2.3.4. Songs

3. Acting out

Acting out (drama) is valuable in language teaching, because when children are pretending to be someone else, especially if they are wearing a costume or a mask, they will very often feel and speak more freely.

3.1. Storytelling

Telling and reading stories to children should be a central part of primary language teaching classes.

Give the children time to appreciate your acting out the story and to feel how it contributes to the meaning of the story. Don’t forget to involve the children to pick up the repeated dialogues, mime the story, and chant the words they had managed to memorize.

It would be only natural to develop storytelling into role-playing. First, the teacher should divide the story, with the children’s help, into different scenes. Then, discuss what you will need (you can use real objects, or their pictures, or even ask the children themselves to represent objects in the story) and allocate roles. It is worth appointing a narrator who will introduce the scene and characters, say what props are supposed to be used, lead the narration. The children can dress up as a fictional character or draw their character on a piece of paper and hold it in front of themselves. Having masks and using make-up will also do.

3.1.1. Invented stories

‘A Cat Wants to Have a Friend’

A cat wants to have a friend. It looks at everyone who passes by. Everyone who passes by asks, "Little cat! Little cat! What do you want?"

And the little cat says, "I want to have a friend".

A dog passes by and says, "Do you want me to be your friend?"

"Sing me a song," says the cat. - "Bow, wow, wow," says the dog.

"I don't like your song," says the cat. "I don't want to be y our friend".

A cock passes by and says, "Do you want me to be your friend?"

"Sing me a song," says the cat. - "Cock-a-doodle-doo" says the cock.

"I don't like your song," says the cat. "I don't want to be your friend".

Then a mouse passes by passes and says, "Do you want me to be your friend?"

"Sing me a song," says the cat. - "Piu, piu," says the mouse.

"Oh! I like your song," says the cat. "Let's be friends".

What a funny little mouse! It want's to play with the cat!

3.1.2. Language experience stories

An activity suggested by Caroline Linse (1983) – a group-authored story written about a shared experience, e.g. the class could be engaged in making paper hats (of different colors) and then describe the activities as a sequence of movements.

3.1.3. Picture stories

Children together with the teacher go over a sequence of pictures, demonstrate their understanding by pointing to specific items in a picture or to particular picture in the sequence. As an extension activity, they can direct the teacher or each other (when they work in pairs or small groups), using the pictures as their guide (N. Takahashi & M. Frauman-Prickel 1999).

3.2. Natural action dialogues Playing hide-and seek

Teacher suggests playing hide-and seek. Children find the place in the classroom (playground) to hide. One child is counting up to ten. Then s/he walks around the place and tries to find where the other children are hiding. S/he comments as s/he walks like 'I can see … under the desk'. The teacher can ask: 'Where's …?' or 'Who's hiding behind the bookcase?', etc. Children can also give hints like 'Where am I? Find me.' Children go out of their hiding place only if their location is traced correctly.