Listening tasks using Edpuzzle

 With this listening activity using video I will introduce my students to Isabel and Philip, the couple who make up Amigos Ingleses. As we'll be using some of their material in our classes, I think it is a good idea that they know about them.

In this video Isabel and Philip tell us how they met so,before watching the video, I ask my students to think about the first time they met their best friend and make some notes :

- time of year, month, year

- weather

- place

- what they were doing

- first impressions

Then, they watch the video and answer the different listening comprehension questions. I want them to correct the false sentences so that they elaborate their answers beyong simply saying False and check whether they were paying attention to details. 

As a final task, I´ll ask students to record themselves explaining how they met their best friend. If they refuse to make their own videos, some are very shy, they can do a write the story. Both videos and stories will be shared with the rest of the class.

 https://edpuzzle.com/media/61cda9819f303d429bf29bf7

Creating timelines with TimeToast

 

ELON MUSK

https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/2702349

This is the timeline created by a group of students in the 4th year of ESO after reading the following text on Elon Musk:

https://kids.kiddle.co/Elon_Musk

Objectives 

1. To learn about Elon Musk's life

2.To know  his entrepreneur's chronology

3. To learn how to use TimeToast to create timelines

4.To revise Past Simple

5. To select significant information and summarize it

6. To work collaboratively in small groups

Advantages of using TimeToast

Creating a timeline from a reading passage is a different way of assessing students comprehension skills and their ability to select significant dates and events.

The tool is easy to use and share and it is attractive to students who are willing to engage in the task due to its interactive nature.

Students may personalize their product adding different pictures of their choice.

Steps

Students were presented with a text dealing with one of the most gifted and influential entrepreneurs in the scientific and technological sphere: Elon Musk. Most of them were able to identify him and one of his most relevant creations, the TESLA cars. 

They were asked to read the text in groups of 3 or 4 and note down all the events they considered most relevant in the text. Then they were introduced to the timeline app: how it worked, some examples, etc and were asked to devise a timeline about Elon Musk. They were free to add images, comments, etc.

Students' reaction

They reacted well to the use of a new app as it meant something different from the ordinary reading comprehension exercises. They created their timelines, some more attractive and complete than others, but in general the task worked well. 

Problems

We encountered some technical difficulties, for instance, as it is necessary to have a mail account to use the app, some students did not want to use their account, which will make it difficult for them to use the app for any other task or even in any other subject. 

The text was a bit long and the information not always appeared in chronological order, so they had to organize it to represent it in the timeline. It took somet time to a few of the groups to do it correctly.

No significant problems in general.

Three ways in which TimeToast has helped to achive the objectives

It has helped to make students read attentively in order to select the  information and organize it  correctly.

It  has provided them with a new tool they can use not only in English but in other subjects.

It has promoted collaborative work in small groups.