E-12a Open-Ended Questions for Social Conversation (20 page Activities & Ideas Book)

24-Page Activity & Idea Book That’s a Teaching Resource for Open-Ended Questions for Social Conversation Card Deck     

24 Pages (5.5” x 8.25”)

Who It’s For: (American-) English Teachers, Helpers, & Learners Wanting Reinforcement or Even More Ideas for Language Learning with Open-Ended Questions & Answers  

Why It’s Useful: It’s important for everyone to get to know others at school or work and in  life situations!  A basic and effective tool in those efforts is “Open-Ending Questioning.”  Accompanying E-10.04b (a 72-Card Deck of Sample Questions) is this 24-page book of Explanation, Instructions for Use, Game Ideas, Lists of (Appealing or Annoying) Questions, Conversational Checklists.  It reinforces and adds to a lot of what has been said in other excerpted Downloads or WorkLife English products.   

What You’ll Do: 

[1]  To (re)view what these materials are about, read the sample Open-Ended Questions for Social Conversation on the cover of this resource.  Peruse its “Message to Educators” and Table of Contents.  Think again about “Why Social Conversation Is Important.”  Preview the “72-Card Speaking Deck. Look over the instructions for nine “Learning-About-Others” Games to play with or without Question Cards.   

[2] Most of the nine suggested learning configurations in this Activity & Idea Book appear elsewhere—notably in Part One of Speaking: Oral Language Skills for Real-Life Communication.  Even so, it helps to get reminders of their principles.  On pages 5-11, look over instructions for  “The Interview Circle Game,” “Spontaneous Mini-Speeches,” “Speak, Listen, Compare, & Improve,” “Conversational Roles,” “What’s the Question,” “Getting to Know You,”  “What I Want to Know,” & “The Ungame.” Remember that all steps can be followed with or without 72 Open-Ended Questions for Social Conversation Cards, obtainable in E-10.04b.  Even so, the concepts work just as well with (self-created) questions on other topics—and in other than introductory lessons.  

[3]  For reference and/or any other purposes that occur to you, make good use of the “List of 72 Open-Ended Questions” on pages 12-17.  Next comes a “Conversational Checklist: What are the Elements of Successful Social Talk?” Finally, there are adaptations of the linguistic content of the questions to lower learning levels.  

[4] All in all, this compact Activity & Idea Book provides a comprehensive summary of ways to use “Open-Ended Questions” in practical, engaging language & content education.