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Posture How you position yourself makes an enormous impact on others. A few exercises for students to practice: Sit up straight, slouch, try to take up as much space as you can (how do you feel?), try to take up as little space as you can (how do you feel?), put your hands over your face, stretch your arms out wide. Stand up straight, slouch, try to take up as much space as you can (how do you feel?), try to take up as little space as you can (how do you feel?), put your hands over your face, stretch your arms out wide, stretch you hands upwards, stand like a soldier at attention, relax with your arms by your side, Move around the class when the command freeze is spoken freeze in your exact position Statues game students in pairs, one student moves the other students arms, legs, fingers and head to make a statue, swap roles Group statues students one by one come into a group and make a group statue Gesture Gesture is also a fundamental part of communication indeed anthropologists believe that verbal speech has its roots in nonverbal gestures and movements and indeed vocalization is in reality a very complex motor skill. A few exercises for students to practice:
One student sits, hands behind back. Another student, hidden behind, provides the hand gestures for the one in front. For example, eating a bowl of noodles, using a mobile phone, doing a difficult exam, putting on a tie, etc. Using mime only students try to imitate their teachers and have others in their group guess who they are imitating Play charades or other miming games. Machines as with group statues but this time students one by one come into a group and create a multipurpose machine Traffic Lights - Whole class standing students move around until you say one of the following commands at which point they have to follow the command. 1. Statues - freeze individually 2. Dentists (in pairs, one sitting as patient, one standing as dentist) 3. Traffic lights (in threes, flashing hands one standing stretched, one standing with arms at shoulder height, one crouched with arms low) 4. Diamonds (in fours, try to sparkle) 5. Rainbows (in sevens make arches leftovers can be pots of gold) If you encourage students to be more confident in their posture, more flamboyant in their use of gesture~ maintain eye contact and to modulate their voices more effectively not only will they find speech activities to be extremely rewarding, they will also notice a considerable improvement in their general English conversation. Activities Combining Eye, Voice, Gesture and Posture Send non-verbal messages around the circle Send verbal messages around the circle Shout conversations in pairs across the room if you have the opportunity play music loudly so that students have to raise their voices to talk to one another Long Line Whispers page 2
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Ideas for Speeches Making Toasts This activity may be adjusted to suit any language level. Beginner students can give short one sentence toasts; more advanced students can be required to speak for a few minutes. One week before the lesson you should give a model toast to the class. For homework students write out their toasts. Correct these toasts a few days before the speech lesson so that students can have plenty of time to prepare. On the day of the lesson you will need to bring some plastic glasses and some lemonade or mineral water to class. I usually have the students bring some snacks as well to give the lesson a 'party' feel. Sit the students around a central table or, if the class is too large, have students stand as though they were at a diplomatic reception. Begin by proposing a toast to your class - the best English class in the history of your school. Put on a great show, especially the clinking of glasses, so that students will feel relaxed and un-self-conscious when it is their turn to speak in front of the group. Students give their toasts in turn. You may wish to remind each speaker before they start to speak loudly and clearly and to look at the audience while they propose their toast. You might also remind the class of various points of body language and gesture, such as smiling and looking into the eyes of the other person when touching glasses.
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Accepting Awards and Prizes This activity is for intermediate and advanced students. Pre-intermediate students can perform this activity but they need more teacher assistance at the preparation stage. A week before this lesson introduce the names of some awards - Internet's Worst Surfer and Ms Teenage Formula One Driver, for example. Brainstorm other real and imaginary awards and prizes. This can be combined well with lessons on superlatives, conditionals or future ambitions. The speech lesson will work best if there is a touch of comedy to the awards. Some suggestions are: World's Greatest English Student, World's Best Dresser, Champion Shopper, Worst Dancer, Best/Worst Karaoke Singer, Greatest/Laziest Cook, and so on. Have students choose an award or make up one of their own. Model a 'Thank You Speech' for them. Students should write their acceptance speech for homework and it should be corrected in plenty of time for students to learn for the class. On the day trim the room to look like an awards ceremony. Trophies that are humorously appropriate to the award being given add to the fun of the lesson; World's Laziest Cook might receive a packet of instant noodles, for example. Higher level students may be able to act as MCs. Introducing props such as envelopes, or a raised dais, adds to the fun. A listening exercise using a video of the Academy Awards, American Idol, MTV Awards or similar can be a useful follow up to this activity.
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Top 5 Presentations Instructions Group Phase: Work in groups (five is the best number. If there are less than five people in your group one of you will have to speak twice). Prepare your groups Top Five in ONE of the following areas. Each group member will have to speak about one of the Top Five and why that item is so special that it makes it into the Top Five. Everyone in the group must talk about one of the five items. EITHER You have five minutes to prepare your presentation to the rest of the class OR You have to prepare your presentation for homework. Whole Class Phase: Each group presents their Top Five to the rest of the class taking turns to speak about each item on the list. Each presentation should last about five minutes.
Our top five favourite English music hits Our top five advertisements Our top five paintings Our top five teenage status symbols Our top five computer games Our top five jokes and riddles Our top five fashion accessories (e.g. mobile phone)
Our top five books or authors Our top five TV programmes Our top five scientific discoveries Our top five teenage fashions Our top five websites Our top five football players Our top five ....(choose your topic).
Just a Minute
Instructions
Cut up the following topic cards. One set of cards for each group. Students take it in turns to select a card. They have one minute to think of what to say. Then they must speak for one minute without help or interruptions on their topic to the rest of the group.
School
Just a minute
Children
Just a minute
Hobbies
Just a minute
Travel
Just a minute
Brunei
Just a minute
Home
Just a minute
Computers
Just a minute
English
Just a minute
Future
Just a minute
Food
Just a minute
Movies
Just a minute
Travel
Just a minute
Music
Just a minute
Dreams
Just a minute
Free Topic
Friends
Just a minute
Sport
Just a minute
Books
Just a minute
TV
Just a minute
Holidays
Just a minute
Double Plus Figures Double plus figures is a wonderful adaptation of a drama game that really gets students involved and builds their confidence for other public speaking, drama and performance activities. The core activity consists of students working together in pairs to be one character. Student A sits on a chair with their arms behind them, Student B kneels behind the chair and becomes the characters arms and hands. This can take away the fear of performance as neither student has to do everything the one who faces the crowd is merely the face while the one who is out of view can perform extravagant gestures. The activity can be used to liven up dialogues, to mime actions (perhaps to reinforce grammar points) and to perform dramatic scenes and roleplays. If you wish to make the activity even more enjoyable then bring in a few props the sample text in the appendix for example can be livened up with a few police hats A Comical Eulogy This activity is suitable for intermediate and advanced students exercise caution that there have been no recent bereavements. A week in advance give students a model of a eulogy. I usually present with a lesson that uses a famous person such as Elvis for source material. Inform your class that each student has to prepare a eulogy for you the teacher. You can have died in any way they wish - and it may
surprise you how unfortunate your demise will be. Once again, correct the speech so that students will have enough time to practise it before the class. If you are up for it, on the day of the speeches play sombre music to create the right atmosphere you might even want to cry at the lovely words being said about you. As each student delivers eulogy be prepared to break down and weep as your virtues and character are extolled. Obituaries of famous people can be used as reading comprehension precursors or follow-ups to this activity. Conclusion These are just a few of the many speech activities that can be used with English language classes. You will find that students respond remarkably well to these activities and that speech and public speaking can be a surprisingly relevant, interesting and confidence-building way to develop our students' English abilities. Students dont always have to be made to feel like another brick in the wall. The development of learner confidence in tandem with their growing language skills is a wonderful gift to give our students! It may start out in the too hard basket but as teachers it is our reward to see students who respond to our challenges and gain self-belief and selfassurance as a result.
Appendix
Some complicated proverb texts for Long Line Whispers 1: Where there are observable fumes having their origin in ignited carbonaceous materials, there is conflagration. 2: Members of an avian species of identical plumage tend to assemble. 3: Surveillance should precede bounding. 4: It is fruitless to become lachrymose over lacteal fluid that has precipitately departed from its container. 5: The temperature of the aqueous content of a constantly observed saucepan does not ever reach 100 degrees C at sea level. 6: All articles that sparkle with resplendence are not truly auriferous. 7: Fussiness on the part of mendicants must be forbidden. 8: An array of individuals with expertise in culinary arts may ruin the flavour of the potable concoction produced by steeping comestibles. 9: Individuals who make their abode in vitreous residences would be advised to refrain from catapulting petrous projectiles. 10: A revolving lithic conglomerate accumulates no congeries of a small green bryophytic plant. The Real Proverbs 1. Where theres smoke theres fire. 2. Birds of a feather flock together 3. Look before you leap 4. Its no use crying over spilt milk 5. A watched pot never boils. 6. All that glitters is not gold. 7. Beggars cant be choosers 8. Too many cooks spoil the broth. 9. People in glass houses shouldnt throw stones. 10. A rolling stone gathers no moss.