Using Video in an ESL/EFL Classroom

Linguistics 139/239 presentation, May 11, 2009

Randall Rightmire (rightmire@linguistics.ucsb.edu)

Overview:

I. Using Video with Low-Level ESL

II. Using Video to Teach ESL Pronunciation

III. Using Film Clips to Teach Listening/Speaking

I. Using Video with Low-Level ESL

A. Choosing a video

1. Humor

2. High visual context

3. Little or no audible language

B. Back/Front Real-Time Narration (Levels: Beginner-Intermediate)

Example: Knick Knack

1. Partner up.

2. Situate one partner with his/her back to the video screen.

3. The other partner will watch part of the video.

4. The partner who is watching must tell exactly what is happening.

5. At a certain point, switch roles.

6. Variation: one partner can leave the room while the video plays for five minutes (e.g.); when s/he returns, the partner who watched the video will relate what happened.

7. Variation: Replay the video segment so that the partner who could not see will see what happened. Was it just as your partner described?

C. Story Recall / Story Completion (Level: High-Beg. / Low Int.)

Example: Wallace & Gromit - A Grand Day Out.

1. Watch a section of 15-minute (e.g.) segment of video.

2. Recall the story in writing.

3. Variation: Add an ending to the story from your own imagination.

4. Variation: Relate the story orally instead of in writing.

D. Vocabulary:  What Is He (She) Wearing?

The goal is for students to review the vocabulary and grammar of clothing and/or physical characteristics in a humorous way.

Example:  Mrs. Doubtfire (Chapter 10, “Transformation”)

E. Vocabulary Bingo

F. Prepositions Bingo

Activity: Vocabulary Bingo

Video: Knick Knack

Instructions: Draw an X through the square if you see the item.

Scoring: four in a row = 10 points, all squares filled = 50 points.

Palm tree	dynamite	hammer	blowtorch
snowman	flamingo	skeleton	surfboard
trapdoor	pyramid	cactus	igloo
goldfish	mermaid	gravel	jackhammer

Knick Knack (1989)

Special feature on Finding Nemo (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)

$18.99 (DVD)

Also featured on Tiny Toy Stories. Pixar. Directed by John Lasseter (VHS).

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Activity: Prepositions Bingo

Video: Let’s Give Kitty a Bath

Instructions: Fill in each square with a sentence that describes an action in the video and uses the preposition in the square. Scoring: four in a row = 10 points, all squares filled = 50 points.

Example: The cat is sitting on the rocking chair.

in	around	into	off
on	through	out of	onto
under	behind	up	outside
over	in front of	down	inside

Let's Give Kitty a Bath! Clearvue & SVE price $29.95. http://www.clearvue.com

II. Using Video to Teach ESL Pronunciation

Janet Goodwin pioneered this method at UCLA for use with advanced students.  It can be adapted for students of all levels. Sections A and B below are adapted from Goodwin’s materials. The examples in Section C are my own examples.

A.        Choosing a clip

1. Choose a clip that is short (2-4 minutes)

2. Lots of visual context, including non-verbal communication

3. Recognizable, everyday situations

4. Humor, humor, humor

5. Informal, conversational language; lots of back-and-forth turn-taking

6. The clip should represent a wide variety of rhythm and intonation patterns

B.        Using the clips in the classroom

Step 1: Before the exercise:

· Let the students know that the purpose of the exercise will be to practice the pronunciation of a variety of English intonation & rhythm patterns.

· Explain that the procedure will be to (a) listen to the characters and (b) try to imitate their pronunciation.

Step 2 (Optional): Any minimal introductory comments (such as “Has anyone ever seen Forrest Gump?” or “Who has heard of Tom Hanks?”)

Step 3: Play the clip once, with the sound off, and with captions/subtitles off.  Repeat if desired.

Step 4: Ask the students, “Who are they? What is their relationship? What is the setting? What is their situation? How do they feel?”

Step 5 (Optional): Ask students to read silently through the script. They may ask any questions about unfamiliar vocabulary.

Step 6: Play the clip again, with the sound on, and the captions or subtitles on.  They can read along in the script if they choose. (This is an especially good idea if you have skipped the optional Step 4.) Repeat if desired.

Step 7: Read the script aloud, call-response style, line by line, sentence by sentence, or phrase by phrase.

Step 8: Elect students to play the parts on their own, with minimal teacher guidance.

• Two or three students can perform it for the whole class.
• Students can pair up or group us to read the script.
• Students can read it as a read-around, with every student taking a line.
• For a good laugh, divide the room into two halves, each half reading one part in chorus!

C.        Examples—Video Clips for Pronunciation

· Clip 1:    “Margaret’s Engagement” (M*A*S*H* Episode 98: 1976)

· Clip 2:    Dead Poets Society (1989)

· Clip 3:    That Thing You Do! (1996)

· Clip 4:    Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (1987)

· Clip 5:    The Truth about Cats and Dogs (1996)

· Clip 6:    When Harry Met Sally... (1989)

III. Using Film Clips to Teach Listening/Speaking

Example: “Innovations,” A Film Activity with a Game Follow-Up

Level: Intermediate to Advanced

Part 1:  Benny and Joon

Characters:

Mike (Benny’s friend)

Sam (Mike’s cousin; a little bit crazy)

Joon (Benny’s sister; more than a little bit crazy)

Benny (Joon’s older brother; too serious)

Ruthie (a waitress and former actress)

Joon’s psychiatrist

Background:

Joon and Sam are innovators.  In other words, they find unusual uses for everyday items.  For example, Sam uses old car parts as a musical instrument.

Your task:

Read the list below. Then, watch a segment of the movie.  As you watch, try to identify the innovative uses Sam and Joon find for the following items:

Breadsticks =

Doorknobs =

Couch =

Bathtub =

Breakfast cereal =

Chair on wheels =

Mailbox =

Iron & ironing board =

Vacuum cleaner =

Balloon =

Tennis racket =

After you have watched the movie, compare your list with a partner’s.

Target language: <name> used <thing> as a <function>

Example: “Sam used doorknobs as a musical instrument.”

Part 2, “Innovations”

Work with a small group.  Your teacher will name some everyday items.  With your group, try to imagine innovative uses for each item.  Make a list.  Try to be the group with the longest list!

(List of example items to be provided by the teacher)

Pizza paddle	Toaster oven
Salad spinner	Umbrella
Hair dryer	Toothbrush

VIII. Web Links

1. To Find Scripts, Credits, Biographies and More

www.friendscafe.org/scripts/ has free scripts from all episodes of the television sitcom Friends.

www.dailyscript.com is another source of film scripts.

www.classicsitcoms.com is a source of television scripts and credits.

www.imdb.com is a good source for actor, writer, and director credits and plot synopses.

2. Here is how to check out videos free of charge for one week in Santa Barbara

You can search online for the title you want at www.sbplibrary.org.

Library cards are issued free.  Interlibrary loan items and holds are subject to a small fee.

3. Karen’s ESL Party Land

http://www.eslpartyland.com/teachers/nov/film.htm

Karen’s ESL Party Land has presented lessons for films such as: All the President's Men; Bonnie and Clyde; Dead Man Walking; Do the Right Thing; East of Krakatoa; Vertigo.

Each lesson is divided into components like: “Before You Watch: Discussion Questions”; “Before You Watch: WWW Activity”; “Before You Watch: Vocabulary for the Movie”; “While You Watch: Listening Activity”; “Halfway Through: Discussion Questions”; “After You Watch: Discussion Questions.”

Karen’s ESL Party Land has Classroom Handouts like: “Film Survey”; “Film Reviews (In-class Assignment)”; “Internet Scavenger Hunt: Movies.”

4. Dave’s ESL Café

http://www.eslcafe.com/search/Video/index.html

5. Center for Adult English Language Acquisition’s Article “Using Video with Adult English Language Learners” by Miriam Burt, National Center for ESL Literacy Education

http://www.cal.org/caela/esl_resources/digests/video.html

6. Performances and Lectures from TED (Technology, Entertainment, and Design)

http://www.ted.com/

Examples:

Margaret Wertheim on “The Beautiful Math that Links Coral, Crochet, and Hyperbolic Geometry”

Malcolm Gladwell on What “We Can Learn From Spaghetti Sauce”

Sarah Jones: One Woman, Eight Hilarious Characters