Applying five - Minute warm up activities in teaching lessons 1. getting started (unit 1 - unit 5),...

THANH HOA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAININGHOANG HOA 4 HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE INITIATIVE APPLYING FIVE-MINUTE WARM UP ACTIVITIES IN TEACHING LESSONS 1.. Some popular five-minute wa

THANH HOA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HOANG HOA 4 HIGH SCHOOL

EXPERIENCE INITIATIVE

APPLYING FIVE-MINUTE WARM UP ACTIVITIES

IN TEACHING LESSONS 1 GETTING STARTED (UNIT 1-UNIT 5), ENGLISH TEXTBOOK 11

Author: Nguyen Thi Hoa

Position: Teacher

Subject: English

THANH HOA, 2019

TABLE OF CONTENTS

2.1.2 Some popular five-minute warm up activities in

teaching English

3

2.3 Applying five-minute warm up activities in teaching

lessons 1 Getting started (Unit 1 - Unit 5), New

English textbook 11

8-16

Reference books

1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale.

Up to now, English which is used popularly in Vietnam is an indispensable international language English is one of the compulsory subjects at high schools It has been used for Final Examinations to evaluate students’ level of knowledge Therefore, whether students are proficient at English or not Being proficient at English means students are good at both received skills – reading and listening, and productive skills – speaking and writing These four skills are integraded in a lesson to improve all these skills for the students because one certain skill can be used to improve the others But it is very hard for students to begin learning English Therefore, it is necessary to have good English teaching and learning methods and techniques

To make students interested in a new lesson is very important for teachers, especially English teachers How must teachers do that? This is the responsibility of all teachers! Warm – up activities are the ways in which teachers can take interest, encourage the students and prepare them to learn by stimulating their minds and their bodies Warm – up activities are essential teaching techniques for good teachers and trainers But how do English teachers

in high schools apply these activities?

There are many ways to make good warm – up activities at high schools However, it is a matter of fact that finding the most suitable and excellent

warm-up for each lesson is not easy and many teachers find it rather time-consuming Therefore, instead of using a five-minute warm up or ice breaker, they usually start new lessons immediately to save their time and effort

Basing on these facts, I present the theme “Applying five-minute warm

up activities in teaching Lessons 1 Getting started (Unit 1 - Unit 5), New English textbook 11” that I have applied in teaching English for many years

with the aim of helping students focus on English at High school

1.2 Aims of the study

My theme focuses on making clear about some issues below:

- What is a warm-up activity?

- How many popular five-minute warm up activities are there in teaching English?

- How are five-minute warm up activities applied in teaching lessons 1 Getting Started, new English textbook 11

1.3 Objects of the study

11th grade students in classes 11A1 and 11A4 in Hoang Hoa 4 High school, Thanh Hoa province are the objects chosen for my study The students are in the second year of high school, tending to focus only on their main subjects in the National Examination and English is not really their interest; therefore, they complete the tasks in their English text book in a passive way

1.4 Methods of the study

In order to collect a number of information, compare, and then, analyse data my study is conducted by qualitative methods By using the combination of these methods, my theme will make clear the questions in this topic, and reach effectively the targets of the essay

1.5 New ideas of the study

Only with five minutes to start new lessons are students motivated by warm-up activities applied These activities make students pay more attention to their lessons and, as a consequence, the lessons become more attractive and students can comprehend knowledge better

2 CONTENTS OF THE STUDY 2.1 Theoretical background

2.1.1 What is a warm-up activity?

According to Allwright , warm-up activities are designed to attract students’ attention, to help them put aside distracting thoughts, and to get them ready to focus individually and as groups on whatever activities that follow They will cause people to stop whatever they are doing or thinking and refocus their attention We could say a warm up activity is a motivating starting point that will lead students to become animated to work efficiently in the language class It was the activity used to encourage students’ involvement and permeate the development of the whole lesson, so we avoided looking at them as isolated activities These kinds of activities might also be called zealous, enthusiastic or suggestive activities

“Warm up is an effective way to help the students begin to think in English and to review previously introduced material Different types of warm ups help provide variety and interest in the lesson.” (p.vi) A warm up to prepare students for a period of concentration may involve physical movement with activities that keep them active by standing up, walking, jumping, matching pictures with sentences or vocabulary, drawing or writing personal experiences or stories, and singing or listening to familiar songs and chants These are, among others, enjoyable and motivating warm ups

Diagram 1 shows some of the principles that a teacher must consider when preparing a warm up activity

The principles contained in this diagram make us realize that warm up activities are not only processes to begin the class, but tools that help us catch students’s attention If you start with an exciting and interesting activity you can

be sure the other steps can be developed easily This warm up must also be short (should last about 5 minutes) because it is like a preparation for the other class stages That is why it has to be related with the topic and centered in communicative aspects which could involve activities that emphasize the practice of different skills

Diagram 1 Aspects to be considered in a warm up activity.

In addition, a warm up must be prepared taking into account the students’ learning styles According to Cardenas (2001), “Students learn best when they can address knowledge in ways that they trust They will learn best through doing, rather than reflecting”

Learning English highly depends on students’ positive attitude toward the class Consequently, learning must be stimulating and enjoyable through breaking what might cause monotony in this process and strengthening what makes tasks more interesting, as well as what increases students’ involvement The use of warm - up activities implies features as the ones previously described

in order to get students’ attention, to make them interested in what is going on,

to focus on language items and to increase learners’ expectations by consciously arranging the conditions in a way that they put the learners in a more positive or optimistic mood

2.1.2 Some popular five-minute warm up activities in teaching English.

Depending on the contents of the lesson and students, teachers should design a suitable five-minute warm up for each lesson Below are some warm ups often used to start a new lesson

2.1.2.1 Guessing topic.

2.1.2.1.1 Hangman

This classic game is a favourite one for all students but it can get boring quite quickly

Principles for warming up activities

Focus student’s attention

Be short

Be useful to continute the class

Prepare students for a period of concentration

Help students begin to work

Be related to

the topic

Be an interesting and enjoyable activitiy

Go at the beginning

of the class

Teacher thinks of a word related to the topic of the lesson and write the number of letters on the board using dashes to show many letters there are He/she asks students to suggest a letter If it appears in the word, write it in all of the correct spaces If the letter does not appear in the word, write it off to the side and begin drawing the image of a hanging man Teacher continue until the students guess the word correctly (they win) or you complete the diagram (you win)

2.1.2.1.2 Jumbled word

This is a great game to encourage team work and bring a sense of competition to the classroom

Teacher gives students some jumbled words related to the topic of the new lesson Students must rearrange them in the correct order

2.1.2.1.3 Guessing topic

Teacher divides class into some small groups and delivers the list of items related to the topic of the lesson to groups Students discuss in groups The group first guessing the topic is the winning group

2.1.2.2 Describing the picture

Show a picture and have students take turns saying one descriptive thing about it Beginners can make simple observations like “three cats” while advanced students can make up a story to go with the picture They aren’t allowed to repeat what someone else said, so they need to pay attention when

each person speak Variation for individual: take turns with the teacher.

2.1.2.3 Shark attack

Teacher uses the template to present a new learning topic This activity is

a variation on the popular Hangman warmer Instead of building a set of gallows and hanging the villain, a boy or a girl moves down the steps and falls into the mounth of a waiting shark

2.1.2.4 Sing a song or play the music song

If you’re musically inclined, or even you’re not, song can be a lively way

to get everyone involved

2.1.2.5 Finding information

2.1.2.5.1 Brainstorm race

A brainstorm race is a great way to review topics you’ve already covered, and have some energizing fun in the process Divide the class into two teams or more Teacher gives a topic and asks learners to think of anything related to it They will have about 30 seconds to brainstorm and list as many items as they can in a certain amount of time-without speaking Each student must write his

or her ideas on the board or paper you’ve provided The team with the most ideas after the prescribed time wins that round

Ask the winning team to present their ideas Ask remaining teams to add any ideas the winning missed and to correct any mistakes the winning team may have made

2.1.2.5.2 Networks

Teacher draws a network on the board with the topic of the lesson in the middle of the network Teacher asks students to work in two or four groups to find information related to the theme

2.1.2.5.3 Lucky number

Teacher divides the class into two teams and lets them name their team Teacher asks teams to choose the number If they choose the number that is lucky, they will not have to answer the question but they still get mark In contrast, if they choose the number that have a question, they will have to answer that question At the end of the game, the team getting the highest mark will be a winner

2.1.2.5.4 Chatting

Teacher asks students questions relating to the content of the new lesson Students give their ideas From this information, teacher leads to the new lesson

2.1.2.5.5 Kim’s game

This is the memory game It helps students find out the information for the new lesson Teacher divides the class into two teams Let students see a picture with objects or 8-10 words, word phrases related to the topic of the lesson in 20 seconds Students must remember them without writing After that, students go to the board and write down all the objects or the words, word

phrases they can remember The team which has the most objects or the words, word phrases is the winner

2.1.2.6 Remind knowledge

2.1.2.6.1 Bingo

Distribute to each student one 5x5 Bingo card with a vocabulary word typed into each square If teacher have time, he/she could distribute blank Bingo card and present the students with a list of vocabulary words they should recognize The students write in the words themselves to practice writing

Draw a randon word card from a bag and call out the word (alternatively, Teacher could show the students a picture that corresponds with a vocabulary word) The students search for the written word on their cards and cross it off Continue until a student calls out, “Bingo!” This student is the winner Again, students can only call out, “Bingo!” when they have crossed out five boxes in a row vertically, horizontally, or diagonally

2.1.2.6.2 Matching

Teacher asks students to match words in column A with their meanings in column B, words in column A with pictures in column B or a half of sentence

in column A with its rest half in column B, …

2.1.2.6.3 Crossword puzzle

Teacher asks students to work in pairs or groups He/She gives them a

“crossword” and asks students to find the objects related to the lesson

2.1.2.7 Other five-minute warm up activities.

What and where, slap the board, survey, true/false statement, picture drill, find someone who, chain game, gap fill, hot seat, mystery object, nought and crosses, …

2.2 Practical background

Hoang Hoa 4 high school is located in Hoang Hoa district, Thanh Hoa province It was built in 1989 At present, school has 32 classes with nearly 1.500 students

Almost all students in the school live in the countryside and do not have many opportunities and conditions to practice English regularly as well as take

part in extra English classes Although they are studious and obedient students, they do not raise the sense of initiative in learning English They need the teacher’s help If a teacher uses a five-minute warm up, which is a short, fun game, he/she can encourage the students, wake them up - first thing in the morning and after lunch they are often a little sleepy, mark the shift when students have finished one subject before starting on a new topic Furthermore,

a five-minute warm up helps learners put aside their daily distractions and focus

on English If they haven’t used English all day, they may take a little while to shift into it Warm-ups also encourage whole class participation which can build a sense of community within the class

We all know that starting the lesson with a good hook activity sets us up for

a better chance of success It captivates the students and draws them into the lesson – giving us the opportunity to “do our thing”! A warm up at the beginning of the lesson takes only five minutes but it brings us a variety of benefits as I presented above

2.3.Applying five-minute warm up activities in teaching Lessons 1 Getting started (Unit 1 - Unit 5), English textbook 11.

Below are some five-minute warm ups I have used in teaching new English lessons, English text book 11 in the last few years, many teachers can also apply them in their teaching

2.3.1 Application 1.

Unit 1 THE GENERATION GAP LESSON 1: GETTING STARTED

 Warm up

2.3.1.1 Hangman.

Teacher thinks of the phrase word “the generation gap” and writes 18

letters on the board using dashes to show He/She asks students to suggest a letter If students suggest the letters: g, t, e, h, r, t, i, n, o, a and p, write it in all

of the correct spaces If students suggest other letters, write them off to the side and begin drawing the image of a hanging man Teacher continues until the students guess the word correctly

T H E G E N E R A T I O N G A P

1

3 2 4

5

2.3.1.2 Network.

Teacher draws a network on the board with the topic of the lesson After that, he/she asks students to work in groups of four to complete the network about some words relating to the topic

2

5