English Sketches 1 [antikvár]

Teacher's introduction English Sketches I and 2 are a set of Teacher's Resource Books at two levels: Elementary (Book I), and Intermediate (Book 2). Each book contains sixteen sketches, which can be used by secondary school students and adult learners, in class or in other contexts such as English clubs and end-of-term shows. An audio cassette or compact disc containing recordings of the sketches accompanies each book The sketches in these Teacher's Resource Books comprise twenty-three of the sketches which first appeared in Off-Stage! and Further Off-Stage!, originally published by Heinemann in 1979 and 1984 respectively, together with nine new sketches. All the sketches are taken from shows performed by the English Teaching Theatre between 1974 and 1994. The English Teaching Theatre The English Teaching Theatre (ETT) is a theatre company which produces stage shows for learners of English all over the world. The shows consist of sketches, songs and other activities, all involving a lot of audience participation, and are designed to be enjoyed by both teenagers and adults; the format evolved from a style of teaching in which the use of sketches, songs and role-playing is considered very useful. ETT performances take place in schools, in adult education centres and in many other settings, such as teacher-training institutes, language schools and theatres. The ETT was originally the idea of John Haycraft, the former Principal of International House, London, a private language school with branches and affiliates all over the world. In 1969, John said to one of his teachers, Jeremy Harrison: 'Why don't we have a theatre specially for students of English!' From 1970 to 1972, the ETT idea was developed in a series of summer season performances in London. Then, in 1973, the British Council invited the group to tour Germany, and the touring side of the ETT's work began. Since then, the group has undertaken over 170 tours, visiting more than 40 countries around the world; these countries include most of Western Europe, seven countries in Latin and South America, seven in West Africa, four in the Middle East, Uzbekistan and Japan. The usefulness of sketches John Haycraft's summary of the usefulness of the ETT applies equally well to the use of sketches in general: 'It makes students aware that English is not just words, structures and idioms, but that it is a lively, dramatic and versatile means of communication. It emphasizes too, that learning and teaching can and should be pleasurable.' Sketches can, of course, be used simply as entertaining material for listening or reading. Above all, however, they provide enjoyable speaking practice, whether they are re-enacted by the students with their scripts in their hands, used as a basis for improvisation, or learnt for a more elaborate performance. They require attention to stress, intonation and overall clarity: if the 'audience' can't hear the words clearly, they won't be able to appreciate the jokes! Depending on the context in which the sketches are being used, the 'audience' may simply be other students in the class, or an actual audience. Whatever the context, working on sketches is a collaborative activity and can have benefits for general student interaction as well as for language practice. Choosing sketches from English Sketches I and 1 Above all, we hope that you will be choosing a sketch to do with your students because you believe that they will find it funny and enjoyable. All the sketches in English Sketches I and 2 can be used at a variety of levels. Even if a sketch is designated as 'elementary', its humour can make it enjoyable for intermediate or more advanced students; conversely, even a sketch designated as 'intermediate' may be useable with elementary students, because its situation is clear and accessible -and once again because of the humour. The language used in the sketches is controlled but not artificial. As a reviewer of one of the original books, Off-Stage!, remarked, to our great pleasure: 'The material covers a fairly standard progression of structures and functions, but the sketches are not so crammed with obvious and repeated grammar points