| Body | By Logan Matz, CASLS Fellow
Self-reflection can be an invaluable part of the language learning process, especially when learners feel invested in the activity and that they are contributing to their future success in a real, concrete way. This activity is designed to help learners reflect on their past and current achievements, in order to improve future learning outcomes.
Learning Objectives: Students will be able to:
- reference current progress to develop advice to aid future learning
- revise their thoughts after discussion with peers
- write a letter containing advice for a friend or future version of themselves
Modes: Presentational, Interpretive
Materials Needed: Pencil, paper
Procedure:
- Introduction Explain to students that this activity involves writing a letter containing advice for a hypothetical friend of theirs that will be taking this class next year. Explain that while honest advice is good, there should not be anything too personal in the letter, because they will be sharing them with a partner later.
- Prewrite Have students get out notebook paper and something to write with. Stress that this will not be graded or scored, but is for the benefit of the students themselves. Ask students to make a list of three things that they learned this week that would be useful to someone taking this class next year. This could be important vocabulary or grammar points, a listening or reading strategy they found useful, or anything else.
- Write Once students are done with their list, have them write a letter containing those three important items in the form of advice to a friend of theirs who is taking the class next year.
- Share Have students get into pairs and share their letters with each other. Have them look for similarities and differences, both in opinion and advice.
- Revise Following that, have students break up individually again and revise their letters. Ask if they heard any good pieces of advice from their partner that they want to add to their own letter. Then, have students turn in their paper, explaining that you will revisit the letter later on in the term to compare what the students have actually learned with what they thought they would learn.
Notes:
- This could also easily be adapted to an online distance-learning classroom. Simply exchange the paper for a word processing program.
- Timing is flexible. This activity works just as well daily as weekly, and at the end of the term. Scale scope and timing up or down as necessary. For example, if this is being done at the end of the term, have students work in pairs or groups to come up with 15 most important things that they would advise future students about.
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