How to Teach Conversational English as a Second Language

A conversational English lesson is nothing like your typical high school foreign language class. Chances are that you, the teacher, don't speak the same language as your students. Yet, somehow, you have to get them speaking a useful conversation pattern before the end of your 50-minute lesson. To do that, you will need to teach within the framework of a carefully sequenced model.

Things You'll Need

• Textbook
• Textbook CDs
• Whiteboard
• Markers

Instructions

1. Give your students homework at the end of the previous class. One 50-minute lesson is not enough for students to learn a sentence pattern from scratch and use it at natural speed. They have to study that pattern, and any associated vocabulary, before stepping into your classroom. Your job, then, is to get them speaking that pattern with native intonation in a practical situation.

2. Warm up the class. Smart athletes don't do wind sprints as soon as they step out of the door---they stretch first. The same goes for language learners. Give your students an easy, 2- or 3-minute activity, like a pronunciation exercise or asking each other about their weekends. That will get their mental gearshift set on English.

3. Model the target conversation. On the board, write a situation and some roles. It can be as simple as this: "A foreigner is asking a Japanese person for directions in Tokyo. A: Foreigner; B: Japanese person." A picture can help as well, even if it's only stick figures or a copied page from the textbook. Then, ask a student to have the conversation with you. Assign him the easier role first, then switch and do it again. Let the rest of the class practice. Don't correct mistakes; the goal here is to activate the knowledge they gained from their homework, and to show them the objective for the day's lesson.

4. Build up to the target conversation with drills and practice dialogues. Use flashcards to help students memorize necessary words and phrases, like "Turn left at the library" or "It's next to the McDonald's." Play a CD of two native speakers having a dialogue similar to the target conversation, and then have the class repeat that dialogue and practice it with each other.

5. Provide a scaffold for the target conversation, and take it away as the students practice. On the board, write about four lines of dialogue from the target conversation you had at the beginning of class. Leave blanks for the keywords and phrases (preferably the ones you drilled as flashcards) so students can personalize the conversation. Have the students practice the conversation in pairs, switching repeatedly. Finally, erase more and more of the conversation until the students are speaking it on their own.

Tips & Warnings

• Adjust the speed of your voice to the level of the class. When in doubt, speak more slowly.

• Don't talk too much. The students can't practice conversation if you're talking. Try to get the students doing 80 percent of the speaking---save only 20 percent for yourself.

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish