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Enhancing ESL Reading Lessons: Strategies and Materials for Effective Learning - TEFL Blog
Federico Riva
TEFL Information Alumni Experiences
Reading comprehension is a crucial skill for ESL (English as a Second Language) students to develop. As teachers, it is essential to select appropriate resources and employ effective techniques to maximize the benefits of reading activities in the classroom. In this blog post, we will explore various types of reading materials, discuss strategies to improve reading comprehension skills, and highlight the importance of integrating discussions into the learning process.
Types of Reading Materials
Authentic Materials:
Non-Authentic Materials:
Strategies for Improving Reading Comprehension Skills
Skimming and Scanning:
Summarizing:
Predicting:
Discussing:
Conclusion
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Why Understanding the Group Dynamics of an ESL Classroom is Important - TEFL Blog
Mark Crocker
Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas
Humans are social animals. Throughout history, we've always evolved in communities and societies, where individuals relate with others by affiliating themselves to different groups. They are then integrated into a complex social network, whose members often have a strong impact on each other. Group dynamics represent this impact: they designate the functioning of a group and the relationships between its members. These dynamics also play an important role in the classroom, thus it is essential that the teacher understands them in order to create a productive synergy between themselves and their students.
Tailoring Lessons to Suit the Common Dynamic
Understanding the Classroom Dynamic Can Help With Participation and Discipline
Are you ready... [Read more]
11 Fun ESL Activities for Young Learners - TEFL Blog
Linda Dunsmore
Teaching Ideas
When teaching young learners, it's important not to spend too much time on any one activity as they can soon lose interest. It is also a good idea to have activities that give younger learners the chance to move about and use the boundless energy they have at that age. Below we present a list of short activities suitable for young and very young learners of English.
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What's the Time Mr. Wolf?
Telephone
Basketball
Volleyball
Bingo
Can you …?
I Spy
Odd One Out
Stand Up Please
Mastermind
Blindfold Obstacle Course
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This is a good activity for practicing time with small classes. Clear a space in the center of... [Read more]
Easter Activities for ESL - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ITTT
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Here are four fun Easter activities for ESL students.
Grab this printable ESL worksheet with four Easter-themed activities for your ESL students.
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What type of TEFL teacher is most in demand? - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ TEFL FAQs
Before discussing the demand of different TEFL teachers we must first be aware of the different roles that these teachers can take. Perhaps the first distinction or grouping would be between online and onsite teachers. What are the different roles TEFL teachers take?
For online teaching there are a few types of teaching jobs that you can undertake. These include:
For onsite teaching there are also a few types of teaching jobs available, such as:
Which teachers are in most demand?
What other roles can TEFL teachers move into?
Conclusion
There is no single answer to this question as it depends very much upon whether you want to work online or onsite and if so, which country you are considering. It will also depend to a certain extent on your qualifications and experience.
In general, the... [Read more]
7 Fun Activities for Teaching Vocabulary in the ESL Classroom - TEFL Blog
Linda Dunsmore
Teaching Ideas
You will find the web full of ideas for teaching vocabulary and, although most of them are undoubtedly good activities, some are only suited to a particular level. Here are some tried and tested activities that can be adapted to suit any level of student and a variety of class sizes.
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1. Hot seat
2. Beat the clock
3. Crosswords
4. Board games
5. Slow Pictionary
6. Vocabulary tennis
7. Pelmanism ("Concentration")
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This is a great activity that can be used as a warm-up at the beginning of a class, or as a game at the end of a lesson. It's suitable for any class size over 4 students and requires minimal... [Read more]
4 Activities for Teaching Future Tenses in the ESL Classroom - TEFL Blog
Linda Dunsmore
Teaching Ideas
In a previous post, we looked at various teaching ideas for future simple and here we're going to describe some fun ideas for teaching three other future tenses. There are a wide variety of usages for future tenses and it's always important to make sure your activities focus on the usages that you've taught in your lesson. For example, future continuous can be used to talk about an ongoing action at a point in the future, a fixed future event, polite enquiries or to predict the future or the present. Predicting the present is one that students often have trouble conceptualizing, so we might as well start from there.
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Predicting the present
Ongoing action at a point in the future
Expected achievements at a point in the future... [Read more]
Games as a Teaching Method for Adult ESL Students - TEFL Blog
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
When we start to learn new things as children, we tend to do that with the help of games. That is why in many classrooms of young learners, we find games to be a highly popular medium amongst educators. It is a way of absorbing and processing a piece of information in a fun and educational way. But when we grow up, we somehow forget the necessity of games in the classroom.
Ice Breaker
Ways to Include Games into Your Lesson
What Games to Choose?
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This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Anna B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
When it comes to learning a second language, children immerse themselves in... [Read more]
Helpful and Fun Outdoor ESL Activities - TEFL Blog
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
What outdoor activities can help to teach English? I would like to say that there are plenty of outdoor activities that are effective to teach English. However, many teachers prefer indoor activities rather than outdoor, as they think that it might distract the students. Nonetheless, outdoor activities can increase their motivation for learning. Also, it helps to decrease their stress level, as they do not have to stay in the classroom as usual.
Freewriting time
Flashcard game
'Stand up if you've ever' game
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This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sarosh Z. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
The teacher... [Read more]
Strategies of Teaching ESL Groups Effectively - TEFL Blog
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
There are different types of classes. We will be teaching and adults and children. Let's take a more detailed look into each group. ESL teachers are often working with beginners; however, some people could have been exposed to English previously. We can refer to these students as 'false beginners.' This subgroup could include adults who have learned the language before and may have forgotten it without consistent use. Adults beginners may tend to be more motivated than young beginner learners because adults make the decision to study English by themselves. Children may be told to learn and externally motivated by parents or family members. We should keep in mind that a beginner without previous exposure to the Roman alphabet may require more initial work... [Read more]
Enhancing Listening Skills: Key Considerations for Adult ESL Classes - TEFL Blog
Federico Riva
TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas
Listening is possibly the least covered of the four skills needed by ESL learners in most classrooms. As it is a fundamental skill, teachers should try to create as many listening skills lessons as they do for the other three skills: reading, writing, and speaking.
Challenges of Listening Compared to Reading
The Stages of Listening
The Receiving Stage: Hearing and Attending
The Understanding Stage: Decoding and Comprehension
The Evaluating Stage: Forming Opinions and Thinking Ahead
The Remembering Stage: Processing and Storing Information
The Responding Stage: Verbal or Written Answers
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Check out what our course grads say in our many video testimonials!... [Read more]
TEFL ONLINE - page 6 - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ TEFL Jobs online
There are students of English all over the world who prefer to learn English online rather than by physical attendance at a school or language academy. Qualified TEFL teachers are therefore hired by a number of different organisations to teach English online.
Here are some online teaching positions:
Hiring Native Level Online ESL Tutors | (Date posted:2021-07-18)
Date posted:2021-07-18 | Writer: Acadsoc | Email: [email protected]
Acadsoc is hiring homebased online English tutors providing a lot of home based online English teaching jobs. To conduct 1-to-1 English classes for 25 mins to learners (K-12) from China. The tutors will work from home, follow their shifts on the class table, teach online with provided materials, and submit class remarks after finishing every lesson. A... [Read more]
Five Fun ESL Activities Every Teacher Should Know - TEFL Blog
Federico Riva
Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas
The following activities may be adapted for use as warmers, engage activities, structured practice or free practice style activities. They may also be adapted for level and age.
Watch the video about this topic
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The first one is really simple but can be one of the best activities to improve grammar. Some students even at the higher levels are lacking automatic habits, which are really important for grammatical skill. Basically this activity is a grammar drill and it is supposed to be used as a warmer or as an ice-breaker activity. The main objective is to help your students automate some grammatical... [Read more]
5 Fun ESL Activities For Interactive Online Lessons - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ITTT
Online ESL Activities: Are you an online English teacher? Do you want your students to enjoy and have fun? Then, this live stream is for you! Our TEFL/TESOL expert, Liza, will share five interactive activities that you will be able to use at your next class. Great news that these games will suit any age group and level. Don't miss! #TEFL#BestTEFL #TeachEnglishOnline 00:00-00:48 Mic was off 00:48-01:00 Intro Are you ready to teach English abroad or online? Click here and get started today: bit.ly/37gs5vO What is TEFL Certification? Where is it valid: bit.ly/36ma2Fg Check out our wide range of TEFL Courses: bit.ly/3ltqt73 Teach English online from anywhere you want: bit.ly/3ltqEPL
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7 Activities for Teaching Reported Speech in the ESL Classroom - TEFL Blog
Linda Dunsmore
Teaching Ideas
When teaching reported speech the potential for mistakes, errors, and the general difficulty is enormous due to the number of changes that are made with verb tenses, patterns, pronouns, questions, time expressions etc.. It's important to cover the subject slowly with lots of verbal practice at every opportunity. There are plenty of standard 'change the direct speech to reported speech' activities, but your students will soon tire of these if you overuse them. Here are some ideas which have worked well in the EFL classroom and will give your students a good amount of talk time in a variety of ways.
Listen to this blog post:
The Go-Between Game
The Lying Game
Pelmanism ("Concentration")
Guess Who
Reported Speech "Tennis"
Who Asked What?
Find Someone... [Read more]
Teaching Bigger Groups vs. Individual ESL Learners - TEFL Blog
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
One of the main differences between teaching groups and individual students is the lesson plan.
Teaching One-to-One
From a Learner's Perspective
What do Teachers Think
Lesson Plan for Group Teaching
Students Abilities
Students Peculiarities
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Several factors need to be considered when planning a lesson for a single student:
The aforementioned factors should be taken into account even when teaching groups but in one-to-one lessons they are crucial. Considering that the whole lesson is dedicated to one individual, material covered should be graded to his/her exact level to achieve the best result, giving the teacher freedom to make the lessons challenging to stimulate further... [Read more]
Article archive: 2023, 11 - from: 1
Federico Riva
Destinations TEFL Information Alumni Experiences
Explore innovative approaches to teaching grammar in language learning with engaging activities. Discover effective methods and diverse perspectives on mastering grammar skills in this insightful blog post.
Minh Huy Hoang
TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas
Discover 10 effective ways to learn English during office breaks! From language apps to podcasts, reading, and speaking sessions with colleagues, these hacks maximize your language learning in short bursts. Start enhancing your English skills during break time today!
Federico Riva
TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas
In this blog post, we will look at ten commonly used free applications for ESL teachersDiscover a comprehensive guide... [Read more]
TEFL ONLINE - page 5 - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ TEFL Jobs online
There are students of English all over the world who prefer to learn English online rather than by physical attendance at a school or language academy. Qualified TEFL teachers are therefore hired by a number of different organisations to teach English online.
Here are some online teaching positions:
Online English Teachers Needed for Adults and Children | (Date posted:2022-01-19)
Date posted:2022-01-19 | Writer: LatinHire | Email: [email protected]
Teach fun online English classes to Latino adults or children! All you need is a solid colored wall (for background), laptop/computer, good WiFi, microphone and webcam to teach. Classes are available 24/7 with huge flexibility in dropping and picking up shifts. You can work as much as 48 hours a week right off the bat or as little as 16... [Read more]
Tefl reviews - Teaching English Esl Efl Tips/student Groups - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ITTT
There are many different types of groups of students that you will encounter when teaching English as a foreign language. This video introduces you to the five different types of student groups.
Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next.
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This unit discussed the different forms of the past tense of English language verbs. It was pretty straightforward in addressing the past tense, discussing the past simple,... [Read more]
Tefl reviews - Teaching English Esl Efl Tips/teaching Special Groups - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ITTT
Within the teaching of ESL throughout the world, there is a whole spectrum of the types of groups that you may be involved in. It's worth breaking those types of groups down to have a look at some of the more specific things we need to do when we're teaching those groups - and this is what this video focuses on.
Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next.
Register now & get certified to teach english abroad!
In this unit, I am exposed to model verbs, their... [Read more]
Outdoor Activities for Better Language Acquisition Process - TEFL Blog
Elizaveta Pachina
Teaching Ideas
'Teacher, Can we please have a class outdoors?' this question was asked by a lot of my students, and 'No' was my typical answer. Why do students want to have an outdoor session? Is it really useful? What outdoor activities could be done to help when teaching English? These questions ran through my mind every time one of my students asked me to have a class outdoors. So, I decided to find answers to these questions.
Reasons to have classes outdoors
Choice of activities
World around us
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This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ahmed A. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
Why teach outside at all? It is... [Read more]
TEFL ONLINE - page 2 - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ TEFL Jobs online
There are students of English all over the world who prefer to learn English online rather than by physical attendance at a school or language academy. Qualified TEFL teachers are therefore hired by a number of different organisations to teach English online.
Here are some online teaching positions:
Online English Teacher: Teaching Adults | (Date posted:2024-02-02)
Date posted:2024-02-02 | Writer: NativeX Edtech | Email: [email protected]
A. Overview• Expected start time: March 2024 (after onboard training)• Class duration: 45 minutes/ slot• Teaching time: 8:00 - 23:45 every day (GMT+7), especially 8:00 - 11:45 and 19:00 - 22:00• Teach General English (04 skills) to Vietnamese adults• ... [Read more]
The Art of Teaching Younger EFL Students - TEFL Blog
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
I have 3 years of experience in teaching English in a few kindergartens in Beijing, China and some experience in teaching adults in a training center.
Differences Between Teaching Children and Adults
Principles in Teaching Kids
Learning Atmosphere
Teacher's Responsibilities
My Personal Experience
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When I started in kindergarten, it was very difficult because I didn't have enough information about how to make a proper lesson plan. I didn't have enough materials, games, songs, and it took me a lot of time to collect all the necessary information for teaching and creating my teaching plan. Without experience, it wasn't easy for me to build a good rapport between me and my... [Read more]
Mastering English Language Sounds: Enhancing Pronunciation and Auditory Receptive Skills - TEFL Blog
Federico Riva
TEFL Information Alumni Experiences
Explore the challenges and strategies in teaching English language sounds and pronunciation across different age groups.It's widely known that students of various age groups exhibit varying learning capacities. Despite these differences and regardless of background or origin, learners of English (referred to as L2) often struggle with speaking and listening due to the language's heavy reliance on auditory comprehension. This article delves into the importance of addressing these pronunciation challenges, especially in the context of teaching English as a second language.
Understanding Age-Related Differences
Young Learners: Nurturing the Phonetic Foundation
Navigating the Teenage Years: 12-18 Age Group
Engaging Adult Learners: The... [Read more]
Last posts written by Linda from: 12
Linda is a passionate traveler, language learner and TEFL teacher. After spending some time teaching in China, she moved to Korea in 2015. She now calls South Korea her home.
Linda Dunsmore
Teaching Ideas
Schools are starting again and students and teachers flock back to the classroom. Check out these simple and powerful back-to-school ideas and your students will surely remember this first lesson of yours for a long time!
Linda Dunsmore
Teaching Ideas
As an ESL teacher, getting your students talking can be one of the most difficult things to accomplish. English learners often lack the necessary confidence to speak openly and freely in English. The following activities are perfect for getting your students out of their shells! Here are 7 go-to activities for your ESL conversation... [Read more]
Unreal Conditionals - Speaking Cards - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ITTT
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This is a set of cards to practice unreal conditionals questions and short answers with your ESL students. They work in pairs or groups and interview each other.
Register now & get certified to teach english abroad!
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How Adults’ Learning Differs From Teenagers’ and Children’s Learning? - TEFL Blog
Elizaveta Pachina
Alumni Experiences
ESL teachers must acknowledge that it is not equal teaching English Lessons to children, teenagers, and adults, there are some wide differences between the practices used in each case, classroom, population, levels, and country where English is taught, on this paper we will check how an ESL lesson may be affected by these variables, and how we could overlap them on the practices used in teenagers and adults English lessons.
Basic concepts
Self-concept
Personal Experience
Adults learning process
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This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Javier V. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.
To analyze all the... [Read more]
Is it easier to teach English to children or adults? - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ TEFL FAQs
Deciding whether it is easier to teach English to children or adults is subjective. Children are naturally curious, but their attention spans can be short, necessitating dynamic and engaging methods. Adults, on the other hand, often learn with a clear purpose and are self-motivated, yet they might require a deeper understanding of technical aspects like grammar. Both age groups present distinct challenges and benefits, and the ease of teaching hinges on the educator's adaptability to each group's unique needs and learning styles.
Motivation and classroom management
Lesson content
Games and activities
Student expectations
Getting students to talk in English
Teacher/student relationships
When engaging with young learners, it is essential to keep them intrigued and motivated, regardless of... [Read more]
Tefl reviews - Teaching English Esl Efl Tips/types Of Beginners - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ ITTT
The first group of students we are looking at in this series are the beginners. It is important to understand that beginners can be of any age. This is why we break this category down into the following sub-categories: absolute beginners, false beginners, adult beginners, young beginners and beginners without the Roman alphabet. Find out more about this type of student group in this video.
Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next.
Register now & get certified... [Read more]
Which is the best age group to teach English? - ✔️ ✔️ ✔️ TEFL FAQs
Teaching English abroad can offer an array of age groups to choose from, depending on your destination. Choosing the right age group largely depends on individual preferences as every teacher has their unique teaching style. Some teachers might opt to work with younger kids, attracted by the high energy level and fun-oriented environment that typically characterizes this group. Conversely, others might gravitate towards adult learners who usually prefer a calmer, more scholarly environment.
What are the different age levels you can teach English?
The pros and cons of teaching English at kindergarten level
Pros:
Cons:
The pros and cons of teaching English to young learners
Pros:
Cons:
The pros and cons of teaching English to adults
Pros:
Cons:
What is the best age group to teach English to?... [Read more]