View Content #18851

by Renee Marshall, CASLS Curriculum Consultant

When creating listening tasks for the language learner, it's always important to think about what types of listening tasks L1 speakers do in their everyday lives. For example, if you wanted to know how to cook the perfect omelet or fried egg, you might go to YouTube and watch a How-to video. You wouldn't answer a short true/false or multiple-choice questionnaire about it though—instead you would follow along with the video and make the omelet or fried egg yourself. In this activity, pick a short How-to video and have your L2's follow along. If they've understood the directions, they will have a (yummy!) completed product at the end. While I chose cooking How-to videos here, you can also easily adapt this to any How-to video. Whatever video you chose, you may want to review pertinent vocabulary beforehand (for example, for cooking review food and measurement vocabulary) and/or provide a helpful vocabulary list for students.

Objective(s):

Students will be able to follow directions in a How-to video in order to make scrambled eggs.

Resources: How to cook handout

You will also need whatever your chosen video requires in order for your students to complete the task.

Possible videos to use:

English- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9r-CxnCXkg (Jamie Oliver shows you how to make scrambled eggs 3 different ways- "English, French, and American")

French - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yg6ZtBUYI5E (Make the 'perfect' fried egg)

German - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXh5mdsoQGc (Make easy rice pudding)

Spanish - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WM3ZMS4Pe-s (Make an omelet – stop video at 2:45)

Procedure:

1. Have all necessary items for the task on a counter waiting for students to come and get what they need when it's time.
2. Have students watch the How-to video once through. Pass out the How to Cook handout to all students.
3. Watch the How-to video again and have students fill out the handout. You may need to pause the video and clarify/help at certain points. (if you have short periods, you can do steps 2 and 3 the first day and then the actual cooking on the second day)
4. When students are done with the handout, review as a class.
5. Have partnered or grouped students come and get the items they need and set up their cooking areas.
6. Play video again while students follow along and complete the task. You will need to pause the video after each step so students have time to complete each one.
7. When done, enjoy the fruits of your labor!

Note: Food and eating habits are very cultural – before, during and/or after the cooking How-to video there may be a good "teaching moment" where you can bring up and discuss certain cultural norms around cooking and eating in the target culture.