2. The stages of a speaking
lesson for secondary
learners:
1. Warm-up
2. Lead-in
3. Generate ideas
4. Language clarification
5. Practice
6. Preparation
7. Speaking task
8. Reformulation
3. WARM-UP
A warm-up is a quick activity used at the beginning of the
lesson to get learners settled and in the mood for the lesson.
This is usually a game or fun activity.
Careful:
A warm-up should not take longer than 5 minutes.
4. LEAD-IN
A lead-in is another quick activity used to set the context of
the lesson. This stage usually consists in:
● discussion questions;
● exploring pictures;
● using music clips or video snippets;
● working with realia;
● a quiz;
● an anecdote;
● etc.
Careful:
A lead-in should not take longer than 5 minutes.
A lead-in should not focus on language, but on the topic of
the lesson.
5. GENERATE IDEAS
Provide students with ideas for speaking. They can brainstorm ideas or
takes notes individually, for example. Depending on the output you
expect, it may be a good idea to use a reading/listening text to provide
a model of what they have to produce. This stage also helps provide
the students with ideas for them to be able to speak later in the lesson,
but it can be a discussion, brainstorming, survey, internet search etc.
6. LANGUAGE CLARIFICATION
Introduce the communicative function, highlight fixed
expressions, point out the target structures and provide
students with the necessary language to perform the task.
Prioritize what they will need most. Show how they will use
vocabulary and functions, and practice pronunciation.
7. PRACTICE
Give students the opportunity to put the language that was
clarified into practice in a more restricted way for them to
gain confidence. It is important for them to manipulate the
language presented in a more controlled way and get
feedback on it.
8. PREPARATION
Give students instructions and time to prepare for their
production. This will maximize their chances of a successful
output. At this moment, they might take notes of what to say
and how to say it. Prompt and correct on the spot if
necessary.
9. SPEAKING TASK
This is the moment you have been preparing students for. Set up the
task clearly and allow students enough time to perform the task.
Monitor and refrain from interrupting unless they cannot do the task or
are doing something wrong. Encourage language negotiation among
students, take notes of any aspects that may hinder communication
such as pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar.
10. REFORMULATION
Ask students to repeat the task if necessary. This is another
chance to perform the task considering the feedback you
provided. Ideally, we should regroup students to avoid
redundancy and loss of interest. We can also make slight
changes to the task to keep them engaged.
