Using Realia - taken from Methodology Starters in the Beginner's Teacher's Book

by Jim Scrivener

Here is an example how a single tiny piece of realia can come to your rescue in many ways.

For many years I always carried a small 'jewel' around with me. It was just a piece of coloured glass that had fallen out of some jewellery. I think I found it on the classroom floor one day. Nobody claimed it - but I guess it must have fallen out of someone's bracelet. Anyway, it stayed in my portable realia pack and I can remember using it in many different lessons. It may be useful to see how a teacher used one simple item like this. I don't recommend you copy my ideas, but they may inspire you to think of ways of using your own realia collection.

• I got the class passing it around the room secretly from student to student to play a guessing game practising grammar e.g.: "Who's got the jewel?" "Have you got the jewel?" "Janos has got the jewel" etc.
• I used it as an element in roleplays. For example, in a hotel roleplay, one character loses her valuable jewel and had to complain to reception.
• Students were asked to imagine the story of the jewel - e.g. who it belongs to, where it comes from etc.
• I awarded it as a very valuable 'prize' for the best answer to a task (students kept it till they had to pass it on after a future task!).
• I told the story of a crime in which the jewel was stolen. Students then took the roles of detective and criminal and had a conversation.
• I used it in a pretend auction with students practising saying amounts of money e.g. L100, L150, L2000 etc.

Have you used a great object in class and found your students really responded to it? Tell us more! Email straightforward@macmillan.com and we will publish your suggestions here.