For those of you who enjoy content-based or issues-based teaching, this exercise is a great way to excite students' interest.

Write as many stereotypes on the board as you can. If you're teaching abroad, or if your students are all from the same country or background, use stereotypes applied to them for the best effect.

For example:

Japanese have bad teeth.

Japanese know karate.

Japanese are extremely polite.

Japanese are conformist.

Japanese respect nature.

...and so on. Fill the board completely with as many stereotypes as you can, both positive and negative. When finished, have the students repeat each stereotype after you. Most of the time, at least one student will protest before you can finish.

How the lesson proceeds from here depends on the level of the class as well as the rapport between you and your students. Two good ways to proceed are:

1. Go through the stereotypes one by one and ask different students whether they think they are true or false.
2. Have the students tell which of the stereotypes they have heard before and which are new to them.

Once you've gone through the list, have the students make their own list of stereotypes about your country or background. Be sure to encourage the students to list both positive and negative stereotypes, as some classes may be prone to leave out negative ones.

Generally speaking, this exercise works best with upper intermediate level students or higher and when the teacher and students have been working together for some time. However, it can be a powerful way to start a new course on day one, depending on your own teaching style.