Newsletter 2021#35

Good morning

We've had a fantastic week in Athens and we're hitting the road again. Heading north this time to Delphi and beyond with no fixed plans. How nice is that? I'm still busy though and I've got some great stuff for you, including an Erasmus offer if you're a new teacher looking for some experience and fancy a month in Spain - if this is you, read right to the bottom!

Also, if your curiosity was piqued by the ELTons (the British Council awards for innovation in ELT) then the Big Red Carpet Event is tomorrow - you can watch it live streamed here.

Something old

My something old today is aimed at CELTA trainees but it might be useful for novice online teachers, too. It gives some tips about online teaching practice and some of the 'elephant traps' that you can fall into. See if you can guess what they are before you watch it here, and if you like this, you might find my Inspirational Ideas for Teaching Online a good follow up.

Something new

I've mentioned short silent films before in this newsletter (some time ago - I'll forgive you if you've forgotten!) There are hundreds of them on YouTube, some of them really wonderful, and they have enormous potential for language teaching, so this week, I thought that I'd look at a particular example and make a video about it here as an idea of what you could do. The film is very short and the obvious language that's suggested is low level use of the simple present for habit, but it's thought provoking and I think it would make a great discussion lesson at higher levels, too. See what you think.

Something borrowed

From film to song. I've been singing the praises (no pun intended) of Lyrics Training for over 10 years now and I'd still recommend it if you've never seen it. It's a wonderful resource to encourage learners to listen more extensively (I'd suggest outside class). Not so long ago, though, I also discovered the Song Activity Factory - Márcia Bonfim's site where she puts up lots of free, ready made lesson plans based on songs. Definitely worth checking out.

OK, that's me for now (except that if you have just finished CELTA or will before Feb 2022 and would like to get a month's supported teaching experience in Spain, read my PS). Hope you have a great week and see you next Sunday.

Best

Jo

P.S. Erasmus - Just before I go, I was asked to spread the word about this teaching opportunity and I think it's a great one, so here's the go. Worth noting - THIS IS NOT PAID BUT ALL EXPENSES ARE COVERED (except for travel to the airport and the training session before you go) so it won't cost you anything and it's a great way of getting some experience under your belt in a supportive environment. You have to be a UK resident and a new teacher. If you're interested, you can find out more information and the contact details for the school here.