Integrating Target Structure

This lesson plan focuses on learning one targeted area while using different language skills. The example lesson plan focuses on the use of recycling language, namely the passive voice, to help students learn inductively while at the same time improve their oral production skills. By often repeating the passive voice in various guises the students become comfortable with the use of the passive and can then go on to actually employ the passive voice in speaking. It is important to remember that the subject area that the should speak about needs to be limited as to not male the task too difficult by giving students too much choice. In the past, I have often allowed students to choose their subject, however, we have noticed that when the oral production task is clearly defined, students are more able to produce the targeted structure because they are not worried about inventing some subject or saying something clever.
Please feel free to copy this lesson plan or use the materials in one of your own classes.

The Aim of This Lesson

1. Students will improve recognition of the differences between the passive voice and active voice with particular attention paid to the present simple, past simple, and present perfect passive forms.
2. Students will inductively review passive form structures.
3. Students will quickly review language used to express opinions.
4. Students will contextualize the use of the passive by first making guesses about Seattle, and then finding out about certain facts about that city
5. Students will focus on passive oral production skills in the context of speaking about Tuscany.

Possible Problems

1. Students will almost certainly have problems with using the passive form in production activities. As the class is an intermediate level, students have principally concentrated on acquiring oral skills using the active voice. For this reason, I have chosen the narrow focus area of speaking about Tuscany so that students can focus on a specific subject in the context of speaking about their part of the world.
2. Students might tend to place the subject of the passive sentence after the participle as they are used to an object being the object of a verb and not the subject of the sentence.
3. Students might have difficulties in recognizing the difference between the passive voice and the present perfect active.
4. Students might substitute /d/ for /t/ in certain participle endings with verbs such as 'send'.

Read More

Lesson Plans on Tenses and Verb Conjugation

By Kenneth Beare

Lesson Plan

Materials Used for the Lesson

Develop skimming skills by scanning text to locate facts about Seattle.

Seattle fact sheet:

• The basketball team "The Lakers" are from Seattle.
• It often rains in Seattle.
• Silicon Valley is near Seattle.
• Bill Gates and Microsoft are located in Seattle.
• Chrysler cars are manufactured in Seattle.
• Bruce Springsteen was born in Seattle.
• "Grunge" music comes from Seattle.
• Seattle is in the Southwest of the United States.

Seattle text:

Many years ago, I was born in Seattle, Washington USA. Seattle is located in the Northwest corner of the USA. Recently, Seattle has become the focus of much international attention. Many films have been made there, probably the most famous of which is Sleepless in Seattle starring Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks. Seattle is also known as the birthplace of "Grunge" music; both Pearl Jam and Nirvana are from Seattle. For older people like me, it should be noted that Jimi Hendrix was born in Seattle! NBA fans know Seattle for the "Seattle Supersonics", a team that has played basketball in Seattle for more than 30 years. Unfortunately, Seattle is also famous for its bad weather. I can remember weeks and weeks of grey, wet weather when I was growing up.

Seattle has also become one of the fastest-growing business areas in the United States. Two of the most important names in the booming business scene in Seattle are Microsoft and Boeing. Microsoft was founded and is owned by the world-famous Bill Gates (how much of his software is on your computer?). Boeing has always been essential to the economic situation in Seattle. It is located to the north of Seattle and famous jets such as the "Jumbo" have been manufactured there for more than 50 years!

Seattle is positioned between Puget Sound and the Cascade Mountains. The combination of its scenic location, thriving business conditions, and exciting cultural scene makes Seattle one of America's most interesting cities.