Conversation Class Lesson Summary
Language and Section: Russian Intermediate 11
Date: November 19, 2014
Class theme/topics discussed:
Verbs of motion (ходить-идти)
Goal of the class:
Revise verbs of motion (ходить-идти), talk about public transportation
Structure of the class (unless you attach your lesson plan below):
Activity 1 Warm-up – Funny video Cheburashka & Crocodile Gena – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wEjByRLInMo parody – 3 minutes
Activity 2 – Russian anecdotes i.e. jokes – 2 minutes
I read a few jokes with verbs of motion from “Russian grammar in anecdotes”, making sure they understand what the jokes mean.
Activity 3 Verbs of motion (ходить-идти) Revision – 5 minutes
I explain the difference between the unidirectional “идти” – “be going somewhere” and the multidirectional “ходить” – “go somewhere regularly and come back”. The main difference is process “идти” / result “ходить”.
Activity 4 – Where are they going? (идти) – 5 minutes
First, we write down places people can be going to on the white board. Then, I show them street style/paparazzi pictures of Hollywood celebrities on the screen and they work in pairs asking each other “Where are you going? Where are they going” and answering.
Activity 5 – Where do you go? (ходить) – 5 minutes
Again, we start with writing down ideas on the white board – what can you ask your partner using the verb “ходить”: Do you go to the movies often? Where do you and your friend usually go on Saturday? Where did you go last Friday? They then discuss in pairs.
Activity 6 – Revision exercise (ходить-идти) – HANDOUT 1 – 10 minutes
They do the exercise in pairs, then we revise together.
Activity 7 – Draw the map – HANDOUT 2 – 10 minutes
I read a story with a lot of verbs of motion with prepositions, one student draws the map on the white board, the rest on their handouts, then we revise.
Activity 8 – How to get there? – HANDOUT 3 – 15 minutes
Working on passive understanding of a variety of motion verbs. I give them a handout with directions on how to get from LAX to Claremont using public transportation. The email is broken into 9 parts and rescrambled, and their job is to restore the original order in pairs. Then put in together and then we read it aloud together
What technology, media or props did you use? (satellite tv, internet resources, playmobiles, etc.)
What worked well in this class? What did not work?
The class went well, now they seem very comfortable using verbs of motion we practiced. They also loved the funny video and the jokes, it always sets a good mood. I decided against using handouts in Activities 4 and 5, but I think in the end they would have benefited from a traditional conversation ideas handout I always give (with questions, ideas). Intermediate is tricky in that they know things passively, but cannot always recall structures and vocabulary in a “stressful” situation of real-time oral communication (as opposed to writing). To really be talking and using the language, they still need to rely on something solid (e.g., a written handout), so I’ll keep that in mind in the future. Activity 7 went very well – great occasion to remind them how fabulous it is that after 2,5 semesters of Russian they are able to make perfect sense of a totally real, 100% authentic Russian email!
How could this class be improved/ modified?
Please attach your lesson plan and handouts for this class below – if you used any.