Discuss – Do you prefer to pay more money for more features? Is value for money important for you? Have you ever bought anything luxurious?

Write it all in an email to your ECP coach (and record your voice!).

Click on the image to download it:

If you’re looking for a humorous, inspirational speaker for a church, community or corporate event, click on the image to watch the video. If you like what you see and think folks attending your event would, too, give Renee a call at 360.929.1391 and set something up. I’d love to meet you and your peeps!

P.S. Check out more videos here.

Reblogged from TED Blog:

Economist Keith Chen starts today’s talk with an observation: to say, “This is my uncle,” in Chinese, you have no choice but to encode more information about said uncle. The language requires that you denote the side the uncle is on, whether he’s related by marriage or birth and, if it’s your father’s brother, whether he’s older or younger.

“All of this information is obligatory.

Read more… 663 more words

The presentation to the CEOs will be 1:30 – 3 pm, and the presentation to the general membership will be from 3-4:30 pm.

The lesson is at two levels, Lower Intermediate (A2+) and  Upper Intermediate (B2+). Both versions introduce a set of vocabulary for talking about junk food, and both have a variety of discussion tasks and questions. The lower level version also introduces some functional language for giving opinions and agreeing and disagreeing, while the higher level version looks at how to use contrast markers, although, even though, despite etc.

Download PDF here: ELT Resourceful-The Chicken Nugget Experiment-LowerInt

Download PDF here: ELT Resourceful-The Chicken Nugget Experiment-UpperInt

The character that takes command in moments of crucial choices has already been determined. It has been determined by a thousand other choices made earlier in seemingly unimportant moments. It has been determined by all the little choices of years past…by all those times when the voice of conscience was at war with the voice of temptation…whispering the lie that it really doesn’t matter. It has been determined by all the day-to-day decisions made when life seemed easy and crises seemed far away…the decisions that, piece by piece, bit by bit, developed habits of discipline or of laziness, habits of self-sacrifice or of self-indulgence, habits of duty and honor and integrity-or dishonor and shame.

In reflecting on this statement from President Reagan, it’s important to recognize that he wasn’t necessarily speaking about heroes or larger than life figures, although those words could certainly fit the heroes in our midst.  He was talking about the common person, and the idea that people rarely “rise to the occasion;” rather most people fall into habits and thought patterns where they’re comfortable.  That’s why seemingly unimportant decisions can become the building blocks of character, for good or bad. We have to remember that as leaders we are always “out front.”

Adapted from:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2274155/Stewie-dies-Nevada-Worlds-longest-cat-measuring-4-feet-dies-cancer.html

Look at this vocabulary first:

breeder: a person who produces animals in a controlled way

span: the full extent of something (full length)

gentle: not hard or violent (kind, noble, soft)

underwent (to undergo): to suffer an unpleasant experience or procedure

beaten (to beat): to defeat someone or something (to win)

flooded (to flood): to inundate

Stewie’s owner, Robin Hendrickson from Oregon USA, bought him from a breeder in 2005.

“There was no indication that he would end up being as large and as long as he now,” she said. The average cat spans 18 inches (46cm) but Ms Hendrickson said Maine Coons are known as ‘the gentle giants’ of the cat world.

Though known for his phenomenal length, the furry friend visited sick and hurting people in his role as a therapy cat. He was also a regular on the cat show circuit. But in January 2012, Stewie was diagnosed with cancer after a mass was found under his eye.

He underwent radiation therapy and chemotherapy. But the long feline was eventually beaten by the disease. He had just celebrated his 8th birthday on January 29th. Hundreds of fans have flooded Stewie’s Facebook site with memories and condolences.

https://www.facebook.com/Longercat

Something to chat about:

How long do animals live for? Give some examples such as cats, dogs, elephants, goldfish etc.

How can animals help us?

If you could have any animal in the world which one would you have?  

Do you think pets should have Facebook accounts?

Write it all in an email to your ECP coach (and record your voice!).

Click on the image to download it.

To check understanding, students could then be asked why they stood where they did in English or in the target language. You could allow groups on the same points to work together, or have students work independently. They could have time to construct longer answers, or be put on the spot.

To stretch even further, the responses could simply be collected on papers and used on the board for more comprehension, accuracy work, or increasing vocab.

If you’re controversial enough , you might even collect enough for a mini-essay.

Click here for the PDF ELT Resourceful – To R P Salazar with love

1)  Most of the conversation or dialogues in the textbook are structured  to teach/practice the grammar.  These conversations do not have a natural flow as real life conversation do. Verification: Ask a  native speaker if she or he would actually say that conversation.

2) Most textbooks have more pages devoted to grammar than to communication. In one text there were twice as many pages devoted to teaching/ practicing grammar than to communication exercises or even vocabulary. Often the communication exercises were simply meant to practice the grammar.  Verification:  If no one cares about the answer, then the questions are probably grammar exercises.

3) Most textbooks have many identification nouns, few verbs and even much fewer adjectives so students cannot express their feelings about the topic.  Textbooks often teach a group of verbs only when they demonstrate a grammatical point such as stem changing verbs, reflexive  or preterite irregular verbs.  Most textbooks do not give students a wide range of adjectives so that the students can actually talk about the topic.  For example, one textbook has a unit on classes but only uses the verb  “is”; students cannot communicate much about classes. Verification: If students in a  beginning language class are studying classes, can they tell what they like or dislike about each class such as “”The test is hard, The teacher gives too much homework. We never use computers in class.”

Is your textbook really a grammar book or does it focus on communication?

My Spanish spontaneous speaking activities (28+) includes Structured Speaking (Students substitute in or select words to communicate in pairs), Modified Speed Dating (Students ask partner a question from a card-whole class), Speaking Mats (Can talk using a wide variety of nouns, verbs and adjectives to express their ideas- pairs or small group), Spontaneous Speaking (based on visuals or topics in pairs), Role Playing (Students talk as people in pictures or drawings from 2-4 people), and Grammar speaking games (pairs or small group). Available for a nominal fee at Teacherspayteachers: http://bit.ly/tpthtuttle. I have a series of modern language visual stories (the beach, the city, school, etc.) for two students to role play; the restaurant role play involves four students. Can use in any language since there are just visuals, no words.

My book, Improving Foreign Language Speaking Through Formative Assessment, and my book, Formative Assessment, Responding to Students, are available at http://is.gd/tbook

Truecaller took it to Frankfurt, Germany this week to present at the M-Days conference. Kim Fai Kok, our marketing manager, showcased Truecaller’s philosophy about  ”Engineering the Word of Mouth.” This conference focused on all areas of European mobile internet and applications.

M-Days is a yearly conference that allows mobile telecommunications from all over Europe join together and educate themselves through lectures, participate in workshops and network. Truecaller was honored to be a presenter at the conference!