Super Simple Summer Activities: Pt 2

A simple and adaptable communicative activity.

 

A few years ago I saw my good friend and fellow teacher, Ben Herbert, share this idea at at the Annual Young Ones Conference for teachers of Young Learners at International House Brno.

Basically it’s an info gap. But a really super simple tweak to make it more effective and motivate learners to want to do it.

The basic template (you can find a copy to download here) is a table that learners fill in themselves. It can be used for almost ANY language point.

For example, a few months ago I used the template to practice “Do you have a………in your bedroom?“. Yesterday, with a class of 9-11 year olds we used it to ask about what they like doing in their free time “Do you………in your free time?”

It’s great for summer camp/school as there is virtually no prep (in fact you don’t even need to print out the template, you could get the learners to draw a table on scrap paper) and so versatile. Brilliant for busy summer schedules. AND communicative 😀 win win!

Step one

I had some lines drawn up on the board similar to the worksheet and elicited things that people do in their free time. These were written in the left had column.

As below, I wrote them exactly as the learners called them out. e.g. if they called out ‘TV’, I simply wrote TV. But if they called out ‘read comics’, then I wrote read comics.

Step two

I then handed out the worksheet (see above to download a template) and asked students to write as many free time activities as they could think of. I encouraged them to choose their own and highlighted they don’t need to be the same as mine or the person next to them. If anyone needed help with a word or spelling, I wrote it on the board in case anyone else in the class also wanted to use that activity.

Once a few students had a full sheet, I asked them all to stop and reassured the others it didn’t matter if they didn’t have a complete sheet, as long as they had some.

Step three

I then directed the learners back to the board (I had my learners sitting on chairs in a horseshoe shape near the board with nothing but the paper and a pen, but this isn’t necessary).

I wrote my name in the first column and asked them to guess if I liked doing those activities. If they said yes I put a tick in the in the first column under my name and if they said no, a cross. I made it obvious I wasn’t going to tell them the answer yet. It was just a guess.

I then wrote one of the students names in the next column and told the class my guesses for the student – pointing out that he shouldn’t tell me the answer yet.

Step four

I asked the learners to write names of other students int he class in each of the boxes in the top row. I monitored to make sure they were writing in the right place.

Once a handful of people had finished I asked them to stop and again reassured them it didn’t matter if they hadn’t finished, as long as they had at least a few names.

Step five

I gave the learners a time limit to fill in their guesses with ticks and crosses and monitored to check they were in the right columns.

Step six

I redirected the class back to the board and asked the class to check their guesses about me and see if they were right. I elicited full sentences e.g. Do you read comics in your free time? and made sure to drill and board any sentences or vocabulary they had difficulty with. I also modelled and boarded Yes, I do. No, I don’t.

As I did this, I demonstrated how to put my answer in the right hand side column under my name. Once this was done I told them how many guesses they had right.

I then did the same for the student example and highlighted the things we had in common.

Step seven

I did one last drill of some questions using a couple of the learners chosen activities as examples, and then CCQs to check they knew what they had to do before setting them off to walk around the room and check to see if their guesses were correct. It was class of boys and they gave each other high fives each time they got a guess correct. They were fully engaged and using only English, even to high five. best of all, as they really enjoyed the activity and completed it successfully, it really boosted their confidence. They were really proud to have used only English for such a long time as well as complete mini exchanges with each other. I also encouraged them as I was monitoring to ask further questions if they wanted to e.g. “I play football too, who do you play for?” and boarded some of the phrases.

Step eight

We sat in a circle and talked about how many guesses we got correct, which answers were surprising, and which people had similar interests to us.

There are loads of possible follow ups. Writing a reports, drawing some graphs of pie charts, making a poster, giving a talk about what they learnt etc. I hope your learners like it too.

Enjoy!

 

Until next time….

 

 

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Super Simple Summer Activities Series: Pt 1

3 activities to whet your appetite – more to come!

It’s that time of year again when many of us TEFLers are off at a summer camp or summer school. Our goals tend to be more communicative, the atmosphere more relaxed, our learners more energised. We may also have additional activities like sports afternoons and drama clubs etc.

Are you teaching YL this summer?

Do you have…

• Large classes?
• Mixed Ability?
• High spirited kids on “holiday” with energy to burn?
• No time or energy for anything that isn’t super simple and super easy to prepare?

I’ve got you covered with these no-fuss, low(to no)-prep, faithful old favourites.

Port – Starboard 

Picture source: https://www1.toronto.ca

 

What: Listen and do game

Who: Great for 7-11, but any age really

Resources needed: None, just space

As a kid this was one of my favourite games at summer camps. The basic premise is that a teacher/leader calls out prompts. The students do the appropriate action. E.g. leader calls out “port!” and the students run to the left of the room. Leader calls out “Starboard” and the students run to the right of the room etc. Last one to do the action is out. Last person standing is the winner. Simple. Adaptable. Fun. Super!

Upon googling this fabulous game I stumbled across this amazing resource , a list of different actions and extra ideas for the basic game.

I love the original game, but I love how the basic premise is so adaptable. Last week my 8 year old learners were doing animals and habitats but had so much energy to burn they could have run a marathon. We played our own version of port-starboard with connected animal and habitat vocabulary. It was a real hit!

Zombie

What: Vocabulary drilling with a difference

Who: 3-8 love it, but no reason you can’t go older.

Resources needed: Flashcards*

*Don’t have flashcards? No problem. Students could draw the pictures. Students could write the words on a slip of paper. No paper no pens? Also no problem. Students could choose an action and act out the word they are allocated (or choose).

The first time I did this with my pre-schoolers (as they were zombie obsessed) I had no idea it would become such a hit.

• All students stand in a circle facing other (but could equally be scattered around a room or garden). Each student has a flashcard.
• One student in the middle is the Zombie.
• The student in the middle holds their arms up like a zombie and walks toward any other student. But, they must chant the word for the card that student has over and over in a zombie like voice. e.g. “appppplleee….apppllleee…apppllleee”
• The child holding the apple card needs to say the name of another item being held up by another student.
• If the student says another word before the zombie reaches and touches them, the zombie must change directions and head for the new word, again, chanting the new word. If the zombie touches the student before they say one of the words another student is holding, they become the zombie.

Super easy. Super adaptable. Super fun.

Enjoy!

Fruit Salad

What: Vocabulary or grammar game

Who: All ages depending on how it’s adapted

Resources needed: Chairs

I think everyone knows this game, right? But maybe by a different name? It’s an oldie but a goody. and SO so easy to set up, play, adapt.

Students sit on chairs in a circle. There should be one fewer chairs than students and the student without a chair stands in the centre of the circle.

In the simplest version of the game the teacher would allocate different fruits to the children. e.g. walk around saying pear, banana, apple, orange, pear, banana, apple, orange until everyone is given a fruit. The child in the middle then calls out a fruit. e.g. “banana” and all the bananas must stand up and change seats. Meanwhile the child in the middle runs to an empty chair. The child left without a seat is the next to call out a fruit. for added fun, if the centre child calls out “fruit salad!“, EVERYONE must stand up and run.

I like to use this at the beginning of summer programmes to work out what learners can and can’t do. I get them to say anything at all about themselves and students, for whom the information is also true, get up and change. e.g. “I have a brother” “I like chocolate”. 

It’s so easy to adapt. Anything from “Stand up if you’re wearing blue”, “I’ve never been to Paris”, to “This time next week I’ll be on holiday”. Vocabulary and structures practices are only limited by the teacher’s imagination.

Enjoy!

Extra

If you do have time for a bit more prep, here is a summer school/camp idea from last year. Especially good for dog lovers!

Boom Chicka Boom!

I recently got to do my favourite all time sessions, not once, but twice! First at the ‘Young Ones’ Conference at ILC Brno and then at the SCIO project conference here in Prague.

Boom Chicka Boom: Using Songs and Chants in the YL Classroom is a session I’ve done quite a few times now. I mix it up a bit each time, but the principles remain the same. Each time I do it it gets a great response and people request slides and handouts. Until now I didn’t have a handout. Drum roll….here it is!

Boomchickaboom_ handout October2014

I’m also uploading the powerpoints

boom chicka boom BRNO 2014

boom chicka boom SCIO 2014

I’ve added some resources to the bottom of the handout. Please share more in the comments if you have them. I have a little project up my sleeve and hoping to collect as many resources and links as I can.

Until next time…

Bringing Lasagne to Life: A ridiculously long blog post

One of the best things about working for IHWO is their conferences. I have to tell you, be jealous folk, be very jealous, as the IHWO 2014 DOS conference certainly didn’t disappoint. It’s right up there with my favourite conferences of all time. Did I mention Patsy M. Lightbown sat at my lunch table. Twice!! Yes, THE Patsy M. Lightbown! This TEFL geek was in teflygeek heaven, I tell you. Bravo Shaun Wilden and OUP, Bravo!

As promised, (thanks for all your interest), I’ve logged on to the ghost town that is my blog (I promise to make more of an effort in 2014) and here I am, sharing my ‘speed dating’ presentation with you. Enjoy!

What was it?

The title of my mini presentation was ‘Bringing Language to Life’, or as those who’d spent the evening before at the hotel bar called it, ‘Bringing Lasagne to Life’. Either way, I took 3 age groups and 3 problems and presented 3 super easy media projects (so easy that even the biggest of technophobes can manage them, promise!).

Age Group 1

Very Young Learners

Problem

This age group struggle a bit with CAE and FCE given they generally can’t read or write. Parents, however, want some kind of evidence that their child is learning and that their money has been well spent. And so was born the ‘end of year performance’ <sigh>. In my experience end year performance teachers fall somewhere on a scale between SDT and OST. Allow me to elaborate….

Behold, Exhibit A: The super-duper-make-the-rest-of-us-feel-bad teacher. AKA as the SDT. The SDT is an amazing teacher who works hard all year long to get the most language and learning they can happening in their fun filled classroom. The SDT’s students are equally amazing, how could they not be? The SDT spends months meticulously planning a spectacular end of year performance with hours and hours of rehearsals, quite possibly with props and costumes.

And at the other end of the end of year performance spectrum we have the debatably more common, Exhibit B: The oh-shit-is-that-today teacher. AKA as the OST. The OST really doesn’t give a hoot about the end of year performance. They followed the coursebook. Most of the time. Kept the kids alive. What more do you want? Besides, their class love singing ‘Heads, shoulders, knees and toes’. Again. And, if you, their DOS, will be there, what the hell, they may even push out the boat and throw in some actions too.

Many a great YL teacher started an SDT. Slowly though, teyl-land eats away at them and even the most passionate and dedicated will likely have at least one OST experience. Why? Because they know what we all know in the TEYL world: regardless of whether they had an SDT or OST, 90% of the time, (possibly higher) the little darlings stand there staring at the floor. Or, at best, sing ‘heads, shoulders, knees and poo’. Because, let’s face it, that’s hilarious! It’s at that point some of us realise, it wasn’t just for the parents, we could have done with some sort of feedback on our hard work throughout the year too. <insert virtual hugs for all>

A few years back I had a super amazing class of 5 year olds. It was their first year learning English and they were fab. Naturally then, leading up to open door week, I couldn’t wait to see the look of pride on each parent’s face whilst observing their child’s brilliance. I think you can guess where this is going. Did they shine and glow and woo us with their very presence? Of course they didn’t. They mucked about, ignored me, threw things or stood silently and even said loudly and clearly to me in Czech (on more than one occasion throughout the lesson) ‘Nemluvim Anglicky’, I don’t speak English. The parents actually didn’t mind. They gave me a sympathetic look. The kind you might give to Brad Pitt’s character in 12 monkeys. I couldn’t quite believe my 8 little monkeys had let me down. Where did I go wrong?

Solution

An end of year film premiere!

For the final month of the school year, I spent one of the two 45-minute weekly lessons working together with the class on our ‘movie project’.

1. They voted for their favourite book. Hungry Caterpillar! (woohoo! My favourite too).

2. We spent every lesson leading up to the premiere on language work. It was both explicit and integrated. We worked on obvious language points from the book (colours, days of the week, food etc), language for project work and language that came up and was requested by the students. I was pleasantly surprised at just how much language they asked for and used because they really wanted to communicate with me and be involved. In my eyes it was a successful project even without the end product.

3. The kids drew and cut out pictures for the story. I gave them all some blue tack and they decided where the pictures would go on a back drop, as I read out the story.

4. The kids took it in turns to take photos of the backdrops with the pictures tacked on. Between you and me, I had to retake quite a lot of the pictures, but they think they took them, and that’s the main thing. They decided, on their own, that they would say the words ‘ready, picture, go!’ just before taking each picture (which was a cue for the other students to move out the way). How super cute is that?

5. I showed them all the pictures on a slide show and informed them we needed sound. I’d found 5 different ‘garden’ sounds on the internet the night before the lesson which I let them listen to and choose which one they liked. They talked to each other in Czech about what they could hear and asked me how to say different things in English e.g. ‘Cricket’ ‘frog’ ‘wind’ (I always pretend I can’t speak any Czech. Not at all difficult given my current…ermm..abilities) .

6. Using an MP3 player I recorded the students telling the story. The first recording was mayhem as the kids fighting over what was ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ and who said what better, so in the end, we agreed that each student would take it in turns. I wanted motivation to remain super high, so I didn’t do any correction. Plus, I think it’s cute on the final video when you hear one little girl repeatedly say caterpilly and a little boy in the background explain to another little boy (in Czech) that the caterpillar is very hungry.

7. I put the pictures together into a slideshow using picassa (a free photo editing program). I then added the MP3 file of the kids reading the story and changed the speed of the slide transitions so that they matched the recording. I also chose different kinds of transitions e.g. zooming in and out, so that it looked more movie like. Once I was happy with this I added some subtitles, for the parents. This part of the project was done by me, obviously. Trust me though, it was all very easy. Matching the slide transitions to the voice over was time consuming but easy. Probably even easier for someone who actually knows what they are doing 😀

I really wanted to include the kids as much as possible and feel proud of everything they’d had a hand in, and no movie is complete without credits, so I took the kids to the computer room, showed the draft of our movie/slideshow on a big screen using a data projector, and let them choose the fonts for credits. They LOVED seeing their names on the big screen.

Finally, I added photos of the kids actually doing the project at the end of the ‘movie’. I did this in the computer room with the kids watching on the big screen and we discussed what they were doing and the project in general. I asked them what song they wanted for these final photos and they replied ‘apples’. No idea what they wanted. I had the Andrews Sisters ‘Don’t sit under the apple tree’ on my laptop, so I added that. They liked it because it had the word apple in it. Youtube on the other hand didn’t like that bit So I’m not going to breech copyright and include a link to the video here. You’ll have to use your imagination 😀

8. Now that the kids had seen the draft, they were super excited, so we made event posters, invitations and tickets.

9. On the day of the premiere, we set the computer room up with rows of seats and red carpet and of course a big screen. We had ‘paparazzi’ and I invited everyone who was in the staffroom and offices etc at the time. One by one I invited each child to walk in on the red carpet. The crowd clapped and cheered. The paparazzi snapped. I couldn’t stop smiling watching their little faces beam. During the movie the kids couldn’t keep quiet ‘Mum, I took that photo’ ‘Mum, I drew that egg, I wanted to use an Easter egg by Teacher Kylie told me it should be a caterpillar egg’, ‘Mum, it turns into a caterpillar at the end’, ‘shsssshhh, don’t tell her the end, it’s only hungry now’ etc etc. The room was buzzing and it was the cutest thing ever. The kids were talking to their parents in Czech, but, it was obvious to the parents that in English lessons, a LOT happens in English.

Age Group

8-12

Problem

‘What do we use English for?’ They haven’t quite turned ‘sour’ just yet. They are potential teacher pleasers, but they don’t really know why they should bother learning this weird language with funny spelling.

Solution

I did what many YL teachers, including myself, have done before: A class comic.

The example I gave at the conference was my favourite of all time titled ‘Magic Planet’. The main characters, Matej the Wizzard and his pet lion Mr Sock aka The Strongest Lion in The World  lived together, as best friends, in Bradavice castle (google translate it J) on ‘Magic Planet’. Matej and Mr Sock both love aliens, pizza, trains and dinosaurs, naturally, and so like to pass the time by travelling to earth in their spaceship to see different time periods.

The first part of the project involved creating the characters, adjectives to describe them etc and deciding where they live and what they like to do. Then, after each unit in the coursebook we added a new chapter to our comics. The successfully used past simple to talk about dinosaurs and made interesting predictions about the students of the future. The most interesting chapter was when their assistant, Mrs Kylie, got stuck in a train toilet and had to be rescued by Mr Sock…..you’ll see in a moment where I’m going with this…..

We didn’t use any fancy apps or programmes. Students designed their own costumes which they brought to class with them on project days. We drew up some story boards, then went out into the garden and took photos of the students acting out the scenes. (Yes, I did. Yes, I was). These were then posted into a word document and the students then added speech bubbles to each photo. Students were allowed to ask me for vocab (which they did) and encouraged to use spell check and ask each other for proof reading etc. At the end of the year, chapters were collated into a book, leaving students with not only something to take home and be proud of, but a record of the language points and new vocab they’d covered throughout the year.

Age Group

Teens

Problem

Err, where do I start? No, seriously. ‘Bored’ doesn’t even cut it, right? How many times can the present perfect be covered, anyway? Anyone who teaches teens know that they know everything, right? so why are we wasting our time revising all this stuff?

Teens always seem to want to escape whatever it is they think you’ve got planned for them. My teens always wanted to do Aussie slang. It’s flattering the first time they ask, and I think they really do enjoy it (more so than other ‘escaping from the coursebook’ activities anyway), but what for? Will they ever need to know or use the expression ‘Fair dinkum, mate. She’ll be right!’?

Solution

An Aussie soap opera. I’ve done this many times and most teens love the idea of learning some Aussie slang and then using it to write an Aussie Soap Opera (I’m looking at you Alf Stewart). What they probably don’t realise is that for me, it’s all about the process. I couldn’t care less what they come up with. I once cried with laughter when  an aptly named protagonist , Bruce, told the guy working at the Bottlo to ‘pash my ass ya flaming galah’. For this particular group, I did explain that a ‘pash’ wasn’t quite the same as a kiss, but largely I let them write whatever they want. My objective is always to get them working collaboratively and speaking in English throughout the project. I do this two ways. I have designated ‘English only’ parts of the project, which of course means a little preparatory language work, and we practice a kind of cooperative learning (correct me if it’s called something else). Within each ‘Production Team’, students have specific jobs e.g. the screenwriter, the manager, the PR person etc. Each student is responsible for making sure their part of the project runs smoothly. Managers make sure each person speaks English, screenwriters make sure everything is recorded in written down, PR people feedback to the teacher etc. It’s fabulous for mixed ability classes. Each student can shine as not only a language learner, but as a person. What I often find is that in the end, the teens really don’t care about recording the soap, they just enjoy the process.

 

Wall Street, Feline Intelligence and YLs.

Anne Petzer is an uber experienced BE Teacher, published author and YL newbie. She kindly agreed to chat to me on skype about the new additions to her, normally adult filled, timetable. A class of preschoolers and a class of 8 yr olds. Fun times ahead!

Kylie Malinowska: Shall we start the interview? I’m excited. I’ve never interviewed anyone before 🙂

Anne Petzer: Ok. Yes. Fire away.

Kylie Malinowska: So Anne, you blushed when I referred to you as an ‘uber experienced BE teacher’. How long have you been teaching Business and general English? And is it true you worked in ‘Business” for a long time before teaching?

Anne Petzer: 🙂 I started in 2002 in Akcent IH Prague and before that I had worked in business since 1989 as a PR Manager, then in charge of Credit and Returns for a National Radiator in their OEM dept.

Kylie Malinowska: So I think I can call you ‘uber experienced’ then 🙂 So why the change? Why does a woman with a background in business and almost 10 years of teaching Adults (predominantly) Business English decide to teach YL’s?

Anne Petzer: Well I do like children, but it all really started after the YL session on DELTA. I decided to give a go. Businessmen tend to be mostly stressed and bogged down with the pressures and stress of the business world. They can be ‘hard work’ to get them motivated about doing things in English. So I decided to observe a Pre-School class and LOVED the excitement and enthusiasm.

Kylie Malinowska: Well, motivating YL’s certainly involves different techniques as opposed to motivating businessmen. They say a change is as good as a holiday, but surely there was some initial apprehension before making the move? Was there anything you were/ are worried about? What is the scariest thing about the prospect of facing, for example, a class full of 5 yr olds?

Anne Petzer: I was mainly worried I wouldn’t  be able to make the class interesting at their level. One can’t go in and say ‘So, what do you think about the crash on Wall Street?’, and expect a whole discussion evolving. Would I keep their interest in activities? Knowing their attention span is not the same as an adult class.

Kylie Malinowska: It’s not easy to go into a YL class without any experience or YL specific training. Sometimes teachers who don’t teach YL underestimate just how difficult our job can be at times and that we use a whole range of skills that courses like the CELTA (and even the DELTA)  don’t even begin to cover. Do you find that you have a greater appreciation for us YL teachers now than you did before the move?

Anne Petzer: O I have always great appreciation for you YL teachers. I come from a huge family and have always been around children. I did sub a few YL classes and that wasn’t easy.

Kylie Malinowska: Can you give me an example of one of the big differences you’ve noticed between YL and Adult classes?

Anne Petzer: Do you mean in planning them, teaching them or the response from students.

Kylie Malinowska: Good point. So many differences in so many areas. All or any? What is the biggest or most important difference for you?

Anne Petzer: In planning and teaching a YL class as mentioned the activities are arranged to keep their interest and attention for example action activities and then calm them down. In adult classes it’s not the case. Secondly,…the children are open and willing to try anything – not embarrassed to give it a go whereas this is not always the case with adults

Kylie Malinowska: I really like that part of YL teaching too. I find their honesty refreshing.

Anne Petzer: Sometimes to be honest it’s like pulling teeth.

Kylie Malinowska: Hehehe I like that analogy. You mentioned doing a ‘sub’ and finding it difficult. Many teachers do a ‘substitute’ YL lesson and afterward state they never want to teach a YL class ever again. What advice would you give to such teachers?

Anne Petzer: Go with an open mind, be yourself (the kids will see straight through you), and allow yourself to have fun with them.

Kylie Malinowska: Now that you’ve had a taste, do you see yourself continuing to teach YL in the future? Any plans to do the IHCYLT?

Anne Petzer: 🙂 Well I am definitely looking forward to this year teaching them. I haven’t thought beyond that regards the IHCYLT yet.

Kylie Malinowska: I highly recommend it. It makes those teeth easier to pull J I mentioned in my intro that you have recently published your first novel and the second one will be released very soon. The fantasy element of your book appeals to children. Will you be using similar ideas in class? Despite what psychologists claimed all those years ago kids love humanised animal characters. Perhaps ‘Zvonek’ can report back to the class via email on the mistakes he has detected in their work hehehe

Anne Petzer: LOL now there’s a story I hadn’t thought about. I will use acting in story telling, yes.

Kylie Malinowska: Will you at least be introducing your 8 yr olds to the characters in your book? Who wouldn’t love a feline spy?

Anne Petzer: I hadn’t thought about that but am sure can use a cat somewhere 🙂

Anne Petzer: I already have a cool idea for Halloween.

Kylie Malinowska: Can you share your idea for Halloween or is it a secret?

Anne Petzer: Well, it involves getting dressed up as a cat and the cat being involved in the learning process…. The rest will be revealed at a later date 🙂 So, yes, I guess I’m already planning on using ideas from my book to motivate the students.

Kylie Malinowska: Well, I promised this interview would be short, so I should wrap it up. Thank you so much. I’d like to chat to you again after a few more classes to see if you still like the YL side of the fence 🙂 I’d also like to invite comments from anyone reading about their first YL experience. Thanks again for chatting to me Anne.

Anne Petzer: Ok, no problem. Thank you 🙂 that was fun-my first ever interview.

Kylie Malinowska. Thank YOU Anne 🙂

Are you new to YL? Was it scary? exciting? Please feel free to leave comments and come back soon to see the next interview with Cesca K, an experienced YL teacher and IH CYLT tutor who has kindly agreed to share some teaching tips, ideas and useful links.

If you are interested in supporting fellow YL teacher Anne Petzer by buying her first published book, you can do so on the link provided on the ‘links’ section of this blog.

Until next time….

Blogging

YL Teacher and Blogging virgin (Well, I was until I hit the ‘publish now’ button)

Everyone has a blog these days, especially if you’re a ‘serious’ teacher. Right?
It’s the beginning of the new school year here in Europe, so here we go. Pens, check. coursebooks, check. Twitter account, check. Bucketload of technology and dogme and whatever else the latest and greatest teaching tool is, check. Blog, check. Wait, what?
I’ve read a few and they’re very impressive. Some are about dogme. Others are about dogme. Some more are about dogme, and the rest are mostly about the latest and greatest technological advances in the teaching world complete with videos and what-have-you and other exciting gadgets I don’t know the name of. Don’t get me wrong, many of these blogs are great. I’ve really enjoyed reading most of them and have learnt a lot. Some bloggers are the first with all the news, some have fantastic ideas and some are such good writers you wonder what an earth they are doing teaching English. I really take my hat off to these bloggers. They are the bomb. But what about those retro teachers like me who are still playing past simple battleships on a bit of scrap paper and not ebeam spacemonkeys? Are we in danger? Will we be left behind? Do we need to blog, tweet, ‘Elluminate’ our lives in order to prove our worth?
Maybe, maybe not, but I don’t want to get left behind. I’d just rather walk at my own pace. So in the spirit of taking that first step, I recently gave in and decided to have the seasons must have accessory. A blog. And yes, yet another TEFL blog.
Unlike other bloggers out there, I’m not a writer, I’m not up with the latest and greatest and I don’t have any groundbreaking ideas. What o what to blog about? And while I’m at it, actually, I don’t even know how to blog or where to start! I was about ready to ditch my blog dream until last just week during induction, when I had an epiphany of sorts. I was eliciting from the new teachers that their greatest resource was each other. Each other! That was it!
Have you ever sat on a park bench watching people walk by and wondered who they were and where they were going? Or maybe you’ve heard the kids in the class next to yours perfectly quiet or very noisy and wondered what is going on? Well….here is my blog idea. I want to interview other YL teachers out there in the TEFL world and find out who they are and what they are doing. I want to ‘walk’ through the TEFL world and grab some bits and pieces of info at a leisurely pace. I want to ask ‘real’ teachers what they are ‘really’ doing in their classrooms. What goes well, what flops? What are their favourite resources, games, websites, blogs, and even technological gadgets!! Anything really. So here I go. I’m doing it. I’m blogging baby! I hope you will join me on my walk 🙂

Oh, and stay tuned for my first interview with uber experienced BE teacher, published author and YL newbie Anne Petzer.

Until next time…