I am a big fan of posting what I say to kids visually, not just
providing oral input in the target language. Not only does this provide great support for kids
who learn differently, but it also creates an ongoing reference source
for that input. One of my favorite "posts" are instructions for
activities we are doing in class. I've created simple instructions on
the back of which I've placed magnets so I can easily change them out
when transitioning from one class to another. Additionally, I break down
the activity into its steps and stick those next to each instruction
so my kiddos can see the correlation between instruction and step in the
activity. As I introduce the activity, I go over the steps one by one
ensuring my students comprehend what it is I am asking them to do. What I
love about this (apart from using the target language, of course!) is
that as we are doing the activity, I can refer my students to the
instructions when they ask me "So, what do I do next?" or "I'm done with
this". "Okis, ahorita tienes que hacer el paso número 3" I might answer and point to the step mentioned. This gives them responsibility for their own learning as well, something I strongly support!
So, as an illustration, you can see in the above picture students need
to first put their name on the activity (La oruga muy hambrienta) using a
pencil. Then, they must cut out the pictures, thirdly
glue them to the appropriate pages, and lastly, color. I've provided an
example of each step for additional visual support.
The more you use this system, the better students get at it. Keeping the
instructions simple enables them to more easily access the vocab, and
over time they begin to know what the expectations are for our instructions
in class and use them independently.
If you would like to save yourself some time, you can purchase our own set of Illustrated Instruction Cards in our TpT shop!
Click here to get yours now!
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