Teacher Training 3-13 August 2010

Phonetics Activity

Chinese whisper: ask student to read a sentence and whisper it to classmates and check it in

the end.

Book

Ship and Sheep, by Ann Baker, Cambridge University Press. Headword Pronunciation Series

Activity Book:

Pronunciation Games by Mark Hancock

This book contains a lot of activities such as:

Pronunciation Journey to practice minimal pairs such as b or p

Elision and Assimilation from the book Test Your English Pronunciation – by Michael Vaughan -

Penguin Books

Poem:

The Chaos (by G. Nolst Trenite, a.k.a. "Charivarius"; 1870 – 1946)

It starts with:

Dearest creature in creation

Studying English pronunciation,

I will teach you in my verse

Sounds like corpse, corps, horse and worse

Emerging Vocabulary and Pattern of Communication

Portmanteau = blend of two or more words

smoke + fog = smog

Channel + tunnel = the Chunnel (linking France and Britain)

male + nanny = manny

information + entertainment = infotainment

stay + vacation = staycation stay at home vacation (also verb staycationing)

mock + documentary = mockumentary

man + bikini = makini

birkini/burkini = Muslim woman swimsuit

brotherly + romance = bormance, means best friends

fan + magazine = fanzine

electronic + magazine = e-zine

mock + cockney = mockney, someone from good background who pretends to speak street language

to look cooler

friend + enemy = frenemy

TGIF = Thanks God It's Friday

PANK = Professional Aunt No Kids

FB = Face Book

OMG = Oh My God

blog = web log, online diary

GF = girl friend

fugly = f... ugly

cankles = calf ancles

muffin top

unibrow

bacne = back acne

BF = boy friend

moobs = man boobs

MILF = mother I'd like to f...

IM = instant messaging

BFF = best friend forever

Cha-ching = the sound of cash machine, means prospect for money

Beemer = BMW car

chillaxing = chill-relaxing

brunch = breakfast and lunch

netiquette = Internet etiquette

LOL = laugh out loud

Bill + Hillary = Billary

Ben + Jennifer = Bennifer

Tom + Katie = TomKat

Brad + Angelina = Brangelina

John + Edward = Jedward

Grappling with Grammar Discussion

1How important is grammar in your current curriculum? Do you feel that it should be more/less

important than it currently is?

2What types of students love/hate doing grammar exercises? Why do you think this is the case?

3What grammar points cause most difficulty for your students? Why do you think this is the case?

4Do you feel that the grammar resources currently available to you adequately address the needs of

your students?

5What methods do you use to help integrate grammar into their active language use?

Grammar Gripes

Some students find it boring/difficult.

It is often forgotten quickly.

Moving from learning the rules to real use seems to be a huge hurdle and a big leap.

Grammar mistakes tend to fossilize.

Direct translation can be dangerous. Students need to thing about time differently.

The Grammar of Vocabulary

Vocabulary and grammar are inextricably linked.

Students and teachers like to tick grammar boxes on a neat list.

But learning a grammar point in isolation is only the beginning.

Different Strategies

Fun/communicative drills.

Communicative tasks.

Games.

Self-correction.

Learner Autonomy Discussions

1What difficulties are you faced with when trying to help students to become independent learners?

Consider this from the student's and teacher's perspective.

2What methods do you use to inspire/encourage/force your students to become independent

learners? Share your ideas with your group.

Autonomy

It means motivating students to take responsibility for their own learning.

It means moving the focus from teaching to learning.

The teacher plays a crucial role in the development of autonomy.

“It is not easy for teachers to change their role from purveyor of information to counsellor and

manager of learning resources.” David Little (1990) Learner Autonomy 1: Definition, Issues and

Problems.

Teachers move from being disseminators of information to managers of autonomous learners.

Autonomous learners …

set their own learning aims.

make choices about learning modes.

plan and organize work.

decide when best to work alone, work collaboratively and seek advice.

learn through experience.

identify and solve problems.

think creatively.

assess their own progress.

enjoy learning more.

Difficulties Faced with Learner Autonomy

Students are uncomfortable with the responsibility.

Teachers are uncomfortable with handing over the responsibility.

It takes teacher time and energy to help students become autonomous.

Instructions must be crystal clear.

Students have freedom and you monitor their freedom (controlled autonomy).

Large groups/mixed abilities/catering for diversity

You are an educator in a much broader sense, not only your subject, but social skills, etc.

Parents and students view autonomy with suspicion: handing over of responsibility to reduce work

load.

Methods to encourage Learner autonomy

Making long-term plans/projects

Using answer keys for self-correction.

Explore with them resources.

In the beginning allocate time to train the students in the way you want them to work.

Error code with underline.

Sample passages that contain errors and ask students to correct them.

Self-assessment.

Students choose their activities.

Make them use the school library.

Make them present their projects in front of the whole class. This brings the best of students, even

weaker students.

Praise.

Make students aware of their own difficulties.

Give compulsory and optional tasks.

It can be non-specific: any article from a newspaper and 3 lines summarizing it.

Let students create test materials.

Give options with graded tasks: easy, medium, difficult.

Have a session in the beginning about learner self-awareness and the different learning styles.

Autonomous Learning

Definition

Autonomous learning is self-managed learning.

It means that the learner has much of the responsibility of planning and organizing their learning, for

doing it, for assessing its value to him or herself and even for suggesting the mark the work

produced should get.

Sometimes the term is used for learning with only a small amount of teacher support. A university

document, for example, defined autonomous learning as “learning requiring no more than 12 hour

lecturer contact” in a course.

Gains for the learner:

Ability to respond to change.

Transferable skills.

Allows for different learning styles – learners can use their own judgement about how best to learn.

Self-direction is motivating and leads to higher order thinking.

The excitement and pleasure of independent learning will carry over to the subject itself.

Mirrors 'natural learning' in the rest of life.

Losses for the learner:

The educational system might not be designed for independent learning.

Carl Rogers said that only 1/3 or ¼ of students are self-directing; the rest do just what they are

supposed to do.

Too little (as well as too much) direction can cause frustrations for the learner.

Students can lack the necessary knowledge in the subject matter to make a beginning.

Students might have very specific expectations about the degree of direction that should be

provided by the teacher.

Challenges for the educator:

It is a challenge to provide the correct amount of guidance without providing too much direction.

Direction is needed to identify areas of difficulty but too much direction detracts from their sense

of ownership of the learning project.

Listening Exercises Using Video Clips Factors to consider when choosing a clip:

Appropriateness

Appealing topic/unusual topic

Quality of the clip. Background noise/music could impede understanding by beginning students,

but good exercise though

Clarity of objective

Length

Level of language/task. You may require less advanced students to make intelligent guesses. You

can use clips above the level and get achievable objectives.

Before Viewing:

Use simple factual questions about the topic.

Use additional open questions to stimulate discussions.

Predicting

After explaining what the clip is about, ask students to write a list of what things they expect to see

in the clip.

First viewing

Students swap their lists with a partner and tick the things that appear in the clip. The student with

the most ticks is the winner.

Second viewing

Ask about facts, names, components, etc.

Ask about opinions, why

Writing http://www.onestopenglish.com/section.asp?sectionType=listsummary&catid=59493&docid=14681

5

Problems in writing (why writing is so difficult):

It is often a solitary task, often given as homework and therefore unsupported.

Students find composition titles boring.

They often feel failure when they have their writing returned to them in red ink.

It's not communicative.

It's not fun.

Writing compositions is usually linked to tests which is perceived as stressful.

Writing is a difficult skill even in a person's mother tongue.

You need time, preparation, patience and concentration.

You integrate different skills: grammar, vocabulary, etc.

Creativity often not encouraged by the education system

Translation from L1

Students may be too ambitious with their writing standards

Writing can be prohibitively intimidating.

Lack of clear instructions

Association with exams

Lack of instant feedback.

Poor knowledge of basics (coherence, cohesion)

Writing tasks are not well thought-out to be stimulating

Bad feedback leaves a dent in the confidence

Problems with grammar and vocabulary

Students need to find the inspiration

Needs planning and organization of ideas

There is a pressure for perfection when it comes to written texts.

Skills needed for writing

Knowledge of correct register (formal, informal)

Needs good range of sentence structures.

Needs linking, imagination, planning and drafting.

Knowledge of basic building blocks.

Knowing how to use a dictionary.

Proof-reading you own writing (self correction)

Knowledge of punctuation (Pardon impossible, to be executed. Pardon, impossible to be executed.)

Good planning skills.

Spelling.

Ability to express ideas.

Creativity.

Grammar and vocabulary.

Handout to focus on style / register

Once upon a time… [fairytale]

I regret to inform you… [rejection formal letter]

All my love, Boris xxxx [email to friend]

In conclusion, it must be stated that… [an essay]

She grabbed the gun and pointed it a Dillon. [a detective story]

The windows are large and look down onto a flower-filled garden . [real estate description]

All this can be yours for only $999, if you call this number… [advertisement]

Add two tablespoons of sugar and stir… [recipe]

I look forward to your prompt reply… [application]

Here in the studio we have the lovely Dido. Hi Dido… [radio show]

Activities that foster real written communication (alternative to essay writing) whether formal

or informal

Personal information

personal ad (dating)

staff profile

autobiography (on back of a book)

immigration card (at airport)

application form

registration form (on website)

Family

post-it note

birth announcement

wedding invitation

family tree

Daily activity

diary/blog/tweet

travel journal

Home

house swap

selling a house

roster (jobs in the house)

Town and country

Giving directions

brochures

holiday ad

Travel and tourism

post card

flight/hotel reservation

Describing people

describe celebrities

describe yourself in a chat room

suspect report (witness to a crime)

cover letter (on CV)

missing person

Describing things

lost object

selling on e-bay

standard ad

instruction manual

Relationships

advice pages

role play in soap opera

Health and fitness

Tips on how to stay healthy

Fitness club regulations

Education

Course description

job ad

job application

CV

Taking munites

Money

Credit card application

Leisure time

What's on

club home page

Science and technology

patent application

posting a problem on a forum

FAQs (this one fits anywhere and helps to teach question making)

Environment

campaign

leaflets

poster for organic market

Ideas to Encourage Writing

Convert informal text into formal one (the weather is crab, he is a failure, etc.)

Discourage the use of non-motive words (nice, good) and encourage the use of motive words

(splendid, marvellous)

Pass through the text for collaborative writing. The first person start with say Once upon a time …,

the second person complete the sentence or add another sentence. The third person reads previous

sentences and adds his. Can be made of small groups of five and goes on to one page.

Writing a story in a chosen tense and using peer-correction.

Emails making arrangement to meet (when it is impossible)

The Proust Questionnaire

Dictation. Say a list of statements and ask them to write down the ones that are true about them.

Dicto-gloss (key words). Read a story, ask them to write the key words and in group restructure the

whole story.

Running dictation. 3 stories on a table, each group sends one person to read one sentence, go back

and write it, then the next one. And the group that finishes first wins.

Writing a story based on a song / add a verse to the song

Cartoon writing. Take a cartoon, erase the script and ask them to write their own with dialog or

narrative style (one day the frog went to the park).

Mad Libs. You have a text. All the adjectives, for example, are replaced by a star, and students are

asked to choose the appropriate adjective from the list below.

Develop a complete story behind one picture.

Think of 3 celebrities, 3 problem they, 3 solutions that you offer

Imaginary trip. You have £500 and you need to plan a holiday, including flight, hotel, etc.

Write a reward ad for a missing person:

________________________

| |

| Rewards |

| _______ |

| | | |

| |______| |

| |

| Description: ~ ~ ~ |

| ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ |

|_______________________|

Speaking These activities are very flexible – they can be adapted to different levels, they can be used to

practise various grammar points or sets of vocabulary and they can last as long (or short) as you

like.

It is important to “explain and train” well – the instructions should be clear and you should

demonstrate first.

It should be clear to the student whether the focus of the activity is fluency or accuracy.

1Just a Minute (pairs or groups)

2Very quick and simple. The students get to pick a topic from the set of cards (see examples) and

have to speak for a fixed period of time on that topic.

3Time Trial (pairs or groups)

The student writes down any 5 words on a card. They pass their card to their partner or another

group member. You give the student a topic and they have to speak about that topic, using each of

the words on the card.

4Chain Challenge (groups or whole class)

5Very flexible for controlled practice of grammar points. The first student says a sentence

incorporating the grammar point. The second student must invent their own sentence and repeat that

of the first student and so on. Great fun and a good way to practise different verb forms.

6Taboos (groups)

7Great for revising vocabulary. Put the students into groups. Give them cards with different

keywords at the top. They must choose 3 words (or more, depending on the level) that cannot be

mentioned when describing the keywords. Then they swap cards with another group. The students

take turns to try and explain the keyword to the other members of their own group within a time

limit.

8Role plays (pairs or groups)

9A classic! They can take the form of job interviews, information inquiries, making decisions,

suggestions, giving advice, etc. They work well because students feel more relaxed when “playing”

someone else. I find that with lower levels it is important to make them very structured and to pre-

teach the vocabulary. If possible, have the students to sit back to back when doing telephone role

plays.

10Surveys (groups)

11This helps the whole class to interact and provides good controlled practice. If possible surveys

can also be done outside class time and with other classes. It is important to check the questions that

the students write before they conduct the survey.

Example interview

Interviewer Respondent

Yes | It depends | No

Do you enjoy reading newspapers?

Do you enjoy studying English?

Do you find it easy to learn a new language?

Do you find it easy to get up in the morning?

Do you like …

Do you find it difficult …

Do you hate …

Do you think it is important …

Do you intend ….

Are you interested in …

First conditional speaking practice

Imagine that you and your partner are flatmates. You need to divide up the house chores.

Household chores I can't stand dong Household chores I don't mind doing

….................................... …...................................

….................................... …...................................

….................................... …...................................

Now you need to negotiate with your partner. You want to avoid doing as many of the tasks in the

left column as possible.

Example: “I'll wash the dishes if you do the ironing.”

Example of Surveys

Title of survey: ______________________

Name of researcher:___________________

Date: _______________ Location: ____________

Questions Response

Q1

Q2

…

Speaking topics (cards) for basic level

My favourite TV programme My favourite book

A fantastic present The best holiday I've ever had

My apartment/house My home-town

A festival in my country My bet friend

My family My favourite website

What I did last weekend My most important possessions

Things you can do on a sunny day Things you can do on a rainy day

The weather in my country Things I like about Ireland

Things I don't like about Ireland A famous dish from my country

How to stay healthy A famous person in my country

The capital of my country My plans for the future

Someone important in my life A tourist attraction in my country

My daily routine Things I'm good at

My favourite teacher in school A job I would like to do

Important events in my life My university

Speaking topics (cards) for Intermediate level

Shopping online Fortune tellers – real or rubbish?

Something I'm proud of An interesting person I know

The leader of my country A film I didn't enjoy

My vices An indispensable gadget

Fighting crime Is money the root of all evil?

The main industries in my country Hell is other people

Tourist attraction in my area How I recharge my batteries

Fun on a tight budget Household chores I hate doing

The most important places in my country Private vs. public transport

Prizes/awards I've won My definition of success

Popular sports in my country How we can protect the environment

Fashion My idea of heaven is ...

Speaking topics (cards) for Advanced level

Are you a spender or a saver? Finding love online

Plastic surgery – OK or no way? Last meal on Death Row

What keeps me awake at night Cat person or dog person?

My life in 5 years time A traditional story from my country

The greatest invention ever My favourite time of the year

Childhood games My idea of the perfect holiday

My celebrity crush Popular TV shows in my country

The importance of education Are you a telly addict?

My dream house Things my country is famous for

Running your own business – path to success or

too much stress?

Celebrity adoption – is it just a publicity stunt?

Corruption in my country Relationship age gaps – how much older is too

much older?

Culture shock Go on – spoil yourself

Mobile manners Volunteer work

What's in a name? An era I would like to have lived in

Are you a couch potato? Illegal downloading – OK or no way?

Hooked online The best present I've ever received

Milestones in my life Romance is ….

An embarrassing moment Superstitions in my country

Five things I would take to desert island An important event in my country's history

Speaking cards

Being your own boss

What are the positive and negative aspects of

being your own boss?

What sort of qualities would you need?

Would you every want to run your own business?

Why/why not?

Gender Roles

What fields are dominated by either men or

women? Why do you think this is?

Men wearing make-up, women in the boxing ring

– OK or no way?

What's your opinion of househusbands?

Beauty is only skin deep

Would you prefer to be gorgeous or gifted?

If money is no object, would you ever consider

plastic surgery? (Why/why not?)

Do you think there are any disadvantages to being

a very attractive person?

Super Size Me

Is obesity a growing problem in your country?

If so, what are the underlying causes?

Should junk food be banned in all schools?

(Why/why not?)

Finding love online

Do you think it is possible to find love online?

Do you know anyone who has?

Why have dating websites become so popular?

What are the potential pitfalls of meeting

someone this way?

The Good Old Days

In what way is life today better than it was 100

years ago?

In what way is it worse?

If you were transported back in time to 1910,

what one thing would you miss the most? Why?

Tweet Tweet

What's your opinion of Twitter? What are the

positive and negative aspects of it?

Do you tweet or do you follow anyone's tweets?

What other social networking sites are popular in

your country?

Fun on a tight budget

What things can you enjoy doing when you're

short of money?

If money is no object, how would you spend a fun

weekend?

The Secret of Success

What is your definition of success? (personal life,

wealth or happiness?)

Describe a person you know who you consider to

be very successful.

What achievements are you most proud of?

Dinner Party Guests

Who would be your ideal dinner guests?

Choose any four people you like – celebrities,

friends, historical figures …

Give reasons for your choices.

Law and Order

Are there any areas of law in your country which

you think should be relaxed/tightened up?

Have you every broken the law?

Are there any laws which are not really enforced?

Tying the knot

What do you think people gain from getting

married and what do they lose?

Describe a typical wedding in your country

(location, traditions, party, etc.)

Describe an important letter/email you

received

You should say:

Describe a photograph you have taken which

is important to you

You should say:

Who the letter was from

What it was about

Why it was important

and explain how you felt about it

What the picture shows

When and why you took it

Where you kept it

and explain what is special about it

Describe a well-known person you like or

admire

You should say:

Who this person is

What this person has done

Why this person is well known

and explain why you admire this person

Talk about an activity which you enjoy doing

in your spare time.

You should say:

What kind of activity it is

Where you usually do it

What equipment you need to do it

and explain why you enjoy it so much

Describe one of your friends

You should say:

How you met

How long you have know each other

How you spend time together

and explain why you like this person

Describe a film you have enjoyed

You should say:

What it was about

When and why you saw it

What special features it had

and explain what you especially liked about it

Describe a river, lake or sea which you like

You should say:

What the river, lake or sea is called

Where it is

What the land near it is like

and explain why you like this river, lake or sea.

Describe a tourist attraction you have visited

You should say:

what the attraction was

when you visited it

what you saw and did there

and explain what you thought of it

Describe a place where you studied

You should say:

when you studied there

what subject you studied

why you chose the place

and explain how you benefited from this

Describe your favourite style of dress

You should say:

what kind of clothes you like to wear

what fabrics and colours you prefer

what (or who) influences you in your choice of

clothes

and explain whether clothes are important you or

not

Describe way in which you save energy

You should say:

what you do

how it helps

how long you have done this for

and explain why it is important to do these things

Describe a film you saw which made an

impression on you

You should say:

what film and what type of film it is

when you saw it

what your favourite part of the film is

and explain why it made an impression on you

Describe a city in which you have lived

You should say:

where it is

how it has changed

how you hope it will change in the future

Describe a party you particularly remember

You should say

why the party was held

who attended

what happened

and explain what made it memorable

Describe a festival that is important in you Describe a famous building you have visited

country

You should say:

when the festival occurs

what you did during it

what you like or dislike about it

and explain why this festival is important

You should say:

where it is

what it's like

why it's famous

and explain whether you would recommend other

people to visit it

Describe a big public event that you have

attended

You should say:

what it was

when was it held, and why

what happened

and describe how you felt about being there

Describe something that you have which is

important to you

You should say:

when and where you got it

how long you have had it

how you would feel if you lost it or it was stolen

and explain why it is important

Describe a tourist attraction you would like to

visit

You should say:

what the attraction is

what you can see and do there

how you know about it

and explain why you would particularly like to go

there

Describe a useful website you have visited

You should say:

what the website was

how you found the address for this website

what the website contained

and explain why it was useful to you

Describe your journey to school or work

You should say:

what forms of transport are involved

the importance of time

whether it is enjoyable or not

and explain how you would make your journey

more pleasant if you could

Describe an interesting historic place

You should say:

what it is

where it is located

what you can see there now

and explain why this place is interesting

Describe a language you would like to learn in

future

You should say:

which languages interest you

how easy you think it would be to learn

where you would like to study it

and explain why you would like to learn it

Describe an interest or hobby that you enjoy

You should say:

how you became interested in it

how long you have been doing it

why you enjoy it

and explain what benefits you get from this

interest or hobby

Describe a place to eat

You should say:

where it is and what it is like

what kind of food it serves

when was the last time you went there

and explain why it is special for you

Describe the job or career you have or hope to

have

You should say:

what the job is

what it involves

why you chose it

and explain why it is rewarding

Describe a film, theatre or V performer you

admire

Describe a country or state that you lived in or

visited

You should say:

what they look like

what they do

where and when you saw them

and explain why you admire this person

You should say:

what its main features are (e.g. cities, landscape)

what the climate is like

what it has to offer visitors

and explain how you feel about the country or

state

Describe a celebration you remember

You should say:

what event was being celebrated

the form the celebration took

where the celebration took place

who was there

why it was enjoyable

and explain it is memorable for you

Describe a place you enjoyed living

You should say:

which area it is in

how many people live with you

what it is like

and explain why you like or dislike living there

Describe a book you enjoyed reading

You should say:

what the book was

what it was about

when you read it

and explain why you enjoyed it

Describe a recent news story

You should say:

when the event took place

where the event took place

what happened exactly

and explain why the news story was memorable

or important

Describe a family other than your own that

you know well

You should say:

how you know this family

who the members of the family are

what they do and what they're interested in

and explain how you feel about the family

More Speaking Activities TV program: news reader, advertisement, sports, weather, etc.

Recorded speaking activity for assessment/self assessment (using Audacity). Teenagers like

technology a lot and they like to use it.

Swear box: if you swear/speak non-English put 50c in the box.

“Choose Your Own Adventure” book series

Grilling your partner

Write statements about yourself, some are true, some are false, and let your partner guess.

“Conversation Gambits” book.

Business Card and introduce yourself.

The Balloon Activity: Choose a profession and ride a balloon with some students. You have to

throw away two persons with the least important profession. You need to argue and defend your

profession.

Vocabulary Activities My favourite fun vocabulary games:

Association Game

This can be noisy but it's great fun.

“Associate, don't hesitate.

Stay with the beat, and don't repeat!”

Don't say that word

Collocation rap

Word hunt

Headline hunt

Classroom Management Train the students in your method. Don't assume that they know what you mean. Explain to your

students whether your focus is on fluency or accuracy.

Don't tell students the answer directly. You can tell them how many answers they have wrong.

References Professor David Crystal, one of the great linguists of the time, two of his books are

How Language Works

The Fight for English

Printed Resources Cutting Edge (Series)

Upper intermediate, Teacher's resource book

The Extra Series:

Speaking Extra

Reading Extra

Writing Extra

Listening Extra

Inside Out resource pack

Writing in Paragraphs

Idiom Organizer / Phrasal Verb Organizer

Real Listening and Speaking

Real Writing

Just Reading and Writing

Email English / Telephone English

The English File (series)

A Way with Words

Taboos and Issues

Time Saver (series)

Online Resources Using Moodle:

Moodle is a Course Management System (CMS), also known as a Learning Management System

(LMS) or a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). It is a Free web application that educators can use

to create effective online learning sites.

Phonetic transcription

http://ipa.typeit.org/

BBC: Keep your English up to date

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/1728_uptodate/

Ten of the best websites for teachers/students

(1) BBC World Service – Learning English

news stories, popular culture, authentic reading, listening material, updated daily, downloadable

activities, covering grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. There is a section for keeping your

own vocabulary up-to-date

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/

(2) British Council Learning English Central

Lesson plans, reading, writing, listening and speaking activities under THEMES, updated weekly,

downloadable podcasts of authentic listening materials, section for kids and secondary school

students

http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en

(3) Teaching English

In the TRY section, teachers have access to downloadable lesson plans, ideas for projects, grammar

and vocabulary quizzes, etc. In the THINK section there are hints and tips for teaching English, and

in the TALK section, teachers can post problem on forums.

www.teachingenglish.org.uk

(4) Instant Ideas

Subscription site. Complete lesson plans with exercises. Updated weekly. Audiovisual material on

DVD

http://instant-ideas.com/

(5) English Club – English Grammar

Helps students to use POS correctly. Also quizzes and exercises. Documentaries with subtitles in the

ESL-VIDEOS section

http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/

(6) Lesson Writer

Allows teachers to create customized lesson plans based on texts and readings on the internet.

Teachers copy and paste a piece of text into Lesson Writer and the program analyses the text for

teachable items including grammar, usage, pronunciation and vocabulary. Teachers customise lesson

plans, save and print. Great fun.

www.lessonwriter.com

(7) English around the World

from grammar to literature to history to recently coined words. regional slang, dialects, and unusual

English usage around the world. Hilarious examples of imperfect English.

www.anglik.net

(8) World English

Grammar activities, grammar rules, vocabulary activities, puzzles and quizzes, a discussion forum

on improving reading and writing skills. Lots of classic stories to copy and paste for home-made

lessons.

http://www.world-english.org/

(9) One Stop English

Subscription site. Good site for teachers to get lesson ideas as well as lots of ready-made lessons,

activities, exercises, etc. Updated weekly.

www.onestopenglish.com

(10) You Tube Clips

New site (2008) which posts youtube clips and ideas how to use them in the classroom to teach

grammar, vocabulary, etc. Updated weekly.

www.teflclips.com

10 of the Best of the Rest

(1) The paper boy

Links to a database of English newspapers from all around the world. Can be useful as a classroom

resource to compare how different publications in the same/different countries report the same news

item. Also useful source of authentic articles for teachers to use in Lesson Writer.

www.thepaperboy.com.au

(2) Britlit

Great lesson plans and activities from a selection of poetry and prose from contemporary British

writers and poets.

www.britlitworld.com

(3) Poetry

Excellent source of poetry from all eras, complete with biographies.

www.poetryconnection.net

(4) Games and Songs

A mine of songs, worksheets and ideas for using songs.

www.esl-lounge.com

(5) Bored

Lots of activities to while away the time. Good source of jokes, puns, palindromes, oxymorons and

clichés. Also film and music clips, crosswords, and other brain teasers.

www.bored.com

(6) Using films to teach grammar

Movie clips with exercises to to help learners practice grammar points

http://moviesegmentstoassessgrammargoals.blogspot.com/

(7) The Audio Archive

Listen to English speakers from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, England, India, Ireland and USA

reading the same texts, highlighting different accents.

www.alt-usage-english.org/audio_archive.shtml

(8) Ship or sheep

A useful site that follows the format of the Ship or Sheep book which aims to give practice with

minimal pairs. Scroll over minimal pairs to hear the difference.

http://www.shiporsheep.com/

(9) About.com

Loads of stuff here for both students and teachers. Regularly updated.

http://esl.about.com/

(10) The Routes of English

Interesting sections on how English is changing, the future of different English accents, how spoken

English spread around the world, and the origin of some English words (including the 10,000 or so

that we use from French)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/routesofenglish/

10 More Sites Also Worth a Look

(1) Fonetiks

More practice listening to the difference between words that contain minimal pairs.

http://www.fonetiks.org/

(2) Giggle Poetry

Great site for kids, teenagers and the young at heart in general.

http://www.gigglepoetry.com/

(3) The English Page

Good website for students to use at home to revise grammar and vocabulary areas. Also has free

downloadable pronunciation material.

http://www.englishpage.com/

(4) Writing wikis for wikipedia

Shows teachers and students how to write and edit contributions for the online encyclopedia.

http://www.writingwiki.org/index.php?title=Main_Page

http://collegewriting.org/

(5) Better-English – Grammar Exercises

Business English site. Wide range of grammar exercises.

http://www.better-english.com/grammar/

http://www.better-english.com/

http://www.englishgrammarsecrets.com/

(6) Language.com – Grammar Quizzes

Short quizzes to test different areas of basic grammar. Good for use to introduce new grammar

areas.

http://www.1-language.com/eslquizzes/index.htm

(7) Grammarman Comic

Grammarman is a superhero cartoon strip with games, worksheets, webquests all based around the

character.

http://www.grammarmancomic.com/

(8) Short films

Subtitled short films in English for people with hearing problems rather than EFL students, but

some students might find them interesting.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/click_online/4421335.stm

(9) Classic Movie Site

Info and reviews of classic films

http://classicfilm.about.com/

(10) Conversation topics

Simple website for conversation questions organized by topic.

http://iteslj.org/questions/

Have a look at these 10 websites

(1)http://www.mypopstudio.com/

(2)http://www.teachitworld.com/

(3)www.eslcafe.com

(4)www.newseum.org

(5)www.dvolver.com

(6)www.teachertube.com

(7)www.puzlemaker.com

(8)www.cambridgeonline.com

(9)www.usingenglish.com

(10)www.english-online.org.uk

Some for teacher development

(1) English Teaching Professional

Website of the ETP journal. Great lesson ideas, plans, hints and tips as well as reviews of

coursebooks, reference books and websites for teaching English.

http://www.etprofessional.com/

(2) Modern English Teacher

Website of the popular Modern English Teacher journal dealing with all aspects of teaching and

useful websites.

http://www.onlinemet.com/

(3) Training Teachers

Lots of articles and advice for new and more experienced teachers.

http://www.tttjournal.co.uk/

Using Technology in the Classroom

(1)www.teacherlearning.com

(2)www.ict4lt.org

(3)www.languages-ict.org.uk

(1) Effortless English Club

Learn the secrets of speaking English fluently.

http://effortlessenglishclub.com/

Group Recommendations:

cwrynn@eircom.net,erginhazal@gmail.com, dolores.galla@gmail.com, pe8j-hrgc@asahi-net.or.jp

(akiyo), rainbow923m@yahoo.co.jp(midori), bellacat1981@yahoo.co.jp(ikuko), mponti@xtec.cat

(marta) estermagri@gmail.com, rebecasempere@hotmail.com ,joannapasta@yahoo.com , so-

audrey@hotmail.com (Susanna), attia_mohammed@hotmail.com, mireiaxorto@gmail.com

www.englishtown.com for sts

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de grammar and vocabulary

http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/index.htm for reading passages

http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/Geography.htm for world geography games in English

http://www.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/radio/program/index.html for listening

http://puzzlemaker.discoveryeducation.com/ for making word searches, crosswords, etc

http://www.eiken.or.jp/eikentimes/joke/index.html (in Japanese)

http://www.xtec.cat (in Catalan)

http://www.esldiscussions.com/ for speaking

http://www.macmillanenglish.com/insideout/html/New_insideout_elessons.htm for mixed resources

http://www.teachitworld.com/index.asp?home=1 for mixed resources

http://www.esl-lab.com/index.htm for listening

http://www.english-grammar-lessons.com/should/menu.php for grammar

http://www.manythings.org/vocabulary/lists/b/ for mixed resources

http://australianetwork.com/englishbites/ for English video clips

http://vocabahead.com/VocabularyVideos/tabid/59/VideoId/579/Default.aspx

http://www.vocabahead.com/StudyRoom/tabid/61/Default.aspx for vocab

http://www.isabelperez.com/ for mixed resources (in English and Spanish)

http://www.elllo.org for listening

www.4shared.com for file sharing

esl.about.com for teaching ideas

Interesting vocabulary/usage false economy

non-emotive words = plain words like good, bad, nice

within the bounds of reason

to slur your words (because of alcohol drinking)

synaptic patterns = mental patterns that affect action

WLTM = would like to meet (dating)

GSOH = good sense of humour (dating)

n/s = non-smoker (dating)

AOB = any other business (on the agenda)

water cooler conversations = small talks

lucher/luch = old man who likes looking at women

post-it = a note placed on the fridge

to tweet = to post a tweet on twitter

roster = jobs in the house

Irish expressions

cop on:

She has no cop on. (common sense)

Would you ever cop on? (grow up)

jaded = tired of the world

to banjax = to injure, destroy

Paddy = Irishman

rakes of = a lot of

ye (said yee) = you (plural)

Irish pronunciation:

de tick eejit. = the thick idiot

What's dat ting? = What's that thing?

turty tree and a turd (33 1/3) = thirty three and a third

noice one = nice one

Oirish = Irish

What's the craic? = What's the news.

She's a great craic. = She's a great fun.

Verb to be with present participle for habitual actions

He does be working every day.

They do be talking on their mobiles a lot.

I do be tired on Monday evenings.

Perfect tenses

I'm just after hitting him with the car.

She's just after losing five stone in five weeks.

Irish rhymes:

Molly Malone: the tart with the cart.

The Spire: the stiletto in the ghetto

two ladies: the hags with the bags

Patrick Kavanagh: The crank on the bank

James Joyce: the prick with the stick

The clock in River Liffey: the time in the slime

Dublin = Baile Atha Cliath (said: bali oha kliah) means “Town of the Ford of the Hurdles”

Irish street names

Carrick = rock Carrickfergns

Bally = town Ballymun

Ath = ford Athelone

Drum = hill Drumcondra

Dun/Rath = fort Dundrum

Kil = church Kilkenny

Clon = field Clonskeagh

Bun = bottom of hill Bunclody

Saint Bridget: female saint in Ireland

Stereotypes within Ireland:

The Skangers: (said skanyers) working-class people living in the north side, may wear pyjamas to

the shops, also known as “scobies” or “howayas”

The D4 Heads: Rich people living in the south side, wear designer clothes, follow rugby, goes to

UCD then works for Daddy.

The Cluchies: Come from the countryside, follow Gaelic sports, only eat potatoes.