Name: Yanina Salgueiro
Subject: Didactics 1
New Deadline: 13th May
Unit 2 Assignment 1 (Correction)
Observe an English lesson and explain it. What did the teacher do? Were the aims achieved? Then, think of ways
for improving the lesson regarding opening, sequencing, pacing and closure. Propose the changes in a plan.
Fundament your changes. Don’t forget the aims of the lesson.
I have observed a fourth year secondary school lesson, in which the teacher started by making a review regarding
some concepts of the previous lesson about the uses of past continuous VS simple past, she asked the students what
they remembered about it. Some students gave her their own examples. Then, she continued explaining the uses of
simple past and past continuous. Then she gave the students a short story in which some new concepts appeared
like the uses of both tenses with while and when and new vocabulary. After reading she gave them true/false
activities about the story and another activity in which they have to complete with for and since. After checking
those activities, she gave them a listening activity in which they had to answer questions. There were two possible
answers for each question and they had to choose the correct one. The last activity was about ask and answer in
pairs, sentences about what were they doing when something important happened. At the end of the lesson she
summarized asking the students the uses of simple past, past continuos and when, while. Then she gave them copies
for homework in which they had to complete with the correct verb.
The aims achieved on this lesson were to focus on the uses of the simple past Vs past continuous, improve the
reading and learn new vocabulary.
I would like to give another lesson plan alternative which it has more communicative activities.
Plan:
Aims: to focus on simple past vs past continuous tenses,the uses of while and when and improve the students’
ability to read and learn new vocabulary.
Opening: I would open the lesson by making a review of some concepts regarding simple past VS past continuous
and it uses drawing a chart on the board and letting the students help me to complete it so as to know if they
remembered what they have been taught . In case they need a new explanation, I would explain it again. If your aim
was communicative activities, there is no evidence of this in the opening.
Sequencing: I would explain that we use the past continuous to indicate a longer action in the past was interrupted,
and that the interruption is usually a shorter action in the simple past and writing some examples on the board. Then
I would write some sentences and tell the students to write them in the past continuous and past simple, using while
and when and check them in order to see if they have understood. Then I would give them a short story in which
new vocabulary appears and the uses of the tense we are learning, and after they finish reading it, I would ask what
it is about, tell them to underline the sentences in which the new tense appears and to write down the new
vocabulary in order to look at the meaning of them. The following activity would be a photocopy which has different
pictures about geographical features and they have to complete the name of each place and make sentences using
simple past vs past continuous. The last activity would be in pairs, to ask questions such as: what were you doing
when...? and to answer them. Then I would check them orally in order to detect the problems the students may
have. Maybe the pair activity you designed is more “communicative” in a sense.
Pacing: It is completely under control of the teacher. Moreover the explanation should be as brief as possible
and a variety of activities should be given to the students in order to keep their motivation. Also, checking the
activities given to them immediately after they have finished is important to solve the doubts they may have and to
not let them waste time between them and If some students are faster than others, they should be given extra
activities.
Closure: at the end of the lesson I would ask if they have any doubts, if they have understood the new topic. Then I
would give them homework, which would be check on the following lesson.
Dear Yanina,
You have focused on the features and that is good! Well done!
Now, pay special attention to what you consider communicative, since there is no evidence of communication in
your activities (except the pair work).
Now, focus on context. Did you see the “Guess” threads in the forum? Please participate, since it will give you a very
good opportunity to practice and therefore, understand more.
Please count on me; you know you can write to me as many times as needed.
A hug!
Romina.