Spice up your dialogues!

Adapting communicative activities

Stephanie Kasten and Nikki Rowley

Dialogues are important because they

model real-life situations teach new grammar and vocab allow students to use what they've

learned give shy students a chance to step

outside boundaries and provide fun, informal language

practice.

Benefits of dialogues

Provide speaking and listening practice (emphasizing how the listener reacts)

Create a memorable learning experience

Are adaptable to multiple levels

Increase motivation and self-esteem

Move from word to phrase to longer units

Help students use language in context

Before the dialogue...Ask questions about the picture

How many people are there?

Who are they?Where are they?

What are they doing?What are they talking about?

How do they feel?

Most importantly…

Make sure the dialogue has an objective…

a purpose.

What did he say???utterances and useful

expressions in dialogues

Nothing much.

Seriously?No way.

Get out of here!

Oh, um, hmm, eww

Are youkidding?

Woah!Cool.

What for?

Informal conversations in English are often chockful of utterances and useful expressions whose meanings cannot

be found in the dictionary.

Pragmatics is the the study of the aspects of

meaning and language use that are dependent on the speaker’s intention and the addressee’s interpretation of

the utterance in the context of the conversation.

Use voice intonation,facial expressions,body language, and repetition

to explain expressions and utterances so students really understand the dialogues they are reading and

speaking.

Planning phase1- Determine your objective.

2- Select or create an appropriate text that is the right level of difficulty and that will fulfill your objective.

3- Decide the specifics of the activity and include them in your lesson plan.

Warm up: Reading and listening to the dialogue

Review new vocabulary Fill in the blanks Suggest synonyms Identify speakers' emotions and

personalities

Speaking the dialogue Team speaking Check

pronunciation Act with emotion Try new roles Bring props Memorize and

perform

What else can I do with dialogues?

Get creative!Students can adapt the text using their ideas

Make it an interview>Choose a character to interview

>Write three questions for the character

>One student answers as the interviewee

Write an alternative ending>Cut off the dialogue at a critical point

>Students write/brainstorm alternative solutions

What happens next?>Students brainstorm and write a sequel

>Draw a cartoon – “The next day...”/“Five minutes later...”

Activity Examples

Who are these lovely people and what on Earth are they doing?

Activities for this unit´s grammar focus, learning goals, and vocabulary

Cloze activity (fill in the blank)

Team speakingRole play cardsWhat happens next?

Cloze Activity

Students identify vocabulary words and prepositions of place from the unit by listening to the dialogue and filling in the blanks with the correct word. The activity sheet can be modified to focus on the grammar and vocabulary you wish to teach.

Andy: So where would you like to go today, Brian?

Brian: I'm not sure. Can I look at the map? Venetian Pool... is that just a (1) __________ ?

Andy: Not really. There are also waterfalls and (2) __________ there.

Brian: Let's go there! Where is it?

Andy: It's in Coral Gables, (3) __________ Coral Way and 40th Street.

Liza: And there's also the Seaquarium.

Andy: Oh, yeah. You can see sharks there.

Brian: Awesome! Can we go there today?

Andy: Sure. You can see dolphins there, too. And then we can go to the Planetarium.

Brian: Great! And what about Coconut Grove? What's that?

Andy: It's Liza's favorite place. It's (4) __________ __________ Coral Gables.

Liza: It's a shopping place. There are really great restaurants there, too.

Brian: Umm, I think I'll skip Coconut Grove. I hate (5) __________.

Andy: So where would you like to go today, Brian?

Brian: I'm not sure. Can I look at the map? Venetian Pool... is that just a (1) pool?

Andy: Not really. There are also waterfalls and (2) restaurants there.

Brian: Let's go there! Where is it?

Andy: It's in Coral Gables, (3) between Coral Way and 40th Street.

Liza: And there's also the Seaquarium.

Andy: Oh, yeah. You can see sharks there.

Brian: Awesome! Can we go there today?

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Andy: Sure. You can see dolphins there, too. And then we can go to the Planetarium.

Brian: Great! And what about Coconut Grove? What's that?

Andy: It's Liza's favorite place. It's (4) across from Coral Gables.

Liza: It's a shopping place. There are really great restaurants there, too.

Brian: Umm, I think I'll skip Coconut Grove. I hate(5) malls.

Team Speaking

Students practice pronunciation by repeating after the teacher as a class or as parts of the class (e.g., divide the class in sections and assign dialogue parts to each section).

Role Play Cards

Students practice asking and answering questions via role play.

Role play ideas:

-Local person and tourist

-Journalist and interviewee

-Police detective and witness

.

Role Play ExamplePerson A: You are visiting Cuenca from Canada and are lost. You are trying to find Parque Calderon. You see a nice-looking person drinking coffee at an outdoor café.

Person B: You are a Cuenca resident drinking a coffee at an outdoor café somewhere in Cuenca. A lost tourist stops to ask you some questions.

What happens next?Students orally describe what happens after the dialogue is finished using a comic strip presentation. Provide a rubric for the strip, for example:•at least 4 prepositions•at least 4 vocabulary words from unit•one use of “there is” and one use of “there are”•be creative