"The Mistake Buster"

This article demonstrates how teachers can get students actively engaged in the learning process and take charge of their learning by giving them the opportunities to find and correct mistakes themselves. This technique works well with beginner to high intermediate students. Step-by-step explanation of how to employ this technique will be given to help interested teachers adapt it for their own classes.

Preparation--Choosing a Mistake Category

Select a mistake category that is pertinent to the focus of the lesson being taught. For the purpose of demonstrating the employment of this technique, the past tense of irregular and regular verbs will be used as an illustration.

Step 1. Warm up: (A verb list can be used.)

Tell students they are going to have an activity to review the Simple Past Tense.

Divide the class into two teams and tell them they are going to compete in the activity.

Make two columns on the white board and ask students to fill the left column with many verbs in the Present Tense.

Tell them they have to find the past tense forms for all the verbs. They have to raise their hands quickly to get the permission to give an answer. For each correct answer, the team will score ten points.

Begin the activity and add up the scores for each team when all the verbs have been changed to the Simple Past Tense.

Step 2. (Short sentences and long sentences can be used.)

Tell students that they have to listen to short sentences and then long sentences to find the mistakes in the verbs and correct them by putting them in the Simple Past Tense.

Start reading one sentence at a time. Repeat the sentence if they did not understand it the first time.

Students have to raise their hands quickly to get the permission to give an answer. For each correct answer, the team will score ten points.

Keep scores and add them up after all sentences have been read and corrected.

Step 3. (A narrative can be used.)

Tell students they are going to listen to a narrative and write down the verbs they think are wrong.

Read the narrative at a normal speed once.

Read it again if necessary.

They have to raise their hands quickly to get the permission to give an answer.

Ask them to say out loud the wrong verbs they heard and the correction as well.

Keep score and add them up when all the verbs have been corrected.

Step 4. Wrap up

Praise students for their efforts.

Review important points or give more explanation if necessary.