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Longman Teacher’s Companion

Longman Teacher’s CompanionDrama and Extensive Reading in Your Classroom

Contents

Drama in Your Classroom

• What is drama? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

• Why use drama to teach English? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

• How to choose the most appropriate drama activity? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

• Making the play real: props, costumes, scenery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

• Establishing positive attitudes towards drama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

• Classroom management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

• Exploring the play – extra activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

• Find your partner / group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

• Interview a character . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

• Guess the scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

• Drama productions – production checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

• Sketches to act out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

• ELEMENTARY – The English Teacher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

• PRE-INTERMEDIATE – The Professor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

• Five One-Act Plays Factsheet and Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Extensive Reading in Your Classroom

• What is extensive reading? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

• Why graded readers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

• Preparing learners for reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

• Group reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

• Play reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

• Role Play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

• Discussion and Debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

• Project work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22

• Tom Sawyer Factsheet Teacher’s Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

• Tom Sawyer Student’s Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

• Tom Sawyer Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

• Tom Sawyer Factsheet and Test Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Compiled by Marta Mas∏yk ([email protected])

© Pearson Education Polska 2004

Drama in Your Classroom

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WHAT IS DRAMA?

Drama is essentially a creative activity involvingmovement, language, imagination, emotion, and socialinteraction to represent a story, a situation, a moment or anact. Drama can also involve clothing, objects, scenery andmusic. When the word ‘drama’ is mentioned several wordscome to mind: roleplay, acting, pretending, miming,performance, theatre, puppets, characters, scenes... thelist is endless. In the classroom, drama activities rangefrom simple games involving movement, to an extendedproject culminating in public performance.

WHY USE DRAMA TO TEACHENGLISH?

Drama is an important part of the school curriculum inmany countries. Through drama, pupils expand theirknowledge of the world; they learn social skills anddevelop their communication skills. When they take on therole of another character, they consider the thoughts,feelings and perspectives of people different fromthemselves.

Pupils often act out events in their lives, which helps themunderstand the world and gives them practice in adultsituations in a safe environment.

Since drama involves using language for interaction andcommunication, drama activities have found their way intothe language classroom. The emphasis on realcommunication in the language learning has also meantthat language teachers need to consider context,intonation and body language as well as the actual wordsin oral communication. Drama by its very nature involvesall of these elements.

When teaching English, teachers need to concernthemselves with more than just pupils’ language learning.Pupils are still developing and growing physically,emotionally and intellectually, and this whole developmentis not separate from their English learning. This needs tobe considered when choosing activities for the languageclassroom. Drama activities are ideal in this regard, asthey develop the whole child and develop the child’slanguage skills at the same time.

HOW TO CHOOSE THE MOSTAPPROPRIATE DRAMA ACTIVITY?

Choosing the right activity for your pupils depends onmany things:

• The language ability of the pupils. Because dramarequires confidence, spontaneity and imagination, pupilsshould be comfortable with the language of the play.Pupils with more language and greater fluency can betterhandle improvisation activities, whereas beginning pupilscan mime and speak selected lines chorally. Usingwritten dialogues from a script combines movement withcontrolled speaking. It is important to choose dialoguesthat pupils can learn easily such as those with repetitionand rhythm. Scenery, props or costumes can also bebrought to aid pupils’ imaginations. Having pupils improvisea story they do not know well can be demoralisingbecause it presents challenges they cannot meet.

• Their general confidence level. Some classes have ahigher energy level than others and will enjoy moreactive, vocal activities. Some pupils are more concernedwith accuracy and are less willing to try fluency activities,no matter what their level.

• The size of the class. Some activities may require particularnumbers in each group to match the number of charactersin the story. If the script includes some choral speaking,narration and simple lines, then all pupils can participate.

MAKING THE PLAY REAL

Props and costumesProps (i.e. objects used by the characters in the drama)help pupils play out a scene and costumes help them stayin character. Props can be items found at home or theycan be made with paper, scissors and glue. Costumesneed not be a whole suit of clothes. Usually, a hat or ajacket is enough to represent a character, and they areeasily removed so pupils can switch roles. Somecostumes like hats can be made by the pupils as a craftactivity. Old adult clothing is often enough to put the pupilin an adult role.

Scenery Scenery represents the arrangement of the environment,the buildings, the land, the furniture, and so on in a play.Scenery can be as simple as arranging classroomfurniture to represent roads, houses, caves and bridges,or as involved as a life-size mural designed and created bya class over several weeks.

Making backdrops or murals for a drama performance isanother worthwhile craft activity for pupils and can providemeaningful language practice if pupils are encouraged toplan their scenery and talk about it, or if they createscenery from a description.


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ESTABLISHING POSITIVEATTITUDES TOWARDSDRAMA

• Establish a safe environment by giving pupils plenty ofchances to use drama with trusted classmates, or to domime or say lines together with the whole class. Not alldrama activities need to end with performances in frontof the whole class.

• Be sensitive about casting – some boys may beuncomfortable playing female roles and vice versa, orsome pupils may not like to take on the ‘bad’ characters.However, it may be appropriate to encourage pupils totake on different roles in order to explore them andexpand personal boundaries.

• Praise pupils for their efforts.

• Offer constructive feedback and do not be over critical.

• Never force pupils to perform or use performance aspunishment.

• As pupils increase in imagination and confidence, letthem contribute their ideas to the activity.

• Make dramatic activities a regular part of the teachingprogramme.

CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT

• Plan the number of characters and number of pupils foryour activities in advance so each pupil has a role toplay.

• Plan the use of space in your classroom.

• If groups are performing for the whole class, be sure togive the other groups a purposeful task while theywatch.

• Enlist pupils in helping to arrange the classroom. Do thison a regular basis so it becomes a part of the classroomroutine.

• If pupils are deliberately misbehaving, then ask thempolitely and non-judgementally to sit down and watch.Invite them to join in again after they have calmed down.

EXPLORING THE PLAY – EXTRA ACTIVITIES

Drama activities can focus on more than just a character’swords. Pupils can also explore the characters’ actions,their voice, the way they walk, their inner thoughts andfeelings, and their past experiences.

1 Find your partner/groupIn this activity each pupil is given a card with a character’sname on it. There should be at least two cards of eachcharacter, depending on your class size and the numberof characters in the story. Shuffle the cards and hand outone to each pupil. Tell the pupils not to show their card toeach other. Pupils should walk around the classroomsaying a line spoken by their character in the story. Thepupils should find the other pupils who have the samecharacter. Pupils should be encouraged to speak in thevoice of their character. To give pupils more support, theline should be written on the card. To make the activitymore challenging pupils can improvise a line that thecharacter might say or think.

2 Interview a characterThis activity allows pupils to explore a character in moredepth, for instance, to find out a character’s intentions, ortheir point of view. In this way characters are given realqualities, which leads to a deeper understanding, butperhaps more importantly, encourages pupils to examinestereotypes or negative portrayals of people found inplays.

One pupil plays the role of the character and one or twoother pupils interview the character. The activity demandsa degree of creativity and spontaneity. At the same time,those in character roles can get together to discuss theircharacter in preparation for the interview. As pupilsinterview a character, they can take notes on theirresponses for reporting back later.

A variation on this activity is to have one or two pupils givea character advice or discuss a particular problem thecharacter is having.

3 Guess the sceneIn this activity, the scenes are mimed by a group of pupilsand the other pupils try to guess or describe what ishappening. The scenes can be written on slips of paper forthe miming group to read. This activity could also be doneas a team activity, with one team miming the scene foranother team.

DRAMA PRODUCTIONS –PRODUCTION CHECKLIST

Dramatising can consist of a short 10-minute classroomactivity to a whole lesson or series of lessons. The result ofclassroom dramatic work does not necessarily need toend in a public performance. Classroom drama activitiesserve many learning purposes, the most important beingto raise pupils’ confidence in expressing themselves.However, pupils may also enjoy and learn from putting ona full drama production as a project for the term or schoolyear. Rehearsals themselves provide purposeful repetitionof language. Making props and scenery develops socialand organisational skills. Putting on a production,however, involves considerable planning.


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PRODUCTION CHECKLIST

ScriptIs the script suitable for your pupils in terms of level, interest, familiarity and so on? Does it need to be adapted? Is the length suitable?

CastAre there enough characters for most, if not all, of your pupils to play? If not, do all pupils have meaningful and significantwork to contribute, such as arranging scenery or working with lighting or music? Are the characters suitable for the pupils’culture, maturity, gender, and personalities?

DirectorWill you be the director? Or you and another pupil?

CostumesWhat clothing should the pupils wear? What items of clothing do you need? What can be made? What can be brought from home or borrowed?

PropsWhich props are essential? Can you or pupils bring in props from home or gather them around your school? Can you make any of the props?

Make upWhat make up is necessary? Are you using make up or face paints which are suitable for pupils’ skin?

SceneryWhat scenery do you need? What furniture do you need? Who will make it? When, and with what materials? If some pupils are acting in the play and some are making the scenery, how will you manage different pupils doing different things at the same time?

LightingWhat lighting is needed? At what points in the play? How will it be provided?

MusicIs music needed? What kind of music and for which parts of the play? Do you have musical instruments, a CD player or a hi-fi to use in the performance venue? If not, can you and the pupils make musical instruments?

Performance locationWhere will the performance take place? Is it large enough? Is there enough room for the expected audience? Do you need to book the venue?

OffstageDo you need an ‘offstage’ area before, during or after the play? This could be the same room as the performance if the audience is not allowed to enter before a certain time.

Rehearsal scheduleWill you rehearse during class or after class? Do you need parental permission? Have you scheduled the date of the dress rehearsal?

Date(s) and time(s) of performanceWhen is the performance? Will you have repeated performances?

Invitations and announcementsWho is your audience? Who will design the invitations? How will they be distributed? How else will the play be advertised?

Photographs or videotapingDo you want the performance recorded in any way? Who will do it?

Based on Teacher’s Guide to Dramatising Stories by Margaret Lo(whole Guide is available from www.penguinreaders.com)


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The English Teacher

NARRATOR MR BROWNMICHAEL RITAANIKA ISTVANPAOLO HELENAYUKI HANSMARIA

NARRATOR Mr Brown is an English teacher. He teaches English every day. Listen to him.

MR BROWN Now, Michel, say an English sentence, please.

MICHEL The ticket inspector is looking at the tickets.

MR BROWN Good. Do you understand that, Rita?

RITA Yes, sir.

MR BROWN Can you say a new sentence, please?

RITA My father is a television commentator.

MR BROWN Yes, good. Do you understand that, Anika?

ANIKA Yes, sir.

MR BROWN A new sentence, please, Anika.

ANIKA I like football.

MR BROWN Good. Do you understand that, Istvan?

ISTVAN Yes, sir.

MR BROWN Say a new sentence, please.

ISTVAN The woman in the shop is buying eggs.

MR BROWN Good. Do you understand that, Paolo?

PAOLO Yes, sir.

© Pearson Education Polska 2004PHOTOCOPIABLE

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MR BROWN Can you say a new sentence, please?

PAOLO I can tell good stories.

MR BROWN Yes, good. Do you understand that, Hans?

HANS Yes, sir.

MR BROWN A new sentence, please, Hans.

HANS The students are nervous.

MR BROWN Good. Do you understand that, Yuki?

YUKI Yes, sir.

MR BROWN Say a new sentence, please, Yuki.

YUKI Smoke is coming under the door.

MR BROWN Good. Do you understand that, Helena?

HELENA Yes, sir.

MR BROWN Give me a new sentence, please, Helena.

HELENA The school is on fire.

MR BROWN Good. Do you understand that, Maria?

MARIA Yes, sir.

MR BROWN Say a sentence, please.

MARIA The school is on fire.

MR BROWN No, a new sentence, please.

MARIA But sir, you don’t understand. The school IS on fire.

MR BROWN I understand, Maria. Smoke is coming under the door. The school is...What? Fire! Go to the door now. Quickly! But don’t run! It’s a fire!

MARIA Oh, good, sir. Now you understand!

Penguin Reader Six Sketches by Leslie Dunkling

© Pearson Education Polska 2004 PHOTOCOPIABLE

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The Professor

PROFESSOR HUNTERMISS GREENMR ROSEMARY HUNTERDR PITTINSPECTOR HADLEYSERGEANT BULL

SCENE 1

(MARY HUNTER is in her father’s room, talking to MISS GREEN, the professor’s secretary. It is a large,pleasant room, with a lot of books in it. There is a big desk near the window.)

MARY Dad’s very excited this morning, Miss Green. He didn’t want hisbreakfast. He only had a cup of coffee.

MISS GREEN Yes, of course he’s excited. I’m excited, too. This is a very important day.He’s ready to give his invention to the world. The papers are complete.I’ve just copied them.

MARY The men from the government will be here soon, won’t they? They’ll takethe papers to London.

MISS GREEN Yes. And then the professor will be famous! (The telephone rings. MISSGREEN answers it.) Hello? Yes, Miss Hunter’s here. One minute, please.(She gives the phone to MARY HUNTER.) It’s for you, dear. It’s Dr Smith.

MARY Good morning, Dr Smith... I’m very well, thank you... What’s that?Freda’s in hospital? Yes, of course I’ll come. I’ll be there in an hour.Goodbye. (She puts the phone down.)

MISS GREEN What’s the matter with your friend?

MARY She’s broken her leg and they’ve taken her to hospital. She wants to seeme, so I must go. Oh dear! I wanted to stay here this morning. I wanted to look after Dad.

MISS GREEN It’s all right, Mary. I’ll be here.

(The PROFESSOR comes into the room. He is an old man, and he cannot see well.)

PROFESSOR I can’t find my glasses. Have you seen them, Mary?

MISS GREEN (Going to the professor’s desk) Here they are, Professor.(She gives the glasses to the PROFESSOR.)


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PROFESSOR Ah, thank you, Miss Green. (He puts on his glasses.) I can’t seeanything without them. Now, what’s the time? Hm, where’s mywatch? (He looks for his watch in his pocket.)

MARY (Laughing) You’re wearing it, Dad. I bought you a new one. Don’t youremember?

PROFESSOR (Also laughing) Yes, of course you did. I forgot. I forget a lot of things,don’t I? But I can still do my work! That’s the important thing.

MARY Of course it is, Dad.

PROFESSOR (Looking at his watch) It’s almost ten o’clock. When are the men comingfrom London? They said 10:30, didn’t they?

MISS GREEN No, eleven.

PROFESSOR Oh, I thought it was 10:30. It doesn’t matter. I can look at my papersagain.

MARY Dr Smith phoned a few minutes ago.

PROFESSOR Oh, what did he want?

MARY My friend Freda’s broken her leg and they’ve taken her to hospital. Shewants to see me, so I have to leave now. I’m sorry I can’t stay with you.

PROFESSOR That’s all right, Mary. Miss Green will look after me.

MARY I must go, then. I’ll be back at twelve. You can tell me about yourmorning then.

PROFESSOR Goodbye, dear. Give my love to Freda.

(MARY kisses her father and goes out.)

PROFESSOR Now... Ah yes, my papers. (He goes to his desk and sits down.)

MISS GREEN Do you need me now, Professor?

PROFESSOR Er, no thank you, Miss Green. I’ll ring if I need you.

(MISS GREEN goes out of the room.)

PROFESSOR Hm, these women! They think I can’t look after myself. Sometimes I lose my glasses. Sometimes I forget about my watch. But they don’tunderstand that those things aren’t important. (He begins to read hispapers.)


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SCENE 2

(Half an hour later. The PROFESSOR is still reading his papers. MISS GREEN comes into the room.)

MISS GREEN (Very excited) They’re here, Professor! They’ve arrived!

PROFESSOR (Looking up) Who, Miss Green? What are you talking about?

MISS GREEN The men from the government, of course.

PROFESSOR (Looking at his watch) But it’s only half past ten. They’re half an hour early.

MISS GREEN Shall I tell them to wait?

PROFESSOR No, no, bring them in now.

(MISS GREEN goes to the door. Then she stops.)

MISS GREEN Oh, they’ve shown me their cards, Professor. They’re the right men.

PROFESSOR Good. I don’t want to give my invention to the wrong people!

(MISS GREEN goes to the door. She comes back with the two men.)

DR PITT Good morning, Professor Hunter. My name’s Pitt. Dr Pitt. And this is Mr Rose. He’s my assistant. He’s... looking after me. We don’t want tolose your papers!

PROFESSOR Lose my papers? No, of course not. Well, please sit down.

(MISS GREEN puts two chairs near the professor’s desk and the two men sit down.)

MISS GREEN Shall I bring same coffee?

DR PITT No coffee for us, thank you. We can’t stay long. We have to go back toLondon soon.

(MISS GREEN goes out.)

PROFESSOR So you’ve come for my papers. For my invention.

DR PITT That’s right, Professor.

PROFESSOR I wanted to take the papers to you in London, but my daughter stoppedme. It was too far for me, she said.

DR PITT That’s no problem, Professor. We’ll look after the papers for you.

PROFESSOR (Looking round the room.) Now, where did I put them?

(DR PITT is surprised. He looks at MR ROSE.)


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MR ROSE There are some papers on your desk, Professor. Are they the ones?

PROFESSOR Oh, these? No, these are only some old papers. Ah, I remember now. I put the papers behind some books. (He stands up.)

DR PITT Behind your books? That’s not a very good place for papers, is it?

PROFESSOR Yes it is. Nobody touches my books. (He takes down some books. There aresome papers behind them.) Yes, here they are. (He gives the papers to DR PITT.)You know about my invention, don’t you?

DR PITT Of course. We’ve often talked about it in the office. The governmentthinks your invention is very important. You’ll be famous, ProfessorHunter.

PROFESSOR I don’t want to be famous. I only want to help people. So I’m giving myinvention to the government. I don’t want any money for it.

DR PITT The country will thank you for it, sir. (He looks at his watch.) I’m afraid wehave to go now.

PROFESSOR Well, look after the papers carefully.

(DR PITT puts the papers in his bag and stands up. MR ROSE stands up, too.)

DR PITT Goodbye, Professor. We’ll write to you.

PROFESSOR Goodbye. (He stands up.)

(The two men go out. The PROFESSOR sits down at his desk again and laughs.)

PROFESSOR Well, that was fun! Now we’ll see what happens.


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SCENE 3

(It is about eleven o’clock. The PROFESSOR is still looking at the papers on his desk. MISS GREENruns into the room.)

MISS GREEN Professor! Those two men! Have they left?

PROFESSOR (Looking up) Yes, of course they’ve left, Miss Green. They’ve taken thepapers and they’ve gone back to London.

MISS GREEN Oh, that’s terrible!

PROFESSOR What’s terrible? What are you talking about?

MISS GREEN (Beginning to cry) They were the wrong men, Professor!

PROFESSOR I don’t understand. You looked at their cards, didn’t you?

MISS GREEN Yes, but they stole those cards.

PROFESSOR How do you know?

MISS GREEN The police telephoned. The right men were coming from London. Thesemen stopped the car. They locked the men in an empty house and stoleall their papers. And now they’ve stolen your invention. What are wegoing to do?

(At that minute the doorbell rings.)

PROFESSOR Go and open the door, Miss Green. It’s probably the police.

(MISS GREEN goes out of the room. She comes back with two police officers.)

INSPECTOR I’m Inspector Hadley, sir. And this is Sergeant Bull.

PROFESSOR Please sit down.

(The two policemen sit down. INSPECTOR HADLEY puts his hat on the professor’s desk.)

INSPECTOR So those men have taken your papers. Your secretary’s told us. But ifyou describe the men, Professor, we’ll try to catch them.

PROFESSOR It isn’t necessary, Inspector.

INSPECTOR Not necessary? I don’t understand, sir. These men have stolen yourinvention, haven’t they?

PROFESSOR Oh, the papers aren’t very important.

MISS GREEN What are you saying, Professor? You’ve worked hard. You wanted to giveyour invention to the country. Now these men will sell it and make money.


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PROFESSOR Yes, I worked hard. That’s true. But those two men won’t sell myinvention.

INSPECTOR Why not?

PROFESSOR Because I didn’t give it to them!

MISS GREEN Oh!

PROFESSOR I’ll explain. When I saw the men, I didn’t like the look of them. You sawtheir cards, Miss Green, but I had to be sure. I couldn’t give myinvention to the wrong men, could I?

INSPECTOR So what did you do?

PROFESSOR Well, only one or two very important people know about my invention.When I asked Dr Pitt about it, he knew all about it. I thought that wasstrange.

INSPECTOR What happened next?

PROFESSOR I gave Dr Pitt same old papers. He read them and he accepted them.So he didn’t know about my invention. I knew he wasn’t the right man.

INSPECTOR So you’ve still got the papers?

PROFESSOR Yes, they’re on my desk. They were there all the time.

INSPECTOR But we must try to catch those men, Professor. Can you describe themto us?

PROFESSOR (He thinks.) Dr Pitt was short and fat. And he had no hair.

MISS GREEN No, Professor. That was Mr Rose. Dr Pitt was tall and thin.

PROFESSOR Are you sure? Well, perhaps you’re right. I can’t remember things like that.

INSPECTOR (Standing up) Don’t worry, Professor. Miss Green will describe the men for us.

(The police sergeant stands up too. They go to the door.)

PROFESSOR You’ve forgotten your hat, Inspector! (He gives the hat to the INSPECTOR.)Oh, Miss Green. I think I’ll go to London this time. I’ll take the paperswith me. Telephone London. Say that I’ll come on Monday.

MISS GREEN All right, Professor.

(MISS GREEN and two policemen go out.)

PROFESSOR (To himself) Now for some work! Hm, where did I put my glasses?

Penguin Reader Five One-Act Plays by Donn Byrne



P e n g u i n R e a d e r s F a c t s h e e t s l e v e l

PRE-INTERMEDIATE

Five One-Act Plays

S U M M A R Y

‘Listen to the boy!’Johnny Bell wants to tell Mr Smith, the shopkeeper, that twomen have stolen some apples from his car. But Mr Smith andthe other customers in the shop think that Johnny is just beingrude and trying to jump the queue. When he finally gets to tellMr Smith about the theft, it is too late, of course.

‘The right person’Who is the right person to rent a room in Mrs Stone’s house?She wants the young man who sees it first, although he thinksthe furniture is too old, the bed too hard and the price too high… oh, and he’s not interested in the view. She doesn’t wantthe old man who sees it next, although he thinks the furnitureis nice, the bed is fine and the view is lovely. But she changesher mind about the old man when he discovers that one of herold paintings from the garage is worth a lot of money. Shedecides she would like him to have the room, even if she won’tneed to take tenants after selling the paintings.

‘An afternoon on the beach’Granny wants to sit in the shade during her afternoon on thebeach, but her daughter is determined that she should sit inthe sun. Granny appears to capitulate, but as soon as the restof the family have gone exploring the smugglers’ caves, shemoves back behind a sheltering rock and goes to sleep. Sometime later the family realise that the tide is coming in andGranny may be in danger. Sure enough, when they return tothe spot where they left her, she has disappeared, althoughher book and umbrella are floating in the sea. It is a momentbefore Granny is discovered behind the rock and all is well.

‘A Bad Dream’Bank manager George Hill orders his wife to dismiss theirmaid-of-all-work Annie, after twenty years of loyal service,because, according to him, she is a bad cook and makesterrible coffee. His wife points out that it will be difficult forAnnie to find another job but George is implacable. He fallsinto a sleep of self-righteousness whilst his wife goes off to ‘dosomething’.

George is visited by two employees of his bank who informhim that he must resign, because of his lateness, laziness andgenerally impolite behaviour to the staff at the bank. He pointsout that he will find it hard to find another job at his age butthey are implacable. He accepts his fate. However, there ismore to come. His wife returns to tell him that she is goingaway for a while and doesn’t know when she will return. Sheleaves. Annie comes in and he asks if she wants to leave too.‘No,’she says, even when he says he might not be able to payher in the future, she wants to stay because it is her home.Suddenly, everything becomes clear. George has beendreaming – the men from the bank, his wife leaving, even his

conversation with Annie. Luckily George’s wife has not gotaround to dismissing Annie because George has had achange of mind. In fact, he wants to hire someone to helpAnnie now. Could his dream have had anything to do with hisnew attitude?

‘The Professor’The absent-minded old Professor has designed a newinvention and offered it to the government for free.Unfortunately, the day that the government men are due tocome, the Professor ’s daughter and ‘minder ’ has to leave thehouse to deal with an emergency. Two men arrive, presenttheir identity cards and take away some of the Professor’spapers then, horror of horrors, it is discovered that the menwere imposters who had ambushed the real government menand stolen their identity cards. The design of the invention hasbeen taken. Or has it? It seems that the Professor, whilstabsent-minded, is by no means senile. He saw through thetwo men and gave them some old papers of no value.

All of the plays in the volume are, or could be seen to be,about lack of respect.

Two of the plays deal with the theme of lack of respect whichis brought about by ageism. In Listen to the boy the ageism isdirected at a young boy who is not accorded the courtesy of afair hearing and as a result a thief gets away. The boy cannotgive his important news to the adults until it is too late. In Anafternoon on the beach the ageism leads to the wishes of anaged parent being ignored. But Granny gets her own back –she simply waits until her family have gone and then doeswhat she wanted to do in the first place.

A third play also deals with lack of respect, in this case therespect which is due to a loyal employee. In A bad dream, thebank manager is completely unmoved by the years of loyalservice that his cook has given his family when he decides,almost on a whim it seems, to dismiss her. The moral of thisstory is clearly do as you would be done by as the bankmanager is lazy and workshy and yet is amazed when, in adream, he is dismissed or, at least, asked to resign. Even ifAnnie is a bad cook, perhaps she should be treated byGeorge, a bad bank manager, with an element of fellowfeeling.

Perhaps The Professor is also about lack of respect. We,the audience, are led to assume that the absent-minded oldman has been easily hoodwinked into handing over thedesigns of his important new invention. But we should notconfuse absent-mindedness with stupidity. The Professor haseasily seen through the tricksters but, rather than confront

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them and risk a violent attempt to take the papers, fobs themoff with some worthless papers.

There is another common theme running through all of theplays. Something is not what it seems. Johnny is not beingrude, the old man looking for a room is more than just an oldman, Granny is not dead, the bank manager has not reallybeen asked to resign and the professor has not really givenaway his invention. Only in one play, however, does theplaywright use dramatic irony, allowing the audience into thesecret. In An afternoon on the beach, we know that Grannyhasn’t really drowned and therefore the grief and concern iscomical rather than tragic.

The following teacher-led activities cover the samesections of text as the exercises at the back of theReader and supplement those exercises. Forsupplementary exercises covering shorter sections ofthe book, see the photocopiable Student’s Activitiespages of this Factsheet. These are primarily for usewith class readers but, with the exception of thediscussion and pair/groupwork activities, can also beused by students working alone in a self-accesscentre.

ACTIVITIES BEFORE READING THE BOOKPut students into groups to talk about the kind ofplays they like and to explain why they like that kindof play.

ACTIVITIES AFTER READING A SECTIONGeneral Activity:After each play, ask students to discuss in groupsthe moral of the story.

Specific activities:

‘Listen to the boy!’1 Put students into pairs to make a list of the ways

that Johnny tries to tell Mr Smith about the men.Example: Please, Mr Smith …

2 Put students into groups to role play a scene inwhich one person has something important tosay, but the other people won’t let him/her say ituntil it’s too late.

‘The Right Person’1 Put students into groups to make a list of things

they would like to have in their ideal room.2 Put students into pairs to role play a scene in

which one person is trying to stop the otherperson doing something e.g. buying a particularcar.

‘An Afternoon on the Beach’1 Put students into groups to make a list of things

that they should take for an afternoon on thebeach.

2 Ask students to imagine that the Brown familyreally can’t find Granny. Put students into pairs torole play the conversation between Mr or MrsBrown and a police officer about what happened.

‘A Bad Dream’1 Ask students to imagine that Mrs Hill told Annie

she must leave. Put students into pairs to roleplay the scene.

2 Put students into groups to make of list of thingsthat show Mr Hill has changed at the end of theplay.

‘The Professor’1 Put students into pairs to work out how exactly

the Professor tricks the men.

2 Put students into groups to role play the scenebetween the Professor and the two men.

ACTIVITIES AFTER READING THE BOOKPut students into groups to find connections betweentwo or more plays in this collection. For ideas onconnections, see Background and Themes.

It will be useful for your students to know the following new words.They are practised in the ‘Before You Read’sections of exercises atthe back of the book. (Definitions are based on those in theLongman Active Study Dictionary.)

Listen to the boy! and The Right Personact (n) one of the main parts into which a play is dividedcharacter (n) a person in a book, play or filmdoorbell (n) the bell which tells you that someone is at the door,operated by a buttongreengrocer (n) someone who owns a shop that sells fruit andvegetableslet (v) to allow someone to use a room or building in return formoneymuseum (n) a building where people can go and see importantobjects connected with history, science, art, etc.worth (adj) to have a particular value

An Afternoon on the Beach and A Bad Dreambasket (n) a container made from thin pieces of wood, plastic, wire,etc woven togethercave (n) a large natural hole in the side of a hill or under the groundcliff (n) a steep rock or piece of landmanager (n) someone who is in charge of a bank, shop, etc.Granny (n) an informal way of saying Grandmotherhead office (n) the main building of a companyscene (n) a short part of a play or film when the events happen inone placesmuggler (n) a person who takes something illegally from one placeto anotherThe Professorinspector (n) a police officer of middle rankprofessor (n) a teacher at the highest level in a universitydepartmentsergeant (n) an officer of a fairly low rank in the army or police

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Work in pairs. Find these things in the pictures in the book.a bed a chaira computer a cup a desk a fireplace a kitchen a mirror a shopkeeper a small boy a table a view a window an old lady an old man books cliffs clouds fruit glasses sand sea umbrella vegetables women

‘Listen to the boy!’1 What does Johnny want to tell Mr Smith?2 How many times does Johnny try to tell Mr Smith?3 Find the replies (i–x) to each statement (a–j).

(a) You were here before me, weren’t you?(b) Are these all right?(c) Children today! They’re so rude.(d) How old are you?(e) What’s your name?(f) You live in Church Street, don’t you?(g) I want some apples, please. One kilo.(h) Are there any sweeter ones?(i) Can I see them?(j) Why didn’t you tell me.(i) Nine.(ii) I tried to tell you but nobody listened to me.(iii) I’ll go and get them.(iv) Johnny Bell.(v) Oh, was I? Thank you.(vi) That’s right.(vii) They can’t wait.(viii) What about these?(ix) Yes, I’ll take those.(x) Yes, madam. I’ve got some good ones but they’re still in

my car.

‘The Right Person’1 How do Mr Stone, the young man and the old man feel about

the room? Tick each statement they agree with, cross eachstatement they don’t agree with. Do not put anything if they don’tsay anything about an item.

item Mr Stone young man old manIt’s small.It’s clean.The furniture is heavy.

The furniture is old.The furniture is good.Modern furniture is better.The view is bad.The bed is hard.Soft beds are better.The room costs too much.The room is cold.

2 How does the old man reply (i–vi) to each of the sentences (a–f)from Mrs Stone? Match the statements and replies.(a) We live a long way from the town. There aren’t a lot of

buses. Only one an hour.(b) We’ve very noisy people.(c) The room’s quite cold in winter.(d) They’re going to build new houses there. When that

happens, there won’t be a view.(e) I’m afraid the bed’s very hard. Try it.(f) Look at that wall. We’ll have to repair it. It will take time.(i) I won’t notice. I’ve got a lot of warm clothes.(ii) Oh, that doesn’t matter. I don’t work. When I go to town, I

can walk.(iii) Oh, that doesn’t matter. It’s only a small hole. I can put a

picture over it.(iv) Oh, that doesn’t worry me. I was talking about the noise of

cars and buses.(v) Perhaps they’ll never build them. Who knows?(vi) That’s not necessary. I like a hard bed.

3 Correct this summary of the end of the play.The old man worked in a library. Now he’s writing a book aboutpoetry. Mrs Stone brings two pictures from the garage. The oldman thinks the big one is worth a lot of money. He says it waspainted by Joe Holland, a painter who lived about a thousandyears ago. Mr Stone says there are a lot more painters in thegarage. Mrs Stone says ‘I’ll be rich when I sell the pictures. Iwon’t want to let the room.’She says the old man can’t have theroom. ‘I’ll be able to buy a new house with the money.’she says.The old man says ‘Please change the furniture.’

‘An afternoon on the beach’1 Complete these sentences from Scene 1 and Scene 2 with a

preposition or particle from the box in each space.

about above after at away back behind forfrom in near of on out to up

(a) We’ve found a nice place … the cliffs.(b) You have to be careful … your age.(c) Put the baskets out … the sun.(d) Leave her chair … the sun.(e) Over there, … from the cliffs.(f) Can we go … the cave?(g) The cave is … two kilometres from here.(h) I’ll stay here and look … Granny.(i) Don’t stay here … me.

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PhotocopiableStudents can do these exercises alone or with one or moreother students. Pair/group-only exercises are marked.

Activities before reading the book

Activities while reading the book

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S t u d e n t ’ s a c t i v i t i e s(j) Put the umbrella … if you feel too warm.(k) We’ll soon be … .(l) Now I’ll move my chair … of the sun.(m) It’s nice … this rock.(n) Smugglers brought things … the ships and hid them in this

cave.(o) Perhaps they put them in the holes … my head.(p) Oh, no. We left Granny … the beach and the sea’s coming

in!2 Complete these sentences about Granny from Scene 3 with she

or her(a) … chair’s gone.(b) We can’t see … , Dad.(c) Isn’t … here?(d) … was there.(e) We’ve lost … .(f) … couldn’t swim!(g) Look, there’s … book.(h) And … umbrella!(i) We’ve killed … .(j) … ‘s still asleep.(k) But how did … get here?

3 Find at least 10 words in this Wordsearch connected with a dayout on the beach.

‘Abad dream’1 Match the adjectives and nouns / phrases from Scene 1.

(a) terrible (i) bank(b) bad (ii) coffee(c) important (iii) cook(d) young (iv) customers(e) new (v) job(f) big (vi) sleep(g) little (vii) woman

2 Mr Hill must resign (Scene 2). Complete these reasons.(a) It will be a good thing for … .(b) He isn’t a … .(c) They do all … .(d) He’s not nice to … .(e) Nobody … .(f) He doesn’t … .(g) He comes to work … .(h) He often … .(i) He takes two or three … .(j) He’s never … .(k) Head Office agrees that … .(l) The bank will be a happier place … .

3 How does Mrs Hill reply to each of these statements from herhusband? Match the statements (a–j) and replies (i–x).(a) Briggs and Winter were here. They’ve just left.(b) I have to resign from the bank.(c) You know already?(d) Did they tell you the reason, too?(e) Where are you going?(f) But I need your help now.

(g) But you can have a holiday later. We’ll go together.(h) I’ve got three months. I’ll find something.(i) When are you coming back?(j) But who’s going to look after me?(i) I can’t help you. And I must have a holiday. I can’t wait.(ii) I have no idea. I’ll write and tell you.(iii) I hope you’re right.(iv) I need a holiday. I’m going to spend a few days with my

sister.(v) There’s Annie. Speak to her nicely and perhaps she’ll stay.(vi) Where will you get the money for a holiday? You’ve lost your

job. It won’t be easy to find a new one. (vii) Yes, I know.(viii) Yes, I saw them when they were going out.(ix) Yes, the people in the bank don’t like you. I’m not surprised.(x) Yes, they told me.

4 How does Annie reply to each of Mr Hills statements? Use yourown words.(a) What is it, Annie? Do you want to leave, too?(b) So you don’t want to leave. Are you sure?(c) I’ve lost my job. Did you know that?(d) And my wife has gone for a long holiday.(e) I won’t have much money. Perhaps I won’t be able to pay

you.

‘The Professor’1 Complete each of these sentences from Scene 1 with a word from

the box.

breakfast coffee day glasses government hospitalinvention leg men morning papers watch work

(a) Dad didn’t want his … this morning.(b) He only wanted a cup of … .(c) It’s a very important … .(d) He’s ready to give his … to the world.(e) I’ve just copied the … .(f) The men from the … will be here soon.(g) Freda’s broken her … .(h) They’ve taken her to … .(i) I wanted to stay her this … .(j) I can’t see anything without my … .(k) Now, what’s the time? Hmm, where’s my … ?(l) I forget a lot of things but I can still do my .. .(m) The … are coming at eleven.

2 Put in order these events from Scene 2. (a) Miss Green takes Pitt and Rose to the Professor’s room.(b) Pitt and Rose arrive at the Professor’s house.(c) Pitt and Rose leave.(d) Pitt and Rose show their cards to Miss Green.(e) The Professor gives some papers to Pitt and Rose.

3 In Scene 3, we find out extra information. Put these events intothe correct place in your answers to Scene 2.(a) Pitt and Rose lock the government men in an empty house.(b) Pitt and Rose read the papers and accept them.(c) Pitt and Rose steal the cards from the government men.(d) Pitt and Rose stop the car of the men from the government.(e) The Professor decides not to give the real papers to Pitt and

Rose.(f) The Professor doesn’t like the look of Pitt and Rose.

Work in pairs. Tell the story of each play in no more than five

Activities after reading the book

U W A T E R C CB M B E A C H LA I B A O A A IS W R V I FK S S E E R FE A U L ST R O C K N L

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1 Open answers2 a a part of a play

b a personc ringd vegetables (and fruit)e a flat (or a room, or a house)f visitg throw it away

3 Open answers4 a …because she gets bored at home all

day. She wants something to do.b …because it’s too small / the bed istoo hard / there’s a hole in the wall / it’stoo expensive / the furniture is too old.c … because he wants to write a book. d … because it’s quiet / it has a niceview / he likes old furniture / it isn’texpensive.

5 Open answers6 a cliff cave basket manager

b head office smuggler Grannyscene

c Open answers7 a Granny – in the sun

b John – to the cavec Mary – the smugglersd Mrs Brown – Granny’s chair

8 a Mr Hill wants a new cook. Annie is abad cook, and she gives hisimportant visitors bad food.

b Briggs and Winter think that Mr Hill,their boss, is lazy. He comes to worklate and he leaves early. They alsosay that he takes two or three hoursfor lunch.

c Mrs Hill thinks that her husband hasbecome more selfish.

d Mr Hill changes his mind aboutAnnie. After his bad dream, hedoesn’t want her to leave. Heunderstands how she feels. He alsorealizes that she will probably notfind another job.

9 Open answers10 a professor

b sergeant, inspector11 Open answers12 a Professor Hunter and Miss Green.

The Professor is ready to give hisinvention to the world.

b Professor Hunter. He can’t find hisglasses or his watch.

c Miss Green. She thinks that thewrong people have taken theProfessor’s invention.

d Professor Hunter. He realizes thatPitt and Rose are the wrong people.He gives them the wrong papers.

13–16 Open answers

Answers to Book activities

� Communicative activities

Open answers

� Student activities

Activities before reading the book

vegetables pages 2 and 3fruit pages 2 and 3women pages 2 and 3a shopkeeper pages 2 and 3a small boy pages 2 and 3a bed page 4a window pages 4/31a mirror page 4a fireplace page 4a chair pages 4/13/21a view page 4cliffs page 13clouds page 13sea page 13sand page 13umbrella page 13an old lady page 13a cup page 21a kitchen page 21a table page 21a desk page 31a computer page 31an old man page 31books page 31glasses page 31

Activities after reading a section

Listen to the boy!

1 About the men taking a box of apples outof Mr Smith’s car?

2 Five times.3 (a) (v) Oh, was I? Thank you.

(b) (ix) Yes, I’ll take those.(c) (vii) They can’t wait.(d) (i) Nine.(e) (iv) Johnny Bell.(f) (vi) That’s right.(g) (viii) What about these?(h) (x) Yes, madam. I’ve got some good

ones but they’re still in my car.(i) (iii) I’ll go and get them.(j) (ii) I tried to tell you but nobody

listened to me.

The Right Person

1

item Mr the young the oldStone man man

It’s small. ✗ �

It’s clean. �

The furnitureis heavy. �

The furnitureis old. � � �

The furnitureis good. � �

Modernfurniture is better �

The view is bad. ✗ ✗

The bed is hard. � �

Soft beds are better � ✗

The room coststoo much. � ✗

The room is cold

Answers to Factsheet activities 2 (a) (ii) Oh, that doesn’t matter. I don’twork. When I go to town, I canwalk.

(b) (iv) Oh, that doesn’t worry me. I wastalking about the noise of carsand buses.

(c) (i) I won’t notice. I’ve got a lot ofwarm clothes.

(d) (v) Perhaps they’ll never build them.Who knows?

(e) (vi) That’s not necessary. I like ahard bed.

(f) (iii) Oh, that doesn’t matter. It’s onlya small hole. I can put a pictureover it.

3 Possible corrections in italicsThe old man worked in a museum. Nowhe’s writing a book about pictures. MrStone brings two pictures from thegarage. The old man thinks the small oneis worth a lot of money. He says it waspainted by John Holland, a painter wholived about a hundred years ago. MrStone says there are a lot more paintingsin the garage. Mr Dean says ‘I’ll be richwhen I sell the pictures. I won’t want to letthe room.’She says the old man can havethe room. ‘I’ll be able to buy a new housewith the money.’ he says. The old mansays ‘Please don’t change the furniture.’

An afternoon on the beach

1 (a) near (b) at (c) of (d) in (e) away (f) to (g) about (h) after (i) for (j) up (k) back(l) out (m)behind (n) from (o) above (p) on

2 (a) Her (b) her(c) she (d) She (e) her(f) her (g) her (h) her(i) She(j) she

3 The following 14 words are in theWordsearch swimumbrellasearockcavebeachcliffssandsunwaterbaskettearestchair

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A bad dream

1(a) terrible (ii) coffee(b) bad (iii) cook(c) important (iv) customers(d) young (vii) woman(e) new (v) job(f) big (i) bank (g) little (vi) sleep

2 (a) It will be a good thing for the bank.(b) He isn’t a good manager.(c) They do all the work.(d) He’s not nice to the people in the

bank.(e) Nobody likes him.(f) He doesn’t … work hard.(g) He comes to work late in the

morning.(h) He often leaves early.(i) He takes two or three hours for lunch.(j) He’s never at the bank.(k) Head Office agrees that he must

resign.(l) The bank will be a happier place

without him.3 (a) (viii) Yes, I saw them when they

were going out.(b) (vii) Yes, I know.(c) (x) Yes, they told me.(d) (ix) Yes, the people in the bank

don’t like you. I’m not surprised.(e) (iv) I need a holiday. I’m going to

spend a few days with mysister.

(f) (i) I can’t help you. And I musthave a holiday. I can’t wait.

(g) (vi) Where will you get the moneyfor a holiday? You’ve lost yourjob. It won’t be easy to find anew one.

(h) (iii) I hope you’re right.(i) (ii) I have no idea. I’ll write and tell

you.(j) (v) There’s Annie. Speak to her

nicely and perhaps she’ll stay.4 Actual answers but anything with the

same meaning is acceptable.(a) Leave, sir? I came about the tea, sir.(b) No, of course not, sir. I’m very happy

here.(c) Yes, sir, Mrs Hill told me.(d) I know, sir. But she’ll come back. I’ll

look after you while she’s away.(e) That doesn’t matter, sir. I want to stay

here, sir. It’s my home.

The Professor

1 (a) breakfast (b) coffee(c) day(d) invention (e) papers(f) government (g) leg(h) hospital(i) morning(j) glasses(k) watch(l) work(m)men

2 The correct order is:(b) Pitt and Rose arrive at the

Professor’s house.(d) Pitt and Rose show their cards to

Miss Green.(a) Miss Green takes Pitt and Rose to

the Professor’s room.(e) The Professor gives some papers to

Pitt and Rose.(c) Pitt and Rose leave.

3 The correct order now is:Pitt and Rose stop the car of the menfrom the government.Pitt and Rose lock the government menin an empty house.Pitt and Rose steal the cards from thegovernment men.Pitt and Rose arrive.Pitt and Rose show their cards to MissGreen.Miss Green takes Pitt and Rose to theProfessor’s room.The Professor doesn’t like the look of Pittand Rose.The Professor decides not to give thereal papers to Pitt and Rose.The Professor gives some papers to Pittand Rose.Pitt and Rose read the papers andaccept them.Pitt and Rose leave.

Activities after reading the book

Open answers

Extensive Reading in Your Classroom

WHAT IS EXTENSIVE READING?

Extensive reading is the term used in English languageteaching for the reading of a wide range of books primarilyfor pleasure. The idea is that learners are motivated toread because they are reading for the same reasons asthey would in their own language: to learn more aboutsomething they are interested in, to enjoy a good story, tothink about the ideas and issues the book raises, toincrease their general knowledge and awareness.Learners are reading in a completely different way from theintensive reading of the language classroom, when theyare looking at detail of language points and focussing onspecific reading skills.

When learners are reading for pleasure they should be asunaware as possible that they are reading in a foreignlanguage. The enormous benefit of extensive reading tolearners is that they are learning language as they read,through the high level of exposure to the foreign languagewhich reading brings. The foreign language becomesincreasingly familiar to them – so that they acquirelanguage almost without knowing it.

If we think about language learning, we can see thetremendous value of extensive graded reading. When itsfull potential is exploited it is seen to improve not onlyreading skills but all the other language skills as well.

WHY GRADED READERS?

The idea behind extensive reading is that learners shouldbe reading with relative ease. They clearly cannot enjoywhat they are reading if the language is too difficult and ifthey are anxious about not understanding it. If learners donot enjoy reading, the chances are that they will not want tocontinue – so the whole point is immediately lost. Gradedreaders are therefore a good starting point. It is importantto stress, however, that through the use of graded readerswe are training and preparing our students for the extensivereading of ungraded and unsimplified texts.

The content of the reader is of great importance inmotivating learners, and here it is often sensible to involveyour classes as much as possible in the process ofselection. You might like to give learners a questionnaire inorder to find out their reading interests; you can then besure that the books which are selected will be keenly read.

PREPARING LEARNERS FORREADING

The techniques below encourage learners to get usefulinformation about a book before they start reading. Thiswill build up their interest in a text, and train them torecognise different text types and guess and predict whatthe text is about.

a) Elementary level readers

The following has been found to be particularly useful withelementary readers where learners’ reading abilities in thenew language are limited. It can, however, be done with allreaders.

Preparation: Make sure the class knows the commonwords for different story types (adventure,detective, love story, science fiction, etc.)

Pairwork: Put learners into pairs and give two or threebooks to each pair. Ask them to look at the coverof a book, then ask them:

• What is the title of the book?

• What kind of story do you think it is?

• Is there a picture on the cover? What is it of?

Now ask learners to look inside the book. Ask them:

• Are there a lot of pictures?

• What kind of pictures?(Photos, drawings, strip cartoons)

• When does the story take place? (A long time ago, now, etc).

• Who are some of the people in the story?

• Do you think the story will be exciting, funny, romantic, etc?

When the pairs have looked at all the books, they canreport back to the class. Depending on the level and typeof class, this phase might be done in the mother tongue.Alternatively, you can insist that the pairs report back inEnglish.

b) Pre-intermediate and upwards

Learners at this level should have had same experience ofreading in English.

As above, put learners into pairs and give them two orthree books. They can be asked to look at the title of abook and say what they think they will find in the book.When they have answered, they can turn to the backcover, the contents page and introduction, if there is one,to see if they were right. They might by now be able toanswer when and where the story takes place and alsowho they will meet in the story. By looking inside the bookthey should be able to say whether there is one long story,a number of short stories, a play, several plays or whateverelse.

If there is no summary of the story on the back cover,learners may later want to write their own for the benefit ofother learners in the class.

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GROUP READING

Shared experience reading means that a group of learnersshare the same title and work together both in reading andin related activities. The idea works like this:

a) Set a group task, be it a ‘focus’ question or other task.

b) Encourage the faster readers to help the slower ones.

c) With the help of the teacher, each group can plan itsown activities to complete the task (one person cankeep a record of these activities) e.g., one person in thegroup will draw a time chart, another will describe themain characters, etc.

The final task could involve:

• acting out part of a story

• asking the rest of the class to quiz them about thebook

• telling the rest of the class what kind of book it is, whatits main points are, where its interest lies, etc.

d) Set aside part of a lesson for each group to presenttheir task to the rest of the class.

e) Have some spare titles ready, so that as soon as onegroup has presented its title, it can start a new one.

After the second group has presented its title, the learnerscan (if they wish) read the first group’s title and so on untilall titles have been read by each group.

PLAY READING

If you have an audio cassette of the sketch or play, start byplaying through the sketch, or a scene from the play, withlearners’ books closed. The idea is for learners to get thegeneral idea of what is going on and to let the stress andintonation patterns make a first impression on them. Askgeneral comprehension questions to see if they havecaught the ‘gist’ of what is happening.

Now let learners open their books and read while thecassette is played again.

The next step is to ask learners to read aloud, correctingpronunciation only where absolutely necessary. Followingthis, suggest that they learn a role as homework. When theclass next meets, ask for volunteers (do not force!) to actout the scene at the front of the class.

An alternative, especially if there is no room for movementat the front of the class, is to ‘broadcast’ the play. This canbe done quite realistically by putting up a ‘microphone’ (tryusing a rolled-up newspaper or cardboard tube) intowhich they all speak; if a large cast is needed, two tablesand two ‘microphones’ can be used. There are severaladvantages to broadcasting a sketch over acting it out.Although some rehearsal is advisable to familiarise the‘actors’ with what they have to say and how to say it,learners can use their books as scripts just as radio actorsdo, preparing them during rehearsals by marking in pencilthe stress, intonation, pauses, etc. Shy learners will usually

find this easier than acting in front of theirclassmates and they should all beencouraged to enter into the spirit of thebroadcast by laughing, getting angry, etc. asrequired. You may even be able to record these scenes onyour cassette recorder.

With a longer play, you may like to give a summary of theplay, its setting and main characters before you beginreading. A follow-up exercise could be for different groups in theclass to prepare their own programme notes for the play,such as you buy when you go to the theatre.

Ideally, a play should be acted with movement, and ifsufficient space is available there will usually be enoughlearners who want to learn the words and act the play.Different groups of learners can prepare the same sceneand have a little competition, which will encourage the shyones to take part in order to help their group. Those whodo not wish to act can do other things. It is most importantto give everyone something to do. Someone can direct theactors; others can prepare the ‘stage’ and be responsiblefor the props; a prompter will be needed. Others can benewspaper reviewers and of course there is always theneed for an audience!

Make your own playMany ordinary stories or scenes from stories can be madeinto plays; doing this is both interesting and useful. Comic-strip stories which have dialogue and no narrative arealready ‘disguised’ plays. Other books often haveconsiderable amounts of dialogue; learners can ignore thenarrative parts such as ‘he says’, ‘she asked’.

When a book is mainly narrative, it is a useful exercise forthe class to turn the narrative into dialogue. This is a wayof practising changing reported speech into direct speechforms, for instance.

ROLE PLAY

The stories in readers, both fictional and factual, providevaluable contexts for role play activities, and throughreading the stories, learners have most of the languageand ideas they need for their roles. They can invent anyextra information they need.

Role play activities are valuable for the language whichlearners have to produce. Equally important, however, isthe careful reading which is required as preparation for theactivity.

SimulationSimulation requires a little preparation because learnersmust imagine themselves in roles based on or suggestedby those encountered in the reader. Learners are asked toreproduce a scene from a book. They can do this usingthe actual lines from the book or they can use their ownwords. Both ways of using the role play create valuablelanguage practice, particularly if learners really try to acttheir characters.


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Learners can either reproduce the dialoguefrom the book or invent their own. Learnerswith the same role can work in pairs or ingroups to invent the dialogue. An alternative

version of the above type of role play is for learners to takea similar situation and invent a dialogue completelydifferent from that in the reader, illustrating how differentpeople can react in different ways to the same situation.

InterviewsInterviews have the advantage of being adaptable toalmost any situation or level. Even with post-beginners,simple factual interviews can be set up using level 1 orlevel 2 readers. The interview could consist of interviewingcharacters in a story about their actions and/or feelings (asdescribed in the story or, with advanced level learners, asimagined by the learners).

Before learners do the role plays they will need to readtheir books carefully and make notes about what they aregoing to say. This can be done in pairs, with learnersplaying the same role working together.

If learners are reading a non-fiction title, the interview couldalso consist of interviewing a panel of experts who can talkabout the information in the book. Learners should not beexpected to give long and detailed answers.

Real information gaps can be created when the personbeing interviewed has read the text but the interviewer hasnot. A single interviewer can ask questions of severalcharacters or experts; alternatively, one person can beinterviewed by two or more people.

Try to think of different contexts for the interview. If you makethe context a TV interview, the rest of the class can act as astudio audience and be invited to take part by giving theirown opinions or asking their own questions from time to time.

As mentioned above, a rolled-up newspaper or acardboard tube can be used as a ‘microphone’. Only thelearners with the microphone can speak. This prevents toomany people speaking at the same time.

DISCUSSION AND DEBATE

With higher level readers, discussion and debate can be avery rewarding activity for learners, particularly if they arediscussing issues which interest them. Graded readersoften give rise to interesting discussions as the learnersare asked to think about and discuss a situation, characteror issue within a defined context. You will obviously be theperson to judge when a class is ready for discussionrather than simply answering questions. Every teacherknows the terrible silence which comes over a class whenlearners are asked to ‘talk about X’ and are eitherunprepared or unable to express their ideas clearly, if at all.

Initially, learners need considerable prompting and helpfrom the teacher. Preparation is the key to success both fordiscussion and debate. Ask learners key questions to helpthem formulate their ideas. Getting learners to work inpairs before they have a group or class discussion can bevery helpful as they can pool their ideas and develop theirthoughts together.

PROJECT WORK

When a class discussion at any level shows that the topichas aroused sufficient interest, learners can be encouragedto carry out same kind of (small) project work. They can dothis in pairs or groups. The type of work will of coursedepend on the topic, but there should always be a purposein mind: there is little incentive to do extra work and study ifthey are simply told to ‘find out more about the subject’.

Writing a questionnaireWriting a questionnaire, getting responses and analysingthe results is a challenging and enjoyable project – it isquite difficult to set up and fun to do.

A project such as this could be done after learners have reada reader which introduced an interesting issue. Alternatively,learners could write a questionnaire and carry out a classsurvey into learners’ opinions of a class reader which hasjust been finished. They could ask questions such as:

Did you enjoy the book? Which parts did you like best?Which characters did you like? Why? Would yourecommend this book to another class?

The form of the questionnaire can be worked out initially ingroups, with the teacher’s help, and tried out on othergroups in the same class. At first, it will be found that anumber of the questions don’t work; that is, they do notelicit the kind of answers that will be useful in a finalanalysis. Suitable forms of questions can be worked outby trial and error in the class, then learners can try themout on learners in other classes or among friends andrelations, the eventual aim being to be able to analyse theanswers and come to a conclusion from them.

PresentationsIn another kind of project work, a topic can be followed upby groups of learners collecting information andpresenting it with pictures, graphs, diagrams, etc. toreinforce or extend any particular aspect of the story thatinterests them. This in turn could lead to a classdiscussion.

Writing a screenplayMany books in the Penguin Readers series have beenmade into films or have been written tram the screenplaysof films, and an interesting project for learners could be towrite a screenplay for part of a book.

First, learners must decide which parts of the book wouldbest transfer to film. Other questions they need to askthemselves are:• Which characters would be in the film?• How would the film begin?• What title would they give the film?

Tell learners that they must have precise details of thescene and the characters, as well as the dialogue.Different groups can work on different bits.

Based on Teacher’s Guide to Using Graded Readers by Nick Dawson

(whole Guide is available from www.penguinreaders.com)


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