View Content #24143

By Zach Patrick-Riley, CASLS Fellow 

Purpose: This activity strengthens students' ability to use reflective practices as a strategy for language learning.  Each student brings his or her own interests to the classroom, and this activity has students connect those interests to a place. This activity was designed for students at the intermediate proficiency level.

Objectives: 

• Students will be able to use their environment as a catalyst for language learning.
• Students will strengthen their ability to use a social media platform for vocabulary building.
• Students will be able to describe how an activity is associated with a place by using at least three adjectives.

Modes: Interpersonal communication, interpretive, and presentational

Materials needed: Environment and Experience Sheet, Internet access

Procedure:

1. Hand students the Environment and Experience Sheet.

2. Students work individually on the worksheet. The goal of steps 3, 4 and 5 is for students to reflect on how an activity makes them feel, where they do this activity, and features of the place they do this activity.  Monitor while they are working and help them think of words (e.g. adjectives or feelings).

4.  When students get to question 6, students will search for the word they wrote down for place on an online platform, (e.g. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter) using their Internet-connected devices. The goal of steps 6 and 7 is for students to begin to see how their perspective of a place is similar to and different from others.

5. Students discuss questions 8 and 9 with a partner or in a small group. The goal of these two steps is to explicitly facilitate students’ reflection on how an environment makes them feel/think a certain way.

6. Whole class discusses what the students found.

Notes/Modifications:

• To encourage spoken communication, allow students to work in pairs to complete steps 1-4 on the worksheet as an interview activity.
• This activity can be adapted for novice learners by specifying target vocabulary ahead of time.
• This activity can be adapted to suit more advanced learners by having them elaborate their descriptions to include a variety of details.