Tag: peer teaching

Posted in Exam Preparation Class, Vocabulary Classes

Sentence Swap: Verbs with Prepositions

Posted on by Tim Warre

Image credit: www.rankia.com

Follow me on twitter @RobbioDobbio

This is a peer teaching lesson plan for C1+ students in which students teach and test each other on verbs with dependent prepositions. You will need the cards and worksheet below:

Sentence swap verbs with preps

verbs-and-prepositions-worksheet update

Preparation

Cut out the cards, fold them over and stick them together so that one side shows the gapped sentence and the other shows the answer. I chose to laminate them for future reuse.

Procedure

Peer testing + teaching

Give out one card to each student. I designed this of a class of 16 so it worked out as one each, for smaller groups either give students 2 each or split the activity over two classes.

Explain to students that they are going to test their partner’s knowledge of verbs with prepositions. They must read the gapped sentence to their partner who must try to guess the preposition. If they can’t do it then the “teacher” shows them they answer. Then they swap roles.

After both students have taught their verb + prep, students swap cards with their partner and find a new partner. They then repeat the process. They continue until they have been tested and taught on all the verb/preposition combinations.

Worksheet

Hand out the worksheet and have students complete the first exercise in pairs.

Students can task check themselves, further reducing teacher talk time, the person holding the card for the first sentence holds it up and calls out the correct answer for everyone to check.

Personalisation

Students then complete the sentences with the correct preposition and some information about themselves. Do a few examples to set the ball rolling and encourage them to share:

I sometimes boast about my cooking abilities.

My problem with my attention span stems from using social media too much.

Worksheet

Sentence Completion

Which verb and preposition combinations can you remember?

1.       The school provided me ______ all the materials I needed for the course.
2.       The car slid on the icy road and crashed ______ the parked car.
3.       He was so engrossed _____ his book that he missed his metro stop.
4.       He succeeded _____ playing the symphony without making any errors.
5.       I think you would benefit _____ spending a few weeks in an English speaking country.
6.       The cute guy kept glancing _____ me during the lecture.
7.       He’s so big-headed, he’s always boasting _____ something he has done. (boast=jactarse)
8.       I don’t know where she is I’m a little concerned _______ her.
9.       I’m sorry but this theme park doesn’t cater _____ little babies. (Cater = atender)
10.   We bought a big dog to deter people _____ robbing our house. (deter = disuadir/impedir)
11.   I’m not sure but I think the problem stems _____ a lack of car parking spaces in the city centre.

(stem = originate/come)
12.   I suspect him ____ having cheated in the exam, but I have no proof.
13.   Scientists attribute the melting ice caps _____ global warming.  (attribute = atribuir)
14.   Messi prides himself ____ his ability to run past any player. (pride yourself = enorgullercerse de)
15.   He’s a surgeon, he specialises _____ feet and ankles.
16.   Please refrain _____ using mobiles in the library.

(refrain=abstenerse)
17.   They charged me €15 _____ a sandwich and a bag of crisps!

 

Personalise

Complete the sentences with the correct preposition and some information about you.

  1. I sometimes boast _______ _______________________________________________.
  2. I pride myself ______ ___________________________________________________.
  3. My school provides me _______ ________________________________________.
  4. If I were a teacher, I would specialise _____ __________________________________.
  5. The best way to deter people _______ cheating in exams is _____________________.
  6. I suspect _________ (a person) _____ (preposition) __________________________.
  7. Sometimes I’m so engrossed _____ __________________________ that I ________________________.
  8. My problem with ________________ stems ________ _________________________.
  9. I’m a bit concerned ________ ________________________________________.
  10. I find it difficult to refrain _______ _______________________________________.

Cards

 

The school provided me ______ all the materials I needed for the course.

 With
The car slid on the icy road and crashed ______ the parked car. Into
He was so engrossed _____ his book that he missed his metro stop. In
He succeeded _____ playing the symphony without making any errors. In
I think you would benefit _____ spending a few weeks in an English speaking country. From
The cute guy kept glancing _____ me during the lecture. At
He’s so big-headed, he’s always boasting _____ something he has done. (boast=show off/say how great you are) About
I don’t know where she is I’m a little concerned _______ her. About
I’m sorry but this theme park doesn’t cater _____ little babies. (Cater = atender) For
We bought a big dog to deter people _____ robbing our house. (deter = disuadir/impedir) From
I’m not sure but I think the problem stems _____ a lack of car parking spaces in the city centre.

(stem = originate/come)

 From
I suspect him ____ having cheated in the exam, but I have no proof. Of
Scientists attribute the melting ice caps _____ global warming.  (attribute = atribuir) To
Messi prides himself ____ his ability to run past any player. (pride yourself = enorgullercerse de) On
He’s a surgeon, he specialises _____ feet and ankles. In
Please refrain _____ using mobiles in the library.

(refrain=abstenerse)

 From
They charged me €15 _____ a sandwich and a bag of crisps! For
Posted in Conversation Classes, Vocabulary Classes

You can’t choose your family: Family Expressions

Posted on by Tim Warre

Image credit: blogs.elon.edu

Follow me on twitter @RobbioDobbio

This is a lesson plan for higher levels (C1+) designed with CAE students in mind. Students will teach each other some expressions related to family and use them to describe themselves. Credit to my colleague Julie Banks for some of the expressions. Download the handout and key below:

You cant choose your family handout

You can’t choose your fam teacher notes

Teacher’s notes

Lead-in

Write the expression “you can’t choose your family” on the board. What does it mean? Does it exist in your language?

Peer Teaching

Put students in pairs and assign them As and Bs. Cut up the hand out and give them out. Tell students that they are going to teach each other some expressions related to family. Have two strong students do an example at the front of the class. A reads the first question of the first set to B:

“Are you named after another member of your family?”

If B doesn’t understand they say “Sorry I don’t understand” and A reads them the second question, which contains the definition of the expression in bold:

“Were you given your name because an older member of the family has/had the same name?”

So named after means your name was inspired by the name of another member of the family or by another person whose name your parents liked.

In pairs students ask and answer the questions, taking it in turns to ask and teach each other an expression. When they have finished they must test each other, first by asking for a definition of an expression, for example “what does like two peas in a pod mean?” and then by eliciting the expression “what’s the expression that means that two people are very similar?”

Then test them in open class, As should know all of B’s expressions.

Definition match

Students match the expressions with the definitions.

  1. k
  2. e
  3. f
  4. i
  5. b
  6. l
  7. g
  8. j
  9. h
  10. c
  11. d
  12. a

Personalise

Students complete the sentences about themselves and then compare with their partners.

Student handout

Student A

Here you have six sets of two questions. Ask the first question of each set to your partner. If they don’t understand the expression in bold, ask them the second question, which contains the definition.

  1. Are you named after another member of your family? Were you given your name because an older member of the family has/had the same name? Do any specific names run in your family?
  2. Are you the spitting image of another member of your family? Do you look almost exactly the same as another member of your family? If so, who?
  3. Are you the black sheep of your family? Are you the one member of your family who is different to all the others? If not, who is?
  4. Do you often fall out with members of your family? Do you argue of fight with members of your family? If so, who?
  5. Do you want to follow in your parents’ footsteps? Do you want to do the same job as your parents? Why? Why not?
  6. They say that blood is thicker than water. Do you agree? Do you think that family is the most important thing?

Student B

Here you have six sets of two questions. Ask the first question of each set to your partner. If they don’t understand the expression in bold, ask them the second question, which contains the definition.

  1. Do any specific names/characteristics run in your family? Are there any specific names/characteristics that are passed down from generation to generation?
  2. Are you and any member of your family like chalk and cheese? Are you and any member of your family completely different?
  3. Are you and any member of your family like two peas in a pod? Are you and any member of your family exactly the same in looks and personality?
  4. Who is the main breadwinner in your house? Who brings home the bacon? Who supports the family financially?
  5. Who do you get on like a house on fire with in your family? Who do you have a fantastic relationship with?
  6. Who do you take after in your family? Which parent have you inherited the most characteristics from?

 

 

 

 

Worksheet

Definition Match

Match the expressions on the left with the definitions on the right

1.       Take after sb

2.       Get on like a house on fire

3.       The breadwinner/bring home the bacon

4.       Like two peas in a pod

5.       Like chalk and cheese

6.       Run in the family

7.       Blood is thicker than water

8.       Follow in your parents’ footsteps

9.       Fall out with sb

10.   The black sheep of the family

11.   The spitting image of sb

12.   Be named after sb

 a.       Your name was inspired by an older member of the family

b.      Completely different to sb

c.       Completely different to everyone else in the family

d.      To look exactly the same as sb

e.      To have a great relationship with sb

f.        The one who supports the family financially

g.       Family is the most important thing

h.      To argue/fight with sb

i.         Extremely similar in personality

j.        Do the same job as your parents

k.       To inherit personality/appearance from a parent.

l.         When a characteristic is passed down through many generations.

 

Personalise

Complete these sentences so that they’re true for you.

  1. My ____________ is the breadwinner in my house because________________________.
  2. Me and my ______________ are like two peas in a pod because_______________________.
  3. I often fall out with my ___________________ over ______________________.
  4. I’m named after ____________________________.
  5. I think I take after my ___________________ in my personality and my _________________ when it comes to my looks.
  6. __________________ am/is the black sheep of my family because ____________________.
  7. Me and my ___________________are like chalk and cheese because __________________.
  8. I get on with ____________ like a house on fire because __________________________.
  9. ____________________ runs in my family.
  10. I would/wouldn’t like to follow in my Mum/Dad/parents’ footsteps because _________________________________.
  11. People tell me that I’m the spitting image of ___________________________________.
  12. I agree/disagree that blood is thicker than water because___________________________.
Posted in Conversation Classes, Vocabulary Classes

Peer Teaching: Compound Personality Adjectives

Posted on by Tim Warre

Image credit: www.theglobeandmail.com

Follow me on twitter @RobbioDobbio

I’m running the Barcelona Half-Marathon dressed as David Bowie to raise money for Cancer Research, sponsor me here:

https://www.justgiving.com/Timothy-Warre/

This is a lesson plan for B2+ students in which they teach each other some compound adjectives to describe personality and use them in a discussion. You will need the students’ hand-out, teacher’s notes and link to the quizlet set below:

Compound Personality Adjectives teacher notes

Compound Personality Adjectives sts handout

https://quizlet.com/120973139/compound-personality-adjectives-flash-cards/

Teacher’s Notes

Lead in

You can use the quizlet set to introduce the concept of compound adjectives. Pick out a few students and ask them the following questions, ask them the question with the compound adjective first and elicit the meaning.

Are you blonde-haired? Are you a person with blonde hair?

Are you blue-eyed? Are you a person with blue eyes?

Are you hard-working? Are you a person who works hard?

Are you a 16-year-old girl? Are you a girl who’s 16 years old?

Are you self-centred? Are you a person who only cares about themselves?

Peer Teaching

Now tell students they are going to teach each other some more compound adjectives. Give out the hand-out, put students in pairs and assign them A or B. A’s are not allowed to look at B’s questions. A should first ask B the first question on the list, they must start with the question with a compound adjective, then ask the question with the definition. For example:

A: Are you tight-fisted?

B: Am I what????

A: Are you a person who doesn’t like to spend or give money?

B: No. I’m very generous.

A: So you’re not tight-fisted then.

Students take it in turns to ask a question and teach the compound adjective. When they have finished they should test their partner to see what they remember.

Test a few students in open class to see how well they’ve been taught.

Student A

Read the questions and answer them yes, no or sometimes (Y/N/S)

  1. Are you tight-fisted? Are you a person who doesn’t like to spend or give money?
  2. Are you thin-skinned? Are you a person who is sensitive to criticism or insults?
  3. Are you easy-going? Are you a relaxed and tolerant person?
  4. Are you quick-witted? Are you a person who thinks and responds quickly?
  5. Are you big-headed? Are you a person who thinks they are better than other people?
  6. Are you self-assured? Are you confident in your own abilities and character? Are you a person who doesn’t worry about what other people think of you?

Now ask them to your partner and see what you have in common.

Student B

Read the questions and answer them yes, no or sometimes (Y/N/S)

  1. Are you thick-skinned? Are you a person who isn’t affected by criticism or insults?
  2. Are you laid-back? Are you a person who is relaxed and casual about everything?
  3. Are you absent-minded? Do you often lose or forget things?
  4. Are you bad-tempered? Do you tend to get angry often?
  5. Are you level-headed? Are you a responsible person who doesn’t get anxious in stressful situations?
  6. Are you self-conscious? Are you nervous or embarrassed about what other people think of you?

Now ask them to your partner and see what you have in common.

Matching Exercises

Students complete the matching exercises in pairs.

Definition match Positive/negative Picture match Sentence match
1.       C

2.       G

3.       I (i)

4.       H

5.       D

6.       J

7.       K

8.       L

9.       B

10.    E

11.    F

12.    A

 Positive:

Level-headed

Thick-skinned

Quick-witted

Easy-going

Self-assured

Negative:

Self-conscious

Bad-tempered

Thin-skinned

Absent-minded

Big-headed

Laid-back (could be both)

Tight-fisted

 a.        Tight-fisted

b.       Thin-skinned

c.        Absent-minded

d.       Self-conscious

e.       Laid-back

f.         Bad-tempered

g.        Big-headed

h.       Self-assured

 1.       Self-conscious

2.       Bad-tempered

3.       Level-headed

4.       Thin-skinned

5.       Absent-minded

6.       Thick-skinned

7.       Big-headed

8.       Laid-back

9.       Quick-witted

10.    Tight-fisted

11.    Easy-going

12.    Self-assured

Discussion

Students complete the discussion in pairs giving reasons for their answers: “A good teacher should be easy-going so that the students don’t have to do so much homework” encourage them to agree and disagree using the language in the boxes.

Which compound adjectives would you use to describe the people listed below? Discuss in pairs.

A good friend

A bad friend

 A good teacher

A bad teacher

 A good boss

A bad boss

 Good parents

Bad parents

 A policeman

A footballer

 

Agree Disagree Ask for opinion Express opinion
Absolutely.

I couldn’t agree more.

You took the words right out of my mouth.

Uh-huh.

Yep, I’m with you on that.

Totally.

You’re absolutely right.

You can say that again!

 Hhhmm, I’m not so sure.

I take your point but…

I see what you mean but…

I agree with you up to a point but…

You must be joking.

Are you kidding?

 

 What do you think about ….?

Where do you stand on…?

What do you reckon to…?

 For me personally,

As far as I’m concerned,

In my opinion,

I reckon that…

I’d say that…

Students’ Hand-out

Student A

Read the questions and answer them yes, no or sometimes (Y/N/S)

  1. Are you tight-fisted? Are you a person who doesn’t like to spend or give money?
  2. Are you thin-skinned? Are you a person who is sensitive to criticism or insults?
  3. Are you easy-going? Are you a relaxed and tolerant person?
  4. Are you quick-witted? Are you a person who thinks and responds quickly?
  5. Are you big-headed? Are you a person who thinks they are better than other people?
  6. Are you self-assured? Are you confident in your own abilities and character? Are you a person who doesn’t worry about what other people think of you?

Now ask them to your partner and see what you have in common.

Student B

Read the questions and answer them yes, no or sometimes (Y/N/S)

  1. Are you thick-skinned? Are you a person who isn’t affected by criticism or insults?
  2. Are you laid-back? Are you a person who is relaxed and casual about everything?
  3. Are you absent-minded? Do you often lose or forget things?
  4. Are you bad-tempered? Do you tend to get angry often?
  5. Are you level-headed? Are you a responsible person who doesn’t get anxious in stressful situations?
  6. Are you self-conscious? Are you nervous or embarrassed about what other people think of you?

Now ask them to your partner and see what you have in common.

Definition Match

Match the compound adjective (1-12) with the definition (a-l)

1.       Tight-fisted

2.       Thin-skinned

3.       Easy-going

4.       Quick-witted

5.       Big-headed

6.       Self-assured

7.       Thick-skinned

8.       Laid-back

9.       Absent-minded

10.    Bad-tempered

11.    Level-headed

12.    Self-conscious

 a.        Someone who worries what other people think of them.

b.       Someone who always forgets or loses things.

c.        Someone who hates spending/giving money.

d.       An arrogant person.

e.       Someone who frequently gets angry.

f.         A responsible person who stays calm in stressful situations.

g.        Someone who is sensitive to insults/criticism.

h.       Someone who thinks and responds quickly.

i.         A relaxed, tolerant person.

j.         Someone who is confident in their abilities.

k.        Someone who isn’t affected by criticism.

l.         Someone who is relaxed and casual about everything.

Which ones are positive and which are negative?

Positive Negative
 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Which compound adjective does each photo represent?

a  b c d
 e f g h

Put the 12 compound adjectives from the other page in the sentences.

  1. I felt really _______________ on the first day of school. I didn’t know if the other kids would like me.
  2. My Maths teacher is so __________________, he gets so angry about the smallest things.
  3. When negotiating it’s really important to be ____________________ if you get stressed you can ruin the deal.
  4. My best friend is so ____________________, sometimes I make fun of her just for a laugh and she runs off crying.
  5. You’re so __________________ Mani, you left your bag and all your books on the bus.
  6. In politics you have to be ____________________ you can’t let all the insults or criticism affect you.
  7. Lots of Hollywood stars are so ____________________ they make one good movie and they suddenly think they’re better than everyone.
  8. Sometimes Arnau can be too _____________________, he has 3 exams tomorrow and he hasn’t even started studying yet.
  9. To be a comedian you have to be really ____________________, it’s hard to think of good jokes quickly.
  10. My parents are so ___________________they never give me any pocket money!
  11. Our new teacher is really __________________ he lets us eat sweets in class.
  12. In a job interview it’s important to act __________________, otherwise they won’t give you the job.

Discussion

Which compound adjectives would you use to describe the people listed below? Discuss in pairs.

A good friend

A bad friend

 A good teacher

A bad teacher

 A good boss

A bad boss

 Good parents

Bad parents

 A policeman

A footballer

 

Agree Disagree Ask for opinion Express opinion
Absolutely.

I couldn’t agree more.

You took the words right out of my mouth.

Uh-huh.

Yep, I’m with you on that.

Totally.

You’re absolutely right.

You can say that again!

 Hhhmm, I’m not so sure.

I take your point but…

I see what you mean but…

I agree with you up to a point but…

You must be joking.

Are you kidding?

 

 What do you think about ….?

Where do you stand on…?

What do you reckon to…?

 For me personally,

As far as I’m concerned,

In my opinion,

I reckon that…

I’d say that…

 

Posted in Vocabulary Classes

Peer-Taught Phrasal Verbs

Posted on by Tim Warre

Image credit: teaching.berkeley.edu

Follow me on twitter @RobbioDobbio

I’m running the Barcelona Half-Marathon dressed as David Bowie to raise money for Cancer Research, sponsor me here:

https://www.justgiving.com/Timothy-Warre/

This is a vocabulary lesson originally designed for higher levels (C1+) but the method can be adapted for any level and any set of vocabulary. The idea is that students teach each other a set of phrasal verbs, analyse them and then put them into practice in a gap-fill and a discussion.

Preparation

Print out the phrasal verb cards and one copy of the worksheet for each student. Cut out the cards so that the phrasal verb is on one side and the definition and example sentences are on the other. I laminated them, as shown below, but you could easily just glue them together. Students will work in groups of 3 and teach 2 phrasal verbs each to their groups so you will need 1 set of cards for each group of 3.

Lesson Plan Word doc – Peer Taught Phrasal Verbs LP

phrasal verbs peer teaching CARDS

Peer taught phrasal verbs worksheet

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Peer Teaching

Put students into groups of three and give each member of each group 2 phrasal verb cards. Give students 2 minutes to familiarise themselves with the phrasal verbs and the example sentences. Students then take it in turns to teach their phrasal verbs to their group mates, who can ask additional questions to clarify the use and meaning. Encourage the “teachers” to think of their own example sentences aside from the examples on the cards so that they can personalise it. Also, you could tell them to give their groups an opportunity to guess the meaning before they explain it. For this section I boarded some expressions:

to hazard a guess – make a guess

to put sb out of their misery – kill someone who’s suffering/give sb who is guessing something the answer

When everyone has finished move onto the next stage.

Analysis and Processing

Invite students to come to the board and write a phrasal verb they have learnt and a definition. However, they must board one of the phrasal verbs they have just learnt, NOT one of the ones they taught to their group.

When you have all 6 phrasal verbs on the board, give the students the handout and have them analyse them in their groups using the criteria on the worksheet:

Look at the phrasal verb and decide:

  1. Is the meaning easy to understand from the words?
  2. Put them in order, which one is the most useful?
  3. Which one is the easiest to use?
  4. Which one do you think is easiest to remember?
  5. Which ones could you use at home/work/school/in the street/in emails/letters?

The aim of this section is to force students to process the items at a deeper cognitive level, thus increasing the chances of retention. Feedback briefly in open class. Make a note of the ones students think are hardest to remember.

Gap-fill and Discussion

Students complete the gap-fill exercise on the handout in their groups and then ask and answer the questions.

Put the phrasal verbs in the questions:

  1. What do you do when people _________ when you’re talking? Do people in your country tend to _________ more than other nationalities? Butt/cut in
  2. What fashion trend _____________ when you were younger? Are they still in fashion today? caught on
  3. What did your parents use to do when you ___________? Were they strict or lenient? acted up
  4. How long do you think you could ________________ the internet/TV/music/your favourite food/meat? do without
  5. Have you ever been _____________? What happened to the company? If a company is in trouble, who normally gets _________ first? laid off
  6. What would you do it you saw two people ____________each other in the street? Would you step in? Why? Why not? laying into

Follow up

Test students on the phrasal verbs in the next class and see if their opinions about which are hardest to remember are true.