Final TP

My final TP was with an Entry 3 class of 8 learners. The aim of the lesson was to introduce the idea of charities and fundraising for citizenship, as they play a large part in British culture, and to practise the language of making plans together, such as "Let's...." "Shall we.. ", "What about .... " " We could.....", with a view to planning a fundraising event together.

I began the lesson by asking the learners to share with each other what they had learnt for homework - they had been asked to find out about one charity, the name and who they help. Most of the learners had made the effort to do some research - either by internet, or by popping in to a charity shop and picking up leaflets, so they spent some time communicating what they had learnt in pairs, with some questioning for more details happening too. This was a nice way to start the class , as it got them talking straight away, and also introducing themselves to each other a bit, as there were 5 new learners who had only been in part of the previous lesson.

After this I checked that they understood the concept of a charity and elicited the word "fundraising" and checked they understood that concept too. I also introduced the idea of sponsorship and a sponsor form ( I had one to show them ). One learner mentioned the word volunteer and also some benefits of volunteering, so I picked up on that, checked they understood the concept, by asking " Does a volunteer get paid ? " and also mentioned that it is Volunteer Week in Plymouth at the moment. (I was able to give them some information about the Plymouth Guild volunteering organisation later for those who were interested in finding out more ).I also introduced the aim of the lesson - to plan a fundraising event together, and made a link with previous lessons when we had made plans for a trip together as a class.

I then introduced some vocab for fundraising events , such as "Jumble sale " by getting them to do an activity where they had to match words with pictures in pairs, the phrases had been cut in two, so they had to match the correct words together too. This was more difficult for some than I had expected, but with a little help they managed to achieve it.I then gave them a gap-filling and matching handout with the same vocabulary on it, so they had the vocab in front of them, most of them completed this easily, one or two needed a bit of support.

I then used a Powerpoint presentation first of all showing a photo of me in a
Sportrelief race ( personalising it ! ) and then of the Race for Life taking place in Plymouth at the weekend,making it relevant and up to date. The Powerpoint then had pictures and a dialogue , using language for making plans for a fundraising event. I wanted to prompt possible sentences with the pictures appearing alone at first.This worked quite well,one or two students probably took part more than others, but all did make contributions and all were engaged. I think I could have been a bit tighter on asking individuals more, to make sure that all were on the right track and saying the phrases correctly.I reviewed this again with just the pictures.

I also introduced a bit of phonology, showing how sounds can be linked for example in " What about... ", and also checked individual things like the use of articles in sentences for a Polish learner, and intonation with another learner. I would like to have done more of that , but wanted to make sure there was enough time for the free practice role play later on.

One learner arrived late, part way through the Powerpoint presentation,having got the time of the lesson wrong. He was not very happy about that and was reluctant to take part for a while as a result, though I tried to involve him from that point.

I then reviewed the kind of phrases that can be used for making plans, such as "Shall we.." "Let's.." with the class , then explained that I wanted them to plan a fundraising event in groups, choosing a charity, and an event using those phrases and thinking about what else they might need to organise for their event. I gave them a role card as a prompt too.They seemed motivated and engaged, and took part in this well together. I monitored at this point and took notes of a few errors that were made.

I managed to talk with the latecomer at this point and tried to reassure him and persuade him to take part with a group, which he did in the end. I think he may have a problem with hearing, which I will investigate with him next lesson.

For the final 5 minutes of the lesson, I asked the groups to share with the class what kind of event they had arranged, for which charity and any other details, then we voted on which event we would prefer as a class, deciding on a coffee morning ! I then quickly wrote some of their errors onto the board and elicited corrections from them.The latecomer took part very well at this point and was able to correct some errors.

I think the aims were achieved, in that the groups managed to plan a fundraising event together and they had been introduced to the idea of charities and fundraising.The lesson incuded the four skills, and citizenship too. It was mostly a nice atmosphere in the class and they were motivated and engaged. I think I could have checked pronunciation more. I supported some learners if they needed extra help, and also had stronger learners working with weaker ones. I forgot to use the
MP3 players when they were discussing , and could have used that as a listening exercise later. I gave them a handout with the powerpoint dialogue on it later for them to practise at home, as well as a Reading text for homework about the Race for Life.

I've thought of a name for a new charity: Jackierelief !