Listening Chests

 

One of my schools was extended recently and has increased from single form entry to 1.5 form entry.  This year, for the first time, there are 45 children in Year 2 and 45 in Year 1.  Also for the first time, there is a mixed age class - Year 1/2 - alongside Year 1 and Year 2.  Previously I have always taught "pure" Year 1 and Year 2, so now have had to formulate a new scheme of work with 2 cycles, to cater for the mixed class.  I'm teaching it to all of Key Stage 1.

I'm beginning with a brand new Pirates unit, using my maxim of "the usual in an unusual way".  The children in current Year 2 can already count to 10 and know 6 colours, but the new Year 1s only started Spanish this week.  This term we will be learning greetings, saying your name, numbers to 10, and 11 colours, using Pirates as the theme.  Therefore the Year 1 children will learn what they need to, and the Year 2 children will recap some learning and learn something new, using a different context to before.

I've had to think of some different activities to usual for this reason.  One of them is Listening Chests.

I'm going to give each pair of children one of these cards with treasure chests on.  Definitely 4 chests for Year 2, 3 for Year 1 and we'll see how the mixed class gets on.

Let's use colours as an example, and 3 chests.  Ask the children to tell you which chest the colour red is in.  Then you say 3 colours: amarillo, rojo, azul.  You said rojo second, therefore the colour red is in the middle chest.  The children listen and point to the chest where the colour is.

This can be used for all sorts of different language areas.  I can see it being useful for phonics: show children a grapheme, then say 3 different phonemes or words, and they have to say which chest the grapheme is in.

You also don't need a special chests card to do this activity.  It could be as simple as the children quickly drawing 3 boxes on their mini whiteboard and using those instead.  A low tech and low prep activity.

If you are interested in my Pirates unit for Key Stage 1, I have already uploaded the first resources:

French https://www.lightbulblanguages.co.uk/resources-pr-fr-resources.htm#ks1

Spanish https://www.lightbulblanguages.co.uk/resources-pr-sp.htm#ks1

First experiments with ChatGPT

 

If you use social media, or in fact if you have been looking at any kind of media recently, you won't have failed to notice all the talk about AI - Artifical Intelligence.   ChatGPT in particular has captured the imaginations of education professionals, who have been experimenting with its use in their work.

Over the past few months I have been keeping an eye on the various social media and blogposts about it, but, during what has been a very busy school year for me, I haven't had time to have a closer look at it.  I decided that it would be one of the things that I would have a play with during the school summer holidays.  In other words, now!

So I'm here to report on what I have been doing with it so far.  

I started off by thinking about the kinds of resources that I make often both for my own use in the classroom and for Light Bulb Languages more generally.  I often make worksheets for drilling vocabulary and structures, practising a specific language sets in various different ways.  With this in mind, I had a look at the Key Stage 2 units that I will be teaching new Year 4 and new Year 5 in September.  The examples that I'm going to show you here focus on the unit Les fruits and also Quel temps fait-il ?  

I quickly learned that it takes a fair bit of practice to get the instructions for ChatGPT right, so that it will actually give you what you are thinking of.

After a few false starts, I began with:

Write 16 simple sentences in French using the opinion phrases j'adore, j'aime, je n'aime pas and je déteste as well as the fruits les abricots, les kiwis, les bananes, les cerises, les fraises, les oranges, les pêches, les, poires, les pommes, les prunes. You can also use the conjunctions et and mais. The sentences need to be understood by 8 year old beginner learners of French. Don't include any other words in the sentences.

Here are the sentences it generated:

1.    J'adore les fraises et les cerises.

2.    J'aime les bananes et les pommes.

3.    Je n'aime pas les kiwis, mais j'aime les poires.

4.    Je déteste les prunes, mais j'aime les abricots.

5.    J'adore les oranges et les pêches.

6.    J'aime les fraises, mais je n'aime pas les cerises.

7.    Je n'aime pas les pommes, mais j'aime les bananes.

8.    Je déteste les kiwis et les poires.

9.    J'aime les abricots et les oranges.

10.    Je n'aime pas les pêches, mais j'aime les fraises.

11.    J'adore les cerises et les prunes.

12.    J'aime les bananes, mais je n'aime pas les kiwis.

13.    Je déteste les pommes et les poires.

14.    J'aime les abricots, mais je n'aime pas les oranges.

15.    Je n'aime pas les fraises, mais j'aime les cerises.

16.    J'adore les pêches et les prunes.

Normally it would take me quite a long time to come up with these sentences, keeping a tally on a scrap piece of paper to make sure I use all the fruits and all the opinions equally and so on.  It's interesting that it has used j'aime and je n'aime pas together in sentences, but not j'adore or je déteste.  I would more than likely edit some sentences for this reason, or have a go at getting ChatGPT to do it!

Next I decided to try creating a list of simpler sentences using the same vocabulary but not the conjunctions:

Write 20 different simple sentences in French using the verbs j'adore, j'aime, je n'aime pas and je déteste as well as the fruits les abricots, les kiwis, les bananes, les cerises, les fraises, les oranges, les pêches, les, poires, les pommes, les prunes. The sentences need to be understood by 8 year old beginner learners of French. Don't include any other words in the sentences. The sentences must only have an opinion and a fruit.

And here's what I got:

1.    J'adore les fraises.

2.    J'aime les cerises.

3.    Je n'aime pas les kiwis.

4.    Je déteste les prunes.

5.    J'adore les pommes.

6.    J'aime les bananes.

7.    Je n'aime pas les poires.

8.    Je déteste les abricots.

9.    J'adore les oranges.

10.    J'aime les pêches.

11.    Je n'aime pas les fraises.

12.    Je déteste les cerises.

13.    J'adore les kiwis.

14.    J'aime les poires.

15.    Je n'aime pas les pommes.

16.    Je déteste les bananes.

17.    J'adore les pêches.

18.    J'aime les abricots.

19.    Je n'aime pas les oranges.

20.    Je déteste les fraises.

The first attempt contained some identical sentences, so I had to ask it to make sure all the sentences were different.

Next I wanted it to generate a list of these sentences with the vowels missing, so that children would have to rewrite the sentences, filling in the missing letters and focussing on the spelling.  I found out that if you ask ChatGPT to create a didactic activity, it will give you a mini lesson plan, something which might be useful for teachers looking for ideas for classroom activities.

Create a didactic activity using these 16 French sentences. Rewrite the sentences with the vowels missing and put a _ in their place. J'adore les fraises. J'aime les cerises. Je n'aime pas les kiwis. Je déteste les prunes. J'adore les pommes. J'aime les bananes. Je n'aime pas les poires. Je déteste les abricots. J'adore les oranges. J'aime les pêches. Je n'aime pas les fraises. Je déteste les cerises. J'adore les kiwis. J'aime les poires. Je n'aime pas les pommes. Je déteste les bananes. J'adore les pêches. J'aime les abricots. Je n'aime pas les oranges. Je déteste les fraises.

Title: French Fruit Sentences Missing Vowels Activity

Objective: Practice reading and comprehension of French fruit-related sentences by filling in missing vowels.

Materials:

• Printed activity sheets with the 16 sentences (original sentences with missing vowels)
• Pencils or pens

·    Instructions:

1.     1.  Distribute the activity sheets to the participants.

2.     2.  Explain the purpose of the activity: to practice reading and comprehension of fruit-related sentences in French.

3.    3.   Instruct the participants to read each sentence carefully and fill in the missing vowels by writing the correct vowel in the place of the "_".

4.     4.  Encourage participants to take their time and try to sound out the words to determine which vowel is missing in each sentence.

5.   5.    Walk around the room to provide assistance and answer any questions.

6.   6.    Once participants have completed the activity, review the correct answers together as a group.

Activity Sheet: French Fruit Sentences Missing Vowels

1        J'd_r l_s fr__s_s.

2.       J'm l_s c_r_s_s.

3.       J_ n'm p_s l_s k_w_s.

4.       J_ d_t_st_ l_s pr_n_s.

5.       J'd_r l_s p_mm_s.

6.       J'm l_s b_n_n_s.

7.       J_ n'm p_s l_s p__r_s.

8.       J_ d_t_st_ l_s _br_c_ts.

9.       J'd_r l_s _r_ng_s.

10.   J'm l_s p_ ch_s.

11.   J_ n'm p_s l_s fr__s_s.

12.   J_ d_t_st_ l_s c_r_s_s.

13.   J'd_r l_s k_w_s.

14.   J'm l_s p__r_s.

15.   J_ n'm p_s l_s p_mm_s.

16.   J_ d_t_st_ l_s b_n_n_s.

17.   J'd_r l_s p_ ch_s.

18.   J'm l_s _br_c_ts.

19.   J_ n'm p_s l_s _r_ng_s.

20.   J_ d_t_st_ l_s fr__s_s.

Discussion and Review:

•  Go through the sentences one by one, inviting participants to share their completed sentences.
•  Discuss the correct vowels for each sentence, helping participants correct any mistakes they made.
•  Encourage participants to ask questions about sentence structures or vocabulary if they have any.
• Emphasize the importance of practicing pronunciation while reading.

Extension: For an extra challenge, you can ask participants to create their own sentences about their favorite fruits or other foods, leaving out vowels for their peers to fill in. This can encourage creativity and reinforce vocabulary.

I also asked it to take away all the vowels, this time not replacing them with a dash:

Rewrite these French sentences with no vowels. J'adore les fraises. J'aime les cerises. Je n'aime pas les kiwis. Je déteste les prunes. J'adore les pommes. J'aime les bananes. Je n'aime pas les poires. Je déteste les abricots. J'adore les oranges. J'aime les pêches. Je n'aime pas les fraises. Je déteste les cerises. J'adore les kiwis. J'aime les poires. Je n'aime pas les pommes. Je déteste les bananes. J'adore les pêches. J'aime les abricots. Je n'aime pas les oranges. Je déteste les fraises.

J'dr ls frss.

J'm ls crss.

J n'm ps ls kw s.

J dtst ls prns.

J'dr ls pmm s.

J'm ls bnn s.

J n'm ps ls prs.

J dtst ls brcts.

J'dr ls rngs.

J'm ls pchs.

J n'm ps ls frss.

J dtst ls crss.

J'dr ls kw s.

J'm ls prs.

J n'm ps ls pmm s.

J dtst ls bnn s.

J'dr ls pchs.

J'm ls brcts.

J n'm ps ls rngs.

J dtst ls frss.

After that I also asked ChatGPT to change the order of the sentences.  It took a few goes to get the sentences with no vowels at all.

Next I had a go at some weather sentences.

Write 7 short imaginary weather reports in French using only these French words. Don't use any other words. et aussi mais en plus après finalement il pleut il neige il fait beau il fait mauvais il fait froid il fait chaud il y a du soleil il y a du vent il y a un orage lundi mardi mercredi jeudi vendredi samedi dimanche dans le nord le sud le centre l’est l’ouest de la France.

1.    Lundi : Il pleut dans le nord et il fait froid. Mais dans le sud, il y a du soleil.

2.    Mardi : Il neige dans l'est. En plus, il y a du vent. Après, il y a un orage.

3.    Mercredi : Il fait beau dans le centre, mais il fait chaud dans le sud. Finalement, il y a du soleil dans l'ouest.

4.    Jeudi : Il fait mauvais dans le nord. Cependant, il fait froid dans le sud. Dans l'est, il y a du vent.

5.    Vendredi : Il pleut dans le centre et il fait mauvais. En plus, il y a du vent dans l'ouest.

6.    Samedi : Il fait chaud dans le sud et il y a du soleil. Mais dans le nord, il fait froid.

7.    Dimanche : Il y a un orage dans l'est. Après, il fait beau dans le nord. Finalement, il y a du vent dans le sud.

I have kept ChatGPT's layout and formatting here.  I also did a second generation of sentences, this time not using the conjunctions, so that they are simpler.

Write 10 weather sentences in French using only these French words. Don't use any other words. Don't change the tense. et aussi mais en plus après finalement il pleut il neige il fait beau il fait mauvais il fait froid il fait chaud il y a du soleil il y a du vent il y a un orage lundi mardi mercredi jeudi vendredi samedi dimanche dans le nord le sud le centre l’est l’ouest de la France

1. Lundi, il fait chaud dans le sud.
2. Mardi, il pleut dans le nord.
3. Mercredi, il fait froid dans l'est.
4. Jeudi, il neige dans le centre.
5. Vendredi, il y a un orage dans l'ouest.
6. Samedi, il fait mauvais dans le nord.
7. Dimanche, il y a du soleil dans le sud.
8. Lundi, il fait chaud dans le centre.
9. Samedi, en plus, il y a du vent dans l'est.
10. Dimanche, finalement, il pleut dans le nord.

I wondered if it would make me one of the activities where you have to put the words in the right order.  

Rewrite these sentences with the words in each one mixed in a random order. Put " / " between each word. Make sure that all the words including le are in the sentences

Le / sud / dans / fait / chaud / il / lundi.

Dans / nord / il / pleut / mardi / le.

Mercredi / il / fait / l'est / dans / froid / le.

Jeudi / dans / centre / il / neige / le.

Vendredi / il / y / a / l'ouest / un / orage / dans.

Il / nord / samedi / mauvais / le / dans / fait.

Du / dans / sud / il / y / dimanche / soleil / a.

Le / dans / il / chaud / lundi / centre / fait.

Est / samedi / plus / il / y / vent / en / dans / a / du.

Il / nord / dimanche / pleut / en / finalement / le / dans / y.

This will take a bit of fine-tuning, as some words are missing and others are extra, such as the y in the last one.

This is how far I have got with ChatGPT so far.  I have been trying to get it to create a spelling exercise with animal words, where I have asked it to change two of the letters in each word.  I haven't got it to do it so far - it's happy to change one letter but not two.  All suggestions of how to phrase the instructions welcome!

I can see that using ChatGPT in this way to generate sentences from a specified word list will save time for me.  I'm still in the process of fine-tuning the instructions to get the result that I am after quickly.  Watch out for these sentences in Light Bulb Languages resources soon!

If you would like to look in more detail at using ChatGPT in language teaching, then I recommend that you seek out Joe Dale, who is leading the way.

I would love to hear how you have been using AI in your language teaching.

What's connected?

The other day, while looking for something else, I reminded myself of the sadly-no-more interactive activity maker Sugarcane.

My favourite of their activities was What's Connected.  Here's an example:

Once you had entered your data set, it would choose 12 random words from it and then ask you to find links amongst them with the word at the top.  There were usually 3 different links to be found.  For example, the links here with ventana are una, la and window.  The more columns you had in your data set, the more links were possible.

I've been pondering making some versions of this activity to use as starters, as it makes students think about the detail of the words and phrases that they have been learning and the relationships between them.  The first unit of work that I thought of to use was my Year 4 unit involving opinions of food and drink in Spanish.  

First of all I created my data set in the form of a table in MS Word:

Then I needed to make a random selection.  I started off my putting the data set into a Flippity Randomiser but found that the selection it generated wasn't really random enough!  So instead I pasted the data in a list into an online random picker, which worked better.  I also used this to select the "lead word".

I created a template in PowerPoint and entered the information.

I'm thinking of asking the children to write on their mini whiteboards any links they can find, before showing them the answers.  All the children should be able to find at least one link.

This format would also suit adjectival agreement as well as verb paradigms and tenses.  Can you think of an area of language that you would like an activity like this for?  Let me know in the comments.

Kung fu punctuation

 

Last week I wrote a post about doing dictation in the primary languages classroom.  Yesterday I tried out the dictation activity that I mentioned, with my very keen Year 4 class (age 8-9) who are happy to try anything.  

I wanted them to listen and write in the opinion verbs, and then listen again and write in the correct punctuation.  The completed sheet will give them some good model sentences to use for their own extended piece of writing.  

They did well with the opinions generally.  When it got to the question form in number 3 a couple of the girls were frantically whispering to each other.  I asked if they were OK, and one said "But we don't know what Te gustan means."  I asked if it was necessary to know at this stage what it meant, or if they could write it down correctly using their well-practised phonics.  Needless to say they wrote it down correctly, and the fact that I said it with question intonation, and that we added question marks later, meant that they could work out the meaning.  It has made me reflect, though, on how I train them to do dictation, and how important it is for them to have words that the children already know.  (I should add that they had seen and heard the question form quite a few times in lessons, including in our minimal pairs listening!)

I was aware when planning the lesson that we hadn't ever worked on punctuation in Spanish before, other than practising writing upside-down punctuation at the beginning of Year 3, and my nagging them about full stops all the time!  I was also aware that we work a lot on the S and the G of SPaG (Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar, for the uninitiated) but not much on the P.  Our national curriculum for primary says that we need to show how the new language is different from or similar to English, and punctuation is another way of doing this while reinforcing English.

I remembered that back in the day I had heard at a languages conference from - I think - Jo Rhys-Jones about Kung fu punctuation.  If you google it, there are lots of websites, resources and videos that will tell you more about it.  It was first devised by Ros Wilson as part of the Big Writing model for English.  Essentially, you make the shapes of the punctuation marks in a Kung fu style, while making Kung fu noises.  So primary languages 101, actions and making noise!

We used these 6 punctuation marks.  The semi-colon didn't feature in the dictation, but it made sense to learn it alongside the colon.  By the way, aren't the Spanish names for colon and semi-colon so much more sensible than English!  Here are the moves we did for each one:

Full stop: Punch out with right hand and shout Ha!

Comma:  Make a swooshy comma shape with the left hand and shout Shi!

Colon / Semi-colon:  These are a combination of the full stop and comma, so Ha shi! for the semi-colon and Ha ha! for the colon.

Question marks:  For the upside-down question mark, first a punch with the left hand for the dot (Ha!) and then for the shape of the question mark a line downwards, then another line out to the left and a last down and to the right (Shi shi shi!)  So a zig-zag question mark rather than a curved one.  The 'normal' question mark is a reversal of this with the right hand.

Exlamation marks:    For the upside-down one, punch with the left hand for the dot (Ha!) and then draw a line downwards (Shi!)  Reverse it with the right hand for the 'normal' exclamation mark.  (The teacher will have to do these backwards when facing the children!)

We learned and practised the moves, then I called out the Spanish names for the punctuation and the children had to do the right moves.  This meant that when they heard them in the dictation they knew what to write.

This would be useful also for reading aloud, where the children read the text aloud and do the Kung fu punctuation where appropriate.  They could also read out a text with no punctuation, adding the Kung fu punctuation that they think fits the sentence best.

Year 4 enjoyed this activity, probably because it was so different, and went out to break saying Ha! and Shi! to each other.  We certainly got a weird look from the caretaker when he walked past the classroom!

Mes vacances en France

 

Recently I blogged about the booklet I had made for children going on holiday to Spain.  I said at the time that I hadn't intended to make a France one as hardly any of my students go on holiday to France.  However there were quite a few requests, and so I have done it!  It's available here.

We are going to the French Alps this summer, but I'm not sure if my 20 year old and 16 year old will agree to complete it....