Warmers, Lead-ins and Scaffolding: Using Maker Activities to foster
learning
Introduction
What is the maker movement? How can
I incorporate maker activities into my lead-ins? If you have ever asked yourself these questions, we are on the same
boat. This blog post aims at sharing an overall idea of what a warmer, lead-in
and scaffolding is and what I did to implement this new movement.
What is a warmer, lead-in and
scaffolding?
Warmers aim at engaging and preparing students to start the lesson.
According to Jeremy Harmer (2015, p. 40), “we need to start the lesson off in
such a way that the students’ interest is aroused so that they become engaged”.
Isabela Villas Boas (2018), in a blog post on Richmond magazine, defines
a lead-in by saying that “its main purpose is to set the mood for what is to
come next, to arouse students’ curiosity about the topic and motivate them to
want to learn more.” That is, not only should it provide a meaningful context,
but also an authentic one.
Scaffolding is the “process that enables a child or novice to solve a
problem, carry out a task or achieve a goal which would be beyond his
unassisted efforts”. (WOOD; BRUNNER; BOSS; 1976, p.90). Connecting it to our
reality, the task would be the goal of the lesson. It is described as “beyond”
students’ efforts because the target language has not been mastered yet.
Maker activity - Classic Essentials
1D (unit 8)
On this lesson, not only were students able to describe their houses
using the vocabulary from page 78, but also foster their learning by using
“Osmo Words”. They tried to complete words related to furniture. This lesson
was meaningful because they were able to build the idea of what a dream house
should look like to what their houses look like. It shows how much they can do
when given the correct tools. A well-structured lead-in in connection to a
maker kit activity was the key to their success.
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References
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BOAS, Isabela V. What a lead-in should and should not be.
Available at: <http://www.richmondshare.com.br/what-a-lead-in-should-and-should-not-be/> Accessed on: Nov. 7th, 2018.
●
BRUNER, Jerome.
S.; WOOD, David.; ROSS, Gail. The role of tutoring in problem solving. Journal of child psychology &
psychiatry, 17, 1976, p. 89-100. Available at: <https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/j.1469-7610.1976.tb00381.x> Accessed on: Nov. 9th, 2018.
●
Harmer, Jeremy. How to teach English. Harlow: Longman,
2007.
