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ru
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OXFORD
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Contents

Foreword
ALAN MALEY

Introduction

Part One
1.1 How to use classroom English
1.2 Teaching classroom English

Part Two
2.1 Starting the lesson
2.2 Pronunciation and repetition
2.3 Activities in class
2.4 Working alone and together
2.5 Boardwork
2.6 Working with books
2.7 Cassette recorder and video
2.8 Games and songs
2.9 Checking understanding
2.10 Classroom control
2.11 Teacher comments
2.1 2 Ending the lesson
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Foreword
There is a formidable range of materials published worldwide for
teachers of English as a Foreign Language. However, many of
these materials, especially those published in English-speaking
countries, assume that teachers using them will be working with
smallish classes and have abundant resources available to them.
Also many, if not most, of these materials make implicit
culturally-biased assumptions about the beliefs and values of the
teachers and learners.
This situation is ironic in view of the fact that the vast majority of
English as a Foreign Language classrooms do not correspond at all
to these conditions. Typically, classes are large, resources are
limited, and teachers have very few opportunities for training and
professional development. Also, the cultural assumptions of
teachers and learners in many parts of the world may vary quite
significantly from those of materials writers and publishers.
This book shows how, with no sophisticated materials or
equipment, teachers can capitalize on the ways English can be
used in the classroom to establish routines, give instructions, and
evaluate performance. Classroom language has the advantage of
being a highly authentic use of language: there is a real
communicative need for it. It also allows for almost unlimited
repetition in a natural context: classroom instructions are part
and parcel of every lesson, so there is no need to invent contexts
of use. In this way the language gradually becomes absorbed
unconsciously by the students. Much classroom language can also
be linked to actions, as in Total Physical Response: ‘open your
books’, ‘get into groups of four’, ‘look at the picture’, etc. This close
link between saying and doing can help further strengthen the
acquisition of language items.
Most importantly, however, the book offers a framework for
teachers who may lack training and support. The hope and
expectation is that such teachers will begin by following the
suggestions for using classroom English quite closely, but that, as
their confidence and proficiency increases, they will adapt and add
to their repertoire of classroom language.
This is an im portant book: one of the few attempts to address the
problems of the 'silent majority' of teachers worldwide who have
little or no training, and few resources to work with.
ALAN MALEY
Assumption University
Bangkok, Thailand
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Introduction

Who is this book for?

Classroom English has been written to help teachers choose the
right words and phrases when they want to use English to give
instructions, ask questions, make comments in the classroom, and
encourage their learners to respond in English.
W hen we began writing the book, we were thinking of the
teachers we had trained to teach English. None of them were
specialist teachers of English, and most of them had few
opportunities to learn and use English themselves. They all taught
learners who were beginners— either complete beginners or
learners who were in their second or third years of learning
English. To help these teachers, we have tried to use easily
understood English. We have also tried to write the book as if we
were talking directly to the teacher. In this way, we hope the book
will be friendly and easy to use.

What is in the book?

The book is divided into two parts. In Part One, there are two
chapters about giving classroom instructions in English. These
chapters are not about the theory of teaching; they are about what
you can do in the classroom.
Then, in Part Two, you will find all the language you need to give
the most common classroom instructions, ask simple questions,
and make brief comments to your learners in English. Also, where
appropriate, we have added replies that you can teach your
learners to use. We have chosen the simplest ways of saying
things. To help you find the expressions you need, we have
divided Part Two into sections, each containing a different type of
classroom activity. And sometimes we have added a ‘Language
note’ to give extra help with words which we know cause
problems.

How to use the book

We suggest that you read Part One before you look at Part Two. It
may be very tempting to turn immediately to Part Two, but please
don’t. Part One is designed to help you use Part Two as well as
possible.
Also, we suggest that when you have read each chapter, you stop
and think about your classroom, your learners, and your teaching.
You could ask yourself if you already do the things that we talk
about. If you do, then we hope that by reading about them you

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will become even more confident. If you don’t, then you could ask
yourself which things would improve your teaching. Then you
could think about how to start doing them. You will probably find
it easier and better to change a few things at first, then gradually
change a few more— and so on. Changing everything at the same
time could be very difficult for both you and your learners. If you
are teaching English for the first time, then we hope that Part One
will help you make a good start.
Part Two, as we said, contains the most common classroom
expressions in English which you will need with beginners. By
‘beginners’, we mean learners in their first three years of learning
English. You can turn to Part Two whenever you need to, but we
suggest that it will be most helpful when you are planning your
lesson. You will know the expressions you want to use and which
of them you want to give in English, so you can turn to the
appropriate sections to check on the correct expressions to use. For
example, you may want to use English to give the learners
instructions about getting ready to use their coursebooks, so you
would turn to Section 2.6, ‘Working with books’, and check that
what you want to say is: ‘Take out your books, please’ and ‘Open
your books at page__, please’.
You will see that some of the expressions have a word or phrase in
brackets, for example, ‘Tell me in [the name of your language]
what you have to do’ or ‘[Name], collect the books, please.’
Obviously, these are occasions when you would put in the words
which you want to use. You will also see that we have added the
words ‘Teacher’ and ‘Learner’, or ‘Learners’, before some
expressions. This is to indicate where the learners need to give
answers to the teacher’s questions. Some expressions appear in two
or more sections. That is because we thought it would be easier for
you to have all the language you need for a particular type of
activity in one place. This means that you don’t have to look
through all the sections for the expression you want to use.
Finally, we want to remind you that these are all quite simple
expressions. As your learners become better at using English, you
will be able to change some of the wording. For example, you will
be able to put some instructions together to make one longer
instruction— ‘Take out your books and open them at page__,
please.’ So really, Part Two is a starting point for you. It provides
you with simple instructions in English that you can use with
beginners. If you are not very confident at first, this section will
give you confidence. You can start with a few instructions, then use
more, until finally you begin to use instructions not given in this
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Introduction

book. But please don’t confuse your learners with more

instructions in English than they are ready for.
That’s all we want to say as introduction. We hope that this book
will help you in your work, that you will enjoy your teaching, and
that your learners will enjoy learning English.

BRYAN AND FELICITY GARDNER

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Part One
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How to use classroom English

We thought it would be a good idea to start this book by looking at

two basic questions you will need to ask yourself: ‘Why should I use
classroom English?’ and ‘How much classroom English should I
use?’
What we want to do in this chapter is to put together the most
im portant answers to these questions. Many of you will have heard
the answers before, but we hope that bringing them together here
will be a useful reminder for you. For those of you who are less
experienced, we hope that this chapter will give you a good
introduction to the topic. For everyone, we hope that the chapter
will help discussions in your schools.

Why should I use classroom English?

Using English as much as possible in your classes will emphasize to
your learners that the English lesson is very different from any
other lesson in the school day. It will help to maintain a good
‘English-speaking atmosphere’, and this will help your learners
focus on learning and using the language.
Also, if you give them instructions, ask questions, and make
comments in English, the learners will have to listen carefully to
what you say all the time. This will keep them thinking in English.
You only use a language well when you think in it and don’t have to
translate everything in your head before you speak. So it is
important, from the early stages of learning, to avoid translation as
much as possible and make the learners think in that language.
When you use classroom English, you are helping that process.
As well as listening carefully to you, the learners have to do
something in response. If you say to a girl ‘Come to the board,
please’, she has to leave her place and move to you. This means that
she is both thinking and doing something—in other words, she is
an active learner. To learn actively is better and more effective for
the learner than learning passively (for example, when learners just
sit and listen to the teacher). Active learning is better because it
links words and phrases to actions, objects, ideas, and people in a
strong and positive way. This helps the learners learn and
remember.
When you give an instruction or ask a question in English and the
learners do or say something in reply, they quickly realize that they
can understand something in English. This gives them a feeling of
success and will help improve their confidence. Remember how
im portant a feeling of confidence is when you are learning a
language. Feelings of success and confidence will help your learners
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How to use classroom English -X — ■

overcome the difficulties in learning a foreign language. If you keep

using the same instructions, questions, and comments, even the
weaker learners will begin to understand— and this will help their
confidence too.
Also, it will increase your own confidence as a teacher, because you
will see that the learners understand you and that they are learning
to use English. You will feel very satisfied when you don’t have to
keep changing from English to your own language and back to
English again. It will show you that the learners are making
progress and that they really are thinking in English. And don’t
forget that saying something in English only saves time. To say it in
English and then to repeat it in your own language takes twice as
long!

How much classroom English should I use?

Some people, and this includes some head-teachers, feel that
teachers and learners should never speak their own language in
English lessons. But any teacher of English knows that this can
cause problems. There is an im portant place for the learners’ first
language, especially with beginners and with young learners. To
start with, you know that beginners will not understand you if you
say everything in English. For example, if they don’t understand
your instructions, they won’t know what to do and they will
become confused and stressed. If your learners are confused, they
may decide that English is too difficult for them and will stop
trying. Certainly, if your learners are stressed, they will stop
enjoying English and this will become a real problem for you. You
know that everyone learns better when they enjoy their lessons.
W hen learners stop enjoying them, they will have more difficulties
in learning the language and they will become more difficult to
teach. This will be especially true for the weaker learners. When
learners stop trying to learn, their behaviour in class may become a
problem.
Younger learners will definitely be confused if their teacher
suddenly refuses to speak their own language. Think how confusing
this will be for a young child. One moment, the teacher is talking
normally. Suddenly it’s an English lesson and the teacher refuses to
speak the child’s language. To the child, the teacher has become a
different person. This will be a very difficult experience for him or
her.
So, too much English too quickly may be bad for the learners’
confidence and for the way they learn. But if you translate all the

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How to use classroom English

classroom English you use, this will also be bad. For example, you
give the instruction ‘Take out your books, please’. Then you
translate it into your own language. Then you say ‘Open your
books at page twenty-six, please’ and again you translate. Very
quickly the learners may stop listening to the English because they
know you will give a translation. In this way, you may create lazy
learners. All the positive things we have talked about may
disappear. The learners will stop taking an active part in lessons.
They will stop thinking—and especially thinking in English. They
will get into the habit of translating everything, and, as we have
already reminded you, this is not the best way to learn a language.
Instead of giving instructions in English and then translating them
into your own language, you should be choosing between English
and your own language. It is better to give some instructions and
make some comments in English and some in your own language.
But which? When is it better to use English and when is it better to
use your own language?

When should you use English?

You should aim to use English for all simple instructions,
questions, and comments. You will see that all the expressions in
Part Two are linked to things which learners will often have to do
or say in English lessons. This is the language that will keep the
lesson running smoothly in English. If you use it, then we believe
your learners will benefit.

When should you use your own language?

You will need to use your own language when the situation in your
classroom requires more complicated language than that provided
in Part Two. For example, an activity may be too complicated to
explain clearly in English, or you may have a problem in your
classroom which cannot be handled using the language presented
in Section 2.10, ‘Classroom control’. Also, it may sometimes be
appropriate to use your own language to compare its grammar and
vocabulary with that of English, or to talk about life in an English-
speaking country such as Britain or the USA. And you may
sometimes need to check that your learners have understood your
instructions in English (see Section 2.9, ‘Checking understanding’).
The best advice we can give you is to plan when you will use
English and when you will use your own language. We suggest that
you make these decisions at the same time as you plan your lesson.
You can ask yourself these questions:
W hat classroom language do I need to use?
Which classroom language is simple and could be in English?
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How to use classroom English 1.1

■ Which classroom language is more difficult and needs to be in
my own language? (For example: Is there a complicated task which
needs careful explanation in my own language? Do I need to
explain anything about grammar or vocabulary in my own
language? Do I need to check understanding in my own language?)
When you have made your decisions about which language you
will use and when you will use it, make notes for yourself in your
lesson plan. We suggest that you write down the times you will use
your own language and assume that everything else will be in
English.
O f course, using your own language is a part of the process of
teaching the meaning of words. But we strongly advise using
translation only when every other m ethod has failed. It is
im portant to make the learners think, so you should try using
pictures, actions, descriptions, and so on, and only use translation
if these don’t work.

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Teaching classroom English

In Chapter 1.1, we said that the instructions, questions, and

comments contained in Part Two are the ones you will often use in
English lessons. But before they can be used, the learners will have
to learn to recognize and respond to them. That means you will
have to teach them. So there are two more questions which you will
need to ask yourself: ‘When do I teach classroom English?’ and
‘How do I teach classroom English?’

When do I teach classroom English?

In lessons in other subjects, the teacher gives instructions in the
learners’ first language. At first, most of the instructions which you
will give in English lessons will also be in the learners’ first
language and will be the same as they hear in other lessons. But
there are a few simple instructions, and also greetings and
comments, which can be given in English right from the first
lesson. We believe that learners can begin to learn classroom
English from very early in their course. There will be no problem as
long as you choose language which will occur frequently in your
lessons and which can have the meaning demonstrated easily. For
example, ‘Open your books at page twenty-six, please’ can be
demonstrated by opening your own book, showing the page to the
learners, and pointing to the num ber on the page.

Choosing instructions
When you plan your first few lessons, ask yourself what
instructions you will be giving. Also ask yourself which of these
instructions you will be giving in every lesson. Then ask yourself
which of the instructions have movements connected with them.
For example, think of instructions like ‘Sit down, please’, ‘Come to
the board, please’, or ‘Take out your books, please’. These
instructions are easy to teach and easy for the learners to
understand and to learnt because the meaning is obvious from the
movements. The meanings are also obvious because of the context
(everything that is going on in the lesson at that time). Next select
three, four, or five simple instructions from those you have just
chosen. Three to five instructions are enough for a class of
beginners. These will be the ones you will give in English. All the
other instructions you will give in your own language.
Exactly which instructions should you choose? Well, you have
already begun to make a choice by selecting instructions which you
are going to use frequently and which have movements connected
to them. These next ideas might help you in your final choice.
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Teaching classroom English 1.2

MMMNMI mm nHNRMHB

We suggest that you choose instructions which are not linked

together. For example, choose only one instruction about using
books. If all five instructions you choose are about using books,
then you will probably confuse a lot of the learners. They will mix
up the instructions and get the meanings confused. It will be much
easier for them if there is just one instruction about books. Also, if
you spend time teaching five instructions about books, you will be
spending so much time on this one stage that it will break up the
flow and completely unbalance the lesson. So, for example, you
could choose one instruction about boardwork, one about
pronunciation, one about working with books, and two about
activities in class.
Another suggestion to guide your choice of instructions is to
choose those that are at the beginning of a sequence. For example,
‘Sit down, please’ comes before ‘Take out your books’, and ‘Come to
the board, please’ comes before ‘Write [a word] on the board,
please’. If you choose something at the beginning of a sequence,
you can build new instructions onto it later in the course.
Just a final word about not giving the learners too many new
instructions. Remember that you will also be introducing the
learners to questions like ‘Who hasn’t got a book?’ (Section 2.6)
and comments like ‘Well done!’ and ‘Try again’ (Section 2.11). So
the learners will be getting used to questions and comments as well
as instructions. Please don’t give them too many at once!

Introducing classroom English

So, in your planning, you have chosen the instructions which you
will say in English. The next question m ust be at what stage in the
lesson do you teach them? For example, do you teach them all at
the beginning of a lesson? The answer to that is definitely ‘No!’ We
suggest that you teach each instruction at the point in the lesson
where you use it for the first time. Why? Well to start with, it links
the words to a real situation which is happening now— so it is
natural. Also, we always learn best when the need to learn is
obvious to us. By teaching the instruction at the point in the lesson
where you use it for the first time, you are making the need to learn
it very obvious. The same thing is true for questions and
comments.
Teaching classroom English in this way will mean that you will
teach it at different points in the lesson. This will help avoid
confusion— five new English expressions at five different points in
the lesson is much less confusing to a learner than five new things
all together. Also, spreading the new teaching out like this

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Teaching classroom English

interrupts the flow of a lesson less than teaching everything

together. It avoids the learning of the new expressions becoming
more im portant than the lesson itself. The new language is there
because it is appropriate— it is in context.
Finally, by spreading the learning out in this way, there is less
pressure on you and the learners. It can be quite stressful for
teacher and learner to have a concentrated ‘new learning’ session at
the start of a lesson!

How do I teach classroom English?

W hen you teach learners a new classroom English expression, it is
best to teach it in the same way as you would teach any new
vocabulary. This will mean making the meaning clear to the
learners, and practising the expression and the learners’ response. It
will also mean emphasizing and practising the new expression in
the next lesson.
W hen you are showing learners the meaning of new expressions,
you will be relying on context, hand movements, and
demonstration.

Context
It is a good idea, right from the beginning of the course, to start
every lesson with a greeting in English, for example, ‘Good
m orning’ or ‘Good afternoon’, and to teach the learners to return
the greeting. It will be clear from the context that these expressions
are greetings, though you may have to use a clock, or a drawing of
a clock, to teach ‘morning’ and ‘afternoon’.

Hand movements
Many instructions can be made clear by the use of hand
movements. For example, your learners may be standing at the
start of the lesson. In this case, you can easily introduce and use the
instruction ‘Sit down, please’ by using your hands to show that you
want the learners to sit. Put both your hands out flat in front of
you and move them down a few inches. You can then practise the
instruction by asking one of the learners, in your own language, to
stand up. Then say in English, using the same hand movement,
‘[Name], sit down, please’.
Another instruction that it is useful to introduce early in the course
is ‘Listen!’ This is easily demonstrated by putting your hand behind
your ear. You will probably find all that is necessary is to say ‘Listen!’
two or three times with the action, and then wait for silence.
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Teaching classroom English 12

—I — ■ dLmm

Here are some hand movements which we have found useful:

‘Sit down, please.’

\
‘Stand up, please.’

t
‘Quiet, please.’

‘Listen!’

‘Watch!’

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1.2 Teaching classroom English

‘Watch and listen.’

‘Everyone,...’

(This movement can also be used to pick out a group, using the
expression: ‘This g ro u p ,...’ or ‘Now, this g ro u p ,...’).
‘Say it louder, please.’

‘Say it quietly, please’

‘Say the whole sentence, please.’

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Teaching classroom English 12

Demonstration
Another way of making instructions clear is by demonstration.
‘Take out your books’ is easily demonstrated by taking your own
books out of your bag and then gesturing to the class to do the
same. Again, it is worth practising this action with the whole group
and then with individual learners.

Development
When you think the learners are ready, use the expression without
making the hand movements or demonstrating. If there are
learners who have problems, you will have to return to using hand
movements or demonstrations for another lesson or two.
Obviously, you will be watching the learners and their responses
carefully, so you will see when they are confident about the
expression. You will also see how soon it becomes part of their
store of language. The more confident the learners’ response is to
the new language, the less emphasis it will need. Don’t expect the
learners to learn every expression at the same speed. Some
expressions they will learn very quickly. Others will take longer.
When the learners are confident with an expression, introduce a
new one. In the case of instructions, we suggest that it is very
helpful for the learners, and for you in your teaching, if you link
the new instruction to the old one. In other words, build onto the
instruction which the learners are confident with. For example,
your learners are confident with the instruction ‘Open your books
at page__’. We suggest you build on that confidence by taking the
learners on to the next instruction in the sequence. So, when the
learners have opened their books, what do you want them to do?
Perhaps it is to look at a picture, so you would teach them ‘Look at
the picture, please’. And then you might ask them to point at an
object in the picture. This building process should be used as often
as possible. Learners will find it helpful because of the logical
pattern that the instructions make. And you will find it helpful
because the new English instructions are grouped naturally at
particular points in the lesson.
O f course, it won’t always be possible to teach all new instructions
in this way. There will be times when there is no instruction which
will follow on logically, or when you won’t be using another
instruction in the sequence, or when you need to introduce a new
sequence. The best plan, though, is to try to build step by step
whenever possible.
We also suggest that you try to teach the use o f ‘please’ and ‘thank
you’ by using them yourself as often as you can. So use ‘please’ with
your instructions and then, when the learners have responded and

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Teaching classroom English

the action is complete, you can say ‘Thank you. This will help
the learners to acquire the typically British and American habit of
using these expressions frequently.

Comments
In Section 2.11, ‘Teacher comments’, we have arranged the
comments in groups ranging from the most to the least positive.
We suggest that you start by teaching the most positive comments
because, especially early on, you need to encourage the learners as
much as possible. Good examples to choose are ‘Good’, ‘Very good’,
and ‘Well done’. We suggest you use these comments from the first
lesson onwards— accompanied by smiles! When you want to use
new expressions, you could build on the positive comments by
adding ‘That’s better’ and ‘That’s nearly right—try again’.

How to check understanding

We have talked about introducing a new expression when the
learners seem confident with a familiar one. But how do you check
that all the learners understand the expression you taught before?
The main way is through observation.
The most im portant thing, when you give the learners an
instruction, is to observe and see if they do what you say. If you see
some learners hesitating, looking to see what other learners do, and
only then doing what you have asked, this means that they have not
fully learnt the instruction. Another sign that not all of them have
understood is when some learners tell others what to do, probably
in their own language. Also, look at the learners’ faces. Do they
look as if they understand? Or do they look puzzled, or doubtful,
or blank— or even panic-stricken?
If not all the learners have understood, repeat the instruction more
slowly, remembering not to change the words. And remember, too,
not to translate it. If the learners still need help, go back to using
hand movements or demonstration to remind them of the
meaning. It is important, though, to give the learners time to hear
an expression and to think what to do or say. Responses will not
always be immediate. You will know when a learner has fully
understood and is really confident with an expression because the
response will be immediate.
Another way of checking understanding is through language. In
Section 2.9, ‘Checking understanding’, we provide expressions you
can use to do this through language. Learners can be taught to
respond in English to questions like ‘Is that right?’, and to ask if
they do not understand something. It may be necessary for the
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Teaching classroom English 1.2

learner to describe the problem in his or her own language.
Another way of checking understanding is to ask a learner to repeat
the instruction in his or her own language. With beginners, at first
you will need to use their own language to tell them to do this. But
as soon as possible you should use English, for example, ‘Tell me
i n ___ what I said.’ You can vary this technique by waiting until
you have given an instruction and a learner has said or done
something as a result. Then ask another learner what the
instruction was. Then ask a third learner if the instruction was
carried out correctly.

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Part Two
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2 .1 Starting the lesson

te a ch e r ‘Good morning.’
(or ‘Good afternoon.’)
learn ers ‘Good morning, [teacher’s nam e].’
( o r ‘Good afternoon, [teacher’s name].’)

‘Sit down, please.’

‘Take out your books.’

pens.’
homework.’

‘Open your books at page [number].’

‘Give me your homework, please.’

Language note Remember, ‘homework’, n o t ‘homoworks’.

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2.2 Pronunciation and repetition

‘Listen.’
‘Listen carefully.’

‘Listen to me.
[name].’

‘Watch and listen.’

‘Everyone, repeat after me: [a word or phrase].’

‘[Name],

‘Say it again, please.’

more slowly,
louder,

‘Say the whole sentence, please.’

‘Repeat
‘Read

‘Say it in English please, not [the name of your language].’

‘W hat is this word in [the name of your language]?’

our language?’

‘Where is the stress in this word?’

Language note m Useful words for practising pronunciation:

• • •
‘syllables’ tomorrow

‘tongue’

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Activities in class

‘Listen to me!’

‘Everyone, | repeat after me.’

‘Girls,
‘Boys,
‘[Name],

‘Take out your pens.’

‘Take out your pencils.’

‘Take out your coloured pencils.’

‘Draw a picture of a(n) [object].’

‘Colour the picture.’

‘Copy these words into your books.’

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Activities in class ■

‘Rule a line under the word [a word], please.’

‘I want you to do exercise six.’

‘Answer the questions on page eight.’

le a rn e r ‘Please, will you repeat that?’

te a ch e r ‘Yes, certainly.’

‘Do you understand what to do?’

‘Don’t start yet.’

‘You can start now.’

‘Put your hand up if you have finished.’

haven’t

Language note ■ ‘Ruler’ is sometimes confused with ‘rule’:

‘ruler’ is a noun (for example, ‘Take out your rulers.’)
‘rule’ is a verb (for example, ‘Rule a line under your name.’)
■ Remember ‘a car’ but ‘an orange’. When the noun begins with
vowel we use ‘an’.
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2.4 Working alone and together

One learner ‘I want you to work on your own.’

‘[Name], come to the front, please.’

‘Go back to your seat, please.’

Two learners ‘I want [name] to work with [name].’

(pairs) ‘Get into pairs.’

te a ch e r ‘Has everyone got a partner?’

( o r ‘[Name], have you got a partner?’)
learn er(s) ‘Yes’ o r ‘N o’.
(oR‘Yes, I have.’ or ‘N o, I haven’t.’)

‘[Name] and [name], come to the front, please.’

‘Go back to your seats, please.’

‘Compare your answers with your partner.’

Three or more learners ‘I want you to work in groups of three people.’

(groups) ‘Get into groups of four
five
‘This is group one.
two.’

‘I want [name], [name], and [name] to work in group one.’

‘Get into your groups now, please.’

te a ch e r ‘Is everyone in a group?’

( o r ‘[Name], are you in a group?’)
learn er(s) ‘Yes’ o r ‘N o’.
( o r ‘Yes, I am.’ o r ‘N o, I’m not.’)

‘Group [number], come to the front, please.’

‘Go back to your seats, please.’

‘I need a volunteer from each group to write the answers.’

‘Pick one person from your group to draw a picture.’

Language note ‘Work on your own’, but ‘Work in pairs / groups.’

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2.5 Boardwork

‘Everyone look at the board, please.’

‘[Name], come to the board, please.’

‘Write [a word] on the board, please.’

‘Draw a picture of [an object] please.’

or ‘Put your picture on the board, please.’

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2.5 Boardwork

‘Underline [a word], please.’

TkiS is a red
awd 4^11 ow car

‘Thank you. Go back to your seat, please.’

‘Everyone, read this word.’

‘[Name],

‘Say it again.’

‘Everyone, read these words.’

‘[Name],

‘Say them again.’

‘Everyone, repeat after me: [a word or phrase].’

‘[Name],

‘Copy these words into your books.’

‘W hat is this word in our language?’

[the name of your language]

‘Do you understand?’

‘Put up you hand if you don’t understand.’

Language notes If your board is black you can say ‘blackboard’. If it is green or
white, then you will find it easier to say just ‘board’. But you can
also say ‘board’ for ‘display board’, so when you say ‘board’, you may
need to point to the board you are talking about.
Remember, ‘Write on the board’, but ‘Write in your book’.

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2.6 Working with books

Getting books ready ‘Take out your books, please.’

‘[Name], give out the books, please.’

te a ch e r ‘Who hasn’t got a book?’

le a rn e r ‘I haven’t.’
( o r l e a r n e r s ‘We haven’t.’)

‘[Name], share your book with [name], please.’

Looking at books ‘Open your books at page [number], please.’

‘Turn to page [number], please.’
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2.6 Working with books

‘Turn over, please.’

‘Look at the picture, please.’

te a ch e r ‘Can you see a o r an [item in picture]?’
some [items in picture]?’
le a rn e r ‘Yes, I can’.
(or ‘N o, I can’t.’)
learn ers ‘Yes, we can’.
(or ‘N o, we can’t.’)
‘Point to a [item in picture], please.’
‘Point to some [items in picture], please.’

‘Look at exercise [number], please.’

‘point to

Language notes Remember these combinations of verb and preposition:

take out
give out
open at
look at
turn to
point to
turn over'
fill in
start at
You can say ‘textbook’ or ‘coursebook’, but always say ‘dictionary’,
not ‘dictionary book’.
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Cassette recorder and video

Cassette recorder ‘Let’s listen to the cassette now.’

‘Listen to the cassette.’

‘Can you all hear?’

‘Put up your hand if you can’t hear.’
‘Stop talking and listen.’

‘Listen carefully.’

‘Did you hear th e ______?’

‘Listen again.’

‘I’ll play it again.’

‘Listen and repeat all together.’

‘Listen and tell m e ______’

‘Listen and answer the questions.’

Video ‘Let’s watch the video now.’

‘Watch the video.’

‘Can you all see?’

‘Put up your hand if you can’t see.’
‘Stop talking and watch.’

‘Watch carefully.’

‘Did you see th e _____ ?’

‘Watch again.’

‘I’ll play it again.’

‘Watch and answer the questions.’

Language note

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2.8 Games and songs

Games ‘Now we’ll play a game.’

‘Get into two teams.’

‘Guess what it is.

where
who

‘Guess what’s missing.’

te a ch e r ‘Whose turn is it?’

le a rn e r ‘It’s mine.’
‘It’s [name’s].’
LEARNERS ‘It’s OUrS.’

‘Now it’s your turn.’

‘It’s [name’s] turn now.’

‘A point for team t w o .’

‘This team has won.’

‘Well done!’

team o ne t e a m tw o

n w -iw - 7 m - (i/

Songs ‘Now we’ll sing a song.’

‘Let’s all sing a song.’

Language note ■ Remember, ‘Guess what/ where/ who it is’, not ‘who is it’.
■ Useful words and phrases for playing games:
‘winner’ ‘The next round.’
‘loser’ ‘It’s a tie.’
■ Useful words and phrases for singing songs:
‘verse’
‘chorus’

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Checking understanding

te a ch e r ‘[Name], is that right?’

( o r ‘[Name], is that right or wrong?’)
le a rn e r ‘Yes, it is.’ o r ‘N o, it isn’t.’
( o r ‘It’s right.’ o r ‘It’s wrong.’)

‘W hat is the right answer?’

‘W hat do you think?’

‘Has anybody else got an idea?’

‘Put up your hand if you don’t understand.’

le a rn e r ‘Please, I don’t understand.’

te a ch e r ‘W hat don’t you understand? Tell me in [the name of
your language].’

‘Tell me in [the name of your language] what you have to do.’

‘[Name], tell [name] in your own language what you have to do.’

‘Put up your hands if you know the answer.’

= 4 1MCT
r

via m | ir j 1

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Classroom control

If things are going well in the lesson, it is a good idea to begin to

use English for simple classroom control. This is what this section
is about— simple instructions for normal situations. But if there is
a disciplinary problem, your own language is more natural for you
and for your learners. It is also more forceful, and the learners will
respond more quickly to it than to English. In fact, it can make
things worse if you try to use English.
Many of the instructions can be found in other sections, but we
thought you would find it helpful to have them collected together
in one section.

‘Sit down, please.’

‘Everyone sit down, please.’

‘[Name]

‘Quiet, please!’

‘[Name] be quiet, please.’

‘Stop talking!’

‘Listen carefully!’

‘Listen to me.
[name].’
the tape.’
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Classroom control 2.10

‘[Name], turn round, please.’

‘Sit still, please.’

‘Sit still and listen.’

‘Sit still and listen to me.

[name].’
the tape.’

‘Look at me, please.’

the board,

‘Are you ready?’

‘Don’t start yet.’

‘Start now!’

‘Stop writing, please.’

working,
what you are doing,

‘Stand up, please.’

‘ [Name] stand up, please.’

‘[Name] come here, please.’

‘Hurry up!’

‘Go back to your seat, please.’

‘Be careful!’

‘Don’t touch!’

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2.11 Teacher comments

We know that sometimes English teachers can be worried about
what comments to make to their learners. They don’t want to say
‘Good’ all the time, but they are not sure what else to use. Often
they will use ‘OK’—but that worries us because we know that it is
poor example to give the learners. It can make them very lazy witl
their English if they start to use ‘OK’ all the time. So this section
will be different from the other sections. It will give you several
expressions which mean the same thing, so you have a choice.
Never say ‘Wrong!’ It sounds very harsh and does not help the
learner to improve. It will also damage his or her confidence.
‘That’s not right’ means exactly the same as ‘wrong’, but it doesn’t
sound as bad and the learner will find it easier to make another
attempt. Give the learner another chance by using ‘Try again’.
We have placed the comments in groups ranging from the most tc
the least positive. Differences are shown by star ratings, like hotels,
with the very best as five stars and the poorest as one star or
nothing.

★★★★★ ‘Excellent!’

‘Very good!’

‘That’s excellent!’
very good!’

‘Very well done!’

★★★★ ‘Good!’

‘That’s good!’

‘Well done!’

‘Great!’

‘Yes, that’s right—good!’

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2 11
Teacher com m ents 4 -—» ■ —I — X

★ ★★

‘That’s it!’
‘Yes!’
‘OK!’ (but please only use this occasionally to avoid lazy use by
learners)
To show improvement
‘That’s better!’
‘That’s better—well done!’

To encourage progress
‘That’s nearly right— try again!’
‘That’s almost right— try again!’

★★

‘Not quite right— try again!’

‘Not quite right— will someone else try?’
‘Not quite right! [Name], you try!’

‘No— that’s not right. Try again!’

‘No— that’s not right. Will someone else try?’
‘No— that’s not right. [Name], you try!’

Language note ■ Remember, ‘very good’, not ‘very well’.

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2.12 Ending the lesson

‘This is your homework.’

‘I want you to do exercise nine.’
learn the song.’
colour the picture.’
draw a picture o f .
learn these new words.’
‘Close your books, please.’

‘Put your books away, please.’

or‘ [Name], collect the books, please

and put them on my desk.’

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