background preloader

ESL

Facebook Twitter

My favourite musical instrument: The Guitar. Using authentic materials. There are several reasons for this, primarily a kind of fear that students will panic when faced with language that is largely unfamiliar, and a feeling that to prevent this the language should be edited to the students' level.

Using authentic materials

This is an unnecessary fear, as using authentic materials can be rewarding and stimulating for both teacher and students. Sources Aren't authentic materials too difficult? An example The question of levels Dealing with unknown language Conclusion Sources When people first think of authentic materials they usually assume that we are talking about newspaper and magazine articles. However, the term can also encompass such things as songs, web pages, radio & TV broadcasts, films, leaflets, flyers, posters, indeed anything written in the target language and used unedited in the classroom. The materials used, will of course, depend on the 'usual' factors: topic target language area skills students' needs and interests Aren't authentic materials too difficult? Vocabulary Games & Activities for ESL Kids. Backs to the Board Game.

Vocabulary Games & Activities for ESL Kids

This one is good for higher level kids. Make two teams and stand one student from each team in front of the board, facing away from it. Write a word or draw a picture on the board (e.g. "hamburger") and the students have to explain that word to their team member (e.g. you can buy it in McDonalds, it's got cheese and ketchup in it). The first student out of the two standing in front of the board to guess the word wins a point for his/her team. Badminton. Banana Race. Basketball Card Line-Up. Bean Bag Toss. Blind Toss. Blindfold Guess. Category Spin. Category Tag. Self Paced MOOCs. This page contains information about Teacher Training MOOCs.

Self Paced MOOCs

To see information about ELA MOOCs, please click here. Self–paced MOOCs offer participants the opportunity to take MOOCs at their own pace. However, there are suggested enrollment schedules to help participants structure their learning. Teaching English to Young Learners Self-Paced MOOC. Conjunctions in English: Grammar Rules and Examples. Coordinating conjunctions are and/or/but/nor/as/for/so. When they are used to connect two independent clauses together they should be accompanied by a comma, which comes before the coordinating conjunction. A subordinating conjunction is a word that connects a main clause to a subordinate clause. A main clause is an independent clause that can stand alone by itself as a sentence. In other words, a main clause does not need any additional information to operate as a sentence. For Examples: Good Grief, It's Grammar Time! Are grumbles all you hear when teaching grammar?

Good Grief, It's Grammar Time!

Try a fresh approach -- a few new "hooks" your students will remember -- and check out a bunch of grammar sites on the Internet that will placate even the loudest grammar grumblers! Grammar! Can't live with it; can't live without it. As an English teacher in a middle school, it is incumbent on me to teach that most dreaded of subjects. But I've found that there ARE ways to make it a little less odious. Trying to humanize grammar as much as possible, I give students "hooks" to help them remember the rules. When I teach the progressive tense, I spin a tale about a family on my block, the ING family.

In my teaching, I try to use visual aids or tell stories humanizing grammar, trying to make learning it enjoyable. Regardless of the exam, I've found that skill in English is essential. For National Merit Scholarships, the PSAT English score is counted twice and the math score once. Power of Play - Zero To Three Magic of Everyday Moments. Who does what? – YouTube technique. In this YouTube-based activity, students watch a scene from an animated film and observe the actions performed by characters.

Who does what? – YouTube technique

The activity is suitable for low level primary students since the focus here is not on listening. The technique can be used to review present tenses and vocabulary for daily routines and adapted for other cartoons or films. Preparation Print and copy the worksheet (one per student)Open the YouTube video Wallace & Gromit: The Wrong Trousers: Cracking Toast! ( Procedure Put students in pairs and hand out the worksheet. Answers W: wakes up, gets up, gets dressed, reads the post, eats toastG: drinks tea, makes some toast, checks the calendar, collects the post, makes breakfast, reads the newspaper Extension: language focus.

English language summer camp activities for teenagers. Learners might go to a summer camp to improve their language skills, but the experience can mean much more to a teenager.

English language summer camp activities for teenagers

British Council teacher and trainer Melissa Thomson shares memorable learning activities. The American Camp Association found that summer camp helps teenage learners make new friends, build confidence, feel good about themselves and learn new activities they'll continue long after summer has finished. Why not make your English language lessons relevant to their experience?

Here are some memorable and creative English language activities to help teenage learners talk about their camp experiences, to express their feelings and to preserve memories. LearnEnglish Kids - British Council. TeachingEnglish Jukebox.