• so to start with, for the younger ones ACTION-SONGS represent a fun, repetitive and meaningful way to learn natural expressions easily.

• once the expressions have been introduced, by action songs, flashcards or other means in the case of adults, I usually get them to play SNAP with the cards seeing if they can think of a complete sentence using this expression, perhaps adding a little fun by ringing a bell for the first person who can think of a sentence.

• but the MOST INTERESTING repetitive FACTOR which HELPS the STUDENTS CREATE and PRACTISE NATURAL SENTENCES is the introduction of SPECIAL custom-made DICE with the language you would like them to practise.

• Every time they turn a card they have to throw one or more dice and create sentences accordingly.   As you can see from the picture, it’s very easy even for beginners or younger students to form sentences and the constant repetition helps them instill the grammatical structure naturally so they get a feel for the language just as a native learner does as he’s growing up.

• Custom-made dice I have been using are:
• Subject pronouns
• Frequency adverbs
• Time expressions
• Expressions for Present Perfect (already, just…)
• Expressions for Simple Past (yesterday, ago…)
• Clock faces for learning to the time
• + affirmative, - negative, ? question to practise all forms
• Object pronouns
• Possessive adjectives

• the first thing to distinguish is THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A NUMBER AND A DATE:

• a NUMBER is just read like any cardinal number:  21, 22, 24, 24, 25
• a DATE is always read as an ordinal number: 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 25th

• THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A YEAR AND A NUMBER:

• a YEAR is usually read TWO by TWO in British English: 
  • 1995 = 19 95 (nineteen ninetyfive)

• 2009 = 2009 (two thousand AND nine)

• 2016 = 2016 (two thousand AND sixteen)

• a NUMBER is ALWAYS read as a whole: 
  • 1995 refugees disembarked = 1995 (one thousand, nine hundred and ninetyfive)

• A PRICE:  £2.10 = £2. 10  (two pounds ten)   /  $2.10 = $2. 10  (two dollars ten)

• A STATISTIC: 
  • 20% = 20 %  (twenty percent)
  • 1.5 = 1  .  5  (one POINT five)

• A TEMPERATURE: 
  • 18°C = 18  ° C  (eighteen degrees Centigrade)   / 
  • 64°F = 64  ° F  (sixtyfour degrees Fahrenheit)  

• If the question is formulated correctly and pronounced absolutely correctly the team gets 1 point.
• If the question or pronunciation are not right – 0 points.
• Care should be taken with the pronunciation of half, calm, salmon, walk, talk without saying the letter ‘l’)

1. Deal out the cards face down to all the players (in groups of min 3-5) 
2. Look at the cards and put similar sets together according to their verbs.
3. The object of the game is to collect a set, a family.  The first word is your card so you have to ask for the other three.
4. Ask your partner:  Have you got “go swimming?”
5. Yes, I have. – The player passes the card and the winning player asks another person.
6. No, I haven’t. – The player who replied no asks another person.

• ready to use (just print and laminate)
• template with verbs (pictures to be drawn by your students)

Tricky ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION Made Easy is a series to HELP students PERFECTION their PRONUNCIATION in difficult areas of English.

Pronouncing HUNGRY with a clearly AUDIBLE H and the subsequent letter U with a VERTICALLY OPEN MOUTH (opening the top jaw UP and the bottom jaw DOWN) seems problematic for some students who need to practise this movement and sound very consciously.

In contrast there is the pronunciation of ANGRY where absolutely NO H must be heard and the initial letter A must be pronounced with a HORIZONTALLY OPEN MOUTH (opening the MOUTH WIDE from SIDE to SIDE).

CORRECT PRONUNCIATION is often UNDERESTIMATED by students who repute us to be exaggerated in our precision but even teachers may have problems understanding a student who does not pronounce words correctly let alone a person on the street or members of an audience at a conference. Therefore CORRECT PRONUNCIATION is a very IMPORTANT part of language acquisition.

PRACTISE PRACTISE PRACTISE !!

You can download the picture below.

I hope you find this diagram as useful.

Susan

• “Do you get out of bed on the left side or the right side?”
• “Do you share your room with a brother or a sister?”
• “What colour are the curtains in your bedroom?”

• PASS THE PARCEL:  a small present wrapped in wrapping paper and then covered with many layers of newspaper occasionally interspersed with loose presents (a fun coloured pencil, an unusual eraser, a whistle… all small things of little value) is put in the centre of the circle where the children sit cross-legged.  When the music starts the children pass the parcel and when the music stops the child holding the package takes off a layer of newspaper in the hope of finding a present.  If he finds it he may keep it.    (For lessons one can see which child know the name of the object in English first and maybe award points dividing the children into two teams).
• OBJECTS ON A TRAY:  a tray of about 10 different objects is put in the centre of the circle and the children have one minute to memorise them all.  Then the tray is taken away and the children have to write down as many objects as they can remember.  There is usually a small prize for the winner.  In all these games sweets are usually given as a consolation prize to those who did not win.  (For lessons make sure they all know the names of the objects in English before playing the game).
• MUSICAL CHAIRS:  chairs are put back to back with one chair less than the number of children present.  Then they all stand and start walking around the chairs until the music stops.  They have to all sit down and the person left standing is ‘out’.  Then one chair is taken away and the game restarts.    (For lessons one can use songs or nursery rhymes you have been studying).
• TREASURE HUNT:  two teams look for cards of their team colour with clues leading to the next clue until each reach their own treasure.  The first team to find their treasure is the winner.  (For lessons the clues have to be in simple English according to the level of the students).
• SHERADES:  in teams students mime something familiar (a film / book / song / animal) to their own team to gain points and a prize at the end.  (For lessons they have to be able to express themselves in English).
• PIN THE TAIL ON THE DONKEY:  with a blindfold the children have to pin (or stick with tape/blue tack) a tail on the large picture of a donkey and see if they guess the right place.  (For lessons the others can help by shouting ‘up / down / left / right’).
• MUSICAL STATUES and MUSICAL BUMPS:  Everyone dances until the music stops.  In MUSICAL STATUES they have to all freeze like statues and anyone who moves even slightly is ‘out’ whilst in MUSICAL BUMPS they all have to sit very quickly on the floor and the last person to sit down is ‘out’.  An adult decides who is ‘out’.  Then the game restarts.    (For lessons one can use songs or nursery rhymes you have been studying).
• SIMON SAYS:  A leader is ‘Simon’ and calls out a series of commands that the children have to follow like ‘Simon says put your hands in the air’.  The children must follow any order that begins with ‘Simon says . . .’ When the leader gives some orders without beginning with ‘Simon says’ such as ‘turn around’ the children who do this task by mistake are ‘out’.  (For lessons one can use actions that the children have been learing).

• See cookery books like:

1. Deal out the cards face down to all the players (in groups of min 3-5)

1. Look at the cards and put similar sets together.
2. The object of the game is to collect a set, a family.  The first word is your card so you have to ask for the other three.
3. Ask your partner:  Have you got “go swimming?”
4. Yes, I have. – The player passes the card and the winning player asks another person.
5. No, I haven’t. – The player who replied no asks another person.