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2.1.5. Homework Task Ten

Write a page report about how you can extend the lesson from Homework Task One outside of the classroom.

Every class is, to some degree, a ‘mixed ability’ class – no two students are exactly alike in their level of language proficiency.  This becomes very obvious when some of our learners raise their hands and proudly exclaim, “Finished!” while other learners in your class have barely begun the task I gave them.  Rather than giving these quick finishers a new, completely different task to work on, I consider extending the activity to keep them ‘on the same page’ as the rest of the class (no pun intended).  So, for example, if my student has finished writing the answers to a number of reading comprehension questions, I ask her to write two more additional related questions – then, when most of her classmates finish the task, she can then ask aloud her questions.

Just as many classes are ‘mixed ability’, students in almost any class have different learning styles.  Some students prefer to work alone, while others like to work with their classmates.  Some students hate to make mistakes, while others prefer to take risks.  When I extend an activity (and work on it from different angles), I create a learning environment that can satisfy the learning needs of more of my students.

It’s a fact that ‘realia’ can provide authentic language input and increase learner interest.  What is realia?  Realia = real-life objects or materials from the outside world that you bring into the classroom; for example newspapers, magazines or websites.  Realia is a good thing, no doubt, and extending activities can naturally lead into opportunities for its use in my language classroom. Here’s an example of how extending an activity allows for realia:  My students have just completed a listening exercise in which they listened to a number of questions using the Present Perfect Passive.

A: [spoken question] Have you ever been interrupted while you were talking to your friends?

B: [correct answer] Yes, I have.

I could make this exercise more “real” by (first) checking their answers, and then (second) giving them a few minutes to work together to write any of the questions they can remember.  Then (third) they could write some of their own interview questions.  Finally, (fourth) they could use their questions to interview some people outside the four walls of their classroom (schoolmates, friends, or family members) for homework.  In this case, the ‘realia’ in this series of extension activities are people, not things!  In the following class period, my learners could report their findings to their classmates.