Communicative Grammar

Communicative Grammar -- It's Time to
Talk.
Noriko Nishiguchi
Aim
• To reinforce previously studied grammatical and vocabulary areas and to activate
them through communicative activities (interviews).
• To enable students to get to know one another more by communicating in English.
• To get students to practice summarizing information in writing.
Level / Class Size
• Can be adjusted to meet almost any class level and size. Works well in large size
classes.
Time Necessary for the Activity
• From 30 to 40 minutes
Preparation
• Decide on a theme or topic that is appropriate for the students considering their
areas of interests and levels.
o lower level students: topics that are connected to their everyday lives,
hobbies, school, friends, memories, likes and dislikes, etc
o more advanced level students: topics that go beyond everyday matters such
as social issues, values, news, etc
• Decide the grammatical area(s) to be focused on, to be reinforced or to be
introduced.
• Prepare six to eight questions related to the particular topic area chosen in #1, the
theme/topic, and the grammatical area in #2.
o lower level students: Start with yes or no questions.
o more advanced level students: Start with WH questions (where, who, when,
why, and what) and questions asking for opinions.
• Use the questions to make a gap filling or matching exercise.
• Add space for students to produce their own questions.
• On the backside, write a number (letter) on each handout - two handouts with the
same number (letter), so that in class students can look for their partners to pair up

with (someone with the same number) to do the interviews.
(Sample 1) Grammar focus: reviewing WH questions and responses about
travel
LET'S FIND OUT! -- Travel
My interviewee:
Where
Who
When
Why
What
was your worst trip?
do you want to do most when you travel?
was the last time you went on a trip?
do you usually travel with?
do you want to travel to next?
do you like to /don't like to travel?
was your best trip?
Let's match and make four or five questions. (Write an original question for number five.)
1. ________________________________?
2. ________________________________?
3. ________________________________?
4. ________________________________?
5. ________________________________?
(Sample 2) Grammar focus: How questions
LET'S FIND OUT! -- Summer Vacation
My interviewee:
How
many
much
late

far
often
did you go traveling?
books/movies did you read/see?
did you cook your meals?
days did you do part-time work?
did you go out with your friends?
times did you go swimming?
were you up until every night?
money did you save?
Let's complete the questions and choose four. (Write an original question for number five.)
1. ________________________________?
2. ________________________________?
3. ________________________________?
4. ________________________________?
5. ________________________________?
Procedure
• Have the students match and complete the questions in the box. This can be done in
groups or on their own. Ask for volunteers or assign students to write their
questions on the board for everyone to see. Go around and help students make their
original questions.
• Start the interview activity. Students, with a pen and their handout, go around
looking for their partners asking, "What's your number? / What number are you?"
They sit down with their partners and interview each other with their questions in
English.
• After they finish the interview, have them write a short report (summary) to the
teacher of their interview results. Small classes can report the results orally.
Suggestions
• This activity can be used not only as a review but also to introduce new
grammatical areas or vocabulary. With a little bit of creativity and flexibility on the

teacher's side it can be expanded or made more challenging.
• For more advance level classes, the interview questions can be made totally by the
students themselves. In such cases, the teacher can provide topics which students
can choose from to create their own questions for the interview part. For example,
the teacher brings in the topic; "Things in Fashion" and sub--topics; karaoke, shops,
designer brand goods and inter-net shopping. Students then choose a topic and
prepare their questions individually or with their group members.
• Encouraging students to stay in English, to use as much English as possible can
also be the teacher's challenge. Having students set their goals as to how much
English they are going to use in the activity helps them stay motivated. In this case,
it is suggested that students also evaluate themselves after the activity.
• Responding to the reports the students have written is one way to have some kind
of contact with individual students, especially effective with large classes.
Final Thoughts
Students have commented that this activity helped them get to know and talk to members
in the class they usually don't talk to. (This was a college class of 55 first year students.)
They were also able to get new information, hear different thoughts and opinions from
various members. Setting their goals as to how much English they were going to use in the
activity helped them take more responsibility in their learning. Many said they realized that
they had to play a more positive role in their language studies: to ask questions when they
didn't understand, to set their own goals and work towards them and to make efforts to use
the language and not just sit and listen to the teacher. Some were simply happy when they
were able to have a successful interview with their partners.
As a teacher I felt, at first, this activity required more work on the teacher's side. However,
seeing students trying to use the language to communicate with one another and asking me
questions when they got stuck, encouraged me to continue this activity at the beginning of
each class as a warm-up activity. Progress could be seen in the students' reports as well. By
responding to their writings, I was able to communicate with them and at the same time,
students were able to see that writing was another way they could communicate in English.