Lema journal-secondary-tpd2016-

TALLER DE PRÁCTICA DOCENTE 2016
Trainee’s Name: Gabriela Lema
Practicum
Group level: EFL (level 2/3 ), Secondary
Date:November 3rd, 2016
Lesson 1
OBSERVATION
60 minutes lesson
Topic: Final exam and revision for the final exam.
Today I visited the first EFL group I will be working with (I will develop my practicum
period in Secondary teaching in three different groups).
The kids who attend this classes are kids who, for different reasons, can not attend the
“traditional” subjects that are taught in English (it may happen because they do not
study in this school in Primary and they had few hours of English -or not English at all-
during that period, or their Spanish teachers think they need to spend extra time
revising topics in Spanish, so they need to reduce the amount of time they study
English, or because they have special needs caused by psychological or particular
matters)
The class I visited today, in particular, is composed by five girls. Their teacher Silvia told
me that two of them , Camila and Lola, are “level 3”; Delfina is “level 2” and the other
two girls, Nazarena and Trinidad, have recently joined this group but they should not be
considered as “EFL students” , because they attend this period in order to finish
activities they can not finish during their “traditional” lessons.
Apart from the different “categories” that the teacher explained to me, today was a
special day because this week they are having their final exams, so, when each student
entered the classroom the teacher asked them “do you want to do your final exam? Or
do you prefer to practise and do it in the afternoon?.
One of them preferred to do the exam, which included the text I copy below (being able
to read the exam, helped me to imagine the activities I will prepare for them):

The other two “EFL students” preferred to revise some topics and they used two
computers while the ones who attend this period in order to reinforce aspects they need
to reinforce for their lessons, decided to complete some written activities for Biology and
Geography respectively.
After the lesson, I had an informal interview with their teacher Silvia and I told her that,
according to what I had observed, those five girls may have different levels when they
are expected to produce in English but they seemed to share a similar (high) level in
terms of understanding. As Silvia said that I was right, I asked her if , taking into account
that the final exams will be finished by next week, I could prepare a project in order to
include the five girls in the same process of activities. For example, an e-pal project by
means of which the girls get to know some teenagers who lve in Australia and, by doing
so, they will have opportunities to describe themselves and their family members, talk

about their culture, compare and contrast their culture with the Australian’s culture, talk
about their favourite season/food/book, etc.
In order to start this project, I will prepare pictures that will help me to introduce the
country, its culture, etc, I will also use my own life in order to provide the students with
an example of how we can introduce ourselves and, once the students start being
expected to produce their own descriptions, each of them will be able to do them
according to their own level .
Silvia thought it could work very well, so I am planning to develop an e-pal project for
the three groups, but, of course, taking into account their different levels of proficiency
when I plan/design the activities.
Obervation 2
I observed the second lesson in the afternoon. During this period, some kids were
studying for other subjects while other were being evaluated by Silvia.
I checked the tests Silvia had designed for them, in order to get familiar with the
students’ varied levels before planning my own lessons for them.
I include some pictures below:
Interesting ideas, Gaby!!
Make sure you use a rich variety of resources to
cater for their different learning styles. :)

TALLER DE PRÀCTICA DOCENTE 2016

Trainee's name:Gabriela Lema
Practicum
Group Level : EFL (level 1), Secondary
Date:November 8th 2.10-3.10
Lesson 1
Today I had my first lesson in secondary and, fortunately, I could develop it according to
my plan. The students participated actively sharing their previous knowledge on
Australia.
Then used the flipchart to share more information with them:
As it is a small group , we did the activities I had planned together -class as a whole-
and we also had time to start writing a draft of the email we will send to our e-pal next
week. Some of their drafts are included below:

Next week we are going to enrich the drafts with more information and write the real
emails on computers.
Regarding the pedagogical principles that supported the planning and delivery of this
lesson, I would add that, by encouraging the students to share and learn some pieces of
information about Australia, I tried to put some of the principles of the Communicative
Language Teaching approach into practice, given that I created a context in which real
Thanks for sharing, Gaby!
Could you please expand on this first entry by
adding answers to the questions suggested in
the guidelines for journal writing?
_Marked as resolved_
_Re-opened_
Yes, Ceci. I will be able to do it during the long
weekend, is that ok?
I mean next Holiday
(between the 26th and 29th)
Yes, no problem! ;)

communication was involved, making them use their natural strategies for language
acquisition .
As I also incorporated the e-mail as a final task, it may be said that I incorporated an
aspect of the Task Based learning approach, which values the completion of
meaningful tasks through authentic communication.
Being asked to choose a moment that was important to me during the lesson, I would
mention the fact that, as I did the whole practicum in the school where I have been
working for the last five years; observing and teaching in secondary provided me with
the opportunity to get in contact with students that were my students in primary. And it
was really nice and rewarding for me to become aware of the fact that they remember
some of the projects and experiences we had when they were in primary in a positive
way.
Practicum Group Level : EFL (level 3), Secondary
Date:November 10th 10.20-11.20
LESSON 2
Today I had my second lesson in secondary (but the first lesson with this group). I
could develop the lesson according to my plan. The students participated actively
sharing their previous knowledge on Australia and they could follow the listening activity
very well.
Then I helped them to organize our next step -to include information about our country
in our email for our e-pal- by using posters with different categories.
By the end of the lesson, we decided that we are going to start talking about food (since
during the previous step they had shown that they preferred that category) and I asked
the students to bring information about:
Mate
Empanadas
Dulce de leche
Although they showed commitment, I will include the necessary information when I plan
the lesson -in case they do not bring the material requested-.
During the last minutes, they worked in group and wrote a draft of the introduction of the
e-mail that they will finish next week:
Wise idea!

In order to mention the aspects of the lesson that I consider successful, I want to
mention that , as the girls who attend EFL 3 are students from 6th year, they have an
intermediate level and they are very nice so ; I noticed that I could put some guidelines
from collaborative learning into practice. And it worked ; they could manage to work
independently and I could perform the role of a facilitator, scaffolding their work.
An important moment to me during the lesson happened before the lesson began: I
had a conversation with Silvia, the teacher, and Camila , one of the girls attending EFL
3. They told me that Camila was going to start the “Profesorado de Nivel Inicial” and
that morning she had visited kindergarten in our school. She had been observing
classes, she told me “like you” and during the whole lesson she demonstrated this
empathy by doing her best in every activity.
This made m think how important it is to show ourselves in a way that allows students
regard us as “human beings”, to demonstrate them that we are also learners (not only in
this particular case in which I am finishing the teachers’ training course, I think it is
important to find the way to make them understand that learning is a lifelong process).
I don't know if Camila’s comment (“like you”) may function as a metaphor …. but it
symbolises very well the idea I am trying to convey.
Practicum
Date:November 10 th, 2.10-3.10 PM
LESSON 3
Today I had my second lesson with the group EFL level 1, as during the previous lesson
we had been dealing with some important features of Australia and the students had
also written a first draft of the e-mail we were planning to send to our e-pal; during this
lesson I wanted to encourage the students to add information about their daily routine at
school.
A student called Marcos (who had been absent before) seemed to be a little bit restless
during the lesson, as he knew that a work as a primary teacher he tried to interrupt the
lesson making comments in spanish like “ y por qué vamos a tener clase con ella?” te
vas Silvia?” por qué seguimos con inglès si ya dimos los exámenes? Yo no hablo en
inglés, yo no entiendo”.

Marcos has showed this kind of attitudes since he was in primary school (he was not my
student when he was in 4th form because he did not attend “traditional” lessons, he
started attending EFL classes right th
Although Marcos tried to “boycott” the activities expressing ideas like “que asco que sea
ciego” I tried to incorporate his emotions to the lesson by challenging all of them to talk
about their feelings regarding Richards` condition. I explained to th
Nadja , who visits Richard very often, told me that Richard talks about his condition in a
completely natural way… so, if you want to ask him something about that, we can do
After that, together they wrote the short e
Once we finished the lesson, I talked with Silvia about Marcos. I told her that it may be a
good idea to play a board game next time . She liked the idea , so I will incorporate it in
my planning.
If I want to describe how students reacted to my teaching, to the activities and the
materials and to the lesson, I need to focus on Marcos. He is a boy who worried me
and my colleges in the past and I am sure he still worries his teachers now that he is
Secondary.
It may be said that Marco’'s emotional state or affective filter interferes with the
acquisition of the English (although he presents similar problems with spanish teachers
too).
He does not seem to be ready to speaking front of others, he
which may produce embarrassment and anxiety . I talked to the coordinator about him
since, of course, he needs much more than my understanding.
Regarding what I found useful of this lesson that will help me plan the next one, I wo
say that being able to see that some students refuse to be taking part of these lessons ,
made me feel that incorporating a board game may help all the learners (not only
Marcos) , since it will help me to create a non (or less) threatening atmosph
Although Marcos’ reaction was not “nice”, I would
Practicum
Group Level : EFL (level 1/2), Secondary
Date:November 15th, 2.10
LESSON 4
started attending EFL classes right then).
about their feelings regarding Richards` condition. I explained to th
completely natural way… so, if you want to ask him something about that, we can do
After that, together they wrote the short e-mail I included below:
and my colleges in the past and I am sure he still worries his teachers now that he is
He does not seem to be ready to speaking front of others, he
Regarding what I found useful of this lesson that will help me plan the next one, I wo
Marcos) , since it will help me to create a non (or less) threatening atmosph
Although Marcos’ reaction was not “nice”, I would
Date:November 15th, 2.10-3.10 PM
about their feelings regarding Richards` condition. I explained to them “look, my friend
completely natural way… so, if you want to ask him something about that, we can do it”
cluded below:
and my colleges in the past and I am sure he still worries his teachers now that he is in
He does not seem to be ready to speaking front of others, he cannot take this risk,
Regarding what I found useful of this lesson that will help me plan the next one, I would
Marcos) , since it will help me to create a non (or less) threatening atmosphere.
Why do you think Marcos
reacted like that? How did the rest of the group
react? How effective were the strategies you
applied?
From an intercultural
perspective, you could also work on elements
corresponding to the deep culture (beliefs,
roles, values, etc.)
Please, read the guidelines provided and
expand on your entries, Gaby.
Why do you think Marcos
reacted like that? How did the rest of the group
react? How effective were the strategies you
perspective, you could also work on elements
corresponding to the deep culture (beliefs,
Please, read the guidelines provided and

This morning, the coordinator told me and Silvia that some of the kids that took part in
lessons 1 and 3 were going to participate in lesson 4 (although they are not usually part
of that class , as an exception, because their mates were going to be sitting for
“integradoras”) .
As the lesson plan I had designed was not going to be useful (given that some of the
kids had done the activities during lesson 3) I anticipated the idea I had for lesson 6 , I
asked Silvia to write down some vocabulary items/structures/topics that she considered
that all the students who were coming were going to be able to revise and , in a couple
of hours, I designed a board game that looked like this:
When the students arrived I explained to them the rules and they enjoyed it a lot.
We played it three times , adding new rules in order to revise different aspects of the
language (for example, the second time they were expected to produce NEGATIVE
sentences only while the first time they had been allowed to produce any sentence).
The students enjoyed playing the game so much that I promised we were going to play
a new version, a little more more complex, next time. I also promised to bring a cake to
celebrate our last lesson together.
In order to point out the pedagogical principles that supported the planning and delivery of this
lesson , I would say that, as I only had a couple of ours to reevaluate my lesson plan , I decided
to incorporate strategies provided by Game Based Learning strategies in order to be able to
deal with the mixed ability group I was about to receive. Besides, I had already mentioned this
intention in previous entries and I had also expressed it to Silvia and she found it interesting.
PRÁCTICA DOCENTE 2016
Practicum
LESSON 5
Wow! Making adjustments
on the spur of the moment...

Today I had my fourth lesson in secondary
During the previous lesson with this group, we had been dealing with information about
Australia, the students could write the first draft of an e
homework, each of them chose a typical food in our country in order to bring information
about it .
Today only one student brought information about milk jam , so she shared it with the
rest of the students.
As I had made contact with Richard (an Austra
him to know that we were developing this project, Richard started the exchange by
introducing himself (I included his email in my lesson plan) . So, I showed his e
my students, we analyzed it and, working
the first draft they had written during our previous lesson plus the information brought by
Camila. They finally sent the email included below:
Of course, some aspects of the lesson require changes or impro
was the only one who brought the material they had been asked to bring did not surprise me. As
I knew this could happen, I had taken some material and I was ready to share it. Apart from that,
some girls needed to “use” this pe
Both incidents (Camila being the only one who brought the material and the girls who needed to
complete another task) made me reinforce the idea that being flexible and ready to rethink and
adapt our lesson plan at any time is essential and inherent to our roles. Having seen how
unpredictable are Silvia’s groups , I will need to take that into account to design suitable
plannings.
Practicum
LESSON 6
Today I knew I was going to have a mixed ability group again. So I could plan the
lesson taking that into account in advance.
I had three girls from 6th year (EFL 3) , three
from second year (EFL 2).
How did the students react to your teaching, to the activities and the materials? How did
they react to the lesson?
Today I had my fourth lesson in secondary -but the second one with EFL level 3
Australia, the students could write the first draft of an e
As I had made contact with Richard (an Australian friend) in advance, because I wanted
introducing himself (I included his email in my lesson plan) . So, I showed his e
my students, we analyzed it and, working together, my students wrote their email using
Camila. They finally sent the email included below:
Of course, some aspects of the lesson require changes or impro
some girls needed to “use” this period to complete some activities from other subjects.
sson plan at any time is essential and inherent to our roles. Having seen how
lesson taking that into account in advance.
I had three girls from 6th year (EFL 3) , three boys from 1st year (EFL 1) and one boy
from second year (EFL 2).
they react to the lesson?
but the second one with EFL level 3-.
Australia, the students could write the first draft of an e-mail for our e-pal and , as
lian friend) in advance, because I wanted
introducing himself (I included his email in my lesson plan) . So, I showed his e-mail to
together, my students wrote their email using
Of course, some aspects of the lesson require changes or improvement. The fact that Camila
riod to complete some activities from other subjects.
sson plan at any time is essential and inherent to our roles. Having seen how
boys from 1st year (EFL 1) and one boy
lian friend) in advance, because I wanted
together, my students wrote their email using
You thought of a really
meaningful activity for students to develop
intercultural awareness.
You thought of a really
or students to develop

At the very beginning the students were shy, the boys seemed to be nervous because
they did not know what they were expected to do, and their English level is very low.
I tried to make it clear that we were going to play a game, that we were going to have
fun. Little by little they began to gain confidence once they could experience the ame by
themselves.
A moment that was important for the students during the lesson:
A few minutes after we started playing I noticed that even among the boys from EFL 1
they had different levels not only in their production skills but also in terms of
understanding. So, I decided to divide the boys into two teams. Each girl played
individually while the boys conformed two teams. This helped them a lot since they
could work collaborativelly , not only because sometimes one of them knew something
that the other ignored but also because their attitudes toward the possibility of “failing”
were different, for some of them, making a mistake seemed to be the end of the world
while some others found it natural.
I bought some heart- shaped cookies and a coke to share them with the students, in
order to celebrate the end of lessons in general and our last lesson together in
particular.
The heart-shaped cookies helped me to express my gratitude to all of them.
Practicum
LESSON 7
The lesson plan for this EFL group was similar to the one I had planned for the previous
lesson but , in this case, all the kids shared a similar level.
What do you find useful of this lesson that will help you plan the next one?
As I mention in a previous entry, I noticed how important and challenging are the
“gameboard codes”. The possibility of finding a cell with the instruction “ move forward 5
places or go back to start“ really made them focused on the game.
An important moment :
I had promised to the kids that I was going to bring something sweet to celebrate our
last lesson. I noticed how important and meaningful it was for them to see that it was
true.
This made me feel that sometimes they feel betrayed by adults who probably make
promises in order to obtain something from them (to make them study, or pay attention,
for instance) but sometimes they do not keep their promises.
Practicum
Modelling is a really
effective strategy.
Dear Gaby,
Congratulations on your learning!
We invite you to expand on the entries by
choosing two metaphors that represent this
pedagogical experience.
Once you have done so, you may upload this
journal to the campus.
Best
Your tutors

LESSON 8
I incorporated the board game for the last time. As it was the group with the lowest level I
modelled the activity and I helped them along the game. Taking into acc
students were having the lesson with me their classmates were playing football outside (and
they could hear them) the class was really successful!
One thing I appreciated was the fact that when I was entering the classroom with t
the big dice, one of the boys told me “sabía que eras divertida!”. I loved his commen
I noticed that boardgames are really attractive for the students and it could be an excellent idea
(to be incorporated in my practice in 2017) to have
In order to fill it in with the vocabulary/structures we are working at the time we play it.
One metaphor (or simile) I would quote in order to describe my experience in secondary is that
I could finally understand that “adolescence is like gravity, It is much easier to work with it than
against it.”
modelled the activity and I helped them along the game. Taking into acc
they could hear them) the class was really successful!
One thing I appreciated was the fact that when I was entering the classroom with t
the big dice, one of the boys told me “sabía que eras divertida!”. I loved his commen
(to be incorporated in my practice in 2017) to have a fixed template board like this:
and that “adolescence is like gravity, It is much easier to work with it than
modelled the activity and I helped them along the game. Taking into account that while this EFL
One thing I appreciated was the fact that when I was entering the classroom with the board and
the big dice, one of the boys told me “sabía que eras divertida!”. I loved his comment.
a fixed template board like this:
and that “adolescence is like gravity, It is much easier to work with it than
ount that while this EFL
=D
Interesting, Gaby!

Going back to my experience in kinder, I’d say that working with young learners made me feel
like a Rock Star! After I finished my practicum with them, the children waved at me and shouted
my name whenever they saw me entering the school , talking with their teacher, playing games
with my groups, etc. I met them at the beginning of the year and they still do this by the end of it. You reached their heart!!!
You must feel proud of your achievements,
Gaby!
Best
Your tutors

Lema journal-secondary-tpd2016-

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