Finding input which will engage English learners.

One of my online Spanish student has an advanced level of English and she wants to practise her speaking skills but she lacks confidence. I have noticed that most language learners often lack confidence when it comes to having a conversation. They can comprehend a lot but they fear of speaking because they think people will not understand them or they will make too many errors.

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conversation311 document1 Education20 esl2 ethnic1 fluency107 fluent57 food154 free13 input47 inspire13 inspiring7 interesting23 international2 output44 practise2 practising1 questions74 quizlet9 resource102 speak85 speaking73 talk107 talking24 teacherspayteachers11 TEDx1 Thai1 topic24 video350 vocabulary256 world3 youtube67

Resources for English learners: superstitions.

Although I am taking a break from my school and “formal” teaching, I have not really quit and I have now started to teach online (via Google hangout or Skype) private lessons to Spanish students who want to improve their English. It is actually very different from teaching a whole class and my students have a good level of English but they are not confident enough.

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activity13 comprehensible100 comprehension250 conversation311 culture246 Education20 fluency107 fluent57 language45 learning15 personal13 practice33 questions74 reading252 teacherspayteachers11

Cultural input: the prisons in Bolivia (or how to engage Spanish learners)

How to get students engaged and producing a lot of language???? Well…. I recommend purchasing Martina Bex 7-day lesson plans about Los niños prisioneros de Bolivia as it is truly worth the investment! Not only did it save me a lot of prep-time, it also made my students had a meaningful discussion in the target language!

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a favor1 Bolivia1 comprehend52 comprehensible100 comprehension250 conversation311 culture246 debate11 debe2 discuss30 discussion39 Education20 effort1 en contra1 family164 high interest7 input47 interest10 interesting23 issues1 key structures8 listen283 listening52 lo que hace1 Martina Bex11 meaningful15 output44 performance2 prison2 read40 reading252 reflect17 reflection20 skills26 social relationships7 South American3 Spanish33 speaking73 story46 storytelling39 structures7 target9 target language12 TPRS71

How to use stories written by students?

As I mentioned in my previous post, I am a big fan of The Comprehensible Classroom because there are so many fun story scripts to be used and Martina Bex (the author) shares so many fabulous ideas and lesson plans! One story script I have used with my middle school students (grade 6 to 8) is Buscando Gafas.

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book95 comprehensible100 comprehension250 creative13 Education20 grade 68 grade 74 grade 85 input47 key structure10 middle school3 mini-book2 output44 productive9 proud1 querer1 reading252 retelling4 reusing1 script201 skills26 Spanish33 speaking73 story46 storytelling39 telling3 tener1 writing55

Different language projects around the topic of school

The topic of school in grade 6 (11-12 years old) gives the opportunity to learn about the facilities at a school, the different subjects and the time (here is the curriculum I planned for this topic). At the end of the topic I like to have a my students work on a project to recap all the new vocabulary and structures they have learned.

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assessment1 connective1 creativity4 curriculum5 design4 Education20 fluency107 grade 68 key structure10 leaflet1 map2 peer assessment2 picture5 presentation140 project11 recap1 record3 school35 Spanish33 speaking73 structure10 topic24 video350

Fun and simple idea to practice “gustar”

The verb “gustar” is not an easy verb to use as it is so different from “normal”verbs. The majority of students know how to use it in the first person singular “me gusta” but they rarely know how to use it when they want to refer to someone else.

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activities5 cards1 clapping1 Education20 focus36 grade 68 grammar66 gustar1 lesson7 listening52 marker1 matching1 motivation201 objective21 practice33 reading252 Spanish33 speaking73 warm up36 whiteboard2 writing55

How to practice and review the general conversation for the IGCSE oral exam?

My students in grade 10 have a speaking examination in 5 weeks time and I believe this is the most stressful part of their IGCSEs. In order to prepare them well for the general conversation (which consists of asking a series of linked questions on two or three topics which students have covered in grade 9 and 10) I asked my students to get in pairs,

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answers24 audio55 audioboo3 conversation311 fun413 grade 108 grade 98 IGCSE12 listening52 oral12 personal13 practice33 preparing5 questions74 review26 revision2 share17 social life8 Spanish33 speaking73 topics19