Wikidictionary

3.25
Focus
Wikidictionary
Vocabulary review
LevelAll
Time
10–15 minutes
Creating a wiki for the class
ICT Skills
Preparation
1 Set up a wiki for the class at the beginning of the school year.
The reference section contains some information on wikis. My
recommended wiki platform for this activity is wikispaces, as
educators can get a free update from the basic plan.
2 Choose about 10–15 topics that you will be covering during
the school year. The nature and depth of these topics will vary
depending on the target language level. Create a page for
each of the selected topics and type on each page a couple of
interesting words or expressions related to the topic followed by
explanations or definitions. For instance, for the topic travel at an
Advanced level, type on the corresponding page:
bustling: busy, noisy, full of people (a bustling city)
unspoilt: not changed by tourism (unspoilt beaches/countryside/
nature)
in class
1
Let your students know that you have set up a wiki for the class
containing 10–15 different pages associated with an equal
number of topics they will be seeing during the school year. Ask
them to explain what a wiki is. What is the most popular wiki on
the Internet?
2 Look for the video “wikis in plain English”, which can be found on
YouTube or through Google. After you play this short video you
may also play it again, silence the sound and ask the students in
turns to describe what is happening (you may need to pause the
video from time to time to make things easier for the students).
3 Show the wiki that you have created for the class and collect
valid email addresses from the students so that they can be
added to the wiki. Explain that, once they join it, they should be
typing words and expressions that they see in class related to the
topics contained in the wiki, as you have just done with the two
examples above. This creates a good environment for them to
revise vocabulary as well as a good opportunity for you to devise
activities for the class. In addition to typed text, they can also add
links to interesting articles or videos.
CHAPTER 4.3: TEXT-BASED ACTIVITIES
© Helbling Languages
199
3.25
Wikidictionary
Wikidictionary. Notice the topics in the menu on the right-hand side. Entries for “travel”
4 These are some activities that you can do in class once the
students have incorporated a substantial number of word entries:
- In combination with your IWB companion software or with
free online annotation tools, such as, bounce or diigo, place a
blotch of ink over the entries. Let the students have a look at the
definitions/explanations and give them some time to write down
on a piece of paper the words that are hidden from view. Then
erase the digital ink for them to check.
- Open a page of your wiki, ask students to work in pairs and
write a short story or a mini saga incorporating words from that
page. Next ask the students to read out their stories.
- Ask students to work in pairs. Student A looks at the board.
Student B looks away. Student A reads out definitions from a
page for Student B to guess. Then open a new page from the wiki
related to a different topic. Students change roles.
- Open the spotlight application of your IWB companion software and
hover over the definitions and explanations so that they are partially
revealed. Ask the students to guess the words or expressions.
- Do pronunciation practice with difficult words.
- Try other activities suggested in 3.26 Wrapping things up.
Variation 1
Instead of a topic-driven approach, list the words alphabetically.
In this case, each page could contain four letters of the alphabet
(page 1 A–D, page 2 E–H, and so on).
Variation 2
You may allow early finishers to come to the front of the
classroom and add new words to the wiki or edit content.
Follow-up
200
Ask students to create content for the wiki outside class hours.
CHAPTER 4.3: TEXT-BASED ACTIVITIES
© Helbling Languages