I am always looking for more activities to use for the interpretive mode in the classroom. So I was happy to stumble upon this idea of Question and Answer Matchup from Martina Bex. She credits the idea to Sharon Birch.
What is question and answer match?
Q and A Matchup is an activity you can use after a story, lecture, movie talk, picture talk, or viewing activity. It is a bit time-consuming if you put the questions into the target language because you will need to make videos. however, if you make the entire activity in English, you can create this very quickly on the fly.
I put the questions in the target language to ensure students understand what is being said and not just guessing. I use the parts of the resource (story) I know students can understand. I try to form the questions using the targeted vocabulary.
I put the answers in English for the sole purpose of students not being able to match signs (vocabulary) in the Q and A. I feel this gives me a better understanding of what students know and understand.
How to set this up
First, select a resource you want to use for your Question and Answer Matchup. It can be teacher-created or an authentic resource. Make sure it is a resource students can understand. Ensure that the resource is one that students can access as they work through the questions. They will need something they can refer back to. This is not a set-in-stone requirement, but I feel we are not testing students’ memory here so they should be able to refer back to the resource.
Second, create questions using vocabulary that students can understand. In my case, I put the questions in the target language.
Third, create the answers to the questions. I always add in additional answers, meaning, there will be more options for answers than questions. I do this so students really have to think and can’t just guess and match. For the answers, I write them in English to prevent matching the signs to the questions.
Why this is a great interpretive activity
I love this activity because it forces students to really think about what they are seeing. It allows the teacher to get a good understanding of what students are learning and what they can actually understand. I also love it because it is not too time-consuming. making 10 videos is the hardest part.
Using this activity as an assessment
You can use this activity as an assessment (both formative and summative). Of course, it is not required to be an assessment, but it is an option.
Here is an example of a Q and A match used in the ASL 1 Unit 3 curriculum.
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