Conversation Strategies: Pair And Group Activities For Developing Communicative Competence

Plot

The guide is designed for use in English-as-a-Second-Language instruction at the intermediate level. The activities are designed to be enjoyable and encourage students to interact, but also to be non-threatening to even the most reserved students. The exercises develop strategic conversation skills. Each has three parts: a teacher's introduction; a students' introductory exercise; and pair or small group practice. Activity topics include: rejoinders; follow-up questions; confirmation questions; clarifications; keeping or killing the conversation; expressing probability; interrupting someone; echoing instructions; polite requests, responses, and excuses; getting a response; soliciting details; making comparisons; finding the right word; exploring a word; correcting someone; eliciting confirmation; starting and stopping a conversation; beginning and ending a phone call; expressing opinions; making a group decision; discussion connectors; summarizing; conducting a formal meeting; and identifying a strange or inappropriate word in a given context. Some general notes on strategic competence are appended. (MSE)