CLIL in regular lessons?

Ideas

Why? 

• The language level of the pupils in general has to improve.

• Grades will follow as well. 

How? 

• Make sure every lesson has language aims and not only content aims. 

• Add language activities to your lesson with the content of your subject. 

• Use the knowledge of your language teachers and your colleagues in the bilingual department. 

• Use CLIL activities also in your regular subject lesson. 

• Take a least 1 language item of activity to do in class and add that to your lesson plan.

Level 1 

Easy CLIL activities, won't cost a lot of time to prepare. 

• Focus on the language: 

Play with words, terms and definitions in your lesson. This can be subject language, but don't hesitate using non-subject related language. 

For ideas you can look at the Easy CLIL activities for inspiration. Look at ICT tools and apps for how and what to design.

Example:

Write a text with the use of a word bank. 

Fill in a gapped tekst. You can tweak this into a listening activity.

Work met picture to compare and contrast, as a speaking exercise. 

Highlight or underline mistakes in exercises, tasks, assignments and tests to improve sentence structures and spelling. 

You can also assess the language. Don't forget to inform you pupils on forehand how and what you grade. This can be done with the help of a rubric. 

Level 2 

More complex activities. As a teacher this will take more time to design. 

• Scaffolding: 

Give pupils the language they need or you would like them to use in the exercise, task or assignment. 

Ideas:  

Give sentence starters, parts of sentences your pupils normally not use themselves. This to force them to extend vocubuary and formulate sentences and answers. 

Give pupils ‘authentic’/'acedemic' language from a good source to work with.

Pupils have to see and get examples first to be actually able to use it themselves. 

Use texts, questions and sources from national exams to trigger your pupils and show what's expected from them in future. Teachers can already start with this in Junior school. 

Example:

Use flashcards with parts of sentences to match. What belongs together and why? Do your pupils see the similarities, differences and links?  

Idea:

You might stick language support to the walls of the classroom.  An example can be how to do research, how to give an opinion, how to compare, etc.  

Level 3 

Larger and more complex activities, in colaboration with language teacher. As a teacher the will cost more time to design and consume time in contact with a colleague.

• Language sources and techniques will be developed and shared by language teachers to support the subject teacher. 

Ideas: 

Interview with interviewtechniques: how to ask questions? (a source with info)  

Summary: A step by step guide how to do that? 

Text based reading: how to do that? 

Technical reading: how to do that? 

Formulate answers: how to do that? 

Making links: what is it for? How to do that? How to practice? 

Mindmap:  why to do this? How does it work? 

Inspiration:

• How can the subject teacher get some inspiration? 

Word of the day 

Word of the month 

Monday's article  

Source of the week 

Exam question…. 

Scientific word…. 

Language item…