ABSTRACT
In this chapter I examine the discourse of one teacher as he incorporates storytelling and wordplay into his teaching in such a way as to challenge students to broaden their vocabulary and their ways of thinking about the meanings of words. I analyze this teacher’s approach to teaching through the lens of performance, and in particular, through storytelling and wordplay as aspects of classroom performance. I first define performance, storytelling, and wordplay, then discuss this type of performance as it relates to second language learning. Finally, I give examples of its use in classroom discourse.
