This is a very simple activity that uses the microblogging platform Twitter for a short vocabulary activity that students ideally do with their smartphone.

1. April 21, 2014 www.rubicone.org
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A vocabulary activity with Twitter
Required: a Twitter account you only use for teaching purposes. Get one for free at
twitter.com.
This is a very simple activity that uses Twitter for a short vocabulary
activity: students should post a picture of where they are, and tweet
at least three objects that are visible on the picture. They should all
mention one unique hashtag in their tweet, one that you specifically
chose for this activity, so that when you follow the hashtag, you really
only see the tweets of your own students. This way, it is easy for you to
stay on top of things. If students do not have a smartphone, they can also
upload a picture on the Twitter website. You can of course personalize this
activity so that it meets your needs: For A1 and A2-level the objects in the picture will likely be simple
words, which is ok of course. If you are dealing with a specific theme, instruct your students to go out
and take pictures of items that tie in with the current theme.
Instructions for teachers
Think of a short activity like the one above, and go to either Twitter or your preferred Twitter client
(Tweetdeck, Hootsuite, etc.). In Tweetdeck for example, you can set up a column to follow the
hashtag you are going to use for this activity, so that you can see all the students’ responses there.
Now it is time to tweet the assignment, in this case Post a picture of where you are. Mention at least
3 objects you see #Rubicone001vocwithwitter. Tell your students to start tweeting away and also
encourage them to respond to the tweets of their fellows.
Instructions for students
Post a picture of where you are. Mention at least 3 objects you see. Use the hashtag
#ChooseYourOwnHashtagHere.
Result
A typical student answer could be this:
I am in the shop. You can see tomatoes, pears and
carrots #Rubicone001vocwithwitter
If you search or follow the hashtag you created, you
can see a nice list of all your students’ tweets.
Good luck!
Target group: n/a
001. A vocabulary activity with Twitter Subject: languages