On the Spot

Purpose: This small group activity gives learners opportunities to practice formulating questions and answering a wide variety of questions.

Preparation Time: None

Materials Needed: None

1. Choose one learner who will be “on the spot.” Their job is to answer all of the questions that they are asked.
2. Give the rest of the group a chance to think of some questions that they want to ask. They can write down some ideas in a notebook or on the mini-whiteboards.
3. Explain that all of the questions that are asked must be answered, and that the group can help the learner who is “on the spot” if they need help. However, they can’t help unless the learner asks for help answering the question.
4. The learners in the group take turns asking the learner who is “on the spot” the questions. If the learner is unable to answer, the group can chime in and assist with the answer.
5. After a few minutes, stop the activity and select another learner to be “on the spot.” Give the rest of the group a minute or two to generate some new questions, and then repeat the process with the new learner.

Variation 1: For low-level learners, have people in the group work together to generate questions.

Variation 2: Give the group a specific topic to ask questions about. Ideally, it will be a topic that they are currently studying in class, or one that is familiar to the learners.  For example: family, community, work, personal information, childhood, future plans, etc.