Anna's Teaching Tales #6

How Anna Turned Group Work from Messy to Marvelous!

Anna looked around the classroom and instantly regretted everything.

She’d planned a group activity, something collaborative and communicative (tick, tick!). But what was actually happening?

Well…

One group was deep in a conversation.
Unfortunately, it was in Spanish.
Another group was sitting in awkward silence, clearly hoping someone, anyone, would take the lead.
And one poor student had just wandered off to sharpen a pencil. For the third time.

Anna sighed.
This was not what she'd imagined when she’d written “group speaking task” in her lesson plan.

Ever had that happen? You plan a lovely, interactive activity... and it turns into chaos?
One group’s having a party, another’s gone on strike, and you’re just standing there wondering whether you should step in or crawl under your desk.

Anna messaged me that evening:
“Jo, today’s group work was a complete disaster. No one did the task properly, half of them spoke in L1, and the rest just stared at each other!”

Oh Anna. We’ve all been there.

But, good news, she found a way through it. And if your group activities ever go sideways, these tips might help you too so keep watching

👋 Hello if you’re new! I’m Jo Gakonga. I’ve been teaching for over 35 years and training teachers on CELTA and MA TESOL courses for most of that time. I also run ELT-Training.com, where I make practical, video-based resources for teachers who want to feel confident, capable and calm in the classroom. If that’s you, click like and subscribe. I post new videos every week.

OK, so what went wrong and how did Anna fix it?

First, she realised she’d just said “Work in groups” and left it at that.
No clear instructions. No roles. No real structure.

And as she discovered, most learners need that structure. Otherwise, chaos reigns.
So next time, she gave them clear steps:
“You’re going to discuss these four options. Choose the best one. You’ve got five minutes. Go.”

✅ Jo’s Tip: Be specific. What’s the task? What’s the outcome?

Second, she modelled what she wanted.
Instead of just hoping they’d magically know what to do, she demonstrated it with one of the more confident learners.
“Here’s what it might sound like,” she said.
‘I think the museum is the best because it’s free. What do you think?’”

She even put some useful phrases on the board:

• What do you think?
• Shall we choose this one?
• I’m not sure I agree…

Little things, but they gave the learners something to say. And they used it!

✅ Jo’s Tip: Model the interaction. Give them the language. Make it easy to start.

Third, she addressed the L1 issue.
Now look, using your first language isn’t evil and it can have a really helpful place in the classroom, especially at lower levels.  But when the goal is English practice, they’re going to have to use English!

So Anna made it clear:
“I want you to try to do the task in English. If you get stuck, ask me or use a dictionary… but give it a go!”

And she watched and monitored during the task, circulating, encouraging, gently nudging.
Just knowing she was listening helped them stay on track.

✅ Jo’s Tip: Set expectations clearly. Encourage English without being the language police.

And finally, she gave them a reason to care.
she gave them a problem to solve and a goal…
“Your class is organising a charity event. Choose the best idea and be ready to present it to the class.”
Suddenly, there was a little accountability. And a lot more motivation.

✅ Jo’s Tip: Make the task purposeful—with a reason to talk and an end point to aim for.

A few days later, Anna messaged me again:
“Jo! The group work actually worked! They were discussing, negotiating, staying in English… It felt like a real achievement.”

🎉 Love to hear it.

So, if your group activities sometimes go a bit sideways, remember:

• Give super-clear instructions and structure
• Model what you want and give them the language
• Gently manage the L1 use: encourage, don’t police
• And make the task meaningful, with a purpose and an outcome

And if you’d like more friendly, practical ideas like this, head over to my website. And if you’re looking for CPD that fits your life, have a look at The Next Step programme. It’s full of stuff like this: supportive, structured and designed to help you grow without the stress.

Hope to see you there!