Teach Each Other Two New Words

Age: Any

Level: Beginner to Advanced

Language Skills: Speaking-Listening

Participation: Small Group or Whole Class

Materials: Language Dictionary

Procedures:

This is a short (5-10 minute) vocabulary activity that gives students control over the words they are learning.

1. Write on the board: How do you say _____ in English? - What is ______ in English?

2. Tell the students to think of two words they don't know that they want to know in English.

3. In small groups, have each student ask the others in the group to tell them each of the words in English.

4. Have the group collect all new words on a sheet of paper.

(As a whole class, have X number of students standup and ask the whole class for two words the student does not know. Have all the students write the words in their notebook.)

5. If none of the group members - or in the whole class - know the English word, they can look it up in the dictionary to answer.

Assessment: Informal Observation - Vocabulary Test

 

(The activity comes from The Standby Book - one in the series Cambridge Handbooks for Language Teachers.)