Suggested communicative speaking activities for A1 and A2 level classes in teaching Turkish as a foreign language

Learning a foreign language means not only doing grammar exercises or memorizing words in the target language but also developing reading, writing, listening and speaking skills simultaneously. Of all four skills, speaking is believed to be developed the hardest. An individual who accomplishes the acquisition of a foreign language is expected to use the target language communicatively and be able to express himself/herself orally in different contexts. Accordingly, communicative speaking activities should be incorporated in the classes where Turkish is taught as a foreign language to help students attain this goal. In this regard, İstanbul and Yedi İklim A1 and A2 level course books which are used in Turkish as a foreign language classes have been reviewed in terms of the number of communicative activities they have and how communicative they are. As a result of the review of these books, it has been observed that the number of communicative activities embracing the principles of Communicative Language Teaching has been insufficient. This study attempts to suggest communicative speaking activities for A1 and A2 level classes in teaching Turkish as a foreign language. It is aimed that learners have fun while learning, experience real-life situations, overcome their speaking anxiety and be able to express themselves orally in the target language through these materials which are thought to be missing in the field.