The Total Physical Response

Now that we have had a change to experience a TPR class and to examine its principles and techniques, you should try to think about how any of this will be of use to you in your own teaching. The teacher we observed was using Total Physical Response with Grade 5 children; however, this same method has been used with adult learners and younger children as well.

Ask yourself: Does it make any sense to delay the teaching of speaking the target language? Do you believe that students should not be encouraged to speak until they are ready to do so? Should a teacher overlook certain student errors in the beginning? Which, if any, of the other principles do you agree with?

Would you use the imperative to present the grammatical structures and vocabulary of the target language? Do you believe it is possible to teach all grammatical features through the imperative? Do you think that accompanying language with action aids recal? Would you teach reading and writing in the manner described in this lesson? Would you want to adapt any of the techniques of TPR to your teaching situation? Can you think of any others you would create that would be consistent with the principles presented here

Activities

A. Check your understanding of Total Physical Response

1. asher believes that foreign language instruction can and should be modeled on native language acquisition. What are some characteristics of this method that are similar to the way children acquire their native language?
2. one of the principles of TPR is that when student anxiety is low, language learning is enhanced. How does this method lower student anxiety?

B. Apply what you have understood about Total Physical Response

1. although the teacher uses imperatives, she does so in a gentle, pleasant way, the way a parent would (usually) do with a child. Her voice, facial expression, and manner are kind. Practice giving the commands in this chapter in this way.
2. a lot of target language structures and vocabulary can be taught through the imperative. Plan part of a TPR lesson in which the present continuous tense, or another structure in the target language, is introduced.
3. in the action sequence (operation) that we looked at, the teacher had the students pretend to write and mail a letter. Think of three other common activities which could be used as action sequences in the classroom. Make a list of commands for each one.



NAMA : ASMAENI