Eliciting Sentence

Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas When you teach English as a foreign language it’s important to pay attention to details that we sometimes ignore when communicating with other native level speakers, either in spoken or written English. Some people have got into the habit of writing in uppercase/capital letters, use abbreviations, and don’t think much about punctuation. We also tend not to be too critical of people’s spoken English as long as we get the point across. ‘There’s a lot of cars on the road today’ is grammatically incorrect for example. We also tend to enjoy speaking when we should be letting others speak. This is a particular issue in the classroom when you should be maximizing student talk time and minimizing yours. Here are...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Learning a language is acquiring the ability to produce the language and to produce the language accurately, a student needs to learn the grammar of that language. So, what is grammar? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sheila A. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Grammar is the study of the way words are used to make sentences. It is a set of rules that provides the structure we need to organize our ideas and convey our messages fully. It determines how words are arranged in a sentence for understanding. It gives us the ability to comprehend and produce language. When trying to acquire a language, learning the grammar of that...  [Read more]

Mudita Yajnik TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Setting up the classroom is often overlooked by teachers - but it's oh-so important! In this blog post, we take a look at the importance of the ESL classroom setup. Federico Riva TEFL Information Teaching Ideas What are some of the most important reasons for planning our lessons? Covering these ideas will then inform us as to what we should actually put on our lesson plan. In this blog post, we cover both these aspects of lesson planning. Federico Riva TEFL Information In this blog post, we will consider three different categories of speaking...  [Read more]

Mudita Yajnik TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Setting up the classroom is often overlooked by teachers - but it's oh-so important! In this blog post, we take a look at the importance of the ESL classroom setup. Federico Riva TEFL Information Teaching Ideas What are some of the most important reasons for planning our lessons? Covering these ideas will then inform us as to what we should actually put on our lesson plan. In this blog post, we cover both these aspects of lesson planning. Federico Riva TEFL Information In this blog post, we will consider three different categories of speaking...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Out of all the methods of Teaching English as a Second/Foreign Language, the ESA-structured lessons are the most productive with a balance of teacher instruction and student practice time. This method often includes others such as audio-bilingualism (drilling techniques), PPP (Presentation, Practice, Production), and task-based learning; but offering a wide variety of techniques within one method is the beauty of the Engage-Study-Activate lesson model. This lesson model has many benefits for students of English. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sarah Y. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The first part of this lesson model is the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Out of all the methods of Teaching English as a Second/Foreign Language, the ESA-structured lessons are the most productive with a balance of teacher instruction and student practice time. This method often includes others such as audio-lingualism (drilling techniques), PPP (Presentation, Practice, Production), and task-based learning; but offering a wide variety of techniques within one method is the beauty of the Engage-Study-Activate lesson model. This lesson model has many benefits for students of English. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sarah Y. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The first part of this lesson model is the...  [Read more]

Shirin Sophy Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas The study stage, when the teaching is actually done, is the second phase of a straight-arrow ESA lesson plan. What needs to be taught in this stage depends on the course content and the source the teacher is expected to cover through a specific period. But generally speaking, languages are made of receptive and productive skills in addition to systems like syntax or grammar, vocabulary or lexis, and phonology. The content of textbooks is normally centered around these areas. Although the ESA method is supposed to be applied for almost every lesson, no matter if it is allocated to a skill or system, the details of the procedure may vary based on the aspect of language that is...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas The best thing I learned from the TEFL course cannot be explained in one thought or topic sentence because it was significant. However, for this essay, I will narrow it down to one concept. I am an experienced licensed teacher from the United States, but there is always more to learn. In the United States, I would have one or two students in my class each year that were not native English speakers. So, the idea of teaching a classroom of students where all the learners are not native speakers is new to me. I was unfamiliar with ESA's acronym (Engage, Study, Activate) until I took this course, and I appreciate this concept the most. ESA was the best thing I learned from this...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Business language is often used to affect another person’s behavior. However, it should be stated early that the language must be used to help the other person. It should not be used for mere financial gain. One may gain financially by it, but the persuasion, if acted upon, must have a positive effect upon the person who has been persuaded. One may be able to persuade an Eskimo to purchase ice, however, that makes the businessperson a swindler rather than an excellent salesman. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Bill C. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Words mean things. A proper English sentence must have both a subject...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Phonetics and phonology may seem like advanced or ‘bonus’ aspects of teaching the English language, but they are essential and fundamental to successful English communication for English students. While teaching and practicing concepts like pronunciation, intonation, stress, and articulation may be difficult (or seem outright impossible!), there are several methods and tools which English teachers can employ to help their students master them. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Max T. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Grammar and vocabulary are key components of effective communication, but their impact is greatly reduced...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Flashcards can be great tools for eliciting vocabulary, but teachers should not overlook the numerous other uses for these great tools. Flashcard games can add excitement to young learners’ classes. The following activities are aimed to drill the vocabulary in the second study phase of the lesson, after the elicitation of vocabulary. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Kiyomi Ann H. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The liar game is a flashcard activity that can be used to drill vocabulary. This activity is ideal for vocabulary that a teacher is introducing as the activity involves repeating after the teacher. For this activity,...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Every fresh teacher, once starting his or her career, has this question: how should I teach English? What is the best way to organize my classes to make sure students would not be bored and learn something? And how to keep them motivated and enjoy every lesson? I did have all these questions at the beginning of my teaching career, and by trials and errors, I found the approach this TEFL course is based on – ESA. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Angelina G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. My English journey began long before I became a teacher myself - as an ESL student. However, my own experience was not that enjoyable:...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The word ‘drilling’ in education refers to a teaching technique in which the teacher creates a certain pattern or structure to be practiced repeatedly by the students, for them to ultimately develop a system where they may identify and use the pattern or structure independently. Drilling as a technique has been put to use in teaching almost all subjects, but its efficacy has been particularly acknowledged in the field of language teaching, for training students in both pronunciation as well as grammar. However, just as it has been lauded for being a foolproof system of making students ‘practice’ a language, drilling has also been criticized for being a mechanical and largely monotonous process of...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas This paper will answer the question, "What are five flashcard activities for teaching English to young learners?" Young learners are defined as students attending elementary school, aged between six and twelve. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Tristan K. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. This activity is a great warmer and an effective way to introduce or review vocabulary. This activity works well with both small and large groups. Students sit in a circle with the teacher. The target language is elicited and chorally drilled. The teacher then shows one...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Flashcards are a simple, versatile, yet often underexploited resource, and they are instrumental in eliciting more obscure words. They are a great way to present, practice, and recycle vocabulary and some grammar structures. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Fatoş T. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Flashcards can also be bright and colorful and make a real impact on visual learners. It is essential to appeal to visual learners, as a very high proportion of learners have this type of intelligence. When putting together flashcard sets, teachers should use...  [Read more]

Christian Davey Destinations Alumni Experiences What do you envision when you see yourself teaching English abroad? Depending on your point-of-view, it could differ considerably, I bet. For instance, you may picture yourself eating local food on your lunch break with your colleagues, or you might begin to ponder what your students are talking about in their native language during the break time. Whatever you picture, I can happily say that the experience of teaching English in Taiwan is packed with so much joy and satisfaction. The students are so passionate about learning English that they make you feel so welcome when you are there, and that is what it is all about: feeling comfortable and excited to be there. In the next...  [Read more]