Japanese Level 4, Activity #9: “Formal and informal” / “公式および非公式の会話” (Online)
Description:
In this activity, students will practice talking about formal and informal lanugage. They will also practice switching from informal to formal quickly in conversation.
Semantic Topics:
formal, informal, conversation, discussion, フォーマル, 非公式, 会話, 議論
- Standard 1.1: Students engage in conversation, provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions.
- Standard 1.2: Students understand and interpret written and spoken Japanese on a variety of topics.
- Standard 4.1: Students demonstrate understanding of the nature of language through comparisons of the Japanese language and their own.
Idaho Content Standards for World Languages:
- COMM 1.1: Interact and negotiate meaning (spoken, signed, written conversation) to share information, reactions, feelings, and opinions
- COMM 2.1: Understand, interpret, and analyze what is heard, read, or viewed on a variety of topics.
- COMP 1.1: Observe formal and informal forms of language.
- COMP 1.2: Identify patterns and explain discrepancies the sounds and the writing system in the target language.
NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do Statements:
- I can talk appropriately to and about my friends, acquaintances, superiors, and other people whom I respect.
- I can offer polite advice and services when asked.
- I can talk about my thoughts, feelings, and preferences using short phrases most of the time.
Materials Needed:
Warm-Up
Review the けいご structures for both specific lexical honorifics as well as grammatical honorifics. As we did this last week, click through it quickly and have the students answer the grammatical questions as they are new.
- 尊敬語
- 語彙的
- いらしゃる
- 召し上がる
- 下さる
- なさる
- お休みになる
- ご覧になる
- おっしゃる
- ご存じです
- 文法的
- お＋（Verb Stem)＋になる
- For requests:お＋（Verb Stem)＋ください
- 謙譲語
- 語彙的
- おる
- 参る
- 申す
- いたす
- いただく
- ござる
- 伺う
- 存じる
- 文法的
- お＋(Stem form)＋します
Main Activity
For this activity, give the students a copy of the slide show and put them in break out rooms for them to act out the situations on the different slides, and report back to the main session and, using proper honorifics, will describe to the group the results of the conversation.
Give each group about ten minutes to act out their situation, and then make sure that everyone can announce the results of their conversation at least once.
You can shuffle situations for everyone if they’re fast and can get through the activity quickly.
- 喫茶店：先生と友達と会う
Ask questions about preferences in drinks.何の飲み物が好き？
Ask about classes クラスはどう？
Ask about free time ひまだったらなにがする？
- 天気：先生と友達
Talk about the weather
- Sunny
- Rainy/Cloudy
- Windy
- Snowy
- 電話：先生とクラスメイト
Ask about what they’re up to 今何をしてる？
Ask about student’s absence どうしてクラスに来なかった？
- 病気だったからとか
- ねぼうしたからとか
- 推薦状
Ask the teacher to write you a letter of recommendation
Ask them when they can write it, or if they refuse, ask them why
End of activity
- Read Can-Do statements once more and have students evaluate
their confidence.
(Use thumbs up/thumbs down or download our student cards.) - Encourage students to be honest in their self-evaluation.
- Pay attention, and try to use feedback for future activities!
NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do Statements:
- I can talk appropriately to and about my friends, acquaintances, superiors, and other people whom I respect.
- I can offer polite advice and services when asked.
- I can talk about my thoughts, feelings, and preferences using short phrases most of the time.
