Infonews n°342 from 05/10/2008
Instructions
Three sites of pictures without text
Videos
Animations (B1)
Writing in different styles (B1+)
Technology : super boilers, the new kettles
How to read and write instructions
Election day in class
E-teach Resources
Links from Surfing the Web
Next America
The Vice Voice
PSA : Public Satiric Ads
Video : Don't Vote
Song from JibJab
Audio Comprehension
Letter Templates
Insight Plus : Globalisation
Funky Phrasal Verbs
NASA's 50th Anniversary
Create educational games
Beginners' guide to podcast
Ten technologies to use in a laptop/tablet classroom
US teachers experience
This is one of the must do basics. You can use it with beginners (level A1) or with more advanced students, according to whether you remain at the basic level of instruction or get into more details about the different types of teas or want to discus the benefits of putting the milk first or afterwards. Choose your resources from this list:
Instructions
Test your tea IQ : order those 8 steps (level A1). The game is at th bottom
of the page, remember to scroll down. Then you also have the correction.
http://tearadio.typepad.com/web/2008/08/golden-star-tea.html
Interactive matching exercise to discover the instruction in ten sentences
and put them in the correct order. No pictures. level A1
http://ro.zrsss.si/~viljenka/maketea.htm
interactive game : read the instructions and do it. level A1+ (voc a little
difficult) but excellent for students who memorize what they do and who love
video games!
http://www.presencemultimedia.co.uk/tools/swfplayer.php?swf=/bitsnbobs/swf/tea_game.swf&width=650&height=410&hex=78785A
On Michelle Henry's website, I found this other interactive game : here is
the teacher's guide and the zipped file of the flash game. The game consists
in putting the pictures in the right place, following grandma's instructions.
Same type of exercise as the previous one. Level A1+
http://tre.ngfl.gov.uk/pdf/10904.pdf
http://tre.ngfl.gov.uk/uploads/materials/13522/teaseq1.zip
Full presentation of the process, with pictures and texts level A2
http://cruftbox.com/cruft/docs/teahowto.html
Presentation of the different teas, process for black tea and several tips.
Level A2+
http://www.essortment.com/all/makingtea_rurb.htm
in 5 steps level B1 (difficult voc), with irony at the end (Stick your nose
up in the air, put on a horrid English accent...)
http://www.ehow.com/how_4522694_cup-tea-british-style.html
text with comments and detailed process, level B1
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A61345
detailed guide in 8 steps. Very detailed, with pictures, level B1+
http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Tea
Three sites of pictures without text
interactive game : put the actions in the right order and describe them:
http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/online/makingtea.swf
the same thing in Power Point, with photos of an authentic kettle
http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/english/powerpoints/Making_Tea_Photos.ppt
and the same in .pdf to print
http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/english/pdfs/cuptea.pdf
Videos
interesting for global comprehension at level A1, but you can use it with
students level A2 or B1 for a more detailed comprehension. Once the students
have been trained with the preceding sites, then will be able to recognise
some of what is being said in those authentic videos.
nice pictures and subtitles of the process, but no voice over, just music.
An alternative to the picture presentation.
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/1705598/how_to_make_a_proper_cup_of_tea/
Presented by a woman in her kitchen. The process is clear, there are sometimes
too many comments (be sure to have plugged it!) but this is good for global
comprehension.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOMD2qufGUo
Presented by an oldish man. Very good sound, and the various comments are interesting,
including the comments on what a Brit gets in the Us when they ask for "tea".
This way, students with a better level can also find some challenge at their
level.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vhU24NzWJc
Cindi Bigelow of Bigelow Tea presents the different types of teas and the different
ways to brew each type. Interesting, you see the different steps but she very
talkative... level B1+
http://youtube.com/watch?v=pYxpbUYfvrw
Alton Brown in the Good eats programme, explains how to choose your tea, level
B2 (10mn). Edit the beginning with the child. Then discover the tea bush, the
leaves production process, the different types of tea : black and green, Assam
and Oolang (did you know that they all come from the same bush?), how to produce
tea for tea bags, how did tea begin (at 8mn)
http://hotfortea.ning.com/video/video/show?id=1987792%3AVideo%3A342
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrqBe9sWHsk
Tea 101 with Doctor Tea : the pictures just show the man talking, but the presentation
of the different teas is clearer and then there is a presentation of the process
of tea making with detailed explanation. level B1+. And instructions on how
to decaffeinate any type of tea!
http://www.howcast.com/videos/4272-Tea-Tips-Episode-01-Tea-101
Animations (B1)
Flash presentation with pictures, voice over and subtitles. It is NOT British
tea : it is with tea bags and the milk after.
http://www.graxdomain.co.uk/cv/howtomakeacupoftea.html
Flash presentation of why you should put milk first. This animation also requires
a little knowledge of physics.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOMD2qufGUo
Writing in different styles (B1+)
This interesting document from Australia presents the same topic written
in four different styles : for self expression, for practical purposes, for
knowledge, for a debate. A useful document to study what elements are used
each time.
http://www.saalt.com.au/cgea/resource/activities/ae/handouts/diffstyleho2.pdf
You can also add this guide to different types of non-fictional texts:
http://www.teachit.co.uk/attachments/nonfict2.pdf
Technology : super boilers, the new kettles
Here is an easy document for technicians (A2) presenting the ultimate kettle
with temperature control (it looks like a coffee machine or a dispensing pot!).
You can also use it at the beginning of your lesson, to invite students to
guess what it is!
http://www.zojirushi.com/ourproducts/elepots/electricpots.html
http://www.zojirushi.com/ourproducts/elepots/cv_dsc.html
http://www.asiachi.com/zocdinhotwad.html
and here are some reviews: it's Japanese and is perfect for an instant tea...or
a cup of noodles!
http://www.kk.org/cooltools/archives/001237.php
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16896101307
How to read and write instructions
The site of British primary school teachers called "Primary resources" offers
lots of useful page for ESL classes level A1. On this page you will find lots
of instruction sheets to work on imperatives:
http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/english/englishD2.htm
like instructions to wash your hands
http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/english/docs/instructions_washhands.doc
how to make a sandwich
http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/english/sand.htm
and once they have understood how to build a logical sequence of event, they
can let their imagination go and figure out how to turn the teacher into a
toad (or any other fun transformation : feel free to adapt!)
http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/english/docs/Teacher_Toad.doc
Election day in class
On e-teach, Vanessa Fortoul-Perrone recommends this page of resources for
good students of lower secondary school.
http://www.abcteach.com/directory/seasonalholidays/election_day/
[ It is meant to prepare elections in a class of primary school American students,
so you find materials that can be used with very young student such as coloring
pages and bookmarks, and with more advanced students such as the sheet to analyse
the vocabulary or determine the issues. This enables the teacher to deal with
election issues in a more direct way, for example when the students elect their
class representatives.]
E-teach Resources
Our colleagues from e-teach have created several worksheets that you can
find among the documents of the list
http://teachers.domainepublic.net/shared/Civi%20Pays%20Anglophones/Elections%20USA/
Clémentine Tanga sent two worksheets to work on the biographies of the candidates
and on the speeches (level A2)
Patricia Saez has prepared a fill in the blanks worksheet to understand the
video "electing a president in plain English",
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok_VQ8I7g6I
and there are several other useful documents on the same topic.
Links from Surfing the Web
Middleweb's newsletter "our recent resources of particular interest" recommends
the 4 best sites selected by Barbara Feldman, author of the popular feature
Surfing the Net with Kids.
http://www.middleweb.com/mw/aaOfPartInt.html
http://www.surfnetkids.com/election_2008.htm
Next America
The Scout Report review this site called: Next America : debate, decide,
connect.
http://scout.wisc.edu/Reports/ScoutReport/Current/geninterest.php#GenInterest
There you can consider the issues ( smart power, climate, human rights, etc)
and take part in debates (the present debate is about nuclear arms).
http://nextamerica.csis.org/issues
http://nextamerica.csis.org/debates
The Vice Voice
The New York Times Daily Lesson Plan features a lesson plan called " The
vice Voice : investigating the role of vice presidents in the 2008 US Presidential
Election" based on the article "Palin and Biden are cordial but pointed".
For Students level B2 with a good knowledge of US culture.
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/20081003friday.html
PSA : Public Satiric Ads
Video : don't vote
On eteachNet, Florinda Fernandes made us discover this PSA made by Leonardo
Di caprio and several other artists to encourage people to register to vote.
Click on the "more info" to see the full list of the names of the
artists.
http://fr.youtube.com/watch?v=vAU1vEDXKIQ
and read this article from ABC News announcing the PSA
http://www.abc2news.com/entertainment/story.aspx?content_id=514d09a0-5eab-42ec-9e89-a7ac43c95fa6
Song from JibJab
On eTeachNet, Josiane Behengaray recommends this fun video song about the elections
: "It's time for some campaigning"
http://sendables.jibjab.com/sendables/1191/time_for_some_campaignin#/teaser/1191
Audio Comprehension
On his blog Vivilangues, Jean Sabiron from the University of Poitiers features
every day a resource for his non specialist ESL students.
http://sabironlangues.typepad.fr/
And some of those resources can also be used in secondary school. On October
5th, he recommends this page from BBC World, presenting every day a short audio
news bulletin read by children. And you can read the script as you listen to
the sound!
http://sabironlangues.typepad.fr/vigilangues/2008/10/m%C3%A9thodologie-documentaire-pour-de-nouveaux-usages-n-8-bbc-world-class.html
You could invite your students to go to this page regularly and then inform
the class of the latest piece of news they found.
Letter Templates
Some colleagues are looking for letter templates, either to prepare the bac
( write a letter to...) or for business or technology students preparing themselves
for a job search. On eTeachNet, Dominique Dental-Luciani suggests these two
addresses, the first being more general, the second with over 40 templates
of cover letters.
http://www.writinghelp-central.com/sample-letters.html
http://www.quintcareers.com/cover_letter_samples.html
Insight Plus : Globalisation
BBC World Services features this webcast, with audio and the transcript.
You can listen online, or download the audio and the transcript and use it
wherever you like. This week's report n°11 is about globalisation, level B1+,
but the other episodes are still available on the website. It can provide the
students with an insight on a particular topic, help them find the words related
to that topic, and consider the pros and cons. Once they have worked autonomously
from this resource, you can invite them to debate in class.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/webcast/
another podcast level B2 available from BBC World Service is the programme "6
minute English" : this week it deal with the traffic problems in Dahaka
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/144_6minute/
Funky Phrasal Verbs
BBC Learning English offers a series of short texts level A2+/B1 in which
students are invited to focus on phrasal verbs. You can download the audio
file, the transcript and several worksheets for each topic. A pleasant way
to enrich your students' vocabulary and encourage them to use phrasal verbs
correctly. Excellent for willing students in upper secondary school or BTS.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/teachingenglish/grammar_vocabulary/funky_phrasals/
NASA's 50th Anniversary
The Scout Report dedicated its special "in the news" section to
the NASA : its past, present and future. Read the article and follow the links.
http://scout.wisc.edu/Reports/ScoutReport/Current/inthenews.php
I found this page especially useful to follow the last news from their different
projects:
http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/home/index.html
Create educational games
On e-teach, Celine Larmusiaux recommends this site which offers several templates
to create online educational games that you can host on your blog or website.
You can create matching games, diagrams and brainstorming results, and many
other things. Worth giving it a try.
http://www.classtools.net/
Beginners' guide to podcast
Here is the complete "how to" to podcasts, from the BBC which provides
audio documents that you are fully allowed to use in class.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/help/podcasts/
Ten technologies to use in a laptop/tablet classroom
Read this article which reviews everything you can do in 4 pages and over
60 addresses of sources and examples : blog, wiki, digital ink, online note
taking, assignments, exams, e-books, RSS, online classes, class website and
podcasts.
http://techlearning.com/story/showArticle.php?articleID=196605456
US teachers experience
The Newsletter "our recent resources of particular interest" from
Middleweb features several articles in which teachers tell about their teaching
experience.
http://www.middleweb.com/mw/aaOfPartInt.html
I especially like Gresham Brown's article :
"getting started with classroom blog":
http://blog.stenhouse.com/archives/2008/09/24/getting-started-with-classroom-blogs/
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