Over the length of my teaching career, I’ve changed in many ways. I think my journey mimics that of a lot of other ELT teachers. 1. I have slowed down my delivery and instruction considerably. I used to just screech and scream through content. Now, I relax and pause a lot. I take time to [...]
Posts under ‘Stuff All EFL Teachers Should Know’
Tips for Teaching Teens (by Michelle Worgan)
Part of the series: Stuff All EFL Teachers Should Know While trying to have a quick nap on a hot Friday afternoon in Southern Spain, I started thinking of what to write about for this guest post. Two ideas came to me – the first being the use of puppets in the early learner classroom, [...]
Animal Magic with Young Learners (by Leahn Stanhope)
Part of the series: Stuff All EFL Teachers Should Know I was initially very flattered when Barbara asked me to write a guest post, then my happy feeling turned to mild panic. Finally I just decided to write so here we are. This post is dedicated to one of my favourite ‘props’ for the young [...]
Formative Assessment (by Matthew Spira)
I was thirty-two years old the first time I stepped into a kindergarten classroom as an English instructor. Because I previously had fairly extensive leadership experience as a military officer, the general manager of a multi-million dollar software company, and as an operations manager within a multi-billion dollar conglomerate, I just didn’t think teaching children [...]
How to Create a Jazz Chant by Carolyn Graham
Part of the series: Stuff All EFL Teachers Should Know Last November, Carolyn Graham did a workshop at the JALT National Conference in Shizuoka, Japan, on how to make a Jazz Chant. I taped her workshop, and with her permission am sharing the part of it where she demonstrates her technique. One of the many [...]
Love and Respect (by Melania Paduraru)
A few days ago, a much younger colleague of mine in her first teaching year was complaining about how difficult it is to be a teacher and how stressed she feels when entering a classroom full of 14 year-olds who sometimes give her a really hard time. Too absorbed by my own problems, I left [...]
Children are Always Cute (by Esra Girgin Akiskali)
“A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove…but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.” Forest E. Witcraft Children are always cute and eager to learn but [...]
Teaching Young Learners with Songs (by Matt Richelson)
Barbara was so kind to ask me to write about how to use songs with young learners. I have learned a lot from teaching English using songs, and I am happy to share what I know. I have a background in music, and bringing music into the classroom has been very natural for me. What [...]
Individual Differences Count (by Mike Harrison)
“Feelings of worth can flourish only in an atmosphere where individual differences are appreciated, mistakes are tolerated, communication is open, and rules are flexible – the kind of atmosphere that is found in a nurturing family” Virginia Satir, author and psychotherapist (1916-1988) My experience as a teacher of English is not vast – I am [...]
Whatever gets them through the door (by Daniel T. Kirk)
Over the last twenty-three years, I have taught English to people in every demographic category other than homeless people. Over that time, the issue that continues to pique my interest is their motivation for carrying their feet across the threshold of my classroom. I have an idea about what gets my college students into class, [...]
