This activity (which I think I got from Dean Russell, my CELTA tutor) is a great warmer and can also be used as a speaking activity. It gets the students up out of their seats and talking to each other, whilst at the same time they can be talking about the topic or grammar point they are about to study. It’s a good one to do if there is a list of questions in the text book that it suggests the students discuss.
Here’s the deal:
- Prepare some questions on slips of paper. There should be one for each student.
- Give each student a question.
- The students stand up and find another student to talk to, they ask each other their questions, and when they’ve finished answering, they swap questions and go on their merry way.
- Repeat the last part.
I did this last night with my Proficiency class with some questions using different types of future tense. The class has been going for a few weeks, but we had two new students. Although I think it’s valuable to allow activities where students can form bonds with each other, I didn’t want to spend a long time doing an ice-breaker activity, so I asked the students to introduce themselves if necessary before asking their question. The class warmed up nicely and there was a good collaborative atmosphere for the rest of the lesson.