Giving Instructions / Explanations

Learners see the ability to explain things well as one of the most important qualities of a good teacher. One particular kind of explanation that is very important in teaching is instruction (i.e. the directions that are given to introduce a learning task which entails some student activity, in pairs, in groups or independently). Guidelines on giving effective instructions and explanations 1. PREPARE. Sometimes teachers explanations are not as clear to their SS as they are to themselves. That is why they need preparation. Think about the words you will use and the illustrations / examples you will provide. Write them if you want / need to.

2. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE CLASSS FULL ATTENTION when you are explaining
something essential, especially when you give instructions. When you organize group-work, give the instructions before you divide the class into groups or give out materials, not after! 3. PRESENT THE INFORMATION MORE THAN ONCE. You can do this by repetition, by paraphrase, by re-presenting the information in a different mode (e.g. say it and also write it on the BB1). 4. BE BRIEF AND CLEAR. Learners have only a limited attention span. They cannot listen to you for very long at maximum concentration. Therefore, omit what is not relevant / you dont need and insert only what is necessary! For beginners you may use their mother tongue if the target-language explanation is too long and difficult to understand. 5. ILLUSTRATE WITH EXAMPLES e.g. You may explain the meaning of a word illustrating your explanation with examples of its use in various contexts, relating these as far as possible to the learners own lives and experiences. When giving instructions for an activity, it often helps to do a dry run (i.e. a demonstration) together with the whole class or with some SS only.

6. GET FEEDBACK.
1

BB = blackboard

When you have finished explaining, check with your class that they have understood. Ask them to do something that will show you their understanding. (e.g. to paraphrase what you said in their own words, to provide further illustrations / examples of their own, etc.) ...

?! Activity 1. Considering the guidelines above, choose an activity / game / process (e.g. a
cooking recipe, how to operate a certain machine / device, etc.) and formulate the instructions you would give somebody who doesnt know how to play / do it. What words, illustrations would you use? How would you organise your ideas in a logical way?