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“Write on”

'Writing is the best way to talk without being interrupted.'
Jules Renard

'I learned that you should feel when writing, not like Lord Byron on a mountain top, but like a child stringing beads in kindergarten - happy, absorbed and quietly putting one bead on after another.'
On day one of the workshops participants were asked to express attitudes towards writing in class, and generally it is perceived as rather a dry, uninteresting, solitary and difficult to teach skill. Therefore, the emphasis of the workshops was on generating theoretical and practical ideas for communicative, skills-based writing activities.

General conclusions reached

Collaborative approach. Stages and steps that are fun and creative and which involve a range of student interaction from individual, pair work, group and whole class activities. These in turn may include a variety of activities such as: matching, guessing, exchange and reply, role-play, imaginative stimulus, formula poems and stories, brainstorming, describing what you see and other enjoyable classroom activities.
Elements to be addressed in writing lessons:

• Content
• Language input
• Organisation
• Style
• Edit

The above elements can be dealt with cooperatively and even the writing stage doesnÕt have to be solitary. One student could be Ôthe bossÕ and he/she dictates the writing to the other student, Ôthe secretaryÕ.

Realistic Product/Response

Raising awareness for the need to write with a reader (audience) in mind. It should be meaningful communication that mirrors real life writing and it should enable a reader to respond in some way. However, feedback on writing neednÕt always be the teacher. Fellow students can respond to the text in many ways depending on the text type itself. For example, a student could read the text to comment on aspects of the language used, the ideas, the organisation of the text, or it may be read with a task to perform or to vote for the best one, or even simply for pleasure.

Whole texts

Also by encouraging students to produce continuous pieces of writing beyond the sentence level, we not only help the students become more confident in using cohesive devices, but we also prepare our students for the new requirements of the ÔTieng AnhÕ writing tests.

What follows in this newsletter are some of the lesson ideas that participants used and adapted in the ten VTTN workshops. We are sure you will be able to use some of these activities with your classes. Enjoy!

“Write on”
activities

I. Picture story
Tran Lam Son in Nghe Anh demonstrated this activity. Pictures can be taken from anywhere, or self-produced if you are artistically minded!

1. Photocopy and give students a set of pictures of a story in the wrong order.
2. Ask them to work in pairs or groups to discuss what they can see in each picture and what might be
happening. Then get students to try to arrange the pictures in the correct order.
3. Give feedback on the order of the pictures.
4. Ask students to work individually to write the story.
5. Exchange written work for peer correction.
6. Teacher reads out the original story and students compare it with their own.

II. Problem-solving
Thanks again to Tram Lam Son in Nghe Anh for bringing this activity to our attention.

1. Group students into fours or fives.
2. Ask them to take out a sheet of paper and write down a problem they are facing (financial, romantic, etc.).
3. Put the paper in the middle of the desk.
4. Each student then takes away one sheet.
5. Write some advice for the problem(s) you get.
6. The teacher reads it out, then gives it back to the owner.

*This activity is especially good for practicing language functions for Ôasking for and giving advice (e.g. should, ought to, it's a good idea etc.). IV. Postcard writing
BC Trainer Mike Watson takes this activity on tour.

III. Rule-giving
This classic activity was put to the test by
Ms Nguyen Kim Anh in Yen Bai Province.

1. Give students a sample of a rule.
2. Ask them to work in pairs or groups to analyse the meaning and the structures: must have to, neednÕt etc.
3. Feedback with some guided questions.
4. Assign students a card telling them which one they are writing for e.g. Rules for school, army, prison etc
5. Students now read othersÕ work and guess what the rules are for.II. ProblemÐsolving
Thanks again to Tram Lam Son in Nghe Anh for bringing this activity to our attention.

IV. Postcard writing
BC Trainer Mike Watson takes this activity on tour.

1. Lead in by asking some guided questions about holidays.
2. Stick a map of a country on the board and tell the students about your itinerary (dates, where and when you are writing a postcard).
3. Give a sample of your postcard.
4. Ask students to work out tenses, vocabulary used and so on.
5. Ask them to draw a map of Vietnam then imagine their holiday (make sure they can use different tenses to describe the holiday).
6. Exchange the postcards with each other for peer correction, then self correction.
7. Display the work and others can go round and read. Picture next to text, not ÔonÕ the postcard.

*A variation is to get the students to write on a separate piece of paper and the students 'while reading task' is to match the text to a choice of different postcards

V. Running/Whispering dictation

Thanks to Ms Nguyen Hai Yen and Nguyen Huong Giang in Thanh Hoa
who gave this dynamic activity a whirl!

1. Hang a text outside the classroom.
2. Divide the class into 3 groups.
3. Make sure they have a secretary and that they know the rules.
4. Each group stands in a line and the person at the back must go to the text to read one or two sentences at a time then whisper to the person in front of them and continue along the line to the secretary who writes down the message.
5. Each group read out their work and teachers read out the original text and give some comments/feedback.

VI. Circle writing

Mr Nguyen Huy Nghia and Phan Hong Phuong in Nghe An
help particpants produce lots of collaborative stories.

1. Put students into a circle.
2. Ask them to take out a piece of paper.
3. Teacher reads a sentence for them to write down.
4. Ask them to continue the story using this sentence as the starting point.
5. After one minute ask them to pass the paper clockwise to the next person, who continues the story.
6. After several passes, ask them to stop and read out the stories.

VII. Bubble Writing
by Ms Tu Mai Vinh and Ms Tran Hanh Nhung in Nghe An

Draw 5 circles on the board as follows, then write in each circle:

Then ask students where do they put Ôand, but and soÕ to link those circles for a short text. On finishing, ask them to draw 5 circles as above, then write about themselves or another person in the class. This can be adapted for other functions and it provides models of cohesive texts for students to imitate.

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