Speaking is a productive skill by encoding our thoughts into verbal words. In order to produce fluent verbal words, we require rigorous training regularly. In short, we need to practice in daily basis.

As a teacher, we must devise methods to maintain the students’ practice. It is the case of how to prepare them before they perform inside of the class.

Discussion, role play, simulations etc are the forms of speaking activities. Those forms only describe the next class will look like. In order to prepare them to speak out loud in the class, teachers need to make a certain procedure to scaffold their skills.

Based on several class discussions, some students have gotten speaking 1, 2 and 3. The rest even have gotten speaking 4. They get different nurture and activities in different level of speaking. However, we conclude that students must:

1. Prepare the script, transcript or reading article as background information
2. Practice by heart, in pairs or in a group to expose their skills
3. Perform and share orally in the class
4. Get feed backs

Those procedures refer to communicative language teaching (CLT) and grammar translation method. University students are perceived as the ones who have competency in language knowledge sucha as grammar, structure, collocation, expression etc. Thus, the speaking focuses on the use and meaning rather than accuracy at first. I presume that accuracy is not a big deal for them anymore.

In case, the students have a problem in grammar then they will get some review in the feedback session. In this session, grammar translation method plays its role.

In fact, those three procedures work well for university students. They are in the age of 18-22 years old. How if we use them to teach speaking for younger learners? Should we oblige younger learners to prepare a script or find an article at home? If the answer is no, then what we should do as their teacher.

PPP (present, practice, produce) is a combination method between CLT and grammar translation method. In the presentation session, a teacher can give various activities focusing on grammar, structure or expressions as background information. Then, the students practice in controlled tasks in the class in pairs or in a group. Lastly, they start to produce the language using the given grammar, structure or expressions independently.

This method can be implemented toward younger learners. We present the materials in the class because we assume that they have not had adequate capacity in language knowledge. At the same time, we give students background information to practice. Then teachers enforce them through practice to reform knowledge into skills. Eventually, students are independent to create language orally by using the previous knowledge and skills.

Questions and Answers:

1. How do teachers activate students to communicate in language class?
2. How do teachers improve students confidence to speak up?
3.