This is the final activity of each unit, and may be in groups of 4 (Quartet), or a whole class mingle (All together).
Before the activity students should be allowed a few minutes thinking time to look back through the unit and prepare themselves for the speaking task ahead.
As with Duo, the ‘Start’ and ‘End’ of the conversation are provided to aid a smooth opening and polite closure. This should be practiced before the activity.
In Quartet the students are given a timed conversation challenge. At first this may seem an artificial way to conduct a conversation but a tangible goal is highly motivational and helps greatly with confidence-building.
Students are arranged in groups of 4, then each group is divided into pairs. The teacher sets a time limit, perhaps starting with about 2 minutes (or even less) in the early units, gradually increasing to 4/5 minutes, and each pair attempts to keep their conversation alive until the time is up.
The students then repeat with the other members of the same group. So, at the end of Quartet, each student has had three similar conversations with three different students.
In ‘All together’ the students are in small groups, or engaged in a whole class mingle. The nature of the task varies with each unit.
There is a space at the bottom of the page where students can keep a record of their progress, and write any personal comments they may have. Referral to past records is recommended before the activity begins.
