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Dictation exercises are useful for promoting the noticing of new forms, developing hearing skills, presenting new language, and checking spelling.<br><br>In a standard dictation activity, a shortish text is selected and then read slowly to the class who attempt to write it down verbatim. The dictation can be repeated as many times as needed. This type of dictation has some value, but it can quickly get stale. You may notice a few of the dreaded yawns.
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1. Running dictation The text is on the board. Students make a line. One person from the line is a writer and can't see the text. The rest of the students in the line have to run to the board, memorize one sentence from the card, run back to the writer and repeat the sentence so that the writer could write it. You set the time for your students or the activity lasts until one team is done. Then you check if all is correct.
2. Dictation Detectives Dictate the text to the students who transcribe what you say word for word, including the funny or nonsense words. Repeat the dictation as needed until the students have completed the text. Next, put the students into pairs and set a time limit. Working with their partner, students replace the nonsense words in the text with the correct vocabulary. Afterwards, go through the correct answers with the class. Pairs score one point for each correct target word. If you wish, play multiple rounds by preparing several texts each targeting a different vocabulary set. The pair with the most points at the end wins.
Example: Vocabulary set: bathroom backyard laundry dining room fence fireplace garage Text: I visited Sherry's new house yesterday, and I really liked it. You can fit two cars in the doodlesack so there is no need to park on the street. She has a washer and dryer in the badger, which is useful here because it rains a lot. When it's cold in the winter, you can sit in front of the big pudding and get a nice warm cosy feeling. As well as a shower, there is a big tub in the doodah. If she invites guests over for a meal, six people can sit comfortably at the table in the diddle. Kids would also enjoy this house as they can play safely in the big spacious banana. There are some tall bushes that run along the thingy, so it allows for a lot of privacy. I am sure Sherry is really going to enjoy living in her new home.
3.Student Controlled Dictation Instead of dictating live in front of the class, you could record the text and give it to the students as a sound file for them to transcribe at their own pace. You could give this to students as homework. Alternatively, use a dialogue from a TV or radio show, a podcast, etc, The benefit of this activity is that students can work at their own pace and replay the file as often as needed. Students whose listening skills are weak might be embarrassed to ask for a listening activity to be repeated continuously, so this activity allows them to listen as many times as needed.
4. Correct the Mistake Give a standard dictation but deliberately throw some mistakes into your text, for example, wrong articles, badly conjugated verbs, etc. The students have to spot and correct any mistakes they hear. Have them compare and discuss their corrections with their neighbour before taking feedback from the class.
5. Dictation with Substitution This is a standard dictation activity with a twist. Identify some keywords from your text and replace them with a humorous sounding alternative such as banana, thingy, doodah, pudding. After the dictation, students can try to guess what the substituted words should be.
