Learning by reading

It was by lucky chance that I got hold of the book See Me After Class by Roxanna Elden.

The book may be described as a teacher's manual or a guide to beginners and it is focused on American schools, yet the tips and tricks given in the book easily apply to most teaching problems in the world.

What I liked about the book is that Roxanna Elden looks at everyday troubles in class with humour and confidence, making it possible to believe that every difficult situation can be resolved positively and there is no need to despair and despond.

Though many situations and rules differ from those in my country, and most situational examples are given for primary level (which is not relevant to me), there are lots and lots of  ideas and tips that are universal and can be applicable to any school, any class.

Here are a few ideas that I liked and will try (seriously!) to use in my work.

1. Files! Filing every paper or document that enters your classroom is not only an ancient idea but also a very productive and hard-to-manage idea. Roxanna Elden suggests to keep a number of files, all labelled, for any paper that "touches your desk", for example, Blank forms, Department information, Emergency, Lesson plans, Extra copies, Sample student work, Leftover copies etc. I have been doing something like this for some years but I have never reached perfection (which would be the ultimate goal of this system).

2. There are loads of tips regarding student management and discipline, e.g. Establish clear rules and consequences. This is my weak point as I often tend to forget the rule I invented and it is the worst thing that can happen to any rule. If its implementation is not ensured, the rule stops to exist, doesn't it?

3. I liked a few ideas about how to start a class, e.g. meeting students at the door and either distributing handouts to them or collecting homework. That may be a great time-saver!

4. "Shaving grading time off each assignment". Who wouldn't want it? Some ideas: grade only part of the assignment (but tell this to your students), focus only on one problem, pick only a few assignments to grade, give two grades for a longer assignment, e.g. an essay, do "holistic grading", i.e. skim the assignment for effort, understanding, completeness, then give a quick grade and move on.

5. Roxanna Elden pays special attention to relations with difficult parents and co-workers, advising to avoid negative teachers (I second that!) who constantly complain about their job. She says, "Complaining about your job is a lot like drinking.... If you do it too much, you'll be sorry."

The book consists of 200 pages and each one is packed with true-to-life teaching moments, teacher stories, problem situations, tried-and-tested tips and solutions. And, yes, you should read it if you find it.

Ending the school year

The school year has reached its final stage, with the English exam already done. Students are dreaming of summer holidays (as are teachers). More interesting things are happening outside school, and who could blame them for wishing to be part of real life?

To say good-bye to school 2012/2013, I am posting here a video made by one of my students. Their task was to make a short speech on a topic of their choice.
"Everyone should believe in something" - that is what Dzenita [dʒenɪtɑ] is speaking about.

Tools for text addition to images

Pictures speak louder than words, yes, but words help to convey the message more effectively.

There are numerous tools for manipulating images to achieve a desired effect but in this post I am going to write only about one way of working with images, i.e. adding text to an image.

All the web tools mentioned in this post have two things in common (and for this reason they are great to use with students):
1) they are free of charge,
2) they do not require registration.
Needless to say, anyone can cope with uploading an image (or borrowing it from the internet) and adding a text box to the image, so I won't write any instructions how to do it.

The picture above which shows me in my classroom was made with the help of Pinwords tool. Easy and fast!

These are my students photographed a while ago. The image on the left was worked with BeFunky,
but the image on the right with PicMonkey.

My students again. I used Roflbot for the picture on the left and Picfont for the picture on the right.

A moment caught at the lesson. The image manipulation tool is Picadilo.

I inserted a text line in the picture by using LunaPic photo editor.

Finally, check out Pixlr which was used for adding text to the image above. The picture was taken in Iceland this February.


Why would a teacher or a student want to use this image editing feature?

First and foremost, once you add some text to the image, you instantly get a short story. By putting many images together, you create a longer story. By putting all student stories together, you get a class book!
Thus this method can be successfully used in storytelling. Students can use their own drawings too, not only photos. This method is indispensable for creating comics.

Images with a written message serve well in presentations, especially if a student is not very voluble.
A caption inserted in the picture helps the viewers to understand the author's attitude or the idea of a snapshot.

Put your story on the cube

When I learned about CubeCreator from the readwritethink website, I thought it might easily be used with students to make the tedious learning process more attractive.

Students can make three types of pre-designed cubes and the fourth possibility is to make their own cube.

For their first cube my students had to use the BioCube template to create the biography of a famous athlete. As you can see, they produced great cubes and enjoyed themselves in the process.

The next cube they are going to create will be MysteryCube. As for the mysteries - it's up to my students.

Challenges of Adult Language Learning

My guest today is Marina Salsbury who planned on becoming a teacher since high school, but found her way instead into online writing after college. She writes around the Web about everything from education to exercise.

Marina's article focuses on the problems and challenges in language learning which college students and adults face if English is not their native language.

image by urbanphotographer on flickr

 The concept of a “critical period” for language learning has been of much debate historically. However, linguists' as well as language teachers' current thoughts reflect acceptance that college-age and adult learners can become quite fluent. Despite this possibility, adult language learners face unique challenges in college ESL classes online or on campus. Understanding these challenges and how to face them may help both teachers and learners attain greater success in learning English.

Some challenges adult English learners face are common among any adult language learners. Learning languages may be more difficult as one grows older, and adult learners may not be willing to speak and practice language because they feel silly or embarrassed. Learning may go quickly at first, when a lot of new vocabulary is introduced, and then may seem to slow to a crawl as grammar and other concepts become more complicated.

These problems with acquiring grammar and structure as an adult seem to be true regardless of the language being learned. Facing these challenges takes time and patience, but can be aided by being willing to use English frequently, even if it’s not perfect. Finding opportunities to use English and practice what's being learned in the classroom will help students begin to overcome the problems they face. By gaining more input and interaction, English learning will be better facilitated, and classroom lessons will become relevant and meaningful.

Learning English, though, presents some problems for beginning learners that adult learners of other languages don’t necessarily face. The major issue is simply accessibility. Most English language programs in the US teach their classes completely in English. Students with no previous knowledge of English may have a difficult time understanding and keeping up. Textbooks are written almost exclusively in English, making independent study quite difficult for students who don't already know how to read English. Even seeking individual help from instructors may be difficult because they may not be able to offer explanations in a language other than English. Students in these programs with no background in English may need to find additional tutors, lower-level courses, or online programs that can help with translation. Another option is to take a few English classes in their home countries so they have at least a basic knowledge of English and can access the information in subsequent classes.

Of course, for EFL learners who may not have ready access to English within their local communities, finding ways to practice English outside of the classroom can be challenging. One of the best ways to get more English input is through entertainment media. TV shows, movies, and music in English can provide interesting and accessible English to study or at least be exposed to. For more interactive practice, students should encourage themselves to only speak English with classmates. They can also find online conversation partners, or check out the expat community where native speakers may be willing to exchange conversation practice in the local language.

Adult learners who don’t begin their English study until college are likely to encounter difficulties, even if fluency is attainable. Not only are they faced with typical language learning challenges, but they may find English inaccessible, either through program design or location. By finding ways to make English accessible, these students will find a greater degree of success as they work toward becoming fluent speakers of English.

Back to School Ice Breakers

This is a great moment in the life of my blog because I am having my first guest writer!

Natalie Hunter grew up wanting to be a teacher, and is addicted to learning and research. As a result she is grateful for the invention of the internet because it allows her to spend some time outside, rather than just poring through books in a library. She is fascinated by the different methodologies for education at large today, and particularly by the advent of online education. She also loves to travel and learn via interaction with other people and cultures.

September has started, and if the school year hasn't begun already for you it soon will. Teachers and students everywhere can dread coming into a new class and meeting new people, whether they are in a real classroom or in online school. Some worry that they don't have the kind of skills they need to stay on par with the class, which can be quite daunting. Acclimating to new surroundings can be difficult for everyone, but with the right kind of introductory exercises, it can be easy to relax students and teachers alike and get the school year off to a good start.

Ice breakers can be as simple as the teacher wants them to be. Almost everyone has experienced the one where everyone introduces themselves by telling everyone their names, where they are from, and an interesting fact about themselves. If the class is large or if you think it may be easier on some students to not speak in front of everyone, the class can be broken up into small groups. The important thing about ice breakers is to not only situate students in a class but also help them to relax so that the class might be fun for everyone.

A more elaborate ice breaker that can be used for any age group would be to have each student write down a given number of questions. They should be questions that anyone can answer, and that can't be answered with a yes or a no. Students learning English should be monitored during this process to see how their formation is doing, and students at higher levels can be asked to form more complex questions. When everyone is done, introduce the activity by asking the students to put enough blank spaces to fill in with every other student's name. Then everyone could stand up and wander around the room, making sure to ask everyone one question, writing down their names as well as their answers. At the end, hand out sheets of paper for everyone in the classroom with one student's name on it to pass around, and the class can collectively fill out little biographies about each student that can be shared or posted on the wall. You can also ask students to volunteer what interesting things they learned about one another, and talk about some fun questions that may have been asked.

Another fun ice breaker is to hand out notecards to everyone and ask them to write a few things about themselves, like what they hope to learn over the school year, their favorite ice cream flavor is, or what is the one thing that everyone should know about them. Put them in a hat and then shake them around, and then draw them out to read to the class one by one. Have everyone guess who the person is if they can, explain why they guessed so, and when the name is found write that name on the back of the card and save it. At the end of the year, you can pass the cards out to each student and they may be excited to see what has changed in the intervening year.

These are just a couple of examples of what can be done to help students get to know each other and to start verbalizing during the first few days of school, and to help the teacher begin to get used to their new students and their needs. Just remember, it's a new experience for everyone, and in the end the object is to help everyone feel at ease and comfortable with one another as learning begins.

✒✑ ✒✑ ✒✑ ✒✑
We both would appreciate a comment or a question from the readers of this blog.
      

Where to fish for back-to-school ideas

image by jchip8 from http://www.pixdaus.com

While I was thinking of writing about my favourite back-to-school activities, I realized that none of them are downright my creations, they have all been gathered over the years from different websites, jotted down at seminars, learned at conferences, heard form colleagues.
So what I ended up doing was I decided to post a digest of web links to different sites which offer useful tips and classroom materials for the first lessons of the new school year.

Scholastic is a fantastic website for all things teachers need. Here are a few pages with valuable advice and tips.
Top 5 Ways to Get to Know Your Students - great suggestions for introductions and getting acquainted with your new class.
8 Ways to Welcome Students - help your students feel comfortable in the new class.
Fabulous First-Day Ideas - suggestions for classroom activities on the first days of school.


Another great website for teachers is Education World. Check out these pages.
Fun Activities: Get the School Year Off To a Good Start - will help the teacher get the year off to a great start.
Icebreakers Volume 4: Activities for the First Day of School - teacher-tested ideas for getting to know your students.
Check out more icebreakers and other fabulous ideas in Back to School Archive.

Teaching Happily Ever After is a great blog about creative teaching which has a page on back-to-school activities suitable for little kids. You will get inspired by the pictures of classroom arrangement and decorations, and you can also read some useful tips.


Brainpop has a fantastic Back-to-school page with an interactive quiz, lesson plans, graphic organizers and a Brainpop animated movie kids will love.


A huge list of back to school activities has been published on the TeachersCorner. Be prepared to spend some time reading about "get to know you" and icebreaker ideas, first day lessons, and bulletin board ideas. Printable activities and worksheets included.

There are plenty of websites which offer printable worksheets and lesson activities. Here are just a few of them.

A terrific collection of 80 Back-to-School - First Lesson worksheets is published on BusyTeacher website. The worksheets are aimed at younger kids but you will find many activities suitable also for older students.
 
Freeology website has a great collection of printables including icebreakers, "get to know you" games, and beginning of the year activities.


Finally, check out this video for little kids which is the right choice for setting the cheerful and dynamic mood in the classroom.

Easy classroom management tricks

While reflecting on my work during the school year that has just ended, I went through different classroom management methods I had been using in my lessons and found that some of the most efficient ones were the following:

• Secret student

The teacher writes all the names of the students on separate cards. At the beginning of a lesson the teacher picks out a card with a student's name but does not reveal it. The rule is that this student will be observed during the whole lesson and he will be given an evaluation of his work at the end of the lesson. The thrill of this method is that no one knows who has been picked and everyone tries to behave and do lesson work.

This works well with younger students because they are still naive enough not to guess the "victim" although with time they learn to read the teacher's mind and eyes.
While it is still a new game, it works perfectly. Just don't overdo with it!

• Sit down

At the beginning of a lesson all students are asked to stand up (which I am usually not very particular about) and the teacher asks a question, e.g. Who had a boiled egg for breakfast? The ones who did, sit down.
Questions should be asked until everyone is seated. The teacher has to be rather ingenious to come up with the right question if there is one student left standing not to embarrass him / her.
What surprised me at first was that the students did not cheat but apparently waited for the "right" question to be able to sit down.

Some of the questions I have used are Who rode a bike to school today? Who took the dog out this morning? Who is wearing something new / red / leather... today? Who watched (the name of the movie) yesterday? Who went to bed after midnight yesterday? etc.
The questions I ask depend on the students' age of course.
                 

Flowers from my students who have just finished school

I just came back from the graduation ceremony which is a traditional event in schools here. The official part consists of the headmaster's, mayor's, teachers', parents', benefactors' speeches and handing out of the documents, awards and gifts to the school leaving students. They in return give flowers to the teachers.

This is one of the not-so-frequent touching and heart-warming moments. I captured the beauty of my flowers in pictures. The collage is made with Photovisi.

Off to the dance party now - the second part of the event!
 

Widgets with images

I tried out GoodWidgets to see how the images work if put in a widget.
There are 8 styles to choose from. This turned out to be my favourite because of the smooth and inconspicuous image transition.

There is only one drawback to the site - it is rather old and looks a little forgotten.

These are my students getting ready for a big school event.

EDIT:  Just noticed today (3rd April) that the widget with the pictures of my students has disappeared. Checked the home site - gone! No wonder the website looked a bit sad, no one cared about it until it vanished completely.

A letter from the college

Something to make you smile while you are getting ready to recommence your work in September.

                       

A student's view on the school budget (click to zoom)

My new classes

 
First I met 7a and I liked them immediately because they are sweet and nice kids. Here is how they placed themselves on the knowledge ladder. They faced the task with responsibility...

 

Then I met 9a and 9b classes (all new students to me). Look at their self-evaluation. Hard to see because of the small picture but they must remember where they placed themselves. I guess, some were modest, some self-confident but I did not know anything about them at that time and I did not make any corrections. I will know how realistic they were in a few months...

My class on 1st September 2009

My students in the box

The Smilebox loads slowly and there are boring ads but it is still possible to see the lovely friendly funny tender faces of those who are "mine" this year.