Using Multimedia in the Foreign Language Classroom | Page 45

3.6 Thinking and feeling
This technique is an attempt to make students read behind the lines by asking
them to empathise with the characters. It is quite a demanding activity, as students try
to interpret what is hidden behind the characters’ actual words. What do they really
think and how they actually feel, despite what they say is what students should be able
to find out. This is often revealed through body language or through changes in
intonation or through the use of special words or phrases. After having watched a
video scene, students can be asked how the characters really feel, providing
arguments why they think so. The activity can be extended and the teacher can ask
students to say how they would feel in a similar situation. Speaking about oneself is
quite motivating and it elicits natural language.
3.7 Sound only
This technique is opposite to viewing silently. It requires from students to
listen to the video without seeing anything on screen. The technique can be used as a
listening activity, where students are asked to describe what they cannot see. Students
are asked to describe a person from his/ her voice. Starting from the easy ones, a
student can judge whether a person is male or female. Making things more difficult,
the prediction can be expended to the age of the speaker and his/ her appearance. For
younger students, the teacher can use the listening text as a prompt for a drawing
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