FluentU:  https://www.fluentu.com/en/ 

FluentU is dedicated to helping people learn new languages through e-learning and videos. It is run by a team of passionate and helpful language learners from all around the world. They have over 10 different language to choose from on their site.  

The idea behind MFL Speaking Activities is to get children talking in non pressuring environments, ideally, not in the front of the whole class, so that they can improve on their language skills. Here are some way you can get your students talking, in a way that will make them feel comfortable and secure.

 

Ice Breaking Activities: Start your lessons with a little speaking activity, like two truths and a lie. This will help them get used to talking, and there is no pressure. It's just a simple ice-breaker, so they cannot get anything wrong. They can do this in pairs to begin with, then smaller groups, and you can eventually work your way up to making it a whole class activity. 

Blind Instructions: Put your class into pairs and have them sit with their backs to one another. Give one of the students an object, and let them describe it to the other person. The other student will then have to try and draw what they think is being described to them. This will help children be more specific and precise in the language that they use, as well as help develop their listening skills. 

MFL Speaking Activities will strengthen your students confidence in speaking, as well as prepare them for the real life nuances of conversation. Overall, they will serve to better communication skills too. 

 Here are some helpful tips that you can use when your students are completing the MFL Speaking Activities.

Make sure they're getting their turn. Sometimes in human discourse, one person ends up talking more than the other. This might happen because they are naturally that way inclined, and the other speaker is shy. However, keep an eye on paired and grouped interactions to make sure that everyone is getting their turn. If a student is particularly shy you could try asking them lots of open-ended questions to try and draw them out of their shell. 

Let them do the talking. Sometimes it can be very tempting to fill the silence with speech. However, if you give your students the time and space that they need to formulate a good response then they will. You don't have to hurry to cover the silence. 

If you need some more support on this, feel free to check out our strategy page on EAL: Strategies Using a Pupil's First Language. 

- Help students develop their speaking and listening skills.
- Develop pupil confidence.
- Improve students English language skills. 
- Improve your students confidence.

Interested in this strategy?
If you're not already signed up, click here to register for a free account. If you already have an account, click here to choose this strategy as a 6-week initiative. (It only takes 10 minutes to start an initiative!)