Explain it to me!

Objective & content

A mediation pair activity in two rounds. In each round, one pupil holds a document and the other holds a task that needs only part of it. In round 1, Student A has a cinema programme and Student B must choose a film for three friends: home by 7 pm, an 8-year-old brother, a friend who hates scary films and £20 for the tickets. In round 2, Student B has a pizza menu and Student A must order for a sleepover: one friend doesn't eat meat, one hates mushrooms, one doesn't like spicy food, and there's £20 for the pizzas and the delivery. The pupil with the document must not show it or read it all out: they explain only what their partner needs, and the partner decides. By the end, pupils can pick out useful information and pass it on simply.

Pedagogical guide

Mediation means passing on information to someone who hasn't seen it. Here the gap is not a missing word but a choice: each document holds more than the partner needs, so the explainer has to listen to the task and select ("That one is no good, because it finishes at 19:20."). Each page has the rule, a box of four phrases for explaining (It says that ..., There's one at ... It starts at ... and finishes at ..., That one is no good, because ..., I think the best one for you is ...) and questions to help the pupil who asks. The language is present simple, there is / there are, Wh- questions, too late / too far / too expensive and times and prices. Each task has one best answer, so pairs can check themselves. Page 3 is the teacher page: the idea, four steps, the language and the key with the reasons.

Suggested procedure

One activity of about 25 minutes.

1. (3 min) Set up the pairs: copy page 1 (Student A) for half the class and page 2 (Student B) for the other half, and put pupils in A + B pairs, face to face. Nobody shows their page. Read the rule and the phrases box with the class.
2. (8 min) Round 1: B reads the task and asks; A explains from the cinema programme. B writes the film, the time and the price.
3. (8 min) Round 2: A reads the task and asks; B explains from the pizza menu. A writes the pizza, how many, the size, the price and the time to phone.
4. (6 min) Pairs swap pages and check, then tell the class: "We chose ... because ...". Check with the key on page 3.

Adaptations

[S] When a pupil is stuck, they may point to the right line of the document once.

[A] After choosing, B explains the plan to a third pupil who hasn't heard anything.

Materials & prerequisites

Print infogap.pdf: page 1 for Student A and page 2 for Student B, one copy per pupil; page 3 is the teacher page. Pupils need a pencil. They should already know how to tell the time, prices in pounds and present simple questions. It goes well after work on free time, going out or food, and before a lesson on making plans.