What Cat?!, Week 4 SLA Video HW

This was such an enjoyable activity for me as well as my subject, Lucy.  She and I have worked together for 18 months and everyday we find something (or ten things) to laugh about.  Lucy's interpretation of the story was fun and insightful.  She noticed things in the pictures that I had overlooked.  I paid little attention to the cat.  Lucy impressed me when she concluded that the girl (Maria) thought that she could do as the cat did, and walk the ledge to her neighbor's home.  I look forward to seeing the other videos.  Was Lucy very observant or was I just oblivious?

                                         

Q1:
I do not notice a pattern, but a tendency to be inconsistent in verb usage.

Q2:
 My subject uses third person singular -s on present tense verbs ten times.  Her usage is correct on the two copulas as well as the two auxiliaries.  Of the remaining six verbs, Luci has three errors.  She tends to use -s correctly on copulas and auxiliaries, but is inconsistent on verbs.

Q3:
In the beginning of her story, she uses the word 'feels' correctly.  However, at the end of her story she fails to add -s on the same verb (feel) on two occasions.  I think that in the beginning of her story, Lucy is very aware that she is being recorded and therefore careful in her language usage.  As she gets to the end of the story, she seems more comfortable with the task and less conscious of her language usage.  There is no clear pattern in the telling of the story.

Q4:
Students at Luci's level may be more likely to correctly use -s when they are in formal or academic settings, but become lax when under less formal conditions.  I would share this inference with the student and implement activities that would provide him or her a greater awareness of the inconsistency.  A good way to do this would be to record a lesson and let the student see how and when errors occur.  I could also have a lesson that involved a pair of students having a conversation while other students observed how -s was used in the conversation.  The follow-up discussion could be a good reflective exercise.  This would have to be done with students that are accustomed to peer analysis/criticism.  Hopefully by becoming more self-aware, the student will begin to use third person singular -s correctly in both formal and informal settings.  In this way, the student's awareness could be a tool towards better language usage.