Warm-up is a preparatory step to help students feel comfortable and also create a positive mood for
learning (Rushidi, 2013). According to Robertson and Acklsm (2000), "the warm-up activity is an activity that briefly
opens the lesson" (p. 30). Kay (1995) asserts that different warm-up activities help students start thinking in
English, review old knowledge and become more interested in learning (quoted in Velandia, 2008, p.11). Lassche
(2005) defines that for language learning lessons, the warm-up phase is “the initial orientation step” (p. 83).
Therefore, a warm-up activity is used to start a class to create excitement to help students feel comfortable in the
classroom environment and to help them start thinking in English.
Brown (2006) defines, "old knowledge is the mental generalization of our existing experiences that help
us make sense of new experiences" (p.2). In the introduction of a lesson it is necessary to recall existing knowledge
of students and relate it to new knowledge they will learn (Joshi, 2006). García and Martín (2004) mention that one
of the goals of using warm-ups is to activate students' background knowledge (p.17). Teachers need to understand
what students already know about the topic they are going to teach, thereby connecting the topic to the students'
current understanding. Instructors should start teaching from a point where students have knowledge or they are
already familiar (Cheung, 2001). Rumelhart (1980) states, "we understand something only when we can relate it to
something we already know only when we can relate the new experience to a knowledge structure" (cited in
Carrell, 1983, p.82). Cheung (1998) describes two types of background knowledge; subject knowledge and
encounter knowledge. from educational institutions and anything students learn through interaction with the
world is encounter knowledge.If students are introduced to material or topics or tasks by relating subject
knowledge their knowledge and experience, it will make it easier for them to connect to new knowledge and they
will be more eager to learn (p.58). García and Martín (2004) mention that “from a methodology inferring
perspective”, we can think of warm-up as a vessel that takes learners on a journey from the unknown as an
attempt to activate their passive and potential vocabulary (p. 17). ) Other activities Activity helps students activate
their existing knowledge and also directs their mind to the main activity. This is how students can build
connections between old and new knowledge (Nemati & Habibi, 2012).
If students have an idea of ​​what knowledge and skills they will acquire from the start of the class, their
level of achievement will be high (Joshi, 2006). According to Prabhu (1987), “a clear sense of purpose and outcome
satisfied learners because there were clear criteria for success and a sense of achievement” (cited in Lassche, 2005,
p. eighty six). Learning is a goal-oriented activity where the teacher's job is to engage their students to find the
importance of the learning material and make that journey enjoyable (Cheung, 2001). ). A short warm-up activity
can build a relationship between students and the learning material (Hasan & Akhand, 2013). If learners perceive
that a task is relevant to their learning needs, they will perform the task with greater effort. But their level of
performance will be minimal when the task will not be relevant to their needs (Murphy, 2002). A trainee teacher
mentioned that students should not only do activities for fun but should also learn something from each necessary
activity (as cited in Farrell, 2008, p.8). Oxford and Shearin (1994) suggest that when learning goals are clear and
precise for students, achievement rates are exceptional (as cited in Lassche, 2005, p.86). Indeed, a task will not
automatically provide a clear goal for the learner. The teacher must discuss the purpose and objectives of the
lesson with the students so that they have a clear, achievable, and relevant goal for performing the task (Spratt &
Leung, 2000). In addition, Nunan (1999) suggests, “make instructional goals clear to learners” (quoted in Lassche,
2005, p. 86). During the initial warm-up phase, lesson objectives can be revealed as students learn better as soon
as they become aware of the learning objectives (Lassche, 2005).