The matching model of education, in which instructional activities are matched to the conceptual level (abstract to concrete) of the students, is recommended for second language instruction. Suggestions are made for varying the amount of structure in communication-centered activities. (MSE)

Describes educational games for teaching French as a second language (with one game to teach German). These include: "Comiques," for grades 7-12; "Battleship," for grades 7-8; "Scrabble au tableau," for grades 7-9""Baseball a l'interieur,""Phrase," for grades 7-12""Food-Enjoyment!" for grade 8; "Mon Nombre Secret;" and "Hallowe'en Activity." (SED)

It is proposed that language acquisition improves if beginning students are allowed to experience three stages of acquisition: comprehension (preproduction), early speech production, and speech emergence. Each stage requires a different kind of activity building on the previous stage's development. (MSE)

While there are many problems to be resolved concerning the substance of instruction within a communicative approach the manner of teaching must also be considered, including methodology, the linguistic aspect (vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation), norms, and the use of computers. (MSE)

In an effort to help teachers implement the communicative approach in the classroom, the approach is defined; its implications are outlined; and some strategies for rendering classroom practice more communicative are presented. A university course-planning model is used to help teachers plan activities within a communicative framework. (MSE)

Teacher training for French instructors is criticized as incomplete, consisting only of some formulas for immediate classroom application. A plan for a more comprehensive curriculum consisting of theoretical and practical components in the areas of language, culture, learning, communication, and instruction is proposed. (MSE)

Some aspects of planning second language programs along communicative lines are examined, and a framework for planning communicative classroom activities is described. The problem of determining whether to start planning with methodology and materials or overall curriculum design is discussed at length. A practical solution, a teacher's handbook…

Approaches taken in the United States and France to use of visual pedagogy are compared and discussed. The necessity of integrating semiotic theory and visual pedagogy is underscored, a semiotic model of visual literacy and decoding is outlined, and some advertisements are analyzed, giving suggestions for teaching use. (MSE)

The proverbial language of Spanish provides a resource for teaching and testing various aspects of phonetics, syntax, vocabulary, and cultural features of the language. Incorporation of these features into the Spanish curriculum can enrich the classroom experience. Specific suggestions for their use are provided. (Author/MSE)

Discusses the use of visual materials in second language instruction to produce verbal utterances. (AM)

Presents a typology of comic strips and suggests some ways of using the comics in the second language classroom. (AM)

Three essays on second-language instruction are presented. One describes a letter exchange between teachers as a means of exploring and understanding classroom and instructional issues; another (in French) describes a teacher's reflective examination of the immersion teaching experience; and a third reports on a classroom study of the…

A systematic approach for introducing new teaching techniques into the second language classroom is suggested, an exemplary form for recording information on specific techniques is presented, and 10 concrete proposals for implementing innovative techniques are offered, with examples from 4 languages. (55 references) (Author/MSE)