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ESL forum >
Techniques and methods in Language Teaching > El Quijote didn ´t work
El Quijote didn ´t work
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carinita
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El Quijote didn ´t work
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hello!
for the teachers that suggested "El Quijote" game (putting into circulation a card with Don Quijote crossed out meaning spanish is not allowed)...in the specific group I teach, it wasn �t effective
students misbehaved anyway...
I know here we are in the field of ideas, real reality is another thing! |
18 Aug 2010
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Lina Ladybird
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I �m sooo sorry to hear that.  But why did it not work? What exactly happened? |
18 Aug 2010
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lshorton99
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Hi Carinita
I �m sorry the Don Quijote idea didn �t work - it sounded fun! I have a similar one which is the English monkey (I have a colleague who does it with a plastic banana!) - it can basically be any object - preferably somethi8ng silly. If someone speaks Spanish - they get the monkey. They keep it until either someone else speaks Spanish or I deem that they �ve spoken enough English to warrent returning the monkey to me. The person with the monkey at the end of the class gets a forfeit - usually extra homework but depending on the class, it can be something silly, like knocking on the door of another class and telling the teacher they love them or reciting a tongue twister. Get creative with the forfeits - it can provide you with some much needed comic relief!
It works on a lot of classes but bear in mind that some classes just don �t work! When I started teaching, I spent ages trying to work out what I was doing wrong with a particular class. i went to every conference/workshop/seminar, asked other teachers, cried myself to sleep and generally worried. Eventually I came to the conclusion that sometimes it �s not you - it �s them! Once I stopped worrying, I actually had far fewer problems. Even so, I still get classes where nothing works. I just suffer, do my best to make them suffer too and eveyone �s happy (or miserable!). Luckily it �s never more than one class a year and some years not even that.
I hope your class gets better!
Lindsey
EDIT: Real reality? don�t you know reality bites?! Stay in the field of ideas. It�s full of unicorns, rainbows, dolphins and marshmallow clouds. Much better here!
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18 Aug 2010
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carinita
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Students didn �t mind, I guess, having extra work...but then, after the lesson finished, I talked to their head teacher and those ss misbehaving are going to get a punitive grade
I felt awkward almost throghout the lesson....I don �t want to write or talk about it but thanks for asking anyway |
18 Aug 2010
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anitarobi
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So sorry this happened. Sometimes even the best idea doesn �t work with a certain group or in a particular place or time. Really, I �ve had a group with which you couldn �t do any musical activity whatsoever (and they were preschoolers) which shocked me, and teenage groups which I had to treat almost as convicts to get their attention (I felt like a prison guard or a marine drill sergeant)... It can really be depressing, but don �t let it discourage you in using some ideas. If you feel good about sth, it will work. I hope you get your spirits up soon! |
18 Aug 2010
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zoemorosini
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I agree wholeheartedly with Ishorton. Love what she said above!!! I learned something new myself, too--comic relief can be just what the doctor ordered. |
19 Aug 2010
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pauguzman
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Why don �t you try with rewards instead of punisment? ( they could feel that a banana or that quijote card is sthg to punish them and of course they are going to react on the other way aound) Last year I printed some starts ( like the smile stickers)that I gave them when they spoke in English and did their homework. They were soooo competitive that they really made the effort to speak in English all the time. At the end of each month they could exchange the starts for chocolates or Alenka �s minibooks ...and guess what...... and they chose the minibooks!!! good luck! Paula |
19 Aug 2010
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carinita
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You �re right Pau Positive reinforcement always works better than negative reinforcement What I liked about El Quijote is that I could share responsibility with the students because the st that gets it is supposed to monitor the other ss...I mean, it may work with other groups
I like your idea too It sounds good! |
20 Aug 2010
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