Draw my Trinity Topic!
GESE Grade 5 (CEFR B1)
Draw my Trinity Topic!
Grade: GESE Grade 5 (CEFR B1)
Time: 60 minutes
Exam task focus:
To practise the Topic phase
To ask and answer questions
To produce a topic form
To reflect on the process of developing
the topic for the exam
Resources:
Sample topic forms
Blank paper and coloured pens for the ‘Drawers’
Notebook and pens for the ‘Question Collectors’
Language Functions Checklist for the ‘Functions Checkers’
Procedure
1. Tell students to choose the best 4 or 5 topic points from their topic. The best topic points are the ones that generate the most
ideas and the most language of the Grade.
2. Give students a sample topic form and tell them to write their best topic points on the form.
3. Organize the class in groups of 5. Ask each group to decide who is A, who is B, who is C, who is D and who is E. When groups
have decided, tell them that:
A is DRAWER
B is FUNCTIONS CHECKER
C is QUESTIONS COLLECTOR D is CANDIDATE
E is EXAMINER
Tell the class that you, the teacher, are going to demonstrate by taking the role of the EXAMINER but that you won’t be giving a
mark or feedback.
4. Give the DRAWERS a blank piece of paper and coloured pens and tell them they are going to listen to a Trinity topic. As they
listen, they need to represent the topic and information by drawing the key points.
5. Give the FUNCTIONS CHECKERS the functions checklist for the Grade of the topic and ask them to tick the functions and
language they hear. Tell them they should write down a couple of sample sentences that they hear if they can.
6. Tell the QUESTION COLLECTOR to write all the questions that both the ‘EXAMINER’ and the CANDIDATE ask during the Trinity
Topic practice. All questions need to be noted in a notebook or piece of paper under two headings:
Examiner’s Questions Candidate’s Questions
Draw my Trinity Topic!
GESE Grade 5 (CEFR B1)
7. Demonstrate to the class how this works and clarify any doubts.
8. Call a CANDIDATE (D) from one group to come to the front of the class with his or her topic form and any other supporting
material they may have prepared in previous lessons. Tell all the other Ds & the Es in the groups to help the DRAWER,
QUESTION COLLECTOR or FUNCTIONS CHECKER.
9. The topic practice begins! After 5 minutes stop the activity and follow the steps for feedback and development.
10. Now ask the sts to repeat the activity in their groups.
11. When they’ve finished and done feedback, they can swap roles.
Feedback and development
1. Ask the question collectors: How many questions did you collect? What were they? Now, ask for feedback from the class:
Which questions were the best? Which questions produced long answers? etc.
2. Ask the drawers to show their drawings round the class. These can be exhibited or stuck on the board for the class to examine.
Now, ask for feedback from the class: Which are the best drawings? Which drawings best represent the topic? Is it easy to
visualise what the candidate said during the topic? Why? Why not?
3. Ask the functions checkers: Were all the language functions used? Give examples of the language functions used in the topic.
What (if anything) was missing?
4. Ask the candidate: Which points on the topic form were easy to talk about? Which points on the topic form were hard to talk
about? Finally, ask the candidate if they want to completely change their topic and try something else or maybe they want to
change only some of the topic points. Reassure them that this is OK, and is part of the process of developing the best topic!
Trinity topic checklist
Language Functions for GESE Grade 5 Sample sentence
1 Talking about the future – informing and
predicting
2 Expressing preferences I would rather go to a live concert than buy a CD.
3 Talking about events in the indefinite and
recent past
4 Giving reasons
5 Stating the duration of events
6 Quantifying
7 Responding to requests for clarification
8 Asking questions
