188 Part III: Teaching Skills Classes
✓ Why is that?
✓ What do you mean?
✓ What do you think?
✓ What else?
Once the conversation has opened up it’s important to show your interest
in what the speaker is saying. You can do this by good body language and
expressions that demonstrate interest.
Expressing through body language
Some cultural groups use body language more naturally than others, and
individual personalities play a large part too, but students need to be
reminded that language is about real communication and that it sometimes
goes beyond words. Ask your students to do these things while speaking in
pairs or groups:
✓ Turn towards the speaker.
✓ Look him in the eye.
✓ Uncover his face. Don’t have hands, hair and hats obscuring the eyes
and mouth.
✓ Smile and nod at intervals.
✓ Avoid putting physical barriers – your bag on the desk or crossed arms
and legs – between you and the speaker.
Showing interest
Another great way to encourage extended conversations in a natural way is
to do what native speakers do all the time – you say something to show that
you’re really listening. It’s not always a word, sometimes just ‘mmm’ with
suitable intonation, but you can teach your students to say:
✓ Really!
✓ Wow!
✓ That’s interesting!
✓ Oh no!
✓ No way!
✓ Cool!
✓ What a shame!
