To help you design the most effective PACE lesson, here is a handy checklist.
Be sure to:
Choose a grammar point that is salient (i.e. obvious).
Choose (or create) a story that contains many examples of the grammar point.
Integrate the target culture into the story!
Go over key vocabulary words before you start (if necessary).
Get students thinking about the theme of the story before you start.
Make the story sound as natural as possible.
Get students involved to make the storytelling interactive and fun!
Use props, body language, actions, images, etc. to tell the story.
Use language that is appropriate for the students' level.
Carefully bring their attention to the grammar point after the Presentation phase.
Have the students work in pairs or small groups to figure out the grammar rule.
Give hints and suggestions as needed.
Guide the students toward a co-constructed understanding of the grammar rule.
Maintain a constant theme for all of the activities in the lesson.
Help students as needed, since the amount of assistance needed will vary from student to student.
Make learning interactive and fun.
Create activities that allow students to focus on the meaning of the grammar point.
Be sure NOT to:
Choose a grammar point that is subtle (i.e. subjunctive) or arbitrary (i.e. gender distinction of nouns).
Recite or read the story in a monotone voice.
Use language that is not appropriate for the students' level of proficiency.
Include too many "exceptions to the rule" in your lesson.
Lecture to the students.
Give detailed explanations of the grammar rule without first letting them explore it on their own.
Make students work alone for the entire lesson.
Include activities that have nothing to do with the theme of the Presentation phase.
Have students simply conjugate verbs or fill-in-blanks.Â
Provide meaningless activities that focus more on form* (grammar) than on meaning.