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Parent-child pairwork scenarios


I thought I'd share an old lesson idea I used on occasion with Y13 students (A-Level, CEFR B1/B2). Once your class has got a good deal of fluency with a wide range of language, as is usually the case with your students doing the second year of A-Level, you can have fun just letting them loose on conversational scenarios such as those below. The theme of these examples is family problem discussions which parents and teenagers might have.

Have you got time to do this sort of thing during a busy A-level course? Absolutely! My usual argument is that much language transfers across from one topic to another, so any practice you do which involves comprehensible input and interaction is contributing to improved proficiency in general. This proficiency build incrementally, not necessarily in a linear fashion, and carries over to other tasks.

And what's more, this task is enjoyable for students who enjoy listening, talking and playing imaginative roles. Nothing in the content is right or wrong!

As a teacher, I'd sit back and just respond to any language questions which might come up.

So here is the worksheet which can generate at least 45 minutes of paired discussion.

Problèmes de l’adolescence                        

Imaginez les conversations. Une personne joue le rôle du parent, l’autre de l’adolescent(e)

  1. Le parent vient de recevoir un coup de téléphone du directeur de l’école. Celui-ci a dit que l’adolescent a raté quelques cours et qu’il ne fait pas ses devoirs. Il risque de rater le bac.
  1. En rangeant la chambre de sa fille, le parent a trouvé des pilules contraceptives dans le tiroir d’une table de chevet.
  1. L’ado explique au parent qu’il/elle est victime de cyber-intimidation. Un(e) autre élève envoie des SMS offensifs et le/la prend en photo sans permission.
  1. L’ado annonce à son parent qu’il/elle ne veut plus aller à l’université.
  1. L’ado veut faire un petit job tous les weekends. Le parent n’est pas d’accord.
  1. Le parent sent l’odeur du cannabis dans la chambre de l’ado et décide d’aborder le problème avec son enfant.
  1. Le parent rentre en fin de soirée pour trouver que la maison est très en désordre après une fête.
  1. Le parent et l’ado discutent si l’enfant devrait étudier les langues ou les sciences à l’université.
  1. L’ado a décidé qu’il/elle veut faire le tour du monde avant d’aller à la fac. Le parent n’est pas d’accord.

10. L’ado rentre tard dans sa voiture en état d’ivresse. C’est la deuxième fois que cela s’est produit.


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