Getting emotional in a second language: How that helps you learn

In many language classrooms, language learning appears as something rational: one learns the language in a way that makes sense. Or one looks forward to doing practical things, like booking a hotel room. In this lecture, we will look at the place of expressiveness in language learning, first in terms of exposure to expressive use of language, and then in terms of expressiveness in using the new language. We will look at some research in this area, in the relation between emotion and memory. I will teach a beginning French lesson, assuming that most people in the audience do not know this language, encouraging members of the audience to interact, and commenting on the intended impact of exercises on the process of language learning.