Tag Archives: lesson plan

Sharing …

I teach speaking classes with groups of teenagers at a local High School once a week.  There’s a team of us all doing the same thing and to cut down on our workload, and to offer continuity across the classes, … Continue reading

Posted in lesson ideas, using images | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Carnaval

It’s the Thursday before carnival weekend.  Preparations are being made throughout the town. The lights are up, the burger and hot dog stalls are in place, there are fluorescent wigs and plastic hats fluttering in the wind in the cathedral … Continue reading

Posted in lesson ideas | Tagged , , , , | 12 Comments

The Gift of the Magi

A simple lesson plan for Christmas, based on the classic short story by O. Henry.  You can find the original story here (and on many other sites too) and an audio version with accompanying worksheets here at onestopenglish.  The original text works … Continue reading

Posted in lesson ideas, live listening, using literature in the ELT classroom | Tagged , , | 7 Comments

Let it snow …

This lesson plan is an old-favourite of mine.  It’s based on a poem by Carol Ann Duffy and is great for a winter’s morning, afternoon or evening – especially if it’s been snowing.  But it works just as well if … Continue reading

Posted in using literature in the ELT classroom | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Back to the drawing board

This is a very simple lesson outline that worked well for me.  It grew out of a lesson plan prepared by a colleague for the team of teachers teaching supplementary skills classes in a local state school.  For me it … Continue reading

Posted in reflecting on teaching, thoughts on teaching | Tagged , , , , , | 14 Comments

Shoplifting

Here is another collaborative story writing idea (see also Urban Tale and Early Mornings).  I first used it with a class of teenagers.  They responded well to the topic and the structure and the shyer students enjoyed the “mask” that … Continue reading

Posted in creative writing, lesson ideas, using images | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

An urban tale

… or the glass elevator This has been one of my favourite story-writing activities for a long, long time.  My dad first introduced me to it – or the underlying technique – when I was running a creative writing option … Continue reading

Posted in creative writing, lesson ideas | Tagged , , | 25 Comments

Broken umbrellas

I’ve been rifling through some old files and folders from a couple of years back and I came across this.  It was originally written as a follow-up to an ACEIA conference in Seville.   As I’d been talking about images and … Continue reading

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Plan B

One of those days … You know the kind, where nothing really works!  I had planned to use an infographic in class with my high school students. We’re coming towards the end of the course and I wanted to do … Continue reading

Posted in lesson ideas, thoughts on teaching | Tagged , | 8 Comments

Questioning the question

This is a technique I’ve been using with my mixed level high school classes recently.  The aim is to generate ideas before writing a composition using question words as prompts.  It’s very simple, very basic, but so far has been … Continue reading

Posted in thoughts on teaching | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments