click for classroom activities

Introduction

Over the years, I’ve collected a number of interesting media clips and developed related activities. A representative sample is presented here. There are many ways to use media, of course, and I include just a few.

Activities

1. 1.AT&T Greetings (simple agency)
   

1. •This clip shows a number of ways to greet someone on a mobile phone. Though it can be used in a number of ways, I have students watch a few times, trying with a partner to note as many greetings as they can. Then I distribute the handout (below) and discuss.
   

1. •Handout (pdf)
   

2. 2.BudLite “Dude” (meaning in context)
   

1. •This is a very popular clip that I have used to encourage students to make the connection between meaning and context. Only the word “dude” is spoken and what it means depends on the situation. After showing the clip once, I give students the handout (below) and watch again, having them work with a partner to try to paraphrase the meaning in each situation, before watching again and comparing ideas.
   

1. •Handout (pdf)
   

3. 3.Bugle Boy (personal information)
   

1. •There are some detailed instructions below that I wrote several years ago, but basically I use this clip with relatively new classes to help them get to know one another. I show students the clip, having them try to catch the differences. Each difference, such as “blood types,” and their meanings are supported visually, helping students to make connections. Then I give them the cloze and we watch again. Finally, students work together to write a number of personal questions based on the differences (see the questions below). The question are used to make the activity for the next class.
   

1. •Instructions and script (pdf)
   

2. •Cloze (with Japanese support) (pdf)
   

3. •Sample questions (pdf)
   

4. 4.John West Salmon (humor; predicting)
   

1. •I use this humorous, short clip more as a positive mood-maker than a language-learning activity. I have, however, tried stopping the clip as the fisherman runs out to attack the bear, asking some classes to predict what they think will happen next.
   

5. 5.Lion King Scene (learning from experience)
   

1. •I use this clip to demonstrate the importance of learning from experience. After talking about how we learn from experience, I show them the clip. Then I distribute the cloze and students listen, helping each other before listening again. We finish with questions and comments.
   

1. •Cloze (blank and filled) (pdf)
   

6. 6.Derrick Rose MVP (public speaking)
   

1. •I designed the lesson using this clip with a higher-intermediate/advanced class in mind. It was quite challenging for them to listen to authentic sports announcers. To help with this, I made a list of questions to provide some background information before students watch the video. I also gave them several opportunities to work with classmates. We finished by looking at the transcript and answering any remaining questions. There is also an optional dialogue I used to bridge “advice for speaking in public” and “giving advice: friendly discussion.”
   

1. •MVP handout (pdf)
   

2. •Optional dialogue (pdf)
   

7. 7.Black Widow News (importance of news)
   

1. •In my Basic Seminar course there is a Canadian news module to help students develop an appreciation of news media. I used this clip along with a news article to build a short PowerPoint article, which became the model for students to present a chosen news item of their own.
   

1. •Black widow news (clicking will download a pptx file)
   

8. 8.Laughing Baby on YouTube (anticipation)
   

1. •I first saw this clip in a presentation by Prof. Tim Murphey. He used it to show how anticipation can help release dopamine—a neurotransmitter that can increase our ability to learn.  
   

9. 9.Substitute Teacher on Saturday Night Live (speaking out)
   

1. •I’ve shown this clip to both graduate and intermediate students. Originally, I wanted viewers to see how North American students are depicted when unable to understand. Teachers, however, thought it helped them reflect on their own behavior while teaching.
   

10. 10.  Josh Toews Interview (cultural aspects)
    

1. •This is an interview with a Canadian bull rider. I use this clip as part of my Contemporary Culture lectures. In these lectures, students research on aspect of culture. Part of their research requires them to get first-hand (primary) data. This interview helps model that. The handout (below) is a listening activity that presents a number of questions asked by the interviewer along with a choice of the answer, which students have to listen for.
   

1. •Cultural aspect interview handout (pdf)
   

11. 11.  “It’s Not True” - William Fitzsimmons (inspirational)
    

1. •This song is by an American folk singer, William Fitzsimmons. Besides being an accomplished songwriter, William is also a clinical therapist. For this song, I ask students to watch the video and note, either alone or with a partner, all the difficulties that the singer has. Then, they talk about the positive event at the end and consider what the message of the song might be.
   

12. 12.  Recursive Recording of Student Conversations (RRSC) in Action (recording conversations)
    

1. •This clip was taken at Nagoya University in 1999. At that time, I had only a few cassette recorders and wanted to develop a method for getting all class members to record conversations. This clip shows what I came up with. Of course, the same system works today using IC recorders or mobile phones.
   

Speaking Lab at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies (NUFS)

In 2010, the Speaking Lab in the School of Contemporary International Studies (SCIS) was outfitted with computers and webcams. With these we are able to have students record conversations in twos or threes. The benefits are: 1) high quality audio and video recordings, 2) immediate distribution of files via thumb drives, and 3) copies of files immediately available in the teacher’s folder for review and materials development.

13. 13.  Speaking Lab - Student Lifestyles
    

1. •In this clip, two second-year OC students are discussing whether or not Japanese university students should focus on studying or just enjoying themselves. I used this in a module called “Giving advice-friendly discussion.” It shows clearly how two students can have opposing views and still discuss this in a friendly way. The handout (below) shows how to integrate 1) corrections, 2) improvements, and 3) strategies when using clips of student conversations. Students work alone, then with a partner, then we discuss the possibilities together.
   

1. •Student lifestyles - Friendly discussion (pdf)
   

14. 14.  Speaking Lab - Learning English
    

1. •This is another clip from a second-year OC class. In this case, the students are discussing how to improve their English. Like #13, the handout (below) integrates 1) corrections, 2) improvements, and 3) strategies. This clip is particularly useful, I believe, to show students that effort in communicating (understandability) is very important in language learning.
   

1. •Learning English - Friendly discussion (pdf)
   

15. 15.  Speaking Lab - Mistake Stories
    

1. •This mistake story clip is actually from a Special Seminar in Communication Studies. We were practicing the three steps of self-disclosure: 1) presenting the facts, 2) talking about past thoughts and feelings, and 3) talking about current thoughts and feelings. It is an excellent clip for enhancing the perceived value (PV) of studying—in this case, the pronunciation of menu items and ordering food—or for modeling mistake stories.
   

16. 16. Speaking Lab - Advice to New Students
    

1. • As part of third-year OC evaluation, I asked students to make advice videos for future participants. These were used at the beginning of the next course to help new students get an idea of what the course will be about, what will be expected of them, and how they can succeed.
   

The GoPro and point-of-view camcorders

Recently, I’ve become interested in the application of point-of-view (POV) camcorders in the classroom. Mostly, this is research motivated, but I’ve also seen the potential for materials development. I started with an extreme sport camcorder called the GoPro. This camcorder records in high-definition and is relatively lightweight. There are some drawbacks, but it was helpful in a number of ways. A few of the clips I used in introducing and using the GoPro are presented here.

17. 17.  POV - GoPro Perspectives
    

1. •This is a clip from the GoPro website that shows video of bicycle motocross (BMX) from traditional and helmet-held perspectives. I used this to introduce the idea of using the GoPro camcorder in the class.
   

18. 18.  POV - GoPro Class Intro
    

1. •The GoPro Intro is the first clip made with the GoPro camcorder that I brought back to students. When first explaining the idea to them, I wore the camera myself. This footage helps students to know what is being recorded when wearing the camcorder.
   

19. 19.  POV - Watching GoPro wearing GoPro
    

1. •This is the first student-recorded footage I showed the same group of students. Again, it showed how well the camcorder captured video and sound. I used this to help students understand that they need to sit relatively close and speak clearly if they are partnered with the wearer.
   

20. 20.  POV - GoPro “Worthy” Explanation
    

1. •This clip helped me reflect on the nature of my interaction with students. The GoPro wearer had asked me what “worthy” meant, and I gave an explanation. Seeing that sometimes students interacted effectively and sometime less so, I decided to show them this clip with a handout that focused on increasing their interactive skills.
   

1. •Understanding explanations (pdf)
   

21. 21.  POV - GoPro Talking about Friends
    

1. •This is a typical example of lower-level students discussing a topic, in this case friends, in an second-year OC class.
   

1. •Friends handout (pdf)
   

22. 22.  POV - GoPro in the Speaking Lab
    

1. •This clip shows how the GoPro and Speaking Lab can be combined. In this video students are talking about the difference between preferences and discrimination. The transcript focuses on gestures.
   

1. •Preferences handout (pdf)
   

The iKam glasses camcorder

Beside the GoPro, I’ve also used a camcorder called the iKam. These are a pair of glasses with a pinhole camera in the frame on the bridge of the nose. Though lacking in quality of recordings they are easier to use.

23. 23.  iKam - Triple Fishbowl (classroom dynamics)
    

1. •The Fishbowl (see #7 on the Activities page) is an fluency-building activity that also helps teachers to better understand the dynamics of particular groups of students. In this version, the Triple Fishbowl, there are 3 groups of 3, with other students moving in and out of the bowls.
   

24. 24.  iKam Partner Change
    

1. •This clip from the iKam recorder shows one method I use to help students change partners.