My topic of interest
TOOLBOX GROUP
AUDIENCE
pupils from 14 to 18
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
To help the pupils to imagine themselves on a mobility project, by reflecting on the areas to be observed while on their mobility experience
To help the pupils to collect information before and during the mobility project about a topic they are interested in
To acquire cultural knowledge and greater awareness of their own culture(s) and compare specific cultural elements with the elements of their own culture(s)
To communicate in the target language in authentic contexts and use communication strategies
TIME
Step 1: before the mobility experience: 50 minutes
Step 2: during the mobility experience: all through the experience
Step 3: after the mobility experience: depending of the number of pupils in the group
NECESSARY MATERIALS
- A list of the possible topics to be explored
- A list of possible questions to be asked while exploring a topic
- The communication strategies sheet
STEP-BY-STEP DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTIVITY
Before
- In groups, students list the areas of their hosts’ culture(s) they are interested in and which they would like to learn more about.
- The teacher provides an example of an area that could be explored while on the mobility project and suggests elements to observe. See examples for a list of possible topics and of possible questions.
- In pairs or small groups, pupils design a questionnaire/grid featuring the chosen topic they will complete during their mobility activity. They also decide how they will try to find the answers to their questions: interviews, written questionnaires, video clips…
- Students reflect on the difficulties they might encounter while interviewing their partners. They try to come up with solutions to make the communication easier and smoother. The teacher can help with the grid of communication strategies.
- Students already try to gather all the information they have and can find on the Internet, in order to complete their questions.
During
- During the mobility activity, students interview or film their hosts and complete the questionnaire/s. They use the strategies they have reflected upon earlier on. They try to confirm/void the information they have gathered beforehand. In this way they become aware that a culture/reality is always complex and manifold.
After
- Students present the outcome of their survey after the mobility activity and compare the results with the trends existing in their own environment. Students discuss the strategies they have used to see which ones proved useful.
- Students reflect on whether the strategies they had come up with in the “Before” phase were efficient or not in the real communication with the partners.
RECOMMENDATIONS / TIPS
Possible topics to explore: music, arts, public transport, food/meals, home, leisure, going out, sports, school, holidays, reading, shopping, newspapers, advertising, nature, family, culture (museums, theatre, opera…), politics, festivals, computers and technology, health….
Possible questions (sample questions for music):
- Do you play a musical instrument? Did you learn to play a musical instrument at school?
- Do you sing? Did you learn to sing at school?
- Do you know any traditional songs from your country? Can you sing them?
- Do you know any traditional dances from your country/area? Can you do any of them?
- Did you have music lessons at primary school? What instrument did you learn to play?
- Did you have music lessons at secondary school? What did you learn?
- Did you go to a music academy in your free time? What did you learn?
- Do a lot of children go to a music academy in your country/area?
- Do a lot of children sing in a choir in your country/area?
- Do a lot of adults sing in a choir in your country/area?
- Do you often listen to music? When (in the car, in public transport, while working, while doing household tasks, just for pleasure)?
- When you celebrate a birthday party, do you sing? What do you sing?
- For Christmas, do you sing? What do you sing?
- Is there any special occasion in your country/area when people meet and sing together? Describe
- Do you often go to concerts?
- Did you ever go to concerts with your school?
- Have you ever sung/played in a concert?
- Who is your favorite singer/band?
- Do you download a lot of music?
- Do you listen to music in English, in your mother tongue, in another language?
- Do you want/need to understand the lyrics of a song?
- Are there any famous singers/bands in your country/area?
….
Communication strategies – If I do not know a word for something:
- I describe it, e.g. what it looks like, what you can use it for, whether you wear, drink, or eat it!
- I use a word that has roughly the same meaning e.g. “boat” instead of “ship”
- I use mime, or a gesture or a facial expression
- I make up a word by saying the mother tongue word but with the foreign accent.
- I use a “all purpose” word, such as “thingumejig”
- I ask for help e.g. “how do you say…”/”what do you call…?”
- I show I need help e.g. by pausing, a puzzled expression
- To give myself time to think, I use “stalling strategies” like “Well, now let me see, as a matter of fact, absolutely…”
REFERENCES
APPENDIX
