Revista simpozionului Eficienta si calitate in educatie 2018 Revista simpozionului | Page 27

Time: 5-10 minutes Preparation: 3-5 flashcards showing different objects: pencil, book, vase, telephone etc. Procedure: One or two students stand with their backs to the board; they are guessers. The teacher writes on the board the name of a well-known object or shows a flashcard. The rest of the class help the guessers to find out what the object is by suggesting things they can/might/could do with it. They must be as creative as possible and not reveal the answer by suggesting the obvious use. For example, if the object is a pencil, they could say things like: e.g. I could pick it up./I might throw it at someone./I might point at something with it./I could scratch my head with it. This activity is appropriate for intermediate students and above. The teacher must ensure a relaxed atmosphere and stimulate the students to come up with as many variants as possible. Some of the sentences are written on the board and used as examples for the next stage of the lesson. Stage 2: PRESENTATION The teacher explains the examples on the board and offers a schematic presentation of the theoretical aspects. e.g. “You can write with a pen.” Theoretical possibility: This is what a pen is used for. e.g. “You may write with a pen.” Factual possibility: It is possible that you are writing with a pen. e.g. “You may/can scratch with it.” → 90% certain e.g. “You might/could scratch with it.” → 40/50% certain etc. Repetition drills may be very useful at this stage. The teacher gives the model sentence containing a modal verb and the students repeat the sentence with the correct intonation and stress. They represent a first step towards the familiarisation of the students with the new structure. Two or three repetitions would be enough. They may become boring if the activity is prolonged more than necessary. Stage 3: PRACTICE Procedure: The practice stage must start with very simple exercises because they help the students to gain confidence and become familiar with the new topic. The first exercise should be done with the whole class and the other exercises, in pairs. Then, lockstep check follows each activity (see worksheet). Exercise 1 The students have a list of sentences on the worksheet. The teacher invites them to read them together and decide what they express: certainty or possibility. They will write them in two columns according to their meanings: 27