TOTAL PHYSICAL

RESPONSE (TPR)
EARLY TEACHING OF A SECOND LANGUAGE
A BRIEF HISTORY OF TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE

• Total Physical Response is a teaching method revolving around the coordination of

speech and student action. Its foundation is teaching and learning through physical action,
utilizing your students’ motor skills while they respond to commands as quickly as
possible.
• It was developed by Dr. James Asher, a professor of psychology at San Jose State
University, California. Dr. Asher combined several theories and methods in his design of
the method, including learning theory, developmental psychology and humanistic
pedagogy.
WHAT THEORIES SUPPORT THE EFFECTIVENESS
OF TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE?

• This learning method takes many of its cues from behavioral psychology.
• Dr. Asher’s methodology has often been discarded or redeveloped by language
psychologists and linguists, however, his views and methods are still very much a part of
language learning today.
WHAT THEORIES SUPPORT THE EFFECTIVENESS
OF TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE? II

• We should develop language learning activities that surround our natural,

childhood-esque learning patterns.
• For example, building commands that promote action. This is what Dr. Asher saw
as the bio-program for language learning. This is why Total Physical Response is
based on a child’s learning abilities during their acquisition of their first language.
• Children learn speech through commands, both giving and receiving them. They
ask mommy for a snack, ask daddy to take them to the park and respond
(hopefully) when they are told to go to bed, all the while building memories for
their future actions.
WHAT THEORIES SUPPORT THE EFFECTIVENESS
OF TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE?
• We should utilize brain lateralization.
• This is when you develop language learning through the use of the right and left hemispheres of the
brain. The left side of your brain is normally the language learning center, but combining right and left,
your students’ connections, imagery and logic can both be stimulated and used for optimal success.
• This is, in fact, based on a stimulus-response model taken from behavioral psychology, known as
the Sv-R type learning. The (Sv) represents the verbal stimulus you give to your students during a
TPR activity. The (R) represents your students’ responses to the stimulus (command) you provided.
The behavioral psychology of the stimulus-response methods still stands strong. Stimulus-response
remains a simple and effective way to elicit action from your students as they build the cognitive map
essential for language retention.
• This relates to the ideology represented in how we learn language as children, revolving around the
fact that children respond to verbal commands more than anything else.
WHAT THEORIES SUPPORT THE EFFECTIVENESS OF
TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE?

• We should recognize that stress is a language learning killer in many aspects.

• TPR aims to eliminate as much stress as possible from the learning process. This
should be the goal for you as an ESL teacher anyway, but keeping this practice in
your TPR activities is essential.
• The TPR learning theory is based upon one aim, despite the amount of different
theories, approaches, task types and objectives involved. The one, single-minded aim
of this is delivering memorable language lessons.
•
THE 3 ELEMENTS OF TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE
TASKS
• 1. Non-abstractions and abstractions

• Non-abstractions are first developed by your students using nouns and imperative verbs. These create detailed “cognitive maps” for your students,
while also putting grammar at work behind the scenes. For example, using non-abstractions puts your students into action mode, while the reasoning
behind the action may be left out until commands are met with quick response.

• Your students will be doing a lot of moving around as you command them to do certain things like, “stand up and touch your head.” It is
straightforward and simple. There is one, clear cut route from command to response. Nothing remains unclear or uncertain in the middle.

• Abstractions are brought into the picture later, once the detailed cognitive map has been firmly set in your students’ minds. If you instruct your
students to “stand up and talk to your neighbor about how they are feeling today,” this goes a bit deeper. This is more open-ended, and the questions
and responses can be whatever the students want them to be. How can you talk to someone about their day? How can you nicely ask about
feelings, without being invasive? What feels like the right way for you to speak to your neighbor? Which words to choose?

• The abstraction or deeper meaning behind it is explained after commands and responses are nearly perfect, or at least complete. At this point you
will explain the abstract meanings behind what your students were doing during the activity. What is the purpose of talking to someone about how
they are feeling? Is it common culturally for Americans, Australians or other native English speakers to address each other in this way? For example,
you might explain that asking someone how they are is polite, starts conversation and shows empathy for someone else’s feelings and daily life. You
might also explain how Americans always say “How are you?” as a type of greeting, and the response to this does not have to be elaborate.
THE 3 ELEMENTS OF TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE
TASKS
• 2. Speech acts
• Total Physical Response is heavily based on commands and actions, but the
methodology also involves more in-depth areas of language learning and usage as
well. Utilizing speech acts and role plays is also a large chunk of learning with this
method.
• Students do not have to remain silent. As noted in the above point, you can instruct
students to interact with one another, get information and have conversations.
• For example, you can instruct a student to ask another student about a commonly
known word in your class. “Jose, ask Maria the definition for dog.” Jose will ask Maria
and Maria will give a response. This builds communication and discussion, while
producing language skills for asking questions and receiving answers.
THE 3 ELEMENTS OF TOTAL PHYSICAL
RESPONSE TASKS
• The lexical approach to vocabulary acquisition
• Dr. Asher drew from the lexical approach to language learning, which encourages people to learn and teach language in chunks
instead of isolated units. So, instead of teaching one single vocabulary word, you should teach it within the context of a more
complete phrase or sentence.
• For Total Physical Response purposes, this can be achieved by compounding nouns and verbs through commands and actions.
The use of single words simply does not lend itself well to these methods.
• In fact, the methodology behind this focuses more on grouped words rather than singular forms found in more traditional
English learning. Sure, you can bark, “jump, run, walk, sit!” but that takes some of the depth out of the method.You also miss lots
of opportunities to teach more words.
• For example, instead of telling your student what an apple is by showing a picture on a board and saying “apple,” you will say
“Juan, stand up, find the apple and place it in the fruit bowl.” This will have that student stand up, remember what an apple is and
locate the item itself, then recall what a “fruit bowl” is and place the item inside it. See how much more involved this can get?
HOW TO SET UP TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE
ACTIVITIES

• TPR encompasses three essential principles for you and your students to develop and
implement for a great, stress-free TPR activity in your classroom:
• 1. Students listen before speaking.
• 2. Students learn through commands.
• 3. Students target language speech evolves from listening.
• The process is quite simple and exceptionally effective.
A SAMPLE ACTIVITY FOR PUTTING TOTAL
PHYSICAL RESPONSE INTO PRACTICE
• Putting TPR into practice is easy and you will find enjoyment as a teacher, while your students experience a new, fun way to learn English. There are
a few elements of your TPR lesson plan to remember before beginning. Think about the commands and language you are going to present.

• Is it easy for your students to comprehend?

• Do you have a plan in place for showing your students first?

• Are you using materials, and if so, are your students ready?

• How will you keep stress out of your lesson?

• Always question your lesson from a student’s perspective. You should have a fairly good idea about your students’ needs and English levels by the
time you are ready to create a TPR lesson that will be fun, exciting, stress-free and informative.

• Warm up your students with a fun, quick activity. For example, command your students to stand up. Have them touch their toes, stretching out. Have
them touch their ears, head and shoulders. Left and right directional warm up activities are also great, developing a directional cognitive map
essential for future TPR lessons.

• Once your students are warmed up and ready to go, start with target language you want to present. Say a command and show the response you
expect to see. Your students’ memories begin with your actions and voice command. They will begin connecting listening with action immediately.
FOR THIS TPR LESSON, YOU WILL USE THE
VERB “HOLD.”
• Command your students to hold up their hands, letting them participate as a class
first, before you begin calling individual students. This will instill confidence as a
group and keep stress out of the TPR equation.
• Next, command one student to hold up his or her hands. Then command him or
her to hold up a pencil. Then command him or her to hold up the pencil of another
student. This command will build on the original command and be developed into
a sentence.
FOR THIS TPR LESSON, YOU WILL USE THE
VERB “HOLD.”
• Here is the sequence of commands.
• Everyone, hold up your hands.
• Great! Put your hands down.
• Class, stand up.
• Class, hold up your hands.
• Put your hands down and sit down.
• Jose, hold up your left hand.
• Jose hold up your pencil in your left hand.
• Jose, stand up, move to Maria’s desk and hold up her pencil.
• Maria, hold up Jose’s pencil at his desk.
FOR THIS TPR LESSON, YOU WILL USE THE
VERB “HOLD.”
• And the TPR activity will continue in that manner as you work through all your
students, giving commands and watching for correct and quick responses.
• You will also begin to have other students give commands to their classmates.
You can build on one verb in many ways, it is all up to your TPR creativity.
CONCLUSION

• TPR is an excellent way to develop your ESL students’ listening, response and
speaking skills in a fun and collaborative way. They will have an understanding of
English in a more practical and cognitive way as they connect their memory with
actions they will use in a variety of real-world English situations abroad, at their
office or in school.
• Give them a stress-free way to learn that promotes excitement, confidence and
eagerness to learn more.