In this technique, students have more responsibility for their own learning. However, this does not diminish the importance of the teacher in the instructional process. In this approach, the teacher provides students with the background to the poem and introduces difficult or unusual vocabulary. The teacher then reads the poem aloud to the students. After the poem is read aloud, the class discusses it together.
Students then listen again as the teacher re-reads the poem.
In the next step, the students read the poem chorally and then take turns reading it aloud individually. The students then prepare to dramatize the poem by selecting character roles and discussing scenery, props, lighting, and costumes. Students rehearse the dramatization of the poem and then do an improvisation based on the poem. After experimenting with character interactions and dialogues, the class discusses the improvisation. Examples of Poems that Have Been Used Successfully in the ESL Classroom One dramatization of a poem that has been used successfully and is recommended for high intermediate or advanced adult ESL learners is John Wakeman's Love in Brooklyn.