TeachingEnglish newsletter 26 July 2017

TeachingEnglish - the global home for teachers 26 July 2017 Welcome to the TeachingEnglish newsletter Our featured recorded talks this week include 'Remote teaching for success' by Graham Stanley and an interview with Rasha Halat about using TED-Ed. For the classroom we have two lesson plans for teens and adults - 'Green fingers' and 'Getting to know Wales'. For kids, we have a collection of five games from around the world to help develop turn-taking and collaboration. And finally - need a change from the coursebook? Read about the benefits of making your own worksheets, not just for you but also for your students. We hope you find these resources useful. Deb TeachingEnglish team Teaching kids Here is a small collection of five games from around the world that you can use to promote turn-taking and collaboration in the classroom: Tickum - tackum; Ram, ram, rip; Match my feet; North, south, east and west; and Noisy letters. Suggestions are also given for the language which the children will need in order to instruct each other and manage the game.  Read more Teaching teens 'Green fingers' is a lesson which offers a variety of activities based on growing or gathering your own food. Students will do a picture dictation to review vocabulary, read a text about different types of gardening and compare their opinions on these, and then take part in a role play and decide who deserves an allotment. Students will also practise speaking skills in a discussion activity. Go to the lesson plan Teaching adults This lesson plan for teachers of teenagers and adults at Intermediate level explores the theme of Wales. Students will develop their knowledge of Wales, as well as practising their vocabulary and listening skills. The lesson is part of a series of plans based on interviews with people from around the UK. Other parts of the UK these lesson plans focus on include Scotland, the Midlands, the north-east of England and London. Go to the lesson plan Development In this talk from our Teaching for Success Online Conference, Graham Stanley looks at how the Teaching for Success CPD framework is being used with teachers to deliver lessons in a remote teaching context. In Uruguay, the British Council is involved in an exciting project teaching English remotely to 3,300 primary state school students across the country. This new way of teaching demands more of the teacher than is usually expected of a young learner educator. Find out more and watch a recording of this talk Events In this interview from IATEFL 2017, Rasha Halat talks about using TED-Ed, sharing her experience of using the platform for multiskilled lessons that start with a short video (not necessarily a TED talk), which has the tools to create interactive exercises, and then delve deeper into discussions. Watch a recording of this interview Magazine In this blog post 'Why make worksheets?', Phil Wade writes about how he rediscovered his interest in making worksheets to not just complement the coursebooks but to sometimes replace them and even enhance the content. He puts forward ten ways in which making your own worksheets can benefit both students and teachers alike. Read more You have received this newsletter because you registered on our website or previously showed interest in British Council news. If you wish to opt out of future newsletters, please unsubscribe here.

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TeachingEnglish newsletter 19 July 2017

TeachingEnglish - the global home for teachers 19 July 2017 Welcome to the TeachingEnglish newsletter For the classroom this week we have a new lesson for kids to celebrate International Day of Friendship on 30 July. For teens and adults we have two discussion activities - 'Fashion statements' and 'Four hats for discussion'. We also announce our new blog topics for July and August on the theme of 'Managing resources'. Our featured talk from IATEFL 2017 is Rachael Harris's 'Teaching well-being to teens'. And, finally, this week we focus on the professional practice 'Taking responsibility for professional development'. Learn more about what this involves and how to get started. We hope you find these resources useful. Deb TeachingEnglish team Teaching kids This lesson for primary students aged 7 to 10 years old is all about friendship and celebrates International Day of Friendship on 30 July. They start the lesson by working together to understand what it means to be a good friend, through a discussion and then by analysing a simple text. They finish by working together to make posters celebrating friendship. Go to the lesson plan Teaching teens 'Fashion statements' is a staged discussion activity which focuses on students' personal opinions of style and fashion. Students say whether they agree or not with a number of statements. They then express to what extent they agree or not. Finally, they take part in a group discussion. Go to the activity Teaching adults 'Four hats for discussion' is an integrated speaking lesson for higher-level adults that involves them taking different roles depending on the colour of their hat. Teachers can use their own discussion topics or encourage their learners to suggest them. The activity aims to encourage learners to use English in a creative way while developing speaking skills. Go to the activity Development To what extent are you taking responsibility for your professional development? Find out more about the elements of this practice, and a range of ideas and resources to get you started on your continuing professional development plan.  Find out more Events Student well-being is recognised as an essential element to learning and it is particularly important with teens. This workshop by Rachael Harris, given at IATEFL 2017, focuses on well-being in one's self, within a group and also in relation to learning. Activities include warmers and fillers but also year projects. And the well-being of the teacher is not forgotten. Learn more and watch a recording of this talk Magazine Our blog topics for July and August 2017 look at the theme of 'Managing resources'. How much materials development do you do in your teaching? How do you differentiate for your learners in your planning and lessons? As a teacher, how do you help your learners develop the technical skills and social practices needed to effectively interact with digital technologies? These are just a few of the questions we are asking you to consider for July and August. Happy blogging! Find out more You have received this newsletter because you registered on our website or previously showed interest in British Council news. If you wish to opt out of future newsletters, please unsubscribe here.

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TeachingEnglish newsletter 10 July 2017

TeachingEnglish - the global home for teachers 10 July 2017 Welcome to the TeachingEnglish newsletter We are pleased to announce the winner of our featured blog of the month award for May 2017 - On the same page and their post '14 Song-Based Lesson Plans and Activities'. This week we also bring you a new and exciting free publication Integrating global issues in the creative English language classroom. For the classroom we have a fun activity for kids - 'Thumbprint stories', and a speaking activity to revise past simple for adults. For teens we have a lesson plan at two levels to develop your teens' higher critical thinking skills - 'Remote House in the West of Scotland'. And finally, don't miss our webinar on Thursday, 13 July, when Carol Lethaby, Phil Dexter and Philip Kerr will explore some of the current issues surrounding the concept of 'learning styles'. We hope you find these resources useful. Deb TeachingEnglish team Teaching kids 'Thumbprint stories' is an activity for pre-intermediate 10 and 11 year olds but can be adapted for various ages and levels. Students make a thumbprint story about their last holiday (real or invented) using a blank cartoon grid and an ink pad. They practise regular and irregular past simple verbs and holiday vocabulary. Go to the activity Teaching teens 'Remote House in the West of Scotland' is a set of teaching resources designed to encourage students to use their higher critical thinking skills to think and speak about visual images. In this lesson, students use listening, writing and vocabulary skills to construct a text around an image that they have chosen. The lesson is available to download at B2+ level and A2 / B1 level Teaching adults 'The last time' is a speaking activity with optional writing extension for pre-intermediate level learners and above. It revises time references and past simple. The target language is flexible and depends on the level of your learners and your aims.  Go to the activity Development Integrating global issues in the creative English language classroom is a new, freely-downloadable publication which provides innovative ideas for teaching creatively while raising awareness of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The activities include enabling students to think creatively about sustainable food and food supplies, creating energy which does not harm the environment, and collaborating with other students globally to diminish the digital divide. Find out more and download your free copy Events Join our webinar on 13 July at 20.00pm UK time - 'Learning styles discussion forum'. This webinar, with discussion and three presentations by Carol Lethaby, Phil Dexter and Philip Kerr, looks to address and explore some of the current issues surrounding the concept of 'learning styles' and their appropriateness in a language teaching context. Find out more and register for this event Magazine Our featured blog of the month award for May 2017 goes to On the same page and their post '14 Song-Based Lesson Plans and Activities'. This post looks at how songs for language learning can provide fun, authentic resources with multiple possibilities in the classroom. This month's shortlist also includes a recommended list of video clips for language learning, using a grammar auction to review structures, ways to develop thinking skills in the classroom, and boosting your students' vocabulary. Read more You have received this newsletter because you registered on our website or previously showed interest in British Council news. If you wish to opt out of future newsletters, please unsubscribe here.

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