Poetry as a de-fossilizing force in teaching Polish grammar to the advanced users of Polish as a foreign language

Abstract

The aim of the paper is to suggest ways of using poetry as a de-fossilizing force motivating students to reflect on grammar and its most problematic issues. Having presented learners’ fossilized lan-guage competence in terms of grammar, involving examples of inac-curacies and/or understatements manifested by the advanced learn-ers of Polish as a foreign language (146 students of the Polish Lan-guage Course attending the School of Polish Language and Culture at the University of Silesia in Katowice, Poland), suggestions for teachers of Polish as a foreign language and students themselves are offered. These include a few examples of activities based on poems believed to be perfect de-fossilizing teaching materials.