LEARNING SEQUENCE: Travelling
The aim of this sequence is for the students to ask and give information about how to get to a particular place. Students will study prepositions, the time, traffic signs, means of transport, real communicative situations in the airport, underground, bus station, etc. In general the focus is on students’ communicative ability without ignoring road safety as a parallel theme.
The Travel Game
In this learning block, the users will learn different means of transport and the prepositions that normally accompany them, as well as other words and expressions related to travel. The block is in the form of a simple board game where students have to answer in order to progress over the board.
Aims
• Learn means of transport and the prepositions that go with them.
• Learn other words related to travel and transport.
Teacher's notes
This block is developed over two screens.
Screen 1 presents the board game.
Screen 2 consists of the game: 20 squares with 18 questions for the students to answer. The dice has 4 numbers which is the maximum number of squares the user can move.
Approach
This block is basically designed for individual or pairwork. The latter is recommended so that there is interaction between students in the contents of the game. However, the block should present opportunities for studying and describing the weather as well as producing a simple description of climate in their region or country. It is recommended that before approaching the game students are introduced to general travel in the UK as well as how to cope in certain travel situations: asking and giving directions, train stations, metro stations and airports.
By plane
In this block, the user will focus on air travel and airport situations. We follow the various steps in the process of taking a flight:
• Booking the flight.
• Taking a bus to the airport.
• At the check-in desk at the airport.
Aims
• Learn and understand vocabulary related to air travel.
• Learn phrases and expressions to use in communicative situations related to air travel.
Teacher’s notes
This learning block is developed over six screens.
Screen 1 and 2 present the process of booking a flight at a travel agency.
Screen 3 requires students to listen and answer questions – we follow the character to the airport by bus.
Screen 4 we are at the check-in desk at the airport – students have to match the parts of the dialogue between the check-in attendant and the passenger.
Screen 5 students are asked to identify the expressions and sort them by the context they are used in: travel agency, bus station or airport.
In the final activity, students are asked to match the parts of some common expressions used in the context of air travel seen in previous screens.
Approach
This block is basically designed for individual work. However, students could be asked to describe the process of travelling by air in their own language before tackling the learning block.
By train
In this block students learn to travel by underground/metro and train. We follow the various steps in the process of travelling by metro and train:
• Reading the London underground map to figure out where to go and how to get there.
• Buying train tickets.
• Ordering food on the train.
Aims
• Learn and understand vocabulary related to travel by train and underground/metro.
• Learn phrases and expressions to use in communicative situations related to travel by train and underground/metro
• Learn to understand a food order from a set menu on a train.
Teacher’s notes
The block consists of six screens. We follow two characters on an underground and train journey from London to Cambridge.
The presentation screen presents situation – a day trip to Cambridge by train.
Screen 2 requires students read the relevant part of London Underground map to figure how to get to main train station.
Screens 3 and 4 present and practice typical dialogues in a train station – buying the ticket and finding the platform.
Screen 5 presents a dialogue in the restaurant car of a train – students are required to listen and identify what is ordered by the characters.
Finally, students have to answer questions about what they saw in the learning block.
Approach
This block is basically designed for individual work. However, we recommend you present the London Underground map to students – it can be found on the London Transport website. You can also practice similar dialogues to the ones in the train station, buying tickets, and on the train, ordering food.
On foot
In this block students are going to navigate a specific route around famous places around London. They will learn to ask for and follow directions, read maps and find their way around part of London.
Aims
• Learn to ask for and follow directions on foot in London.
• Learn read and understand the London Underground map.
Teacher’s notes
Screen 1 presents the four places in London students are going to visit in the learning block.
In the first activity on screen 2, students have to order the parts of a dialogue.
Screen 3 students are required to listen to a conversation with directions and answer questions.
Screen 4 requires students to complete a dialogue about getting around on the London Underground.
Screen 5 students learn to ask for and follow directions and to understand basic prepositions of place.
In the final screen students have to write key expressions from the learning block.
Approach
This block is basically designed for individual or pairwork. However, you could ask students to study the four places presented in the block: British Museum, Covent Garden, The Houses of Parliament and Hyde Park Corner. Students search for basic information on the Internet: where each place is located, the nearest Underground stations and what the place is/why it is famous.
By car
In this final block students learn the meaning of basic traffic and roads signs used in the UK and study road safety.
Aims
• Learn about basic road sign and road safety in the UK.
Teacher’s notes
Screen 1 presents introduces a short ‘driving test’.
Screen 2 students are required to take a ‘driving test’ to see if they are capable of using a car in the UK – the tests consists of identifying the meaning of basic road signs and answering questions on basic road safety.
Screen 3 students play a board game where they drive a car around identifying road signs from the UK.
Approach
This block is basically designed for individual or pairwork. However, you can use the opportunity to discuss having to drive on the left-hand side of the road and all that that entails. You can discuss road safety and road signs in the students’ L1.