I always tell my groups that apart from watching videos in English, another great way to learn vocabulary and structures is reading, but Alas! I can hardly imagine some of my students picking up a book in English. So I HAVE TO GET THEM to read (desperate What can I do? What can I do?). So, one way is challenging them to a personality test or something of the kind. In the one I’ve created here, the aim is to get familiar with expressions and vocabulary related to dieting. My groups can do them in the classroom on their phones and talk about the results and they can do them again later on, quietly at home to review for a speaking activity, for example.
First of all, here’s a list with some of the most important vocabulary that learners will have to either remember or learn. Before checking on the flipping cards, have a look at the wordcloud where you will find words related to: types of food and cooking methods. After, make a guess at the pictures and turn them round to check if you were right.
A next step would be to remember some frequency adverbs like:
- never – hardly ever – rarely – occasionally – frequently – always
As a final activity, I’ll get my group to write down “Their food profile”. Here’s an example, that’s okay for a first day class on this topic. Once sts have completed the information, they will leave the profile on a desk and take one from another student. They have to ask round the class until they find the owner of the profile that they have. This not only gets them speaking, but it also challenges them to mix and mingle, as well as allowing them to stretch their legs a bit in a freezing classroom.
