all you need to know to get started on your teaching … · tefl certificate if you are completing...
TRANSCRIPT
T E F L H A N D B O O K
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IntroductionWarmersCharacteristics of a Good TeacherUsing the Board Types of LearnersConcept QuestionsChecking UnderstandingPlanning a LessonLesson Plan TemplatesTeaching GuidelinesTerminologyTenses
Lesson Topics Levels of AbilityExample LessonExample ActivitiesThe Four SkillsError Correction Teaching ChildrenSummaryResourcesPage 7 answersLog Book and Self-Assessment Forms
CONTENTS:ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW TO GET STARTED ON YOUR TEACHING PROJECT
The objective of this handbook is to give you a groundwork in Teaching English as a Foreign Language and enable you to walk into your first class as a prepared and confident teacher. The purpose is to provide you with the basic teaching skills, background knowledge and awareness that will subsequently enable you to develop and fine tune what you do in the class-room. This handbook should help you get started, introduce you to some of the basic theory behind teaching English and give you lots of ideas for activities and lessons you can use.
Please read through all of the information carefully and feel free to practice making lesson plans, collect resources such as pictures or photographs, and try out some of the games on your friends. Remember that the more comfortable you are with your activities, the more successful they will be in the classroom.
Don’t worry if you have never taught English before. This course is designed with you in mind, ensuring you have everything you need to jump straight in.
TEFL CERTIFICATEIf you are completing the Frontier TEFL Certificate please read this information carefully and ensure that you complete the self-assessment log book forms at the end of this pack to show evidence of 20 hours worth of teaching whilst on your placement (you will need to make copies and take them with you). Simply return these sheets to Frontier’s London office on completion of your placement to receive your TEFL certififcate.
TEFL BTECIf you are looking for a more formal qualification why not enrol for our Advanced BTEC Certificate in the Practice of Teaching English as a Foregin Language? See our website for more details. If you are completing the TEFL BTEC you will need to study this handbook carefully before the training weekend as you will need to pass grammar and terminology tests and use other information explained here. You do not need to use the logbooks in this pack as you will be provided with your own version in the TEFL BTEC Handbook.
TEFL Training WeekendYou will find a document describing the TEFL Training Weekend on your online area. All volunteers taking part in the TEFL BTEC must attend a TEFL Training Weekend in order to complete the qualification. The cost of the two day residential train-ing is included in the TEFL BTEC fee. We also welcoem all other teachers to attend the training weekend and benefit from our intesive, and active, teaching preparation. For those not taking part in the TEFL BTEC there is a fee of £100 for the training weekend, this includes training, venure, staff, food and accommodation. Please read the TEFL Training Weekend document for more information.
INTRODUCTION
CERTIFICATE IN TEFL
“I got some amazing work from all the students, even the younger ones wrote something and drew great pictures. Most students wrote a good half page describing themselves.”Samantha, Madagascar Teaching Project
“The kids were really enthusiastic and were pretty good with animals – there were some that they’d not heard of or couldn’t pronounce – but Panda was well known and they would always shout that one out the loudest.”Richard, China Teaching Project
“[The] children loved to participate and tell us information we didn’t know… [They] found it challenging but because they like the topic they are willing to have a better attempt at it… [They] loved hearing about England!”Leigh, Tanzania Teaching Project
“Amazingly most of the class chose to work through their break attempting the teaser. The interaction was superb, the best yet.”Edward, Tanzania Teaching Project
Why do we do this activity? To get students moving, break the ice, practice speaking, see what language they know and to elicit language (encourage the students to provide/guess the words needed).
Why is the activity successful? The teacher explains, gives an example and elicits language. Then the students join in and have to listen, identify the right number of parts and act as quickly as possible!
What structures are practiced? Vocabulary, listening to instructions, numbers.
What level could do this practice? Any. It is a good activity for assessing students’ levels. It can be adapted to other levels by developing sentences and using songs.
What point during a lesson could we do this? At the beginning to set level or introduce a topic, or at the end for younger students as part of production learning.
WARMER: The Story of Your Name
What’s in a name? More than we often realise. Ask students to turn to a partner and explain what their name means (if anything) and where it comes from. If they don’t know, make up a creative story. Ask each person to introduce his/her partner to the larger group and to explain what his/her name is, what it means and where it comes from.
When you are teaching a large group of children it’s difficult to remember their names, especially as they can often be difficult to pronounce as well! However, the best way to control a group of people is by using their name. You will find that you will build a rapport with them at an early stage.
One way to learn names quickly is just a simple game with either a cuddly toy, soft ball or a ball of screwed up paper – nothing hard to knock them out!
WARMER: I’m…and I like…
Get the group to form a circle. The purpose of the game is to learn names by throwing the ball. Start the game by saying your name and something that you like that begins with the same letter as your name. E.g. I’m Kirstin and I like kiwi.
Then throw the ball to someone else. When they get the ball, they will repeat the action. This continues until every-one has said their name and something that they like. From this point, when someone throws the ball to another per-son, they must first say their personal sentence again followed by the sentence of the person they throw the ball to. E.g. I’m Kirstin and I like kiwi. You’re Haley and you like horses.
Once the thrower has identified another person and thrown the ball, they can then sit down or step back, to ensure that everyone gets the ball. (You could allow the ball to go around a series of times so everyone’s name is mentioned before this step).
When you’re playing games it is a good idea not to go round in a circle otherwise people can expect it and either fall asleep or start chatting to their neighbour whilst you’re working your way round the circle. Asking specific people draws people’s attention to the game as they do not know when they will be picked.
WARMERSWarmers are short games used at the beginning of a lesson, or as ‘fillers’ throughout if you find you have some extra time to fill. They’re great for introductions, getting to know each other a little more and an ideal way to gauge what the children already know in terms of grammar and vocabulary.
WARMER: Body parts
“This is 1” (foot on floor) “These are 1 each” (fingers!)“Can everyone put 6 body parts on the floor?” 2 feet 4 fingers“Can I have a number between 10-20?” “Everyone please put ______ on the floor” “Can you name all the body parts?”
WARMER: All About me
Create a slip of paper with five or so different things that one partner can guess about the other. Ask them to silently answer the questions about the partner, and once everyone is finished, have the two compare together or read them out and have the class guess who it is. This usually helps to break the ice. For example:
Name of first petFavourite type of musicFavourite year in schoolLanguage(s) he/she can speakHobbies
WARMER / ACTIVITY: Find someone who has…
When you are doing a ‘milling’ activity like this make sure everyone understands before they stand up as trying to communicate over a group of excited children is difficult.
“Everybody stand up, walk around and find someone else in the group who has done any of the following activities.”
Find someone who …..……has been to Christmas Island……has done a bungee jump……has met a famous person……has climbed a mountain……has fallen off a bike……is scared of spiders……has gone skydiving……has dived with sharks
NAME
To stop the activity, just say something like “Ok, you can stop there. Well done everyone” or have a certain place in the classroom where you go and stand when you want every-one’s attention. Give the students a few moments to finish their sentences until the room falls quiet.
Try and stop the activity while they are still enjoying them-selves so you never hit a student’s boredom threshold. Leave them wanting more and enthusiasm will remain high. Balance that with stopping it too soon!
Ask the group who has found a person who has done each activity and ask them more details such as “when?”, “who?”, and “where?”.
This game allows the teacher to assess the level of the students’ ability. You can move through the group and listen to how good or bad they are. You can use this kind of activity with almost any language point/vocabulary.
CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD TEACHER
Most people remember at least some teachers from their school days. Teachers make an impression, and students have high expectations.
Characteristics of a successful teacherGood rapport is essential, and you need the students to like you. Don’t forget to make it fun and enjoy yourself - they’re not aliens.Confident and calm, with the ability to project and communicate.Be creative, but don’t feel obliged to reinvent the wheel. You are normally given a book / curriculum or lesson plans that you will be able to work from.Organised, students like to see you have a plan or a schedule to check. As a new teacher you can write the lesson plan out completely to make sure language is correct.Classroom management – know names, control pace.Entertaining – if you can laugh and learn – hooray!The lesson plan needs to be adaptable – maybe they’re bored or struggling, be aware they are people who make mis-takes and it’s not always your aim to correct them – just listen.Assertive – make sure everyone understands.Innovative – if the teacher’s bored, the kids are bored – add 10% to original plans.Eye contact/ body language – make sure if you’re sitting at the front of a class that you can see everyone without moving your head. If it’s not a teacher centred moment then there’s no need to be in the middle – move around. Make sure you have the same eye level, like in a normal conversation. Be presentable, the poorer the country the more they expect neat and clean teacher. If your attitude to your clothes is sloppy then it doesn’t look good for your attitude to your work.Punctual.
Characteristics of an unsuccessful teacherBoringSarcasticToo strict/ disciplinarianUndisciplinedUnsympatheticUnprofessionalMoodyInflexibleLack of personal hygiene
USING THE BOARD
Writing size should be that of small golf ball – if they can’t see it you’ve got problems. The written word should be printed so as not to pick up bad habits, it’s also not fair to those who do not use our script. They need to learn when to use capitals so please write as you would normally. In German they use capitals in the middle of sentences but not in English.
Be aware of how you place sentences on the board as patterns can be lost if you write over 2 or 3 lines. Showing pattern is a good way if indicating form.
It is good to use boxes and different colour pens, although black and blue is best for standard use.
You can use the board to draw pictures. Small photos are good for visual aids but it has to be A4 minimum. Start collecting big photos and cover them in laminating paper – it looks professional and lasts much longer.
The blackboard is used to focus students’ attention on visuals (pictures) or to highlight the written form of a target structure. It is not a good idea to present new words or structures using the written form first.
1. Students almost always learn the meaning of a word or structure first. 2. Then they learn how to pronounce it. 3. After that they learn how to spell it, that is the students see or learn the form.
Remember – Meaning, Pronunciation, FormIn order to use the blackboard effectively, clear drawing, writing and layout is essential.
TYPES OF LEARNERS
There are different types of learners. Children respond differently to the lesson format you use. There are three different types:
1. VISUAL: Those who respond well to magazine pictures, boardwork, realia (real things) timelines and clines.
Time can be represented using many different verb forms. This can be confusing when, for example, we use the present tense to refer to future times e.g. ‘The train goes at 3.30 this afternoon’. Timelines can be used to help illustrate meaning, and they can be used to check students have understood what has gone before. If you are using a timeline to check the students have understood the concept, then you must involve the students in the process of drawing the timeline. Students then need to know what a timeline is and what the symbols you use actually mean. You need to be consistent in the way you draw them
2. AURAL/ORAL: Some students are not good at reading and writing but they are good at speaking and listening – this sometimes depends on which country you are teaching in.
3. KINAESTHETIC: This is where you get up and do things. It is sometimes used for proof of understanding. “(Name someone) can you open the door for me please?”
Very few people like using only one type – they like a selection of all three to stimulate learning.
What you are trying to do is ‘elicit’ information from the children – this means getting information from people as opposed to giving it to them – basically directing questions back at the students. If you don’t elicit answers you run the risk of telling the students everything they want to know, which is not an effective way of teaching.
Instead of giving information, ask if anyone in the class can provide it. When a student asks “What does this mean?” or “What’s the past of this verb?”, say something like “that’s a good question – what do you think?” or “Can you guess?” or “Can anyone else help him?”
One method for teaching vocabulary without giving the words to the students is to draw pictures and ask what the word for that is or point to something in the classroom. This also allows you to judge the level of the students and adapt the level of the class accordingly. There is no point wasting time teaching them something they already know.
CONCEPT QUESTIONS
If you ask a student “do you understand?” the answer is invariably “yes” regardless of whether they have any idea what you are talking about or not. Therefore we can use concept questions to test students’ understanding of fundamental concepts or the meaning of the target language. They also allow the students to gain answers to any questions that they are hesitant to ask in front of others.
Target Language – ‘She’s been to Hungary’ (present perfect)
Essential information to formulate a concept question:It happened in the pastThe listener doesn’t know when according to the sentence aloneThe listener doesn’t know how many times she wentShe’s not there now (compare with ‘She’s gone to Hungary’.)
Concept Questions:Are we talking about the past, present or future?Do we know exactly when she went?Is she in Hungary now?Do we know how many times she has visited?
Bad Examples:Has she been to Hungary? / Have you been to Hungary?
The second is asking for further information, not checking meaning. Both questions use the same tense as is being checked, compare them with the concept questions above which instead use the simple tense.
Formulating Concept Questions:Analyse the language and its meaning within the given context.Define the essential meaning in simple statements.Turn these statements into questions.Keep questions simple in terms of language and length.Avoid questions which are not relevant to the meaning of the language.Avoid using the same grammatical forms as in the questions that you are testingAsk questions which do not require a lot of language in the answerMake sure answers are clear and unambiguous.Plan your questions in advance – until you have enough experience and confidence, you will have a hard time coming up with them on the spot.
Think of 3 concept questions for each of the examples below:1. I wish I had a car2. You shouldn’t have taken that book3. I’m looking forward to my holiday4. I had my suit cleaned
CHECKING UNDERSTANDING
You will need to check that the students have understood because they are unlikely to tell you if they haven’t – they will simply bumble through the exercise, doing it wrong, probably aware that the are doing it wrong and losing confidence. You need to ask “Is that clear?” because the chances of a student saying “I don’t understand” are very slim if they are not asked. The student who doesn’t understand will be convinced he or she is the only one who doesn’t get it and will not want to admit that in public.
Questions like ‘Is that clear’ shift the blame to the quality of the instructions instead. If anyone says ‘No, can you explain that again’ - don’t. Ask one of the other students to explain it. If no-one understands it – go through it again or use another example. If they still don’t understand either do the whole activity together as a class or go to the next activity. You can think about ways to help them understand and perhaps approach it from a different direction in a later session.
Some ways to check understanding:As with the concept questions, ask questions that can’t be answered with a “yes” or “no”. You can also you this as a tool to spice up the lesson and get a laugh or two.
“Are you supposed to underline the answer?” (No.)“What should you do when you find the answer?” (Circle it.)“Do you share your answer with your partner?” (Yes.)“Do you stand on your head when you’ve found the answer?” (No!)
The rules of the English language are not set in stone like science. Rules can change. We are not using the same grammar as Shakespeare and no doubt if he walked in the classroom today he wouldn’t understand modern words we use today.
Here are some interesting points to consider (the ‘answers’ are at the end):
As there is a‘t’ in often, it should be pronounced.‘I have a sister’ is better than ‘I’ve got a sister’You should not end a sentence with a preposition.The majority of students here are European.We should teach ‘Whom did you see’ not ‘Who did you see’Most people say ‘It’s me’ but is it more correct to say ‘It is I’‘If you’d ‘ve come round yesterday, we’d ‘ve gone to the pub’ is this example of the third conditional acceptable?‘He was like really happy’ is in current usage so should it be taught as a structure?The standards of English are generally declining nowadays.
PLANNING A LESSON
A well prepared lesson plan is vital if you want to teach effectively. Writing a lesson plan helps to prepare the lesson and how you prepare your lesson depends on the following:
The target language (what you are teaching)The level of your students You as a teacher
It is also important to consider the different stages of your lesson, as well as the aims of each stage. You may want to write your lesson out word for word the first time you teach to make sure you’re confident you are at the right level.
Many lessons are structured using a model called the PPP; Presentation, practice and production. It is by no means the only way to teach a language. However, it is certainly the most popular teaching method used in the world of TEFL and certainly very effective when we teach class levels at Elementary and Lower Intermediate stage.
The overall aim of our lesson is to present the target language, practice it in a controlled way and then get our students to produce English using the target language in a confident way. This model is based on a one hour lesson just to show you how important each stage is in term of time spent on it.
PPP
Presentation (10 minutes), Practice (20 minutes), Production (30 minutes)
1. PresentationShould introduce the target language (vocabulary, grammar or function) the meaning and use, pronunciation and then form of the target language – this is fairly teacher centred.
2. PracticeThis gives students a chance to try out the language while being closely monitored by the teacher. The teacher can see if the students have understood everything taught in the presentation. This is quite controlled and may involve worksheets as well as speaking activities.
3. ProductionThe students should actually be using the new target language in a fluent and confident manner. This helps consolidate what they have learned while the teacher monitors. This is the most important stage and plenty of time should be left for it. Common activities include role-plays, discussions and games. The teacher is purely monitoring by this point and the stu-dents are taking the lead.
Notice that the teacher starts with complete control of the lesson, yet by the end of the lesson, the class is being run by the students themselves.
LESSON PLAN: GRAMMAR
Presentation:
Should introduce the meaning and use, then pronunciation, and then form of the target language. This stage is often fairly teacher centered
Concept Check Questions:
Practice (controlled practice):
This gives students a chance to try out the language while being closely monitored by the teacher. The teacher can see if the students have understood everything taught in the pre-sentation.
Production (free practice):
The students should actually be using the new target lan-guage in a fluent and confident manner. This helps consol-idate what they have learned while the teacher monitors. The production stage of any lessons is, therefore, the most important stage, and time must be left for it.
Engage:
Grab attention of the student.
Gist Question:
- Leads students gently into the subject- Must be easy to give students confidence- Tests understanding
GIVE TASK BEFORE TEXT
Production:
Fluency practiceRole play/debate
LESSON PLAN: RECEPTIVE SKILLS LESSON
Try to link engage & gist
In-Depth Question:
Skills practice
GIVE TASK BEFORE TEXT
GUIDELINES FOR TEACHING PRACTICE
Structure (presentation and practice)
Research the grammatical structures before the lesson. It is a good idea to invest in a user-friendly grammar book. Try to anticipate potential problem areas of meaning, form, pronunciation and style.Present the target language as naturally as possible. Choose a realistic context to illustrate the meaning and check this by asking concept questions before moving on. The meaning is more important than anything else!Focus on pronunciation; model the target language 2 or 3 times yourself before drilling the students. Ask students to repeat loudly, softly, quickly, slowly, in groups etc to make drilling more interesting.Highlight the form. Analyse the structure on the board and elicit as much as possible.Provide controlled and semi-controlled practice activities such as gap-fill, multiple choice and matching exercises. The students need a lot of support at this stage.Give clear guidance as to what you expect and be clear in your own mind which use of a structure you are focussing on. At lower levels in particular it is not advisable to present more than one meaning or function at one time.
Discussion and role-play (production)
Think about what vocabulary will be useful / necessary for the production stage.How will you focus on this vocabulary? Remember you can focus on what students already know without resorting to direct questioning. For example, elicit words with pictures, brainstorms, and get students to ask each other.Anticipate problems of meaning, form and pronunciation and deal with these either before you start or when they occur. If you plan this before the lesson you will be able to respond much more confidently.How will you organise the role-play / discussion? Make sure your instructions are clear. Be prepared to demonstrate what you want the students to do.Your job at this stage is to monitor the students and give them feedback when they have finished, so take notes rather than interrupt them.Organise your corrections into categories such as, grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and style. Focus on the most important errors and those concerning the target language, do not aim for perfection.
GRAMMAR TERMINOLOGY
Verbs:Transitive Verb: She made the sandwiches.Intransitive verb: Prices rose last month.Phrasal verb: He gave up smoking / I get on with my brother.Active: Bert cleans the office everyday.Passive: The office is cleaned everyday.Full infinitive: We decided to leave.Bare infinitive: He let me leave earlyModal verbs: Can/could you open the door? Will/would you shut the door? It may/might rain. You must/should tell the police.Auxiliary verbs: I am going home. He has been to Paris. Did you see her?Present participle: It is raining again. It was snowing when we leftPast Participle: I’ve just eaten. They’ve gone to the shops.
Nouns:Countable: I saw a person / 2 people / 3 people at the bus stop.Uncountable: I ate some bread. I drank some water.
Gerunds: Swimming is good for you. He enjoys swimming.
Pronouns: She saw him yesterday. We gave it to them.
Adjectives: Brazil is huge. A tall man came in.Comparative: She is younger/prettier/more reliable than Mary.Superlative: He is the tallest/funniest/most intelligent man I know.Gradable: It is fairly/quite/very/extremely cold.Limit: It is absolutely freezing.
Prepositions: We went there in June. It’s on the table. He went to the pub.
Adverbs: She speaks very well. They went home. I saw it yesterday. I always go to bed early.
Subject: The cat is in the kitchen
Direct object: The cat was playing with its ball.
Indirect object: I gave her the parcel. I gave the parcel to her.
Articles:Indefinite: I saw a dog / an elephant.Definite: I gave the dog a bone. I gave the elephant a banana.
Conjunctions: He bought it because he liked it although it was expensive.
THE TENSES
TENSE AND FORM
Present Simple
Present Progressive or Present Continuous
Past Simple
Past Progressive or Past Continu-ous
Present Perfect
Present Perfect Continuous
Past Perfect
Past Perfect Continuous
Future Simple
Future Progressive or Future Con-tinuous
Future Perfect
Future Perfect Continuous
FUNCTION
A regular habitual action. Newspaper Headlines.
Describing a current temporary situa-tion. Talking about a future action.
A completed action sometime in the past.
An ongoing action in the past. An inter-rupted ongoing action in the past.
Past event with relevance to or continu-ing in the present. Life experience.
A repeated or continuous action that continues up to the present.
An action completed before a given point in the past. Reported speech.
An extended action that was complete at a given point in the past.
A decision at time of speaking. Some-thing that is expected to happen in the future.
To describe an action that will be in progress at a particular time in the fu-ture.
An action that will be complete at a giv-en point of time in the future.
A present or future action that will have been in progress up to a given point in the future.
EXAMPLE
I play, you play, she/he/it plays, we play, they play
I am playing, you are playing, she/he/it is playing, we are playing
I played, you played, he/she/it played, we played, they played
I was playing, you were playing, she/he/it was playing, we were playing
I have played, you have played, he/she/it has played, we have played
I have been playing, you have been playing, he has been playing
I had played, you had played, he/she/it had played, we had played
I had been playing, you had been playing, he/she/it had been playing
I will play, you will play, they will play, or I am going to play, you are going to play
I will be playing, you will be playing, he/she/it will be playing, they will be playing
I will have played, you will have played, he will have played, they will have…
I will have been playing, you will have been playing, it will have been playing
DirectionsInstructionsAbilityPast Ability (‘could’)Countable/Uncountable nounsPrepositions of placePrepositions of directionConditionals (‘If…..)‘Will’ for predictions (e.g. Weather)Physical descriptionPresent perfect for experience (e.g. ‘I have been to Ghana’)Expressing obligationGiving AdviceMaking Suggestions
Numbers ColoursFoodDrinkAnimalsCountriesDays/MonthsTelling the timeDaily RoutinePast perfect and past simple (telling a story)Present continuous (actions)Going to the doctorAt the post officeIn the bank
At the airportGoing on HolidayIn the restaurantMeeting peopleIntroductionsClothesShoppingMoney MoviesCrime and PunishmentJobsRelationshipsFamily
LESSON TOPIC IDEAS
Remember you don’t have to focus on grammar; your lessons could also be based on vocabulary (jobs, animals, food) or functions (going to a restaurant, money, asking directions). Decide which lesson topics are appropriate based on the level you are teaching.
LEVELS OF ABILITY
It is very unlikely that you will teach absolute or false beginners (adults who have learnt English in the past but are now very rusty). These students are often taught in their own language to start with. Think about what level you will be teach-ing when planning your lesson.
Of course, a student’s level of English does not depend only on the number of words, tenses, structures or functions they know, but their ability to use their knowledge of the language to communicate. The assessment of their level may also vary by country. A person considered an advanced speaker in Japan may only be at intermediate in Europe. Similarly a student may be advanced in their grammar but intermediate in their speaking abilities
ELEMENTARY
LOWER INTERMEDIATE
INTERMEDIATE
UPPER INTERMEDIATE
ADVANCED
Students will try to achieve mastery of the form and use of simple tenses and everyday vocabulary. They will have difficulty communicating more than general topics but their learning curve will be steep at this level.
Students will communicate with with some success, depending on their topic. They will be able to use basic structures and will still be learning new vocabulary rapidly.
Students will be able to communicate quite well although errors mean they some-times have difficulty being understood. Here students tend to hit a ‘learning pla-teau’ as they will have seen all the basic grammar structures and have a lot of vocabulary. Their progress from here on is either quite slow or does not occur.
Students can communicate with minor accuracy mistakes. They have mastery over the form but not necessarily the use of most grammar points. Their choice of vocabulary and idioms may need explaining.
At this level students can communicate for extended periods of time over a range of different topics. They may be even more confident when talking about their job or academic subject. They will make few accuracy errors and have a wide and idiomatic vocabulary.
EXAMPLE LESSON: LIKES AND DISLIKES
Overview: This is a grammar-based lesson that focuses on expressing likes and dislikes.
Level: Beginner to Elementary, although you can do this as a review lesson with Lower Intermediate learners by introducing more vocabulary and a faster, more natural pace
Lesson Length: 60 – 90 minutes depending on the level of your students.
Assumed Knowledge: This is one of the first lessons your learners will have when learning a new language. It is useful as it deals with an easily communicable target language and it focuses attention on the personal feelings of your learners, giv-ing them a reason to communicate in the class. Take your time with Beginners pre-teaching them a lot of vocabulary, which they will need to communicate with.
Target Language:Do you like ____________________?Yes, I like _____________________.No, I don’t like _________________.Do you like to __________________? [Using the infinitive form of the verb]Do you like ________ing _________? [Using the gerund]Do you enjoy __________________? [Changing like to enjoy]
Elicit:Using realia, pictures or miming, make sure the students have enough vocabulary to use and vary the structure of the TL.First mime that you like eating / drinking / playing something and that you like a movie or sports personality. This will help your learners to understand the meaning of like and don’t like something. Elicit (or model at Beginner level) the statement first: “I like ______________.” Then elicit the question form: “Do you like _______________?For Lower Intermediate learners you can introduce: “What _________ do you like?At the end of this lesson plan you will see some suggestions for extending this dialogue that you may wish to use at Lower Intermediate level.
Prompts: [Food & Drink] Coffee • Tea • Milk • Biscuits • Eggs • Apples [Games & Activities] Baseball • Football • Tennis • Badminton • Swimming[Movie & Pop Stars] Brad Pitt • Tom Cruise • Cameron Diaz • George Clooney [Infinitive forms] To play the guitar, To play football, To listen to Billy Joel, To do your housework, To go to the dentist, To eat fish & chips, To walk to town[Gerunds] Playing the piano, Playing squash, Listening to Elton John
Practice:
Pair work: It is good to move your learners around so that they speak with different people in the class.Milling Activity: Find Some Who … (prepared handout)Don’t forget that you ask the same question (“Do you like _______?”) for either:Find someone who likes ___________.and…Find someone who doesn’t like ______________.Don’t forget to do feedback on the milling activity.
Extension Questions:You may wish to do this with Lower Intermediate learners
Who likes ____________?Who enjoys ___________?What kind of _________ do you like?Do you like __________ing ________?Which ___________ do you like ________ing?
Production:Possible ideas for a production stage could be writing, carrying out and reporting on a survey of the class, a role-play such as ‘meeting people at a party’ or ‘speed dating’ or a discussion about things we do and don’t like to eat/do etc.
OTHER ACTIVITIES
Use and adapt these example activities for any function, topic or grammar point:
Activity: 10 Questions
I will read out 10 questions. Think of an object that is special to you and write down the answers as if you were this special object using full sentences.
1. What colour are you?2. What are you made of?3. How old are you?4. Where do you live?5. What was your first thought?6. How do you feel about your owner?7. What is your purpose?8. What are you scared of?9. What is your idea of perfect happiness?10. How will you die?
Turn to your neighbour and read out your answers. Your partner has to guess what object is special to you.
Activity: The Animal Vocabulary Lesson
Stage 1: Warm up/ Introduction: Elicit animal vocabulary from the class with pictures or actions. Write the vocabulary all over the board randomly.
Aim: To bring the students into the topic and to give them an opportunity to stir up their memory before the activity.
Stage 2: ActivityGet the students in two lines facing the board where the vocabulary is scrolled, the head of each team with a pen. Explain that as soon as a player knows the answer, they should run to the board and circle it. Give a description of an animal…keep describing until one of the competitors gets it. After the correct answer is circled, the pens go to the next player on each team. Repeat until all words have circled.
Aim: To get the students to practice recognizing the written word, as well as its meaning.
Activity: Ladder game to practicing verb forms (you can use any tense you’d like)
Draw two ladders on the board, of ten rungs each. Break two teams into lines in front of the board. Give the head of each line a pen. Explain that you are going to read off the infinitive of a verb and the first player from each team must run up and write the (past participle, simple past, future, etc.) form of the verb on the first rung. No hesitating or changing the answer once it has been written! The player gives the pen to the next player in their line and goes to the end. The cycle continues until all 10 rungs are filled. Points for correct answers are awarded at the end.
Words:
SpeakDoRunWatchWorkEatSleep
DrinkPlaySwimSpokeDoneRanWatched
WorkedAteSleptDrankPlayedSwamThink
ThoughtTrainTrainedWalkWalkedDiveDove
Activity: Clozes (Gap-fill)
Fill in the blanks below with words from these lists:
Summer is the ___________ of _____________ days and hot _____________. In summer, people try to escape the _____________ by turning on their __________________ and _____________, or going to the ______________.
Summer Food
One way to ______________ off is to eat something cold such as an ________________. Another favorite summer food is _________________, which is big, green, and ______________. And, of course, many people enjoy a cool glass of ________________ with a few _________________ to keep it cold.
Summer Clothing
In the heat of the summer sun, it is important to dress properly. It is a good idea to wear a ____________ on your head and ________________ to protect your eyes. If you want to _____________ cool, you can wear ________________ instead of pants and put _______________ on your feet.
Summer Vacation
In many countries, kids get a _________________ from school during the summer months. This is a good time to go ______________, swimming, _____________, or ________________.
Summer Animals
Summer is a good time for animals. There are lots of ________________ to eat on bushes. As well, many ______________ are about, making tasty treats for birds and spiders. Some of these insects such as _________________ look pretty in the garden. Unfortunately, others such as ________________ make a tasty treat out of people.
seasonbeachsunglassesshortsjuicyice cubescamping
heatair conditionersweathersandalsberrieskeepbutterflies
insectscoolfishinghatsightseeingmosquitoes
ice cream conewatermelonlongfanslemonadevacation
THE FOUR SKILLS
Think about the four skills of Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening. In your daily life put these four skills in order of how often you use them.
Order: L, S, R, W
This should be similar with other languages as well – so it’s useful when you’re thinking about how much time you spend teaching these four skills in the classroom.
Reading and Listening are called Receptive skills. Speaking and Writing are Productive skills. There is always a great deal of overlap when discussing the four skills for the very reason that they are very rarely focused on in isolation in the class-room. However, each of these four units will have a primary focus, and we’ll start with Reading.
Reading
You may remember when you were being taught to read you were asked by the teacher to read aloud to your class. This would probably be followed by questions, done individually, and checking of answers. The teacher’s role was minimal. The actual reading aloud focuses on pronunciation and not on comprehension so unless your students are advanced they would struggle with this task and waiting for their turn to read may pressurise them a little too much. So it’s your job to make the lesson fun, the topic they are reading fun and generally keep the level of interest high.
There are different types of reading – think about when you read a newspaper; you may only skim over the headline, getting the general meaning or gist. Compare this to reading a book where you probably read 90% of all the words and maybe scan the odd page for specific details of what happens next because you are too excited to wait. Compared again with something you read more intensively, maybe a shopping list or a love letter.
If you think about books like A Clockwork Orange where you don’t understand some of the words the author use yet you understand the meaning. Eventually when the words are used later on you automatically recognise them as certain words with specific meanings.
Listening
As a receptive skill ‘listening’ usually means listening to a recording; a cassette or a video, although you may have to give it yourself if you don’t have the resources. Listening is probably one of the hardest activities for most teachers. Within the classroom environment, students become used to the voice, accent, or dialect of their regular teacher. Furthermore the teacher would normally grade her language and perhaps speak a little slower than usual. The teacher constantly uses gestures and will check understanding. A student can interrupt and ask for repetition or clarification – but with a recording, none of these factors are present.
With reading, students have some control over how fast or slowly they read. They have to contend with a new language, as they do on a cassette, but they don’t have the problem of accents and speed. They can quickly re-read a line that they have not understood, but they cannot rewind the cassette (unless you allow it!). With listening they have no control. Add to this the fact that they will be trying to answer questions as they listen and the obvious result is pressure.
You need to think about how you would ‘stage’ a Listening lesson – in other words, we prepare the students for what is to come, and try and create interest so that they end up wanting to listen.
A few tips to help the students would be to:Place the machine as close as you can to the studentsPlay a few seconds first to check they can hear itGive out the task to read before you play the tapeMake the task straightforwardReassure them that if they find it difficult at first then you can play it againPlay the tape a second time and let them discuss after the first – its not a test – your trying to get them to communicateHave a copy of the transcript to aid clarifying dialogue
Tip for you teachers would be:Check you know how to use the tape playerCheck you have the right tapeCue the cassette to the right place before class startsUse the counter if you have one so you know where you areNever trust any technology!
What must be stressed though is that there are no prescriptive lesson types. As long as you have achievable and appropri-ate aims for your lesson, any lesson frame is possible. So, as your experience increases, have the confidence to vary your lesson patterns and approaches, to integrate more. You don’t need to copy the book if you don’t think the book is appropriate so feel free to have fun in your lesson and change things about – you’re the only one that knows your students!
Writing
The writing skill is often forgotten in classrooms since less time appears to be spent on this lesson type than any other. For a start, many students need the writing skill much less than they need any of the others, and if they are studying General English in their own country then their interest in the ‘Writing’ lesson may be minimal. But writing should never be totally neglected, and if it is an important part of the course you are teaching, it should be focused on extensively. It can be difficult to get students to write in class, but as with any other kind of activity, the teacher can ‘sell’ it. The lesson staging can be such that the students are more inclined to write with at least some enthusiasm.
With writing, the emphasis on accuracy is much greater then with speaking. For a start, the written form is visible and mis-takes are seen. Because students recognise this, many feel under pressure when writing. However, with writing students can proof-read and self-correct. They can go more slowly and carefully than when they are speaking. It is an important skill we must teach our students – read what you have writ-ten!
Punctuation is another factor absent from speaking. We can question the importance of correct punctuation, but whereas maybe we can accept that the correct use of colons and semi-colons may not be so important, the correct use of cap-italisation and question marks, for example, does matter.
What students need is to have specific writing skills devel-oped. It is not enough for the teacher to say ‘Okay, write about a country you like. This is writing for the sake of writ-ing, but the teacher isn’t doing anything. You often need to integrate writing with other activities, linking and staging the different parts of the lesson. Teachers should work on ways to reduce the pressure that students feel when doing a writ-ing activity – by supporting students during the activity and by allowing students to help each other. So writing should not be ignored. However, the amount of time you spend on it compared with the other skills will be less, and will vary a lot according to who you are teaching and in which country you are teaching.
Speaking
In a lesson, speaking is the most important and most used skill, and it is used in many different ways. You may use speaking activities to brainstorm ideas and elicit language at the beginning of a lesson and in warmers. You may use speaking activities to drill pronunciation and tone in the pre-sentation of target language. Many different speaking activi-ties can be used at the practice stage to learn the uses of a phrase, word or piece of grammar. Most significantly, speak-ing is a vital part of the production stage of a lesson where fluency and communicability are the most important factors.
At each of these stages different aspects of the speaking skill are focused on, the main ones being:
Pronunciation – can you understand the sounds they are making?Stress – Is the rhythm of the words correct? Stu-DENT or STU-dnt?Tone – Does it sound like a question?Fluency – Do they sound natural?Communicability – Can you understand their meaning?Suitability – Are they speaking too formally? Too casu-ally?
Think about what stage of the lesson you are in and what your aims are for the students in terms of their speaking at that point.
Nursery Rhymes, chants and tongue twisters are all great pronunciation, stress and tone activities – and they’re really fun!
ERROR CORRECTION
1. Should all mistakes be corrected? Should any mistakes be corrected?2. Which mistakes should be corrected?3. Should correction take place immediately, or later?4. Who should do the correction – the teacher, the same student or another student?5. How should the correction take place?
We shall run through these questions in turn.
1. Should all mistakes be corrected?This is easy to answer – no, all mistakes should not be corrected. It would probably be impossible. Should any mistake be corrected – yes, how can a person learn any new skills without knowing or being told something is wrong?
2. Which mistakes should be corrected?Having established that some but not all mistakes should be corrected, we are faced with the question of which mistakes should be corrected. It depends on the individual teacher and the context of the lesson but there are some general points.
If students are doing a practice activity, using specific language previously presented, as well as other language, then mistakes involving the target language should be focused on for correction. Other mistakes do not necessarily need cor-rection unless they are significant or common. If your students have done a reading comprehension and, in answering a question about the text, a student gives the right answer, but uses the incorrect grammar, then the teacher can ignore the mistake because the aim of the task was comprehension, not accuracy.
If you are chatting with students before or after the lesson, and they make mistakes when talking, ignore the mistakes as long as meaning is clear.
To correct or not, then, depends on the aim of the lesson or activity. A mistake that occurs in a controlled-practice activity might not be corrected if it occurs in a fluency activity, or a comprehension exercise.
3. When to correct mistakes?Sometimes, you might feel that a mistake should be corrected immediately. For example, pronunciation mistakes would normally be corrected straight away. If a student was answering a question concerning target language and a mistake with the target language was made in the answer, again the mistake would be corrected immediately. Sometimes, in the normal flow of a lesson, if a student is talking and a mistake or mistakes in his speech impede your understanding, you might feel that you need to correct.
Besides the many mistakes that would go uncorrected, there are also those that you would not want to correct straight away. If your students are doing any kind of speaking or production activity, and especially if you want them to achieve some fluency, then to interrupt with corrections would stop the flow and possibly intimidate them.
4. Who should do the correction?There are 3 possibilities here: teacher correction, self-correction, and student-student correction. A) Teacher correctionAdvantages
The correction will be quicker and more efficient and more accurateStudent confidence – it’s the teachers job!Teacher can ensure its handled sensitively and fairly
DisadvantagesIt fails to encourage learner independenceCan be intimidating for students Students may feel embarrassed or demoralisedOther students may feel left out while a mistake is being corrected
Despite the disadvantages expressed, the teacher should do some correction work, but must ensure it is done properly. As to how much of the correction should come from the teacher, there is no answer to that.
B) Self correctionAdvantages
Students are involved in the process – this renews confi-dence if they correct themselvesSelf corrected mistakes are more memorable and less likely to be repeatedEncourages learner independenceGives the teacher feedback on the students knowledge, ability and awareness
DisadvantagesStudents may not be able to self correct and become de-moralisedMay feel pressured or embarrassedPotentially more time consuming
On balance, self correction is definitely more positive than negative. The first three advantages are important points to remember.
C) Student to student correctionAdvantages
Some students may find it easier being corrected by a peerInvolves other students – gives them confidenceEncourages other students to stay involvedEncourages atmosphere of cooperationHelps teacher assess awareness of other students
DisadvantagesStudent doing the correction may get it wrongSlow and less effectiveStudent being corrected may not understand the other studentStudent being corrected may not know if correction is cor-rectSome students feel it’s the teachers job to correct
Some student to student correction takes place naturally, and within reason, it should be encouraged. But beware the student who constantly tries to correct other students as if they were the teacher. This is often counter-productive and really annoying!
Overall the ideal is for there to be a mixture of all three ‘correctors’, but the precise balance will vary according to many fac-tors. Avoid using purely teacher correction because that produces a total reliance on the teacher and no encouragement of learner independence.
5. How to correct?You want to avoid using phrases like ‘No that’s wrong’. General tips include using facial expressions or verbal remarks like ‘again/ sorry’ or just a gesture, thus indicating a problem.
If the mistake lies in a sentence e.g. ‘everyday she go to the shop’, the teacher may indicate a problem by leaving a space in the sentence ‘everyday she ….to the shop’.
Using symbols in written work can help direct students to the mistake without actually correcting it.
Finger correction is a great way to help students correct their spoken English. Using a finger for each word in the sentence, you can indicate to the student the wrong word on your finger and give them a chance to correct themselves.
TEACHING CHILDREN
Children are:
ENERGETIC – Use their energy, keep them active and moving. If they get too energetic try listening to music, stories or drawing.
ENTHUSIATIC – Find out what they are interested in and use it. For example ‘show and tell,’ personalised projects or talk-ing about their weekend/week/night before.
QUICK – Children pick things up quickly, and forget them just as quickly. This means you have to give them short, sharp presentations with lots of repetition and practice. Remember they love playing the same games again and again!
TACTILE – So let them touch things, smell things, taste things and throw things so they remember. Lots of realia and pic-tures are important.
NOISY – So let them be, just make sure it’s ‘productive’ noise channelled into an activity. Remember to keep your authority, you don’t want them shouting things at you all the time so control times they can be noisy and times that they must raise their hand to answer a question.
NAUGHTY – They will test you to see how far they can go so set limits and stick to them. Writing class rules and establishing set punishments together is a good idea. Be consistent both with punishment and your lesson routines and make sure you are thoroughly prepared for latecomers, early finishers, forgotten bookers etc. Vary activities, focus and pace, if you keep their attention you are less likely to have discipline problems.
CHILDREN! – Be realistic and don’t expect too much from them. Remember they might be coming to your lesson from a full day of school and will probably go home to homework and chores.
FUN – So enjoy them, you can have a great time teaching children with the right attitude. If you’re enthusiastic and ener-getic they will be too.
KIDS ACTIVITIES
Vocabulary and Spelling gamesLeaving out letters or words and they suggest what goes in the gaps. Hangman. __ea__h__r The _____ is walking in the ______ .
Crosswords / Word searchesUse either the conventional types or try this one; each child draws a grid (25 squares) and takes it in turns to call out a letter. The children decide, individually or in groups, where to put the letter in the grid to make as many words as pos-sible.
Miming / PictionaryPictionary or charades type games are ideal. Give them a topic (jobs, objects, animals etc) and let the others guess while one draws.
Kim’s gamePut a number of different objects on the table and give the children a set time to look and memorise them. Take them away and see who can remember the most. Can also be used for prepositions (the dice was next to the spoon).
Boggle / letter soupThe children draw a grid with letters in (you could dictate or they could then swap). They have 3 minutes to write down as many words as they can using letters in any order. If you like they can double letters.
Stepping stonesDraw a river full of crocodiles with four or five big stones across it. The children can cross if they put a letter in each stone that spells a word correctly. If they make a mistake a croc will eat an arm or leg. Can be played as a team game on the board.
Memory gameAround the class. The first child says ‘I like chocolate,’ the next must say ‘I like chocolate and apples’ and so on each adding something they like. Can also be played alphabeti-cally, or with shopping/going on holiday as subjects.
Spelling gameAround the class again, each child adds a letter to a word until it is complete, then start a new word.
Number gameBuzz – Fizz. To practice counting rapidly. Replace every multiple of 5 by ‘buzz’ and every multiple of 3 with ‘fizz.’ Can be made easier/harder depending on level.
Picture dictationGive pairs a picture or ask them to draw one using new vocabulary. They dictate their picture to their partner who must draw it. Compare at the end. Good for prepositions or household objects in different rooms.
Find the objectHide objects or pictures around the room or school. The chil-dren can try to find them and remember where they are then describe the locations to you or a friend who then has to find them. Great for prepositions, directions and giving instruc-tions. They could hide things for each other.
Jumbled sentencesHe / in / zoo / the / elephant / feeding / the / . / wasCan be used like find the object for more activity!
Card gamesSimilar to Happy Families. ‘Have you got a blue car?’ Chil-dren have to collect all the cards in a set. You may have to make your own cards.
Ball gamesMake sure you use a soft ball! It can be used in a number of ways; passed around the children to signify who goes next, thrown at something to chose the right answer, or even dodge ball!
SingingSinging is fantastic, especially for younger learners. Re-member songs like ‘head, shoulders, knees and toes’ or ‘Old MacDonald had a farm’ or even make up your own depend-ing on the vocabulary. You can make singing a particular song part of your lesson routine. Add actions and home-made verses to make it more fun.
REMEMBER....
Children love to play in teams and choose interesting names!Make sure all rules are clear; they will try and argue them!Be fair and consistent with giving points/rewards.You need to be an adult role-model, not their best friend……but you don’t have to be mean! Be authoritative, but smile!Prepare your room/school and ensure you know where everything is.Make an effort to get to know the students, especially names!Be confident! Everyone is nervous before their first class.Review emergency procedures and make sure you know what to do.Introduce yourself, your background, likes/dislikes and hobbies.Respect local customs especially regarding such things as dress and greetings.Your schedule! Make sure you are in the right place at the right time.Find out about the schools expectations for classroom behaviour / disciplinary procedures and remember they may be different to back home.
Gestures are a good way of communicating to beginners but make sure you’re not misunderstood!For example:1. To beckon with your index finger is seen as insulting in some cultures so instead beckon with your palm down and your whole hand waving.2. Pointing is impolite in most of Asia, use an open hand or your thumb.3. Do not sit with the soles of your feet showing, this is rude in many countries, especially Thailand and Japan.4. Forming a circle with your fingers to say ‘ok’ is obscene in Germany and Brazil, means ‘money’ in Japan and ‘worthless’ or ‘zero’ in France.5. Patting people on the head is especially upsetting to Asian students, many of whom believe the head is the repository of the soul.6. Try to pass objects with two hands as one handed may be seen as rude (Japan) or the left hand is seen as unclean (Middle and Far East, especially India).7. Waving can mean ‘no’ or if you do it close to someone’s face could be seen as very insulting.8. Beware of nodding – in Bulgaria and Greece it means no!
For beginners:If your students have a really low English level, start with the basics and repeat everything A LOT. Focus on the alphabet, colours, numbers, shapes, body parts, food, drink, animals and basic phrases. Use a lot of pictures, actions, mime, emo-tions and guessing games followed with lots of practice matching words and pictures or sounds. Play as many different games as you can with each set of vocabulary until they perfect it, but be patient. Speak slowly and simply with a pleas-ant tone and lots of pauses. Make picture dictionaries, vocabulary posters, games and any other creative activity you can think of.
SUMMARY
Hopefully, by now you will have gained some insight into the basics of Teaching English as a Foreign Language. You should also have the confidence to plan and implement your lessons successfully.
Children can be great fun to teach, you just need to hit the right balance between being a fun and fascinating role model, and an authoritative and respected teacher.
Remember, the key is good planning; think about what level you are teaching, which skills you will focus on, the subject of your lesson, how to keep the children’s attention and how to deal with any problems that may arise.
Start early, begin planning now! Print pictures, find online activities, brush up on your grammar and try out games on your friends and relatives!
The conditions you are working in on your project are likely to be very basic, depending on where you’re going, so make sure you are ready and prepared for anything! We’ve got projects in some cities in China that take 3 hours to drive across! Right down to tiny projects in completely undeveloped rural villages in Africa – think about what your experience will be like and remember conditions may be difficult in some places but that’s all part of the experience. On some projects you will be assissiting the local teacher, on others you may have the whole class to yourself, some schools have set curriculums and others leave it up to you to decide what you would like to teach. It is possible that you are completely thrown in the deep end with a class of 50 eager kids keen to learn whatever you can throw at them, don’t be put off, they appreciate anything you can do and will be so happy to have you there. Whatever the situation on your project things are likely to be a little daunting at first but after a few days working with your class you will quickly settle in and enjoy your time there.
Also don’t forget that different countries have different school systems and holidays, you may find that you join a school in the middle of term time, or the middle of the holidays when you’ll be able to teach extra summer school lessons to the kids that re-ally need it. Whatever the situation we have designed the project to give you a great teaching experience, as long as you’re open minded and keen you will have a great time. You really will get out of it what you put in, remember some schools may not be used to having a foreign teacher, don’t just sit at the back of the class or be used as an assistant, if you want to teach, do it! Sometimes local teachers are not really sure what to do with you so don’t be scared to make it clear what you want to do with the class. Offer to run story telling sessions, reading or maths workshops or anything else you’re interested in, and don’t forget that they will all be so interested in learning about England and yourself so dedicate a few classes to this as well.
Please remember that with a lot of projects the school or group will have planned their whole term/schedule/summer camp on your being there, and the kids will be really excited about you so please don’t disappoint or disrespect them by pulling out at the last minute, leaving unexpectedly or not fulfilling your role – they are depending on you!!
Finally, let us know how you get on. If you have had great success with a particular activity or lesson. If you have any original ideas or tips, or perhaps have photos of yourself and the kids. Don’t forget to send us your completed log book and self-assess-ment sheets at the end in order to receive your TEFL certificate or complete your BTEC qualification.
GOOD LUCK!!!
TEACHING RESOURCES
BOOKS
Grammar:An A-Z of English Grammar – Leech (Longman)Practical English Usage – Swan (OUP)English Grammar in Use – Murphy (CUP)Collins Cobuild English Language Dictionary
Structure:Grammar Practice Activities – Penny Ur (CUP)Teaching Tenses – Aitkin (Longman)
Functions:Functions of English – Jones (CUP)
Vocabulary:A Way With Words – Redman & Ellis (Cambridge)Working with Words – Gairns & Redman (CUP)
Skills:Task Listening – Blundell & Stokes (CUP)Oxford, Cambridge and Longman reading, listening and writing series
WEBSITES
www.eslcafe.comwww.esl.netwww.readylessons.comwww.onestopenglish.comwww.bogglesworldesl.com
Phonology:Teaching English Pronunciation – Kenworthy (Longman)Headway Pronunciation Series (OUP)
Speaking:Speaking Personally – Porter Ladousse (CUP)Keep Talking – Klippel (CUP)Conversation – Nolasco & Arthur (OUP)
Games:Recipes for Tired Teachers – Sion (Longman)Grammar Games – Rinvolucri et al (CUP)Challenge to Think – Rinvolucri et al (CUP)Games for Language Learning – Wright et al (CUP)The Recipe Book – Seth Lindstromberg (Longman)
Lesson Planning:Planning from Lesson to Lesson – Woodwood and Lind-stromberg
ANSWERS (PAGE 7): WHAT SORT OF LANGUAGE DO WE TEACH?
1. As there is a‘t’ in often, it should be pronounced.Most people use both, you need to teach the language you speak, of course this might be slightly different for different teach-ers depending on where you’re from and your accent.
2. ‘I have a sister’ is better than ‘I’ve got a sister.’Whatever you feel comfortable with although be aware that there could be a slightly different meaning – I’ve got a bath (pos-session) and I have a bath (washing) – clear distinction.
3. You should not end a sentence with a preposition.E.g. up, on, at – what time did you get up? Maybe in older 18th century grammar but not today. Winston Churchill gave a great example. After being accused of something which didn’t exactly please him, he replied, ‘that is an accusation up with which I will not put.’ These days we tend to follow a preposition with something, even if it’s just ‘it.’ For example; ‘next to it,’ ‘get on with it,’ ‘put up with it.’
4. The majority of students here are European.Technically this is grammatically wrong as majority is singular so it should say the majority is European. However, as there is then the plural ‘students’ this is kind of a grey area. Most people would actually say ‘are.’
5. We should teach ‘Whom did you see’ not ‘Who did you see.’‘Whom’ is very formal, even the Queen wouldn’t speak like this. Remember to teach what you would actually use.
6. Most people say ‘It’s me’ but is it more correct to say ‘It is I.’It (subject) and I (subject pronoun) is technically correct. Some teachers think they have to teach ‘proper’ English so and now we have Teflese – a new language taught to foreigners by crazy English teachers! Again, teach what you speak.
7. ‘If you’d ‘ve come round yesterday, we’d ‘ve gone to the pub’ is this example of the third conditional acceptable?Technically wrong in writing, it clearly looks incorrect. However, we probably would say it like this. Some things sound dif-ferent to how you would write them.
8. ‘He was like really happy’ is in current usage so should it be taught as a structure?You have to draw the line – this is a fad.
9. The standards of English are generally declining nowadays.Language evolves and is constantly changing, especially one that is used so globally. This is not necessarily a decline.
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