Designing your “PALs”: Projects for the Acquisition of Languaculture
PART 1: An Overview
What does it take to have a ‘language’? Well, simply put “People doing things with other people & with things . . . in a PLACE (= Context)”…and one of the things people do is speak (and write) about “People doing things with other people & with things . . . in a PLACE (= Context).” And, of course, YOU are one of those “people”.
So, to learn a language we need to learn all these components and how they fit together. The “stage” or “theater” or “arena” for “People doing things with other people & with things” is what we call the LanguaCultural Domains, and there are lots of them. For each lesson you will pick one of special relevance to you, something like the market or the house or the train station. That’s the preliminary step, what we call “Step 0” below. Further guidance is also given below.
Next, you will want to take note of the actors who will be doing things in that domain. These are the people and animals and other ‘actors’ which typically can be found in that domain. You find out who typically is in the domain by going to the domain and observing and participating appropriately (like shopping at the market). This is “Step 1” below.
The Actors who can typically be found in the Domain typically say typical things. There is, of course, spontaneous conversation about all sorts of things, but actors also have learned basic cultural scripts as well, like greeting one another, asking the price of items, bargaining, agreeing on a price, paying, saying good-bye, etc. Discovering the appropriate basic scripts to learn is “Step 2.” Further guidance is given below.
Actors are nouns, but there would be other nouns typically found in that domain as well. These are the objects. For instance, think about a market: there are vegetables, fruits and other foods, as well as other things to buy and sell. You will want to learn these vocabulary items. This is “Step 3” below.
The Actors, then, typically do things in that domain. In the market the buyers walk around, look at, point to, pick up, etc…and buy things; the sellers stand or sit in their shops and talk to buyers and others, and sell things. No doubt the actors do other things too. The actions are verbs and you will want to learn these verbs too. You discover which verbs you want to learn by going to that domain, living in it, observing who does what, and taking note (and perhaps photos) of the relevant actions (i.e. verbs). This is “Step 4” below.
Next, when Actors (nouns) do things (verbs) with other people (nouns) and objects (nouns), these components get connected into sentences. There are different basic sentence types (like statements, questions, commands, etc.) and you need to learn the patterns of how these components fit together into sentences. (That’s what we call ‘grammar’.) You will need to decide what kinds of sentences you want to focus on learning during each lesson. This is “Step 5” below.
But sentences occur with reference to time and the quality of action involved, and this is what we call the tenses of the verbs (past, present, future) and the aspects of verbs (like habitual action: e.g. I eat breakfast most mornings—it looks like present tense but it’s about my habits and so about the past and the future too). So as not to become overwhelmed it is wise to select manageable variations. This is “Step 6” below.
“Step 7” adds ‘spice’ to the nouns and verbs when you are ready—the adjectives and adverbs.
“Step 8” encourages you to reengage with the community, like go to the market and practice what you have learned, perhaps with your Language Helper/Friend.
PART 2: The Details
Step 0: Go to LanguaCultural Domains. Pick a Domain of Interest from observing a “culture event” & participating in it as much as possible. See Going out into the Community; Ethnographic Methods. Update your checklist.
Step 1: Prepare ‘Pronoun Cards’ + pictures of kinds of people found in the Domain chosen in Step 0: infant, baby, child, boy/girl, young person; adult; older adult; both genders (separately and mixed); singular, plural for each. Add social roles when you wish (mother, father, buyer, seller, baker, policeman, etc.). See Step 3 below for ideas for possible pictures of people usable as ‘the actors’.
Step 2: Go to Stages’ Reference-Document, Part B and/or Survival Phrases – Basic Texts – Functions. Pick the Basic Texts or Survival Phrases appropriate to the LanguaCultural Domain chosen in Step 0. Update your checklist. (Further help HERE, see “Choose the dialogue for the day,” page 11.)
Step 3: Choose objects (nouns) for the LanguaCultural Domain chosen in Step 0. Either:
- collect actual physical objects (e.g. fruit, coins, etc.)
- draw pictures on small cards of those objects
- take photos of such objects; see The Use of a Book of Photos in Initial Comprehension Learning (Summary) and The Use of a Book of Photos in Initial Comprehension Learning (Full) for guidance.
- find culturally appropriate images from such sites as:
- search Internet for images (Google Images, Yahoo Images, etc.)
Step 4: Choose actions (verbs) appropriate within the LanguaCultural Domain chosen involving the “Objects” chosen in Step 3. Find some ideas: TPR – Total Physical Response & TPR Curriculum for Adults. Or:
- draw pictures on small cards of those objects
- take photos of such actions
- find culturally appropriate images from such sites as:
• search Internet for images (Google Images, Yahoo Images, etc.)
Step 5: Choose the type of sentence you will be learning from Basic Types of Sentences. Include “Multiply the Basics” and “Gain flexibility” options. See also Ideas for vocabulary and sentence patterns (Section 3: Sentence Patterns You Need To Be Able To Understand As A Basic Speaker). Go to Additional Grammar for more guidance as you are ready & able. (Also Grammar Symbols & Glossary of Basic Grammar Terms)
Step 6: Choose the tenses and aspects of the verbs you wish to learn. Go to Tenses Aspects Moods Voice for more guidance.
Step 7: Decide which (if any) additional Adjectives and/or Adverbs you will be adding. Find drawings, pictures, photos, images to represent your choices.
Step 8: Consider your next steps in Going out into the Community.