english4theworld teachers' centre image bank

IN TOWN (1) IMAGE BANK

WHAT MAKES THIS ENGLISH?

To demonstrate the activity, show your class the picture of the telephone box and ask them to call out all the differences between this and a telephone box in their own country. Work with the class to focus on every aspect of the picture until together you have exhausted all possible ideas. Now form groups of four learners and give each group a different picture. Tell groups that they have three minutes to find all the differences they can between this item and one from their own country. Stop the activity after three minutes, and ask groups to exchange pictures. Continue this procedure until all the groups have worked with all the pictures. Finally, hold a feedback session with the whole class where you focus on each picture, and learners call out all the differences they have found.

DEFINITIONS

Pin up all the pictures around the classroom spread well apart, and ask the class to come and stand in the middle of the room. Explain that you will give a definition of an item, and when they think they know what it is, they should go and stand by the picture. Possible definitions might include:

• Something you walk up. (steps)
• A place where you put rubbish. (litter bin)
• A safe place to cross the street. (pedestrian crossing)

To give feedback on the correctness of their 'answers', you should go and stand by the correct picture yourself.

With this activity, it is relatively easy to give definitions suited to very low- as well as very high-level level learners. Also, in a future lesson, you might wish to ask learners to write their own definitions to challenge the class.

How have YOU used these pictures with your classes?
If you would like to suggest other ways to use them with learners, send us your ideas and we will publish them here.