INNOVATIVE ENGLISH DICTATION ACTIVITIES
During the study, five different innovative dictation activities were implemented in ten weeks to replace the traditional
dictation exercises. Pupils’ interest and ability were considered. The activities were intentionally set from the easiest to
the more challenging. Each activity was conducted twice to make sure pupils understood the rules and got used to the
ways the activity worked. Clear instructions were given before the start of the activities so that pupils understood well
what they were going to do. Considerable teacher’s support was provided to pupils who had difficulties during the
activities. At the end of each task pupils were given five to ten minutes to check their spelling mistakes using their
reference books such as course books and dictionaries. The dictation activities used in this project were adapted from
Davis & Rinvolucri’s (1988) Dictation, Wajnryb’s (1992) Grammar Dictation and the Curriculum Development
Council’s (1997) Syllabuses for Primary Schools: English Language Primary 1-6 respectively. They include: