How do I create engaging speaking activities?

Getting students comfortable speaking is not an easy task. Luckily, our SmartClass recording activities are engaging and allow students to reflect and grow in their speaking skills. Below are some ideas for creating fun audio recording activities.

When it comes to audio recording, there are three options in the SmartClass HUB: Open Recording, Segmented Recording, and Continuous Recording. What’s the difference, you ask? Open Recording prompts students to reflect on a text, video, audio, etc., and respond. Students can replay their recordings and re-record, but it is one complete recording. 

Segmented Recording is when students listen or view audio or video in segments or portions and are asked to respond to the individual segments. It is great for breaking up long pieces of audio and keeping students focused on parts of the whole at a time. Segmented Recordings also allow students to re-record individual segments instead of starting again from the beginning, and the HUB will add pauses to your audio file as needed. Make sure to click “Variable-length responses” if you expect the students to record each segment in longer than 20 seconds.

Continuous Recordings allow students to record audio to video or layered on another piece of audio to create a seamless recording. Audio loaded for this activity needs to already contain pauses. 

Now for the activity ideas!

OPEN RECORDING

Respond: Look at question(s) and respond.

Prompt: Respond to a prompt. (Weekly/Benchmark)

Story: Look at a picture and tell a story.

Pronunciation Paragraph Focus: Make paragraphs around certain phonetic sounds and have the students record.

Images: Look at individual pictures and say what each person is doing.

Segmented Recording

Question and Answer: Listen to a question and respond.

Listen and Repeat: Practice vocabulary and sentences (>3 second segments). Put all your chapter vocabulary in an audio to be repeated - easy homework activity.

Continuous Recording

Vocabulary Pronunciation: Put all your chapter vocabulary in an audio to be repeated.

Question and Answer: Listen to the question and answer (according to topic, grammar, etc.)

Unscripted Mock Conversation: Have students listen to Part A and then respond as Part B making up the information on their own.

Scripted Mock Conversations: Give students a write up in English and have them translate to do part B of a conversation.

AP Practice: Ask a question and leave 20 seconds for students to respond. Ask another question. String as many questions as you would like. REMEMBER that they cannot re-record 1 question if they make a mistake. Our SC LIVE is a nice way to allow for that.

Interpretation: Have students listen to an audio or a video in the source language and interpret into the target language.

Now you are set to create engaging audio activities to increase your students’ confidence in speaking in the target language. Audio activities are not auto-graded so make sure that your instructions and expectations are clear in the instructions box, so students meet your expectations when it comes to grading.