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1. An American Poetry Project for Low Intermediate ESL Adults

   In: English Teaching Forum 2001, Volume 39, Number 4 Format(s): Text

   This article discusses the author’s poetry unit, developed to expose her ESL students to American literature. Students wrote journals about poems they read and were assigned a poem about which to write a composition. The author required her students to memorize and perform one poem. While teaching the unit, the author and a colleague kept a dialog journal of their experience and insights. Both the student reactions and their dialog journals yielded positive results, allowing the author to make several recommendations for using poetry in the ESL classroom.

2. Plays for Reading

   Format(s): Text

   Plays for Reading uses drama as a vehicle for students to practice reading, listening, and speaking. Students become actors interpreting the written text, and the English classroom becomes a rehearsal hall with the focus placed upon putting on a play.

3. Edgar Allan Poe: Storyteller

   Format(s): E-book, MP3, Text

   Seven popular Poe stories, slightly adapted for language learners. Stories are suitable for high-intermediate and advanced learners of English. Download the e-book, MP3 or PDF.

4. Being People

   Format(s): Text

   Being People is a collection of short stories and poems that draws upon the multicultural nature of American society.

5. Just Off Main Street

   In: English Teaching Forum 2004, Volume 42, Issue 3 Format(s): Text

   “Just off Main Street” is for learner use and is an account of the writer’s experience as an Arab American. It opens with a description of the writer’s childhood and the cultural divide between life inside and outside the home. Readers will be drawn into the vivid description of daily life. The article looks at the challenges of being bi-cultural, of keeping home life separate, of being “exoticized,” of becoming comfortable and proud of one’s heritage, and of finding community. The article provides opportunities for discussions of culture, identity, and activism.

6. Poetry Foundation

   Format(s): Website

   Visit the learning lab and learn about historic or contemporary poets or find a poem for almost any special occasion. Discover and celebrate the best poetry at the Poetry Foundation.

7. English Teaching Forum 2009, Volume 47, Number 3

   Format(s): Text

   The feature article focuses on Virginia, The Old Dominion, and a companion lesson plan is titled “Virginia: Jamestown and Its People.” Other articles in this issue explore literary analysis in the EFL classroom, English instruction for the tourist industry, livening up college English classes with games, using VOA Special English to improve vocabulary, and motivating students to read.

8. What Mary Shelley Never Wrote: Using Basic Computer Skills to Enhance Student Writing

   In: English Teaching Forum 2003, Volume 41, Number 2 Format(s): Text

   This article describes an inspired, well-managed process writing class project for intermediate language learners. The author used Mary Shelley’s book Frankenstein as a creative writing tool in class to develop writing and computer skills. Students read and discussed the book. Working in a collaborative format, students wrote a short story sequel to the novel and offered revision advice in a workshop format. The sequels were then compiled and shared with beginner language learners. The author pointed out that the sense of audience was also established with this project.

9. For Life's Sake

   In: English Teaching Forum 2004, Volume 42, Issue 4 Format(s): Text

   In “For Life’s Sake,” author Linda Hogan provides the reader with a view of the cultural influences that have made her into the poet, essayist, and storyteller she is today. She describes how her ancestors and the beliefs she inherited as a Native American have inspired her choice of topics and shaped her writing into its unique style. Her love of trees is woven through the article. Hogan’s essay gives students a chance to understand and appreciate the life of a writer from another America. It includes her poem, “Affinity,” on the topic of horses, as well as a glossary of terms.

10. Design for Drama: Short Plays from American Literature

    Format(s): Text

    Design for Drama features a number of plays that are adapted from well-known American short stories and poems. Download the PDF or E-book.

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