Advanced Search: Resources

1. English Magazines = Motivation + Improved ESL Writing Skills

   In: English Teaching Forum 2004, Volume 42, Issue 1 Format(s): Text

   Creating and editing a magazine in English is a challenging and motivating type of portfolio assessment. It encourages student fluency and freedom by allowing students to choose their own topics for writing. It is real communication for a real audience and requires students to take responsibility for their own writing. It can also make the teacher’s job more enjoyable. The article describes a magazine-editing project for an intermediate university writing class. The students performed well on the national writing examination.

2. From Passive Participant to Active Thinker

   In: English Teaching Forum 2005, Volume 43, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   This article discusses how, through materials development, teachers can help students think critically and feel comfortable enough to be active participants in class. The author suggests adapting materials to be more relevant to the interests and needs of students in a particular context. Another suggestion is to create materials that help students connect their thoughts and feelings to the language they are learning. The author includes techniques to promote critical thinking and learner autonomy.

3. U.S. Department of the Treasury Lesson Plans

   Format(s): Website

   Here teachers can find lesson plans on coins, currency, money math lessons, and fact sheets.

4. Designing Lessons for EFL Listening Comprehension Classes

   In: English Teaching Forum 2007, Volume 45, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   To keep students motivated, the author outlines several principles for developing listening comprehension lessons. When learners focus on a clear learning objective, retention improves. Other recommendations include keeping the same topic and objective for several activities and selecting relevant, authentic material with a clear layout and pictures to help with prediction. The author discusses appropriate teaching methods, such as variety and effective questioning.

5. Just Like Everyday People

   In: American Rhythms Format(s): MP3

   Honolulu-based Hawaiian singer Kelli Heath urges her listeners to live “like everyday people”, who simply seek to lead a good and peaceful life.

6. The Time is Now

   In: American Rhythms Format(s): MP3

   Travis Haddix’s song 'The Time is Now' is another soul-searching examples of blues music. Download this song or listen online.

7. Module 8: Authentic Materials

   In: Shaping the Way We Teach English: Successful Practices Around the World Format(s): Text, Video

   This Module of the Shaping the Way we Teach English Series contains a lesson plan and accompanying video focused on how to choose and use printed texts, images, and multimedia in the classroom.

8. Voices of Youth

   Format(s): Website

   Voices of Youth is UNICEF’s online place for young people to learn more about issues affecting their world. Discover more about issues such as human rights, Education, health, the environment and learn about what young people are doing to make a difference.

9. Meeting EFL Learners Halfway by Using Locally Relevant Authentic Materials

   In: English Teaching Forum 2014, Volume 52, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   This article presents five categories of authentic materials and sources for materials along with ways to use them in the EFL classroom.

10. American Teens Talk!

    Format(s): MP3, Text

    Americans Teens Talk! is a collection of interviews of American high school students in both written and audio format. Each interview is accompanied by vocabulary notes and discussion questions.

Pages