You can learn more about ELL teaching strategies at previous posts appearing in this column-find them at Teaching English-Language Learners. You can read more at The Best Resources For Learning About Total Physical Response (TPR). It’s active, can be done in a very playful mood, and can be made increasingly complex.
Total Physical Response (TPR) describes a process where the teacher (and, later, students) model a physical action when teaching a new word (standing up when teaching the word “stand”). It’s particularly useful for mixed-level classes-everyone can participate in the activity, and then students can write sentences about it that are simple or complex depending on their language proficiency. Those sentences can then be used for a myriad of other follow-up activities. The LEA describes a lesson in which the entire class does a common activity (playing a game, watching a video, anything), and then the teacher leads students in a process of writing about it. Two that contributors to this series don’t mention and are ones I like to use often are the Language Experience Approach (LEA) and Total Physical Response (TPR).