Using some kinesthetic activities to improve the students’ english communication skills at nhu thanh high school

Therefore, in this study I present some kinesthetic activities which I have used successfully with classes of different sizes and levels to improve the students’ communication skills.. A

PART ONE: INTRODUCTION

I RATIONALE OF THE STUDY

Today learning English is very important because it is the only language that truly links the whole world together English may not be the most spoken language in the world, but it is the official language in a large number of countries It is estimated that the number of people in the world that use in English to communicate on a regular basis is about 2 billion English is the dominant business language and it has become almost a necessity for people to use English if they are to enter a global workforce, research from all over the world shows that cross-border business communication is most often conducted

in English Its importance in the global market place therefore cannot be understated, learning English really can change people’s life Many of the world’s top films, books and music are published and produced in English Therefore by learning English you will have access to a great wealth of entertainment and will be able to have a greater cultural understanding Most of the content produced on the internet (50%) is in English So knowing English will allow people to access an incredible amount of information which may not

be otherwise available!

Communication skills are essential for a successful career, satisfying relationships and a personal sense of accomplishment Communication is seen every day through TV commercials, interaction with the person opening a door for people and listening to the CEO of their company speak Effective communication empowers people, provides clear direction and increases productivity Without it, people lose motivation and the inability to make a decision, and they become angry because their messages are not understood

In fact, many Vietnamese students who have good professional knowledge, but can’t use English well don’t get good jobs So, English is the first and the most important standard for workers who want to work not only at foreign companies but also at national ones

Since English is a foreign language in our country, most students especially high school students are not familiar with it (Hetrakul, 1995) Kavin Hetrakul also said that they use English more frequent only inside the class and less frequent outside the class Whereas, students have limited time to learn English

in class, and they still do not have enough encouragement to practice English outside the class in order to get familiar with English This case brings a problem that make high school students have difficulties to communicate in English

When teachers come into class to teach a lesson to improve students’ communication skills They follow their textbook and give great examples to illustrate their points and have plenty of practice worksheets – but no matter what they do there are always many students who just don't get it What is going wrong? Why aren't they getting through? The answer may well lie in their students' learning styles

Learning styles have been studied for decades and there are several models that

debated, most authorities in the field generally agree upon four basic learning styles: auditory learners, visual learners, kinesthetic learners, and tactile learners

Therefore, in this study I present some kinesthetic activities which I have used successfully with classes of different sizes and levels to improve the students’ communication skills

II AIMS OF THE STUDY

I do the research to know about the fact of teaching and learning communication skills in Nhu Thanh High School more clearly This study also investigates whether some kinesthetic activities can have positive impact on process among students and can develop their communication skills or not

Bearing in mind, I decide the research with title “ Using some kinesthetic activities to improve the students’ English communication skills at Nhu Thanh High School.

III RESEARCH QUESTIONS

This study aims at finding answer to the following research question:

How can some kinesthetic activities help the students at Nhu Thanh High School improve their communication skill?

The question has been addressed to two of the classes (A1, A6) that I have been teaching in Nhu Thanh High School with the aim to examine how some kinesthetic activities affect the process of communication here

IV SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study does not aim to teach any skill in a systematic way, because it is experience not for teaching but for practice The study investigates giving some kinesthetic activities to help students practice so that they can improve their communication skill

V METHODS OF THE STUDY

In this study, I use some research tools to collect and analyze the needed data Recording is used to record the process of giving some kinesthetic activities The second tool used in this study is interviews with students at the end of the research to study whether using some kinesthetic activities is really suitable for them or not

Surveying through the answer sheets is used to know the practical situation of teaching and learning English communication skill

PART TWO: DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW

I OVERVIEW OF KINESTHETIC CTIVITIES

Great ideas originate in the muscles” – Thomas Edison

Kinesthetic learning is a learning style in which learning takes place by the students carrying out physical activities, rather than listening to a lecture or watching demonstrations People with a preference for kinesthetic learning are also commonly known as "do-ers

A great deal of information exists regarding the different means by which students learn new concepts Although visual, auditory and kinesthetic learning are the most commonly listed learning styles, little attention has been given to kinesthetic learning This is especially true at high school where the format favors verbal and visual learners Here we make a tentative argument for the value of including kinesthetic learning activities in classes as a vehicle for teaching concepts

It is important to make clear how our working definition of kinesthetic learning may be different from previous work First, the term “active learning” already means something to the education community and may include instructor demonstrations, brainstorming, reflections and minute papers The version of kinesthetic learning considered here is a sub-set of active learning where students will be out of their seats and quite literally active Second, the term

“kinesthetic learning” is in common use in some education circles Within those circles, the focus is typically on learning a manual skill or refining muscle coordination students must learn to build physical structures, often using their hands to perform complex tasks

II WHAT IS KNOWN ABOUT KINESTHETIC LEARNING

Below I summarize some of the work that has been conducted on the

effectiveness of kinesthetic learning:

Jean Piaget – All of the most basic facts about the world are first discovered

through physical means As the brain matures, facts are abstracted and related to other concepts Although the ability to abstract a concept and make complex connections between concepts are considered to be signatures of a mature mind, humans learn best by doing something concrete first, and then abstracting to more general concepts

Feldman and McPhee – “Kinesthetic learners are most successful when totally

engaged with a learning activity They acquire information fastest when participating in a science lab, drama presentation, skit, field trip, dance, or other active activity Because of the high numbers of kinesthetic learners, education is shifting toward a more hands-on approach and other ‘props’ are incorporated into almost every school subject, from physical education to language arts Hands-on teaching techniques are gaining recognition because they address the challenging needs of kinesthetic learners, as well as the diverse needs of auditory and visual learners

Muneera Spence - Visual learners account for around 30% of the population

and auditory learners account for around 25% of the population Kinesthetic learners may account for as much as 45% of the population

Howard Gardner – Intelligence is a multifaceted quality that cannot be

measured by a single score on a test Furthermore, some types of intelligence are

motion is a distinct kind of intelligence that is useful to the athlete, dancer, martial artist and engineer Despite the lack of data in the engineering education field, some educators, such as those in dance, graphic arts, and communications, use kinesthetic learning daily In a study on graphic arts education, where one would expect a high percentage of visual learners, it was estimated that 45% of students were categorized as kinesthetic learners Furthermore,

kinesthetic activities have been found to be effective in special adult populations, such as the blind and deaf It should be noted, however, that these fields place emphasis on refining muscle memory and conditioning responses Two studies in English and Computer Science, however, did use kinesthetic

learning to teach concepts Virginia Zimmerman guides students in developing

dance steps that correspond to the rhythm of a poem The purpose is to highlighting the use of meter and structure by different authors, and point out how they sometimes violate the structure for effect A small group of computer science faculty have also been building a repository of kinesthetic learning

III WHAT IS A KINESTHETIC LEARNER?

Kinesthetic learning is a learning style of students that learn best by discovering

and experiencing These students prefer physical activities that involve getting

out of their seat, moving around and touching things

The best time to use kinesthetic activities in the classroom is after teaching a new topic Whether it’s a vocabulary lesson or a lecture on sentence structure, using these activities is a great way to get students practicing the new English skill and is also a great way for teachers to check for understanding

IV CHARACTERISTICS OFKINESTHETIC LEARNERS

- They use their hands to speak; they make lots of gestures and describe things with their hands or even their entire body

- They enjoy working with their hands, so crafts are a must in the classroom

- They need to move, do and touch For this reason, they are better suited to

activities with Total Physical Response.

- They need frequent breaks

- They have excellent hand-eye coordination

CHAPTER 2: PRACTICAL SITUATIONS

I METHODS OF THE STUDY

The research is done qualitatively in the context of two English classes (Class

A6 and A1 – Applying the Experimental English Curriculum of the National Foreign Languages 2020 Project - At the beginning of school year 2015-2016

at Nhu Thanh High School ) In this survey, I use the survey questionnaire for students This survey is designed to collect information for the study on “An investigation into the Reality of teaching and learning English communication skill at Nhu Thanh High School

II THE REALITY OF TEACHING AND LEARNING ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS AT NHU THANH HIGH SCHOOL

The whole procedure of teaching and learning is implemented similarly to all students of the class after all of them give consent to be part of the research However, due to the limit of the study, I only focus to collect information from the learning engagement of two classes (A6 and A1) during this process as the data for analysis Below is the survey of the practical situation of learning English Communication skill at Nhu Thanh High School

Survey no.1

Practical Situation of learning English communication Skill at Nhu Thanh High School.

1 How difficult is the

English

communication skill

in new curriculum?

Too easy 5%

Not difficult 10%

Difficult 30%

Really difficult 55%

2 What is your idea

about improving

English

communication skill at

your school?

Very essential 12% Essential 16% essential Not really

47%

Not essential

at all 25%

3 What do you think

of your skill classes at

Nhu Thanh High

School?

Really interesting 3%

Interesting 7%

Boring 41%

Really boring 49%

4 What do you think

of the materials used

for teaching skills at

Nhu Thanh High

School?

Difficult and boring

51%

Difficult but interesting 8%

C Interesting and stimulating 9%

Easy and boring

32%

5 Does your teacher

give you any active

activities to improve

your communication

skills?

Always 2% Sometimes 4% Rarely 22% Never 72%

From the survey number 1, we can see that communication skills are rarely improved at Nhu Thanh High School, this may not make it attractive to learners

as a classroom activity The students often see communication as hard work,

boring, unrewarding Moreover, students don’t know how to learn English and improve communication skills effectively

CHAPTER 3:

RECOMMENDATIONS

TO IMPROVE THE STUDENTS’ ENGISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS

I RECOMMENDATIONS

According to the data analysis from the survey, it can be personally concluded that the most important feature that makes my students to engage more in the lesson is the kind of assessment which forces them to learn although the meaningfulness of tasks also more or less affect the level of engagement

the most meaningful tasks to my students are tasks that can help them to pass the tests at the end of the semester not tasks that give them reasons to communicate

as I expected

Therefore, I have given them some kinesthetic activities to improve my students’ communication skill.

II PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS

Kinesthetic actions seem to originate the holistic right side of the brain Verbal

language is left-hemisphere based (Promislow, 1999) Physical warm-ups involved both hemispheres They may be a way to help learners use both sides

of their brains in a more integrated way

Physical movements encourage our bodies to manufacture endorphin (the chemical that contributes to “runner’s high”) and dopamine, which helps us see patterns and learn faster (Snell, 1980, cited in Promislow, 1999.)

On a more general level, doing physical activities together may just get people working together

Our students spend hours sitting in their desks every day A few minutes up and moving seems to get them more attentive, move involved And these are fun There are lots of kinesthetic activities available For this , I have concentrated on some that have learners physically moving around the room Also, I am focussing on those that have a specific, spoken language aspect

Games for Kinesthetic Learners That Love to Move

These types of games are always class favorites and along with reviewing material, it encourages team building and critical thinking

1 Jeopardy

This game is great for reviewing a lot of different subject matter before a comprehensive test It also encourages teamwork and critical thinking, while

giving the students a chance to build confidence and practice their speaking skills

What You Need:

An internet connection or PowerPoint

A projector

Set Up:

Prepare a jeopardy board filled with questions on the subject matter being reviewed You can do this on PowerPoint

Split the students into even groups of four, five or six (This number can be adjusted according to the number of students in the classroom For the ideal playing situation, there should be 4-6 groups.)

How to Play:

After class has been split into groups, the first group chooses a subject matter and point value

Read the corresponding question aloud, and then everyone has the opportunity

to raise their hand to answer the question

The first hands up get to answer and if they are right, their group receives the designated amount of points and also gets to pick the next question

If they get the question wrong, then their team loses the points and another group gets a chance to answer

The group with the most points at the end of the game wins!

Note: Make sure that the students rotate the spokesperson in the group so that

everyone gets English speaking practice!

2 Fly Swat

The Fly Swat game works best for vocabulary review, and is great to play at the end of a lesson introducing new subject matter You can also use this game to help students with understanding synonyms, antonyms, and homonyms

What You Need:

Two fly swatters

PowerPoint or a whiteboard

A projector (if using PowerPoint)

Set Up:

Using PowerPoint (or simply write on the board), prepare a slide filled with vocabulary words sprawled all over the page Have a series of definitions and questions about those vocabulary words prepared to read to the students

To make it extra fun, write the words on pictures of flies!

Split the class in half and get ready for a great time

How to Play:

Each team sends up one person to the front of the classroom and they are each given a fly swatter

Read the question aloud, and then the first student to swat the answer on the board wins the round!

3 Telephone

Telephone is a game that will help develop your students’ English listening skills It also helps students practice word pronunciation and enunciation of sounds that they’re not used to making So Telephone encourages listening and comprehension skills, while still allowing students to get a little bit of speaking practice in there, too!

What You Need:

A class full of ears!

Set Up:

Have all of the students sit or stand in a straight line or a circle

How to Play:

Make up a phrase or sentence and whisper it in the first student’s ear

That student then whispers the phrase to the next person, and so on and so forth

If anyone would like the phrase repeated to them, students can say “Operator!,” but this can only be done once per person

At the end of the game it’s always really funny to see how different the phrase turns out!

Note: A more competitive alternative to play this game is to split the class into two teams and see who gets closest to the original phrase!

4 Song Puzzle

For this game, you’ll need to select a song and print out the lyrics with enough space between lines such that you can easily cut the lyrics into strips Separate students into small groups of two or three and give each group a complete set of the lyric strips

Then play the song over and over, while the groups try to organize the lyrics into the correct order The first group to organize the lyrics correctly wins the

game After the students have all figured out the correct order of the lyrics, sing them aloud as a class together!

Doing song puzzles reinforces sentence order and helps students with their fluency of speech

5 Story Telling Memory Game

In this fun game, students should begin by sitting in a circle The first person (this can be you, but it does not have to be) starts the story with a fragment like

“It was a dark and stormy night,” and then the next person has to repeat what the

first person said and add a phrase of their own.

For example, “It was a dark and stormy night and no one was around.” Keep going around the circle until someone messes up! Students love this game because they get to work together to be creative with their imagination

Teacher could have someone write down the story, and then hang it up in the classroom for students to remember and get a good laugh!

Telling stories as a class benefits students in countless ways Fostering creativity encourages English learners to use words that they don’t use on a daily basis, and formulating a story allows students to practice sentence structure in an informal and non-intimidating way!

6 This is for you

What You Need: get a few soft objects that are easy to throw and catch

How to Play:

- On the board, write, “This is for you, (name).” “Thank you, (name) “

- Students stand in circles of 10-15 Start by going around the circle Everyone introduces themselves

- Give one stuffed animal a student She reintroduces herself (“I’m Mai.”) Then

she says, “This is for you, (name) “ and throws it to that student.

- That student says, “Thank you, Mai I’m Emi This is for you, (name).” and

throws it to another student

* It is a good idea to have them make sure everyone has gotten the animal once

before there are repetitions There will be times they don’t know someone’s name They just look at that student and gesture that they need help with the name That person says her name

-Once everyone has received and thrown the stuff animal once, the fun begins.

Ask them to follow the trail – they throw it to the same person Introduce the second and third stuffed animal Leave a few seconds delay between each one

They continue to say, “This is for you, (name).” “Thank you, (name).” each

time they throw it

-Then suggest a bit of silence They continue to throw the animals but the only

think about the names They don’t say them This silent period really helps them concentrate on the names

Variation At this point, make it a free for all They see how many names the

remember They call out the names and try to get that person’s attention (Mai! This is for you!”, When they do, the toss the animal to that person The animals

no longer follow a trail Creative chaos!

• At the end, give everyone a minute or two to look around the circle and see how many people’s names they know

7 Circle action game

What You Need:(Optional)One soft object (like the stuffed animals above) for

each group of 8-12

How to Play:

- On the board, write “I’m (name) I like ”

“You’re (name) You like ”

- Students work in groups of 8-12 Give the animal to one person He introduces

himself and says something he likes (“I’m Hoa I like skiing.”) As he says what

he likes, he makes a gesture demonstrating it For example, he moves his body

as if he was skiing or uses two fingers flying down a mountain to represent a skier Then he throws the object to the next speaker (If there is no object, he just points to the next speaker.)

-The next speaker must repeat the first speaker’s information and do the gesture

before adding her own information and gesture (“You’re Hoa You like skiing.

I’m Lan I like listening to hip-hop.”) She adds a gesture such as a hip-hop dance

movement or something to show listening to music She throws the object to the next person who has to remember and repeat both Hoa’s information and Lan’s