Scared to Start CI? Here’s What to Do (and What to Ignore)

Top 5 Beginner Mistakes and How to Sidestep Them with Easy, Low-Prep Solutions

👋 Introduction: CI Is Not a Cult, But It Might Feel Like One at First

So you’ve heard the whispers in the teacher’s lounge. The rumors. The legends.
"There’s this method where kids actually understand what you're saying... without vocab lists."
"You don’t have to assign grammar packets ever again."
"Teachers are happier. Students are happier. Someone even claimed their pet turtle started speaking French."

Welcome to the wild world of Comprehensible Input (CI)—where acquisition trumps memorization, stories matter more than subjunctive conjugations, and no one is required to recite verb charts under fluorescent lighting. 🎉

But if you’re staring down the CI rabbit hole and feeling deeply unready to let go of your textbook like it’s your emotional support binder… you’re not alone. Starting CI can feel like being asked to perform a trapeze act while the net is on fire.

This article is here to say:
Hey, you can do this.
And also: Here’s what not to do so you don’t end up crying into your dry-erase markers.

Let’s walk through the five most common “new to CI” mistakes—and exactly how to avoid them with low-prep, totally doable, sometimes-even-fun strategies.

And spoiler alert: There’s a taco joke coming.

1. Overplanning Like You’re Directing a Broadway Musical

Mistake:

Thinking you need a 12-slide presentation, a full script, three props, a llama costume, and two backup plans… for Tuesday’s class.

We see you, planners. We see your color-coded binders, your Pinterest boards titled “CI Emergency Kit,” your 48-page Google Docs.

Here’s the hard truth: CI thrives on simplicity. Students don’t need your laminated script with theme music. They need comprehensible language in context. That’s it. Truly.

Try This Instead:

a) Use a Skeleton Plan

Every CI class can be boiled down to two pieces: an input activity and a comprehension check.
Example:

• Input: Ask a silly story about a hungry cat who wants sushi.
• Check: Students draw the story, retell it with images, or answer yes/no questions about it.

Done. That’s your plan. Print it on a sticky note and go live your best teacher life.

b) Pick One Verb, One Noun

If you’re stuck, pick one high-frequency verb (like tiene, quiere, or va) and one fun noun (like taco, alien, or grandma’s shoe collection). Build your input around it.

CI isn’t about how many words they hear—it's about how well they hear a few words repeatedly in meaningful ways.

c) Leave Room for Magic

CI teaching is a choose-your-own-adventure novel. Some of your best moments will happen when the plan goes off the rails—because your student asked, “But wait, is the alien vegan?” Embrace the chaos. Let it lead.

2. Speaking Like an Auctioneer with a Megaphone

Mistake:

Speed-talking like your students are contestants on “Who Wants to Guess That Word?”

We get it. You’re excited. You want to immerse them in the language. But if your students look like they’re watching a foreign film with no subtitles… you’ve lost them. Even if they’re nodding politely. (They're just scared to say "Huh?" again.)

Try This Instead:

a) Slow. Down.

Like, awkwardly slow.
Say “El chico tiene un taco” like you’re narrating a soap opera in molasses. Stretch the intonation. Gesture. Add dramatic flair like you’re up for a CI Emmy.

b) Use Built-in Repetition

Instead of repeating “El chico tiene un taco” three times in a row like a vocabulary-bot, weave repetition into the conversation:

• “¿El chico tiene un taco o una hamburguesa?”
• “¡Ah, tiene un taco! ¿Tiene un taco delicioso o un taco horrible?”

Boom. Same input. Way more engaging.

c) Record Yourself Once

It’s humbling. It’s awkward. It might make you delete your TikTok account.
But listening to yourself helps you adjust pacing, tone, and whether you accidentally sounded like a caffeine-fueled squirrel on a word sprint.

3. Treating Silence Like It’s a Personal Attack

Mistake:

Assuming every pause means “You’re failing. They hate this. Abort mission.”

Fun fact: silence is actually where the language is processing. The awkward stare? That’s their brain working overtime to make sense of “quiere un elefante.”

Try This Instead:

a) Normalize the Wait

Give your questions space. Ask, pause, count to three (slowly), and resist the urge to answer for them. Let them stew in that awkwardness—it’s the flavor of comprehension.

b) Use Gestures for Understanding

Teach gestures for key words and for responses:

• 👍 = yes
• 👎 = no
• 🤷‍♀️ = I don’t know
• 🤯 = My brain just exploded in a good way

Gestures give kids a way to stay engaged while still processing language quietly.

c) Prep a Rejoinder Buffet

Teach 3–5 rejoinders like “¡Qué interesante!”, “¡No me digas!”, or “¡En serio!”. These give students a way to respond without being on the spot. Bonus: They make your class sound delightfully dramatic.

4. Expecting Total Comprehension Like It’s a Math Test

Mistake:

Panicking when students don’t understand every single word.

Let’s be real. You don’t need 100% comprehension for acquisition to happen. If they’re getting the gist, the magic is already working.

CI is like language osmosis. It soaks in slowly. You just have to trust the sponge.

Try This Instead:

a) Aim for the 80/20 Rule

Shoot for 80% comprehension. If your students get the main message—even if they don’t know every word—they’re in great shape. Don’t stop the train every time they hit a new word. Let them ride.

b) Use Visual and Binary Checks

Ask simple comprehension questions that require no language output:

• “Is the dog happy or sad?”
• “Did she go to the restaurant or the moon?”
• Show two images and have students point.

c) Don’t Force Output

Yes, output is cute. But forcing students to produce language too early creates stress and doesn’t speed up acquisition. Input is king. Let them marinate in it.

5. Trying to Be a One-Person Edutainment Factory

Mistake:

Feeling like you have to juggle, narrate, act, do tech, and parent 32 children… while dressed as a taco.

It’s not sustainable. It’s not necessary. It leads directly to what we call “CI Burnout Syndrome,” where you wake up screaming “¿Dónde está el gato?” in your sleep.

Try This Instead:

a) Delegate the Drama

Let student actors take the spotlight during stories. Let them be the pirate. Let them cry dramatically about their imaginary cat. They love it. You get to sit.

b) Use Visuals, Not Mime

Don’t try to act out “abduction” with just your hands and interpretive dance. Use a photo, a prop, or draw on the board (badly). Visuals support comprehension—and save your rotator cuff.

c) Recycle Like a CI Hippie

You don’t need a brand new activity every day. CI is about repetition in new ways. Do a story Monday, retell it with gestures Tuesday, draw it Wednesday, watch a video Thursday. Same content. New input. Your students won’t complain—and your planner will thank you.

👏 Conclusion: You’ve Got This (Seriously, You Do)

CI isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being present, being comprehensible, and being kind to yourself while you try something new.

You’re not failing if your first story flops. You’re not behind if you didn’t assign vocab lists. You’re not lost—you’re learning. And learning means messy, wonderful, awkward growth. Welcome to the club.

So whether you’re just peeking into the CI world or already dipping your toes in the storytelling pool, keep going. Your students deserve it. You deserve it.

Want to know exactly where your CI practice stands? Take the CI Proficiency Quiz and get personalized feedback, a roadmap forward, and maybe a few laughs: https://imim.us/ciquiz

And if you're ready to REALLY kickstart your CI journey, join me for the Back-to-School Bootcamp at https://imim.us/bootcamp. It’s like summer camp, but for language teachers… and with fewer mosquitos.

🧠 Five Key Takeaways

• Start small: one input, one check.
• Speak slower than you think you need to. Then slower than that.
• Silence is good. It means they’re thinking.
• Don’t stress about 100% comprehension.
• You don’t have to be the star of the show—share the spotlight.