TEFL Singer

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Even for people who are unable to carry a tune, singing is something that most would probably enjoy. There is a bit of embarrassment to overcome for many people, especially youths, but with a classroom full of people all singing together, the embarrassment factor is lowered. With that in mind, I would say that singing song in the language that a student is learning help keep vocabulary and grammar in their mind. In a lesser sense, poetry fulfills a similar goal, but I would assume that more people would find fun in singing, and therefore be more open to subject retention, than poetry simply because of the musical aspect. It creates an upbeat and happy mood (depending on the song), and this activity could even be...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching a group of new students can, and frequently is an intimidating challenge. Working with students who are just meeting you, and have unknown skill levels often creates a chaotic environment. By incorporating pieces of music that are familiar to the teacher and students we can increase rapport, improve confidence, train listening skills, and engage students quickly and more effectively. There are multiple ways to use music in the classroom and to teach English as a foreign language, and each should be tailored to the needs of the students. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Everitt G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Songs...  [Read more]

  In this episode, we cover the pronunciation of the word choir. This word is used as a noun and describes a group of singers, often part of church services, that perform in public. Synonyms for choir often include singers or chorus. The word originates from the Latin word chorus. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. This unit was very helpful in building on the lessons I have already learned in the general TEFL teaching course, and helping me to...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Teaching Ideas There are many important personal qualities that an English teacher should have. The first I believe is an English teacher should have is great communication skills. As an English teacher, you are communicating with people who want to learn the language. A teacher may not be able to communicate with them through the language they are learning so a teacher must utilize other communication skills to be an effective teacher. Meer states, “If a teacher's communication skills (verbal, nonverbal, and visual, which involve speaking, writing, imagery, body language, and the organization of ideas into understandable structures) are good, they can convey knowledge with better skill and results” (Meer, 2018). With the use of...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas When we talk about teaching language, we always think about speaking, listening, writing and reading; but now, let’s just focus on reading and listening, in other words, the receptive skills. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Mirazo L. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The answers are: we do read or listen in teaching receptive skills because we need to know some instructions as how to control a video recorder which is not an usual task for a normal people so our a motivation must be higher than other in rather understand the difference between reading with passion and read a favorites book and listen to somebody who is not...  [Read more]

Luciana Maluf TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Neurodiversity celebrates the differences between our brains and as a concept in itself, it is relatively new. It was first used in a magazine back in 1998 and was coined as a term by Singer in 1999, whose son had Asperger's syndrome. Neurodiversity describes the different ways in which brains develop, leading to different strengths and challenges related to thinking and learning. People with dyslexia, autism and ADHD are examples of neurodivergent learners. Neurodiverse English language students are not trying to be disruptive just because we must support and have modifications in place to make the educational process more accessible to all. Some neurodivergent students may...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas For the summative task for this course, I decided to research the use of songs in the classroom. The use of songs interests me because it seems that this is a good medium to provide some variety in the classroom and develop interest. Songs and music can also be used with all age groups, although of course whereas singalongs may be more appropriate with very young learners, other activities such as lyric breakdown are still very useful for older learners. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate David B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. For example, Lynch (2019) states that “Many teachers think that using songs in the classroom is...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Music is an important element in our lives. When you’re on your way to work, you turn on the radio. When you’re too tired to do anything, you choose a song from your playlist and play it to make you feel relaxed. Human beings are emotional by nature. Music offers encouragement and the strength that one needs. Its importance cannot be taken for granted. It is a tool that connects people of all ages, nationality, and culture. It’s not odd to see a child listening to an old rock musician’s song. Also, it’s not surprising to see an Indian woman listening to Taylor Swift despite the differences in their cultures. I believe using music as a tool to teach English to foreign students have many advantages. This...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas In the world, there are many different professions that people dream of. If you ask someone to name some of them, they probably would say something like a doctor, teacher, singer, and so on. When I was a child, my dad wanted me to become a teacher. He thought that becoming a teacher was a great job. Not just him, but many other people also thought so. It has always been like that. Back then, I was too young to understand the reason. But now that I have become a teacher, I am starting to realize why my dad and everyone else liked it. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate OTGONTSETSEG S. Please note that this blog post might...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas According to a study by scholars and experts in the field of linguistics, more specifically in the article of Riney & Anderson-Hsieh from International Christian University, the native language (L1) is a good predictor of pronunciation accuracy in English as researched by Suter in 1976. In the same article, it was mentioned that a subsequent study by Purcell and Suter in 1980, found that non-native speakers who are most likely to pronounce English (L2) poorly, fit the profile in Japanese ESL students. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Cherryl T. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. In my two years of teaching ESL online, I’ve...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas To begin with, I have been teaching English for more than 30 years. I teach groups of students and individuals of different ages and abilities. That is why I have always had a problem how to raise my students’ motivation, how to make my lessons interesting and exciting so that the bell at the end of the class would be for me, not for my students. I have always wanted them to be upset that the lesson is over. As a result of this research, I concluded that along with having different games, quizzes, puzzles, crosswords and project works, learning and singing songs is as challenging and helpful as doing grammar exercises. The results of learning English songs by heart is stunning. Do not think that I do this...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Although all parts of a lesson are important, the engage phase (or warm up) may be the most important. The engage phase is the departing point of the lesson, where you need to draw the attention of the students away from other occurrences of the day and make them focus on learning the English language. Choosing an activity to grab the students' attention can be a challenge, as it needs to work within just a few minutes. Through various studies, music has shown to be an activity which utilizes many parts of the brain at once, and therefore is a great activity to “jump start” the brain, and get students to focus more quickly. This post was written by our TEFL certification...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences When we talk about intelligence, it is precisely very difficult to explain about an individual's perception of Intelligence, as it consists of wide varieties of explanations and there is no standard definition to define the term "intelligence". This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Bhavana Y. There are several unique approaches to intelligence and among of all one such conception is the Multiple Intelligence theory. The Multiple Intelligence theory also represents strong implications for adult learning and development. The theory was developed in 1983 by Dr. Howard Gardner. This theory focuses on the different types of Intelligence in terms of a wider range of individual potentials and their...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Although all parts of a lesson are equally important, the "engage phase" may be the most important. The “engage phase” is the departing point of the lesson, and where you will focus the attention of the students away from the other occurrences of the day, and make them focus on learning the English language. Choosing the activity in which to grab the students' attention can be a challenge, as it must grab the students’ attention within one or two minutes. The best types of activities are those in which students are fully engaged in a cognitive, critical thinking process. Through various studies, music has shown to be an activity which utilizes many parts of the brain at once and therefore is a great activity...  [Read more]

Laura Payne Teaching Ideas Much of language learning comes through language experimentation; steering away from examples and formulas and attempting to arrange your own ideas into words. No matter what a student's goal may be in learning English, they will eventually have to do this by leaving the classroom and using English on their own. Activities like creative writing are one method to encourage the practice of experimentation and expression in ESL students. In this post, we're going to look at five different activities students can use to put their thoughts into writing. Celebrating a new year is practically a universal tradition, and all students have goals. Writing down New Year's resolutions allows students to practice various usages of...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences As we all know, motivation is a core aspect of teaching and learning a language. Lack of motivation is perhaps the biggest obstacle that we face as students and teachers. If a student lacks motivation, he/she will not pay attention in the class or will simply find it boring. At the same time if a teacher lacks motivation to teach he/she will be unable to attract students’ attention and give them all they need. Let us be honest and say that intelligent students are those, who always eagerly attend class and enjoy the process. Here we need a highly motivated teacher who is willing help them. In this article I divide students into several categories because different situations require different approaches. This post...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Besides the thousands of things they have on their minds (personal problems, health issues, daydreaming, etc.) and the temptation to chat with their neighbors in the classroom, students can also be easily distracted by their smartphones. Distraction is not the only obstacle to the class. Boredom and absenteeism don't help the course either. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Melanie P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Students need to be motivated to prevent those behaviors, which is every teacher's challenge. While all students have different backgrounds...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Besides the thousands of things they have on their minds (personal problems, health issues, daydreaming, etc.) and the temptation to just chat with their neighbors in the classroom, students can also be easily distracted by their smartphones. Distraction is not the only obstacle to the class, boredom and absenteeism don’t help the class either. To prevent those behaviors, students need to be motivated, which is every teacher's challenge. While all students have different backgrounds and expectations, the teacher still has plenty of resources to tease students' attention and increase their participation. How do you keep students motivated in the English class? This essay lists and elicits a few possibilities to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In the classroom, a teacher's dedication, confidence, and eagerness are often contagious, and the same is true with the lack of these things. If a teacher is enthusiastic and energetic, their students will be as well. Mostly, experienced teachers know how to make the classroom friendly, pleasant and enthusiastic for the students. But does it apply to the new teachers? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Puneet K. I remember 3 years back when I grabbed my first job; I was going to face a class of 20 students. Self-doubts and questions were racing around in my mind; what would I do on my first day of class? Will the students listen to me? 'How will I manage the class?' Just thought of...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Language is a uniquely human cognitive skill. Undeniably animals communicate in a variety of ways: bee dance for honeybees, bird song for aviary species, pheromones for ants, etc. However human language remains unique in its complexity and variety. Human language has the unique characteristic of being able to describe abstract concepts such as love and belief and temporal displacements such as past events or future plans. Even our closest evolutionary relatives are not able to acquire such complex language structures. Scientists have attempted to teach different ape species human language, and despite years of conditioning and training, the members of these species have a vocabulary store of no more than 1,000...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas For the past four years, I have worked in Japan as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) of English. Before this, I had limited experience operating in a conventional classroom, teaching young learners. I trained adults who were self-motivated and designed curricula for vocation institutions. Now, outside of my expertise, here I am teaching at a junior high school – my base school and an elementary school. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Aeika P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The city in which I live is very rural, farming and fishing are traditional...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Nowadays educators and CEOs are doubtful about the efficiency of the current educational contents and system. The question which keeps us alert about our performance as teachers is “Are we preparing our students to face the working demands of the century?” This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Laura A. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. It has become evident that new abilities should be developed in the classroom-adaptability to be able to fit in new, probably unknown or unimaginable situations, creativity, and innovation, and collaborative work among others, involving the use of the social media, on-line easy access to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Many challenges come with teaching English in Japan that is unique and not innately obvious to some people. In addition to the more universal challenges of learning a new language, there are inherent cultural obstacles that English learners must overcome in Japan as well as several problems with the current course of study that is being taught. However, English teachers should do their best to work within the limits of the system to foster an interest and passion for language that lives on outside the classroom and beyond the school years of learners. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Issei E. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Destinations TEFL Information Teaching English in 2021. A few people have told me about their teaching journey already, so keep letting me know what your plans are in terms of teaching English abroad or teaching English online. Somebody said they're interested in teaching online, so that's really cool. Someone new has just joined us from Laos, hi there. We have Margaret who is also teaching online, very cool. I’m going to talk a little bit about teaching English online in this presentation. Juliana says hi, I think you've watched before as I recognize your picture, thanks for tuning in again. It's really good to see new faces and old faces in our TEFL family today. I have prepared some visuals that I'm going to...  [Read more]