A great way to get students talking in your language classroom is to facilitate small group discussions. Small group discussions take away the scary experience of speaking in front of a large group of fellow students and it makes sure all students get a chance to talk. Discussion cards are a great tool to establish small group discussions, and here is why:
First of all, a set of discussion cards for small group discussions should be printed (and possibly laminated) for all groups. A great way to do this is printing them on a different colored paper for each group. Then you’ll distribute them to your small groups. Students will love to have the responsibility for a set of cards that looks professional (what a little lamination can do..), and a leader will rise who will read the discussion card to the small group.
In small group discussions, the students determine the pace. They may talk long or for only a short amount of time about any given topic. Providing discussion cards will help them both continue through all the cards and take the time to discuss all of them. They’ll feel responsible for answering all the questions.
Discussion cards for small group discussions limit the topics you want your students to discuss. You might have a goal in mind with the questions on the cards – although that is certainly not a requirement; I’m all for getting them to talk just for the sake of it – and so you want to keep students focused on that one topic. The set questions will stop them from digressing too much.
I love using discussion cards to introduce topics and get students’ prior knowledge activated. I’ve made sets for all sorts of topics (the seasons, vocabulary, holidays, grammar topics, etc.). Check them out HERE.
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I hope I’ve inspired you to use discussion cards in your lessons! Give it a try and see how it works!
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