Key subject: TEACHING IELTS AND TOEFL

Full name: NGUYEN HUY QUANG

Course date: 07 -12 August 2023

Table of contents

I. KEY POINTS FOR TEACHING IELTS AND TOEFL

1. What is IELTS and TOEFL exam preparation?

2. Why answer all questions?
3. Understanding instructions
4. Previewing and predicting effectively
5. Scanning and predicting text
6. Developing skills for listening
7. Developing skills for reading
8. Developing skills for speaking
9. Developing skills for writing
10. Developing skills for grammar
11. Speaking and pronunciation
12. Elicitation skills
13. Paragraph planning
14. Understanding Idioms and slang
15. Checklist of spelling
16. Techniques for unfamiliar vocabulary
17. Pre testing
18. Memory retention
19. Strategies for higher testing

II.LESSON PLANS
III. RELEVANT ACTIVITIES
I. KEY POINTS FOR TEACHING IELTS AND TOEFL

1. What is IELTS and TOEFL exam preparation?

IELTS and TOEFL at their core are tests primarily intended to test overall English skills, and thus the
process of preparing for the test should be twofold, beginning with the student's acquisition of
fundamental English skills such as speaking, writing, reading, etc; alongside the necessary
confidence to be able to use the language in real situations. Then, the next step would be to teach
students about the test itself which can include the test format, types of questions alongside test
strategies and proper mindset. The reason why English fundamentals should be prioritized over test
knowledge is because they provide students with the necessary knowledge to be able to understand
the complex concepts tests like IELTS and TOEFL presents, and skills involved in exercises used to
improve at English itself can translate well into the aforementioned tests.

2. Why answer all questions?

The most obvious reason why students should always answer every question on the IELTS/TOEFL
test is that you are not punished for it at all, combined with the fact that both tests are mainly
 multiple choice question, which means that there is still a chance that you might get the question
right if you chose randomly, instead of not choosing at all. It is worth nothing that choosing answers
randomly should be the last resort, and students should be encouraged to make educated guesses to
questions they don't know beforehand, using elimination, context and other relevant techniques to
increase their chance of getting the correct answer. And obviously, students need to be actually
trying to answer the question before resorting to the former methods.

3. Understanding instructions
Understanding instructions is crucial for those looking to take tests like IELTS and TOEFL, as they
effectively outlines your task for the corresponding questions, thus teachers should make sure that
their students are properly understanding the task's instructions. This would require the teacher to
explain to students the nuances of instructions, such as the difference between True/False and
Yes/No questions, or the specific amount of text per answer that different questions may require.
and making sure that students aren't just rushing questions without reading the instructions. One
way of doing this could be to ask students the exact instructions of a task whenever the class
collectively does said task, preferably by asking a random student to repeat the instructions.

4. Previewing and predicting effectively

In the IELTS and TOEFL tests, previewing and predicting are techniques employed by test takers to
recall past knowledge on the question's subjects, alongside setting a plan for answering them. The
most common way to teach students how to preview and predict during exercises is to ask general
questions regarding the topic of the exercise, such as "Based off the provided questions, what do
you expect to be listening about?" or "Based off the headline of this article, what do you expect it to
be about?". Related techniques like skimming for keywords and reading questions before the
paragraph might deserve their own lessons, but generally previewing and predicting are skills
teachers can teach through more natural methods, such as the aforementioned weaving them in
practical exercises. But with all that aside, the importance of previewing and predicting techniques
cannot be understated, as they give test takers a head start in understanding the main topics of the
test material, while also saving a lot of precious time in tests.

5. Scanning and predicting text

Scanning and predicting text are important skillsets to have in the reading section of the IELTS and
TOEFL tests, as they allow test takers to quickly locate important information that the questions
may require. Scanning is defined as the act of quickly looking at the text to look for information
specific to a question, such as years and names, with the help of prior skimming and predicting to
have a good idea of where said information would be. Similarly to skimming, scanning can be
taught naturally by weaving it into practical exercises. For example, a teacher can ask which section
can the information needed for the question a student just answered can be found consistently, and
improving student's preview and prediction skills can go a long way in streamlining their scanning
process.

6. Developing skills for listening

The listening portion of the IELTS and TOEFL tests can be overwhelming for some students for many
reasons, such as the fact that test takers are usually only given one attempt to listen to the recording,
and the rate of speech of the speakers can be hard to keep up at times. There are a few notable
things teachers can do to improve this, however.
-Focusing on specific skillsets: For listening, there are several key skills that students need to have in
order to improve their test results: Anticipation - the ability to predict what the speaker would be
speaking based off prior context such as the questions, Active targeted listening - the ability to spot
for specific crucial information in the audio, such as a phone number or address, Noticing: the
ability to notice specific details that might indicate incoming additional information, such as "By the
way" and "Also". Focusing efforts on improving these skillsets, such as by using listening material
with a lot of numbers to improve active targeted listening, or asking students about what they might
be hearing about using the questions as hints to improve anticipation can go a long way to
improving general listening skills both in and outside of the test.
 -Using a wide variety of listening materials: Topics brought up in the test may vary wildly, from two
friends talking about their home to a college lecture on evolution. Thus, it is important that teachers
expose students to a large amount of different topics, as they help with both familiar topics as a way
to strengthen knowledge on it, and unfamiliar topics as a way to teach students how to adapt to the
new topics.

7. Developing skills for reading

In the TOEFL and IELTS tests, reading is a skill that test takers are expected to express through
understanding of long paragraphs and the wide variety of subjects in the texts. This means that
alongside teaching the vocabulary and knowledge the test expects, teachers also need to be helping
students improve their fundamental reading skills with a range of methods.
-Vocabulary: It's the single most important aspect of reading, as it will be very hard to understand text
effectively without a solid knowledge on vocabulary. Students should be exposed to new
vocabulary consistently, but not to the point of overwhelming them, and they should also be able to
somewhat predict the meaning of new words in texts through context.
-Skimming, scanning and predicting: They are important skills for reading test material efficiently and
teachers should try to get students to use them regularly during exercises.
-Test knowledge: They consist of things like question types, expected topics and test format, and
students should be able to understand the details of them, and from there form viable test strategies.
-Speed reading: English tests generally have a strict time limit, and thus teachers should ensure that
students can read at a reasonable speed with faster exercises.

8. Developing skills for speaking

Speaking can be an awkward skill for a lot of students looking to learn English as a second language,
due to their lack of exposure to the language in their life compared to their mother tongue. This is
especially true in the context of learning for the TOEFL or IELTS tests, as the pressure they face
can make it hard for them to speak fluently. Teachers can help massively with this however, through
methods aimed at improving language abilities and confidence.
-Focus on pronunciation: Pronunciation is the backbone of speaking English, and thus should be a top
priority when teaching speaking.
-Help students with confidence: Many students suffer from confidence issues that stem from many
sources, from test anxiety, lack of social experiences and many other reasons. Thus, teachers can
help students with casual and fun speaking activities such as singalongs and roleplays in order to
help them gain confidence and lessen stuttering.
-Quick thinking: Speaking tests usually happen in a very rapid rate, expecting test takers to have a
proper responses in a matters of seconds for short questions, and a few minutes for longer speeches.
Thus, students should be taught how to think of responses quickly through a variety of exercises,
ranging from quick noting practice to improv sessions.

9. Developing skills for writing

In IELTS and TOEFL, writing can be a major road block for many, due to the grammar and vocabulary
proficiency expected and the strict time limit. There are a wide variety of ways to tackle this issue as an
English teacher, focusing on improving the aforementioned skillsets alongside writing itself through
task-based teaching. -Vocabulary and grammar: They are very important skills in the writing section, as
mentioned before, because they make up a decent amount of the section's total score, thus teachers
should not ignore them when teaching writing in general.
-Test knowledge: This encompasses things like grading criterias, types of writings in the test and the
expected type of language. These knowledges are crucial in order for students to be able to understand
how to write efficiently and should be addressed consistently.
-Specialized writing types: The types of writing assignments in IELTS and TOEFL tend to be focused
around a number of specific themes, from analyzing charts to giving opinions on societal problems.
Students should be familiarized with these topics in order to be more prepared for the tests.
-Consistent and helpful feedback: One of the reasons why writing is a hard skillset for many is that it's
harder to get feedback on your work, which is why teacher feedback should aim to point out mistakes in
a concise and understandable way.
 10. Developing skills for grammar
Grammar is a rather complex skill to approach when preparing for tests like TOEFL and IELTS, as
while questions usually doesn't refer to specific grammar knowledge, it's still needed to be able to
effectively understand and do test material. Listed here are some ways teachers can help students
with improving their grammar.
-Be natural: Trying to force students to use a large amount of complex grammar early on in their
learning process will make things significantly worse for them, even if they understand the grammar
structures, because they might not be used to communicating in such a way. Instead teachers should
ease them into it, with slight suggestions on how to incorporate more complex language.
-Proper correction: Being harsh and angry when correcting mistakes goes nowhere, and will just
frustrate students. Instead, teachers should aim to be friendly and helpful, while remaining
professional and concise. This is especially true for grammar teaching, as specific grammar rules
can be very confusing and unintuitive for some.

11. Speaking and pronunciation

It goes without saying that speaking and pronunciation goes hand in hand, especially in the IELTS and
TOEFL tests. This means that teachers looking to improve their student's speaking skills also need
to improve their pronunciation at the same time. -Avoiding slurred speech and forgetting words
should be priorities, which means that teachers should implement tasks aimed at improving
continuous speech, such as individual reading or roleplays. -Drills are still important tools in order
to improve pronunciation of individual words, and should still be utilized even with adult students. -
Advanced pronunciation rules such as linked words and intonation should also be addressed once
students start to show fluency in conversations as a way to further improve their ability to speak
naturally.

12. Elicitation skills

Elicitation is a teaching technique that involves the teacher getting their students to give out
information on a subject before they do, as a way to improve understanding and retention, while
also acting as an easy way to check for their existing knowledge. For example, a teacher can write
out examples of a grammar structure, and asks students to figure out how the structure works based
off the examples. In the IELTS and TOEFL tests, elicitation also refers to techniques that can be
used in order to obtain information from sources that wouldn't be obvious normally, such as
paraphrases and visual information. Teachers can help students improve elicitation skills through
dedicated exercises, such as pointing out every paraphrase in a paragraph.

13. Paragraph planning

Paragraph planning is an important aspect of the writing section in tests like TOEFL and IELTS, and
thus students should have a decent understanding of the process in order to make the writing
process easier for them..
-Every paragraph usually has a topic sentence, which should be a summary of the contents of said
paragraph. Generally, it's a good idea to let students practice writing good topic sentences, then
finish the paragraph based off the sentence, which helps to streamline the process and avoid
sidetracking into other topics unnaturally.
-Teach students about the different types of paragraphs, such as the opening, main points and ending,
and ensure that they're writing paragraphs that falls into these categories in order to avoid cluttered
essays.

14. Understanding Idioms and slang

Idioms are phrases that is established through regular usage and has a meaning that is hard to deduce
based off literal meaning. They can be a helpful tool in tests like TOEFL and IELTS as a way to
convey specific expressions, but shouldn't be a focal point of student's learning process. Test takers
should also only use idioms when they're absolutely sure it means what they think it means to avoid
confusion. Slang are words considered very informal and is reserved for casual conversation, and
generally should be avoided in these tests as they're considered more professional and serious
 environments, and similarly to idioms, they can cause confusion to those who aren't accustomed to
the terms, which can cause a bad impression.

15. Checklist of spelling

A spelling checklist is a list of words that a teacher wants students to learn, or words students may be
struggling. They serve as a good reminder for students to revise said words, and also serves as a tool
to track their progression on them. They can also be a list of words themed around a specific topic,
such as vehicles or landmarks. There is also a wide variety of ways student can use spelling
checklists in general, such as learning one new word from the list every day and assigning
checklists as weekly tasks or homework. Overall, spelling checklists are an easy way for teachers to
monitor their student's progress in learning new vocabulary and pronunciation, as well as being
generally convenient to maintain.

16. Techniques for unfamiliar vocabulary

Encountering unfamiliar vocabulary during tests like IELTS and TOEFL can be confusing and
frustrating for test takers, but usually, unless there is a question that the word is directly related to,
students can get away with guessing the meaning using several sources.
-Context: The context of the sentence the word is in, alongside the general themes of the paragraphs
can give you hints on what the word could mean.
-Spelling: The word's spelling, particularly what roots it might have and what other words it might be
related to can help infer meaning more accurately.
-Grammar: How a word is used in a grammatical context may also influence it's meaning, such as
whether it's likely to be a verb, noun, etc based off it's position in the sentence, or it's
prefix/suffixes.

17. Pre testing

A pretest is an unofficial version of tests like TOEFL and IELTS, usually provided by examination
centers, educators or available online, which aims to serve as practice for the real test. They are
usually based on real test conditions, such as time limits, type of questions, etc, and depending on
where the pretest takes place it may or may not be free of charge. Pretests are useful because they
may allow test takers to see specific answers for their questions, which helps massively in
identifying potential strengths and weaknesses. They are also time and cost-effective, which means
that they can be an efficient tool for practicing the tests before doing real attempts. Students with
enough free time should try to take pretests at least once before attempting the real test in order to
prepare better for it.

18. Memory retention

Memory retention can be hard to achieve depending on the students in question, which means proper
methodology is needed in order to enhance the lesson's retention rate.
-Repetition: It strengthens the information students learns in a very simple way, and is usually very
effective regardless of age and experience, though proper measures need to be taken in order to
avoid monotony during the process of repetition itself.
-Writing: Another great way to help students retain knowledge is by letting them noting down the
lesson contents. Though it may come off as inconvenient for some who may prefer to save their
lessons digitally, it is still an effective method to strengthen their memory.
-Activities: Engaging and interesting activities can do wonders to those having issues memorizing
with more conventional methods, as they form more notable memories which can be retained for a
longer time comparing to just standard teaching.

19. Strategies for higher testing

Tests like IELTS and TOEFL generally encompasses a very wide range of skill levels, which means
notable effort must be made in order to secure higher results. The following are some general advice
that students can utilize in order to achieve a better score.
-Proper mindset is very important, in order to avoid being overwhelmed with worries before and
during the test. Students should try to feel relaxed the day before the test, and not to stress
 themselves too much over mistakes during the test. They should also feel encouraged to learn from
mistakes and ask questions, whether towards the teacher or the examiner.
-Have a plan. Planning ahead, whether in the studying process or during the test itself will always put
you in an advantage, planning the study process allows students to learn more efficiently and
reduces cramming, and planning time allocation during the test streamlines the process for students
and reduces the likelihood of being short on time.

REFERENCES:

https://ielts.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/pretest_v2.pdf

Australian International TESOL Manual book

Australian International TESOL Exam preparation book

II. LESSON PLAN

LESSON PLAN 1 (45 minutes)

LESSON PLAN
Topic: IELTS Writing introduction

Level: Upper-Intermediate

Length: 45 minutes

Age: 18-21 years old

Language Skills: Speaking, writing, listening, vocabulary, grammar, reading

TESOL Methodology: Task based, Natural, Communicative, Eclectic

Lesson Objectives: Students will be able to understand the basics of the Writing
section of the IELTS test, alongside general tips for it.

Resources: Board, markers/ chalks, white paper, handouts

Stage Activity Description Resource Time

Warm up Spot the -On the board, the teacher writes the Handouts 5
details minutes
name of the game. (1 per
student)
-The teacher divides the class into 4
teams, then provide handouts to each
team.
 -The teacher explains the rules: Within 2
minutes, each team must work together
to write as many sentences describing
the image in the handout as possible,
then after the time limit, each team
presents their sentences to everyone, the
team with the most sentences win.

-Teacher checks understanding by asking

some questions (What are you supposed
to write? What do you do when you
finish writing?)

-Teacher does a demo

-Teacher starts the activity
-After the time limit, teacher asks each
team to provide their sentences, then
announce the results.
Pre-task -The teacher explains how they have just 1
minute
described an image, which is one of the
many tasks they might be expected to do
in the IELTS Writing section – today’s
topic

Teaching 1 Comparati - The teacher introduces the IELTS Board, 9

minutes
ves Writing section with the following chalk or
information: markers
+The section is separated into 2 parts:
Task 1 and Task 2, and must be finished
within 60 minutes

+Task 1 usually involves the test taker

 explaining/describing a visual
representation of information: Graphs,
maps, charts, etc; while Task 2 involves
giving out one’s opinion on a specified
problem.

+The students should usually take 20

minutes on Task 1 and 40 minutes on
Task 2, and they should be structured as
essays with a clear Overview/Main
topic/Conclusion structure.

+Task 1 should have at least 150 words,

and Task 2 250 words, with no upper
limit.

-Teacher asks questions to check

understanding (How much time are you
allowed? How many parts are there? What
does each part contain?)

Task 1 Spot the -Teacher divides the class into groups of Workshe 6
minutes
Impostor 3, then provides every group with ets
worksheets containing the following, then 1/group
explains their task: They must spot the
false statements within 2 minutes, and
after the time period the teacher calls
random groups to provide answers.

The IELTS Writing section lasts for 60

minutes.

Test takers can take 25 minutes to do Task

1 and 30 for Task 2 if they want.

Task 1 consists of a representation of data

and test takers are expected to describe the
data within it.

Task 2 consists of a larger set of data

relating to the first task, and test takers are
expected to connect the information in
both tasks together.

Test takers should have a clear structure in

their task writings.
 -The teacher asks questions to check
understanding (What are you supposed to
spot? What do you do after the time limit
is reached?)

-Teacher starts the activity

-After the time limit, the teacher calls

random groups to share answers to the
statements.
Example of Handouts (1 per
Teaching 2 -The teacher gives out handouts to 8
Part 2 student)
essay/Explaini students which contains the following: minute
ng grading There is an increasing trend around the s
system world of married couples deciding not to
have children. Discuss the advantages and
disadvantages for couples who decide to
do this.

An increasing number of married couples

around the world choosing to remain
childless. The main benefits of not having a
child for couples are that they can focus on
their careers and have more time for
themselves. The main drawbacks are that
they could not fit into their peers’ group and
have no one to look after them when they
get old.

One primary advantage of remaining

childless for married couples is that they can
focus on their work. This is because they
have less responsibility and distractions in
their lives compared to the couples that have
a child. Another advantage of this is that
they have more spare time. Looking after a
child is a full-time job for parents and taking
most of their time, while child-free couples
have lots of free time after work. For
example, many couples stop going out late
with their friends after having a child as they
have to stay at home for looking after their
children.

One disadvantage of couples deciding not to

have children is that they can struggle to
hang with their peers after most of them
have children. Most parents prefer to spend
more time with other couples that have
children as well. Moreover, do not have
anyone to look after them in their elderliness
is another disadvantage. Children are the
ones who take care of their parents when
they get old because their parents did the
same for them when they were young. For
 instance, the vast majority of the people who
live in care homes have no child.

In conclusion, the main benefits of staying

child-free for couples are that they can be
more career-oriented and have more free
time for themselves, and the main
drawbacks are that they could have
problems about fitting into their friends’
group and having no one to take care of
them when they become older.

-The teacher points out several notable

things about the essay:
+The opening of the essay is
paraphrased from the task’s question
+The main topics of the essay is split
into two parts depending on the pros and
cons of the topic, alongside proper
examples to back up their points
-Teacher explains how things like the
aforementioned improves one’s scores in
the test, and how the writing will be
judged through 4 criterias: task
achievement, coherence and
cohesion, lexical resource and
grammatical range and accuracy.

Paraphrase Whiteboard,
Task 2 -Teacher writes the following on the 7
contest marker
minutes
board: The table illustrates the
percentage of school children attending
four different types of secondary school
from 2000 to 2009.
-Teacher divides the class into teams of
4 and explains the activity: Within 3
minutes, each team must write out as
many paraphrases of the provided
sentence as possible, and the team with
the most correct paraphrases wins.
 -Teacher gives an example: The table
shows the proportions of pupils attending
four secondary school types between
2000 and 2009.

-Teacher checks student’s understanding

of the activity with questions (What are
you supposed to be writing down? How
much time do you have? How many
paraphrases should you be writing
down?)

-Teacher starts the activity

-After time runs out, teacher tells

everyone to stop writing, then each team
reads out loud their answers.
Checking Whiteboard,
Followup -Teacher asks the class on the following 6
understsanding marker minutes
questions, written on the board:
+How long is the Writing section?
+What does each part contain?
+How will your writing be judged?
-Teacher repeats the answers if nobody
in the class can answer
Homework -Teacher announces the homework: 1 minute
LESSON PLAN 2 (60 minutes)

LESSON PLAN
Topic: Skimming and scanning of text

Level: Advanced

Length: 60 minutes

Age: 17-22 years old

Language Skills: Speaking, reading, writing, listening, vocabulary, grammar

TESOL Methodology: Task based, communicative, lexical

Lesson Objectives: Students will be able to understand the basics of scanning and
predicting the content of text in the IELTS Reading section

Resources: Board, markers/ chalks, word strips, handouts, worksheets

Stage Activity Description Resource Timing

Warmup Simon says -Teacher explains the rules of the game: 6

Teacher will be giving out orders for the minutes
class to follow, and the class must not
obey the commands unless the teacher
said “Simon says” before the order. If a
student does the order regardless they’re
eliminated from the game and must
stand outside of the circle.
-Teacher asks class to stand up and form
a circle around them
-Teacher checks for understanding
(When do you do what I say?)
-Teacher does a demo
-Teacher starts the activity until 2-3
people are eliminated.
Pre-task -Teacher leads into the main topic of 1 minute
today’s class: Prediction, skimming and
scanning of text in the Reading section
Teaching 1 Skimming -Teacher explains how there isn’t Whiteboard, 8
usually a lot of time in the IELTS marker minutes
Reading section to take your time with
the essays, thus there should be methods
test takers employ in order to shorten the
amount of actual reading required.
-Teacher introduces the concept of
skimming: The act of reading quickly
through a text to understand it’s main
meaning
-Teacher provides the steps to
skimming:

1. Read the first paragraph attentively

to get an idea of what will be
discussed in the text.
2. Read the first (and sometimes the
second) sentence of each paragraph
- they give the main idea of the
paragraph.
3. After you have read the first
sentences, your eyes should drop
down to the end of the paragraph,
looking for important pieces of
information, such as dates and
names.
4. Read the last paragraph attentively
as it may contain the summary.

-Teacher asks questions to check

understanding (Why should you skim?
What are the steps to skimming?)

Task 1 Worksheet -Teacher provides the following Worksheet 7

worksheet to everyone (1 per student) minutes
-Teacher explains the activity: The
students must note out the steps to
skimming by marking each underlined
part with the steps.
-Teacher asks questions to check
understanding (What are you supposed
to mark down?)
-Teacher starts the activity
 -The teacher calls random students to answer
each part
Teaching 2 Scanning -Teacher explains the definition of Worksheets 8
scanning: The act of quickly looking at or projector minutes
the text to look for information specific + laptop
to a question, such as years and names.
-Teacher provides an example:
There are now over 700 million motor
vehicles in the world - and the number is
rising by more than 40 million each
year. The average distance driven by car
users is growing too - from 8 km a day
per person in western Europe in 1965 to
25 km a day in 1995.
-How many automobiles are there in
the world?
-The teacher demonstrates scanning by
providing the instructions:
+Look for keywords, in this case “How
many” and “automobiles” in the
question, which indicate a number and a
synonym of “motor vehicles”
+Look into the paragraph for numbers
and words relating to “automobiles”, in
this case “motor vehicles”, and both of
these can be found in the first sentence,
and from that the teacher can find the
answer to the question: 700 million.
-Teacher repeats the method’s steps:
Find keywords in the question, then find
the same keywords in the text.
-Teacher asks students to recite the
 method to check understanding
Task 2 Speed -Teacher writes the name of the activity Handout pair 7
scanning on the whiteboard. minutes
-Teacher tells students to group up in
pairs, then provide each pair with the
two handouts marked “1” and “2”,
requesting them to keep the handouts
face down on the table and not to flip
them up until the teacher says so.
-Teacher explains the activity: The
teacher will write a question about the
paragraph contained in the handouts,
then students have 10 seconds to flip up
the handout and scan for the answer,
using the aforementioned technique.
-Teacher does a demo with the “motor
vehicles” paragraph in Teaching 1
-Teacher asks questions to check
understanding (How much time do you
have to scan the paragraph?, What are
you looking for in the paragraph?)
-Teacher begins the activity by writing
the question: “At which year was the
study done?”, then asks students to flip
up handout 1.
A 1993 study by the European
Federation for Transport and
Environment found that car transport is
seven times as costly as rail travel in
terms of the external social costs it
entails - congestion, accidents, pollution,
loss of cropland and natural habitats,
depletion of oil resources, and so on. Yet
cars easily surpass trains or Academic
Reading sample task – Identifying
information buses as a flexible and
convenient mode of personal transport.
-Teacher continues the activity with
handout 2
+Question: Who is considered “the
greatest living explorer”?
Here is how some of today’s ‘explorers’
define the word. Ran Fiennes, dubbed
the ‘greatest living explorer’, said, ‘An
explorer is someone who has done
something that no human has done
before – and also done something
scientifically useful.’ Chris Bonington, a
leading mountaineer, felt exploration
was to be found in the act of physically
 touching the unknown: ‘You have to
have gone somewhere new.’
-Teacher asks for answers from random
pairs.
Teaching 3 Flow of -Teacher explains that in order to speed 6
skimming up the process of scanning, skimming minutes
and should be done beforehand to know
scanning which sections of the text the students
should be looking for.
-Teacher explains the “flow” of
skimming and scanning: Skim first for
the general ideas of the text, then scan
your way through questions, using prior
knowledge from the skimming to
navigate the text faster.
Task 3 Guided -Teacher provides everyone with the 10
practice following worksheet: minutes

+How much butter do you need?

+How thick should the paste be?
+How long should you bake the biscuits in
the oven?

-Teacher guides students through the

process of skimming and scanning the text,
through the following pointers:
+Skim through the title and headers, what
does it reveal about the text? (It’s a recipe
for shortbread biscuits)
+Skim through the main sections to note the
order of ingredients and steps
+Look at the questions, using the
aforementioned clues to remember where to
look for info, based off keywords such as
“butter” and “paste”
Followup Tips and -Teacher reminds the class of what they’ve 6
tricks just learned, and adds some relevant tips for minutes
skimming and scanning
 +Remember to keep an eye out for
keywords
+Look at the beginning and end of
paragraphs and sections for a general idea of
the topics
Homework -Teacher provides today’s homework: Write 1 minute
out the skimming and scanning process of a
text of your choice
 III. RELEVANT ACTIVITIES

1: Spot the details

2: Spot the impostor
3: Paraphrase contest
4: Speed scanning
5: Guided practice
Activities 1-5 have been described in detail in the lesson plans above.