In the previous post, we laid out the guidelines for how to start your lesson the right way: a lead-in.
So now you know what a lead-in is and why every lesson needs one. But starting every single lesson the exact same way will can still get old fast. Never fear- you can still follow the principles outlined in our last post while mixing things up a bit with some specific techniques. Here are five fool-proof ideas for spicing up those first few minutes of your lesson.
Anecdote
Tell a brief story at the start of your lesson and then invite your students to do the same. Let’s say my context is “stressful travel experiences.” I could tell students a quick (one to two minute) story about a time when I was traveling in London and got hopelessly lost on my way to the train station, which almost caused me to miss my train. Then I can put the students in pairs and ask them to talk about a stressful travel experience of their own. Telling my story first has a number of benefits. In listening to my anecdote, students are exposed to some potentially helpful ideas and vocabulary. They also get a chance to listen to English for a minute to “get in the zone” before needing to jump right in and start speaking. This also helps build rapport by allowing me to share a little bit about myself (letting students get to know me better). And most importantly, it serves as a demo of the task I want the students to do. They now have a very clear example of what to talk about with their partner. Instead of needing a lot of detailed instructions, following up with “Now tell your partner about a stressful travel experience you had” should suffice— they’ll understand that they’re supposed to do what I just did.
“The great thing about using a random stock photo is that it can be whatever you want it to be - make it work for you!”
2. Picture
Show students a picture and ask them to make predictions or observations about it. For example, I could show students this picture…
…and say, “This is Sam. How do you think he feels right now? What do you think he’s doing on his computer? Why do you think that?” Let students throw out some guesses and avoid confirming them until you’re ready to move on to the next stage. The great thing about using a random stock photo (like Sam here) is that the answer can be whatever you want it to be. Are you teaching a vocabulary lesson about words related to finding a job? Then maybe Sam is stressed about applying for jobs online. Is the context of your lesson all about family? Maybe he’s waiting for his grandma to sign on to Skype. Make it work for you!
3. Ranking Task
There’s a reading lesson I teach in which the article is all about fun local things to do in Washington, DC. So for the lead-in, I write five things on the board that people might do when visiting a new city:
-Visit the famous sights
-Try the local food
-Go to museums
-Take pictures of interesting things
-Go shopping
“There shouldn’t be a right or wrong answer. The point is just to get the students talking. ”
I ask the students to rank these activities from one to five based on what they most like to do when visiting a new city. Of course, everyone is likely to have a slightly different preference—that’s the point! I follow up by letting students talk in pairs to see how similar or different their rankings are. I then ask a few pairs how their choices differed.
4. Quote or Question
Find a quote that fits the topic of your lesson and that will generate some interesting discussion, such as this one:
Write it on the board and have students talk about it for a few minutes in pairs. They can discuss what they think it means, possible interpretations, and whether they agree or disagree. There shouldn’t be a right or wrong answer- the point is just to get the students talking.
Similarly, you can write an opinion question on the board like, “Do you need a lot of money to travel?” and let students debate about the answer.
5. Two Truths and a Lie
Write three sentences about yourself on the board—but make sure only two of them are true and one is false. Have students talk in pairs to guess which sentence is the lie. Insider tip: you can base your sentences on what you’re going to cover in that lesson.
For example: are you teaching a lesson on the present perfect? Write your two truths and a lie in the present perfect:
1. I’ve never seen the Star Wars films.
2. I’ve lived in this city for five years.
3. I’ve visited ten countries.
Once the students have had a chance to make their guesses in pairs, ask the class to vote on which statement is the lie and then confirm whether or not they’re correct.
“Let the students use whatever vocabulary/ grammar they want. Save the specific teaching for the next stage(s).”
You can then let students play this game in pairs, having them write two truths and a lie about themselves and telling them to guess which of their partner’s sentences is false. (Note that you won’t want to make students use the specific grammar point in their version—let them use whatever language they want and save the grammar for the next stage!) Finish out this lead-in by asking students who was able to guess their partner’s lie and what they learned about each other.