¿Cuáles son los niveles de inglés?

“Terminé los niveles intermedios en una escuela de idiomas, pero cuando me fui a inscribir a otro instituto me dijeron que debía iniciar los niveles intermedios porque mi nivel era básico. ¡No lo podía creer! Hacía solo un par de meses que había dejado la otra escuela”. (Photo by chrisschuepp)

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Using Presentation Software

Eliot and the Year 6 students
Image by yewenyi
Students have changed: research now tells us that they listen to music on their iPods 5 hours per week. They play video games 3.5 hours a week on their consoles, PCs, tablets, portable game devices, cell phones, etc. They watch the TV 16.5 hours per week. They only read 2 hours a week. They use computers and the Internet 5.5 hours per week, and they are generally as proficient or even more so than adults! They can’t stop using their phones for texting, calling, emailing, blogging, chatting, messaging, browsing the web, looking up information, sharing... you name it!

However... most teachers are still using only old-fashioned traditional methods, like chalk and board, or marker and board. (Did you know that chalk actually causes lounge diseases.) To close the gap, and to try to meet students in their learning environment, instead of chalk and board, you can use presentation software, including multimedia and interactivity.

Advantages for students:
  • This is an attractive format that addresses the students’ different learning styles (visual, auditory, and kinesthetic) because different multimedia methods, such as sounds, images, color, action, design, etc. can be used.
  • Also, presentation software helps with collaborative learning in group projects because it involves all students in the teaching and learning processes. It empowers learners to take control of their own learning, and allows them to demonstrate their work and progress.
  • Students who miss classes can review the material by watching the presentations, which enables them to catch up at home and not fall behind. Audio and motion can help them to grasp the important points in a class.
Advantages for teachers:
  • Presentation software can embellish the information in a lesson, and make presentations more organized and flexible.
  • The important points can be emphasized using graphics, animation and sound.
  • Presentation software can be used for reviewing the content.
  • The biggest advantage of using presentation software in the classroom is that teachers can adapt their lessons and re-use them indefinitely. Therefore, teachers save time because they don’t have to hand out materials, write on the board, repeat things (instructions or explanations), and so on.
The requirements, obviously, are the need for a computer, a projector and training on the use of the software. Fortunately, it is increasingly more common to find projectors and computers in classrooms everywhere. However, you should always have a “plan B”, because there can always be “technical” problems.

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Using audio books to learn/teach English

Apple In-Ear Headphones
Image by hiro.qli
We all know that the more exposure a person gets to the language they are trying to learn, the faster they will learn it, and the more vocabulary they will acquire.

Many of you are probably aware of the many graded audio books published by different ELT publishers, like Penguin, Macmillan, OUP, etc., and have used them in your classes, or as out-of-class assignments to help your students develop their reading and/or listening skills.

Browsing the web, I came across a very interesting resource: www.librivox.org. This is a digital library of volunteer audio recordings of books that are in the public domain. Their Wikipedia page states that it is probably the most prolific audiobook publisher since 2007. Their goal is “to make all books in the public domain available, for free, in audio format on the internet.” Here you can find all kinds of classic books that would be an excellent resource in your elementary or middle school classes. Titles include: Huckleberry Finn, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Treasure Island, Grimms’ Fairy Tales, Aesop’s Fables, and many more.

The site is a bit hard to navigate, but, luckily, there are other services that offer librivox's audiobooks in a more user-friendly catalog. One of these sites is www.booksshouldbefree.com. Be sure to check it out and download as many audiobooks as you think your students, your children, or you, yourselves, will love to hear!

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Icebreakers and team building activities

I came across this very interesting website, www.icebreakers.ws, that includes a good selection of icebreakers and team building activities organized by names, group size and categories. There are active activities that will get your students to move, get-to-know-you activities, and team building activities.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

ClassDojo is a great tool to improve students' engagement, motivation and behavior

Someone tweeted the other day about this nice web app, ClassDojo, and I think it might be a great tool for elementary school teachers.

Sunday, September 9, 2012

¿Cuáles son los niveles de inglés?

Tabla de equivalencias
"Terminé los niveles intermedios en una escuela de idiomas, pero cuando me fui a inscribir a otro instituto me dijeron que debía iniciar los niveles intermedios porque mi nivel era básico. ¡No lo podía creer! Hacía solo un par de meses que había dejado la otra escuela". Seguramente conoces a alguien que le ha sucedido esto, y quizá te has preguntado cómo es esto posible. ¿Qué no se supone que el nivel intermedio es el nivel intermedio?