Kari_CO1

Yesterday I had the privilege to watch Vicky Ledbetter teach a speaking class. Initially I wasn't sure what to expect, or how she would teach a speaking class. I had imagined it to be something like just talking about certain topics, but I was pleasantly surprised to see her introduce new vocabulary to them. Some of the key things I noticed throughout her lesson was that she focused on a primary topic like housing, but made it relatable to the students by asking them, "Do you live in a house or apartment?" Then when she introduced new vocabulary like "crowded", she introduced it by asking them what they thought it meant. When no one answered right away, she went on to give an example by saying, "A house with seven people in it is crowded, but a house with two people is not." After that, she went further into the topics of houses by introducing what goes into the house like furniture. To get the class more involved and practice the new terms, she had them pair up. Oh--and also in her class, there were 3 girls that were from the same country and seemed like pretty good friends, but since they were beginners in speaking they sometimes cheated a little and spoke in their native language. So when Vicky broke up the students, she paired them up with different nationalities so that there would be no slip-ups in speaking English. She did not have them write sentences, but instead just had them practice saying what type of furniture goes in each room of an apartment or house, and then after about ten minutes, had them speak out loud and read to the rest of the class. Another thing I thought was great in Vicky's class was the energy she had. She was very positive and bubbly, which created a very friendly and comfortable atmosphere. I loved how she tried to involve everybody without making them feel put on the spot. She even included me in some of the questions, which was a little surprising for me, but fun all the same.