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4Minds, our innovative coursebook for teenagers and young adults at CEFR Levels A1-C1/2, integrates STEAM and mediation to make language learning a journey of exploration and growth. Mediation in 4Minds helps learners develop essential communication skills by bridging emotional, cognitive, social, and cultural gaps.
Key Mediation Activities in 4Minds:
- Mediating a Text: Share information using your own words to someone who doesn’t have access to the original content.
- Mediating Concepts: Collaborate to share ideas and reach solutions.
- Mediating Communication: Help peers understand each other by bridging sociocultural differences.
4Minds, A1 Unit 10 page 102
Work in groups of three.Student A shares their holiday plans with Student B. Student C also wants to know about the vacation, but they do not speak English. B uses mime to explain what A says.
Why is this mediation?
This activity falls under the Mediating Communication category.
As students work together to bridge different standpoints and backgrounds, they develop their soft skills along with their linguistic competency, as they must convey messages with clarity and accuracy. The activity helps students adapt themselves to their peers' abilities in order to drive a message home and helps them exploit different registers and ways of expressing ideas information and feelings.
4Minds, A1 Unit 9, page 98
Research online ways to encourage teens to play sports. Using your research, prepare a podcast encouraging teens at your school to take part in sports.
Why is this mediation?
This activity falls under the Mediating Concepts category.
Through the activity, students have the opportunity to lead group work, share ideas and propose solutions in order to come up with an action plan that solves the issue at hand. Additionally, they learn ways to research and find relevant information from trustworthy online sources; they then need to compile and transmit the information in a way that is clear, cohesive and engaging for a wider audience.
4Minds, A1 Unit 9 page 90
Look at the pictures. Which do you think better represents the idea of the Homeless World Cup? Give reasons.
Why is this mediation?
This activity falls under the Mediating Concepts category.
Through the activity, students will have the opportunity to lead group work, share ideas and propose solutions in order to come up with an action plan that solves the issue at hand. Additionally, students must work with visual material that accurately represents the concept they are working on in order to convey messages accurately.
4Minds, A1 Unit 7 page 72
Read the quiz. Explain to your group what each question asks for. Do the quiz and check your answers online.
Why is this mediation?
This activity falls under the Mediating Texts category. Mediating a text ‘involves passing on to another person the content of a text to which they do not have access, often because of linguistic, cultural, semantic or technical barriers’ (2020:91). Through the activity, students relay specific information from the text presented and therefore they have the chance to decode and identify what is requested through each question.
Why Mediation Matters: Mediation in 4Minds fosters communication skills and cultural understanding, making learning engaging and effective.
