It’s that
time of year again... students are heading back to classes and language
educators are hard at work with teaching, grading, and mentoring. But one thing
that most everyone looks forward to is the long-awaited class field trip!
Language
programs tend to offer students with various opportunities to apply what they
learn in the classroom to the “real world”, learning how to accomplish daily
tasks with their English knowledge. Field trips offer language learners a
chance to engage in authentic dialogues and practice listening skills, not to
mention explore beautiful and sometimes exotic locations.
As fun as
field trips are, it is important to keep in mind that skipping a day of class
is not meant to just relax and skip a day of learning English. There is no
doubt that students will talk to each other in their native language when they
are outside the classroom, or just out of hearing range of the teacher. In
contrast, a school day outside is a lesson to be learned in the “real”
classroom.
Here are several
ways to make sure that students practice their English while having a good time:
1. Order
Food in English
Being
outside is a great opportunity for students to practice ordering food in
English. Not only do they have to know the correct question format (ex: Can I
please have…, I want to get…), but they are encouraged to practice their pronunciation
of tricky food names. Or at the very least, they can say a meal number or point
to a delicious-looking picture!
2. Pay in
Cash
Students can
pay with cash to learn how to distinguish bills, coins, size, and color. They
can practice listening to the cashier mention the total amount of their meal,
and in a sense practice reading by counting out the correct currency. Students
can also use this great opportunity to say aloud the total amount in terms of ‘dollars’
and ‘cents’ to practice numbers.
3. Scavenger
Hunt
This type of
activity works extremely well in museums, or any activities that take place
indoors. Teachers must first figure out a general theme of the location and provide
things for the students to find. A few months ago, my co-teachers and I took
our students to an Egyptian Museum. They were set with a task to take pictures (using
either cameras or iPhones) of subjects/items related to mummies, old weapons,
Egyptian clothing, and so on.
For a
follow-up lesson, the students created a slide show of the things they found to
be interesting, colorful, scary, ancient, etc. and presented them to the class.
With a scavenger hunt, the students end up doing all the work but also have the
most fun! Additional questions could include: What was your favorite part of
the field trip? What was not so pleasant?
4. Giving
Directions
This
activity is actually a test of navigation skills. Depending on how many
teachers are on the field trip, students will be split into small groups, with
one teacher for each group (to avoid the possibility of getting lost in an unfamiliar area!). Each group will have a map of the general area
(produced from Google Maps or hand-drawn by an artistic teacher, for example). Half
the groups will meet at Location A. The other half will meet at Location B.
They must walk on foot and find Location C as a team, speaking in English and using
direction terms, body language (i.e. pointing), and lots of negotiation! The first groups to
reach Location C are the “winners”. You
can even create this task to resemble a scene from The Amazing Race, with short
tasks given throughout. Teamwork will eventually lead the students to victory. :)
It is true that field trips should be exciting and memorable. These are the special times
when most students form tight bonds with their classmates by joking around,
enjoying the scenery, and just having fun. However, it is essential to remind
students that the only way to improve their language skills, maybe slowly but
steadily, is to practice English in any situation possible. After all, the
world is a playground, and practice makes perfect!
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