Us Version Of Read Aloud And Spot The Differences 1

This activity was originally prepared by Greg Goodmacher (Kwassui College in Nagasaki, Japan).

Read Aloud and Spot the Differences This is a paired activity, similar to the Picture Differences oral communication activity in Richard Yorkey’s book Talk-A-Tivities (Addison-Wesley, 1985), in which two students each look at a different version of the same picture. Without showing their copy to their partner, they describe their pictures and discover how many picture differences there are. In this adaptation, the “spot the differences” task is done using a reading text (each partner gets only one half or the other). One partner reads the top paragraph aloud about the first animal while the other student listens and reads along silently until he or she realizes there are differences. This student informs the partner of the difference in the text. The students should write the differences on their texts and, after each student has read aloud, they discuss the differences and decide which information is correct. They then repeat the activity, reversing reading roles with the second paragraph. The teacher can prepare and distribute a new text which has all the correct information. Students would scan it and compare it by looking together at their versions to discover the correct answers. The pairs should check to see if there are any other differences they may not have noticed or if some identified differences are, in fact, not differences at all. (Such false differences can result from difficulties in communication or comprehension.)

Partner A Partner A Reads Aloud Tigers are large carnivores. They are members of the dog family. They live in the forests of Asia. Their yellow-orange fur has many purple stripes. Males may reach more than 9 feet in length and weigh up to 600 pounds. Tigers usually live alone. They can swim well, but cannot climb well. Tigers usually hunt at noon. Many species of tigers are endangered because people kill them to make medicines from their body parts and jackets from their fur. Habitat destruction has also endangered them. Baby tigers are called cubs. The average tiger lives sixty years

Partner A Reads Silently Lions are large carnivores of the cat family. They mostly live in the grassy plains of Africa. The Roman lion used to live in many parts of Asia, but it is now endangered because of hunting and over-fishing. The male lion usually has a long, thick mane and may reach close to 9 feet in length and weigh 400 pounds. Lions sometimes live in large groups of as many as 30 lions. Adult lions are called cubs. The average lion lives for fifteen years. →CUT-------------------→--------------------→--------------------→--------------------→--------------------→

Partner B Partner B Reads Silently Tigers are large carnivores. They are members of the cat family. They live in the forests of Europe. Their yellow-orange fur has many black stripes. Males may reach more than 9 feet in length and weigh up to 400 pounds. Tigers usually live alone. They can swim well, but cannot climb well. Tigers usually hunt at night. Many species of tigers are endangered because people kill them to make medicines from their body parts and jackets from their bones. Habitat destruction has also endangered them. Baby tigers are called cubs. The average tiger lives sixteen years.

Partner B Reads Aloud Lions are large herbivores of the cat family. They mostly live in the grassy plains of South America. The Asiatic lion used to live in many parts of Asia, but it is now endangered because of hunting and habitat destruction. The male lion usually has a long, thick mane and may reach close to 9 feet in length and weigh 4000 pounds. Lions sometimes live in large groups of as many as 30 lions. Baby lions are called cubs. The average lion lives for fifty years.