Our very own Amazing Race 2012 – A

lesson plan you must try!…

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Change…..
Change is the only constant says Diogenes Laertius.Yes, I feel you nodding and smiling.
And as professionals in the ELT industry, we’re very well-aware of the changes that are
taking place in our teaching world. Changes that I feel are happening at such whirlwind
speed, I sometimes see the need to race against time to be on par!

(image courtesy of http://livesmart360news.com)

I love using the phrase “our teaching world”. Why is that so, you may ask? Well, it
makes me have sense of belonging, of sharing, and of connecting with like-minded
individuals. Isn’t the teaching world all about connecting and sharing these days?

And these days…

Twitter, facebook, LinkedIn, teaching blogs, communities of practice and the list just goes
on.It’smore of we as the individual helping the group and the group, in
return, helps us as the individual. We grow together for the betterment of our
teaching community.
And then there are those changes in methodologies and strategies
concerning the nuances of teaching itself.
Mushrooming in abundance are theoretical terms such as ‘Dogme‘, ‘Task-based
Language Teaching‘ and ‘Content-based Teaching‘ which have taken centerstage
these days; and where practice is concerned, ELT educators around the world
are striving to bring chockful of creativity, fun and dynamism into their
classrooms as they become increasingly concious on the need to do so. You
can count me into that group as well!
You see, I used to teach at a school with learners of diverse nationalities. It was a truly
enriching experience. But a challenge of it’s own. Differing nationalities would mean
different cultural and socioeconomic background, learner needs and beliefs about life
itself. It was rare to have a task that satisfied the entire class in one go. On a positive
note, though, if a task was crafted with much thought and planning, learning could take
place exponentially! And a rocking approach that often worked for me was to design
tasks based on the competitive team-based learning (CTBL) method.
It’s amusing how academicians take a pendulum approach when it comes to
using the competitive approach in class. Some vouch by it, others consider it
to be a complete no-no. And me? Neither, really. It’s one of the many
approaches. But hey, who doesn’t love games, healthy competition and most
of all, rewards?
The works of it…
This outdoor lesson was fueled by my very own passion for treasure hunts and races that I used to
participate back home. So, what’s so intriguing about these hunts, you may ask. Well, I found them
to be so much fun, engaging and mind-simulating, all in one! Most importantly, these hunts helped
tremendously in developing my soft skills, among them being :
a) the ability to harmoniously collaborate with team members
b) critical thinking skills
c) the ability to think out of the box, on my feet and under intense pressure
d) interpersonal communication
e) self-efficacy and self-confidence
f) creative problem-solving skills
As a teacher, I’ve always made an effort to design ELT lessons with underlying aims of developing my
learners soft skills, which I believe is of utmost importance especially when my learners are
eventually going into the “the big world out there” upon completing their tertiary education.
So, with the help of a wonderful group of co-teachers whom I’ve worked with, I tried and tested this
activity twice, both times being very successful and learners immensely enjoying themselves. So here
goes :
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Lesson Plan : Amazing Race
Proficiency Level : Pre-Intermediate and Above
Activity Type : Collaborative Task
Learner Age : Teenagers, Young Adults and Adults
Skills Focused : 4 language skills (reading, writing, listening, speaking)

Soft skills (as mentioned above)

Time : 2 – 4 hours (depending on how you set the task)
Number of Learners : 3 – 4 learners per team
Materials : a) Cluemaster’s Briefing sheet b) Participant’s Briefing sheet
c) 5 location clues d) 5 treasure clues
e) Task Completion Sheets f) 5 ELT tasks
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INITIAL PREPARATION:
1. Selecting Locations
Select 5 famous locations around OR within your university / school that are well spread out and
possibly, in circuit-like route. However, you can make it more challenging by choosing locations that
aren’t in a circuit route. I used the following circuit-shaped route to be able to easily monitor the
game:
2. Selecting ClueMasters
ClueMasters are teachers who’ve volunteered to be stationed at each location. One ClueMaster per
location would suffice. However, for a larger group of teams, it’s best to have 2 ClueMasters stationed
at each location. To make the race more interesting, ClueMasters should not stand out in the crowd;
they should blend in with everyone else in that particular location. The role of the ClueMaster is to:
– assign a language task to the teams arriving at that location
– monitor the teams as they perform the tasks
– verify the completion of the tasks by signing on the Task Completion Sheet of each team.
– handing the next Location Clue and Treasure Clue to the teams.
3. Designing Location Clues
Each location clue is designed to lead teams to their next location. Hence:
Location Clue 1 –> leads to Location Clue 2
Location Clue 2 –> leads to Location Clue 3
Location Clue 3 –> leads to Location Clue 4
Location Clue 4 –> leads to Location Clue 5
Location Clues can be designed as a 2 or 4-line riddle. An example of a Location Clue that I designed
was:
“The morning awakes you, bright and shiny,
But there you stand, tired and sleepy,
And then you think of a drink at the place that flies,
A place where you go for cakes and pies.”
(well, you know the answer don’t you ? :))
4. Designing Treasure Clues
There are two kinds Treasure Clues to be designed : –>
Treasure Photo Clue and Treasure Item Clue.
a) Treasure Photo Clue – Riddles designed where the answer would be photos taken at a
specific location. An example of a Treasure Photo Clue would be:
“Oh dear, Oh dear, the sky is dark,
The clouds are dark with lightning sparks;
And here you stand, with no clothes to wear,
But who can help you clean them up?”
(and the answer is………..the photo below )
(courtesy of limkokwing.net)

b) Treasure Item Clue – Riddles designed where the answer would be items that teams need to
buy. These riddles are similar to the ones I’ve written above.
5. Designing Task Completion Sheets

Task Completion Sheets are signed off by the ClueMaster at each location upon the completion of the
team’s ELT tasks. Task Completion Sheets would look like this.
6. Designing ELT Tasks
These were designed by the teachers that I worked with and is completely within their discretion.
Tasks could range from storyboard writing, memorizing tongue twisters, making a short movie,
presenting a speaking topic, solving a language puzzle, or in fact, tasks that are intended to revise
what’s been taught in the entire semester. Get creative with what you’d like them to do, rather than
copying worksheets from books.

7. Preparing Debriefing Sheets

Write up a short, clear outline to brief both the participants and the ClueMasters on what they need
to do during the race. The participant briefing sample outline can be found here and the ClueMaster
briefing sample outline can be found here.
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THE GAME PLAN:
Pre-Race (A day before):
1. Assign 3 – 4 participants to each team. I find 3 to be an ideal number.
2. Get teams to select a team name, and a team leader.
3. Brief teams about the race that’s going to be held. Encourage them to ask questions if they don’t
understand what you’re saying.
4. Assign the ClueMasters to their locations. Brief the ClueMasters on their roles during the race.
On The Day of the Race:
1. Send the ClueMasters to their locations.
2. Gather all participants at the starting point, and give them their 1st Location Clues, and Task
Completion Sheets.
Very Important Note : If possible, do not send all teams to the same location at one go. Each
team should go to different locations the first time; a maximum of two team at each location. Assign
Location Clues carefully and accordingly at the start of the race. The teams would then follow their
race route automatically. I hope the photo below explains what I’m trying to say:

3. Remind teams on things that they need to have with them (back packs, pens, etc as mentioned
during the briefing).
4. It’s now time –> READY, GET SET GO!!