Fancy Trying Something Different? Why TPRS Might Be Worth Exploring in MFL

As language teachers, we’re always looking for ways to boost engagement, increase confidence and help our learners feel that what they’re doing matters. I’ll be honest - I stumbled across TPRS (Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling) almost by accident. Like many MFL teachers in the UK, I am always trying to find ways to engage students who have mentally checked out of language learning. You know the ones: bright enough, capable enough, but utterly unconvinced that German,Spanish or French would ever be useful, let alone fun.

Then I heard Dr Liam Printer speak at the Language World Conference 2023 in Sheffield about the motivational power of storytelling in the language classroom. He shared how student motivation and output increased when they were exposed to compelling, comprehensible input through co-created stories.

While presenting at the World Languages Conference at the American International School of Budapest and researching for my upcoming book Teacher Hacks: Languages, I encountered this approach again, several attending teachers were actively using it in their classrooms.

So, I decided to write this blog post about it in case it inspires you to try something new in your own teaching.

What is TPRS?

TPRS was developed by Blaine Ray in the 1990s and is now used by teachers all over the world. At its heart, TPRS is about helping learners acquire language naturally through hearing and reading it in meaningful, memorable contexts. It’s based on the idea that students learn best when they understand what’s being said and feel emotionally connected to it.

TPRS is rooted in comprehensible input theory and inspired by Stephen Krashen’s work, it provides a compelling, student-centred alternative to the more traditional grammar-translation or textbook-driven approaches that still dominate many classrooms and while it might sound a bit different at first, it’s surprisingly easy to get started with and the impact can be immediate.

The process follows three simple steps:

1. Establish meaning – The teacher introduces a few useful, high-frequency structures.

2. Create a story together – The teacher takes the lead but students help build a fun (often silly!) story using the new language.

3. Read and rework the story – The teacher reinforces comprehension through reading, acting out and retelling.

It might sound playful and it is, but it’s also underpinned by solid research.

For example:

• Stephen Krashen’s comprehensible input hypothesis suggests we acquire language when we understand it and when it’s just above our current level - 98% CI.

• Paul Nation’s vocabulary research highlights the importance of high-frequency words in meaningful contexts for long-term retention.

• And in more recent classroom-based research, Dr Liam Printer* (Switzerland-based teacher and researcher) found that TPRS-style storytelling significantly boosted motivation, confidence and engagement among his learners of Spanish.

  
  

Why it might be worth trying

You can start small, just a single lesson with a low-stakes story using three structures and be surprised by how well it might go. Here’s what stood out as reported by colleagues who tried it in their classroom:

• The repetition felt natural and enjoyable (not forced or drill-like).

• Students remembered key phrases weeks later without having been formally tested.

• Learners who often sit back were suddenly participating, suggesting silly names or plot twists.

• There was a lot of laughter, but there was also learning and that’s a combination I liked the most.

What really struck me was how TPRS encouraged their students to use language early, without the pressure of being grammatically perfect. It lowered the affective filter and built confidence quickly.

Who’s using it?

TPRS is popular across the US and Latin America, but it’s also gaining traction here in Europe. In the Netherlands, for instance, the TPRS Academy has been training teachers in the method for years. In Switzerland, Liam Printer uses it with great success in the IB system. Some teachers in Austria and Germany are combining TPRS with other CI (Comprehensible Input) techniques like MovieTalk and StoryListening. It appears to be particularly popular in the Flemish-speaking region of Belgium. Interest is also growing in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Spain and France, mainly among teachers of English as a second language (ESL). In the U.K., some school are trying it out or adapting it to suit their school context (an example is used also in my upcoming book).

In short, this is not a niche fad, it’s a flexible, research-informed approach that can sit alongside what we already do.

What might it look like for us?

If you’re curious but not sure where to begin, here are a few ideas that worked for my colleague:

• Start with three new phrases or structures (e.g. “möchte…”, “hat Angst vor…”, “geht zu…”).

• Build a short story together on the board. Keep it simple, silly and collaborative.

• Follow up with a reading version, a gap-fill, or a re-telling challenge.

• Let students illustrate the story, create alternate endings, or act it out.

It doesn’t need to replace what you’re doing, it can be a short weekly feature or an occasional revision activity. It also works brilliantly for retrieval practice and building confidence before assessments.

A few things to keep in mind

Trying TPRS for the first time can feel like stepping into the unknown. If you’re used to structured schemes of work, grammar grids and vocab tests, letting go can be scary.

Here’s what might help you ease in:

• Start with mini-stories and just a few new phrases.

• Use student names and interests to make stories more engaging.

• Check for understanding constantly (gestures, translation, quick quizzes).

• Don’t worry if it gets silly. Silly is memorable.

You don’t have to abandon everything you already do. TPRS can complement your existing routines, it just changes the why and how behind them.

Sometimes, a small shift in approach can make a big difference. If you’re looking for a way to get learners talking, laughing and remembering more of what we teach, TPRS might be worth exploring and you could combine them with sentence builders or parallel texts like my friend does.

Final thought: Stories connect us

I think what I like most about the idea of exploring TPRS is that it rehumanises the language classroom. It’s no longer about “getting through the content” but about connecting through story.

Students aren’t just learning German or French or Spanish, they’re using it to create something meaningful, something funny, something memorable.

As Liam Printer says, “stories tap into the fundamental human need to feel, to connect, and to belong.” When our language lessons do that, real learning begins.

*Dr Liam Printer’s 2021 doctoral thesis found that TPRS and story-based methods significantly increased intrinsic motivation in secondary school learners. Motivation, in turn, supported greater participation, more spontaneous use of the language and even improved test results.