If you’ve ever introduced a novel, short story, or movie to your students and felt like the excitement just… wasn’t there, this strategy might completely change the way you launch your next unit.
In episode 189 of Growing With Proficiency: The Podcast, I sat down with Rita Barrett, an outstanding Spanish teacher, to talk about one of the most engaging pre-reading activities I’ve heard about in a long time: the Tea Party strategy.
And honestly? By the end of the conversation, I went from “tea party wannabe” to completely convinced that I need to do this in my own classroom too.
This strategy is interactive, highly communicative, comprehensible, and full of curiosity. But what I love most is that it creates something we all want more of in our classes:
100% participation.
About Rita Barrett:
Rita Barrett teaches Spanish at Portland Adventist Academy in Portland, Oregon. The 2016 COFLT TOY, Rita has been a frequent presenter at state and national conferences and co-hosts a Portland area language teacher PLC. She is passionate about inspiring students to become lifelong language lovers.
What Is the Tea Party Strategy?
The Tea Party strategy is a pre-reading or pre-viewing activity where students take on the role of characters from a story, novel, movie, or show before they actually read or watch it.
Students receive a short, highly comprehensible character description written in first person. Then, they mingle around the room “meeting” other characters, discovering relationships, conflicts, and connections while speaking in the target language.
Think of it like:
- a movie trailer
- a reality show introduction
- or the opening scene of a great mystery novel
Students get just enough information to become curious… but not enough to know what will happen.
And that curiosity? That becomes fuel for reading.
Why This Strategy Works So Well
During our conversation, Rita explained something that really stood out to me:
“Students felt it was easy to talk because they had something to say.”
That line stayed with me. So many of our students want to communicate, but they need support, context, and confidence. Tea Party provides all three.
Here’s why it works:
Students Have a Purpose for Communication
Instead of random conversation practice, students are communicating to:
- learn information
- discover relationships
- solve mysteries
- make predictions
The language has meaning.
It Creates a Safe Entry Point
Not every student wants to talk about themselves during interpersonal activities. But pretending to be someone else? That feels safer.
Students are not “being themselves.” They are stepping into a role. That little layer of distance lowers anxiety and increases participation.
It Builds Curiosity Before Reading
Students become emotionally invested in the story before opening the book.
As Rita explained, once students begin reading:
- they remember the characters
- they recognize relationships
- they anticipate conflicts
- and they become excited to discover what happens next
That is powerful.
How to Set Up a Tea Party Activity
The good news? This sounds much more complicated than it actually is. Rita repeatedly emphasized that once she finally tried it, she realized it was completely manageable.
Here’s a simple step-by-step guide.
Step 1: Choose a Story with Interesting Characters
Tea Party works best with:
- novels
- short stories
- movies
- telenovelas
- historical events
You want a story that includes:
- relationships
- tension
- conflict
- mystery
- emotional connections
Rita recommends keeping the number of main characters around 8–10 maximum for your first attempt.
If you have large classes, simply duplicate characters.
Step 2: Create Character Cards
Each character receives:
- a short description
- written in first person
- highly comprehensible
- with just enough intrigue
Very important: Do NOT reveal the entire story.
You want students wondering:
- Who is this person?
- Why are they connected?
- What happened?
- Who is lying?
- Who is in conflict?
The goal is curiosity. But one thing Rita emphasized several times is that this is not the moment to introduce lots of new language.
The goal is confidence and communication.
A typical character description might include:
- My name is…
- I am ___ years old.
- I like…
- I do not like…
- I want…
- But I cannot because…
For example:
Hola. Me llamo Ana. Tengo 15 años. Vivo en México. Me gusta bailar y escuchar música. No me gusta mi hermano. Quiero viajar a España, pero no tengo dinero.
Simple. Clear. Comprehensible.
Students should understand their role 100%, feel confident talking about their character, and the students listening should also easily understand the information being shared.
This is one of the reasons Tea Party works so well.
AnnaMarie Chase and Theresa Jensen have already created many resources around this strategy so you can check them out here and here for inspiration or to use them if you teach Spanish.
Step 3: Give Students Time to Prepare
Before students begin mingling:
- allow them to study their character
- identify important details
- think about possible questions to the other characters.
- practice pronunciation
Rita even has students write:
- the three most important facts
- and possible questions they still have about their character
This prep matters because it builds confidence before communication begins.
Step 4: Set Communication Expectations
One of my favorite parts of Rita’s approach was how intentionally she teaches students how to interact.
Students are encouraged to:
- look people in the eye
- acknowledge relationships
- react emotionally
- ask questions
- stay in character
- keep moving around the room
She even uses:
- background music
- props
- snacks or cookies
- and clothespins to clip the card with the name of the character
The classroom literally becomes a party.
Step 5: Let Students Mingle and Take Notes
This is where the magic happens.
Students walk around:
- introducing themselves
- discovering connections
- finding family members
- uncovering conflicts
- improvising conversations
And because students already have language support, they feel empowered to communicate. Even shy students participate.
One detail I really loved is that students should also have:
- a note sheet
- clipboard
- or small notepad
As they meet different characters, they can write:
- names
- important details
- relationships
- possible conflicts
- predictions
This accountability piece keeps students actively listening and interacting during the Tea Party.
Rita shared that she actively helps facilitate interactions by guiding students toward important characters or relationships.
Step 6: Create the Relationship Web
After the Tea Party, students can work independently, in pairs, or in groups to create a relationship web connecting the different characters.
Students discuss:
- Who is related?
- Who is in conflict?
- Who seems important?
- Who might help each other?
- What relationships exist?
- What might happen next?
The teacher can:
- guide the web together as a class
- model connections
- or allow groups to build their own versions
This debrief is incredibly powerful because students are now predicting, interpreting, discussing, and preparing their brains for reading. All before the novel even begins.
Need Examples? Start Here.
If you are reading this and thinking, Okay Claudia… but I still need to SEE one, good news 😅
There are already amazing Tea Party examples available online.
Definitely check out the incredible work and ready-made examples from:
The Hidden Power of Tea Party
What struck me most during this conversation is that Tea Party develops far more than vocabulary.
It builds interpersonal communication, interpretive listening, confidence, spontaneity, conversation skills, and community
And maybe most importantly: students feel successful using the language.
As Rita explained:
“All my students believe they are speaking Spanish.”
Even when they are heavily scaffolded. That feeling matters.
Final Thoughts: Don’t Stay a Tea Party Wannabe 😅
At the end of the episode, Rita gave the advice we probably all need to hear:
“Jump in and try it.”
The first time may not be perfect. You’ll probably adjust things. You’ll improve your scaffolds.
You’ll refine your character cards.
But the engagement, communication, and excitement this strategy creates make it completely worth it.
And honestly? In a season where many of us are searching for ways to increase participation and make communication feel authentic, this strategy feels incredibly powerful.
More Resources for Language Teachers
If you want more strategies to increase engagement and comprehensible communication in your classroom, you may also enjoy:
