Introduction
Are you a legal English teacher looking for creative and interactive ways to engage your students? Using infographics or other visualisation tools is a great way to break down legal concepts and present information in an accessible manner. Since students come from all over the world and speak many different languages, using an infographic enables faster communication of key ideas and helps students deconstruct legal concepts in their heads. By providing information which can be comprehended quickly and easily, infographics can stimulate the learner and capture their attention. With visual learning becoming more and more popular, this post takes a look at how to use the “How a Bill Becomes Law” infographic to teach legal vocabulary used in the legislative process. The following infographic explains the UK legislative process. It sets out in a visual format the journey the Bill takes when first presented in Parliament to when it eventually becomes law. For further information about how a bill becomes law check out episode 85 and see the vlog below. You can download the infographic here.
How to use infographics in your lesson plan
There are a few ways a teacher can use an infographic in their lesson plan. These include: As a visual aid such as a poster As the basis for an exercise such as a fill in the gaps, word search, or dictation exercise As a discussion starter or follow-up after the exercises.
Using the infographic as a poster
Displaying the infographic as a poster in the classroom is an effective way to engage students when discussing legal concepts. For the legislation infographic, a teacher may start the lesson by providing an overview of the legislative process with reference to the infographic. Since the infographic is presented in a step by step format, it provides a clear summary of the process and makes the information more accessible to the student. The student may follow the teacher’s explanation by analysing the infographic.
Using the infographic as part of learning exercises
As well as displaying the infographic as a poster, it can also form the basis of several learning exercises used throughout the lesson. In fact, with a little creativity, the whole lesson plan may be based around the infographic. One such exercise a teacher may use is a listening exercise. The text in the infographic may be used to create a ‘fill in the gaps’ worksheet where the teacher reads out the explanation in the infographic and students listen and fill in the sentences with a missing word. This type of exercise is great for memorising legal vocabulary. Another exercise based off the infographic is to have a word search worksheet where the students search for specific legal vocabulary in the puzzle. After the student has completed the exercise, they can check their answers with reference to the infographic. Here are two worksheets which can be used:
• Study Legal English How a bill becomes law Worksheet 1 Wordsearch
• Study Legal English How a bill becomes law Worksheet 2 Gapfill
These worksheets were generated using John Esl generators.
Using the infographic as part of learning exercises
Finally, using the infographic as the basis of a discussion between the teacher and the student is an effective way to clarify any questions the student may have about the legislative process. The discussion can follow the learning exercises, where the student explains how a bill becomes law. In a group setting, there can be a class discussion where the students explain to each other the steps involving the making of law. These discussions are an interactive way to memorise the process and learn the legal vocabulary.
Preparation for the TOLES
In preparation for the Test of Legal English Skills (TOLES), the teacher may use the infographic to supplement the material in Unit 3B Higher. This unit features the topic ‘Where law comes from’ which is a great opportunity to introduce the infographic as an example of how the law is created.
Conclusion
What visual aids do you use?
Are you a teacher who uses visuals such as infographics to explain legal concepts and processes? Are you a student who learns legal English by referring to visuals? Leave a comment in the section below!