Whose Line Is It Anyway?

One of the main reasons we’re attending this course is to brush up on our Tok Pisin language skills.  Some people find the language instruction here rather unorthodox since there is very little lecture time, minimal focus on grammar and almost no use of a textbook.  For the most part we just interact with our Papua New Guinean teacher.

We usually have a theme for the day like family relationship terms or market vocabulary, and we listen to our teacher talk.  He might tell us a simple story using a picture book, and we ask questions as needed.  Or we’ll complete commands as given by our teacher—kind of like “Simon Says”.  One of my favorite activities is the progressive story.  As your turn comes up, you make up a line or two in Tok Pisin to add to a totally random story.  A “use-the-knowledge-you-have” kind of activity—no wrong answers.  I like that.  It’s funny, though, how our stories always seemed to be about people wanting to get married.  <grin>