"I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're doing something." — Neil Gaiman
Community outreach is one of my many responsibilities as an English Language Fellow. As such, I am invited to make presentations and give workshops throughout Moscow and central Russia.
In late December, I taught three classes to 10th and 11th graders at Moscow's School #1253, a preeminent English language institution for students from primary grades through high school. The vast majority of students had never met a native English user, and all of them are in some stage of preparing for the high-stakes Unified State Exam (EGE), whose results "are now the only basis by which universities may enroll students."
Obviously, students who aspire to university education are under enormous pressure to succeed. My hosts said I'd have 45 minutes with each group and advised that it would be ideal if my lessons were based in speaking and listening. Armed with that information, I developed three separate lessons whose overarching message — as pop idol Miley Cyrus sings — is about "The Climb."
In my search for sources — especially when I'm preparing listening and speaking activities — I began where I often begin, with TED Talks. I found the outstanding collection of TED in Three Minutes, from which I chose three talks.
In this column, we'll examine how I used Matt Cutts' "Try something new for 30 days." It is an amusing, spirited and encouraging message about the power of "small but sustainable" changes. And it's packed into less time than it takes to boil water.
The first student group was exactly what I feared: chaotic, cantankerous, giggly, annoying. They were quintessential teenagers. They were exactly what I had been as a teenager, which is why I never wanted to teach high school.
I've never had the courage to work with students who behave as I did when I was a teenager, but it's true that what goes around, comes around. At least, I comforted myself, I didn't have to try teaching high school for 30 days.
After some introductory conversation, I told students we were going to watch and listen to a video, and they could take notes to which they could refer during our discussion that would follow. I advised that they listen for vocabulary, phrases and names with which they were unfamiliar (including: stuck in a rut; to get something to stick; to give something a shot; sleep deprived; Morgan Spurlock).
We watched the video, and then I asked students the following:
- Who is the speaker?
- What inspired him to try something new for 30 days?
- What did he try?
- What did he subtract (eliminate) from his routine?
- What vocabulary did you hear that is new to you? What do you think it means?
With some prompting, we discussed students' responses. We examined the vocabulary, and I pointed out the phrasal verbs, how they had been used in the TED Talk and how they could use them. We discussed the content, certainly, but I was equally — if not more — interested in their critical analysis, so I asked:
- What did the presenter learn?
- What did you learn?
- What will you try for 30 days?
Although most students were hesitant to respond, I was intrigued by the couple of answers I did get. One student offered that she could "try to follow the school's dress code." Another offered that he could try "going to sleep earlier."
Sasha, a young man who sat immediately to my left and spoke in an impeccable English accent that matched his impeccable suit and tie, had been an eager participant throughout the lesson. He offered suggestions for how the students could take the "small but sustainable" steps Cutts spoke about in his TED Talk.
"Wear a proper blouse one day. Then the next day, wear proper pants," he suggested. "Go to sleep one hour earlier for a week. Then the next week, go to sleep two hours earlier."
Because I wanted to include writing and reading in the activity, I concluded the lesson by asking students to write a story based on the TED Talk topic. Students began with the story starter: "For 30 days, Donna _______." When each finished writing the sentence, she passed it to the person to her left who continued the story. I'd hoped students would have time to finish a paragraph that they could read to the class, but unfortunately we ran out of time.
As students left the classroom, Sasha approached me.
"Thank you for your lesson," he said.
"You're welcome," I smiled. "Thank you for participating!"
And then I asked, "Where did you learn to speak with your English accent?" He told me how he had been sent to an English boarding school for two years.
"I didn't like it," Sasha said. "I was bullied. But I made it through."
"I'm so sorry," I responded. I offered and noted how other children bullied me when I was a child, and that bullying can teach us two lessons: How not to treat others and how to treat others.
"Yes," he said and smiled as he left for his next class.
Yes, indeed. I tried something new for 45 minutes, and I've been immeasurably changed.
