Last week in episode 231 I began a two-part series on using a simple story to show what CI looks like in real classroom practice. In this episode, I continue by building on the same story and walking through how CI activities help students stay engaged, deepen comprehension, and interact with the text in meaningful ways. These 2 episodes are focused on seeing CI activities in practice.
Topics in this Episode:
- CI Activity Episodes
- Episode 231: CI Activities in Practice in the Classroom., Part 1
- CI Toolbox
- The CI Story: “Problem in the Market”: It’s Saturday morning. Sofía’s family is at a market in Oaxaca, Mexico. There are many colorful fruits, vegetables and flowers. Sofia wants to buy mangoes. Her little brother, Diego, sees some piñatas. Diego says: “I’m going to look at the piñatas!” and walks alone. There are many people in the market. Diego looks at the piñatas and doesn’t see his family. He feels nervous and says, “Where is my mom?” A fruit seller sees Diego. She says, “Hello, are you lost?” Diego responds: “Yes… I can’t find my mother.” The saleswoman walks with Diego through the market. After a few minutes, they see Diego’s family near a tortilla stand. His mother hugs Diego. She says, “Thank you, Miss.” The family buys mangoes and tortillas, and everyone is happy.
- Interaction and Discussion Activities
- Picture Talk: Picture Talk uses images to drive meaning-based discussion. The teacher asks simple, open-ended questions so students describe what they see using familiar language, with the teacher providing lots of support and repetition.
- PQA (Personalized Questions & Answers): PQA connects story language to students’ own lives through highly scaffolded, repetitive questions, helping them acquire language through personal relevance
- Special Person Interviews: Students are interviewed using familiar structures, often taking on a role. The class listens and helps co-construct meaning.
- Card Talk: Students draw something meaningful to them, and the class discusses it using shared, high-frequency language.
- Weekend Chat: Weekend Chats build community and routine by talking about what students do on certain days, using simple present-tense language.
- Calendar Talk: Calendar Talk uses the daily date and routine events to recycle language in a predictable format.
- Reading and Writing Activities
- One Word at a Time: Students slowly build or reconstruct a sentence word by word, focusing on meaning and structure.
- Embedded Reading: Embedded readings move from very simple to more detailed versions of the same text, increasing comprehension and confidence.
- Volleyball Reading: Students take turns reading and clarifying meaning, often in pairs, with a strong focus on comprehension.
- Draw the Sentence: Students draw what a sentence says, then match it back to the text, reinforcing comprehension.
- Running Dictation: Students move, read, and reconstruct text collaboratively,
- Dictation with a Twist: Students hear a sentence and rewrite it with a small, controlled change, encouraging creative output within a safe structure.
A Few Ways We Can Work Together:
- Ready For Tomorrow Quick Win PD for Individual Teachers
- On-Site or Virtual Workshops for Language Departments
- Self-Paced Program for For Language Departments
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