Travel Agents and Travelers, English Template

Created Dec. 4, 2023 by Amber Hoye, Camille Daw, Mimi Fahnstrom

Please Note: Many of the activities on the Pathways Project OER Repository were created by upper-division students at Boise State University and serve as a foundation that our community of practice can build upon and refine. While they are polished, we welcome and encourage collaboration from language instructors to help modify grammar, syntax, and content where needed. Kindly contact pathwaysproject@boisestate.edu with any suggestions and we will update the content in a timely manner.  — The Pathways Project

For the Spanish Version of this activity,  CLICK HERE

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The activities provided by the Boise State World Languages Resource Center (WLRC) serve as foundational activities which can be adapted by any language and scaled up or down on the proficiency scale. Many of these activities offer an English Version that is “language-agnostic” to provide language instructors from around the country a platform to remix these instructional materials, infusing them with their target language and culture! The activities within the Pathways Project OER Repository seek to help students solidify their interpersonal speaking and interpretive skills through task-based situations or communicative activities. These activities should be facilitated in the target language for approximately 90% (or more), per the recommendation of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages.

How to use the WLRC Repository’s Activities:

1. Use the Activity as is:

Before you begin:

  • Most activities are 30 minutes in duration, unless otherwise specified.
  • Be sure to read through the activity description, and review the list of required materials. You will notice that the activity materials are also highlighted in yellow throughout the activity instructions.

If you have any suggestions about grammar, syntax, and content, please kindly contact pathwaysproject@boisestate.edu

2. Remix for Your Language Classroom:

When you are ready to begin remixing the activity, in order to adapt it for the needs of your language classroom, simply click the blue “Remix This Resource” button at the top of your screen. This will then take you to a screen with a NEW, editable version of this activity. The text provided in purple is a suggestion of what you might say to your students in the target language, and may be altered for different levels and age groups. All activities have “NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do” statements, a warm-up, a main activity, and a wrap-up.

Many of the activities include printable cards and other instructional materials such as Google Slideshows. If you would like to make changes to these materials for your language, follow the instructions below:

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Travel Agents and Travelers

Description:

In this activity, students will talk about a vacation they would like to take and engage in conversation about traveling. Students will learn words relating to traveling and taking a vacation. They practice speaking to each other about planning a vacation. Students will also express personal opinions and thoughts about their vacation and hotel. 

Proficiency Level:

Novice High

Keywords:

Travel, Vacations, Planning a Trip 

NCSSFL-ACTFL World Readiness Standards:

  • Standard 1.1 Students engage in conversations, provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions.”
  • Standard 1.2 Students understand and interpret spoken and written Spanish on a variety of topics.”
  • Standard 1.3 Students present information, concepts, and ideas in Spanish to an audience of listeners or readers on a variety of topics.”

Idaho State World Language Standards:

  • COMM 1.1 - Interact and negotiate meaning (spoken, signed, written conversation) to share information, reactions, feelings, and opinions
  • COMM 2.1 - Understand, interpret, and analyze what is heard, read, or viewed on a variety of topics.
  • COMM 3.1 - Present information, concepts, and ideas to inform, explain, persuade, and narrate on a variety of topics using appropriate media in the target language.

NCSSFL- ACTFL Can-Do Statements:

  • I can answer questions about what I like and dislike
  • I can ask questions related to vacations and hotels
  • I can ask about the travel preferences of my peers

Materials Needed:

Travel Agent Cards (One set for the whole group)

Traveler Cards (One set for the whole group)

Steps to Taking a Vacation Cards (One set for the whole group warm up activity)

Download: Steps to Taking a Vacation Cards

Travel Agent Question Cards

End of Trip Survey Cards(One per student) 

Google Slideshow (Linked)

Warm-up

1. Begin by introducing the Can-Dos for today’s activity, open the Google Slideshow, and distributing the Steps to Taking a Vacation Cards. The students will put the steps of going on a vacation in order

"We are going to start with the process of going on vacation. Here I have the steps to plan on going on vacation. You all are going to out them in order on the table. Work together in order to do it."

2.   After, ask the students a few discussion questions:

"Do you like to travel? How frequently do you travel? 

How do you like to travel? For example, do you prefer to travel by plane, train, boat, bus or car?

What type of activities do you like to do when you travel? For example, do you like to swim, camp, ride horses, fish, etc.? 

What type of housing do you like to stay in? For example, a hotel, an airbnb, a hostel, the house of a relative? 

How much does a good hotel cost? How much does a cheap hotel cost?"

Main Activity

1. Students will be acting as travel agents and vacationers, switching roles. Ask which one of the students wants to be the travel agent first Give all of the travel agent cards to the travel agents, and give each of the other students one traveler card. 

"You all are going to work in partners today. One is going to be the travel agent, and the other is going to be the traveler (The person who takes the trip). Who wants to be the travel agent first?"    

2.  One of the travelers will have to “plan a vacation” with the travel agent using the specifications of their traveler card. As the lab assistant, you should point to each item on a card as you explain: 

"The traveler has a card with a lot of information. The card has how many people they have in their group, how many beds they are going to need, the money they can spend and what they like to do. The travel agent is going to use this information in order to plan a vacation."

3. The travel agent will have to choose the best place (from the options on the travel agent cards) that fits the travelers needs. 

"The travel agent has cards with a lot of questions. They need to ask these questions to the traveler. After they ask the questions, we have a lot of cards with possible places that you can recommend. You are going to use the information in order to recommend the best place.

When you have the place, you are going to share the information with the traveler."

4. Once the travel agent offers a “plan” to the traveller, the traveller will become the travel agent, and they will “plan” another vacation. 

"After you all finish the plan for the traveler, you all are going to change roles."

5. Have the students fill out the end of trip survey cards. This cycle will continue until everyone has been a travel agent.  

"Now, you all are going to do a survey about your experiences with the travel agents. Here I have the surveys and the markers."

Wrap-up

Ask students the following questions after the lab is finished. 

1. Where are going to travel? How much does it cost?

2. What activities do you like to do on your vacation? 

3. Do you want to visit this place in real life? Why or why not? 

End of lab:

• Read Can-Do statements once more and have students evaluate their confidence. 
(Use thumbs up/thumbs down or download our student cards.) 
• Encourage students to be honest in their self-evaluation.
• Pay attention, and try to use feedback for future labs!


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