Learning English through Sports Communication
3. Once the school has decided to offer this module it can start building up resources. The library probably already has a collection of sports-related material and can be encouraged to add to it
English language sports magazines may be a good investment. Student work can be kept from year to year to allow new members of the module to see the usual standard. Boxes of cuttings relating to major sports events can be kept and lists of good websites drawn up. Obviously the school's Physical Education Department could be invited to co-operate. It would be excellent if the class could attend a sporting event together or if the school could invite a sports personality to come and talk. As with actual sports, an attempt to build up a team spirit would lead to better results.
4. Students should be encouraged to keep a folder for this module which will serve as a record of their learning. The folder may comprise all the assignments the students have done for the module, both oral and written. Students are also encouraged to reflect on and monitor their own learning process, and teachers should provide them with feedback and assistance where necessary.
Suggestions on how to cater for students with different needs and paces of learning are indicated by
* in the Remarks column.
Sections which are marked with # in the Focus column contain activities which are either more
demanding or are intended to further enrich students' learning experience. Teachers should use
their discretion as to whether to include or skip these sections, or to replace them with other
appropriate learning activities, based on students' needs and abilities.
Focus Suggested Time Allocation
Target Knowledge, Skills
and Attitudes Suggested Activities Module
introduction Sports vocabulary
2 periods Lessons 1-2
Students are able to:
• understand the aims, design and content of the module
• understand and use some common sports vocabulary
Students are given a brief outline of the module and told of the various oral and written tasks they will be expected to perform, including the preparation of a display on sports in the school. They can be encouraged to start thinking of good ideas for this.
Students are told in advance to bring some English newspapers or sports magazines to class.
The teacher asks them to scan the newspapers or magazines for sports vocabulary related to some of the following:
• types of sports and competitions
• participants and spectators
• equipment and facilities
• skills and actions
• performance
• rules and regulations
• results and records
• victories and losses
• awards and honours
• sports conduct
Students are encouraged to try working out the meanings of the words in context before making use of a dictionary.
The teacher then pools the vocabulary together and explains the unfamiliar ones.
He/She may also introduce other vocabulary he/she considers useful.
Fan talk 4 periods Lessons 3-6
Students are able to:
• identify the
characteristics of various types of sports texts
• write fan material
Students read and familiarise themselves with various examples of fan material (magazines, letters, profiles of famous sports people and teams, etc.).
Students produce a piece of writing suitable for a fan website.
Quiz on sports knowledge
2 periods Lessons 7-8
Students are able to:
• demonstrate and share knowledge about sports
• produce and conduct a quiz
Every student is asked to bring ten questions that are neither so easy that everyone knows the answer nor so hard that no one does. The teacher or a quizmaster can conduct the quiz. It can be for everyone or a knock-out competition. The aim is for students to enjoy the module and use English unselfconsciously.
Teaching Resources
Suggested Student Work or Activities for Formative
Assessment
Remarks A handout on the
module detailing the content, preparation work needed for some lessons, etc.
^A handout on sports vocabulary
Teachers might like to tell students that the module aims at helping them to read/view a range of texts related to sports.
They will also develop the skills and strategies in creating texts such as fan pages and sports product reviews. A selection of the texts they have produced will be on display at the end of the module.
There are many relevant websites and the students will no doubt be already aware of them and be able to make recommendations. From a teaching point of view
http://eleaston.com/sports.html is a rich source of teaching material and vocabulary and will be very useful when
preparing the various handouts, such as the vocabulary ones for the first lesson. The major broadcasting networks/
channels also carry a lot of information:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com http://www.foxsports.com
http://thestar.com.my/news/sports
^A handout on fan talk
^A list of websites with suitable material
The piece of writing can be put into the folder.
(*Teachers might like to vary the length requirement for the writing depending on the abilities of the class of students. If the students are not very proficient at English, a short letter to a sports idol expressing reasons for admiration or a brief enthusiastic introduction to a player or team will be sufficient.
A full design for the homepage of a website could be required from the more able students.)
Teachers may encourage students to read widely about the teams and players that interest them before producing their own piece of work. As there is so much material available about sport, it is necessary to remind students of the evils and pointlessness of plagiarism.
A bank of questions in case there are any problems with the student questions
Teachers should have some more questions ready in case of any problems. If questions are written on individual slips they can be drawn randomly and quickly checked for suitability.
Focus Suggested Time Allocation
Target Knowledge, Skills
and Attitudes Suggested Activities Presentation on Students are able to:
• give a short presentation to an audience
• research, summarise and present
information
• demonstrate and share knowledge about sports
Students are given a list of sports from which they select one they are interested in.
In small groups of three to four, they make a short presentation (of about 10 minutes) to introduce the sport.
Students evaluate their own and other groups’ presentation using a set of criteria.
Sports advertising
4 periods Lessons 15-18
Students are able to:
• demonstrate awareness of advertising methods
• communicate ideas in a discussion
• read and write texts on sports advertising
• understand and use some common vocabulary for sports advertising
Students bring examples of advertising material for sports products to class and share them. In small groups, they discuss the main features and selling points of sports advertising.
Students choose a sports product and produce an advertising leaflet for it.
Students evaluate their own and others' leaflets using a set of criteria.
#Sports product review
4 periods Lessons 19-22
Students are able to:
• express judgement, recommend action and make comparison
• take part in a discussion
• read and write texts on sports product review
• understand and use some common vocabulary for sports product review
In pairs, students read and discuss sports product reviews to familiarise themselves with the writing style and the criteria for choosing and judging various items of sports equipment.
Students write a short review on a sports product they have purchased or are planning to buy.
Students evaluate their own and others’
review using a set of criteria.
Films on sports 4 periods Lessons 23-26
Students are able to:
• share experience and opinion on the viewing of films on sports
• take part in a discussion
Students tell each other about good films they have seen relating to sports.
Students watch a film or part of a film on sports outside class. They have to complete a handout relating to the film.
6 periods Lessons 9-14 sports
Teaching Resources
Suggested Student Work or Activities for Formative
Assessment
Remarks
^A handout on presentation of sports
^A list of sports
^A suggested plan with guiding
^Presentation
^A presentation feedback form Sound equipment
Self, peer and/or teacher assessment of the presentation
(*Teachers should adjust the amount of instruction and guidance based on their knowledge of how much experience of making presentations the students have. The suggested plan and presentation guidelines may be given to the less able students as an extra form of help.
The length and complexity (whether the talk should include visual aids, whether the presentations are to be made by individuals or pairs, etc.) will probably depend on the number of students in the class, students’ abilities and the constraints of time.)
Some co-ordination by teachers may be necessary in order to ensure that while students talk about topics that interest them there is not too much reduplication of material that may risk loss of the audience’s attention. Teachers may also invite suggestions from students on what other sports to include.
^A handout on sports advertising
Examples of sports advertising or access to suitable websites A handout on advertising language An advertising leaflet feedback form
Self, peer and/or teacher assessment of the advertising leaflet
The advertising leaflet can be included in the folder.
The major manufacturers of sporting goods have useful websites students may visit.
^A handout on sports product review A review feedback form
Self, peer and/or teacher assessment of the reviews
The review can be kept in the folder.
A list of suggested film titles
Students' work related to sports films can be added to the folder.
While the enthusiasm of students must not be harmed, teachers should try to steer the class’ interest towards English language films. Watched with English subtitles, films can supply students with enjoyable language input (listening and reading).
Teachers might also prepare a handout on sports films and let teams compete to find the information to complete it.
questions
guidelines
Focus Suggested Time Allocation
Target Knowledge, Skills
and Attitudes Suggested Activities Preparing for the
final display 2 periods Lessons 27-28
Students are able to:
• take decisions about work and plan ahead
• brainstorm and share ideas
• co-operate with classmates
Students are given details of the arrangements for the final display.
The teacher will tell them that they will be producing material based on the sports activities in the school and it will be used for the display, and that the aim is to have as many interesting different approaches to sport in the school as possible.
Each student will submit a minimum of two texts of different genres, say sports articles and survey reports. Students should remember that while the main focus is English, they are encouraged to explore any media that interest them.
The lesson should be a brainstorming one with students sharing ideas, forming groups and taking initial decisions.
Sports writing 4 periods Lessons 29-32
Students are able to:
• identify the
characteristics of sports articles
• research a sports topic
• read and write sports articles
Students look at a selection of sports articles, read them and answer questions that can help them to notice aspects of style, organisation and vocabulary.
Students choose a topic of a similar nature for use in the final display, i.e. a topic related to the context of the school, gather relevant information, and write an article on it.
Students evaluate their own and others' sports articles using a set of criteria.
#Sports commentary
4 periods Lessons 33-36
Students are able to:
• describe sports events and make judgements
• describe present actions and states using appropriate tenses
Students watch a recording of a commercial broadcast and discuss the commentary.
They then watch a short recording of highlights of a school sports game or event, e.g. a few minutes of a basketball match, table tennis game or sports day race. In groups, they develop a commentary for the game or event. One student from each group will then give the commentary orally before the class.
Students evaluate their own and others' sports commentaries using a set of criteria.
Sports songs 2 periods Lessons 37-38
Students are able to:
• share and enjoy sports
Students choose and perform famous sports in English.
o s ngs
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Teaching Resources
Suggested Student Work or Activities for Formative
Assessment
Remarks A handout detailling
the requirements for the final display A handout with suggested topics and genres/formats
Completed work for the final display should form part of the folder.
The final display may take various forms. It will probably be a room with equipment for playing the various recordings and display boards and tables covered with work. A technically well-supported or ambitious group might put all the material onto a CD-ROM or website. A magazine could be another choice with a recorded disc included. The important thing is that the students have a sense of achievement at the end of the module and can proudly show their work to their schoolmates.
Articles on sports of various types or access to them on the Internet A handout with suggested topics and genres/formats A sports article feedback form
Self, peer and/or teacher assessment of the sports article
The article can be placed in the folder.
The first double lesson is for gaining familiarity with sports articles and deciding on topics to write about. Before the next double lesson the students will need to do the necessary research - watching matches, interviewing people, collecting data and so on. The second double lesson is for writing and asking for advice.
The advantage of asking students to write about sports activities in their own schools is that it will make plagiarism practically impossible.
http://www.worldnewspapers.com/sport-magazine.html gives access to various sports magazines with articles that may help. Searches for school and college magazines,
newspapers and newsletters will produce good material that is not too difficult. Students might like to visit the following websites:
http://www.thedartmouth.com http://westvirginia.scout.com http://www.dailyillini.com
(*The more able students should be encouraged to work on broader issues, e.g. drugs in sports, betting and football, the acceptability of dangerous sports, bad behaviour of fans, sport and nationalism and corruption in sports bodies.) Recordings of some
school sports games or events
A sports commentary feedback form
Self, peer and/or teacher assessment of the commentary
The written commentary can be placed in the folder.
The oral commentary, recorded and added to the original recording, can also be put in the folder.
Teachers would need to provide appropriate activities to help students to produce a commentary.
(*For the more able students, teachers may ask them to watch a commercial broadcast with the sound switched off and they develop a commentary for it.
For the less able students, teachers may provide the script of the commentary.)
A venue which has the necessary audio-visual
There are various sources of sports songs. Anyone who watches sports matches on television will be aware that fans often sing songs of support and that teams make recordings.
Focus Suggested Time Allocation
Target Knowledge, Skills
and Attitudes Suggested Activities
• demonstrate oral English skills through
Survey and report
4 periods Lessons 39-42
Students are able to:
• decide on survey topics and ways to gather useful data on them
• write survey questions and conduct a survey
• organise data and draw conclusions from them
Students study a sample questionnaire, result summary and report to familiarise themselves with the format, language and style.
In pairs or small groups, students prepare a similar set of documents (e.g. a
questionnaire, a short report) on an issue related to sport in the school.
Major sports events
4 periods Lessons 43-46
Students are able to:
• gather information on a topic
• present information in a succinct and interesting way
• give a brief talk in English
• understand and use some common vocabulary for sports events
Students are allocated or select for themselves different major sports events and give brief talks about them.
Students evaluate their own and others' presentations using a set of criteria.
songs
Teaching Resources
Suggested Student Work or Activities for Formative
Assessment
Remarks equipment and/or
musical
instruments and allows the creation of a lot of noise
"We are the Champions" and "One Moment in Time" can often be heard. Supporters also take up chants such as:
Six, seven, eight, Who do we appreciate?
followed by spelling a team name and then shouting it. Some teams have a selection of songs and chants on their
websites (e.g. http://www.chelseafc.com). Schools and teams may have their own songs and house cheering teams their English chants.
Sample
questionnaire, result summary and report Websites with sports questionnaires, surveys, results and reports
The questionnaires, results and reports will be part of the folder.
(*It will depend on the nature of the students how these lessons should be tackled. In some schools the students may be able to conduct the survey in English in the playground. In others teachers may need to help by asking various teachers and classes to give up some time to answer the questions.
Teachers may also decide whether to let students choose their own topics or allocate some topics to them, such as:
• sports preferences
• difference between boys and girls, juniors and seniors
• levels of sports participation
• television viewing in relation to sport
• spending on sport
• team support, attitudes)
The questionnaire should be completed in the first double lesson so that the survey can be carried out before the next lesson. In the second double lesson the results should be presented in tabular form with conclusions drawn, and the report should be written up. The final product, possibly further refined, will be part of the final display.
Naturally the main aim is for the students to use English rather than learn social science techniques; it would,
however, be preferable if sufficient answers were obtained for the results to have some sort of validity.
(*For the less able students, the survey need not be formal or of a great magnitude. They may be asked to simply formulate some questions, gather information and write a couple of paragraphs to report the findings.)
Resources on the Web:
http://www.hn.psu.edu/faculty/jmanis/dis_s_re.htm A handout on major
sports events
^A presentation feedback form (used in Lessons 9-14)
Self, peer and/or teacher assessment of the brief talk
Students will need to be told about this activity in advance so that they can be prepared.
Each student can be asked to speak for at least two minutes, or each small group can be given a few minutes to introduce an event.
Focus Suggested Time Allocation
Target Knowledge, Skills
and Attitudes Suggested Activities
#Feelings about sport;
sportsmanship
2 periods Lessons 47-48
Students are able to:
• think philosophically about sport
• express personal feelings
Students talk about what good qualities emerge from playing sports.
The teacher should guide students to talk about what they as individuals get from sport, what different sports suit different character types and help address different needs.
Final display 2 periods Lessons 49-50
Students are able to:
• organise and take part in a display
• introduce and present work
The final lesson should have a sense of ceremony. The teacher can speak a few words summing up what has been done, guests can be invited to enjoy the class' work and students can talk about their experience and offer feedback for the future improvement of the course.
Teaching Resources
Suggested Student Work or Activities for Formative
Assessment
Remarks Some codes of
sportsmanship
Students' written
reflections on sports can be placed in the folder.
(*For the more able students, teachers could get them to talk or read about sportsmanship and the various codes that express it. Examples of codes of sportsmanship are available at:
http://kilby.sac.on.ca/athletics/rugby/sportsmanship.htm)
A suitable venue for the display so that it does not have to be cleared away too quickly and so that as many as possible can be given a chance to see it
The pieces of work completed for this display, individually and in groups, will be an important component of the folder.
Obviously the display will need to be put together outside class time, and the actual lessons be used for closing comments on the class' progress. It is important that the display create a sense of occasion. Guests should be asked to appreciate the students' hard work and an opportunity given to students to see the work, which should be of interest as it relates to the school.
Suitable items or copies of them can be kept for future reference.