African Voice - Conversation Station (Eng,Afr,Zu,Xh)

https://www.youtube.com/embed/aTg2N51PTBU

Conversation Station is an excellent game for enhancing Second Language Acquisition

Conversation Station Language game contains 40 cards. Each card has a truly South African photo on the one side, and critical thinking questions in all four of the target languages on the reverse (English, Afrikaans, Xhosa and Zulu). There are also vocabulary words at the bottom of each card, relating to photograph. These words are listed in the CAPS top 200 vocabulary list.

Conversation Station combines Critical thinking with Second Language Acquisition. This resource uses critical thinking questions to stimulate thinking, interest and conversation in the learners.The questions are repeated in English, Afrikaans, Xhosa and Zulu. The concept of the language game is that Grade 1 learners use this resource to stimulate thought and conversation in their mother tongue. The same resource can then be used for the older grade to stimulate conversation in the second additional language.

For years, the popular methodology for learning a second language has been to focus on grammar and sentences first and then on vocabulary. Recently, however, many teachers have realised that learning vocabulary first leads to an easier transition into the second language. Learning grammar and how to construct sentences is easier once the children has a reasonable base of vocabulary to draw on. Enhance the second language acquisition in your child through this great game!

The development of Conversation Station and Viva Vocab is based on this concept of building a solid foundation of vocabulary before tackling other aspects of the language.

What is critical thinking?? To think critically about an issue or a problem means to be open-minded and consider alternative ways of looking for solutions.
Critical thinking is about knowing how to think, not what to think. It is made up of a number of different skills that help us to learn to make decisions.

• The teacher, mother, care giver, granny holds the picture side up for the child (pupils?) and then asks the critical thinking questions.
• The younger child then answers the questions in mother tongue, and the older children attempt it in the second language.
• The questions are designed to stimulate critical thought. There are no right or wrong answers, it is the child’s interpretation.
• There are also vocabulary words listed on the cards that the mother / teacher can point out in the picture to reinforce vocabulary.