Teaching tip: To build competence, reframe language targets as interesting puzzles. Smile, introduce the target to a student, and if they stumble, give them time to think and observe. Resist the immediate urge to control and correct. Instead, turn to another student, smile and ask them the same question.
If they are unable to answer, keep going. If no one is able to answer, then encourage them to ask you and gently provide the answer. Give students time to think and observe, then go back and ask the first student. If they have been paying attention, and, in my experience, they will be quite observant as they are now genuinely interested in solving this puzzle, they should have and will have figured it out. The key is doing this in a fun, lighthearted, gentle, non-authoritarian and pressure-free way.
Handing the cognitive work back to them so they solve the puzzle themselves builds a profound sense of mastery and agency. The key is to create a gentle, non-threatening classroom atmosphere where dealing with the unknown and exploring and making “mistakes” while doing so is not only “safe”, but actively encouraged. Again, the paradox here is that the better we become at doing this, the less need we have for control and domination. The classroom becomes an increasingly enjoyable, fun place of genuine learning where students actually WANT to be and want to learn. The foundation of this is trust and respect.