3. Backward Build-up. Expansion Drill

Drilling is a basic activity where the teacher reads a word or a sentence, and the class repeats it. Backchaining (Backward Build-up) is a drilling technique intended to help learners pronounce difficult sound groups, words or phrases. The teacher begins with the last sound, which the learners repeat, and then gradually builds up the word or phrase by going 'back' to the beginning.

Example  The following sequence is an example of a backchaining drill: Teacher: Known Learners: Known Teacher: I'd known Learners: I'd known Teacher: If only I'd known Learners: If only I'd known etc

In the classroom  Backchaining is one of many drilling techniques which can be used to focus on pronunciation problems. It is particularly useful to help learners pronounce weak, elided or intrusive sounds. In addition to helping learners say difficult phrases, it is also fun.

The Expansion Drill This drill is used when a long line dialog is giving students trouble. The teacher breaks down the line into several parts. The students repeat a part of the sentence, usually the last phrase of the line. Then following the teacher’s cue, the students expand what they are repeating part at the end of the sentence (and works backward from there) to keep the intonation of the line as natural as possible. This also directs more student attention to the end of the sentence, where new information typically occurs.

Example: Teacher : My mother is a doctor. Students : My mother is a doctor Teacher : She works in the hospital. Students : She works in the hospital Teacher : My mother is a doctor. She works in the hospital. Students : My mother is a doctor. She works in the hospital Teacher : She take cares the patient. Students : She take cares the patient Teacher : My mother is a doctor. She works in the hospital. She take cares the patient Students : My mother is a doctor. She works in the hospital. She take cares the patient

№ 10 Билет

1. Non-notional parts of speech. The types and functions of the Article

Non-notional parts of speech express relations between words, and phenomena denoted by these words. They are different from notional parts: they do not have nominative meaning and do not have major syntactic positions. They are prepositions, conjunctions and articles.

The article determines or not the exact position or nature of something. The articles can express different meanings, but the major ones can be reduced to two of them: the interlocutors’ awareness unawareness of the referent in general and its number (money, the money, a book, the book, books). The articles express the category of determination / undetermination. The category is represented by the opposition ‘definite / indefinite or absence of the article’. 

The Definite Article. The definite is used with countable and uncountable nouns

1. The definite article identifies the denoted referent: the use of it shows the referent in its definite quality. The referent may have a definite position in relation to the speaker, hearer, and other participants of communication. In the sentence ‘I like the book’ the referent is determined as the one well-known to the speaker for its quality. In fact, the speaker makes reference to the object determining the relations between the book and himself. It is clear from the situation which referent the speaker means or it has already been mentioned. Other examples: ‘The information that you gave me was wrong (not just any information)’; ‘Can you pass me the saltplease?’

2. The definite article individualizes (gives individuality) to the denoted referent: some words are only used with the definite article for it refers to the unique phenomenon (the USA, the moon). The position of the referent, in this case, is not of great importance; its specific nature makes it deferent and unique from other referents.

3. The definite denotes the whole class of referents ‘The elephant is a magnificent animal’, ‘He studies the elephant in its natural habitat’

4. The definite denotes the class of referents when used with the adjective to make it into a noun (the poor, the English, the impossible, the accused).

5. with some fixed expressions: on the telephone (on TV), on the matter, etc.

The Indefinite Article with countable nouns

1. The indefinite denotes one particular referent, one representative of the class, e.g. ‘I met a man in the street’; in this sentence the speaker is talking about one particular man (not all men in general) but we do not know exactly which man.The Indefinite denotes an indefinite referent for the interlocutors ‘Would you like a cup of coffee?’ or ‘She is an engineer’, both mean any, but one representative of the class. Plural countable nouns and uncountable nouns used with some or any, or sometimes with no article.

2. The indefinite denotes each representative of the class ‘$ 2 a dozen’, ‘A square has four sides’

3. The definite denotes a certain amount ‘You need a wash’; ‘She has a good knowledge of chemistry’

4. The definite denotes a kind of something ‘Medoc is a (very good) wine’

5. The definite denotes a feature / quality of the referent ‘I’ve never seen such a nice thing’.

6 with some fixed expressions: in a hurry, at a loss, etc