16 February 2021

Advanced Use of English Practice and Feedback - Present Perfect with for and since

One of the problematic areas for learners is that English discriminates between points in and periods of time, consider preposition for example. One of the effects of this does not just appear in the use or not of the present perfect, but also in the differences between for and since. Join us as we explore some of these tricky, and oftimes not so obvious, uses. 

10 February 2021

My favourite MS dictionary

 


This must be the best general and quick-access dictionary for G5 - 8 students and/or B1/B2, and for EFL students across all subject disciplines. These Longman dictionaries are based research on the most common and most important words for learners at these levels, and in its day the Longman corpus was revolutionary and groundbreaking.

My favourite HS dictionary

 

This must be the best general and quick-access dictionary for students to G10 and/or C1, including language, literature and lang&lit. Even E1L and C2 students will find it useful. 

Why I like "Murphy"

 

When I was a teacher and Head of Department, my "go to" grammar book to use with students was Raymond Murphy`s English Grammar in Use. In fact, as a teacher, I had a class set (well, one between two) along with dictionaries, and as Head of Department, I provided a set in each Middle School and Lower High School English classroom.

28 January 2021

Condensing

 

Condensing is reducing the length of an utterance without losing meaning, encompassing editing, rewriting and "substitution and ellipsis"; it is not paraphrasing or summarising. This session review four main types of condensing language, examples and approaches, for Advanced English users and teachers.

Summarising

Summing

 

Summing, summing up, summarising - all similar but different. This Advanced Use of English session explores these terms, their significances and uses. A follow-up to and reinforcement of our Advanced Use of English session on Groups and Classes.

27 January 2021

Free Stuff for the Early Years

 
Consumables or supplies or materials which are used up in the activity are essential at the Early Years level, and yet are often restricted by programme leaders because of the expense. However, this need not be so and with a little time, and some boxes and shelves to store stuff, you can find most, if not all, of the consumables you need for free. This session reviews some of the strategies and lessons learnt from a leading EY centre with apparently limitless programme supplies. Lower Primary teachers will also find this useful.

25 January 2021

Reading Comprehension Strategies for High School classes

 

Reading comprehension for their students often presents a challenge for teachers, and yet it doesn´t have to. This seminar reviews student-centred and teacher-friendly approaches and a teacher-friendly, reliable assessment strategy. 

The model presented is aimed at B1 / B2 levels, but could be adapted to A2 and C1. For High School (G9 - 12) EFL teachers and G5 - 12 E2L, bilingual and immersion teachers.

23 January 2021

Advanced Use of English : Practice and Feedback

Sessions in this series have two parts. Participants are sent Advanced exercises related to the topic to complete beforehand, and then during the session, we provide appropriate responses and review the exercises.