1. What is A Step or two more?
A series of ready-to-use activities, created for tutors delivering a blended language course,
i.e. a combination of independent online learning and group sessions.
The activities:
- complement the BBC Steps courses for beginners on the BBC Languages website;
- are designed to promote interaction during group face-to-face sessions, with the aim
of developing speaking skills, confidence and a group support system;
- were created by a team experienced in adult language teaching and teacher training;
- are not a prescriptive curriculum but intended for tutors to use to suit their own
circumstances; to avoid everyone separately having to spend hours creating
their own resources.
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2. How does A Step or two more relate to the BBC Steps courses?
The materials on this site:
- are structured in 6 Stages;
- address the same themes as BBC Steps in the same order;
- apply those themes to a group situation.
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3. What is included for each Stage of A Step or two more?
- three or four activities to get learners talking, the majority of them including
presentation material, pair/group work materials and suggestions on how to use;
- a printable handout containing hints for learners to practise further at home;
- a printable list of the key vocabulary from that Stage.
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4. What are the activities like?
Designed for learners to interact – in pairs, small groups or one large group – the activities:
- require learners to take part in controlled but real conversations in the target
language, asking questions and listening to responses;
- present valid contexts for the exchange of information;
- rely heavily on visuals to prompt learners to convey specific information;
- provide plenty of repetitive practice to help learners remember the vocabulary and expressions;
- …yet sustain interest by providing an element of chance or a goal to achieve;
- raise awareness of detail so that learners will learn to manipulate language for themselves;
- recycle language to ensure transferability;
- promote confidence.
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5. What preparation will I need to do?
There are three aspects:
- Making sure you’re thoroughly familiar with the materials and integrating them into your
scheme of work/lesson plans.
- Making sure your learners are prepared before they start on an activity. There’s a section
headed Getting ready on page 1 of most activities, directing you to a page designed to present
and practise the language used in the activity. It is strongly recommended that you use this
page with a projector, either an OHP or a data projector.
- Getting the materials ready (also detailed in Getting ready): printing worksheets, cutting
sheets of illustrations into cards, etc. The materials have the potential to be used many
times over so it’s worth taking a bit of care over this. For example, you’ll find picture cards
last longer if you print them onto card and laminate them.
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6. Can assessment be built in?
As with most materials used in the classroom, it’s possible to use many of the activities
to assess competence, for example:
- While learners are engaged in an activity, you could monitor and assess their progress.
- Some of the conversations could be recorded.
- Where an activity includes worksheets, the completed sheets can be retained for
portfolio evidence.
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7. What about languages other than French, German, Italian and Spanish?
- Although the materials were created specifically to be used with French, German,
Italian and Spanish Steps, the activities are based on topics and situations commonly
found in adult language syllabuses. Many of them are structured on visual materials,
and could be readily adapted to other languages. However, before using them in this way,
please refer to the Terms of Use.
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