Teaching speaking
Make talk improve the thinking.
A useful teaching sequence
- Give quiet thinking time and a clear communicative purpose.
- Provide a listener job: clarify, check evidence or identify a missing step.
- Let the speaker repair a response after feedback rather than sharing the first attempt only.
- Listen to a fresh explanation and follow-up; value meaning and intelligibility alongside fluency.
First response
The arrow shows it moving upwards.
Listener question
Does the arrow represent motion or force?
Repair
It shows an upward force; the diagram alone does not tell us the direction of motion.
Try it in the next lesson
Use short paired turns with a specific listener question. Invite the speaker to explain what changed after listening to the partner.
Notice and respond to a common difficulty
One confident learner carries the conversation. Give each person a distinct explanation or checking role, then collect an individual response.
Language support and independent evidence
Use a small word bank, a brief model, visual support and rehearsal where needed. Learners can demonstrate subject knowledge through a home language or another mode. Review fresh task evidence in this skill before adjusting a proficiency judgment.
Choose age-appropriate language support →