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Activities
Effective pedagogy for language teaching
Effective pedagogy research is integrated into these teacher support materials.
The New Zealand Curriculum (pages 34–36) summarises evidence of the kinds of teaching approaches that consistently have an impact on student learning.
Research into second language acquisition pedagogy reviewed in Ellis (2005) establishes ten principles for teacher actions that promote student learning.
Research into intercultural communicative language teaching (Rivers, based on Newton et al. 2010 [1]) establishes six principles for a pedagogy that is effective in achieving the outcomes specified in The New Zealand Curriculum.
Language learning activities
Choose or adapt these learning activities to suit your students’ diverse needs and the particular objectives they are to achieve.
Listening comprehension – focus on meaning
A cloze activity challenges the students to make meaning from what they hear and reinforces their understanding of words used in particular contexts.
| As you listen to the story, write in the times each person mentions
|
This activity focuses on the times that are part of the story. Hand out copies of this activity to the students. Remind them that Mum’s name is Telehia.
Read the story aloud, or arrange for a gagana Tokelau speaker to read it. As the students listen, they write the times in the gaps according to what they hear. You may need to repeat the reading so that your students manage to complete their entries. The students check their responses using copies of the storybooks or the English translation.
Formulaic expressions
The students recognise expressions in their contexts of use. They use some of these expressions when they communicate in gagana Tokelau in other situations.
The students work in pairs. They read the story and make a list of ten formulaic expressions they can use when they are speaking gagana Tokelau. If needed, hand out copies of the English translation of the story for them to refer to as they work on this task. Some examples of formulaic expressions are:
- Oka, te vave o te taimi nī? / Man, time flies, eh?
- Ko ni ā tā koe ē fai? / What are you doing?
- Io, ko au ka fanatu nei! / OK, I’m coming now!
- Kua uma te fai ē au. [or] Kua uma te kō faia. / I’ve done it.
Compile a list of suitable expressions, and have some students write these on charts for the classroom wall. One chart has the expressions in gagana Tokelau. Another chart has the same expressions in English. Challenge the students to use these expressions so that they communicate more in gagana Tokelau as they work on tasks in the classroom.
Link with prior learning
The students respond to requests and instructions.
Repeat the envelope activity in Lesson A on page 333 (bullet point 3) in Muakiga! to help the students recall the instructions for making a headband and review the sequence of steps.
The students draw up a list of instructions for making the kahoa. They work in pairs, taking the information from the storybook. They check their versions against the master version supplied here.
| Faiga o te Kahoa
Tuhi te ata o te kahoa. |
Making a kahoa
The students explore some art-making conventions. They follow instructions for making a kahoa. They apply knowledge of elements and selected principles through the use of materials and processes.
Photocopy the master version for making a kahoa onto cards, and laminate these.
Arrange for your students to work in an area with the necessary materials and equipment for making a kahoa, following your school’s safety guidelines. Hand out the laminated cards. The students work on their kahoa, following the instructions in gagana Tokelau.
Patterns of language – focus on form
This activity involves a focus on how gagana Tokelau is organised in particular ways. The students adapt language when they communicate about things they have made.
The students work in pairs and describe to each other how they made their kahoa. To prepare them for this task, and to make them familiar with the language pattern to use to talk about actions in the past, repeat the activity in bullet point 3 on page 341 of Muakiga!
For an extra challenge, give them a time limit for communicating how they made their kahoa. For example, can they complete their descriptions in one minute!
Trusting their memory
This task enables the students to receive and produce information.
The students work in groups, with five students per group. They take turns to say what household chores they do. One student acts as recorder. The recorder listens carefully to what each student says, without writing anything down. When all the students have spoken, the recorder repeats what household chores each students does. All the students take turns at being the recorder.
For example, one student might say Na fufulu ē au nā ipu. / I washed the dishes.
The recorder says: Na fufulu (name of student) nā ipu. / (name of student) washed the dishes.
Crafts
The students explore, research, and present information on aspects of gāluega (crafts) mentioned in the story. They develop their understanding of the relationship between the materials used and their performance properties in technological products.
Explore the following discussion points with your students. Invite people with expertise in making Tokelau crafts to come and talk to your students and show them how particular items are made.
The students work in pairs or groups. They present their information on posters. They refer to their posters when they tell others what they found out in their research.
Possible research topics:
- The significance of pā in Tokelau culture, and the materials and designs that are commonly used.
- The tradition of carving, its importance, and the kinds of artefacts included in meatalatalai (carved objects), and their uses.
- Kinds of kahoa, their significance, and the materials used.
- Other kinds of jewellery, their significance, and the materials used to make them, for example, tautaliga (earrings).
- Gifting practices, including how gifts are presented, for example, the practice of fakakahoa – placing a pendant made with a mother-of-pearl shell lure (pā) around someone’s neck.
Reproducing text – focus on spelling
The students reproduce text with appropriate use of macrons and correct spelling.
Place several copies of the written text from page 12 on the wall (in the corridor) outside your classroom. The students are to reproduce the complete text in their workbooks in the classroom. They can make as many journeys as they like between the corridor and the classroom. They may not take writing materials outside the classroom. While this is going on, observe their behaviours, for example, how they read, walk, and write.
The students check their version against the version on page 12 of the storybook. Tell them some of the things you observed about the way they read, walked, and wrote. Enquire about their inner processes, and ask them to be precise. For example:
- Did they see the text in their mind’s eye?
- Did they hear the text in their mind’s ear?
- Did they say the text silently as they walked?
- Did they say the text aloud as they walked?
- Did their way of doing the task change throughout the activity?
These questions will open up a discussion on the processes your students used to complete the activity. Some students who found this activity difficult may find this discussion useful. They may learn some different strategies to try out next time.
Creating text – written communication
The students communicate information to another person, in writing.
The students work in pairs. Each student individually composes an email to be read by their partner. They write about something they have made. They use the written text in the storybook or information in Unit 14 of Muakiga! as a basis for their description. When they complete their communication, they send it to their partner. In this way, every student receives an email.
The students read the emails and give feedback to the writers about how well they understand the description. The feedback is to include what helped them to understand the description and what hindered their understanding.
Lead a class discussion on the kinds of feedback the students gave each other. This feedback will give you useful insights into the reading strategies and processes the students are using to develop their literacy in gagana Tokelau.
Reflecting on their learning
Help the students to reflect on their learning, and also on how they learn. Students could share these reflections with another student, with a small group of students, or with the whole class. As a prompt, ask the students questions such as:
- What strategies and activities helped you to understand the story?
- What strategies and activities helped you to remember the new language?
- How can you use the new language in other contexts?
- Can you identify aspects of new learning about agānuku Tokelau?
- How have you improved your use of gagana Tokelau?
For example, a student might say:
“I can now follow instructions in gagana Tokelau when making a kahoa consisting of a pā and plaited cord. The listening activity helped me to recall how to tell the time. I can talk about the kinds of materials commonly used for making some craft items in the Tokelau culture.”
[1] Newton, J., Yates, E., Shearn, S., and Nowitzki, W. (2009). Intercultural Communicative Language Teaching: Implications for Effective Teaching and Learning. Wellington: Ministry of Education.