I need a reminder that I am there to teach the structures, not the story. Sometimes we get to focusing on (more like bowing down at the alter of) the story and those myriad details that we need to do. It becomes overwhelming. We do that because we want the story to work. I was doing that today (focusing on the PQA/story discussion at the expense of the structures) and the whole thing just collapsed on me like a house of cards. Not a good thing to happen the day before having visitors tomorrow.
Now, did things fall apart simply because of my focus on the story over the structures? Not really. That is just one of the reasons. Another very common reason for PQA and stories falling apart is that the kids don’t get to hear sufficient repetitions on the target structures during the PQA. That can result from simply not repeating them enough due to time, but it can also happen if the instructor constantly goes out of bounds.
Another reason for the discussion falling apart is if the structures are too hard. I think that the story I chose (The Neighbors Saw Everything – Vol. 1, p. 36 Matava) had structures that were just too hard for my French 1 students:
went outside (that one was o.k. but not very interesting)
the neighbors saw it (too hard)
didn’t catch (never got to it but probably on the boring side to PQA)
Not only can the target structures not work in the story because they weren’t repeated enough during the PQA due to time or inattention on the part of the instructor, or because they are too hard, but they can also not work because they don’t lend themselves to PQA, the spark just isn’t there. That seemed true today with the structures above. They were just too hard to make interesting with my level 1 classes. I think that they would be just fine in a level 2 class or above.
So, to repeat some common reasons, besides the common mistakes of not circling enough or of going too fast, PQA/story failure can result from:
1. not enough repeats on the target structures
2. going out of bounds
3. structures too difficult
4. structures not interesting (the story may be great, but, taken individually during the PQA, the targets may not hold much interest)