4 Activities to Use When Teaching Online
Teaching English in the classroom remains a popular educational choice for families and children in decades. However, a lot of students cannot attend in-classroom all the time for many reasons. That’s why teaching online has a potential extension possibility despite their limited competitive advantages in comparison with the general education method. Hence, online teachers need to be more creative in their lessons to increase learner’s interest. As a result, many interactive activities have been developed in online English courses.
This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Linh Vu T. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
1. Pair Work
Firstly, in my opinion, student-pair activity, which is a much-loved, much-used teaching technique, is the first choice for any online teacher. After the guiding period and brainstorming time, students can work in pairs to share their results. It reduces the teacher’s talk time and lets students practice what they learned. Working in pairs, students may take opposite emotional sides of a case study, statement, or topic. In this case, the teacher can encourage them to be empathetic and truly “live” the case study. Not only that, but students will also enhance team-work skills and learn some exceptional social skills as well. One of my favorite pairing activities is Role Play, which is a great idea to practice speaking. I will give my students a situation in which they can interact with others such as talking at the post office, ordering a meal, etc. Their roles are decided by lot and the performance of my students gets much better with time.
Also Read: The Difference In Teaching ESL vs. EFL
2. Game Play
Secondly, playing a game is an alternative way of online teaching. This method can improve the student’s creative thinking and amuse them easily. There are several attractive games like crossword puzzles, pair matching games, bingo games, jigsaw puzzles, memory games, etc. In my opinion, using related games in practice time could help the student to remember new knowledge quicker and longer. Learners need to change their position and move around to complete the teacher’s request that why it could engage the interest and attention of students immediately.
Also Read: 4 Easy Ways to Build Confidence and Persistence in Students
3. Singing a Song
Thirdly, learning English through songs is a great way to make a successful lesson. Indeed, music always makes people feel excited and comfortable, especially for children. Through these lessons, children can memorize the melody and sing what they've learned in class. They can remember the vocabulary and their pronunciation at the same time.
4. Quiz
Finally, a presentation with question and answer (Q & A) is a necessary activity to summarize the course and test the progress of students. It could help students practice all language skills(vocabulary, grammar, discourse, and phonology). Students can prepare the slides and show up online. Therefore, normally the presentation will come at the end of a lesson or series of lessons. Additionally, practicing presentation skills regularly also enhances the creativeness and self-confidence for each individual because a good presenter is better at communication since they can organize and express their ideas clearly. “Practice makes perfect”- my favorite idiom, which is proved in many cases, is also true in this situation.
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In conclusion, many activities have been used in teaching English online but it is important to choose which form will be suitable for each class due to the different student's levels and ages.
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