Ways to repeat / drill

Variety in repetition is vital. Try these ideas:


1. Teacher to student repetition


The teacher says a sentence and the students repeat as a class.

The teacher says a sentence and one half of the class repeats, then the other half. Do this alternatively i.e. one half and then the other. You can make this a competition i.e. which half is better/louder etc.

The teacher repeats and then a quarter of the class repeat and then the next quarter and so on. Again you can make this into a fun competition.


2. Whispering repetition


The teacher says a sentence and then the students whisper when they repeat it.

The teacher says a sentence and then asks the students to repeat it, as they
are doing so the teacher can mime turning up and down the volume. For this activity you may want to draw a volume control on the board. This is fun for younger learners.

Telephone drilling- arrange the students in a line; they can stand or sit down for this activity.
The teacher says a sentence to one of the students at one end of the line. That student then repeats it to the next student and then he/she says it to the next student and so on until it gets to the other end of the line. This is fun and is useful with younger learners.


3. Mumble repetition


The teacher says a sentence and then the students mumble it to themselves. This is a good technique for students who need to feel confident when speaking. Ask them to mumble behind a book, if need be, and then slowly get them to say the sentences more clearly and in front of you.

It is also a nice idea to ask students to bring in hand mirrors that they can speak to also. This will help them see how they are forming the words and compare the way that they are trying to say it with the way that you are saying it.


4. Back chaining


You can say a sentence word by word from either the end of the sentence or from the front. The students repeat each word after you. Once you have done this a few times, start by saying the first word of the sentence – the students repeat, then say the first and second word
The students repeat and then say the first, second and third word – the students repeat and so on until you have completed the whole sentence . You can also start at the end of the sentence and go to the beginning.




5. Paired drilling


Put the students in pairs and ask them to face one another. The teacher then says the sentence and the students repeat it to one another.

The teacher gives the pairs cards with one half of each sentence written on it. One student reads out the one half that he/she has and the other student says the next half. The students then say the entire sentences as a pair.

The teacher teaches the students a question, affirmative answer and a negative answer. The students then ask each other the questions and answer each other.


6. Moving drill


The teacher asks the students to stand up and to move into a circle. When the teacher says a sentence the students step in rhythm to what they are saying. Alternatively they can clap or do arm movements. This is useful with younger learners and groups that clearly like kinesthetic activities. It is a nice little activity to do as a review, at the end of a lesson before the students go home.