How did you learn your first language? Did your parents give you grammar books? NO! Language professors started studying how we acquire a language. They discovered that it doesn't matter if it's your first language, your second language, or your nth language - The method is the same. Our brains take in input from our surroundings and process it. For some people, this process happens very fast; for others, it takes longer. But the process is the same. They call this comprehensible input. Then in the 90s, they took this idea and applied it to storytelling. A teacher of Spanish in the US, and an English teacher in Japan, started using this method to teach their students. The method is called "Total Physical Response Storytelling." With a group of students, the story is built line by line by asking questions. Then repetition is added by using Question Circling. After an element of the story is established, the teacher replaces certain parts of the sentence to provide repetitive input to the students. Traditional table-top role-playing games are also a form of group storytelling. Their popularity for players and teachers is growing even more now thanks to mediums like Twitch.tv and YouTube. As the learners of any age engage in gameplay in the target language, they receive all the best benefits of comprehensible input. And even more importantly, they do not have to deal with the stress of traditional grammar drills and boring classes. Students can learn and have fun at the same time!
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