Category: ESL

Fresh Beginnings, Blended Learning and FLIPping

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SCAD Language Studio ? Professor Christina Cavage, Human Resources headshot, Fall 2013 ? Photography by Stephanie Krell, courtesy of SCADChristina Cavage

In few professions do you get start over every year, every semester, or quarter.  It’s a wonderful thing, and one of the best parts about teaching.  As we begin anew, it gives us an opportunity to try new techniques, materials, employ those innovative strategies on a fresh group of learners.  It was a few years back that I decided to try something new—blended learning.  Extending my students’ learning experiences has not only proved valuable to their learning, but has allowed me to become the kind of classroom teaching I have always wanted to be.

Some of you may have been following my articles on blended learning and flipping your ESL classroom, some of you may have been decided to make that leap.  For those still on the fence, or wanting to know more, I thought I would review some of the finer points I covered in the last few newsletters. Continue reading →

Hitting the Right Note:
Extending the Theme of Your Song

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2013_Heyer_SandraSandra Heyer

This concludes the series of articles on extending lessons with songs and song-based activities. In past newsletters, we’ve taken a look at six activities that work well with beginners and high-beginners; a technique for quickly matching a song with an activity; and general tips for using songs in the classroom. One of those tips was to choose songs that are thematically related to the lessons. I know from experience that is sometimes easier said than done; finding classroom-friendly songs on specific themes can be a challenge.

For the past several years, I’ve been building a list of popular songs that are suitable for beginning and high-beginning English language learners–songs that have clear, comprehensible lyrics and language that is at least “PG.” I now have a list of over 150 songs, organized by sixteen themes: friendship, falling in love, taking chances, work, and freedom, to name a few. The songs coordinate with the themes in True Stories Behind the Songs and More True Stories Behind the Songs but could be used to enhance other theme-based curricula.

You’ll find the list, and all the activities and tips you’ve read here, on my new site at sandraheyersongs.com. The site has no ads and requires no registration–it’s simply a place where teachers can get and share ideas. If you have a song-based activity or classroom-friendly song you’d like to suggest for the site, please e-mail me at truestories@ticon.net.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Sandra

New from Pearson this fall

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See what’s new from Pearson this fall. We are excited to show you all of our new titles and new editions of your favorites. From the fourth edition of NorthStar  – now with a fully blended MyEnglishLab – and the new adult video-based program, Project Success, to the third edition of the Longman Preparation Course for the TOEFL iBT Test  for exam prep – there is something to meet your classroom needs!

Click here to get up-to-date product information and to see sample units in an instant!

Want to speak to an ELL Specialist? Just go to www.pearsoneltusa.com/specialists

 

 

 

 

Online Reading-Instruction Practice at Multiple Levels

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s_johnsonStefanie Johnson
Instructor, Grossmont College and San Diego Miramar College

Launched this fall is a new online reading lab series from Pearson called MyEnglishLab: Reading. While there are currently Pearson labs for reading, MyEnglishLab: Reading (MELR) is the first one from this publisher geared toward English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) students. In contrast to online reading labs for students available through other authors and publishers, these labs come with purchase of the text. It is here that Pearson’s MELR has the clear advantage in that the online component can be used as a supplement with any textbook or as a stand-alone product. As such, MELR provides more practice with various readings and skills practice. MELR is a great tool that is available for four levels and would work in any ESOL course with reading in it. Continue reading →

Hitting the Right Note: Extending the Theme of Your Song / General Tips

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2013_Heyer_SandraSandra Heyer

One way to extend the lessons in True Stories Behind the Songs and More True Stories Behind the Songs is to follow up each unit with a supplemental song that connects to the theme of the unit, plus an activity to go with the supplemental song. Each month, I’ve shared a song-based activity that has worked well with my beginning and high-beginning students, for a total of six activities. Last month, we considered the idea of using a checklist to quickly find an appropriate activity for a song. This month, in the final article in this series, I’ll share some general tips for using songs in the classroom. Continue reading →