“The beginning of wisdom is in the definition of terms.”
Socrates (469 BCE–399 BCE) , Greek philosopher
Getting students to speak can be a challenge, especially in ESL courses focused on academic writing. Flexibility remains essential.
How does one, for instance, teach the difficult task of writing formal academic definitions in a communicative style? The challenge becomes more difficult if the “high intermediate ESL” class is really a broad multilevel ESL class. Just presenting the standard “term+ class + distinctive feature” formula used in academic writing from the dense textbook won’t work. Defining “erosion”, “enamel”, “folk art” and “network” – the academic writing textbook examples- seems too difficult – and can be a tad boring.
I recently faced this awkward situation. Putting aside the textbook for a day, we took one step back to take two steps forward. We also created a lively ESL vocabulary lesson almost by accident as I redirected the two-hour class toward a communicative ESL lesson.
Students, working in small groups, created a large list of places where people could live – a house, a dorm, a cave, a castle, a duplex, a bungalow, a trailer, a penthouse, a cottage, a villa, a tent, etc. The students further refined the list in small groups, and then focused on describing four types of housing. Students were also asked to think about potential users, applications, materials, and advantages of different types of housing. The ultimate goal would be giving formal sentence definitions that could be expanded into extended definitions.
Given the mixed level, I also allowed the “high-intermediate ESL” students to verify their answers with both electronic and online dictionaries in their groups. By allowing the English students to authentically generate the vocabulary lists in a communicative fashion, the English students seemed both more actively engaged and appeared to enjoy a vocabulary lesson that could have been on the dreary side. They exchanged ideas and clarified the definitions. They also gained far greater comfort in the original task of writing definitions while expanding both their working and academic vocabulary.
What is your dream home? Real estate ads often ask this question. Our class explored a different question. What is a house? Our vocabulary activity lead to some good discussions and concluded with each group briefly offering sentence definitions to describe a wide variety of housing. The relative clauses might have been long, but they were clear and detailed.
Bottomline: exploring interesting topics, evoking student experiences, and requiring students to speak in small groups can work even while working on difficult writing tasks. Score another one for communicative teaching methods!
The New Oxford Dictionary chose “unfriend” as its word of the year, but that clever choice is not the first, only, or last word.
This excellent article from Ruth Walker’s outstanding “Verbal Energy” column in the Christian Science Monitor looks at the choices of Oxford American Dictionary, Dictionary.com, Webster’s New Word Dictionaries, and Merriam-Webster dictionary. Reviewing the choices and possibilities, Walker wonders how any one word could be chosen above other choices.
An excellent article for English teachers, word mavens, and linguists, this column also reminds readers that even “objective” dictionaries make editorial decisions. One editor chooses “unfriend” and another “sexting” and “distracted driving” while yet might choose “Obamania”. Other popular choices include: admonish, hypallage, and befriend. Choices, voices, and perspectives differ.
Of course, one of the pleasures of teaching English is that we often rediscover vocabulary words – or at least a new appreciation for the vividness of American idioms – from our students. Like many other ESL teachers, I often ask students to develop their own vocabulary logs with ten words each week and select a new word of the week to build their working vocabulary. Students, who have often been trained to memorize vocabulary words for TOEFL or other standardized exams, usually embrace the homework assignment. Sometimes students can surprise me.
This semester, for example, I learned the word “laicism” from a Turkish graduate student. This vital legal concept stating that religion and state should be separate, so woven into American culture that is not even debated, remains a major debate in Europe where many flags include a Christian cross. In some countries, the term is used to justify suppression of religious symbols (veil, yarmulka, cross) while other countries use it to subsidize many religious traditions and schools. Given the recent Swiss vote to ban new mosques being built in Switzerland and my own vocabulary lesson from a student, I’m chosing laicism as my word of the year. (By the way, Dictionary.com doesn’t list the word yet!)
How do you teach the difference between “make” and “do” in your English classrooms?
What do you do? What do you make? What’s the difference, anyway, between “make” and “do”?
These simple words cause lots of confusion for English language learners. I’ve spent a considerable amount of time teaching a very wide range of ESL classes this distinction. Many ESL students struggle with “make” and “do” – from advanced adult education and community college students to intermediate English students in summer courses and regular university courses. The large number of idioms further complicates the problem.
Here is a quick, imprecise guide that helps clarify the issue.
Look at some common expressions with “do”.
Do the dishes.
Do some chores.
Do your work.
Do exercises.
Do your best.
Do it over.
Do the report.
Do is used to describe an activity that you have to do, often over and over again. For instance, we “do the dishes” and “do the laundry” many times. Do also contains an element of duty and responsibility.
Now, take a look at some expressions with “make”.
Please make time.
You make dinner.
You make drawings.
You make decisions.
You make plans.
Your make reservations.
You make money.
You make friends.
Make is used to describe a creative activity or something you choose to do. You choose, for instance, to make plans, make friends, and make decisions. You have choices.
Why do we say “make dinner” if we have to do it over and over? Perhaps because cooking is seen more as a creative activity than a chore. But cleaning the table, and cleaning the dishes are just chores so we say “do the table” and “do the dishes.” That’s also why Americans say “make money” instead of“do money.” Making money is seen as both creative and a choice.
Idioms, of course, are cultural and sometimes less than completely logical. Sometimes Americans will use the verb make in a way that might seem strange, but I urgeimmigrants and international students to “make a decision”, “do your best”, and learn some practical workplace idioms using make and do.
Finally, I encourage students to work together in small groups and create their own list of idioms with make and do. When I’m lucky and have time, I like to ask students to come to the white board and write their collection of idioms on the board.Homework, of course, is asking them to choose 5-10 idioms and write complete sentences.
So how do you teach the difference between do and make to your English students?
Earthquakes remain a concern for people living in many places, including my home in Southern California. This awareness, and fear of sudden shaking and buildings falling, enters into many conversations.
I recently read a wonderful term and vocabulary word: lifequake. What does it mean? An event that suddenly changes your life – a car accident, being laid off, terrible illness, or getting divorced – in the same dramatic way that an earthquake might destroy a building.
Now I have a new way to ask friends to share more about awkward situations.
How did you deal with that lifequake?
What lifequakes have you survived?
How will you manage that lifequake?
Is lifequake a real word? Can educated English speakers use it? Absolutely. New words and slang terms enter English dictionaries all the time, partly because our world continues to change and evolve. Lifequake clearly describes a common experience. It’s pithy and practical. While I would might hesisitate about using the term on a TOEFL or TOEIC test, I plan to incorporate into my daily vocabulary with family, friends, and students.
A fellow ESL teacher and longtime California resident believes that “lifequake” was a widely used term in the 1970s among “young, hip people.” Perhaps. Whether old hipster slang or a new Californian term, lifequake conveys an understanding that sometimes life can shock and hurt. Lifequake is a fast way to communicate a harsh reality. Lifequakes happen.
Don’t you agree?
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