Presentation for the Seventh Annual Extensive Reading Seminar, Sunday September 28, 2014 Keisen University, Tokyo Japan.

Click the image to download the PDF.

The Philosopher William James (1884) argued for what is today called the “As If principle,” (AIP) that if you behave as if you are a certain kind of person, you become that person. Decades of modern research show that the AIP is a dynamic theory of psychology.

In this short paper, the authors demonstrate seven  practical activities that apply the AIP to motivate students to do extensive reading: (1) A Picture of Reading; (2) Colored Wristbands; (3) Happy Mirror Reading; (4) Happy Talk; (5) Three Minute Drill; (6) Reading Posters; (7) The Confidence Trick.

Besides these activities, authors discuss ways to research the efficacy of the AIP (giving details of that research in a separate presentation).

Presentation for the Seventh Annual Extensive Reading Seminar, Sunday September 28, 2014 Keisen University, Tokyo Japan.

Click the image to download the PDF.

Research strongly supports concept of flow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990), and reading is known as one of the most common flow activities. When students experience flow, they become so absorbed and captivated by the experience of reading that they lose their sense of time and place, and the pleasure of reading becomes its own intrinsic reward. In this paper, the author will (1) define flow, (2) outline the essential conditions of flow in reading, and (3) suggest activities that will help teachers facilitate flow for language learners in extensive reading classes.

This is a poster presentation for the Seventh Annual Extensive Reading Seminar, Sunday September 28, 2014 Keisen University, Tokyo Japan.

Click the image to download the PDF.

Practitioners of ER need classroom activities for students that (1) facilitate intrinsic motivation through the power of story grammar; (2) provide comprehensible input to promote language acquisition; (3) encourage interaction around story themes, and (4) that inspire learners to read more outside of class.

Self-contained “Story Pods” provide these four benefits and more through interactive story activities that teachers can easily create for their students. The presenter will define the key elements of a good story (i.e., story grammar), outline the basic features of a story pod, and give examples of story pods for use in the ER classroom.

This paper, by Poulshock and Menish, was presented at the JALT National Conference in Kobe, Japan on October 26, 2013. Click on the image to download the PDF.  Many thanks to all of you who attended our presentation!

Short Summary
We discuss materials and techniques that promote language acquisition and cross-cultural understanding by having university students interact with modern musical movements, genres, and texts. We show ways to engage students critically with the words, stories, songs, and styles of musical art forms. In the end, the results of before and after questionnaires show how students’ attitudes changed regarding music and culture during the course of a semester. (75 Words)

Abstract

We summarize two approaches used in two Japanese universities for using music as a key for understanding cultures. Questionnaire results show how during the term students’ attitudes changed regarding culture and music.

In the first approach, students analyze and discuss key features of popular music. They bring examples of their favorite songs and discuss why those works move them. Aspects of songwriting are then examined so students understand and become familiar with the tools of singer-songwriters. Students then create their own lyrics to a song that tells a story or conveys a feeling.

In small groups, classmates discuss the strengths and weaknesses of their works. They vote for which song they will then bring to life with a performance (and record off site). In class, students listen to and critique the performance. Musical ability is secondary to lyrical content and emotion. A simple song of four voices with hand clapping will count as much as the complex layering of instruments and voices. The ultimate goal is for students to creatively make a work of art using English.

In the second approach, we show how students can engage with significant musical movements and styles, such as blues, jazz, and rock by (1) reading and discussing easy stories about artists and genres, and (2) by listening and responding to representative songs of those genres. We emphasize ways to make stories and songs comprehensible, by simplifying stories and doing information gap activities with songs.

Here is iteration 3.0 of my classroom research dealing with the 5-minute drill (or 3- minute drill). Here’s the question. If students read for at least 5 minutes per day, will they actually end up reading more than that? This is a do-it-now idea that may be an antidote to procrastination. Of course, we want our students to fall in love with reading, but sometimes a little discipline helps. Like my father used to say, “Getting started is half the job.”