Category Archives: Grammar and Structures

Language Puzzles to help Students Understand Verb Tenses

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verb_tensesThis activity presents a made up language. Students look at examples of how verbs show tense and must decipher what words puts a verb in the past, present, or future. This is a great exercise to help students understand the abstract concept of verb tenses. By using an artificial language students will be able to create phrases in the past, present, and future without resorting to grammar rules. You will find yourself referring back to exercise throughout the year as students struggle with understanding verb tense. This great for a language arts class or any foreign language class.   You can download a full versions of this activity here.

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Posted in Activities and Games, Grammar and Structures

Imperfect and Pretertite/Passe Compose Writing Project

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I do a unit every year that  guides my  students through the writing of five personal paragraphs focusing on the Preterite/Passé Composé  and the Imperfect Verb Tenses. I  give guidelines for peer editing, self-editing, tense distinction and a rubric for grading the final copy of the writing assignment. There are twenty pages total and a table of contents to help students stay organized during the writing process. I typically give the entire packet at once,  but the sections can also be given out individually.

You can download the full versions of this project here:

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Posted in Grammar and Structures, Writing

Foreign Language Speaking Activity with Reflexive Verbs

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This is a great activity that I use to get students moving around the classroom and speaking to each other in the target language using reflexive verbs along with reflexive pronouns.  Student ask each other when they do certain activities (wake up, go to bed, wash up, etc) and record answers. I provide students with a question sheet as well as an answer sheet ( which includes times to use in response to questions). All information is presented with pictures to avoid translation. A follow-up activity requires students to ask about another person so that a different reflexive pronoun is also used.  Students have a lot of fun with this communicative activity.

You can create these activities in WORD or you can download complete activities that are ready to use here:

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Posted in Activities and Games, Grammar and Structures, Listening, Speaking

Up and Down: Foreign Language Vocabulary and Verb Form Activities

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Up and Down: Foreign (World) Language Vocabulary and Verb Form Activity (French, Spanish) wlteacher.wordpress.comThis is an effective activity for students to practice language forms and vocabulary.  It is adaptable to many different structures.

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The three activities offer students an opportunity to work collaboratively.  Here is my favorite one because it is most interactive:

Students cut up the squares and line them up in order in one long strip placing the response under the prompt. There are two variations

–Start with principio/début and go to fin

–Start with fin and go to principio/début

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You can also find 20 versions of this activity on a number of French and Spanish vocabulary and grammar topics on the links below:

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Posted in Activities and Games, Grammar and Structures, Listening, Speaking

Guided Sentence-Writing in a Foreign Language

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Students are often very capable of writing verb forms correctly, but the challenge comes when they attempt to write more than a simple verb form and need to write complete sentences.  Students are many times very unaware of how much they are able to do with the language that they know.  The teacher can help guide students in writing complete sentences while at the same time giving the student the opportunity to draw on the language that they know.  The activity below begins by having the student chose a subject.  He or she decides if the sentence will be affirmative or negative and then chooses a verb and writes the correct form that goes with the chosen subject.  The sentence is then finished off by adding details to the sentence that answer the question words that accompany the verb.

You can download additional examples below:

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Posted in Grammar and Structures, Writing

Speaking Activity to Practice Pronouns in a Foreign Language

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This is a fun and engaging way to gets students speaking while using direct and indirect objects with confidence. Students complete this activity in pairs. There are sheet for Student A and one  for Student B. The goal is to find the three rows (diagonal, horizontal and vertical) that do not have a “dommage” or “Lastima”  in them.

Speaking Activity to Practice Pronouns in a Foreign (World) Language. (French, Spanish) wlteacher.wordpress.comPlayer A begins by choosing a number on the grid and saying the number to Player B in the target language. Player B then says the sentences on the top of the square to Player A, who then must repeat the sentence back with all of the direct and indirect objects replaced by pronouns. Player B has the correct response on his sheet and can verify if it is correct in the target language.  If it is not correct, the correct answer is not given because the player can try it again on another turn.

If the response is correct, Player A marks it off on the grid on the bottom of the page.  If Player A chooses a box with a “dommage” or “Lastima” in it Player B says “dommage” or “Lastima” (or the word that means “shame” or “pity” in the target language) and Player A marks it off on his grid on the bottom of the page. This indicates that the row and column where there is a “dommage” is not one of the three rows that he needs to find.

Play continues with Player B choosing a number and Player A saying the sentence on the grid to Player B. Turns continue back and forth between Player A and Player B until one of them has determined the three rows without a “dommage”  or “lastima” and he is declared the winner.

You can download these below:

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Posted in Activities and Games, Grammar and Structures, Speaking

Foreign Language Speaking Activity that Moves Students from Novice to Intermediate

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At the novice level, students are speaking with single words and lists initially, then move on to chunked phrases.  As students move up to the intermediate proficiency level they begin to create discrete sentences on their own that move beyond chunked phrases.  This tends to be the most challenging for students as they begin to create with language and are not relying on memorized phrases to chunk together.  Teachers can help scaffold this process for students by assisting them in creating sentences.

Foreign Language Speaking Activity that Moves Students from Novice to Intermediate (French, Spanish) www.wlclassroom.comI have found that using question words with students is a simple and effective way to have students add details to their sentences that move from memorized, chunked phrases to discrete sentences that are created by the student.  The more they do this the more they will grow in confidence and begin to do it on their own when writing.

Here is a version of Memory (or concentration) with a twist. Instead of using pictures and words this version uses verb forms.  Half of the cards have a subject pronoun and an infinitive. The other cards have the correct verb form to match each subject/verb pair.  Along with the conjugated verb forms are 2 or 3 questions words as well as an affirmative or negative symbol [(+) (-)]. 

In order for the player to win the pair he or she  must say a complete sentence that includes the subject and correct verb form as well as the information from the question words and in the negative if indicated. If the player is not able to make a complete sentence he does not get the pair of cards and must turn them back over.  The winner is the player who has the most cards when all of the cards have been claimed.  The verb cards look like this:

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This activity helps move student speaking from the novice level to the intermediate level by showing them how easily and effectively they can can speak in complete, discrete sentences.

You can download resources to use with this proficiency-building activity by clicking the links below.

 

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Posted in Activities and Games, Grammar and Structures, Speaking

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Writing Activity to Increase Complexity and Length of Sentences

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Once students have a solid grasp of verb forms in various tenses they can begin writing longer and more complex sentences with this powerpoint activity. Students begin with a verb (in the infinitive) and a subject pronoun. The animation of the powerpoint is set up to first have students write some ideas to include in a sentence and then students use this information to write sentences that go beyond a simple subject-verb-object sentence. Students will gain confidence in their writing as they see that they are able to build on their sentences with elements that they create on their own. The animation is set up to give a limited amount of time and students try to beat the clock by writing out their sentence that may include up to 12-15 words or more. Before beginning the activity, the powerpoint includes a review of verb forms and after students write they are prompted to share their sentence with a partner and with the class. Before moving on to a new sentence, students count up their words and add it to their total. This step does a great deal for their confidence as they are able to concretely see how many words are in their sentences.

Powerpoint Activty with Regular Verbs in French

Powerpoint with Regular Verbs in Spanish

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Posted in Activities and Games, Grammar and Structures, Writing

Studying and Retaining Vocabulary: The Leitner System

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We all know that repeated exposure to vocabulary and structures is needed so that we can readily recall it.  The longer it’s been since we’ve practiced a word, the more likely it is that we will  have forgotten it.  There’s an initial steep decline in our ability to remember a word after the first time we learn it. However, if we practice a word multiple times we are much more likely to remember it over time.

The idea behind the Leitner System is that the easier it is to recall the words (verb forms, etc.) on a flashcard the less often that flashcard will be need to be studied in the future. The opposite is also true.  The more difficult it is to recall the material on a flashcard the more often it is studied. The repetition of each flashcard is scheduled so that the learner spends most of his time studying material that is more challenging. Material that has been retained well is studied only occasionally to ensure it has not been forgotten.

The method of “Spaced Repetition” works like this:

  • A container  is set up to hold the flashcards. It is divided into multiple individual compartments (3-5).
  • All flashcards start in box 1.
  • When the material on a flashcard is recalled correctly it is moved forward by one box. (See the  diagram above-green arrows). If the flashcard makes it to the last box it remains there.
  • When the material on a flashcard is not recalled it is returned to deck 1 regardless of what box it was in.
  • Each subsequent box has a longer period of time before the flashcards in it  are repeated.
  • Make a time plan: study the Group 1 cards once a day, Group 2 every 3 days, and the Group 3 cards every 5 days, etc.  If you look at a Group 1 card and get the correct answer, you “promote” it to Group 2. A correct answer with a Group 2 card “promotes” that card to Group 3.

How does it work?

The idea is that the easier it is to recall the material on a flashcard the less often that flashcard will be repeated in the future. The reverse follows. The harder it is to recall the material on a flashcard the more often it will be repeated. The repetition of each flashcard is scheduled, or spaced, in such a way that the learner spends most of their time studying material that is more challenging. Material that has been retained well is studied only occasionally to ensure it has not been forgotten.

The Leitner System’s implementation of spaced repetition works like this:

  • A container called a cardbox or a cardfile is set up to hold the flashcards. It is divided into multiple individual compartments. FlashcardDB calls the groups of flashcards in each compartment decks.
  • All flashcards start in deck 1.
  • When the material on a flashcard is recalled correctly it is moved forward by one deck. (See the green arrows in the diagram above). If the flashcard was already in the last deck then it remains there.
  • When the material on a flashcard is not recalled it is returned to deck 1: regardless of what deck the flashcard came from. (See the merged red arrow(s) in the diagram).
  • Each subsequent deck has a longer period of time before the flashcards it contains must be repeated.
    Deck
    Number    		 Time until
    next repetition
    One None
    Two 1 day
    Three 3 days
    Four 1 week
    Five 1 month

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Posted in Classroom Procedures, Grammar and Structures

Foreign Language Assessment: Knowing about language and doing something with language

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Assessments often focus on knowing about the language at the exclusion of what the student can do with the language.  Below are some guidelines to help distinguish these two practices.  Take some time to find the balance of assessing what students can do with the language (context-based) and what they know about the language (minimal context).  I focus on the language particulars more when tasks involve writing and more on what students can do with the language when speaking.

Foreign Language Assessment: Knowing about language and doing something with language (French, Spanish) www.wlclassroom.com

These are some assessment characteristics that show what students know about  language:

  • They assess discrete points.
  • The answers are either right or wrong.
  • They are easily and quickly scored.
  • They test language content: vocabulary, grammar, and culture.
  • They involve the lower-level thinking skills of knowledge and comprehension.
  • They are usually given in formal testing periods.

These are some assessment characteristics that show what students can do with language:

  • They require that students create a product or do a demonstration.
  • They are scored holistically.
  • They are task-based.
  • The tasks are situation-based or use real-world content.
  • They involve higher-level thinking skills of application, integration, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation.
  • They are given in both formal and informal testing situations.

Take a look at the tasks and activities that you give students and determine what it is that they are actually assessing.  Are they focused on what students know about the language or what they can do with the language?

Activities that show what students know about language:

  • True/false
  • Multiple choice
  • Fill in the blanks
  • Match
  • Give the correct form of the noun, adjective, verb
  • Change one word for another, e.g. noun for pronoun
  • State the facts
  • Translate
  • Follow the model
  • Repeat, recite
  • Answer the questions

Activities that show what students can do with the language:

  • Complete the sentence logically.
  • State your opinion, thoughts, or comments.
  • Give personal answers.
  • Create a situation.
  • Seek information.
  • Develop a product, e.g. advertisement, brochure, collage, poem, song, essay, video, etc.
  • Demonstrate your knowledge.
  • Summarize, paraphrase.
  • Change the ending.

Find the balance in assessment and make sure that there are opportunities for students to demonstrate what they can do with the language in addition to what they know about it.

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Posted in Classroom Procedures, Grammar and Structures, Speaking, Teaching Methodology and Research, Writing

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