PART ONE: INTRODUCTION
I. RATIONALE OF THE STUDY
Today learning English is very important because it is the only language
that truly links the whole world together. English may not be the most spoken
language in the world, but it is the official language in a large number of
countries. It is estimated that the number of people in the world that use in
English to communicate on a regular basis is about 2 billion. English is the
dominant business language and it has become almost a necessity for people to
use English if they are to enter a global workforce, research from all over the
world shows that cross-border business communication is most often conducted
in English. Its importance in the global market place therefore cannot be
understated, learning English really can change people’s life. Many of the
world’s top films, books and music are published and produced in English.
Therefore by learning English you will have access to a great wealth of
entertainment and will be able to have a greater cultural understanding. Most of
the content produced on the internet (50%) is in English. So knowing English
will allow people to access an incredible amount of information which may not
be otherwise available!
Communication skills are essential for a successful career, satisfying
relationships and a personal sense of accomplishment. Communication is seen
every day through TV commercials, interaction with the person opening a door
for people and listening to the CEO of their company speak. Effective
communication empowers people, provides clear direction and increases
productivity. Without it, people lose motivation and the inability to make a
decision, and they become angry because their messages are not understood
In fact, many Vietnamese students who have good professional knowledge,
but can’t use English well don’t get good jobs. So, English is the first and the
most important standard for workers who want to work not only at foreign
companies but also at national ones.
Since English is a foreign language in our country, most students especially
high school students are not familiar with it (Hetrakul, 1995). Kavin Hetrakul

Thanh High School.
III. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
This study aims at finding answer to the following research question:
How can some kinesthetic activities help the students at Nhu Thanh High School
improve their communication skill?
The question has been addressed to two of the classes (A1, A6) that I have been
teaching in Nhu Thanh High School with the aim to examine how some
kinesthetic activities affect the process of communication here.
IV. SCOPE OF THE STUDY
This study does not aim to teach any skill in a systematic way, because it is
experience not for teaching but for practice. The study investigates giving some
kinesthetic activities to help students practice so that they can improve their
communication skill.
V. METHODS OF THE STUDY
In this study, I use some research tools to collect and analyze the needed data
Recording is used to record the process of giving some kinesthetic activities
The second tool used in this study is interviews with students at the end of the
research to study whether using some kinesthetic activities is really suitable for
them or not.
Surveying through the answer sheets is used to know the practical situation of
teaching and learning English communication skill.

PART TWO: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
2


I. OVERVIEW OF KINESTHETIC CTIVITIES
Great ideas originate in the muscles” – Thomas Edison
Kinesthetic learning is a learning style in which learning takes place by the

how they sometimes violate the structure for effect. A small group of computer
science faculty have also been building a repository of kinesthetic learning
III WHAT IS A KINESTHETIC LEARNER?
Kinesthetic learning is a learning style of students that learn best by discovering
and experiencing. These students prefer physical activities that involve getting
out of their seat, moving around and touching things.
The best time to use kinesthetic activities in the classroom is after teaching a
new topic. Whether it’s a vocabulary lesson or a lecture on sentence structure,
using these activities is a great way to get students practicing the new English
skill and is also a great way for teachers to check for understanding.
IV. CHARACTERISTICS OFKINESTHETIC LEARNERS
- They use their hands to speak; they make lots of gestures and describe things
with their hands or even their entire body.
- They enjoy working with their hands, so crafts are a must in the classroom.
- They need to move, do and touch. For this reason, they are better suited to
activities with Total Physical Response.
- They need frequent breaks.
- They have excellent hand-eye coordination

CHAPTER 2: PRACTICAL SITUATIONS
I. METHODS OF THE STUDY
4


The research is done qualitatively in the context of two English classes (Class
A6 and A1 – Applying the Experimental English Curriculum of the National
Foreign Languages 2020 Project - At the beginning of school year 2015-2016
at Nhu Thanh High School ). In this survey, I use the survey questionnaire for
students. This survey is designed to collect information for the study on “An
investigation into the Reality of teaching and learning English communication

Nhu Thanh High
School?
5. Does your teacher
give you any active
activities to improve
your communication
skills?

A
Too easy
5%

B
Not difficult
10%

C
Difficult
30%

Very essential
12%

Essential
16%

Not
essential
47%



Easy
boring
32%

Always
2%

Never
72%

Sometimes
4%

Rarely
22%

and

From the survey number 1, we can see that communication skills are rarely
improved at Nhu Thanh High School, this may not make it attractive to learners
as a classroom activity. The students often see communication as hard work,
boring, unrewarding. Moreover, students don’t know how to learn English and
improve communication skills effectively
5


CHAPTER 3:
RECOMMENDATIONS
TO IMPROVE THE STUDENTS’ ENGISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS

This game is great for reviewing a lot of different subject matter before a
comprehensive test. It also encourages teamwork and critical thinking, while
6


giving the students a chance to build confidence and practice their speaking
skills.
What You Need:
An internet connection or PowerPoint
A projector
Set Up:
Prepare a jeopardy board filled with questions on the subject matter being
reviewed. You can do this on PowerPoint
Split the students into even groups of four, five or six. (This number can be
adjusted according to the number of students in the classroom. For the ideal
playing situation, there should be 4-6 groups.)
How to Play:
After class has been split into groups, the first group chooses a subject matter
and point value.
Read the corresponding question aloud, and then everyone has the opportunity
to raise their hand to answer the question.
The first hands up get to answer and if they are right, their group receives the
designated amount of points and also gets to pick the next question.
If they get the question wrong, then their team loses the points and another
group gets a chance to answer.
The group with the most points at the end of the game wins!
Note: Make sure that the students rotate the spokesperson in the group so that
everyone gets English speaking practice!
2. Fly Swat


Set Up:
Have all of the students sit or stand in a straight line or a circle.
How to Play:
Make up a phrase or sentence and whisper it in the first student’s ear.
That student then whispers the phrase to the next person, and so on and so forth.
If anyone would like the phrase repeated to them, students can say “Operator!,”
but this can only be done once per person.
At the end of the game it’s always really funny to see how different the phrase
turns out!
Note: A more competitive alternative to play this game is to split the class into
two teams and see who gets closest to the original phrase!
4. Song Puzzle

For this game, you’ll need to select a song and print out the lyrics with enough
space between lines such that you can easily cut the lyrics into strips. Separate
students into small groups of two or three and give each group a complete set of
the lyric strips.
Then play the song over and over, while the groups try to organize the lyrics into
the correct order. The first group to organize the lyrics correctly wins the
8


game. After the students have all figured out the correct order of the lyrics, sing
them aloud as a class together!
Doing song puzzles reinforces sentence order and helps students with their
fluency of speech.
5. Story Telling Memory Game

In this fun game, students should begin by sitting in a circle. The first person
(this can be you, but it does not have to be) starts the story with a fragment like

Ask them to follow the trail – they throw it to the same person. Introduce the
second and third stuffed animal. Leave a few seconds delay between each one.
They continue to say, “This is for you, (name).” “Thank you, (name).” each
time they throw it.
-Then suggest a bit of silence. They continue to throw the animals but the only
think about the names. They don’t say them. This silent period really helps them
concentrate on the names.
Variation. At this point, make it a free for all. They see how many names the
remember. They call out the names and try to get that person’s attention (Mai!
This is for you!”, When they do, the toss the animal to that person. The animals
no longer follow a trail . Creative chaos!
• At the end, give everyone a minute or two to look around the circle and
see how many people’s names they know.
7. Circle action game
What You Need:(Optional)One soft object (like the stuffed animals above) for
each group of 8-12

How to Play:
- On the board, write

“I’m (name). I like
.”
“You’re (name). You like
.”
- Students work in groups of 8-12. Give the animal to one person. He introduces
himself and says something he likes. (“I’m Hoa. I like skiing.”) As he says what
he likes, he makes a gesture demonstrating it. For example, he moves his body
as if he was skiing or uses two fingers flying down a mountain to represent a
skier. Then he throws the object to the next speaker. (If there is no object, he just
points to the next speaker.)

right). The mirror can ask questions.
* Beginners might find it difficult to mirror actions, listen and ask questions at
the same time. In that case, you might ask them just do the mirror actions and
listening. They wait until after the activity to ask two or three questions.
Variation: Crazy mirrors. Instead of mirroring the action, the mirror does an
opposite action. For example, the speaker raises her right arm, the mirror could
lower is left art. The speaker touches her head, the mirror touches his leg,
etc(RB)
9. That’s true/ that’s a lie
      How to Play:
- Each student thinks of two sentences about himself. One is true and one is
false. Both sentences should be believable but not information that other people
know. Of course, interesting information (I rode an elephant once.) is more fun
than everyday stuff (I don’t like spinach.)
- On the board write, “I don’t believe…” “You’re right.” “Sorry, you’re wrong.”
- Introduce two gestures for the game. Crossing one’s arms in front of your chest
to make a big X means “wrong” or “not true.” Joining your arms above your
head to make a big circle that goes around your head means “That’s right.”
- Everyone stands and walks around at random. Everyone finds a partner. In
each pair, one person says both of his sentences. The partner decides which she
thinks is a lie, and says, “I don’t believe…” (e.g., “I don’t believe you rode an
elephant.” making the “X” gesture. If she was correct, the speaker makes the
11


“O” gesture and says., “You’re right. I didn’t…(ride an elephant).” If she was
incorrect, the speaker makes the “X” gesture and says, “Sorry, your wrong.”
- Then the other person says her sentences and the partner guesses.
- When they have finished, they find new partners and continue.
Variation: When someone guesses incorrectly, it often means the

- They continue until they get to Z.

III. SOME PRACTICAL EXAMPLES AFTER USING KINESTHETIC
ACTIVITIES IN THE EXPERIMENTAL CURRICULUM AT NHU THANH
HIGH SCHOOL.
12


Example 1 :

CIRCLE ACTION GAME
English 11- the experimental curriculum
Unit 7- Further education
Period: speaking
Exercise 5: Discuss your choices and preferences for further education.
Preparation: (Optional)One soft object

(The eleventh graders were discussing their choices and preferences for further education)

1. On the board, write
“I’m (name).
I like
.
Because
”
“You’re (name).
You like
.
Because ”
13



(The eleventh graders were discussing which viewpoint they agree with)

What to do
1. Each student thinks of two sentences about two viewpoint.
Ex:
- In the future, governments have no effective ways to control pollution.
- in the future, Renewable energy will replace fossil fuels.
2. On the board write,
“You’re right.”
“I don’t believe…”
“Sorry, you’re wrong.”
3. Introduce two gestures for the game. Crossing one’s arms in front of your
chest to make a big X means “wrong” or “not true.” Joining your arms above
your head to make a big circle that goes around your head means “That’s right.”
4. Everyone stands and walks around at random. Everyone finds a partner. In
each pair, one person says both of his sentences. The partner decides which she
thinks is a lie, and says, “I don’t believe…”
e.g.,
“I don’t believe - In the future, governments have no effective ways to control
pollution .” making the “X” gesture.
If the speaker agrees, then makes the “O” gesture and says:
“You’re right,. in the future, Renewable energy will replace fossil fuels”
5. Then the other person says her sentences and the partner guesses.
6. When they have finished, they find new partners and continue.
Example 3:

Using “Song Puzzle”
English 11- the experimental curriculum

hardworking teachers
Moreover, The result of testing skills has increasingly improved. The following
is the result chart of class A6 and class A1:

Class

Before
using kinesthetic activities
Excellent Good Fair Poor
(%)
(%) (%) (%)

After
using kinesthetic activities
Excellent good Fair
Poor
(%)
(%) (%)
(%)

10,3

14,3

49,2

30,7

5,8


A1

34

41,8 14,2

PART THREE: CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
I. CONCLUSION
The idea of kinesthetic learning as a sub-set of active learning has received
very little attention from the education community. The small quantity and
quality of data that does exist is largely outside the community. Although the
author will continue to explore the use of kinesthetic activity during lessons,
future research should be conducted to first develop measures to assess
kinesthetic learning in classrooms and second to use those measures to develop
best practices.
II. SUGGESTION
Learners with kinesthetic preferences learn through active movements and
experiences. Activities such as playing, puppetry, drama, acting and designing
ensures involvement of the learners. Thus, it is also important to manage the
students during such activities.
Some effective strategies used to involve unmotivated students during activities
are:
17


- Motivate the students by giving attention and reward, avoid punishment.
- Students should be provided with option to choose activities for learning a
particular concept
- Grades can be allotted depending on the participation by using score rubrics
- Activities chosen should encourage all the students to succeed and feel that

Computing Sciences in Colleges, v. 21, n. 1, p. 203-206, October 2005.
Zimmerman, V. “Moving Poems: Kinesthetic Learning in the Literature
Classroom”, Pedagogy 2.3 409-412. 2002.
Sivilotti, P. A. G. and Pike, S. M. “The suitability of Kinesthetic Learning
Activities for Teaching Distributed Algorithms. ACM SIGCSE Bulletin 39:1
362-366. 2007

19