Colloquial language and slang
Teachers:
Filipe de Almeida (ANG)
Students:
9th grade
Main theme:
Idioms, Colloquial language and Slang
Objectives:
- Students are exposed to the target language in a variety of ways
- Students learn new expressions in the target language
- Learn how to use idiomatic expressions
- Critically analyse different aspects of language
- Compare idioms in English to Slovene
Expected outcomes:
- Overall knowledge of different aspects of their town
Students recognise stereotypes of people in their town
- Students see the value of analysing data in different ways
- Faces of their town
- Promotion of different aspects of their town.
Evidence of outcomes:
- Students write a text before the workshop(an email or Facebook message)using language they
know
- Students fill in worksheets with different activities
- Students write the same text after the workshop using all language they know and newly
acquired vocabulary.
Project objectives:
-
Visualise the value added of FT in the project through workshops on authentic language
Distinguish the different qualities of the FT in comparison to Slovene teachers in regard to
written material
Teach students authentic language using authentic material and situations which the FT can
relate to better than the Slovene teacher
Material needed:
- Computer with internet connection
- Separate Classroom
- Markers
- Whiteboard
- Newspapers
- Paper/Photocopies
- Film/Video
Time needed: 5 lessons (school hours)
Lesson 1:
-
Students are divided into two groups( each group has 13 students)
Students are asked to write a text to a friend (either a Facebook message or e-mail) using as
many adjectives and creative language that they know. Students are encouraged to use the
vocabulary they would normally use if they were writing the text in reality. The students
should write numbers on their papers instead of their names before handing in their texts. This
way the material is anonymous and the teachers chosen to look over the texts won’t be biased.
Once the texts are handed in the FT informs students that they are going to participate in a
workshop related to Idioms, Colloquial language and Slang and students get information on
the workshop.
Lesson 2:
Teacher prepares a PowerPoint with billboard advertisements from around the world
with idiomatic expressions. Teacher guides students to comment the different slides and
get their feedback on how they relate the image with the idiomatic expression and the
product. The students are also encouraged to analyse the intercultural aspect of the
advertisements. Are they easily understood or would they change anything for their own
culture. Students are encouraged to discuss and compare with billboards in Slovenia. By
looking at the advertisements in critical way students learn to see more than just the
product but they also analyse the language and see how it is associated to the cultural
background of the country.
Lesson 3:
Teacher screens clips cut up from a film which portray how idiomatic expressions are
linked to culture and how their usage can lead to miscommunication if you do not
understand the culture present. The film is American but its set in India and shows the
differences in language and culture. Students get a worksheet with the different idioms
and they view each clip and try to interpret the situations both on a language as well as
cultural level. This workshop is interesting as it contrasts western culture vs. east and
can be used to help students see authentic language in film and at the same time learn
about different cultural habits. Students are guided to think critically about each
situation and compare it to their reality in Slovenia. How would the expressions play out
in their reality, and students are encouraged to toy with these situations to learn
broader cultural issues.
Lesson 4:
The teacher brings in a newspaper article on British slang as well as a video which
accompanies the text. Students first listen to a group of British teenagers their age
having a conversation. Due to the fact that the teenagers (UK) use very specific slang
related to their region the audio track is almost impossible for most students to
understand. They then view the conversation with an image and subtitles which help
decode the message. Guided by the teacher we analyse some of the language used to
understand how it relates to the conversation. By putting the language into its context
students may be able to decode the authentic language. The students then get a
translation activity to do in class. The teacher writes a simple English sentence on the
whiteboard and asks the students to do 3 different translations of the sentence for
homework: 1. A translation into “correct Slovene”, 2. A translation into slang/colloquial
language (Slovene) and 3. A translation into the slang they use with their
friends(inclusion of swearwords ).