Crime story

Additional Info

  • Name: Crime story
  • OVERVIEW

  • Linguistic dimension

  • CEFR Level: B1, B2
  • Linguistic dimension - Skill(s): Listening / Writing / Speaking / Reading
  • Duration: 90 minutes
  • Target language: English or any other language
  • ICT dimension

  • ICT resources:

     

    http://chogger.com/

    http://www.photoshow.com/home/start

    http://www.pixton.com/, http://www.bitmoji.com/  or any programme for making comics

    power point presentation or prezi (http://prezi.com) or http://www.brainshark.com/

    movie maker software

    storybird.com

    PC and projector

  • ICT competences: Publish a story in video or audio format with Windows Movie Maker, multimedia presentations, comics, audio files
  • Detailed description of the task

  • Situation / theme(s): Crime story
  • I can...:

     

    I can write stories on an assigned topic.

    I can write a description of an imagined event.

    I can ask follow-up questions to check that I have understood what a speaker said

    I can use past tenses appropriately (the Past Simple and the Past Continuous tenses)

  • Product: Making their own video clip of a crime story
  • Product requirements or prerequisites:

     

    CD player, Internet access, movie maker or similar software for making video clips or movies, PC, video recording device

  • Process:

     

    Listening - Students listen to a story on a CD but the teacher pauses at a critical moment to ask the students to predict how the story will end. The class should discuss their suggested endings and compare their predictions (5 min)

    Writing (pair work) - students are divided in pairs; each group should first agree on a new ending for the story they listened to at the beginning of the lesson (this ending can be one of the suggestions either of them made during the warm up or even a different version they imagine together) and then write the new version (20 min)

    Listening - students continue to listen to the rest of the story and see how what they imagined compares to the original story (10 min)

    Vocabulary and grammar check -Teacher gives students the transcript of the story which has been prepared with gaps; students fill in the missing words and practice grammar, i.e. past tenses, check what sound effects students heard (crying, crashing, bumping…) (10 min)

    Setting homework – in groups, students will be given handouts with different key words for each group that need to be used in a new crime story to be written in groups for homework. After writing the story together, students create a representation of their story using the above mentioned ICT tools to be presented in the next class. Students should also prepare three questions to ask the other students for a comprehension check about their story. (5 min)

    Story presentation - Groups present their own stories to the rest of the classroom using a projector and a PC, reading out the story loudly and ask and solicit responses to those comprehension questions each group prepared for homework (20 min)

    Student evaluation – students discuss the stories they liked best and justify their choices (10 min)

    Vocabulary check (optional) – teacher verifies that each of the key words provided has been used in the story and that all students have understood them. The handout of key words could be used as a checklist in which each team matches the definition of the given key words with the words. (10 min)  

  • Division of roles (optional): Pair work, group work
  • Consolidating activities suggested or follow up plan:

     

     

    Set of activities such as writing their own ending of the story, making predictions in written form, etc.  aimed at fostering their creativity and writing skills

  • Success factors or evaluation criteria:

     

    Students have done it well if they have successfully reached the product or outcome of the lesson, they made a considerable use of the suggested ICT tools and if they responded well to the CERF criteria set for this lesson

  • Authors: Jelena Jelenić Marinović, Mirjana Kovačević, Danijela Manić, Julijana Vučo
  • Didactic added value of the task and other information

  • Practical hints for teachers:

     

    Become familiar with the story in advance and double check the technology before class

    Prepare the transcript for the story.

    Consider what grammar features are to be acquired and tested

    Prepare the transcript as a cloze exercise that covers not just vocabulary but the selected grammar features for the lesson

    Make enough copies of the cloze/transcript for each student

    Prepare handouts with key words to be used for the homework

    Make enough copies of the handout for each student

    Be sure stories‘ format that will be presented in the classroom will  work properly on PC device before the lesson starts

  • Additional methodological or didactic comments:

     

     

    Students should bring their written stories to class in case the technology fails.

  • Reasons why this task is a model of best practices:

     

     

    This task is an example of writing which involves student-centred work and their imagination and ICT skills. It improves at the same time writing skills and ICT skills.  

  • Impact that it is expected to have on the teaching practices and attitudes:

     

     

    Encourage teachers to adopt TBLT and the CEFR in their practice and implement ICT in their teaching approaches

  • Reasons why this task travels well:

     

     

    This task comprises three language skills (listening, writing, speaking) and it can be modified and used at all levels. Also, students are engaged in freer practice. This task may be carried out using many different ICT resources beyond those mentioned above.

  • Rationale and/or theoretical underpinnings of the task: ICT & TBLT CEFR level B1/B2

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