English Club 1

How to activate the English Club

Direct Project Outputs The raising of levels of English Language throughout all schools in the Sultanate of Oman

Project Start/End Start after Eid Al Fitr 2009 and finish at the end of April 2010.

Rationale The raising of awareness of the importance of English Language as a skill for life throughout all schools in the Sultanate of Oman

Social ObjectiveThe inculcation of positive attitudes towards English language as an international language that is used throughout the world a medium for communication at all levels in society both for business and pleasure.

Why should you start an English Club?An English Club is a place for language learners to use English in a casual setting outside regular class teaching. English Clubs can take care of the students’ different developmental needs such as their sense of moral values and attitudes, skills and creativity. Through their participation in the English Club, students can learn to communicate, to co-operate with other people and in addition to enrich their life experience. If students are given the opportunities to organise their own English Club, they will gain first-hand experience of programme planning and leadership, thus enabling themselves to discover and develop their potential.

In view of the differences in schools’ settings and the fact that students’ maturity varies at different levels, schools are advised to draw on their own experience and professional knowledge to best realize their goals.

Use what you learnPractising skills in the classroom is important, but it is not like real life. In the classroom, teachers and students often focus on one skill and one item (for example: grammar - future tense). After learning the rules teachers give students time to practise using the item. Students have their class books in front of them and the rules are fresh in their mind. Will they remember how to use the skills they have been taught next week, or next year? In an English Club, students get a chance to practise many different skills in a setting that is more like real life.

Make friends

Starting an English Club is a great way to make new lasting friendships. It is important to have good EFL friends because your confidence will increase if you do. You will feel more comfortable using English around people you trust and have fun with. Don't limit your friends to the people in your class

How can you start an English Club?

Post a sign-up sheetYou can start by putting up a sign-up sheet in your school entrance or on a bulletin board placed prominently somewhere near where all students congregate like the tuck shop. Write your class at the top so that people can contact you with any ideas they might have. Make sure they write down their class name or email addresses so that you can contact them about the time and place of the club meetings.

Seek helpDon't try to do everything yourself. Each member should contribute to the club. You may even want to find a fluent English speaker who will volunteer to come to your meetings.

Hold an introductory meetingAfter you have enough people sign up (6-10 people is a good number) you will need to hold an introductory meeting. At the first meeting, members can learn each other's names and you can talk about what kind of club people are interested in. One way to organize the club is by putting one member in charge of being the leader each week. You can organize the weeks in terms of themes (music/food/travel...), or skills (reading/writing/listening...).

Create rules and routinesAt your meeting you can discuss what types of rules and routines the club should have. For example, English Clubs usually have an "English only" rule. Will people be allowed to drink and eat during the meeting? What about bringing a friend? It is a good idea to conduct each club meeting in a similar way. When people know what to expect, they are more likely to attend.

Where should you hold your English Club?

At schoolThe easiest place to hold an English Club is in a spare classroom at the school. This is also a convenient location because some or all of the members will already be in the school and will have no excuses for missing a club meeting. You will also have access to materials and equipment.

OutdoorsOne of the best places to hold an English Club is outside. However, this

may only be possible during certain months. Choose a location where shelter can be found in case of rain in the winter months.

Consider atmosphereWherever you hold your club, remember that it is a club, not a class. To change the atmosphere in a classroom you might want to open windows or have background music. A pot of coffee or a bowl of popcorn can also make the meeting feel more like a club than a class. Why not encourage members to take off their shoes when they walk in the door, or sit on the floor instead of chairs. Remember, the purpose of the club is to use English in a life-like situation. Do what feels natural and comfortable.

When and how often should you meet for your English Club?

About once a weekSome English clubs fail because they expect too much of the members. Meeting once a week for about one lesson is a good start. Some English Clubs also meet for an additional excursion once a month. You could have your own web page/blog where you could all meet, identify a topic you would like to discuss and exchange ideas, thoughts, feelings etc.

The best time of dayChoose a meeting time that is convenient for the group. The time that you choose will also depend on when the room/space is available.

Stop and begin againStart a new club session approximately every three months. This will keep the club alive! Another good time to take a break is during holiday times, such as Mid-year and End-of Year Break. Some members will return and others will move on to other things. Invite new people to join to fill the empty spots. Change activities/themes that didn't work the first time. Keep adding new ideas, but try to maintain a club identity.

What should you do in your English Club?

Establish a warm-up routineYou will notice that teachers often start class with a game or conversation exercise. They do this to wake students up! They also want to help students focus on a classroom activity that will follow. In a club that tends to have more of an academic focus the warm up could be three new vocabulary words. The leader could teach a noun, a verb, and an adjective each session. The group practises making sentences with the new words. In a club that is more social in nature, find an activity that makes people laugh. This will bring positive energy into

the room.

Themes or Skills for English ClubsClubs can be organized in many ways. Some clubs will be full of members that only want to practise one skill, such as conversation. English conversation club meetings are often very casual and require little planning. Everyone can write down a topic that they want to debate, or you can talk about popular culture and current events. Someone can bring in a newspaper article and everyone can read it together and discuss it. English reading clubs are another type of English Club. Each person reads the same book (outside of group time) and the club discusses aspects such as what they liked about it, who their favourite characters were, etc.

The majority of English Clubs, however, are designed for people who want to improve their English in all skill areas. If this is the type of club you want to create it is useful to divide the meetings in terms of themes or skills. Each member of the club can choose from a list of dates. You can suggest topic ideas, or ask members to come up with their own. Always give members the option of bringing in their own idea (leave a blank space for OTHER on the theme/skill schedule).. The leader for each meeting is in charge of everything including the warm-up, the focus, and the dividing of members into groups or pairs. This gives everyone in the group an opportunity to show their leadership and creative skills. If someone is extremely shy and unwilling to be a leader, you can still allow them to join the club. Perhaps they will agree to be a leader a few months later in the next session when they have more confidence in English.

Have backup ideas on handWhat if your leader for the day doesn't show up? In a classroom, you usually get a substitute teacher when your teacher is sick or unavailable. This should be the same in a club. If members know they are going to miss a meeting that they are supposed to lead, they should call another member and give them instructions about what was planned. However, it is likely that a day will come when no leader shows up at all. It is a good idea to have a back up plan in case of this problem.

The easiest thing to do is keep a list of discussion questions in the location of the meetings. Put them in an envelope or in the classroom, or give one to each member to keep in their notebook. You can cut them up and put them in a hat and take turns picking questions. Another idea is to get out a dictionary and learn ten new words. The group can practise using them . Teaching each other rules in English is a great way to practise speaking and listening. You will also have to ask lots of questions when you learn a new game. It is also a good idea to have a range of differentiated games according to the level of the students. The games could be categorized as follows

Go on excursions as a group

Outside of your weekly meetings, it is a good idea to have one excursion a term/semester. This helps create stronger bonds within the group. It is always fun to have something to look forward to as well. Play a sport. Do community service together. Give blood. Go sightseeing. Have a picnic. Whatever you decide to do, everyone should speak English at all timessually get a substitute teacher when your teacher is sick or unavailable. This should be the same in a club. If members know they are going to miss a meeting that they are supposed to lead, they should call another member and give them instructions about what was planned. However, it is likely that a day will come when no leader shows up at all. It is a good idea to have a back up plan in case of this problem.

Use a suggestion boxIf it's possible, keep a suggestion box in the room where you hold your club meetings. At the end of each meeting the leader should encourage members to write a comment or suggestion for the group. Examples: I want to practice pronunciation more. Let's keep track of our new vocabulary. It's too cold in this room! Why don't we all bring a snack to share next week?

Arrangement of an encouraging awards schemeOne of the important aspects in the establishment and on-going implementation of the English Club is to make them self-rewarding for the participants. To achieve this objective, students should first of all be encouraged to take part in the English Club and to gain experience from the process. Once students have been stimulated to try out the activities, they should be further motivated to do so by various means. An awards scheme is one of the best motivators. According to the nature of each activity, awards can comprise praise, certificates, merit points, badges etc. 1. Aims of English Club Activity evaluation

To provide a channel for feedbackTo ascertain the values of the English Club To improve the quality and the implementation of the English ClubTo examine the ability and achievement of the English Club facilitatorsTo assess the attitude and contribution of the participants in the English ClubTo make the English Club organizers and facilitators realize that they are the leaders of the English ClubTo assess the efforts exerted by the English Club organizers and reward those who have worked hard to achieve successThe evaluation results could gain support from school management for future English Club improvement

2. Scope of English Club Activity evaluation

The English Club is part of the school curriculum and its planning includes research, experimentation, innovation and evaluation. We may assess the English Club in three aspects, namely, design, implementation and analysis.

3. Item of English Club Activity evaluation3.1 Design of the English Club

Purpose of the designEducational objectivesMarketing of the English Club within the school English Club Environment / Setting3.2 Implementation of the English Club activity plans and programmesTypes of activities and appropriatenessNumber of participants involvedEffectiveness of the English Club programme/activityDistribution of duties among studentsRecord keeping (Files)Meetings (How frequently do they meet)?Library or book corner (whether it is used or not) how often Sts borrow? Books summaries……..etcBroadcasting in the morning assembly (how often, types of participations…)English Corner ( a board on a wall or a stand somewhere prominent in the school)Competitions ( speaking, writing, reading, quizzes……etc)Production of Educational Aids, Models…)Projects done by StsSchool magazines, articles, booklets, class magazines, essays, posters, charts, portfolios Production and use of computer programmes, wikis, websites, blogs, forums etcExchange visits with other schoolsCultural activitiesEducational trips done by membersThe productive & creative use of the Youth Observer (YO) in the school4. Evaluation of English Club Activities by ParticipantsThis could be achieved by addressing a list of sample questions to active participants 1. Are you satisfied with the activities offered in the English Club? 2. List the major strengths and weaknesses of the English Club programs. 3. Would you participate in the English Club activities programme again if it was offered?4. What did you gain from participation in this extracurricular activity? 5. Did the English Club make school seem more interesting? 6. Did you make new friends through your participation in the English Club?7. How have you used what you learned from the English Club? 8. Do you consider the time that you have spent in the English Club as useful? If yes why? If no why not?

APPENDIX ONE

SAMPLE SIGN-UP SHEET

Want to join an English Club?

Do you like studying English? Do you need more practice? Why not take a break from the classroom and join an English Club? Practise your English in an

informal environment. Make new friends. Learn English for free! Everyone is welcome. If you are interested, please write your name and class on this sheet.

We will tell you when and where our introductory meeting will take place.

If you have any ideas for this club, please send us an email today. (In English, please!)

ContactsSami Ali Abdullah in Class 9 C ([email protected])

Sign up to join an English Club–only 15 places!

Name Class E-mail

Amna Rashid 10 A [email protected]

Sami Ali Abdullah 9 C [email protected]

Deadline: 21st September 2009

APPENDIX TWO

Sample English Club Warm-up Games, Activities and Improvisations20 QuestionsOne person thinks of an object (person, place, or thing). Everyone takes turns asking yes/no questions until someone can guess correctly (or until 20 questions are asked). The difficult part is that you cannot ask "wh" questions!(Example: PINEAPPLE. Does it talk? No. Does it make life easier? No. Do you eat it? Yes. Is it something you would eat for dinner? No. Etc...If someone makes a mistake in forming the question, other club members can help turn it into a proper question).

Can't Say Yes or NoIn this game everyone is given a certain number of coins or squares of paper (about 10). Everyone moves around the room starting conversations and asking each other questions. The only rule is that you cannot say the words YES or NO. If you accidentally say one of these words, you have to give a coin or square to the person who you said it to. Try to trick each other by asking questions that you would almost always answer with a yes or no. Think of other ways to trick your friends. Sometimes asking two quick questions in a row works well. (Especially tag questions: Are you new here? This is your first time in the English Club, isn't it?). This game is a great way to practise using small talk and to add variety to your vocabulary. It also makes everyone laugh.

Fact or FictionIn this game, one person tells a short story about themselves or someone they know or heard about. Usually it is something funny or crazy. It can be a true story, or something made up.

Chain FairytaleThis is a fun writing warm-up. Everyone has a piece of paper and writes the first sentence or two to start a fairytale (not one that already exists).(Example: Once upon a time there was a frog that had no legs. He wanted to get married, but there were no female legless frogs in the land.After one minute the leader will say "SWITCH". At this time the writers have to put down their pens and pass the papers. They cannot finish their sentences. Then, the next writers will continue the story. After about ten minutes you will have as many silly stories to read as you have club members. The leader should warn the writers that they will soon have to wrap-up the story during the last two minutes so that each story has a conclusion. Read all of the stories out loud for a good laugh. You can extend this activity by trying to edit each other's writing and spelling errors).

Draw the PictureIn this activity members split up into pairs or small groups. One person looks at a scene from a magazine or book (the leader should cut out enough pictures, or bring in enough magazines for the club). The other person has a pencil and a blank piece of paper. The person with the picture will try to describe everything he sees to the drawer. This is good practice for using prepositions of place. When the describer is finished, compare the drawings to the real thing! Whose is the closest to the original?

CategoriesFor this game, one person thinks of a category, such as MOVIES. In a circle, everyone must take a turn thinking of a Movie title (in English of course). If someone takes too long to give an answer (the leader should count to five) then that person is out and a new category begins. If someone gives an answer that doesn't make sense or is incorrect, he is also out of the game. For example, if the category is VEGETABLES and someone says "banana" that person is out. The game continues until only one person is left!

Who am I?In this game, the leader prepares cards with famous people's names on them. The leader tapes one card on the back of each member. Then everyone pretends they are at a party and asks each other questions to find out their own identities. When someone guesses their own name correctly, the name-tag gets taped to their front and they continue to chat with the party guests until everyone is wearing the nametag on the front.

Jeopardy

In this game, which is based on the famous gameshow Jeopardy, everyone writes down ten answers to questions about themselves. After writing down the answers, people have to form pairs or small groups and try to find out what the questions are.Example: (answer = purple) "What is your favorite colour?" "Blue." "What colour do you hate?" "Green." "What colour is your bedroom?" "Purple!" You can stop at three guesses if you want, or keep going until someone in the club can guess the question.

Hot SeatIn this game, the club is split up into two teams. One member from each team sits facing the group. The leader holds up a word (or writes it on the board if you are in a classroom) for all of the team members to see except for the two players in the hot seats. The teams must try to get the person in the hot seat to guess the word or phrase. The first person to guess correctly gets to stand up and a new member from their team takes the hot seat. The person on the other team has to remain in the hot seat until she gets an answer first. You can keep score or just play for fun. This game can also be played in pairs. One pair member closes their eyes while the leader shows the word to the other pair members. The first pair to get the word right gets a point.

Broken TelephoneThis is a listening and pronunciation activity that always gets people laughing. The leader first must think of a sentence or phrase and whisper it to the person beside her. That person will then whisper what she heard to the next person. Each person can only say, "Can you please repeat that?" one time. When the message reaches the end of the chain that person must speak out loud. Oftentimes the message will be completely different when it reaches the end. Try to find out where the chain broke! In a big group you can send the message two ways and find out which team comes closest to the real message. (A famous example is the army message that started as "Send reinforcements, we're going to advance" and ended as "Send three and fourpence, we're going to a dance.")

It is also a good idea to have a range of differentiated games according to the level of the students. The games could be categorized as follows:

Beginner

Elementary

Lower Intermediate

Intermediate

Upper Intermediate

Advanced

Improvisations

Improvisations are an excellent medium for getting everyone involved as everyone has to speak.

The following ideas are not role-plays or simulations (although many of them can be adapted as such). The objective here is total spontaneity and improvisation. Students have no time to prepare. Their roles and situations are given to them on the spot and they have to react immediately. Generally it is better to provide students with minimal details. This allows their own imaginations to construct situations and ensures richer dynamics.

Teachers are sometimes afraid that students may not be able to cope with improvisation. In reality, it is surprising just how imaginative students will be (subject to level, of course). They can usually be relied on to give more than they are asked for.

The following ideas are just that - ideas. They can be modified, adapted, changed, rethought, distorted, simplified, made more difficult etc.

In general, begin classes with pairs to warm up and finish with groups.

Pair Improvisations

The Small Advertisement: For sale/To rent/Friendship. Student A has seen a classified ad in the paper. Student A decides for herself the subject of the ad. She then chooses any other student (Student B, who has placed the ad) and calls her about it. "I'm calling about your ad for a live-in nanny..."

The Hypochondriac: Student A is a hypochondriac determined to have as many pills as possible. He consults Student B who is a doctor strongly averse to giving out pills willy-nilly.

The Loan: Asking to borrow. Then asking for repayment.

The Career Counselor: Student A has lost her job. She consults a career counselor about a suitable new profession. Lots of questions and advice (modals).

Parent(s) and Child: Child returns home late/doesn't want to go to bed/doesn't want to get up etc.

The Journalist and the Famous Actress: 1. Journalist tries to get interview. 2. Interview. 3. Actress is not at all happy with what is printed and complains (to journalist or editor etc).

Directions: A young girl stops passers-by in the street and asks for help/directions in finding an address.

Telephone Chain: Student A calls any student (Student B) about anything. When conversation finished, Student B calls any student (Student C) about anything. Keep the chain going. Must be fast. Good for warm-up. The answering student must make the next call (to maintain the dynamic).

The Tourist: Student A goes to another country (or planet) and calls home to tell Student B all about it.

The Chance Meeting: Two people who have not met for 5 years meet in a café/at a cocktail party etc. Ex-student, ex-boss etc.

The Answering Machine: Student A calls B and gets answering machine (B's voice). Leaves message.

Group Improvisations

The Fire: Detective or journalist interviews witnesses (one of whom may be a suspect) about what they saw/heard/did. (The Fire can be changed to a Bizarre Noise, Disappearance, Murder, Theft etc). Lots of questions and past simple.

The Hold-up: Group of gangsters planning a hold-up. "Stop. Now it's two days after the hold-up and you're all in prison. Now discuss what actually happened, whose fault etc."

Television Interview: Film star, politician, sportsperson etc.

Television Program: Presenter interviews different action groups like members of ESO (Environment Society Oman, OWA (Omani Women’s Association etc).

Press Conference: Group of journalists interview a sportsperson, film star etc.

The Amnesiac: Student A is in bed in hospital, having lost his memory. The other students are medical staff, police officers, visitors (family, friends etc) who try to bring memory back. They must be careful. A shock could be fatal.

The Neighbour: A neighbour who needs to sleep or revise etc knocks on door and complains about the noise from a party.

Teachers' Meeting: Teachers discuss imaginary situations. One teacher is the "chairman" and has a list of topics ("Now we'll discuss school cleanliness...").

Please also see English Club Activities Book.

A number of the ideas for the book were collated by RTT/A for Batinah South (Sally Etherton) in co-operation with the Senior English Teachers in Batinah South for the academic year 2002/2003. Others were collated by Michele Ni Thoghdha, Chief Supervisor, 2008/2009. The contents of the book are roughly arranged in the following sections

Puppets

Drama

Masks

Monsters

Making Books

Stories

“Make & Do” Activities

Puzzles

Spelling Games

Word Games

Action Games

Songs, riddles, chants and rhymes

Projects

Useful websites

References

APPENDIX 3: Sample English Club Schedule

Activity LeaderWeek 1 Introductory Meeting

Getting-to-know youSign-up for leadership tasks

Week 2 Warm-up: Fact or FictionTheme: Music/Other

Mousa

Week 3 Warm-up: 20 QuestionsTheme: Poetry/Other__________

Khalid

Week 4 Warm-up: Chain FairytaleTheme: Current Events/Other__________

__________

Oct 29th Club Outing: (Place TBA)

Coordinator:__________Week 5 Warm-up: Fact or Fiction

Theme: Food/Other____________________

Week 6 Warm-up: Draw the pictureTheme: Movies/Other__________

__________

Week 7 Warm-up: Fact or FictionTheme: Family/Other__________

__________

Week 8 Warm-up: CategoriesTheme: Sport/Other__________

__________

Nov 26th Club Outing:(Place TBA)

Coordinator:__________Week 9 Warm-up: Who am I?

Theme: Celebrities/Other____________________

Week 10 Warm-up: 20 questionsTheme: The Future/Other__________

__________

Week 11 Warm-up: Hot SeatTheme: Fashion/Other__________

__________

Week 12 Warm-up: YES/NO gameTheme: Travel/Other__________

__________

Dec 20th Club Outing:(Place TBA)

Coordinator:__________

TBA=To Be Announced (the information is not yet known)

APPENDIX 4: Sample English Club Evaluation Sheet (The overall performance of the English Club could be rated using the following scale:

5 = Outstanding, 4 = Good, 3 = Acceptable, 2 = Needs improvement, 1 = Needs urgent support)

No Items 1 2 3 4 5 Remarks ( a) Organization :

1 Students' participation : No. of members:

2 Distribution of duties among teachers

3 Distribution of duties among students

4 Record keeping (Files)

5 Meetings (How frequently do they meet)?

(b) Outcomes:

6 Library or book corner (whether being used or not) how often Sts borrow? Books summaries……..etc

7 Broadcasting in the morning assembly (how often, types of participations…)

8 English Corner ( a board on a wall or a stand somewhere prominent in the school)

9 Competitions ( speaking, writing, reading, quizzes……etc)

10 Production of Educational Aids, Models…)

11 Action research done by Ts (….Quality?)

12 Projects done by Sts

13 Exchange visits with other schools

14 School magazines, articles, booklets, class magazines, essays, posters, charts

15 Cultural activities

16 Production and use of computer programmes

17 Helping Sts who have different linguistic needs

18 Educational trips done by members

19 English Club Environment / Setting

20 The productive & creative use of YO in the school

APPENDIX 5 (i):

Sample Criteria Sheet to Evaluate English Clubs(The overall performance of the English Club could be rated using the following scale:

5 = Outstanding, 4 = Good, 3 = Acceptable, 2 = Needs improvement, 1 = Needs urgent support)No Items 1 2 3 4 5 Remarks (a) Design of the English Club: 1 Purpose of the design2 Educational objectives3 Marketing of the English Club within the

school4 English Club Environment / Setting

(b) Implementation of the English Club Activity Plans and Programmes: 5 Types of activities and appropriateness6 Number of participants involved7 Distribution of duties among students8 Record keeping (Files)/ E-files9 Meetings (How frequently do they

meet)? 10 Effectiveness of the English Club

programme/activity11 Library or book corner (whether it is used

or not) how often Sts borrow? Books summaries……..etc

12 Broadcasting in the morning assembly (how often, types of participations…)

13 English Corner ( a board on a wall or a stand somewhere prominent in the school)

14 Competitions ( speaking, writing, reading, quizzes……etc)

15 Production of Educational Aids, Models…) 16 Projects done by Sts 17 School magazines, articles, booklets,

class magazines, essays, posters, charts, portfolios etc

18 Production and use of computer programmes, wikis, websites, blogs, forums etc

19 Exchange visits with other schools 20 Cultural activities/ Educational trips done

by members21 The productive & creative use of YO in

the school (c) Analysis of personnel involved:22 Organizers’ analysis i.e. school principals23 Facilitators’ analysis i.e. teachers &

senior teachers24 Advisors’ analysis i.e. supervisor, senior

supervisor, chief supervisor25 Participants’ analysis i.e. students26 Observers/spectators’ analysis 27 Parents’ analysis

APPENDIX 5 (ii):

Sample Question Sheet for Students to Evaluate their English Club(The overall performance of the English Club could be rated using the following scale:

5 = Outstanding, 4 = Good, 3 = Acceptable, 2 = Needs improvement, 1 = Needs urgent support)

No Items 1 2 3 4 5 Remarks Students’ Perceptions of the English Club: 1 Are you satisfied with the activities offered in the

English Club? 2 List the major strengths and weaknesses of the

English Club programs you were involved with.3 Would you participate in the English Club activities

programme again if it were offered?4 What did you gain from participation in this

extracurricular activity? 5 Did the English Club make school seem more

interesting? 6 Did you make new friends through your

participation in the English Club?7 How have you used what you learned from the

English Club? 8 Do you consider the time that you have spent in the

English Club as useful? If yes why? If no why not?