Category: classroom management

Lesson Plans – by Isabel Fechas

Many things are said about lesson plans, however each level has its own particularities. Students have their own views of what is important in a classroom and lesson. There are many aspects that I consider important when planning a lesson. First of all, I believe that the teacher must decide on what the aim will be and then think about the students’ previous knowledge of the topic (if it applies). Only then should one start thinking about the strategies/activities to be used in that particular lesson. After that, the teacher should have into account the student’s level and age. Depending on their ages, children have different interests and see the world around them in different ways. So, one must consider the relevance of the activities and if they suit the taste of that particular group
of students. Additionally, age is connected with the skills and their level of development. This means that a lesson for a group of five-year-olds would be different than a lesson for a group of three-year-olds. Even if the group we’re planning the lesson for is of the same age, their skills may be at different stages of development, so when thinking about strategies, the teachers must have a few that allow him/her to support students needs during an activity (especially in terms of arts and crafts). I also consider that it is important to introduce words as soon as possible in a classroom. When planning, it is important to think about the literacy level of the students and how to introduce/improve their literacy skills. Preparation time here is very important because materials might need to be adapted whether to upgrade the degree of difficulty of the task or to make it
simpler.

Many things are said about lesson plans, however each level has its own particularities. Students have their own views of what is important in a classroom and lesson. There are many aspects that I consider important when planning a lesson. First of all, I believe that the teacher must decide on what the aim will be and then think about the students’ previous knowledge of the topic (if it applies). Only then should one start thinking about the strategies/activities to be used in that particular lesson. After that, the teacher should have into account the student’s level and age. Depending on their ages, children have different interests and see the world around them in different ways. So, one must consider the relevance of the activities and if they suit the taste of that particular group of students. Additionally, age is connected with the skills and their level of development. This means that a lesson for a group of five-year-olds would be different than a lesson for a group of three-year-olds. Even if the group we’re planning the lesson for is of the same age, their skills may be at different stages of development, so when thinking about strategies, the teachers must have a few that allow him/her to support students needs during an activity (especially in terms of arts and crafts). I also consider that it is important to introduce words as soon as possible in a classroom. When planning, it is important to think about the literacy level of the students and how to introduce/improve their literacy skills. Preparation time here is very important because materials might need to be adapted whether to upgrade the degree of difficulty of the task or to make it simpler.

IHLanguageRainbow

The Flipped Classroom – or Tilting it by Shawn Severson

Have you ever questioned whether explaining grammar is effective use of class time? Of course you have, this is one of the big points addressed in the communicative approach!

For younger levels, an inductive way of exposing students to grammar is so effective and really compliments grammar knowledge they might see in a table or which has been drilled into them at school. When it comes down to the more complicated and stylistic points of grammar, say, inversion for example, sure you can show students a few examples in a text (any more and that would be extremely artificial!), but then what? And then you have the issue that not only does explanation take a long time, but also setting these into a communicative setting is quite difficult. So, the last recourse is explain and drill.

But what if your explanation, very declarative, straightforward and traditional, were done at home? This is what the flipped classroom aims to do. Give declarative information, material that would normally be lectured at home. Homework, drills, etc. can then be done in class. Flipping learning has been a huge success in science and mathematics because it also allows for students to have access to additional resources because declarative knowledge being explained is linked to online resources. And students can stop, pause and rewind at random.

For language, perhaps this is not so clear and so what I am doing in 2014-15 is trying to at least “tilt” my classroom. Through Moodle, I am proving links to grammar tutorials, then students do the standard course book exercises. The next class we correct those exercises and then do freer types of practice, ironing out points they might not have understood so well. More importantly, we try to integrate this grammar into realistic contexts into the classroom, moving past analyzing language and into using it. For example lessons (these are my first attempts, done simply, in just a few minutes after preparing the materials).

Inversion: http://youtu.be/nyRz1eWSL40

Articles: http://youtu.be/LGO2bvq1naM

For more information on this type of teaching, which won’t replace us as teachers, but merely underline our importance and free up opportunities for communicating and interesting classroom work: http://flippedclassroom.org

IHLanguageRainbow

Reward System – by Isabel Fechas

Competition is a part of human nature. So, I decided to implement a “reward system” based on that assumption to help students engage in class activities that, so far, has been working for me. This is the way I usually do it, but it can be adapted according to the levels you’re teaching. During the first lessons, explain to students that they’ll be given points and that those points give them the right to earn a reward. Establish a minimum of points to earn a reward. Points can be given to teams/pairs that finish an activity first and get all answers correct, to a student who knows the meaning of new words and explains them to others in class or even to teams or students that get better results in class games. As a reward, several things can be used and you don’t have to spend a lot of money. The easiest things to use are stickers. There are different types of stickers, so choose the ones that best fit you students. Candies also work really well. If you have a special project and want to spend a little bit more, choose something that you know your students will appreciate. Hope this helps you in your classes!