TeachingEnglish Newsletter 25 September 2009

September 25 2009   Welcome to the TeachingEnglish newsletter! This week you'll find the usual mix of resources, ideas and discussions, including links to new materials to support teachers interested in using literature in their classrooms. Sincerely, TeachingEnglish Team | British Council | BBC  Mr Lazy: giving advice   This lesson plan is about giving advice, and involves creating grammar chants to present and practise target structures. It's suitable for young learners from pre-intermediate to intermediate levels. Read more reviewing vocabulary   I usually have a section on my board or flip chart where I write up new words as they come up during a lesson. Next class I spend a few minutes reviewing the vocabulary, often by asking the learners to explain the words. Read more tefl diary   This TEFL diary blog serves to describe my weekly experiences teaching English as a Foreign Language in South Korea. This week includes reflections on discipline problems and teaching groups with students of different levels. Read more get lit up: literature as a teacher's best friend   There are many reasons why some don't feel comfortable with literature in the language classroom, and yet it can be a very flexible tool for any language teacher. Find out some good reasons to consider using literature in your classroom. Read more     are gap-fills actually practice?   I often hear people describing gap-fills as 'controlled practice'. I see value in the use of variations of gap-fill exercises for things like drawing attention to patterns, etc. but I don't see them as being practice.  Read more Teaching Literature   The purpose of the newly relaunched literature section of this website is to give some support and guidance through the wealth of available materials, and to provide a platform for sharing ideas and experiences in this area. Read more The United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. A registered charity: 209131 (England and Wales) SC037733 (Scotland) Our privacy and copyright statements. Our Freedom of Information Publications Scheme. You have received this e-mail because you registered on our website or have previously indicated an interest in British Council events. If you wish to opt out of this British Council e-mail list unsubscribe here.

Forward email This email was sent to evolve.school@gmail.com by teachingenglish@britishcouncil.org. Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Email Marketing by British Council TeachingEnglish | British Council | 10 Spring Gardens | London | SW1A 2BN | United Kingdom

TeachingEnglish Newsletter 17 September 2009

September 17 2009   Welcome to the TeachingEnglish newsletter! This is our first newsletter for two weeks due to some ongoing improvements in our service. We would like to apologise for that, and also for the slightly different look to the newsletter this week - it will return to normal soon.  Sincerely, TeachingEnglish Team | British Council | BBC  BritLit: Clap hands, here comes Charlie   This 2009 version of the BritLit kit 'Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie', a comedy set in Liverpool, has been revised from the 2004 original. It now contains new material, including a complete recording of the text.   Read more  LearnEnglish kids poetry competition   LearnEnglish Kids is once more running the Old Possum's Children's Poetry Competition in partnership with the Children's Poetry Bookshelf. You'll find ideas for using poetry on this page. The topic of this year's competition: heroes and heroines. Read more Teacher Education in Second Life   Although popular use of Second Life has now fallen since the media hype of 2007, organisations are using this virtual world more and more to offer students a graphically rich and engaging social presence difficult (if not impossible) to obtain in the distance learning experience. Read more Ongoing assessment   In my experience of teaching juniors (6-11) and seniors (11-16) I have found there is a difference in their attitudes to assessment. This is not so surprising when you take into consideration their different circumstances. Read more     what MAKES A GOOD TEACHER?   This is one of the most common questions for teachers but the answers are rarely the same. Or are they? We asked some teachers at IATEFL Cardiff earlier this year what they thought. Watch the video and tell us what you think. Read more  Miko the monkey   This lesson uses a story and quiz to develop the reading and vocabulary of primary age young learners. It can be done in class using the paper-based materials or using the interactive materials on the LearnEnglish Kids site. Read more The United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. A registered charity: 209131 (England and Wales) SC037733 (Scotland) Our privacy and copyright statements. Our Freedom of Information Publications Scheme. You have received this e-mail because you registered on our website or have previously indicated an interest in British Council events. If you wish to opt out of this British Council e-mail list unsubscribe here.

Forward email This email was sent to evolve.school@gmail.com by teachingenglish@britishcouncil.org. Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Email Marketing by British Council TeachingEnglish | British Council | 10 Spring Gardens | London | SW1A 2BN | United Kingdom

Old Possum's Children's Poetry Competition

September 2009 Does your child love poetry? Does your child enjoy writing in English? Then you will be interested in the Old Possum's Children's Poetry Competition which we are running in partnership with the Children's Poetry Bookshelf. Children aged between 7-11 years old who live outside the United Kingdom and who are learning English as a second or foreign language will be able to enter the international category of the competition. Judging for the competition will be chaired by the UK's Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy. The winning poems will be published on the LearnEnglish Kids and Children's Poetry Bookshelf websites, and all winners will receive audiobooks. In this newsletter you can find more information about the competition, plus teachers will find ideas for using poetry in the classroom. poetry competition details The Old Possum's Children's Poetry Competition opens on September 10th. It is open to children aged between 7 - 11 years old who are learning English. Poems must be about the topic of heroes and heroines. Winning poems will be published on LearnEnglish Kids. Find more details about the competition plus entry details. poetry competition - tips for teachers Teachers can find tips for introducing poetry into the classroom on the British Council/BBC website Teaching English. You will find links to some useful websites, plus some poems that you may download and use in the classroom. Why not get your students writing poems about heroes and heroines in class, and enter the poems into the competition? topic - superheroes The topic of the Old Possum's Children's Poetry Competition is heroes and heroines. Heroes and heroines could be from all sorts of areas of life. Some children might enjoy stories about superheroes - you can find activities about superheroes on LearnEnglish Kids. new song - amazing superheroes Find a new song about superheroes this month. What can all the superheroes do? This is a great way to practise 'can' and 'can't' with young learners. You'll find the lyrics, and there is a also a worksheet that you can download and print. more from the british council Would you like to find online materials for adult learners? Have a look at LearnEnglish Central and find lots of resources to help you practise English. Are you a teacher of English? Find articles, lesson plans and more on Teaching English, the website for teachers brought to you by the British Council with the BBC. Let the British Council help you find the right English course whatever your level, wherever you are. The United Kingdom's international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. A registered charity: 209131 (England and Wales) SC037733 (Scotland) Our privacy and copyright statements. Our Freedom of Information Publications Scheme. You have received this e-mail because you registered on our website or have previously indicated an interest in British Council events. If you wish to opt out of this British Council e-mail list unsubscribe here.

Forward email This email was sent to evolve.school@gmail.com by learnenglish.kids@britishcouncil.org. Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Email Marketing by British Council | 10 Spring Gardens | London | SW1A 2BN | United Kingdom