CHAT - Wednesday 23 April 2003 - A Class Project of Aiden Yeh's 4th year Listening/Speaking Class -
National Kaohsiung First University of Science and Technology (NKFUST)

 

A proposal for some follow up activity and discussion

 

Some time during the chat there was a suggestion that we might try our hand at devising some TPR activities ourselves. That would be great. We could share these activities in the group. There are many possibilities:

 

-- Write a TPR sequence

Perhaps you would like to write your own TPR sequence inspired by an experience, a story, a poem. 

 

Shaking, the sequence I showed you during the chat was inspired by the famous Seven Ages of Man speech made by Jacques in Shakespeare's comedy As You Like It. It was a favourite of mine at the time. You will no doubt have your own favourite stories or poems.

 

Jacques:            All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. At first, the infant,
Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms.
Then the whining schoolboy, with his satchel
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress' eyebrow. Then a soldier,
Full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bubble reputation
Even in the canon's mouth. And then the justice,
In fair round belly with good capon lined,
With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws and modern instances;
And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slippered pantaloon
With spectacles on nose and pouch on side;
His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide
For his shrunk shank, and his big manly voice,
Turning again toward childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion,
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.
        (As You Like It, 2. 7. 139-167)

 

SHAKING

 

You are a baby.

Shake your little hands.

Shake your little feet.

Open your little mouth and say:

da, da, da, da.

 

You are a schoolboy (or a schoolgirl). 

But you do not like school today.

Where is your bog?  Throw down your bag. 

Shake your head and say:

no, no, no, no.

 

You are in love.

Look happy.

Do not shake your head.

Nod your head and say.

yes, yes, yes, yes.

 

You are a dancer.

Shake shake your arms.

Shake shake your hips.

Shake shake to the music.

Shake shake.

 

You are the Prime Minister.

Shake hands with the people.

Shake hands here, shake hands there.

Shake hands everywhere.

Shake hands and say:

how are you, how are you, how are you, how are you?

 

You are old, very old.

Your head is shaking.

Your hands are shaking.

Your legs are shaking.

What a shaky, old person you are.

 

 

-- Write a learning activity in which TPR is an important element

-- Write a grammar game in which bodily movement is involved

-- Write a script containing plenty of physical action which can be acted out by yourselves in the group. That might give you a direct experience of whether and how TPR can be applied to Adults.

 

I am sure you can come up with plenty of other writing ideas. We can use the yahoogroup to collect and discuss our materials. What do you think?

 

Arnold

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