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Objectives
Students have been learning about noun clauses for two previous days in the week and
are familiar with how to use noun clauses. They have also completed homework pertaining to
this lesson assigned the previous day.
have either been in the program for 2 or more terms, or have tested and been placed in this level
by the English Language Institute. The students come from Saudi Arabia, Korea, Japan, China,
Taiwan, and Vietnam.
Theoretical background
The lesson was based predominantly on a communicative language teaching approach
that sees interaction through authentic language activities as the most effective way to learn
language. Communicative language teaching associates learning as a social activity, thus
providing opportunities for authentic communication within the classroom is key. Celce Murcia
(2014) explains Communicative Language teaching by essentially saying since communication is
the goal of language teaching, the pedagogical decision should be to promote those functions and
language tasks with authentic opportunities for communication. In this lesson students will be
practicing workbook tasks before breaking into pair/group work to discuss their opinions on an
article. They will then use reported speech to discuss their partners ideas on the article topic.
Students will be able to authentically discuss the materials because they are expressing personal
opinions regarding a current technological debate. This will offer authentic examples of reported
speech because they will be able to discuss what their partner thinks/believes/feels about the
topic while the group learns by the students various examples. This will also offer an authentic
way to informally assess how the students are absorbing/ using the knowledge they are receiving
from this lesson.
Activities
Opening activity: Teacher will begin by introducing quoted and reported speech, and
asking students questions to gauge understanding of the previous days assigned reading on this
topic.
Teacher will have students check homework as a large group. The following exercise can
be found in their workbooks:
Exercise 26: Look at Grammar
Make sentences in which you quote the speakers exact words. Use said or asked. Punctuate
carefully.
5. JOHN F. KENNEDY: Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do
for your country.
Teacher will ask students for their answers and write them on the board, then proceed to
ask the class if each of the 5 rules for quoted speech were followed in their answers. The class
will move through the checklist collectively until all five problems in the exercise have been
answered.
Teacher will ask students on what occasions direct quotes are used, and write all answers
down on the board.
Activity 2: Teacher will then introduce reported speech as a way to reflect back on what
someone has said, and refer to the following exercise in the workbook, which will have been
completed by the students. Students will volunteer or be called on by the teacher to read their
answers aloud to the class as students follow along in their workbooks.
The following activity is taken directly from the textbook:
Exercise 30: Looking at Grammar
Change the pronouns from quoted speech to reported speech.
4. Rick said to us, Ill meet you at your house after I finish my work at my house.
Rick said that_____ would meet _____ at_____ house after _______finished
_______work at _______house.
Activity 3: Teacher will introduce a news article on driverless vehicles and ask if students are
familiar with driverless vehicles. Teacher will give a short explanation if needed and then pass
out the news article. Volunteers will each read a paragraph aloud as the class follows along with
their copies.
See article here: http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2015/01/29/are-we-ready-fordriverless-cars/automation-has-already-saved-lives
Teacher will pair students and ask each pair/ group to discuss their opinions of the article with
one another. Each member will be asked to write one idea that their partner has about driverless
cars, and one direct quote about driverless cars.
Assessment
Students are given an opinion article from the NY Times and asked to discuss their own opinions
with one another. This helps to eliminate the possibility of ones cultural bias because the opinion
article is regarding technology, and does not require any previous content knowledge from the
learner because the class reads the article together and discusses what is meant by driverless cars.
The topic is scaffolded for understanding by the teacher to ensure students are able to effectively
discuss within groups. Students are paired with others that speak a different L1 than they do to
avoid using the L1 as a crutch during the pair work. The pair work gives students who may be
struggling with the difference between quoted and reported speech, a chance to ask questions of
We can't afford not to take advantage of vehicle automation technologies. With proper design, testing and
regulation, advanced vehicle automation has the potential to greatly reduce the number of injuries and
fatalities attributable to motor vehicle accidents.
Vehicle automation has already provided important safety advantages. Technologies such as electronic
stability control which improves performance on turns and slippery surfaces and anti-lock brakes
have been around for many years, and have helped make road travel much safer. The National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration has estimated that electronic stability control saved over 2,200
lives from 2008 to 2010.
PREVIOUS
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2015/01/29/are-we-ready-for-driverlesscars/automation-has-already-saved-lives
Record ONE direct quote from your partner, using the 5 rules for quoted speech in the space
below:
10
Peer Survey
Discuss the following questions with a partner, taking notes, and be prepared to share your
partners answers with the class.
2. Did you find it helpful to talk about the article in order to understand quotes and reported
speech?
3. In what other instances can you see yourself using reported speech?
4. Do you have a difficult time remembering the difference between quoted and reported
speech?
11
References
Celce-Murcia, M. Brinton, D. M. Snow, M. A. (2014). Teaching English as a second or foreign
language, (4th Ed). Boston, MA: National Geographic Learning.
Azar, B. S., & Hagen, S. A. (2011). Fundamentals of English grammar, (4th Ed). White Plains,
NY: Pearson Longman.
Le Vine, S. (January 29, 2015). Automation has already saved lives. New York Times. Retrieved
from http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2015/01/29/are-we-ready-for-driverlesscars/automation-has-already-saved-lives