Celta assignment

The receptive skill chosen for this assignment is reading, and the authentic material used for the purpose of developing this skill is an article entitled, Greenwich is packed full of Londons most popular attractions [1], which will be related to the productive skill of writing. The learners reside in London and come from EU countries (mostly Italy), and motives for learning the English language vary. The age factor of the students may suggest different needs and cognitive skills, however all the students are competent to a pre-intermediate level of the English language. The authentic text chosen is an article from the Metro newspaper online website, (metro. co. uk). The text is about attractions in Greenwich and I believe that this text will interest learners because it gives information on how to explore London in new ways they may have not been aware of, as well as further demographic exposure of their surroundings. This text will also provide students the opportunity to get together and practise their English as most of the text has proper names of places, which will help students identify the capitalization of Proper Nouns for a writing task for example. Receptive Skills The aims of this lesson are: Detailed reading or intensive reading, as Jim Scrivener (Learning Teaching, p. 264) states, reading texts closely and carefully with the intention of gaining understanding of as much detail as possible. 1 Gist reading skimming the written text to get a general idea of what it is about 2, as Jeremy Harmer states (How to Teach English, p. 101). Task Summary Setting the context: The topic for the lesson is London attractions in Greenwich. As a lead in, to get the students interested in the material, I would ask them to look at the title of the text, Greenwich is packed full of Londons most popular attractions, and in groups write down what these popular attractions may be. The resulting group discussions would have the students forming ideas on attractions in London, which correlates to the content of the text. This will act as a good transition into the following reading tasks. Although there are plenty of new vocabulary items in the article, I think students would not have any significant difficulties in grasping the overall meaning of the text. Detailed reading task For the detailed reading task, the students would read through the article and give short true or false answers to comprehension about the attractions there are to explore in the Greenwich area of London. This task focuses on the sub-skill of reading for detail, as the students will need to find the attractions listed in the article and why the statements are true or false. Rationale: The purpose of this activity is to inform students of the attractions London has to offer within Greenwich. To encourage the reading I would give the students an ample amount of time for this activity. Students would peer-check and receive class feedback. The language and phrases derived from this activity may be useful for a following writing activity. Gist reading task This task will require the students to gist read the title of the article and describe what they think the article is about. Rationale: This task focuses on the reading sub-skill of skimming for gist. The reason for this activity is to ensure that the students understand the general topic of the text and this may also generate more interest to read the text further. To complete this task effectively, students would need to skim the title to get a general understanding of the article. The students would have 3 minutes for this activity and discuss in pairs or groups. An enforced time limit ensures that just conclude a general summary of what the article may be about. Productive Skills Writing task 1: The students will write a short/brief description of popular attractions in their own country or town, using the article as an example. Rationale: The writing task should allow students to be able to write about something that they can relate to, modeling texts similar to the article read. Writing task 2: Students will write a short informal e-mail to a friend, giving information about an attraction they have visited in London. Learners will inform their friends of a place where they ate and drank and places they shopped and an attraction such as architecture for example. Rationale: This task is a real-life scenario of communicating, and provides a good opportunity for students to practice and develop their skills. BIBLIOGRAPHY Books 1 Jim Scrivener, Learning Teaching: The Essential Guide to English Language Teaching, MacMillan, 2010 2 Jeremy Harmer, How to teach English: New Edition, Pearson Education Limited, 2007 Online [1]. http://metro. co. uk/2012/09/07/greenwich-is-packed-full-of-londons-most-popular-attractions-567671/, November 30, 2013 [online] Available at: Greenwich is packed full of London’s most popular attractions Friday 7 Sep 2012 2:23 pm The insider’s guide to the capital’s hidden gems visits Greenwich – an area where there’s plenty of time to explore. The National Maritime Museum is one of London’s leading lights (Pic: File) Chances are, if you’re in Greenwich, you came to see the Cutty Sark, the Royal Naval Museum or to stand with your legs either side of the Meridian Line at the Royal Observatory. These are some of London’s most popular attractions – and for good reason – but they are by no means all Greenwich has to offer. Venture off the tourist trail and you’ll find a winding, historic neighbourhood with some great places to eat, drink and shop. The main strip, around Cutty Sark DLR station, has a seaside vibe. It’s popular with visitors and the famous covered Greenwich Market (Tue to Sun, 10am-5. 30pm, shopgreenwich. co. uk/greenwich-market ) is likely to be one of your first stops. One half sells fairly standard market fair, including graffiti prints, jewellery and clothing from far flung corners of the world. The other half comprises food stalls (on Wednesdays and weekends) which are a great alternative to the clutch of tourist-orientated eateries and lacklustre chains on Greenwich Church Street. Exotic, cheap and extremely tasty, the queues are worth it for Ethiopian stews, pad Thai or sushi. Unfortunately, there isn’t really anywhere to sit, so either head around the corner for a bench view of the Cutty Sark or, better still, lose the crowds altogether by heading to the picturesque park behind St Alfege Church, just a stone’s throw from the market. In terms of shopping, Greenwich has a surprising amount of gems. In the main melee, you’ll find the reliable second-hand charity bookshop Oxfam Books (2 College Approach, Tel: 020 8305 1656), as well as Music Video Exchange (23 Greenwich Church Street, Tel: 020 8858 8898), both good for a rummage. Further treasure can be found around the corner and down the road at Greenwich High Road’s Clocktower Market (Sat and Sun, 10am-5pm, clocktowermarket. co. uk ). You’ll come across hard-to-find CDs, tatty old beer signs and even some decent vintage clothing. However, if you’ve already bought enough treats, next to the market, you’ll find films of a largely artistic nature being screened at the Greenwich Picturehouse (180 Greenwich High Road, Tel: 0871 902 5732, picturehouses. co. uk ). In need of sustenance? If the weather is good, a few places further south on Royal Hill are good for a sit-down away from the visitor furore. The Greenwich Union (56 Royal Hill, Tel: 020 8692 6258, greenwichunion. com ) and Richard I (52-54 Royal Hill, Tel: 020 8692 2996, richardthefirst. co. uk ) are popular with locals and both have tables out where you can nurse a pint while watching the world go by – very slowly. Or, continuing in the same direction, you’ll find the Guildford Arms (55 Guildford Grove, Tel: 020 8691 6293, theguildfordarms. co. uk ), another pub, this time with a beautiful, hidden garden. For tea and cake, Royal Teas (76 Royal Hill, Tel: 020 8691 7240, royalteascafe. co. uk ) takes some beating. Or pull up a tables at Buenos Aires Cafe (86 Royal Hill, Tel: 020 8488 6764, buenosairesltd. com ), which is the perfect place for a couple of empanadas and a coffee. If those clouds are looking a bit ominous, back towards the action you’ll find La Fleur (18 Royal Hill, Tel; 020 8305 1772). Part plant shop, part cafe, it’s essentially a cafe in a greenhouse. Back in the thick of it, by Cutty Sark station you’ll find plenty of folk heading to riverside pubs. Try The Trafalgar Tavern (6 Park Row, Tel: 020 8858 2909, trafalgartavern. co. uk ) and The Cutty Sark Tavern (4-6 Ballast Quay, Tel: 020 8858 3146, cuttysarktavern. co. uk ), both of which have views of the river. Truth be told, the vista isn’t that pretty, so you’re better off venturing across Greenwich Park to the Royal Observatory on One Tree Hill. The hill is no relation to the US TV show. In fact, you couldn’t get more British. Trek to the top for a panorama of Greenwich and the skyscrapers of Docklands behind it. APPENDIX A: Receptive skills Detailed reading task Instructions: Read the statements below and decide if they are true or false. Write T for true and F for false in the space provided. a) Cutty Sark is not in Greenwich. __ b) You can buy food from the food stalls on Wednesday and weekends. __ c) There are no pubs in Greenwich. __ d) There are no places to shop in Greenwich. __ e) You can eat and drink water and crackers at the Royal Teas__ f) The Royal Observatory is near a park__ Answer sheet detailed reading a) F False b) T- True c) F False d) F False e) F False f) T True Gist reading task Instructions Read the title of article and describe what you think the article is about. Answer sheet gist reading The article is about Londons most popular attractions in Greenwich. APPENDIX B: Productive skills Writing task 1: Write a short/brief description of a popular attraction in your own country or town. In your description include: A famous place tourists can visit, a place to eat and describe the food (Remember that the place of the name must be in capital letter) - Writing Task 2 Your friend Antonio has e-mailed you and asked you to write him about a tourist attraction in the city of London. Write an e-mail to Antonio telling him: ? (Where to go for a meal and drinks) (Where to shop and what they sell) (What attraction to see and why they should see this)