Igniting and Keeping the Interest of a 15yr old ESL student
 

Hello,
I´ve been working with a 15 year old boy one-on-one since this past autumn and although we have developed a comfort level with one another I still find it extremely challenging to get him to speak. He tends to give one word answers even though he has shown time and again through various grammar activities and worksheets that he has it all ¨up there¨ and thus just needs to get his tongue working.
Need suggestions for getting him to speak, for igniting and keeping his interest. Also, please note that he is completely unimaginative and therefore creative activities flop completely with him.
Thank you in advance for you help.
Sincerely,
Lorna

Re: Igniting and Keeping the Interest of a 15yr old ESL student
 

I have a student a bit like that and she responds really well to simple word games and vocabulary activities. For instance last week we watched an extract from Home Alone and the task was to find and list as many blue objects as possible. I did it too so we made a competition of it, as she loves the competitive element too. Admittedly, most of the vocabulary wasn't new to her, but the we discussed it and I elicited conversation in that way, e.g. "I didn't see a blue hat. Who was wearing it?" It got her talking at least!

She also loves playing a conversational card game I found and adapted on this forum... it's called Kings, I'm sure you'll find it with a quick search. It goes down really well with all my students.

I suggest trying out lots of different games with your student and not being afraid to abandon them if he doesn't respond well to them. Trial and Error! Best of luck!

Re: Igniting and Keeping the Interest of a 15yr old ESL student
 

Thank you very much for your help. I´m going to try all of those things!
Sincerely,
Lorna

Re: Igniting and Keeping the Interest of a 15yr old ESL student
 

My 14 year olds go nuts at the mere mention of a celebrity. It's hard to do easily, but try to find which celebrities the student likes or that the age group in the country likes (I can help if it's China!). Try to incorporate the celebrities into the lesson.