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Skills

The document discusses the four language skills: Speaking, Reading, Writing, and Listening, categorizing them into productive and receptive skills. It provides teaching strategies and activities for each skill, emphasizing the importance of fluency, accuracy, and comprehension. Additionally, it outlines a structured approach to teaching these skills through pre, while, and post stages of learning.

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Carolina Fernández Dorado
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3 views25 pages

Skills

The document discusses the four language skills: Speaking, Reading, Writing, and Listening, categorizing them into productive and receptive skills. It provides teaching strategies and activities for each skill, emphasizing the importance of fluency, accuracy, and comprehension. Additionally, it outlines a structured approach to teaching these skills through pre, while, and post stages of learning.

Uploaded by

Carolina Fernández Dorado
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Working with the four

language skills

Novice Teachers 2025 - Florencia Pérez


What is a ‘skill’?
A way in which
language is used.
Which are the skills?
Reading, Speaking,
Writing and
SPEAKING and WRITING are
considered PRODUCTIVE because
they deal with communication
through EXPRESSION.
READING and LISTENING are
considered RECEPTIVE because they
deal with communication through
UNDERSTANDING.
Another classification
Verbal
languag
e
Written
languag
e
★ Ability to encode thoughts and concepts into oral
form.
★ Learners do not feel confident with it.
★ Supported by paralinguistic features such as gestures.
★ Sub skills associated to it: ‘Turn-taking’ and
‘Interrupting’.

SPEAKING
★ Stress, rhythm and intonation offer difficulties for
learners.
Possible activities...
❏ Role-play
❏ Tell your partner/teacher
❏ Interviews
❏ Find someone who
❏ Information gap
❏ Jeopardy
❏ Public Speakings / Presentations
When teaching
speaking…
DEVELOP FLUENCY (chunks of language, high
frequency words, intonation patterns)

DEVELOP ACCURACY (correct grammar and


expressions, pronunciation)

FOCUS ON COMMUNICATION

AVOID OVERCORRECTING
★ Ability to decode the meaning of a written text.
★ It is receptive, but not passive.
★ You carry it out for two purposes: information and
pleasure.

READING
★ Learners are affected by the lack of vocabulary and
structures.
★ There are different ways: skimming, scanning,
detailed and aloud.
Possible activities...
★ Cloze text
★ Researching a topic
★ Standard exercise (Reading for gist)
★ Reading and answering detailed comprehension
questions (Reading for detail)
★ Strip Story
When teaching reading…
ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

SCAFFOLD COMPREHENSION

TEACH READING STRATEGIES

FACILITATE UNDERSTANDING (LAYOUT,


VOCABULARY, IMAGES)

PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR REAL PRACTICE


★ Ability to encode thoughts and concepts into the
written form.
★ Learners benefit from planning, working with models,
vocabulary and structures in advance.

WRITING
★ The teaching of this skill is favoured if drafting and
editing stages take place.
★ Sub skill associated to it: “Using cohesive devices”.
★ It can be done cooperatively, on the WB or online.
When teaching writing…
MOTIVATING

BRAINSTORMING IDEAS

DRAFTING

EDITING

ASSESSING (FEEDBACK)
Possible activities...
★ Label the Classroom

★ Story circle

★ Acrostic poem

★ Comic strips

★ Descriptions
★ Ability to decode the meaning of a spoken discourse.
★ The teaching of this skill was taken for granted for
many years.
★ The lack of exposure to spoken language affects it.
LISTENING
★ Sub skill associated to it: ‘Guessing the meaning of
unfamiliar words’.
★ Activities to foster this skill should explicitly teach
learners what information to focus on.
When teaching
listening…
PROMOTING FOCUSING ATTENTION

RECEIVING INPUT

ENCOURAGING THE RELATIONSHIP OF


CONCEPTS: PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

ACTIVATING SHORT-TERM MEMORY

ACTIVATING LONG-TERM MEMORY


Possible activities...
★ Dictogloss
★ Reading aloud
★ Story-telling
★ Getting events in the right order
★ Word-game
★ Shouted dictation
TEACHING STAGES
1 - PRE: introductory stage. Learners get ready by
activating their schematta and/or predicting (use of
pictures, flashcards, realia, etc).

2 - WHILE : during the lesson learners actually


perform the task.

3 - POST : after actually performing the task, learners


make another one that integrates skills or a wrap up
of the prior activity(analysis, feedback,
self-assessment, peer-assessment).
“Nothing should be spoken
until it has first been
heard, nothing should be
written until it has been
first read, and nothing
should be read or written
until it has first been heard
REFERENCES
• Bygate, M. (1993) Speaking. Oxford, Oxford University Press.
• Diaz G. New directions in language teaching. Uruguay, Magró editores, 2024.
• Díaz Maggioli, G. & Painter-Farrell L. (2016) Lessons learned. First steps
towards reflective teaching in ELT. Richmond. 1st edition.
• Guerrero, S. et al. (2014). Primary Methodology Handbook: Practical Ideas for
ELT. Ciudad de México: Richmond Publishing.
• Harmer, J. (2007) The Practice of English Language Teaching. Essex, Pearson
Longman.
• Thornbury, S. (2006) An A-Z of ELT. A dictionary of Terms and Concepts.
Macmillan books for teachers. 1st edition.

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