The Warm-up

Purpose

To ease students into speaking/hearing French (probably for the first time in over 24 hours)
To maximize student participation from the beginning of the class period.
To reduce possible anxiety about speaking a foreign language.

Guidelines

Plan 3-5 minute warm-up activities.
Recycle themes/structures/vocabulary from previous class periods.
While planning your lesson, write down the questions you will ask in your warm up. Then be prepared to depart from your plan according to student responses.
Personalize when appropriate.
Make sure all students get a chance to speak.
React naturally to what students say.
Encourage other students to react to the student speaking.
React naturally if a student's utterance is not clear.

Sample Warm-Ups

Teacher guided question and answer:
Teacher asks questions based on recently studied vocabulary/grammar, following the guidelines above. (See Barnett handout for detailed Q/A script)

Student lead question and answer:
Teacher writes questions on bits of paper, numbers them, and hands them out. Teacher asks, "Who has number one?” and instructs student to read his/her question and to call on someone to answer. Teacher inserts follow-up questions, involves other students, encourages reactions. Teacher asks for question number two before the first one gets stale.

Visually-cued narrative:
Use a post card, a fine-art print, a calendar-sized picture, realia,, etc., to launch a whole-group, spontaneous biography or narrative.

Elaboration exercise:
Teacher tells students to imagine they are at a cafeteria, at a party, or in any social situation where small talk is required. Teacher hands out a series of very simple questions or statements, such as "Hi," "I like your dress. Are you from Charlottesville?" Teacher models the first Q/A with a student, showing how rude a one-word answer would be. Students are instructed to ask their questions and to make as much polite conversation as possible. [NB: This will work best in a small class, but may be incorporated as small group work in larger classes at a different point in the lesson.]

Brainstorming:
Teacher asks students what they would say/do in a given situation and maps answers on the board. EXAMPLE: What happens when you go to the doctor's office with a cold? (T elicits steps from phoning, to waiting and reading magazines, to receiving doctor's advice.) What happens when you go to a friend or family member with a cold? (T checks off answers that are the same, notes new ones on a separate list). This may lead into a review of health vocabulary, etc.

Chapter openers:
Each chapter of your textbook opens with a large photograph or a piece of realia. Organize a brainstorming/discussion session around the chapter opener.