LLFE-T03 · Setting Up a Task — ICQs in Practice
📋 Setting Up a Task
⏱ 5 minutes · 📚 CELTA methodology · 🏫 Micro-lesson
📖 From the teacher’s desk: Managing 20 front-of-house staff at The Ivy in Sydney, I learned that how you give instructions determines everything — even more than the instructions themselves. In the classroom, I discovered the same truth. When 8 learners in Landerneau all started doing different things after my task setup, I realised I had forgotten to check they understood the instructions, not the language.
🎯 By the end of this micro-lesson, you can: use Instruction Checking Questions (ICQs) to ensure learners know what to do before a task starts.
🔥 The Problem (1 min)
You give instructions for a pair activity. Then you say “Go!” — and three students work alone, two write when they should be speaking, and one is reading a different exercise. Sound familiar? 😅
📖 ICQs Explained (2 min)
ICQs = Instruction Checking Questions — they check that learners understand the TASK, not the language.
Before you ask ICQs, give clear instructions:
- What are they doing? (read, listen, discuss, write, match)
- With whom? (alone, pairs, groups)
- How long?
- What do they produce? (written answers, spoken summary)
→ “Are you writing or speaking?” (speaking)
→ “Are you working alone or with a partner?” (partner)
→ “How long do you have?” (2 minutes)
Bad ICQs:
- ❌ “Did you understand?” (closed, face-saving)
- ❌ “What do you do?” (too open — learner has to recall everything)
✏️ Practice (2 min)
Write 3 ICQs for this task setup:
“Read the text. Find 3 advantages of remote work. Write them down. Then compare with the person next to you. You have 3 minutes.”
🗝️ Answer Key
- “Are you reading or listening?” → Reading
- “How many things are you looking for?” → 3 advantages
- “After reading, do you work alone or with a partner?” → With a partner
- “Are you writing or just thinking?” → Writing (then comparing)
Cambridge CELTA course completed — 120 supervised teaching hours, 4 written assignments passed at the required standard.
Independent project; not affiliated with, endorsed by, or accredited by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Confers no qualification.
✉️ Questions? sourovdeb.com
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