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Making your toenails twinkle
Creative playing with poetry in the language classroom
Alan Marsh
IH Barcelona ELT Conference February 2016
Creativity in the language classroom
Making your toenails twinkle
Alan Marsh
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Making your toenails twinkle
Alan Marsh
IH Barcelona February 5th 2016
In this interactive talk Alan will share some poems with us, accessible poems he has used with his
learners and which in turn have inspired them to play with grammar and vocabulary and to create
‘learner poetry’ of their own. Such encounters with poetry and the creative moments they can
inspire not only extend learning and make it memorable but can also transcend language and may
even ‘make your toenails twinkle’. Alan also argues that such opportunities for productive creativity
in the classroom should be an integral part of the foreign language syllabus and suggests three
conditions for making such activities effective: appropriate scaffolding; an explicit link to syllabus
language items; and the engagement of ‘the whole person’.
When I’m old …. Lesson
Acknowledgement: Adapted from: Charles and Jill Hadfield Modern English Teacher January 2012
Procedure: Missing words – what’s the rule – pre-vocab – what’s the title – I’ll definitely/I definitely
won’t etc – learner sentences
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When I am old, I will wear purple.
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When we’re talking about the future, after adverbs like when, we use a present tense
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Satin sandals Gobble up Railings The sobriety of my youth Slippers Spit Swear Rent
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Listen to the poem. Make up a title.
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When I am an old woman I will wear purple
With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me.
And I will spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we've no money for butter.
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I will sit down on the pavement when I'm tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I will go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick flowers in other people's gardens
And learn to spit.
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But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.
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But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
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When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.
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Jenny Joseph
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Warning
I’ve slightly changed the first line (from shall to will, as shall is a bit old-fashioned) and left out the
second verse which is a bit offensive towards the narrator’s husband.
Creativity in the language classroom
Making your toenails twinkle
Alan Marsh
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I’ll definitely
I definitely won’t
I’ll probably
I might
I’ll probably I probably won’t
I’ll definitely
I might I might not
I’ll I won’t
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I’ll definitely go
I definitely won’t go
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I’ll probably stay
I probably won’t stay
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Where do definitely, possibly (adverbs) go with verbs like will (modal auxiliaries)?e
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Affirmative: after the modal
Negative: before the modal
Learners mini-works
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When I’m old I won’t be quiet and I’ll bother my neighbours. I might have a toy boy.
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When we are old we shall definitely do many crazy and dangerous things.
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We will wear full make-up from morning and we will spend our money for a face lift
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When I’m old I’ll be an honarable person.
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I’ll live in America and I’ll speak the good English.
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I’ll teach my children to honar their old country and their new country.
Connections and creativity:
Neurons, synapses – making connections. Making space for learners’ interlanguages, their personal
‘second syllabus’.
Creativity is just connecting things. (Steve Jobs)
Three key conditions needed to be in place for learners to be creative:
S – the creative activity needs to be appropriately scaffolded,
L – it benefits from being explicitly linked to a specific area of language.
P- the person.
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The mind – the learner’s cognitive abilities, including (attending, noticing, remembering,
processing, analysing, judging and evaluating, problem-solving, making decisions
The emotions – e.g. being moved, laughter, excitement, sadness, happiness
Personal experience – the learners’ lives, worlds, experiences, preferences, opinions, ideas
I think therefore I am: Rene Descartes However, there are other ways in which we affirm our
existence: we feel, we act, we create.
Here’s an example which involves mental processing:
Let’s take as our starting point the present perfect .. something we all end up teaching … and
teaching again and again and again. It’s like a teacher’s badge: if you can teach it well, you’re a real
teacher. If your students learn it (ha ha) you can retire and go to heaven
1 Adele and Amy
Acknowledgement Adapted from an originally idea by Scott Thornbury
Amy Winehouse was born in London in 1983 and died in 2011. Adele was born in London in 1988.
Who does each of the following sentences refer to? Write Amy or Adele next to each.
Creativity in the language classroom
Making your toenails twinkle
Alan Marsh
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1 She has lived most of her life in London.
2 She lived most of her life in London.
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3 She wrote many songs.
4 She has written many songs.
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5 She has won several Grammy awards.
6 She won several Grammy awards.
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7 She wrote most of her own songs.
8 She has written most of her own songs.
Fill in the missing verbs:
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Sir Bobby Charlton __________many times for Manchester United.
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Lionel Messi ________ many times for Barcelona.
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Shakespeare _______ many famous plays.
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Dan Brown ________ some best-selling novels.
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Write some examples about people from your own country
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Yuri Gagarin / Vladimir Putin / Lenin
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Dante / Roberto Benigni / Silvio Berlusconi
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Goethe / Angela Merkel / Franz Beckenbauer
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Rafael Nadal / Pedro Almodovar / Picasso
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Tom Cruise / Usain Bolt / Pele / Abba / The Beatles / One Direction
We could move on to ….
Acknowledgement: Jo Gakonga: www.elt-training.com
Here’s an example which involves rhyme and rhythm
2 I haven’t been to – Procedure: stress rule rap rhymes learner’s poem Harald’s poem. Samira’s
work – something which transcends language practice. Lots of connections being made there.
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I haven’t been to India
I haven’t been to France
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I haven’t eaten frog’s legs
And I haven’t learnt to dance.
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I’ve always lived in Milan
I haven’t been abroad
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I’ve always lived at home
And I’m getting rather bored.
We can do some work on words that rhyme with the names of countries in English e.g.:
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France
trance / dance
The States
weights / mates
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Wales
gales / whales / males
Spain/Ukraine
rain / fame / game
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Greece
geese / fleece
Bahamas
bananas
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Italy
bitterly / jittery / wittily /
Chad
bad / sad / mad
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Congo
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Peru
Greece
bongo
Hong Kong
gong / ding dong / song / long /
you hoo / boo hoo / blue / you
Thailand
island / my land
geese / fleece / niece
Malta …. Walter / falter / alter / altar
Creativity in the language classroom
Making your toenails twinkle
Alan Marsh
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Harald’s (Germany) poem:
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I haven’t been to India
I haven’t been to the States
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I haven’t seen Los Angeles
And I really don’t want to wait!
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I’ve always lived in Germany
I haven’t been abroad
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I’ve always lived with my parents
And I’m getting very bored!!!!
Samira’s ‘poem’
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I’ve never been to Ireland. But I’ve been in love with Irish man. He had a huge talent to gain
women’s favour, but he was so mean. He inculcated in me a taste for art and love for
adventure. Our love story was bright and unforgettable, but it finished with a phrase “I’m
sorry”. At parting he gave me …
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…a kiss with an fragrant of Irish legend.
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I’ve never been to Italy. But I’ve been in love with Italian. He’s been very clever, he’s known
many languages, but he’s been so nervous and so fault-finding person. Well, we let as part
friends. He gave me in memory (or gave me as keepsake?) the 33 recipes for Italian pasta
and
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…one recipe for happiness.
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I’ve never been to Spain.
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But I’ve been head-over-heels in love with Spaniard. He’s been extremely generous and kind. I
thought that fortuna smiled on me, but he’d been in my city just for few weeks. He left for me
a lot of presents and
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… phone number which never answer.
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I’ve never been to Portugal …
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I’ve never been to Norway …
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I’ve never been to France …
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But once I met him and he taught me to love a life and be grateful. He gave me selfconfidence and opened at me a woman.
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Now I think: “There is a really journey – to be in love.
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Not important where you are, most important …
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…with who you are.”
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Samira, Iraq: Jo Gakonga’s
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Pre-intermediate learner (slightly adapted)
Transcending language practice!
3 And what about you? Say something impressive you’ve done eg hitching in the Sahara. Bringing up
a child …. interesting / surprising you’ve …. Done … Seen … Eaten… Been Met… Experienced… ?
Creativity in the language classroom
Making your toenails twinkle
Alan Marsh
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Acknowledgement: Highlight Intermediate Michael Vince Heinemann 1994.
I Have
I have seen the sun in the morning on the hills,
turning the hills and the sky to fire.
I have heard a bird in its cage
crying for the sky it has lost.
I have touched the grass beside the river,
wet with spring rain.
I have smelled roses, dead roses
in an empty house that no-one has visited.
And I have tasted the salt from the sea,
alone, at night, on a beach, in a storm.
I have done these things, and these things have made me old.
I have remembered these things, and these memories
have made me young.
Rhys Burton
Stage 2 Students write their own poem using the following prompts:
I have seen ..
I have heard
I have tasted … I
I have touched …
have done …
I have smelled …
I have remembered …
Teenagers/young adults might prefer to write a rap verse.
Acknowledgement: Thanks to Scott Thornbury, whose initial idea I have adapted.
Tere’s poem
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I have seen love in his eyes
I have heard his comforting voice
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I have touched his soul gently
I have smelled fear when we are apart
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I have tasted the sweetness of his kiss I have done everything I can for this love
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I have remembered the reasons why I married him
Tommaso’s poem
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I’ve seen people telling the truth.
I’ve heard other people telling lies.
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I’ve touched the truth itself.
I’ve smelled the stink of a lie.
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I’ve tasted the flavour of honesty.
I’ve done what was best for all.
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I’ve remembered how it made me feel.
Creativity in the language classroom
Making your toenails twinkle
Alan Marsh
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CONCLUSIONS
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Creativity in the language classroom is facilitated by SLP: scaffolding, linking with the official
syllabus, personalisation
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Creativity in the language classroom is not just an add-on
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It is not just a ‘Friday afternoon’ activity
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Because it helps learners to make and strengthen connections in their brains …
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Because it creates spaces in which learners’ personal syllabi can develop …
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Because it makes learning memorable by involving the mind, the emotions and the personal
worlds of our learners ….
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CREATIVITY IS AN ESSENTIAL COMPONENT IN CONSOLIDATING AND EXTENDING
LEARNING
In case you were wondering …
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“Poetry is what in a poem makes you laugh, cry, prickle, be silent, makes your toenails
twinkle, makes you want to do this or that or nothing, makes you know that you are alone
and not alone in the unknown world, that your bliss and suffering is forever shared and
forever all your own…” – Dylan Thomas
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Dylan Thomas A Few Words Of A Kind
Thank you
Contact details
www.alanmarshelt.com my website (for the slides)
alanmarshinmalta@gmail.com
Thanks to IH Barcelona for the invitation, the sponsorship and all the support.
Alan
Creativity in the language classroom
Making your toenails twinkle
Alan Marsh