Esl Speech Activities

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. This is a fun dispute roleplay that is ideal when students are split up into groups of 3, although 4 can work too. Give students prompt cards with their...  [Read more]

Hoàng Minh Huy TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) is a challenging yet rewarding task that requires a set of essential skills. Pronunciation, grammar knowledge, and teaching method are three crucial elements that every teacher needs to possess in order to be effective in their role. From developing a neutral pronunciation to understanding grammatical rules and exploring different teaching methodologies, these skills are necessary for both native and non-native English teachers. In this blog post, we'll delve into each of these skills, highlighting their importance and providing practical tips for improvement. Whether you're a seasoned teacher or just starting out, this guide will provide you with the tools you need to succeed in the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas When it comes to teaching a lot of teachers are set in their ways, especially if this has been their career for a while, but over the years we have learned that teachers need to be flexible with their methods because there is a wide range of learning abilities in every classroom. Each child has their own learning styles and the way we approach a lesson should be tailored too, hopefully, to meet the needs of every child in the room. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Alexandra M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Teaching children with varying learning abilities means adapting and providing curriculum and course activities that have been purposefully planned to create the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas One may be keen to know what grammar is. Why do we need to learn grammar in our lives? How can I learn grammar? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Mbalenhle S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Grammar is the set of rules that we follow when we speak to express our thoughts and to have a sound and meaningful conversation. It serves as an umbrella that comprises several things including part of speech, phrases, clauses and sentence diagrams which we normally use on our daily talks to be grammatically correct concise. Part of speech refers to a noun, pronoun, verbs, adjective, adverb, conjunction, preposition, and interjection, they cover all words that we use in our daily...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Every English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher desires to successfully teach their students how to proficiently speak, understand, and use the English language. English is a very complex language, and teaching it presents many challenges. Because of this, an ESL teacher must be willing and able to take on various roles throughout the teaching of a lesson. During a typical ESL lesson, a teacher will have some, or all, of the following roles: a manager or controller, an organizer, an observer, an assessor, a prompter, a participant, and a resource or facilitator. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Jennifer N. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Firstly, every ESL teacher...  [Read more]

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! Have your students write a short report (or let them do it verbally) about something newsworthy that happened in their neighborhood or town during the school break. Introduce a weekly journal to your students. The focus of this should be on fluency practice and less on correctness. Have your students write in the journal every day based on a topic that came up in class. Divide your class into groups and hand out one paragraph of a reading topic to every group. Then, have them share the information to complete the reading and create a...  [Read more]

Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified and teach in Xizhuang Zhen? Are you interested in teaching English in Weinan Shi? Check out ITTT’s online and in-class courses, Become certified to Teach English as a Foreign Language and start teaching English ONLINE or abroad! ITTT offers a wide variety of Online TEFL Courses and a great number of opportunities for English Teachers and for Teachers of English as a Second Language. Nowadays being a teacher means more than just executing lesson plans while standing up at the front of the class giving explanations; we were used to this type of teacher when the traditional schools were “teacher-centered” so the students assumed a passive and quiet way to access the knowledge. It seemed not worked out well regarding English as a second...  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Teaching Ideas With the advent of online teaching making such a large part of the ESL market, we need to be aware of some teaching skills for that area. The first skill to consider which is absolutely important for ESL teachers, both native and non-native is that of pronunciation. This is a problem for most students coming from non-native English-speaking countries. They suffer by not understanding the teacher’s speech, which can be most stressful. The first skill relates to the teacher developing neutral pronunciation. There are a lot of self-study training courses that help ESL teachers to practice pronunciation skills and these are strongly recommended. Some native ESL teachers have really strong accents, for example some parts of the British Isles or...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Just as important as knowing the grammatical rules of a language is knowing how the language is spoken within its native cultural contexts. Every language will have a wide range of cultural contexts for its use, each with its own set of stylistic rules. For example, academic papers, business cover letters, and text messages adhere to very different sets of stylistic rules and are evaluated accordingly. Broadly speaking, these styles of use will fall on a scale between formal and informal language. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Zephaniah Y. Formal language is usually used in occasions that carry a great deal of social significance, such as the giving of a public speech, the writing of a cover letter, or the...  [Read more]

  The third conditional is used when speaking about regrets and excuses. This video is specifically aimed at teaching the third conditional in an ESL setting. 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. Unit 16 is a grammar unit, it's about reported speech and conditionals. We got a brief introduction to zero, first, second, third and mixed conditional. Clear examples and how to teach is shown. Direct and reported speech come together whit time expressions and an...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Nowadays being a teacher means more than just executing lesson plans while standing up at the front of the class giving explanations; we were used to this type of teacher when the traditional schools were “teacher-centered” so the students assumed a passive and quiet way to access the knowledge. It seemed not worked out well regarding English as a second language learning, and for this reason, most schools adopted a more “student-centered” approach in the classroom. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Aline S. The “student-centered” approach occurs when the teacher gives students choice and voice and finds ways to provide a learning environment where the interests of students take place. When teaching English as a...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas ESL students face the rules for the degrees of comparison early on in their English learning path. However, this topic may become daunting and lead to constant mistakes later on due to problems like confusing different degrees, doubling up, formulating unbalanced comparisons, etc. In this blog post, you will learn five easy steps you should take to teach this grammar point in your ESL classroom. Before you start digging deep, elicit some ideas of what adjectives are from your students. When you see they understand what adjectives are and don't confuse adjectives with other parts of speech, you can continue further. You need your ESL classroom to know two main functions of adjectives: * They are words that describe a person, place, or...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Put simply, children think and learn differently than adults. Jean Piaget, as one of the leading psychologists to explore these differences, puts forth the four stages of cognitive development, unified by an overarching idea called constructivism. He specifically focuses on children rather than all learners and, further still, focuses on development rather than learning. His constructivism theory posits that children form an understanding of the world around them and modify that representation based on their experiences and shifting environments that either contradict or confirm what they have built. (1) Therefore, in working with young learners, teachers should be mindful of this as they promote the acquisition of English as a second language. This...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The teaching methodology Engage-Study-Activate, or ESA for short, is one of the most effective and popular methodologies teachers use when teaching students another language. Before the advent of the ESA methodology, many teachers used the PPP model of Presentation, Practice, and Production as the favored model of teaching. Although effective, it is inadequate when it comes to teaching more difficult language problems or communicative skills. Around 1998, a man named Jeremy Harmer wrote a book called "How To Teach English". In his book, he suggested an alternative to PPP called ESA. This book is the result of Harmer's research on the teaching methodologies of the past three hundred years, picking what works and discarding what does not. Also Read: The 3...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas I recently discovered that in countries where English is not the natively spoken language, there is a great demand for learning the English language. Thinking about this fact, and remembering my many friends from high-school and university whose native languages are not English and who consequently took many ESL classes to improve their English, I began thinking about the possibility of becoming an ESL/ EFL teacher. Having been a teacher in the past, this strengthened my belief in myself that this is something that I could do. So I began looking into the possibility a little more. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ashley V. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. I discovered...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In my opinion, the most important role of the teacher is a provider of information, and all other roles are needed to help students absorb that information effectively. To prove my point let's take a look at major roles. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Yurii P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The provider of the information is the traditional role of the teacher. The teacher gives lessons on a particular subject such as grammar, parts of speech, pronunciation, etc. He builds up the understanding of the English language in general and moves students toward even deeper knowledge and fluency. Manager and controller is a role that the teacher uses most of the time when...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Are you new to teaching English abroad? Don't fear! These 5 keywords will help you increase your confidence in the classroom as a teacher and help you to lead effective English lessons! Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas Are you not sure what to do this winter with your EFL students? Don't worry we've got you covered! Try these 7 amazing winter and Christmas ESL activities your students will absolutely love! Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas Check out these 7 activities for teaching reported speech in the ESL classroom that will help your students learn this tricky English topic in no time! Linda Dunsmore Destinations Teaching Ideas Are you interested in teaching English in Japan? Our TEFL alumni Kaavya shares three differences in...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Are you new to teaching English abroad? Don't fear! These 5 keywords will help you increase your confidence in the classroom as a teacher and help you to lead effective English lessons! Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas Are you not sure what to do this winter with your EFL students? Don't worry we've got you covered! Try these 7 amazing winter and Christmas ESL activities your students will absolutely love! Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas Check out these 7 activities for teaching reported speech in the ESL classroom that will help your students learn this tricky English topic in no time! Linda Dunsmore Destinations Teaching Ideas Are you interested in teaching English in Japan? Our TEFL alumni Kaavya shares three differences in...  [Read more]

  And now we'll take a look at a few teaching ideas for the present continuous tense. The present continuous tense is quite a visual tense. We use it to describe actions that are happening at the present moment. So, we could give our students a picture, such as the one seen here. It is important that in the picture there are many activities going on. The teacher can give a time limit to pairs or small groups. In that time limit, the pairs or small groups will make various sentences based upon what they see in the picture. These sentences may include 'He is taking a picture,' 'He is throwing a boomerang,' 'They are playing with the ball,' 'He is digging a hole.' At the end of the time limit, the teacher will ask for some feedback and get feedback from the pairs and the groupings to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas When teaching English lessons, a teacher will more than likely find themselves in the position of teaching a class with only one student. It is for this reason that it is useful to consider the ways in which a teacher needs to adapt their lessons to be suitable for one to one teaching. It is also useful to consider the advantages and disadvantages of such classes in order for the teacher to be better prepared for any issues that may arise. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Laura W. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. A teacher should, first and foremost, check the number of students that will be in their class in advance. In this way, the teacher will be prepared and have...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Who doesn’t love a story? Stories are universal. Stories connect us all. Stories also transcend caste, creed, color, and age. From the beginning of time, to-date the medium may have changed but stories engage us with others because it is easy to see ourselves reflected in them and understand the message conveyed easily. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Shaimuna C. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Teaching English using stories can be very effective in class. As an English teacher, I have used stories for classroom activities from Year 1 to 6 at the primary school level. The different age groups need diverse styles. Below are some of the activities that have worked...  [Read more]

Do you want to be TEFL or TESOL-certified and teach in Qudi Zhen? Are you interested in teaching English in Jinan Shi? Check out ITTT’s online and in-class courses, Become certified to Teach English as a Foreign Language and start teaching English ONLINE or abroad! ITTT offers a wide variety of Online TEFL Courses and a great number of opportunities for English Teachers and for Teachers of English as a Second Language. The modes of learning for younger and older learners seem as though the gap has been widening, but there’s constantly ways to bridge these kinds of differences with similar pedagogical approaches. One magnificent factor of teaching both children and adults in an ESL classroom is that there’s always room for foundational English lessons. This could cover grammar rules...  [Read more]

  The second conditional is used when speaking about dreams, fantasies and hypothetical situations. This video is specifically aimed at teaching the second conditional in an ESL setting. 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. This unit was a great reminder about conditionals. I really liked the activity ideas in the unit, there were some great examples of activities that would be fun for students and help them learn conditionals and reported speech. I really...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences The concept of multiple intelligences was brought to the education field by Howard Gardner in his book ‘Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences.’ It is one of my favorite theories that I learned about while in university and I was fortunate to attend a speech for teachers by Gardner regarding multiple intelligences. It is a theory that I applied to lesson plans, most notably for my preschool and kindergarten students to reach all of the students in some meaningful way. Teachers can employ activities and assessments that are multi-faceted and address the needs and skills of the various students. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Melissa G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Child development may be defined as a gradual sequence of physical, language, thought and emotional changes that occur from birth to the beginning of adulthood. In this process, there is a progression in a child from being sorely dependent on the parent/guardian to be self-dependent. Such development is strongly influenced by the genetic factors emanating from the parents and similar events during prenatal life. According to Maria Montessori Theory, such a journey from childhood to adulthood the key principles to be borne in mind are independence, observation, following the child, correcting, need for prepared environment and an absorbent mind. In all of these, the aspect of speech and language are paramount. This post was written by our TEFL...  [Read more]

  Our next consideration is going to be how we actually group our students. There are perhaps three types of grouping arrangements that we can consider and within those we'll have a look at the potential positive and negatives of those particular arrangements. So firstly, what arrangements can we use? We could arrange our group as a whole class so all of their activities will be done as a whole class. They could be working as individuals and the final grouping arrangement we'll consider is that of small groups or indeed the use of pair work. So for each of these types of arrangements what are the potential positive and negatives with that type of arrangement? For the whole class certainly one of the main positive features is that it gives that class a sense of belonging. Secondly...  [Read more]

Sahil Gazi TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Anyone who has studied linguistics or is a linguist has often been faced with the question, “so how many languages do you speak?” A point of short-lived frustration in these scenarios, linguists are often mistaken for being polyglots. Although sometimes they will focus on a particular language and even become fluent in it, their goal is not to translate documents or conversations for the sole purpose of doing so. Linguistics, therefore, is the study of human languages, the brain processes that allow us to communicate with each other. With some of the big questions tackled being, how does the brain put together sentences, learn new languages, where our languages come from, and why languages change. Also Read: Top 5...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas "A man doesn't learn to understand anything unless he loves it" Goethe The role of the teacher is very important in our lives. A good teacher provides us with knowledge, motivation, and encouragement while creating interest in his subject. He cares about his students and demonstrates patience. An experienced teacher knows what role or roles to take during his lesson. The most important role is the role of an organizer. The teacher instructs the class through daily activities. He may also split students into pairs for role-playing or encourage mill drill exercise, where students come to each other, ask questions, and receive answers. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ekaterina H. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences This essay on the Multiple Intelligences is based on my past 26 years of teaching experiences at the elementary and middle school grades, as well as teaching in teacher education in higher education at the university level. I have conducted much research on the area of Multiple Intelligences, however, this essay will be based on my memory and experiences of teaching utilizing the Multiple Intelligences; thus, references are not included as they have been an accumulation throughout the last 26 years of teaching. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Gahan B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Howard Gardner, a professor in Education at Harvard University (USA) published...  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas When using the ESA methodology, there are a number of lesson formats available. In the second of this series we look at a Boomerang lesson. What does a boomerang lesson look like and for what level of student is it most appropriate? Federico Riva TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas In this blog post, we will look at an actual example of an ESA straight arrow lesson plan. We will include examples of the activities used and their purpose. You can adapt this plan to a variety of other uses and levels. Mudita Yajnik TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Setting up the classroom is often overlooked by teachers - but it's oh-so important! In this blog post, we take a look at the importance of the ESL...  [Read more]