WORKSHOP:

Teacher: Olguin Melisa

Courses: Juniors 6 A and B

Duration: Annual

Basis:
What is TED?
“TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks
(18 minutes or less). TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology,
Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science
to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages. Meanwhile, independently run
TEDx events help share ideas in communities around the world.” 1

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https://www.ted.com/about/our-organization
What are the advantages of including TED in the classroom?
TED is a series of informative, educational, inspiring and sometimes jaw-dropping talks
that present ‘Ideas Worth Spreading’. Ted has attracted many of the world’s most
important thinkers such as Larry Page, Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Ken Robinson, and a few
winners of the Nobel Prize.
There is an emphasis on informing, educating and opening people’s eyes to new ideas,
making them perfect for the classroom. Students love these talks and really appreciate it
when teachers take the time to make a lesson out of them. Teenagers, being the
‘YouTube generation’, also find them highly engaging and motivating. They come with
transcriptions in most common languages, allowing students to read what they have
listened to in English or their native tongue.
How Students Can Use TED to improve their English

TED Talks for students provide an engaging context from which they can autonomously
improve their English. There are thousands of videos to choose from, so there should
always be something of interest. They can help students improve, not only their listening
skills, but also improve their pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar and writing.
1. Listening
This is the obvious one, but students should be encouraged to listen ‘actively’. Ask
students to look at the title before they listen and try to predict what they are going to
hear. They can also pause at different points and try to guess what they will hear next.
Another useful exercise is ‘micro-listening’ where they rewind and listen again and again
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to any sentences they didn’t quite get until they fully understand, thereby getting used to
connected speech and any other barriers that might prevent comprehension.
2. Pronunciation
‘Micro-listening’ can also be used to help students produce sentences. Identify a few
sentences that caused the listener trouble and identify elements of connected speech,
weak sounds and or difficult phonemes. A comparison with the transcripts should highlight
important differences between written and spoken English. Students can then practise
reproducing these features at school and at home, too.
3. Vocabulary
Learners listen for unfamiliar words and then try to guess the meaning from context. They
can also look at the transcripts for extra help. Students can then note down their new
words together with definitions, synonyms, antonyms and example sentences.
4. Grammar
Students could be encouraged to think about the grammar used. What verb tenses were
used and why? How did the speaking use sequencing words? How did they use discourse
markers? What phrases did they use to make their points or persuade the audience?
5. Writing
Below every TED video is a comments section where people discuss the video and the
issues that came up in the video. Students can enter these debates and practise their
writing at the same time.

Objective:
Students will be able to create their own TEDxTalk which will build critical knowledge,
problem solving skills, and public speaking skills.

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Goals:
1. Each student selects a topic about which they are passionate.
2. Each student develops a way to ‘tell a story’ or ‘highlight an idea’ or ‘pursue a
question’ that they want to share with the world.
3. Each student develops a speaking style that combines intentional practice and
passionate delivery.
4. Each student shares a well-developed and rehearsed Talk with the support of visual
aids that help move the topic forward.
5. Each student shares TEDxTalk with the larger world in the final presentation day.

Activities:
During this workshop, teachers and students will work on different tasks, divided into
modules, to reach a final result.

Module 1 (March, April, May, June): Teacher and students will explore TEDTalks
webpages and work on different lessons watching short Talks on diverse topics for
students to get inspired.

Module 2 (July, August): The students will create their own 2-4 minutes TEDTalk. They
will choose a topic of their interest to prepare their talks. After choosing their topics,
students will prepare their own talk. Then, they will rehearse.

Module 3 (September, October): Finally, the student’s talks will be recorded and edited on
video with anticipation and then showed in the date of the final presentation.

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Directions
Creating a TED Talk
Final Goal: You will create your own TED talk based on our essential question "What
Matters (To You)?"
Give a Talk: You will give your own TED Talk. These will be done on video and showed
in the date of the final presentation (October). You will prepare yourself with a ‘global’
audience in mind from day one. Remember: "Spread an idea worth spreading."
Theme: You will use “What Matters (to You)?” as your ‘essential question’ to explore for
your own TEDxTalk. Essentially, you will select a topic based on something that truly
“matters” to you and craft a presentation (with visual aids).
Steps:

Step 1: Work in groups. Go to and explore the TED site:

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Step 2: Find Talks that interest you by searching TED Talks, TEDx Talks, and Best-of-
the-Web Talks (recommended by TED) available on the main TED site.
Step 3: Identify Talks you’d be interested in working with. Choose one Talk and send the
link to your teacher.
Step 4: Present the selected Talk to the rest of your class and prepare some tasks to
work with it.
Step 5: Analysis of the Illustrated TEDx Speaker Guide (pdf file) in class.
Step 6: Choose an idea or topic that matters to you and can also matter to the world.
Step 7: Follow the guide and start creating your talk (you can prepare an outline and then
write your talk).
Step 8: Check your talk with your teacher.
Step 9: Rehearse, rehearse and rehearse. (take time into account)
Step 10: Give your talk to your class (formal rehearsal)
Step 11: Prepare the Spanish subtitles of your Talk.
Step 12: Record your TEDtalk. Edition process.
Step 13: Final Presentation day: Spread ideas worth spreading!

Advice for students:

1. Pick an idea you are madly curious about, want to learn more about, and/or want
to share with the world. The topic can be something that you’ve experienced, heard
about, read/watched, or have simply been wanting to learn more about over time.
2. Focus on ‘one story’ (if possible) to center your overall Talk, although you certainly
can expand beyond that. Be factual but also help your audience emotionally care
about the subject.
3. Try to imagine being in the audience listening to your own Talk: What will interest
you? What will inspire you? What will move you to ‘act’ or want to learn more?
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 4. Practice the timing of your Talk. Do not present for the first time in class; do
one/multiple dry-runs.
5. Because each Talk must last between 2 and 4 minutes, figure out whether your
‘draft’ Talk should be shorter or longer after you practice a few times. Think about
your audience as you make these decisions.
6. Select visuals (images, text, or images+text) that create a connection to specific
points in the Talk. Avoid bullet points and adding too much text to a single PPt /
Keynote slide. Make sure that all images are given proper credit. It is better to use
your own images (or at least to make sure the images you find on the Internet/etc
are allowed to be used by you).

Resources:
Computers, internet connection, mobile phones, overhead projector, copies, Illustrated
TEDx Speaker Guide, rubrics, camera, editing programs, etc.

Evaluation: *RUBRIC

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Workshop: TEDxTalk
Student Name: _________________
CATEGORY 4 3 2 1
Content Shows a full Shows a good Shows a good Does not seem to
understanding of the understanding of the understanding of parts understand the topic
topic. topic. of the topic. very well.

Preparedness Student is completely Student seems pretty The student is Student does not seem
prepared and has prepared but might have somewhat prepared, at all prepared to
obviously rehearsed. needed a couple more but it is clear that present.
rehearsals. rehearsal was lacking.

Stays on Topic Stays on topic all (100%) Stays on topic most (99- Stays on topic some It was hard to tell what
of the time. 90%) of the time. (89%-75%) of the time. the topic was.

Posture and Eye Stands up straight, looks Stands up straight and Sometimes stands up Slouches and/or does
Contact relaxed and confident. establishes eye contact straight and establishes not look at people
Establishes eye contact with everyone in the eye contact. during the presentation.
with everyone in the room during the
room during the presentation.
presentation.

Speaks Clearly Speaks clearly and Speaks clearly and Speaks clearly and Often mumbles or can
distinctly all (100-95%) distinctly all (100-95%) distinctly most ( 94- not be understood OR
the time, and the time, but 85%) of the time. mispronounces more
mispronounces no mispronounces one Mispronounces no than one word.
words. word. more than one word.

Attire Business attire, very Casual business attire. Casual business attire, General attire not
professional look. but wore sneakers or appropriate for
seemed somewhat audience (jeans, t-shirt,
wrinkled. shorts).

Uses Complete Always (99-100% of Mostly (80-98%) speaks Sometimes (70-80%) Rarely speaks in
Sentences time) speaks in complete in complete sentences. speaks in complete complete sentences.
sentences. sentences.

Use of English Uses vocabulary and Uses vocabulary and Uses vocabulary and Uses several (5 or
grammar appropriate for grammar appropriate for grammar appropriate more) words or
the audience. Extends the audience. Includes 1- for the audience. Does phrases that are not
audience vocabulary or 2 words or phrases that not include any understood by the
phrases by defining might be new to most of vocabulary or audience.
words that might be new the audience, but does structures that might be
to most of the audience. not define them. new to the audience.

Total Mark: __/32 =