Giving Instructions

IHTOC60 seminar
Edward Evans (eevans@bkc.ru)
BKC-IH Moscow
25th May 2013

Don’t neglect the basics of giving instructions

 Be brief
 Don’t say obvious information – it just confuses students
 Explain first before handing out worksheets
 Be logical, giving information only when relevant.
 Demonstrate, don’t explain
 Ask instruction-checking questions (ICQ’s) – usually yes/no questions.
 Make sure everyone is paying attention before you start.

See Harmer (2001:4) and Scrivener (2011:65).

Eliciting instructions
If the instructions are for a simple task (fill in the gaps, true or false, answer the
questions etc.), it can save time just to elicit the instructions, avoiding the need to
check them again and irritate or patronise your students.

e.g. “What are you going to do?”

Bibliography
Harmer, J. (2001). How to Teach English, Harlow, UK: Longman.
Scrivener, J. (2011). Learning Teaching, Oxford: Macmillan.