Vocabulary Boxes

  The next example of a game that we can adapt very easily for classroom use is the game of Jeopardy and in this particular game, what we can do is to have a set of levels for our questions, I'd say one through five, where one is going to be the easiest example and five is going to be the most difficult and then, in each of these sets of boxes, we can have various grammar points, such as tenses, perhaps modals, vocabulary and maybe even conditionals. So what the students can do is they can pick a particular topic first of all and within that topic, they can pick the level of the question that they want and then we can have a set of cards that have been created to fit into these slots and we can ask them that question at that level. So, a very simple adaptation of the game jeopardy...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences We must up our game as ESL teachers in the 21st century – both figuratively and literally. I use games to engage students and promote learning in my classroom for a wide range of learning objectives. Below is a short list of icebreaker games that I regularly use in my classroom, and I will discuss the learning target(s) that each game aims to facilitate and deliver as well as the context in which the game is used. Since I work with high school age and adult students, the games are geared for English Language Learners in these age groups. As learning communities become more globalized and data give more information on how people learn, one major challenge I find with gamifying learning in the ESL classroom is...  [Read more]

  So, for the study phase what we're going to do is to show them the idea of the cartoon strip. In the cartoon strip what there's going to be are some people with speech bubbles and this is going to represent where dialogue will appear and in the bottom, there are these rectangular boxes, where there will be descriptive things happening. So, it will explain the actual situation that these people are in. So, we get across the idea, first of all, that these are speech and these are for description and we can then show them a blank one of these cartoon strips and try to elicit from our students what could possibly the people be saying and in what actual situation are they in, in order for them to say that. Once we've gone through that, we can move on to our first study activity and in...  [Read more]

  So now we'll consider the actual classroom arrangements themselves in terms of the physical desk layout. There are possibly three main types of arrangements that are used within classrooms and we're going to indicate the desks here as being boxes and the arrangements of the students within those desks will be blue crosses. So here we have the desks ranged in rows and the students sitting within those rows. The second arrangement could be the use of horseshoes or semi circles and finally the use of individual desks. So for each of these arrangements what are the potential advantages and disadvantages of arranging our seating in this way? Let's take the rows first of all. One of the potential advantages is that it does give the teacher the opportunity, if it's arranged correctly,...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas Having to organize and hold a winter camp is a daunting task, especially for new teachers who haven’t done it before. For these kinds of English camps, teachers typically create up to 10 lesson plans for the duration of the camp. Winter camps can last anywhere between one week to a month or even longer. The main goal of an English camp is to have a fun and memorable time with the students while practicing their English. However, there is a lot more to an English camp than just playing some games. Since most teachers need to create and prepare their lessons in advance, we have compiled a list of games and fun activities for teaching English winter camp abroad. Props will make your winter camp a lot more fun and...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Increasing motivation in the young classroom exponentially increases language learning success by increasing participation, desire to discover more language, student-initiated thinking in the new language, and confidence. Motivation can be amplified in many constructive ways. Some of these ways are building rapport, implementing a reward system, incorporating the students’ interests into the lessons, designing games, using puppets, using praise and encouragement, and giving motivating feedback. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Melanie L. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Rapport is crucial in individual lessons as they can be...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas A leader must read to expand his scope of knowledge, to keep abreast of what is happening in his field of expertise and around the world. Reading stimulates one's thinking and processing. Before we develop a child in his leadership ability, we must develop something more foundational – the love for reading. As an educator, I believe reading develops inquisitiveness, which in turn, develops the interest to engage, hence build confidence, even at a young age. And in the process, to nurture the child towards leadership ability. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Katherine C. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. 'Opening the world of...  [Read more]

Francesca Marchi Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas What do you imagine there may be behind a group of old learners? Well, whatever comes to your mind, I can tell you it sounds like having an extended family that warms you up and makes you feel at home. Older students could be like loving grand-parents, great-uncles or great-aunts, and apart from relatives, caring neighbors and dearest friends. Actually, you may find out they are active pensioners, retired teachers or scholars, culture lovers, as well as humble workers without school-leaving certificates and, above all, passionate people and happy learners: these are senior students. In the following lines, I'm going to share my classroom experience with you. Join me to the end...  [Read more]