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Authentic Materials:
Where to find them
How to use them
Teaching and Learning Language
Collaborative
SCDE
What is an
authentic material?
Pause the video and discuss your
definition of an authentic material.
Definitions of authentic
Not false or imitation
Definitions of authentic
True to one's own personality,
spirit, or character
Definitions of authentic
Actual character not counterfeited,
imitated, or adulterated
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Resources, both written and oral,
created by native speakers of the
target language for native speakers
of the target language.
Items not created or edited
expressly for language learners
(Nunan and Miller, 1995).
Authentic Materials
How do you use
authentic materials?
Pause the video and discuss your
current use of authentic materials.
Using Authentic Materials
Images of culture to decorate the
classroom
Reading materials when students
finish assignments early
Props during instructional activities
Rewards for good work or behavior
Using Authentic Materials
Resources to help students gain
insight into the culture
Reading and listening materials for
all students
The basis of instructional activities
and interpretive assessments
Using Authentic Materials
Beginning of a unit source for
vocabulary, establish theme
Middle of a unit lexical and
structural practice, application
of unit content, interim
assessments
End of unit source of
interpretive unit assessment
Why do you use
authentic materials?
Pause the video and discuss the
benefits of using authentic
materials in your lessons.
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Benefits of Authentic Materials
Audience
Remind students that there is a
real-world community that carries
out its day-to-day activities
exclusively through the use of the
target language.
Benefits of Authentic Materials
Purpose
Help students transfer the language
and situations of the classroom to
the language and the situations of
real-life.
Benefits of Authentic Materials
Context
Show students examples of how the
language they are learning in the
classroom is actually used in the
target culture.
Benefits of Authentic Materials
Culture
Immerse students in the real-world
of the target culture while they are
still in the classroom.
Where do you find
authentic materials?
Pause the video and write down
three ways you find authentic
materials.
Sources of Authentic Materials
Periodicals from the target culture,
advertisements, editorials
Government Web sites, data,
surveys, publications
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Sources of Authentic Materials
Literature including poetry, folk
tales, theater, comic strips
Visuals including artwork,
photographs, television, movies,
YouTube clips
Finding Authentic Materials
Search Engines: Type your search
criteria in the target language into
the search box.
Looking for school schedules in
French?
Search for emploi du temps
Finding Authentic Materials
Google: Change the .com at the
end of the web address to the
country or language specific ending.
Spanish = .es Russian = .rs
French = .fr Japanese = .jp
German = .de Italian = .it
Chinese = .cn Chile = .cl
Finding Authentic Materials
Google Images: Click on the
images link at the top of the
Google home page, then type your
search criteria in the target
language into the search box to
find photographs and images
from the target culture.
Finding Authentic Materials
Visit image sites that house
photographs from a variety of
countries
www.merlot.org
www.realiaproject.org
www.flickr.com/groups/realia/
www.lmp.ucla.edu/
Finding Authentic Materials
Newspaper compilations: Generic
and language specific sites with
links to newspapers from all over
the world
www.omniglot.com/links/news.htm
www.onlinenewspapers.com/
www.newspaperindex.com/
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Finding Authentic Materials
Video Resources: YouTube videos
can be found outside of school,
saved, then loaded to school
computers. Type your search
criteria in the target language
in the search box then watch
the videos you find!
Finding Authentic Materials
Converting Video Resources:
There are many sites that allow you
to download and save videos from
Youtube.
www.zamzar.com
http://deturl.com/
http://stinkbot.com/Tubesock/
Finding Authentic Materials
Remember that finding
appropriate materials
takes time.
Allow time to search and
search some more.
Keep searching to create
a collection of resources.
Finding Authentic Materials
The search process
immerses you and your
students in contemporary
language and culture.
Colleagues and students
will become partners in
the materials collection
process.
B
o
n
u
s
!
How do you use
authentic materials?
Pause the video and discuss the
process you use to create activities
using authentic materials.
Using Authentic Materials
Help students gain insight into
the culture
Reading and listening materials
for all students
The basis of instructional
activities and interpretive
assessments
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Designing Activities
Modify the task,
not the text!
Designing Activities
Audience
Purpose
Context
Culture
Designing Activities
Audience
What grade?
What level?
What course?
Beginning
Developing
Expanding
Designing Activities
Designing Activities
Purpose
How will students interact with
the material?
What will students learn?
Why will they learn it?
Designing Activities
Purpose
How?
What?
Why?
Students will _____
in order to _____
so they can _____.
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Designing Activities
Context
What theme?
Which mode?
Interpretive?
Interpersonal?
Presentational?
Beginning
Developing
Expanding
Interpretive Activities
Classify Vocabulary
Skim for the Gist
Scan for Detail
Key Word Recognition
Summarize
Analyze
Beginning
Developing
Expanding
Interpersonal Activities
React to a prompt
Provide information
Request information
Listen to a speaker
Negotiate meaning
Create meaning
Beginning
Developing
Expanding
Presentational Activities
Simple Statements
Connected Sentences
Introductory Paragraphs
Bullets and Lists
Detailed Paragraphs
Conclusions
Designing Activities
Culture:
Product and Perspective?
Practice and Perspective?
Product, Practice and
Perspective?
The culture triangle
PERSPECTIVES
(Meanings, attitudes, values, ideas)
PRACTICES
(Patterns of social interactions)
PRODUCTS
(Books, foods, laws, music, etc.)
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The Big Picture
Knowing how,
when, and why
to say what to whom
Standards for FL Learning in the 21
st
Century, 1996
Resources
Sites for authentic resources
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For more information
Ruta Couet
SC Department of Education
Office of Standards and Learning
rcouet@ed.sc.gov
803-734-8383
http://ed.sc.gov/