Easy English? Modal verbs of possibility: might and will
Elementary level
Description
Materials
Main Aims
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To provide clarification and practice of modal verbs for possibility will/won't/might/might not
Subsidiary Aims
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To provide reading for gist in the context of a story about inventing simple version of English language, titled 'Basic English'
Procedure (41-47 minutes)
The students will be asked the question: In what ways is your language easier or more difficult than English? Why? They should have in mind the following: vocabulary, grammar, spelling, pronunciation and grammar. They will discuss this in pairs and quickly report to the class.
The students will read for gist in the text Easy English and try to answer the questions (Ex2). After 1-2 minutes, they will check their answers in pairs. All the unfamiliar words will be writen on the white board. I will try to elicit their meaning (explain and help where necessary). Particular focus will be devoted to the colloquials, such as: global language and international communication. I will drill all the new vocabulary.
I will do the TTT for the purpose of clarification. I will ask the students to discuss in pairs the following questions and say if they agree or not: a. soon, nearly everyone will speak English b. People won't learn Latin any more c. English might not be the global language in a hundred years - it might be Chinese or Japanese instead d. some 'smaller' languages will dissapear I will do the first one as an example with the whole class. I will encourage the students to work out the meaning of will/won't/might/might not from the context. I will tell them that, at that stage, they should only know that these modals describe possibility. After the students exchange views in front of the whole class, I will introduce new exercise where I will ask them to number the following sentences 1-4 (where 'will' means I think it will happen): - English might not be the global language (3) - English won't be the global language (4) - English will be the global language (1) - English might be the global language (2) After taking the students answers, I will explain the differences. I will highlight the following points: - the meaning of the verbs - the use of the base form of the verb after these modal verbs - the short (contracted) forms - the fact that we usually don't usually contract might not I will drill the sentences, paying particular attention to 'll and won't I will also focus on the anticipated problems from the Language analysis.
The students will complete the gaps in the sentences. They will answer individually and then check the answers in the groups of three. I will take the FB and drill some of the sentences, in order to prepare them for the next stage, which is moving from semi-controlled/freer practice.
The students will complete the sentences by using modals of possibility and personalised answers. I will check the meaning of 'ever' as 'in all my life in the future', and elicit a few more examples for a) The students will write their ideas and check the answers in pairs. I will circulate and check for accuracy. Then, I will ask the students to talk about their answers in pairs. Firstly, I will model with a student in front of the class, to show them how to continue the conversations. They will work in pairs. I will circulate again and note the language use for analysis and correction later. The pronunciation will be checked as well.