Apply These Interactive Ways of Teaching 'MAKING TELEPHONE CALLS' to Form Two Students.

Apply These Interactive Ways of Teaching 'MAKING TELEPHONE CALLS' to Form Two Students.

byEmmanuel Kachele -
2
Welcome to UNIT 7:2!

Review: Previously in Unit 7:1, we discussed about how to teach ‘Expressing Personal Routine/habits’ for Form One. In the sub topic students were involved in expressing about their own personal and home routine/habits.

In this Unit 7:2, we will learn how to teach the sub topic, ‘Making telephone calls’ in Form Two. In this sub topic, we will practically guide students how to make telephone calls and used appropriate pattern when talking on the phones.
                                                                    
THE FOLLOWING IS THE COMPREHENSIVE TEACHING GUIDE ON THE SUB TOPIC:

A: INFORMATION OF THE TOPIC:
1. Topic: ASKING FOR SERVICES
2. Sub Topic: Making telephone calls.
3. Periods per sub topic: 10
4: Class: Form Two.
B: HOW TO TEACH THE TOPIC:


GENERAL INTRODUCTION
The aim of this lesson is to make students able to make telephone calls using appropriate language. A teacher guides students to practice making telephone calls by using English language and by using appropriate terms and patterns during speaking.

ACTVITIES AND GAMES TO FACILITATE THE LESSON

ACTIVITY 1: BRAINSTORMING WITH THE STUDENTS ON THE IMPORTANCE OF TELEPHONES.
In this activity, students and the teacher brainstorm on the importance of telephones. In modern times like these, telephones are almost available at every household. It is now believed that almost everyone must have used a phone to call somewhere, and in doing so, he/she has tasted some advantages of using the telephones.
As a teacher, guide students to discuss the importance of telephones in groups. Make sure they stay on the lesson and come up with a good conclusion at the end. For example, some of the importance of telephones can be:
  • To simplify communication.
  • To bring about the development.
  • To improve relationships.
  • To facilitate unity.
However, a teacher can wind up the discussion by showing some negative sides of telephones such as misuse of telephones to facilitate crimes in the society.

ACTIVITY 2: APPROPRIATE TELEPHONE EXPRESSIONS.
Teacher to tell the students appropriate expressions to use when using telephones for communication. There are various ways used when speaking on the telephone. Some ways are informal and others are formal. For instance, in most telephone conversations, it is common to find the following expression patterns like these:
Hello,
Can I speak to …..
John speaking.
A minute please.

Apart from these common telephone conversation patterns, there are other stunning ways that can be applied when making telephone communications or conversations.

VARIOUS WAYS AND EXPRESSIONS USED WHEN SPEAKING ON THE PHONE.
  • Introduction / Making Contact
If answering a business call, start by introducing yourself or if the caller fails to identify themselves, then you could ask them to state who they are by using the following phrases:
Formal
‘Hello’
‘Good Morning’
‘Good Afternoon’
‘This is ___ speaking’
‘Could I speak to ___ please?’
‘I would like to speak to ___’
‘I’m trying to contact ___’

Informal
‘Hello’
‘Hi, it’s ___ here’
‘I am trying to get in touch with ___’
‘Is ___ there please?’
  • Giving more information
This would probably be used in a business context mainly, but could sometimes be helpful in an informal conversation too. It is good to specify where you are calling from; if you feel it may be helpful to the person you are calling.

Formal
‘I am calling from ___
I’m calling on behalf of ___’
Informal
I’m in the post office at the moment, and I just needed ___’
  • Taking / Receiving a Call
You may need to use these if you are answering someone elses phone, because they are unable to answer it themselves, or if you are answering an office phone.
Formal
‘Hello, this is ___ speaking’
‘___ speaking, how may I help you?’
Informal
‘Hello, John’s phone’
  • Asking for more information / Making a request
If you need to ask for a specific person, then phrase your request as a polite question, if you only have an extension number and no name, you can say so. If you’re calling for a specific reason, just explain briefly what it is.
Formal
‘May I ask who’s calling please?’
‘Can I ask whom I’m speaking to please?’
‘Where are you calling from?’
‘Is that definitely the right name/number?’
‘Could I speak to someone who ___?’
‘I would like to make a reservation please’
‘Could you put me through to extension number ___ please?’
Informal
‘Who’s calling please?’
‘Who’s speaking?’
‘Who is it?’
Whom am I speaking to?
  • Asking the caller to wait / Transferring a call
If you are transferring a caller to someone else, you should let them know that you are doing so, just so they know what is happening, as the silent tone could be mistaken for a disconnected line! If you are the one being transferred, you will often hear the person use the following phrases:
Formal
‘Could you hold on a moment please’
‘Just a moment please’
‘Hold the line please’
‘I’ll just put you through’
‘I’ll just transfer you now’
Informal
‘Hold on a minute’
‘Just a minute’
‘Okay, wait a moment please’
  • Giving Negative Information
If you are the one answering a call, you might not be able to help the caller. You can use some of the following phrases in these circumstances:
Formal
‘I’m afraid the line is busy at the moment’
‘That line is engaged at the moment, could you call back later please?’
‘I’m afraid ___’s busy at the moment, can I take a message?’
‘I’m sorry, he’s out of the office today’
‘You may have dialled the wrong number’
‘I’m afraid there’s no one here by that name’
Informal
‘Sorry, ___’s not here’
‘___ is out at the moment’
  • Telephone Problems
If you don’t understand everything the other person is saying, be honest. Tell the other person immediately, otherwise you might miss some important information! Most people will appreciate your honesty, and will be happy to oblige.
Formal
‘I’m afraid I can’t hear you very well’
‘Would you mind speaking up a bit please?’
I’m afraid my English isn’t very good, could you speak slowly please?’
‘Could you repeat that please?’
Informal
‘Sorry, I didn’t catch that’
‘Say that again please?’
‘I can’t hear you very well’
‘Sorry, this line is quite bad’
  •  Leaving / Taking a Message
If the person you’re calling is not available, be prepared to leave a message. This could be a voicemail,
(Which is a digital voice recording system), or an answering machine (this records messages onto a tape). If you’re leaving a message with another person, they’ll either ask if you want to leave a message, or you could request to leave a message with them. Be sure to leave your number, if you want the other person to call you back!
Formal
‘Can I take your name and number please?’
‘Can I leave a message please?’
‘Could you please ask ___ to call me back?’
‘Could you spell that for me please?’
‘Can I just check the spelling of that please?’
Informal
‘I’ll ask him to ring you when ___ gets back’
‘Could you tell ___ that I called please?’
‘I’ll let ___ know that you rang’
  • Saying Goodbye
The easiest part of the conversation! Simply be polite, and speak with a friendly manner.
Formal
‘Thank you for calling’
‘Have a good day’
‘Goodbye’
Informal
‘Bye!’
‘Talk soon’
‘Speak to you again soon’
  •  Remember your manners! And Write it down!
It’s very important to be polite on the telephone, use phrases like could you, would you like to, and to make requests, use please. Always remember to finish a conversation with
Thank you and good bye.

If you’re nervous about speaking on the phone in English, then it may be helpful to write a brief script or a few bullet points on that you need to say.
If you will be speaking to someone you don’t know, it helps to have things written down in front of you, to calm your nerves!
If you have a brief outline of what you need to say, it will help to organize your thoughts beforehand, and to use it as a reference during the call, if you get confused.

CRUCIAL PHRASAL VERBS MOSTLY USED IN TELEPHONE CONVERSATIONS.

One thing you could do to improve your telephone skills is to learn some of the phrasal verbs that are commonly used in English telephone conversations.
The following are the Common Phrasal Verbs in telephone conversations:
  • hold on means ‘wait’. For example, ‘Could you hold on a moment please?’
  • hang on means ‘wait!’ (informal). For example, ‘Could you hang on a moment please?’
  •  put (a call) through means ‘to connect one caller to another’. For example, ‘I’m just going to put you through now.’
  • get through means ‘to be connected to someone on the phone’. For example, ‘I can’t get through to his line at the moment, could you call back later please?’
  • hang up means ‘to put the receiver down'. For example, ‘I think the operator hung up on me, the line just went dead!’
  • call up means ‘to make a telephone call (mainly used in American English or slang). For example, ‘I’ll call up the theatre, and find out about tickets.’
  • call back means ‘to return someone’s call’. For example, ‘I’ll ask him to call you back, when he gets home.’
  • pick up means ‘to answer a call / lift the receiver to take a call’. For example, ‘No one is picking up, maybe they’re not at home.’
  • get off (the phone) means ‘to stop talking on the phone’. For example, ‘When he gets off the other phone, I’ll pass on your message.’
  •  get back to (someone) means ‘to return someone’s call’. For example, ‘When do you think she’ll be able to get back to me?’
  • cut off means ‘to be disconnected abruptly during a telephone conversation. For example, ‘I think we got cut off, I can’t hear her anymore.’
  • switch off/turn off means ‘to deactivate (a cell phone/mobile phone)’. For example, ‘Sorry you couldn’t get through to me. My phone was switched off, because the battery had died’
  • speak up means ‘to talk louder’ For example, ‘I’m afraid I can’t hear you very well, could you speak up a little please?’
ACTIVITY 3: PRACTICING TELEPHONE CONVERSATIONS.
Now students should practice telephone conversations in pairs. A teacher guide students and help them to form pairs. Each pair should act as if they are talking to each other on the phone. A teacher can prepare some flashcards in which he/she has prepared or written particular areas each pair should work on. For example, a teacher can display a card that requires a particular pair to introduce themselves while speaking and they should do so.
A teacher can have a list or talking points like these ones:
  1. Introduce yourself on the phone.
  2. Giving more information
  3. Practice Taking or Receiving a Call
  4. Ask for more information or Make a request
  5. Ask the caller to wait / or Transferring a call
  6. Giving Negative Information
  7. Reporting Telephone Problems
  8.  Leave or Take a Message
  9.  Saying Goodbye
Then allow each pairs to practice. The teacher is the one to choose which talking point and which pair is going to practice the particular talking point. This is a good way of letting students practice without preparations but keeping in mind what they have learnt so far.

6: CONNECTION: Beyond the Sub Topic. This sub topic is the topic that tries to equip Form Two students with the communicative skills. They learn modern ways of making telephone conversation through various practices.

7: NOTE: Communicative skills are very important. Communicating properly on the phone is especially important, as the person you are speaking to cannot see your facial movement or your body language. They rely completely on what you are saying, and how you are speaking, to understand you fully.
As well as speaking clearly when talking on the phone, it is vital to use the right level of formality. If you are too formal, people might find it difficult to feel comfortable when talking to you. If you are too informal, they might think you are being rude!

*************************

Resources

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Emmanuel Kachele

Emmanuel Kachele is a founder and Blogger of KACHELE ONLINE Blog, an educational blog where 'O' Level English - 'OLE', 'A' Level English (ALE) and other related teaching and life skills are shared extensively. This is an online center for all Tanzanian Secondary School English Language students and teachers (Forms I-VI) and all interested English Language learners and teachers worldwide.

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