Quick Guide
- Keywords: Introductions, interaction, rapport building, ice-breaker
- Learner English Level: Elementary–advanced
- Learners’ maturity: Elementary–university
- Preparation Time: 10-15 minutes
- Activity Time: 15-20 minutes, depending on class size
- Materials: My Four Corners, Your Four Corners Slideshow (Appendix A), worksheet (Appendix B), four cards (for classroom Voting Station signs).
The beginning of the semester/school year is a prime time to engage with our learners, introduce ourselves as teachers, and begin building rapport. My Four Corners, Your Four Corners is a simple interactive ice-breaker activity that helps learners get to know the teacher and each other. It’s easy to prepare, gets learners moving, encourages higher-order thinking, and helps build learner confidence.
Preparation
Step 1: Prepare a slideshow with multiple-choice questions about yourself. Each slide should have a question in the middle, and one possible answer in each corner. For example, for the question, “Where do you think I am from?” my slide has corners with the options “A: Denmark,” “B: New Zealand,” “C: The United States,” and “D: Canada” (see Appendix A for more examples).
Step 2: Make large “A”, “B”, “C”, and “D” sign cards and place one in each corner of the classroom to create “voting stations.” Make sure that there is space at each voting station for learners to gather.
Step 3: Print the follow-up handout, which has questions in the same layout as the model slides, but with the corner options left empty for learners to complete (see Appendix B).
Procedure
Step 1: Explain that learners will make predictions about you by taking a quiz.
Step 2: Draw learners’ attention to the voting stations in the corners of the room and explain that learners have to choose an answer (“A,” “B,” “C,” or “D”) and move to the corner with the corresponding card to make their “vote.”
Step 3: Display one of the question slides and read the question, drawing learners’ attention to the “A,” “B,” “C,” or “D” answer options, and point out the corresponding corners learners would need to move to in order to vote.
Step 4: Explain that once learners have gathered at their voting station, they will need to explain why they think their vote is correct. For example, if they vote “C: Blue” as the answer to “What is my favorite color?” learners might explain, “I think the teacher’s favorite color is blue because there is a blue water bottle on the desk.”
Step 5: Set a timer for 30 seconds and display the first quiz question. Tell learners they will have 30 seconds to decide their answer and move to the corresponding sheet placed around the room.
Step 6: Once learners are in their chosen position, give each group time to discuss their answers and then elicit answers from individual learners within the group. For instance, if a learner chose Denmark, ask, “Why do you think I am from Denmark?” This elicits feedback and allows you to gauge learner comprehension.
Step 7: Repeat Steps 3–6 until all slides have been displayed, and several learners have had the opportunity to share the reasoning behind their predictions.
Step 8: Have learners return to their seats. Display each slide and review all answers together through an open class discussion.
Step 9: Distribute the handout for learners (Appendix B) and tell learners to create their own multiple-choice quizzes about themselves. Note: the final slot is left blank for learners to create their own quiz question. Monitor and help, as necessary.
Step 10: Put learners into groups of four to ask and answer each other’s quizzes.
Step 11: Follow up with a brief class discussion to share interesting findings.
Conclusion
My Four Corners, Your Four Corners builds rapport among teachers and learners and helps the teacher to get a sense of learner speaking proficiency on day one. It is easy to set up, involves movement, engagement, and breaks the metaphorical ice.
Appendices
The Appendices are available below:
