assistant/vpa/vpa.htm "The Virtual Presentation Assistant is an online tutorial for improving your public speaking skills. This site is designed to help you target your specific needs as a speaker by allowing you to access any or all of the contents listed below."

Some ideas and resources. Literature is a good way to engage ELLs, even if at first the language seems hard. His language is so much a part of the English-speaking world's culture that Shakespeare has to be included. And it's required, usually in high school. Learning short passages and performing them is a great activity and will help with pronunciation, too.

"I was recently in a third grade classroom and was struck by the presence of rules that were posted for how to have a conversation. The poster said, "Each person must contribute to the discussion but take turns talking. Ask each other, 'Would you like to add to my idea?' or 'Can you tell us what you are thinking?' Ask questions so that you understand each other's ideas. Say, 'Can you tell me more about that?' or 'Can you say that in another way?'" "Having visited many middle and high schools, I think these same rules could -- and probably should -- be posted there as well. " How important the rules of conversation are! We all too often expect our students to "get into groups and discuss," but how often are these productive conversations? These tips/strategies are well worth practicing at the beginning of every year/semester, and not just with young learners. These tips are also a nice practice for EFL/ESL students as they prepare to speak with native speakers.

Some beautiful websites with video and photos. You'll have to explore for yourself what the copyright issues are. Some of the sites have good search categories for teachers, like "history" and "art." Using emotionally laden and content-rich digital images is a great way to start a writing project or a speaking class.

"The goal of the Rich Internet Applications project is to create tools that are informed by language acquisition research, and engage language learners in active learning. "Using our Rich Internet Applications toolset, incorporating speaking and listening into your language class is easier and more flexible than ever! The tools can be used in many different ways: for in-class activities, student projects, homework, or assessment. Because they are tools, not completed materials, they will work with your textbook, language, and level. RIA is a way to help you easily integrate technology into your language class. "The programs are free to use. The project is funded by a US Department of Education grant, and managed by the Center for Language Education And Research at Michigan State University." These applications run in your browser and require only Flash player. Well worth exploring and free.