Techniques and Activities for Listening Activities
Topic 1: Techniques and Activities
They are organized into three groups according to their skill focus. The three groups are: the sound system, meaning, and making inferences and applying information.
The Sound System
Students need to have knowledge of the sound system before they can understand or use what they hear. The sound system includes specific sounds, such as consonants and vowels, as well as stress and intonation. Often textbooks begin a sequence of listening activities with listening and repeating. The class may listen and repeat single words, sentences, or parts of dialogs. Look at Activity 1 on screen 4. Activity 1 shows an activity from an elementary textbook. The activity pre-teaches expressions to the students.
Some activities ask students to choose between two or more sounds. Such activities may focus on ending –s/–es sounds in plurals or the third person. Other common endings students might listen for are past simple –ed endings and negative forms. Other activities focus on stress or intonation.
Look at Activities 2 and 3 on screens 4 and 5. Students listen and mark stressed words or syllables, or check sounds. Often textbooks have this kind of activity in the post-listening part of the lesson. The textbook pulls out words or sentences for intensive practice.
[17/05, 00:16] Ms. Ema: Topic 1: Techniques and Activities
Read the text. Refer to screens 5-7 as you read.
Meaning
Students need to understand the meaning of what they hear. Activities at each stage of a PDP lesson can help them with meaning. A pre-listening activity might have students predict the opinions of different speakers. Then they might listen to check their predictions. Look at Activity 4 on screen 5. Here students match a picture of an activity to a conversation. They show they understand the topic of the conversation this way. Students sometimes put pictures or text in order while they listen. In Activity 5, students listen to a conversation about a school schedule. Then they put the subjects into the correct order.
Often students answer comprehension questions after they listen. Look at Activities 6 and 7 on screens 6 and 7. Students listen to a description of bears and a conversation about a vacation. They have to understand the audio to answer the questions.
All these activities appeal to different learning styles. The listening aspect engages auditory learners. Using pictures, as in Activity 4, helps visual learners. Making activities more interactive engages kinesthetic learners.
[17/05, 00:16] Ms. Ema: Topic 1: Techniques and Activities
Read the text. Refer to screens 8-9 as you read. When you are finished, click Submit.
Making Inferences and Applying Information
When people listen, they naturally make inferences about information they hear. People also apply, or use, information that they hear. Students need practice making inferences and applying information in a new language.
For example, look at Activity 8 on screen 8. Students make inferences about likes and dislikes. The boy does not say directly that he does not like the bus ride. Instead, he says, "The bus ride is too long.” To complete the chart correctly, students have to make an inference. When students complete the chart, they are applying the information to do something. Students might complete a chart like the one in Activity 8 for themselves (things they liked/did not like about elementary school) before they listen. This will make them more engaged when they listen. Graphic organizers also appeal to visual and kinesthetic learners.
In Activity 9 on screen 9, students listen and find a location on a map. This is also applying information. Maps and diagrams help visual learners. Drawing helps kinesthetic and visual learners. In Activity 10, students listen to a phone message and write down the message. This is another way of using the information in a practical way.
[17/05, 00:39] Ms. Ema: Topic 2: Supplementing Materials
Listen to the audio. Think about how you could use it as a listening activity in your class. Then read the text.
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00:37
Realia and Authentic Materials in the Classroom
In addition to the textbook, you can bring in realia and authentic materials to practice listening. The weather report you just listened to is a good example of a kind of authentic material for listening. You can find recordings of weather reports easily on the Internet. You can also record one from the radio or TV. Provide students with a weather map from a newspaper or a map without symbols. Then you can have them listen and draw the correct symbols in the correct locations as they listen.
Some realia and authentic materials may have important but unfamiliar vocabulary. You can put these words on the board with definitions or drawings to help students understand the material. If there are too many new words in an authentic listening, it is probably best not to use it.
[17/05, 00:39] Ms. Ema: Topic 2: Supplementing Materials
Read the text. Refer to screens 4-9as you read.
Expanding Textbook Activities
It is easy to supplement the textbook with activities that give your students added practice. The following are a few ideas. Refer to screens 4-9 (from Topic 1) as you read.
Dialogs For listen-and-repeat conversations, as in Activity 1 on screen 4, lead students in choral repetition. Divide the class in half. One side repeats Speaker A’s lines. The other half repeats Speaker B’s lines. Then they can practice in pairs.
Retelling/rewriting Have students retell or rewrite a story from their textbook. They can do it from memory, or use a graphic organizer such as the one in Activity 8 on screen 8.
Manipulatives In Activity 5 on screen 6, students put details in order. One way to supplement this kind of activity is to use manipulatives, such as sentence strips. You can photocopy the audioscript, or type out sentences. Then cut the script into strips with one line of dialogue per strip. Mix up the strips. Students can work in pairs or groups to reorder the strips.
Critical thinking Add challenge by asking students to make inferences or think critically. For example, in Activity 6 on screen 6, ask: What is an advantage of the winter “sleep”? What is a disadvantage? Thinking critically about the ideas can help students understand and remember more. In the weather report example, you could provide students with a list of words to help them develop an emergency plan for bad weather.
[17/05, 00:40] Ms. Ema: Topic 2: Supplementing Materials
Read the text. When you are finished, click Submit.
More Techniques and Activities to Improve Listening Skills
There are a variety of techniques to practice listening skills in and outside of the classroom.
Listen and draw Students can work in pairs to listen to one another and complete a task. For example, have students draw people that their partner describes (including details about clothing, hair length, glasses, height, and more). Or one partner can describe the location of furniture in a room or buildings on a street as the other listens and draws on picture or map.
Songs Bring in age-appropriate recordings of songs. Provide students with cloze worksheets so they can listen and fill in the blanks. Then have students sing along. Also, there are many music videos with lyrics (in karaoke format) on the Internet. Students can listen and read once and then listen again and sing along.
Games Divide students into two groups and have them listen to different parts of a story. Then put them together in pairs to tell each other the parts of the story, to answer comprehension questions, or to solve a riddle.
Go online There are many sites online with listening activities for EFL students. In a search engine, type something like EFL listening activities plus a topic. You can find videos that tell viewers how to do things such as tie a tie, bake a cake, or write a poem. Have students watch and write the down the steps.
Extensive listening Remember that students often enjoy doing extensive listening outside the classroom. Suggest they keep a listening log about their listening. They can include one or two things that they liked (or did not like) about the songs, podcasts, audio books, movies, or television shows they listened to. They can recommend extensive listening texts or activities to their classmates.
[17/05, 00:40] Ms. Ema: Topic 2: Supplementing Materials
Listen to the audio. Think about how you could use it as a listening activity in your class. Then read the text.
00:00
00:37
Realia and Authentic Materials in the Classroom
In addition to the textbook, you can bring in realia and authentic materials to practice listening. The weather report you just listened to is a good example of a kind of authentic material for listening. You can find recordings of weather reports easily on the Internet. You can also record one from the radio or TV. Provide students with a weather map from a newspaper or a map without symbols. Then you can have them listen and draw the correct symbols in the correct locations as they listen.
Some realia and authentic materials may have important but unfamiliar vocabulary. You can put these words on the board with definitions or drawings to help students understand the material. If there are too many new words in an authentic listening, it is probably best not to use it.
[17/05, 00:41] Ms. Ema: Topic 2: Supplementing Materials
Read the text. Refer to screens 4-9as you read.
Expanding Textbook Activities
It is easy to supplement the textbook with activities that give your students added practice. The following are a few ideas. Refer to screens 4-9 (from Topic 1) as you read.
Dialogs For listen-and-repeat conversations, as in Activity 1 on screen 4, lead students in choral repetition. Divide the class in half. One side repeats Speaker A’s lines. The other half repeats Speaker B’s lines. Then they can practice in pairs.
Retelling/rewriting Have students retell or rewrite a story from their textbook. They can do it from memory, or use a graphic organizer such as the one in Activity 8 on screen 8.
Manipulatives In Activity 5 on screen 6, students put details in order. One way to supplement this kind of activity is to use manipulatives, such as sentence strips. You can photocopy the audioscript, or type out sentences. Then cut the script into strips with one line of dialogue per strip. Mix up the strips. Students can work in pairs or groups to reorder the strips.
Critical thinking Add challenge by asking students to make inferences or think critically. For example, in Activity 6 on screen 6, ask: What is an advantage of the winter “sleep”? What is a disadvantage? Thinking critically about the ideas can help students understand and remember more. In the weather report example, you could provide students with a list of words to help them develop an emergency plan for bad weather.
[17/05, 00:41] Ms. Ema: Topic 2: Supplementing Materials
Read the text. When you are finished, click Submit.
More Techniques and Activities to Improve Listening Skills
There are a variety of techniques to practice listening skills in and outside of the classroom.
Listen and draw Students can work in pairs to listen to one another and complete a task. For example, have students draw people that their partner describes (including details about clothing, hair length, glasses, height, and more). Or one partner can describe the location of furniture in a room or buildings on a street as the other listens and draws on picture or map.
Songs Bring in age-appropriate recordings of songs. Provide students with cloze worksheets so they can listen and fill in the blanks. Then have students sing along. Also, there are many music videos with lyrics (in karaoke format) on the Internet. Students can listen and read once and then listen again and sing along.
Games Divide students into two groups and have them listen to different parts of a story. Then put them together in pairs to tell each other the parts of the story, to answer comprehension questions, or to solve a riddle.
Go online There are many sites online with listening activities for EFL students. In a search engine, type something like EFL listening activities plus a topic. You can find videos that tell viewers how to do things such as tie a tie, bake a cake, or write a poem. Have students watch and write the down the steps.
Extensive listening Remember that students often enjoy doing extensive listening outside the classroom. Suggest they keep a listening log about their listening. They can include one or two things that they liked (or did not like) about the songs, podcasts, audio books, movies, or television shows they listened to. They can recommend extensive listening texts or activities to their classmates.
[17/05, 00:42] Ms. Ema: Preview the Lesson
Read about the two Lesson Topics to preview the lesson.
Topic 1
Listening Processes
Listening can be one-way (just listening) or two-way (listening and speaking). Students use top-down and bottom-up listening processes to understand what they hear.
Topic 2
Purposes and Strategies
The act of listening changes depending on its purpose and the listening strategies used. There are two general ways that people listen: intensively and extensively.
[17/05, 00:42] Ms. Ema: Preview the Lesson
Here are the Key Professional Terms that you will learn in this lesson. Click on a word or phrase to see the meaning and listen to its pronunciation. When you are finished, click Submit.
Key Professional Terms
bottom-up processing
(n) (for listening) when listeners use language units such as sounds (phonemes), grammar, and the organization of the speaker's message to understand what they hear; (for reading) when readers use language units such as letters and words, grammar, and text organization to understand what they read
context
(n) the event or situation in which language is used or taught (giving directions is a context for teaching commands such as Turn left. Go straight.); the circumstances or situation that form the setting for an event or interaction
extensive listening
(n) listening to longer texts, usually for pleasure; the focus is on the main ideas.
gist
(n) the basic or general meaning of something
intensive listening
(n) listening to shorter texts; listeners pay attention to language to become more aware of specific information. Most textbook activities involve intensive listening
interactive processing
(n) when listeners use a combination of bottom-up and top-down processing to understand what they hear; (for reading) when readers use a combination of bottom-up and top-down processing to understand what they read.
listening strategy
(n) a way or technique to listen more effectively or more effectively manage one's listening ability
one-way listening
(n) a situation in which the listener hears but does not have to respond orally or interact with the speaker; an announcement or a radio broadcast involves one-way listening.
phoneme
(n) the smallest unit of sound in a language; phonemes make a difference to meaning. For example, in the words rot and lot the first consonants are different and so are the meanings. Students who have difficulty pronouncing /l/ and /r/ may have difficulty communicating the meanings of these words.
receptive skills
(n) skills that require students to understand or receive language; reading and listening are the receptive skills.
stress
(n) saying a syllable or a word with more volume or length.
word stress: A syllable of a word is pronounced more fully
sentence stress: Certain words are pronounced more fully in a sentence.
contrastive stress: In English, this refers to the ability of a speaker to change the meaning of a sentence by changing the pattern of stress.
top-down processing
(n) (for listening) when listeners use their background knowledge to understand what they hear; this knowledge includes information about the world, the speakers, and the situation or context. (for reading) Readers also use their background knowledge to understand what they read; this knowledge includes information about the world, the type of text, and the situation.
two-way listening
(n) a situation in which the listener not only hears speech, but also has to respond to the speaker; a conversation is two-way listening.
[17/05, 00:43] Ms. Ema: Topic 1: Listening Processes
Listen to the two audio excerpts. Think about how they are different. Then read the text.
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One- and Two-Way Listening
Your students may think speaking is more important than listening. However, outside of the classroom, people listen more often than they speak, read, or write. Therefore, it is important for students to have strong listening skills.
Listeners have different roles in different situations. One kind of listening is one-way listening. In one-way listening situations, people hear language, but they do not have to respond. Every day, people listen to announcements, radio interviews, and television programs. They listen to voicemail messages. They listen to music, podcasts, and audio books. These are all examples of one-way listening situations. The first audio excerpt is an example of one-way listening. Listeners do not have to interact with the speaker or respond orally. They are usually listening to get information or for entertainment.
Two-way listening happens when the listener and the speaker interact. The listener and the speaker take turns talking and listening. A conversation with two or more people is an example of two-way listening. In two-way listening, each participant has a chance to use communication strategies such as asking for clarification or restating information in a different way. For that reason, it may be easier for the listener to understand. The second audio excerpt is an example of two-way listening. The speaker expects a response from the listener.
Although one-way and two-way listening situations are different, there are some similarities. In both situations, people need to understand what they hear at that moment. They do not have time to think about or plan what they will hear.
When teaching listening, it is helpful to tell students which type of listening they are expected to do. Sometimes one student will speak and others will just listen (one-way listening). In other activities, students will interact so both are speakers and listeners (two-way listening). Students need sufficient practice doing both types of listening.
[17/05, 00:43] Ms. Ema: Topic 1: Listening Processes
Listen to the two excerpts. In which situation do you need to pay attention to every word? Read the text. When you are finished, click Submit.
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Listening Is a Dynamic Process
Listening is a receptive skill, but it is still very active. Listeners have to understand what they hear, and they often have to act on it. This is true for both one-way and two-way listening situations. There are three important ways to process information: bottom-up, top-down and interactive processing.
In bottom-up processing, listeners play close attention to every detail of the language they hear. They use the building blocks of language to understand speech. These building blocks include individual sounds (phonemes), vocabulary, and grammar. The listeners also rely on what they know about how speech in the situation is usually organized. For example, directions are usually described using language such as First, After that, and Then.
The first excerpt you heard is an example of bottom-up processing. The listener has to pay attention to every word in order to understand the directions. Bottom-up processing is a step-by-step approach. It is important to tell students which type of processing they are expected to do. If they need to listen carefully to hear specific information or notice specific language use, they should use bottom-up processing.
In top-down processing, listeners use their background knowledge or knowledge about the context to understand what they hear. This knowledge includes information about the world, about how language works, and about the specific situation. Listeners make predictions about what they will hear. They use knowledge of the topic, the speakers, the relationships, and prior events to understand the meaning of the speech. The second excerpt is an example of top-down processing. Many listeners have probably heard these instructions before. They know the content and can predict what the speaker will say. In other words, listeners focus on the general idea, or gist of what they hear.
Many students will want to do bottom-up processing all the time. They will want to understand each word they hear. When listening for gist, they do not need to understand every word. You can help students understand that both kinds of processing help them develop listening fluency and general language ability.
In interactive processing, listeners use both bottom-up and top-down approaches. They may listen for specific words (bottom-up). They may also listen for word stress to understand the speaker's emotion (top-down). Fluent listeners pay attention to the parts of a word or sentence, but they also use their knowledge of the context to understand the message.
[17/05, 00:44] Ms. Ema: Topic 2: Purposes and Stragegies
Read the textbook activity and listen to the audio. Think about how students listen. Do they listen for specific information or do they listen for the main idea? Then read the text.
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Purposes for Listening
The purpose for listening determines how people listen. There are two general ways of listening: extensive and intensive listening. Students need to practice both types of listening to become better listeners.
In extensive listening, people listen for pleasure. The things they listen to are often longer. The purpose is general understanding or enjoyment. Students might use extensive listening for:
news reports
audio books
movies
television programs
podcasts
popular music
Sometimes listeners are trying to follow directions or get specific information. They listen intensively, paying attention to every word. Intensive listening texts are usually short. Listeners pay closer attention to language than when they are listening extensively. They want to be more aware of how language works or how the language expresses specific information. Many listening activities in textbooks focus on intensive listening. Students use intensive listening for:
taking notes on specific details
noticing grammar
checking words or sounds they hear
Look at the textbook activity and listen again. Did you use extensive or intensive listening? This activity asks students to listen very carefully to determine who buys a coat. This is intensive listening. They need a specific piece of information to complete the task.
Listeners sometimes use both intensive and extensive listening during a listening activity. If someone is listening to the news, for example, they probably begin by listening extensively. They may want to understand the general ideas that they hear. However, when a news story that they are particularly interested in starts, they may want to understand the details of the report. They will probably start to listen intensively. It is natural for listeners to switch back and forth between intensive and extensive listening. Therefore, it is important for students to practice both types of listening.
