Description

This bundle consists of 5 ESL materials, all suitable to practise critical thinking, in particular to improve on:
– formulating questions;
– active listening;
– considering multiple points of view;
– collecting & evaluating data;
– working collaboratively towards a solution to a problem;
– identifying your and others’ biases.
Mind: You can find an excellent article on how to improve critical thinking HERE.

The bundle contains the following materials:

1. A2 Collaborative Speaking Task: Jobs
   Age: 16-116
   ESL level: CEFR A2
   Type: matching, describing and guessing job (3 pages in pdf format to be printed and cut up into cards)
   Target language: jobs, present simple (positive, negative form, questions)

   Description of activity:
   The sheet consists of two columns: job cards and info-cards. They are paired up in the original setting. You will need to print the sheets (one copy for a pair of students) and cut them up, separating the jobs from their descriptions.
   Students work in pairs or small groups. First give them the cards with the jobs and their descriptions in two separate piles. Ask them to match the descriptions to the jobs.
   Ask for feedback.

   The info-cards give useful expressions for the second phase.
   In the second phase, collect and place the job cards in the middle of each desk (face-down). Students in turn draw one card and

   • either describe the job without pronouncing its name (to practice present simple in positive and negative form)
   • or ask each other questions about the job on the card (without showing it to their partners and giving only short answers (to practice present simple questions and short answers).

   In both cases, the student who cannot see the card guesses the job.
   Variation: You can also show first the info-cards to the students and ask them to guess the job.

   Time: 30 min
   Font: Bodoni 72 Oldstyle, Garamond

2.  

   A2-B1 Collaborative Speaking Task: What should I do?
   Age: 20-200
   ESL level: CEFR A2-B1
   Type: speaking prompts (10 situation cards to be printed and cut up), 1-page in pdf format
   Target language: should + infinitive (A2 level), had better (B1 level)

   Description of activity:
   Students work in pairs or small groups and discuss possible solutions for 10 problematic situations.
   You can follow-up with other (not too serious) problems of real life and discuss possible solutions for them.

   Time: 20 + 10 min
   Font: Garamond

3.  

   A2-B1 Worksheet: Which thing belongs to whom?
   Age: 14-99
   ESL level: CEFR A2-B1
   Type: Collaborative Speaking Task (1-page worksheet in pdf format to cut up for each pair/small group of students)
   Target language: conversation about people and their assumed life-style
   Description of activity: Students work in pairs or small groups. They get a list of people with some basic information about them and a set of cards with things/ideas. Each of these belongs to one person. The things/ideas are: membership/volunteer work, one object, a present idea, the perfect pet, a possible award, favourite film. The students are asked to order each card to one of the people. They are asked to justify their conclusions.
   Mind: the original setting is the answer key (each column contains the solutions). Remember to cut up the second grid and mix up the cards.
   Time: 30 min
   Font type: Bodoni 72 Oldstyle

4. B1 Speaking Activity: Match Making (describing people)
   Age: 18-125
   ESL level: CEFR B1
   Type: Negotiation and reasoning (3 pages in pdf format)
   Target language: personality adjectives, talking about people and their (dis)likes

   Description of activities: Put your students into pairs. They get a set of 6 couples (mixed up) and decide who would be a good match with whom. They need to justify their decisions.
   At the end, they compare their decisions with another pair of students.
   Finish with an open-class feedback session.
   The original layout is ELT-Tutor’s proposal for ideal matches, however, there might be more than one solution.
   Mind: You’ll need to print and cut up the three pages into cards.

   Time: 30 min
   Font: Palatino, Garamond
   Note: Images supplied courtesy of PIXABAY (www.pixabay.com).
   All pictures are free to use also for commercial use without attribution.

5. B1 Investigative Speaking Task: Used to Worksheet
   Age: 9-99
   ESL level: CEFR B1
   Type: Investigative Speaking Task (1-page worksheet in pdf format with possible answer suggestions)
   Target language: used to
   Description of activity: Students work in pairs. They get a copy of a picture of an abandoned living-room and try to figure out what type of person used to live there. They are asked to justify their conclusions.
   Time: 10 min
   Font type: Garamond
   Image: Supplied courtesy of PIXABAY (www.pixabay.com). All pictures are free to use also for commercial use without attribution.