Working with Language at the Point of Need

In-person Workshop

When: June 20, 2026

Time: 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (Coffee & cake from 2:30 p.m.)

Where: Rosenkavalierplatz 16, Arabella Park U-Bahn

Focusing on the classroom as a space for skilled improvisation, the workshop shows how teachers can work with learners’ language as it emerges in real time. Participants will explore how to create opportunities for meaningful talk, adapt materials to encourage learner contribution, and respond to language at the point of need. Through practical, classroom-ready activities, the session demonstrates how noticing, testing and refining language can be integrated into communicative tasks without losing focus on meaning.

Drawing on classroom examples, the workshop will share strategies for:

• creating space for emergent language in meaning-focused interaction
• helping learners engage with grammar as a dynamic, meaning-driven process
• developing teachers’ confidence in noticing, selecting and responding to learner language
• adapting materials and tasks to support flexible, responsive teaching

Participants will leave with a repertoire of practical activities and clear principles they can immediately apply in their own contexts, supporting learners to develop language in ways that are timely, relevant and genuinely communicative.

To register, email info@melta.de

Richard Chinn is a teacher educator based in London and he works on MA and BA programmes at King’s College London. He is also involved in pre- and in-service teacher training courses at International House London. He has taught English and trained teachers in Central and South America, Asia, Africa, and Europe and regularly delivers talks and workshops for teachers. His professional interests are in emergent language, classroom interaction, language teaching methodology, and teacher development. He is co-author of the book ‘Working with Emergent Language’ published by Pavilion ELT, 2023.