Recent Activities of the Week

The purpose of this activity is to expose learners to a variety of tools that will help them guide their own language study. It is appropriate for all levels of learners.

Objectives:
Learners will be able to:

• Think of a goal for their language learning.
• Consider tools they can access on their own to work towards that goal.
• Evaluate tools for language learning.

Mode(s): All

Materials: Beyond Proficiency video

Procedure:

1. Show learners the Beyond Proficiency video. Ask that they consider their own personal language goals based on the guiding questions in the video.
2. As a class, brainstorm tools for language learning that learners can access in their own study. Some tools might include music by particular artists, language learning apps, YouTube resources related to language learning, YouTube resources in the target language, video games, news publications, or textbooks. If you need other ideas, feel free to browse the language learning activities on the CASLS YouTube channel.
3. Next, work to develop three criteria for evaluating the resources you brainstormed. These criteria could include these examples:
   •             The resource provides information directly related to what I need or want to know.   
   •             The resource gives me the opportunity to practice communication in real time.
   •             I felt like I was learning when I used the resource.
4. Ask learners to engage meaningfully with two of the brainstormed resources for at least an hour over the next week. After engaging, they should evaluate which resources they liked using a Likert Scale. They can share the reasons they evaluated the resources as they did in either a personal reflection or a class discussion.      

Notes:

• In Step 3, it is appropriate to allow learners to brainstorm individualized criteria that are appropriate to their goals.

This activity was created for Advanced language learners. Its purpose is to engage and support learners in considering how to repair miscommunication in the target language.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Brainstorm language strategies for repairing miscommunication
• Analyze target language samples to identify strategies for repairing miscommunication

Mode(s): All

Materials: Advanced proficiency overview video, digital discussion board

Procedure:

1. Have learners watch the Advanced proficiency overview video.
2. As part of a class discussion, ask learners to share a time in which they experienced miscommunication (in the target language or in another language). Learners may offer examples of any type of miscommunication (e.g., unintentionally offending someone or using a target utterance incorrectly).
3. Pick three or four situations that the learners brainstormed and discuss strategies to repair the miscommunication as a class. Some strategies may include apologizing, explaining what happened, justifying one's choices, and appropriating responsibility. 
4. Ask learners to investigate one situation from Step 3 and to find two target language examples of repair in practice. Remind them to search in the target language.
5. Learners should post their examples along with explanations of the repair strategies to a discussion board or other shared, digital space. 
6. In either a synchronous or asynchronous discussion, ask learners to review some of the samples posted and identify what they have learned about nuances and expectations related to repair in the target language.

This activity was created for Intermediate language learners. It engages learners in brainstorming Advanced descriptors with the goal of supporting their development into Advanced communicators.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Brainstorm nuanced and specific descriptors
• Implement nuanced and specific descriptors in communication

Mode(s): All

Materials: Intermediate overview video, word wall 

Procedure:

1. Ask learners to watch the Intermediate overview video.
2. Engage in a brief classroom discussion regarding how to get over the Intermediate hump. Mention employing nuanced and specific language.
3. Divide learners into three groups. Provide one group with the word interesting, one group with the word good, and one group with the word bad. Then, ask learners to brainstorm more advanced words for each descriptor (e.g., heavenly, helpful, or exemplary for good). 
4. Groups will share their lists to make a classroom “wall” (physical or digital) of meaningful descriptors.
5. Ask learners to review a previous work sample (e.g., a writing prompt or a recording) from class. They will rewrite it or re-record it with more advanced descriptors by using the word wall.
6. In future revisions of written, spoken, or signed language, include a step in which learners evaluate the quality of their descriptors.

Notes:

• In Step 3, allow learners to look up words in the target language that they do not already know. 

This activity was created for Novice language learners. Its purpose is to help learners understand the variety of ways in which Novice learners can communicate. These considerations will result in personal goal setting.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Demonstrate understanding of the ways in which beginning language learners are able to communicate
• Set one personal goal
• Reflect on progress for one personal goal

Mode(s): All

Materials: Novice overview video, SMART goal template

Procedure:

1. Provide learners with a brief description of the Novice proficiency level (or the corresponding description from the framework that you use in your classroom).
2. Ask learners to brainstorm important descriptors of beginning communication. For example, they might mention memorized language, lists of words, single words, short phrases, or predictable or supported utterances.
3. Ask learners to think of three ways that they use language in their real lives that involve Novice proficiency levels. They may mention filling out personal information on a form, reading photo captions, asking questions about events at school, or making lists when planning a party.
4. Have learners watch the Novice overview video to verify their predictions and to add to the list of ways that new language learners can communicate.
5. Learners will consider the various ways to communicate that were discussed in class and will write one personal goal. The goal will be documented using the SMART goal template.
6. Once a week for a month or so, ask learners to write a brief reflection on their progress toward the goal. In these reflections, they should 1) document their progress (for example, using photos of their work); 2) evaluate how well they are performing; and 3) identify next steps.

This activity invites learners to consider their own proficiency levels and draws them to make connections between language proficiency and proficiency in other activities in the surrounding world. While it can be used at any level, it was designed with beginning users in mind.

Learning Outcomes:

• Identify their own (ACTFL) proficiency level
• Set a long-term language proficiency goal for themselves

Mode(s):  Interpretive, Interpersonal

Materials: language proficiency overview video, handout

Procedure:

1. Introduce learners to the idea of language proficiency using this overview video. Pause the video when the LinguaFolio graphic is shared (around 1:11) so that the learners can do a quick self-evaluation of where they are in their language study. Ask learners what they selected and why. Next, ask them to document what proficiency level they would like to ultimately achieve.
2.  Next, provide learners with the handout. In groups of 3-4, they will use the handout to consider the brief descriptions of each language proficiency level and to write their own descriptions for a different activity of their choice (e.g., playing a specific sport, developing skill in a performance art).
3. On the same handout, learners will document the effort that one must undertake to progress from one level to the next level of the activity they chose in Step 2.
4. Next, as a class, have learners consider what they think language learning will entail. The teacher will guide the discussion and supplement language strategies when appropriate.
5. Finally, learners will revisit the long-term goal they documented in Step 1. On an exit ticket, they will share their goal with the teacher and will write a brief overview of how they intend to achieve the goal.

by Carla Consolini, UO Graduate Student

This activity was created for learners of all proficiency levels, though discussion may need to be supplemented by reflection in the L1 for learners at lower proficiency levels. The activity focuses on recognizing the meaning of an utterance in relation to the contextual information surrounding it and identifying how meaning is construed with information beyond the words used.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Identify how context impacts the meaning of utterances
• Create one example of an utterance in which meaning changes across contexts

Mode(s): Interpretive, Presentational

Materials: Multimodal communication video, a video example of an utterance, a sarcastic meme with the same utterance (see example), and a written conversation with the same utterance (see example)

Procedure: 

1. Introduce learners to the idea of multimodalities using the multimodal communication video.
2. In pairs or groups of three, learners will consider examples of the meaning of a particular utterance. These examples are provided for “I’m fine” in English. 
   
   Ross is fine video (starting around 2:00 minutes) 
   A sarcastic meme with “I’m fine” (see example)  
   A written conversation between friends (see example)
    
3. As a class, brainstorm the clues that let learners know each of the different meanings of the target utterance (e.g., "I'm fine."). What visual, aural, or spatial clues inform everyone’s understanding?
4. In pairs or groups of three, ask learners to think of a different utterance and how they can craft a context to change the meaning of the utterance. They should draft or record examples in the two contexts: create a meme, record a conversation, transcribe an asynchronous chat, etc.
5. Post the examples on the wall in a physical classroom or in a shared online space like Google Jamboard or Google Drawings in virtual classes.
6. Learners will engage in a gallery walk and place stars (anonymously) on their three favorite examples.
7. As a class, debrief the favorite examples. Unpack the clues that existed, beyond the actual words, to help convey differentiated meaning.

Notes:

In face-to-face classrooms, you may have to use a computer or tablet to share recorded examples. Learners can document if the recordings are their favorites by placing their stars on a piece of paper placed with the computer or tablet.

by Carla Consolini, UO Graduate Student

This activity was created for learners of all proficiency levels, and we recommend that it be conducted in the L1. The activity provides learners with the opportunity to explore and understand the ACTFL modes of communication.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Identify the ACTFL modes of communication across different examples  
• Identify some skills that are related to each mode of communication
• Brainstorms examples from their own lives of engagement in each of the modes

Mode(s): Interpretive, Presentational

Materials: ACTFL modes of communication video, examples handout, and brainstorm handout

Procedure: 

1.  In pairs or groups of three, learners will consider examples of different instances of communication from the examples handout and decide how communication is achieved in each example (e.g., which of the ACTFL modes are at play) and think of related skills.
2. Learners will watch the ACTFL modes of communication video.
3. In their groups, learners will consider whether they need to revise their answers from Step 1 based on the video.
4. Next, learners will brainstorm 1-2 examples of each mode of communication from their daily lives using the brainstorm handout.
5. To close, debrief as a class about learners' favorite examples. 

Notes:

• It is important to mention to students that the images in Step 1 are imperfect representations of communication since they are static images.

by Carla Consolini, UO Graduate Student

The purpose of this activity is to help learners think about the ways that language learning is relevant to their lives. It is ideal to complete this activity at the beginning of a school year, term, or program to reorient learners toward a purpose. For beginning learners, this activity is best completed in the L1.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Articulate at least two ways that language learning is relevant to their lives

Mode(s): Interpersonal

Materials: Butcher paper/posters and markers of various colors (face-to-face), Google Jamboard (online), why learn a language? video

Procedure:

1. Create a physical space for writing (e.g., poster) or a digital space for writing (e.g. Google Jamboard with various slides) and write a single concept in the center of each space: Community, Change, Creativity, Culture, Communication, Identity, and Relationships. Make sure to leave enough space for a brainweb around each word.
2. Round 1 of Museum/Gallery Walk: In groups of 3-4, ask learners to brainstorm what each word means to them. Provide one minute per poster/Jamboard slide, and ask that each group use a distinct assigned color. As they complete the activity, they may add new ideas or build off the ideas of other groups, but they may not repeat ideas. However, they may circle the ideas that are already written that they have as well. They may draw images or write words as they complete this step.
3. Hold a brief (less than 5 minutes) discussion about learners’ answers. Ask for clarification and highlight the common threads and most unique points.
4. Round 2 of Museum/Gallery Walk: In the same groups, ask learners to think about how each word relates to what they learn in school. They should consider each subject area.
5. Debrief as a group. Ask learners to highlight their favorite ideas from the second round of the gallery walk. Debrief by discussing the connections among disciplines that learners considered.
6. As a group, create a final brainweb about language learning. Ask learners to consider all the ways that it is relevant to their lives. Remind them that learning is about process, so they should not consider content alone, but rather skills they might develop along the way.
7. Finally, ask learners to predict three ways in which language learning will help them in all domains of their lives. Then watch the why learn a language? video.
8. To close, have learners write an exit ticket in which they identify the benefit of language learning that is most exciting to them.

This activity focuses on the characteristics of human language and was created for learners of all proficiency levels. It should be delivered in the first language at the lower proficiency levels in order to facilitate deep thinking.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Identify and summarize the characteristics of human language  
• Create examples of the characteristics of human language

Mode(s): Interpretive, Presentational

Materials: characteristics of human language Video, characteristics of human language handout, characteristics of human language examples, and characteristics of human language fill-in template

Procedure: 

1. Ask learners to read each definition on the first page of the characteristics of human language handout and try to predict which of the terms on the second page corresponds with each definition. 
2. Next, ask learners to verify their predictions with the characteristics of human language video. 
3. After watching the video, in pairs or groups of three, give learners the first page of characteristics of human language examples.
4. Ask the pairs or groups of students to label each of the pictures with one of the characteristics from Steps 1 and 2.
5. Review answers as a class.
6. Have learners return to groups and use the characteristics of human language fill-in template to create their own examples of each characteristic in practice.
7. Debrief by having each group share their favorite example.

Notes:

• The handouts have answers on the second page. Be aware before you print!
• It is fine to complete this activity with only a few characteristics at a time over a series of class periods.
• In completing Step 6, learners may wish to use magazines or another print medium (if doing this activity with pencil and paper) or pictures from the Internet (in doing this activity in the virtual classroom).

In light of COVID-19, many learners spend the majority of their days on digital devices. The purpose of this activity is to help them be more intentional about their use of digital technologies and to reset any automatic use habits they may have developed. The goal is to reduce burnout and overload through intentional reflection on the use of technology.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Recognize their own habits with digital technologies, reset, and make any changes they wish to make going forward
• Identify the ways in which their language use is mediated by digital technologies and take a break from those that cause stress or tension

Mode(s): Interpersonal

Materials: avoiding digital burnout video, self-reflection templates (Activities 1 and 2)

Procedure:
Note: These activities can be combined or used separately and are intended to take 5 -10 minutes at the beginning or end of class.  

Activity 1 - Digital Device Use

1. Learners will watch the avoiding digital burnout video.
2. Learners will take a screenshot of their screen time report for the week and record what they find using the self-reflection template. 
3. For five categories on the screen time report (e.g., messages), learners will use the template to indicate how the activity makes them feel. They should also note any instances of interference in their daily life. 
4. Also on the template, learners will think of one way to reduce a digital activity with which they have negative feelings associated for the following week. 
5. Finally, learners will write their goal in the goals space in the template.
6. One week later, return to the screen time report and ask learners to compare their findings, specifically focusing on the goal they set. Did it change as expected? Did they forget about it?  

Activity 2 - Language in Digital Devices

1. Have students watch the avoiding digital burnout.
2. Using the self-reflection template, have learners brainstorm the ways in which they use language via digital devices: text messaging, social networks, digital games, reading news, watching media, and so on. 
3. After they brainstorm, have learners use the template to highlight the language uses they enjoy and find beneficial, as well as those with which they have negative perceptions. 
4. For those that cause anxiety (e.g., much research social media interactions can be a source of anxiety), learners will document at least one way in which they might reduce that type of language use on the template. Encourage them to try out their solutions for a week.
5. The following week, in small groups, have learners discuss ways their language was the same or different this week and re-evaluate their language reflections from the previous week.

by Carla Consolini, CASLS Research Assistant

This activity was created for learners of all proficiency levels. It focuses on building  vocabulary and useing vocabulary to create content that is relevant and meaningful for each student.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Identify the vocabulary used in holiday cards in the target language  
• Create their own holiday card in the target language using greetings and/or well-wishes

Mode(s): Interpretive, Interpersonal

Materials: staying engaged video, vocabulary cloud template, reflection templates

Procedure: 

1. Watch the staying engaged video with learners.
2.  Provide students with different holiday cards in the target language. These can be digital examples. This list may help!
3. Ask students to complete the vocabulary cloud template in pairs or small groups of 3-4. The goal of the template is to organize the most commonly repeated vocabulary among the different holiday cards into  clouds. For instance, learners might decide to make an adjectives cloud and a nouns cloud. For some languages, one of the clouds may include certain symbols or images (e.g., Star of David) that keep repeating. 
4. If learners have not yet explored common structures for greetings and/or well-wishes (e.g. subjunctive mood in Spanish), it would be beneficial to introduce or review those structures using inductive reasoning with the holiday cards.
5. Ask the groups or pairs to present the words they found in their cards and put in their vocabulary clouds. As a class, make a vocabulary list.
6. Ask the students to use the vocabulary list as guidance to create their own holiday card to send to their families or friends. They can create these with paper and markers or digitally using Padlet or Google Jamboard.
7. Finally, ask students to reflect on their creations using one of these reflection templates.

This activity was designed for learners of all levels. It was created to help learners consider how to evaluate their own practice and progress in the Presentational Mode.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Identify three approaches to evaluating progress in the Presentational Mode
• Complete one peer review

Mode(s): Presentational

Materials: assessing presentational communication video, peer review handout, previous work sample in the Presentational Mode

Procedure:

1. Ask learners to reflect on a time in which they created something, in any language, in the Presentational Mode. As a class, brianstorm how learners knew how successful they were. Some possible answers may include audience reaction, number of likes, comments, and grades.
2. Next, show learners the assessing presentational communication video. After watching the video, provide a few minutes for learners to add to the brainstorm completed in Step 1.
3. As a group, color-code the brainstormed answers by the three approaches to evaluating the Presentational Mode mentioned in the video: expert evaluation, community clues, and self-evaluation.
4. Next, assure learners that they all have enough expertise to provide feedback to one another about the Presentational Mode.
5. Ask learners to produce a recording or copy of something completed in the target language in the Presentational Mode. Ideally, this will be work completed before class, but they could create a short sample (e.g., a meme, a poster, or a 30-second advertisement) at this time. Regardless, it is ideal if they all work in the same genre as they begin to develop their peer review skills.
6. Next, talk with learners about what would characterize a quality work sample. This list might include structural devices (e.g., an appropriate greeting and closing to a speech or the use of idioms or puns in a meme), rhetorical devices (e.g., the use of simile or metaphor in fanfiction), or other features (e.g., well-supported claims or interesting connections). See the peer review handout for an example.
7. After that, ask learners to use the list to identify all the strengths they see in their peer’s work.
8. Next, ask learners to identify the thing they think their peers did best. They should explain why with one or two specific examples.
9. Discuss answers articulated as part of Step 8 as a class. Highlight those that are very well justified as examplars.
10. Finally, ask learners to make a suggestion about how their peers can improve. Invite them to think of their peers’ strengths at this point.

Notes:

• The peer review handout includes questions to guide Steps 8 and 10.
• Step 1 in the peer review handout was tailored for the specific activity listed on the template. While many of the options apply to a variety of contexts, teachers are encouraged to update the list to closely match their curricular needs and activity-specific goals.

This activity was designed for Novice and Intermediate Learners, but it is also appropriate as a scaffolding activity for Advanced learners who are new to fanfiction. The activity was inspired by the FanTALES Teacher Handbook, and a brief overview of approaching writing fanfiction with learners is available in the creating fanfiction video. 

Learning Objectives:
Learners will be able to:

• Contribute 1-2 creative sentences (per turn) to a collaboratively written creative story
• Evaluate the quality of their emerging narratives

Mode(s): Interpretive, Presentational

Materials: source text, digital space for writing or paper, introduction to fanfiction video (optional)

Procedure:

1. Provide learners with an overview of fanfiction, if necessary, by using the introduction to fanfiction video.
2. Next, survey learners about their favorite narrative-based media (e.g. movies). If you need an idea of what questions to ask, check out the appendix of the FanTALES Teacher Handbook.
3. Use the survey responses to select a source text for the class. You could pick one text for the whole class to use or a series of texts for different groups of learners.
4. If the text is not already well-known by learners, make sure to take time to read it, watch it, or play it in class.
5. After learners become familiar with the source text, ask that they work in groups of 4-5 people to collaboratively write their own fanfiction inspired by the source text. The type of fanfiction (e.g., prequels, sequels, and fix-it fiction) is up to you and your learners. Decide which type will be written before moving to Step 6.
6. To begin, the first group member will write 1-2 sentences to start the story. The story then passes to the next group member, who will also add 1-2 sentences that build off what was already written. For a brief example, see the creating fanfiction video. This process repeats until all have had at least one turn. 
7. Learners will evaluate their story as a group.
8. Learners will complete their story in the same format described in Step 6. You may choose to require that the story be completed in a set amount of time or in a certain number of turns.
9. Ask learners to read their stories together. As a group, they should pick their favorite plot point and share it with the class. 

Notes:

• Educators working in online contexts may use a variety of platforms to complete Pass the Story. Discussion boards, Padlet, Google Jamboard, or any other collaborative digital space for creation would work well.
• During Step 7, learners may need some guiding questions:
  • What sentences were the most intriguing or interesting to read?
  • What plot points were surprising?
  • What’s still missing (e.g. the resolution to the conflict)?
  • Are we staying true to the norms of our fanfiction? If not, is that a purposeful choice? Should we change our goals? 

Reference: 
The FanTALES Group. (2020). Teacher Handbook. FanTALES Project Publication, Leuven. Available from          https://www.fantales.eu/download/1007/

by Carla Consolini, CASLS Research Assistant

This activity was created for learners of all levels. It focuses on creating messages with layered meanings by using hashtags. This activity builds on this previous Activity of the Week related to decoding hashtags.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Create hashtags to add context to a message
• Explain how the hashtags they produced add context to their messages

Mode(s): Interpersonal, Presentational

Materials: using hashtags to add dontext video, messages with hashtags

Procedure:

1. Have learners watch the using hashtags to add context video. However, if they are new to hashtags, it may be beneficial to show them the tips for decoding hashtags video before continuing.
2. Give learners a set of five short social media posts (10 to 60 words) that include hashtags that are relevant to the curriculum. For instance, if learners are exploring familial relationships in class, you might pull tweets or Instagram messages that are related to the parent-child dynamic in the target langauge cultures, the importance of ancestors in target langauge cultures, or the different dynamics within the family life in target langauge culutes. 
3. Provide learners with three images for which they can craft a message with layered meaning through the use of hashtags. This step can be done individually or in pairs. 
4. Put learners into groups of three or four. Instruct them to share their messages and explain their language choices.
5. Each group will chose the hashtag or hashtags that they believe add the most meaning to the images. Ask them to share their choices and reasoning for their choices with the class.
6. In an exit ticket, ask learners to identify one way in which they feel they could use hashtags to add meaning to messages written in the target langauge.

Notes:

• For Novice learners, it may be beneficial to ask them to think of additional hashtags for the messages in Step 2 as scaffolding before moving to Step 3.
• For Novice learners, Steps 4, 5, and 6 may need to be completed in the L1.

• Create a meme designed for a target language community
• Evaluate the success of their memes 

1. Ask learners to brainstorm what they know about memes and memeing in the target language. If they haven’t already considered memes in class before, provide them with our memes for language learning video and/or our political memes video to build some foundational knowledge. 
2. Next, show learners the creating memes video. Save time for questions at the end.
3. Direct learners to a specific online target language community that you consider to be safe. Provide 10 minutes for learners to analyze the memes in the online target language community. Learners should focus on dissecting humor, the types of images used, and the type of language (e.g., slang or formal) that is used in most memes. 
4.  Learners will draft a meme. Direct them to consider the tips in the video. Particularly, they should consider the language used (e.g., how formal they are) as well as how the image(s) selected contribute to meaning making. 
5. Learners will review their memes after drafting them. They should consult with other peers during the review process, paying attention to the same aspects mentioned in Step 4.
6. Learners will share the meme with the online target language community. 
7. Learners will consider the feedback that they get from the community on their meme over the course of a week. They should consider the content of reactions, the number of reactions, and the number of likes.

• Teachers can access these different online communities to search and curate for memes to be used in this activity here.
• As a possible extention, teachers may ask learners to recreate their memes based on research and feedback from the target language community.
• Teachers may opt to ask learners to share their memes within the classroom community in lieu of an open online platform. Padlet and Google Jamboard are good tools for classroom sharing.

The purpose of this activity is to engage language learners in considerations of how they know the extent to which they are interpreting spoken, written, and signed texts well. It is appropriate for all levels of language learners.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Identify an expert to work with to provide support and feedback
• Identify community and environmental cues related to comprehension
• Identify strategies for self-checking understanding

Mode(s): Interpretive

Materials: Assessing Interpretation Video, Interpretation Log

Procedure:

1. Ask learners to brainstorm everything they interpret in a day. Their lists should include a variety of sources of input, including, but not limited to, text messages, spoken or signed conversations, text books, SMS alerts, street signs, commercials, print ads, websites, lectures, and live streams.
2. Select one source of input. In a Think, Pair, Share format, ask learners, “If you were reading/listening/interpreting this in the target language on your own, how would you know if you were able to understand what was going on?” 
3. Make a list of what learners share.
4. Watch the Assessing Interpretation Video. Add new ideas to the list created in Step 3 as a class.
5. Ask learners to choose one of the sources of input brainstormed in Step 1 to practice interpreting over the course of two weeks. 
6. Using the Interpretation Log, ask learners to identify at least one expert to confer with to check understanding, a few community and environmental cues they will pay attention to in order to support understanding, and one way they will self-check their own understanding.
7. To begin class over the next few days, ask for two volunteers to describe what they have been interpreting and how they have been assessing their progress. Ask the class to share their ideas about which approaches to assessment seem most useful and why.

This week’s Activity of the Week is inspired by the Flashfiction Workshop provided as part of the Learning through Doing Module on FanTALES. This activity is a great way to get learners to start writing after they have already become familiar with fanfiction. If your learners are not yet familiar with fanfiction, check out this video.

Learning Outcomes: 
Learners will be able to:

• Write original prompt-based fanfiction based on a popular text

Mode(s): Presentational

Resources: A common selection of media (book, movie, television show) that the learners are all familiar with, 4 sets of color-coded cards, something for students to write on

Procedure:
1. Read through the procedure on pages 8-10 of the FANTales Learning through Doing Module.

2. Work with a colleague or reflect individually about how you will adapt the module to your specific teaching context. Consider how to select texts to use as inspiration, what platforms you could utilize to do the activity in an online context, and any scaffolding (e.g., outlining or modeling) you will need to provide for learners.

3. Complete the Flashfiction Workshop with your learners. 

4. Reflect on what went well and any adaptations you would like to make for the next time you give the workshop. Document your reflections and store them someplace safe!

Reference:

The FanTALES Group. (2018). Learning through doing module on fanfiction. FanTALES Project Publication, Leuven. Available from https://www.fantales.eu/results/.

by Carla Consolini, CASLS Research Assistant

This activity was created for Intermediate to Advanced learners, but it is also appropriate with few adaptations for Novice learners. It focuses on comprehensive reading skills in the digital media sphere and decoding hashtags as elements that add meaning to messages in digital discourse spaces.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Identify hashtags on digital media  
• Explain how hashtags are connected to the contexts in which they are used
• Reflect on the meaning hashtags add to messages

Mode(s): Interpretive

Materials: hashtags video, hashtags observation template

Procedure: 

1. Watch the hashtags video with learners. It explains what hashtags are and how to analyze their meaning in context.
2. Provide three different hashtags to learners in English (or their L1). Have them search for the hashtags on social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram. As they research, they should take notes individually or pairs on the hashtags observation template.
3. Repeat Step 2 with hashtags in the target language. More advanced learners may be able to find these hashtags on their own, but it is a good idea for the teacher to have some recommendations that align with curricular needs.
4. Learners will compare and contrast their observations from Steps 2 and 3. They will discuss these observations in pairs.
5. Debrief as a class. Ask learners to identify when they feel most comfortable decoding hashtags and why. 
6. As an ongoing research task, ask learners to collect images of social media messages that use hashtags in the target language. At scheduled points, ask them to share what they have collected and work as a class to decode those that are confusing and to discuss which ones they find to be the most successful and why.

Notes: 

• The “scheduled points” mentioned in Step 6 should be regular. For some classroom contexts, these will be daily. For others, they might be every other day or weekly. Teachers are free to engage in this process for as long as it makes sense for curricular needs.

Intended for Intermediate to Advanced learners, this activity focuses on interacting in the digital sphere through political memes written in different languages. It is designed to give learners first-hand experience decoding political memes, explaining their codification, and creating their own.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Identify the differences in humor between English and the target language through different examples of political memes
• Explain the illocutionary force (speaker’s intention behind their words, such as persuading) behind the political comment in each meme
• Identify the difficulties when decoding political memes 
• Produce a political meme in the target language 
• Explain the perlocutionary force behind their student-created meme

Mode(s): Any

Materials: political memes video, sample memes in English and the target language

Procedure:

This activity is designed to take place in three stages: observation, analysis, and extension

Observation:

Have learners observe the types of language used in three different memes.

1. Learners watch the overview video and explain what political memes are and how to understand them and decode them.
2. Choose three political memes in English and provide them to your students for observation. We recommend choosing a balanced set of examples that do not overemphasize one political perspective, but instead offer a variety of perspectives. 

Analysis: 

1. Have learners compare examples of the English memes with their target language counterpart. In many cases, an example of the same image with different languages can be used.
2. In small groups or pairs, have learners discuss the differences in tone, humor, and language strategies used between the memes in English and the examples in the target language.
3. Have learners work in groups of 3-4 to match the words from the sample memes to the image with which it corresponds. Working together, they can use background knowledge to decide which phrases are most appropriate for which meme and then put the specific phrases in order within the memes themselves.
4. Review the unscrambled memes as a whole class.

Notes on online/remote learning: 

• Teachers can create an online shared PowerPoint file in which each slide is designated to a group of students.
• Add to these slides the scrambled examples of memes and their phrases.
• Learners can then work synchronously or asynchronously by organizing the elements on their slide and writing their explanations alongside the memes.

Extention: 

As an extension, have learners create one political meme in the target language and post it on a shared platform such as Padlet or Google Jamboard. (Note: learners can also post to an existing meme site, depending on their learning context and rules about sharing and privacy.)  Ask learners to give a 1-2 minute presentation on their meme using the prompts below. 

Intermediate learner:

I made this meme.

I chose ____ because ____.

Advanced learner:

I tried to emulate the satire of political memes that is typical in the target language by utlizing a few strategies related to humor. I noticed____ when I was looking at____ and tried ot emulate it by____ .

The purpose of this activity is to introduce Novice and Intermediate language learners to the concept of social distance and to help them draw connections between the L1 and the L2.

Learning Outcomes:
Learners will be able to:

• Utilize distance-minimizing language strategies in communication.
• Compare how social distance impacts the delivery of requests and/or apologies in the target language scenario to a scenario in the L1.

Mode(s): Any

Materials: social distance video, textbook

Procedure:
1. Introduce learners to the concept of social distance by utilizing the social distance video. 
2. Select a language function (e.g., greetings or service encounters) that aligns with curricular needs. Brainstorm distance-creating language and distance-minimizing language as a group. You may consider familiar utterances, formal utterances, the use of plural and singular pronouns, how to address people, and the amount of details that will be offered in certain contexts. 
3. Next, find an example of the targeted function in the textbook. Ask that learners rewrite the example so that distance is either minimized or maximized, depending on what the example is.
4. Ask learners to write a brief exit ticket in which they: 1) identify the strategies they used to adapt the conversation; and 2) explain if they would use the same strategies in the L1 or not.

Notes: 

• During Step 2, teachers may need to supplement learners’ knowledge of L2 utterances, particularly with colloquialisms.