Colombo Practicum Journal

  🎯 How Gamification Boosted My Students’ Motivation and Engagement During my lessons, I experimented with a few gamified elements like challenges, points, and competition — and the results were really interesting! I used two main dynamics with both of my groups. The first one was the “Dance and Freeze” game 💃🕺. I showed the kids a list of shopping verbs that they had to memorize. When the music stopped, I pointed to one student who had to say one of the verbs aloud. The first group was much more receptive and confident, while the second group felt a bit shy about participating. I realized that when I joined the game with them , their attitude changed — they felt more comfortable and were willing to follow my lead. For the second dynamic, I brought some buzzers  🔘. Students worked in groups on an activity from the book, and the first team to finish pressed their button to earn a point. It was a simple idea, but it immediately boosted their excitement and collaboratio...

Leading the Whole Class for the First Time 🟩 General description These classes were really challenging. I planned engaging activities and used several class management strategies to keep students focused and motivated. I presented the topics as clearly as possible, used timers to organize the time, and gave prizes as motivation. Additionally, I let students choose the music for the activities to make the environment more enjoyable. 🟦 Challenges of each group First group: Students were active and participated, but they didn’t stay focused on the tasks. When it was time to make groups, they got distracted with each other. Some specific students didn’t want to work, so I had to call their attention and ask them for the answers when we checked the activities. They got a bit upset but later became more attentive. I also used an attention grabber (“Eyes on me… eyes on you”) because they didn’t pay attention when sharing answers after pair discussions. Second group: Students di...