Appreciating teachers

In the USA, they are coming to the end of Teacher Appreciation Week.  Sounds like a good thing to do - appreciate your teachers!!
There are so many of my teachers that I'd like to meet up with again and say thank you.  In particular my French teachers and Mrs Martinez who started me on the road to learning Spanish!  They really inspired!!

I discovered that it was Teacher Appreciation Week when I was on Facebook and saw a post on Sue Pexton's page.  Sue is  a great friend and is also one of the Iberian Seminar Presenters and is based in Lleida.

I clicked on the Definitions and went to the Facebook page of Weareteachers and found a video from Google.

I thought this was also worth sharing - to give myself and yourselves a pat on the back, but also because it's one of those videos that you could show in class and stop after 1 minute
and ask students what the person does for a living.  It seems like it's going to be an astronaut, but we discover it's a teacher.

And I had a quick look at the Weareteachers website and am definitely going to bookmark it because there are lots of resources there.

http://brentwoodpta.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/teacher-appreciation-chair.jpg

Free online level tests

I am amazed by the wealth of materials that Cambridge English are adding to their Youtube channel and their different websites.

Yesterday, I received an update email telling me about new resources that have been added to Youtube and the website. I immediately forwarded it to schools locally because I thought there were so many interesting bits and pieces in it.

Firstly, the online test for Young Learners.

This is a great addition to the suite of online tests that are available on the website.  It means that there are now four different tests available, for different age and interest groups.                                       

And then, the email shared a resource that I had already accessed myself last week when I was preparing for my seminar in San Sebastian:  

The great thing is that not only do we have the videos, but also the Examiners' comments on the candidates' performance.  This is so useful for us - it helps us get our level of assessment right and really clarifies what candidates need to do.

Many of you will be on holiday this week and/or next.  It's gloriously sunny here in Santander today and I hope you're having great weather too!  Enjoy!!

Training your listening skills

When I was working on the seminar I gave last Friday in Santander, I came across a great recording on ted.com of Julian Treasure:  5 ways to listen better.

He makes some very valid points (you can hear him make them in the talk, and also/or read them in the transcript):

We spend roughly 60 percent of our communication time listening, but we're not very good at it. 

 we're losing our listening. Why did I say that? Well there are a lot of reasons for this. First of all, we invented ways of recording -- first writing, then audio recording and now video recording as well. The premium on accurate and careful listening has simply disappeared. 

Julian Treasure suggests 5 steps to improve our listening:

The first is to include 3 minutes of silence in our lives per day.

And I'll leave you to watch the video to find out the other four.....

Here's a wordcloud with the words Julian Treasure used in the talk.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiguZDNU8AKWDBC4evhUEEj-8bkttIC85B4p4E7aHn17Twk3AVqR897KKS5pmZsYH_Q3YHIsQlfU29lKMp1POXAqtXCRJ7MuulrzcOAZeIfhShrkOrzQqDLWV8iX7h-zfU3CPcNeaUT8fjO/s640/MyCloud.jpeg

Fun songs for young learners

I was checking out some of the materials and links that I received this morning in my BusyTeacher weekly newsletter, and came across a great channel on You Tube with lots of songs to use with young learners.

I checked out some of the songs (not all, because there are 111 videos!!)

I loved the Colors song!

Other songs I liked were: This is me and My family 

Can an elephant jump?  

I was a bit put off by the word 'spitting' in the Fun summer song though - it's a shame, because otherwise it's very usable.

And some teachers from a school here also deserve a mention in this post - I've seen them perform this song live!  Check out the Tickles and their Flip it!

I hope you find these useful!

Online training opportunities

A few years ago, maybe it was difficult for some teachers to receive training and to find out about news and developments.

Nowadays, this is definitely not the case.  With the improvements in the availability and quality of internet connections, together with the range and variety of online materials and webinars on offer, there is no excuse for us to be underinformed or undertrained.  (Well, I suppose there is one problem - the number of hours in a day!!)

http://www.notonthehighstreet.com/remade/product/it-s-time-to-personalised-blackboard-clock

I've mentioned Cambridge English TV before.  Every time I look at the youtube channel, I find more stuff.
I like the English Language Learning Tips.

(A new one - Tenses Part 2 was added just 4 hours ago)

And I regularly sign up for webinars (if I'm free at the time they're taking place) or watch recordings of them if I can't take part in the live session.

There are 24 webinars right now in the Cambridge English TV youtube playlist.

There will soon be more!  Next Monday and Wednesday, you can sign up to find out about the changes  to the Cambridge English: First and Cambridge English: First for Schools that will be coming in from January 2015.  

To register for the webinar on Monday, click on this link.

For Wednesday, click here.

Working on feelings and attitudes

One comment that is often expressed at Cambridge English seminars is that students find it hard to pick up on feelings and attitudes.

When I saw these pictures and the video they come from, I thought they would make great material for class and for working on feelings and attitudes.

First, show students the pictures (preferably one by one):

What's the matter with this man?  How is he feeling?

Who is the man in the light blue T-shirt?  What's the problem?What's the man in the jacket saying to him?

And this woman?  How does she feel?  What's she saying?  

Why has the man's expression changed?

Why is this man looking so happy?  What sign is he making?  Why?

Then, show them this video:

Students could 'become' one of the people who was parked.  They have just arrived home.  They are telling their family/friends about what happened to them today.....

All photos and video taken from: http://designtaxi.com/news/363706/A-Parking-Ticket-Prank-That-Puts-Smiles-On-People-s-Faces/

Inspiring examples

Sometimes, a person can inspire for so many reasons.


Who is this person?

He was born in a village near Strasbourg, France.

He can speak 3 languages (English, French and German) fluently.  He can also speak Spanish and Italian and a bit of Japanese.

When he was 29 years old, he did a 3-week English course in Cambridge.

He works in London.

He is the manager of an important football team there.

He has been manager at that club since 1996.

• Honours: English Premier League: 2004, 2002, 1998; FA Cup: 2005, 2003, 2002, 1998; FA Community Shield: 2004, 2002, 1999, 1998; French Ligue 1: 1988; French Cup: 1991; Japanese Super Cup: 1996

The players there now can speak 12 different languages.

He recently won a prize for promoting multilingualism.


His name is .......

Arsene Wenger

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Football/Pix/pictures/2009/8/2/1249206350861/Arsene-Wenger-001.jpg

There is a great video of Arsene Wenger describing how he learnt languages, why languages are important for the players who come to play at Arsenal.

The anecdote about his experience on arriving in Japan to coach a team there is very amusing and the reasons he gives for why learning the language of a country is so important.
(And what he says about why Japanese people keep listening till the end of the sentence is fascinating! Maybe we should change the word order of English sentences and communication would get better!!!!)

Arsenal, along with other Football Clubs, have been participating in a scheme called 'Double Club Languages'.

Young people come to the Double Club to learn lots of subjects, including languages.

For more information, you can check out the link to the Scheme here:

http://www.arsenal.com/assets/_files/documents/aug_08/gun__1218634204_AW_2355_arsenal_edu_bro.pdf

People like Arsene Wenger are perfect examples for illustrating just how important languages can be in our lives.  He inspires his players not only to play football, but also to learn languages, to help young people in London to learn other languages and to see the importance of learning about other people and cultures.

Well done Arsene!  Well done Arsenal and the Double Club!

2 weeks ago, I wrote a post about the collaboration between Nissan and Amazon and how the secret got out before it was due to.

I said I'd keep an eye out for the advert when it came out and share, so here is the link!

Even more teaching material on this story I felt when I saw it!

There is no talking, just images.
You could do an ordering activity - what are the stages of buying something online and then actually getting it and using it?

You could get students to think about what each person in the video is saying or thinking - the man taking the small box out of the mailbox, the woman and the boy watching out of the window, the buyer when he sees the lorry pull up and then when he gets into the car to drive it for the first time.


And then, at the end, there's a brilliant question for discussion:

It'll be interesting to see what suggestions people come up with!

This story and the video provide discussion material about how much our shopping habits have changed and what things you would/wouldn't buy online.


Enjoy!  And enjoy the weekend too!

Anne

Speaking Test videos for Starters, Movers and Flyers

Back in October, I sang the praises of Cambridge English TV.

In my previous post, a link to some new speaking test videos was mentioned in the January 'Enseñamos Juntos' newsletter.

I have just watched the Starters video on the Cambridge English TV youtube channel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHAnqjI4cU8&feature=youtu.be

It's a great way of showing students and teachers what to expect in the test and Olivier's answers and the examiner's reactions and responses really illustrate how candidates need to respond in each part of the test.

For example, if they have to put a small picture next to something in the big picture, then it should be next to that thing, not on it.  In that part of the test, candidates' understanding of prepositions of place is tested and the examiner can really see if they understand them well.

We can also see how the Starters Speaking Test moves from understanding and doing (pointing to things in the picture, identifying the small picture and placing it somewhere in the big picture) to speaking more about things related and familiar to the candidates (eg  What colour are the buses in Luxembourg?) to questions about the candidates themselves (eg  How old are you?, Who do you play with at school?)

And seeing the new visuals for the speaking tests, I'm impressed!  Very attractive and colourful!!

Can you judge a book by its cover?

These days, I am seeing more and more posts and articles about 3D printing.  It's something that I have picked up on, but haven't had enough time to explore further.

So this morning, when I was checking my email inbox, I clicked on a link to read an article with the title:

The ‘World’s First 3D-Printed Book Cover’ Features Pop-Up Typography

After reading the article, I am still no further to knowing what the book 'On a full sea' is about, but I must say that I found the cover attractive.  I imagine that if you want to buy a copy of this special edition, it would cost considerably more than a normal copy (only 200 have been made and they are all signed by the author) and you couldn't really put it away on a bookshelf because the letters might get squashed and it would look awkward!

Then again, you probably wouldn't want to hide it away because it does look good and wouldn't you agree that the 3D on it looks great from different angles?

The short video about how the cover was developed is available on Youtube.  I thought it would be great material for advanced classes, working on language for reviewing and and giving opinions. There is a lot more lexis here than you generally find in coursebooks I felt.  

slick, clean, futuristic

And I like the way that Helen Yentus expresses herself and you could work on points that both she and the author make, etc.

I am always struck by how little learners remember about the books they're using - they sometimes remember what colour the cover is, sometimes the name of it, but very often, very little!  (Especially if they've covered the book at the start of the school year!!!  So maybe having an unusual cover would get over this.

And as a defender of print (I much prefer reading a book rather than an ebook - probably because I spend so much time in front of a screen these days!!!)

Will definitely be using this story in class!

The facts behind the film

I have always loved finding out unexpected or intriguing facts.

We are very near Christmas.  My daughters will both be arriving home tomorrow for the holidays (they are working and studying in Madrid).  No doubt at some point these holidays, we will watch the film Love Actually together.  It's become a tradition (in fact, I have watched this film when it's NOT been Christmas with them several times too!)

Here's a link to the trailer for the film (in case you need reminding...)

I was looking on the internet for something else, when I came across a fun trivia article about Love Actually.  I found some of the trivia amusing so I thought I'd share some of it with you!

1  The word “actually” is spoken twenty-two times in the film.  

'Actually' is actually a very common word in English, so that's actually a pretty appropriate number of times for it to appear!!!

2  The director Richard Curtis always has a character named Bernard in his films.  Why?

When director Richard Curtis was in college, his girlfriend left him for a man named Bernard. As a literary form of revenge, Curtis writes an unpopular character named Bernard into each of his screenplays. In Love Actually, Bernard is Emma Thompson and Alan Rickman’s "horrid son."

3  The airport footage at the Heathrow airport is real. A team of cameramen hung out at the airport for a week, and filmed real families, friends and lovers reuniting. 

4 Liam Neeson is seen several times with a toothpick hanging out of his mouth. This is because after he quit smoking, he was never without a toothpick to take its place.  

And some other bits and pieces about Love Actually - it's been over 10 years since the film was released.  To coincide with the 10th anniversary, some of the cast were asked to share their current activities.

Link to this here.
Reading it, I learnt another bit of trivia:  the Director's children were in the film!!!

Richard Curtis (Writer/Director): It keeps taking me by surprise! It’s quite helpful to know it’s been ten years because it’s an easy way for me to keep track of how old my son was, who appears in the film. There’s a scene where they’re up onstage performing the Nativity play, and he’s got a Spider-Man mask on, and there’s a big close-up of a very perplexed-looking five-year-old. And my daughter is one of the lobsters!

The most hilarious moment of the whole film I always feel is when Rowan Atkinson giftwraps a present.  I've sometimes been in a hurry to buy a present or been worried about the person who it's for turning up before it's wrapped and put away, so to finish, here is the clip.  Just brilliant (as Rowan Atkinson so often is!!!)

http://www.hotflick.net/pictures/big/2003_Love_Actually_219.html

http://klipd.com/watch/love-actually/gift-wrapping-scene

Christmas adverts

Today I've been working on some posts for another blog that I sometimes contribute  to (not as often as I'd like!)

Behind the Selfaccessgroup are some very dedicated teachers who want to help students and teachers in their strive to learn English, like English and do well at school and in the PAU.  I've been involved in the group for 6 years now (I've just realised now when I looked at my Documents file that it's been that long!), but the group has been meeting and preparing materials for a LOT longer than that!

One of the posts I'm working on is around the theme of Christmas.  I mentioned a few weeks ago that I really like the Inspiration Room.    When I was preparing that post, I watched the Royal Mail advert that was going to be shown in the lead-up to Christmas on the Inspiration Room website.

I then came across an article in Harpers Bazaar   The article runs through some of the adverts from the biggest firms in the UK, including John Lewis, Marks and Spencers and Debenhams.

For use in class, I'd suggest that you could contrast the Harvey Nichols advert  

'Sorry, I spent it on myself'

with the TK Maxx UK advert 

Our new Christmas '13 campaign is a celebration of that very special moment when you receive a unique gift you know has been chosen with great thought and care.

It'll be Christmas before we know it.  So let's start gearing up by watching some adverts created for this time of the year.

Preparation is the key - tips from the Examiners

I was busy going through the seminar I'll be giving in Bilbao tomorrow, and was checking links to speaking test videos that I'd written about before on this blog, when I came across a clip that I hadn't seen or heard about before.

3 examiners who often appear on Cambridge English speaking test videos appear in a short video giving tips to help candidates do well in speaking tests.

The tips they mention also appear on screen.

http://www.thefutureworkplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/hints1.jpg

I noted some down and am sharing them here:

Listen carefully.  (Photos)  Maintain the flow for a full minute. Know how long your answer should be.

Know when and how you have to expand your answer.  Move the interaction forward or to a conclusion.

React.  Don't be put off if the examiner interrupts.

Keep the conversation going.  Extend.  Paraphrase.  Find a way of keeping the conversation going.
Ask questions if you don't understand.

Interact.  Use eye contact and body language to encourage your partner.  Overcome nerves.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZLpAmvxF3s1O2AGba5Qib5zHqGgMZvp6syaqCToNz3JQdJ4K3XZdGjOi6Pw9iXwQO_E8MmAAa3EfYhWtcbp7EkXQTng07zIgNlnXBw8imjfMMNRXUaY1LfVSiSIdOahq9fh0lYdLaqPU/s1600/EyeContact.jpg

Balance accuracy and fluency.


Some good advice!  From the examiner's mouth!

Inspiration from the Inspiration Room

Tomorrow morning, bright and early I'll be heading along the coast again to San Sebastian.

I'm addressing the subject of writing all morning - Developing Writing Skills for B2 & C1 learners and Preparing for Success at Cambridge English: First for Schools writing.


As I know that some people will be attending both sessions, I wanted to make them different.

For the second session, I'll be sharing some websites to use with teenage learners to inspire them for the content of the writing tasks.

One of the sites I'll be mentioning will be the Inspiration Room.

This fantastic site has adverts from around the world.

I thought the Fiat Texting or Driving campaign from Brazil would make great material for use in class

Fiat’s road safety work in Brazil has included Texting or Driving, a print and poster advertising campaign featuring the letters R (Girl), F (Bus), N (Dog), L (Truck) and Z (Cow). “You either see the letter or the bus. Don’t text and drive”. The campaign won Gold for Poster and Bronze for Art Direction in the Design category at the London International Awards.

A new view of those pictures that circulate from time to time where you can see 1 thing or another.

Cambridge English TV - speaking test videos, webinars and so much more!

As I said in my previous post, we Cambridge English Assessment: seminar presenters in Spain and Portugal are gearing up for a new season of seminars and conferences.  We're going to be giving more seminars in even more places.  Hope to meet some of you there!

I am starting to look at the sessions I'll be giving soon in Bilbao and San Sebastian and at the materials I'll be using.

I took a look at Cambridge English TV on youtube and found some great resources there.  Back in February, I mentioned the YLE Teaching Tips available on this Channel.  

Today, I found two speaking test videos - one for Cambridge English: Key for Schools

 and the other for Cambridge English: Preliminary for Schools.

Both show a complete sample speaking test and also provide a link to a pdf. document with comments on the Test and the candidates you see.

http://www.cambridgeenglish.org/images/149448-ket-for-schools-examiner-s-comments.pdf

http://www.cambridgeenglish.org/images/149446-pet-for-schools-examiner-s-comments.pdf

Teachers are always asking for examples of speaking tests to watch and to show their students.  Here you have two good examples!

Other brilliant resources on the Cambridge English TV channel are English Language Learning Tips, looking at various areas such as Tips for Listening and Speaking Tests, etc.  And recordings of webinars if you didn't catch them live.

Definitely worth a visit and saving to your playlists!

"Sometimes we need an excuse to do nothing"

Driving to Madrid in May, I took this photo.  (I must add that I wasn't driving the car!!!)

I shared the photo via Facebook and added a question:  Who will win the battle - the sun or the clouds?

After weeks and weeks of cold and rain (or was it months?), the sun has finally won the battle.  It's been glorious here for the past two weeks.

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/topics/weather-and-climate/clouds-dew-fog-and-steam/

Look at the above collection of words connected with clouds and weather.  As Gavin Pretor-Pinney says in his Ted talk 'Live with your head in the clouds',  clouds get a bad rap.

I have just watched his talk (you have to watch, otherwise you'll miss the fantastic pictures of clouds he shares).  Apart from learning a bit more about clouds and the way they form, I also approved of his suggestions:

“the exotic can be found in the everyday”

"step outside, pay attention"

"cloudspotting legitimises doing nothing"

"sometimes we need an excuse to do nothing"

For me, summer is the only time of the year when for an hour or two, I manage to do exactly that - nothing.....

That explains why I'm not writing blog posts as frequently as I should.....  My head is in the clouds.....

http://ittrainingtips.iu.edu/category/getting-started

Catching up

I knew it had been a while since I'd written on this blog, but didn't realise it had been THAT long!

But then again, since my last post, I've set up and/or delivered 19 sessions of Cambridge English Young Learners Tests.  It's always a busy, busy time  (and sometimes stressful - I must admit - making sure that each session has all the administration materials and that everyone of our team of examiners knows where to go and at what time takes some doing).  But the end is in sight and thanks to the professionalism and willingness of the YLE examiners at the Exams Centre where I work here in Cantabria, things have run smoothly like every year.

Normally, while we are inside schools, other lucky people are heading to the beach, but we haven't had that this year.

But today the sun is shining brightly!!

http://doubtfulnews.com/2013/01/tanning-as-safe-as-a-ray-of-sunshine/

Having a bit of spare time today (Saturday), meant I had time to reflect, and I started challenging myself to think of songs about the sun!!!

'Here comes the sun' came to mind of course and I posted a link to the version by Steve Harley and the Cockney Rebels on Youtube.

I also thought of 'Ain't no sunshine when she's gone' (sung by several different artists I like) of course.

And one I hadn't listened to for years - 'Sunshine after the rain' by Elkie Brooks.  Just found that and listened to it on Spotify.  'Sunshine on my shoulders' by John Denver, 'the House of the Rising Sun' by the Animals.


And I discovered a new song to add to my spotify lists - 'The sun, the trees' by Russian Red.  It's great to discover new things.

Now, time to switch off the computer and get outside .......in the sun!

But before I do, just a quick mention of a Spanish group based in Somo here in Cantabria - a great song and fantastic scenery.

Inspiration from space

It's been a busy week.  Thursday already and I haven't written a post for this blog all week.  I haven't had much time to watch TV or see the news either, but one story I did stop and listen to was the version of Space Oddity by the Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield.

I'd checked out Chris Hadfield's photos taken from space before.


On You Tube, there is another great video where Chris explains how he takes photos from space, what he likes taking photos of and why space is such a great place to take photos from.  There are also other videos that would be useful for classes about opening a can of soda in space, sleeping in space, cutting your toenails in space.....!!!

Chris and the rest of the crew are now back on earth.  Reading through their tweets as they travelled back down and landed makes fascinating reading.

That last tweet about smelling and feeling Spring caught my attention (maybe because the weather here has now returned to winter!) because training our students to use their 'senses' when describing photos and scenes is something I talked about recently in Santander, Malaga and Granada.

And finally, here are some photos that Chris Hadfield has shared via Twitter.  Can you guess which parts of the world they show?

1

2

3

Answers:  1  Ibiza    2  The UK and Ireland    3  Istanbul

Great videos for use in class

I've mentioned the website ted.com in several of my previous posts.

Last night, I was catching up on a few emails with recommended links in them and ended up at a great site called learn.ist which itself has some great suggested sites in its article:

 Web 2.0 Tools For The Classroom.

I have bookmarked some of the recommended Tools to come back to later, but I wanted to mention one of them in this post.

I followed the link to TED-Ed.  I have just been watching a fascinating video about Why is there a 'b' in doubt?

http://ed.ted.com/lessons/beyond-the-shadow-of-a-doubt-gina-cooke

There are other potentially videos we could use in our classes on TED-Ed.  And the good thing is that they usually last around 3 minutes.  

And then, they have follow up activities.  Under 'THINK', for 'doubt', they have a mixture of multiple choice comprehension questions about the content of the video, plus some research for students to do - for example, to find other words with silent letters in them and find out about the history of them.

Next, they can click on 'DIG DEEPER' where they will find suggestions for more related activities and links to sites where they can find more information.

On the spelling theme, there is another video I'd recommend by the same educator - Gina Cooke - on 'Making sense of spelling'.   It would be useful for training students to remember words that contain similar spelling patterns - eg two and twice.

http://ed.ted.com/lessons/making-sense-of-spelling-gina-cooke

Have a great week.  I've got lots of different projects to balance right now - so there's no 'doubt' that I'll be busy and challenged this week!  Hope your week is busy, challenging and fun and inspiring too!

Do you smell a rat?

Back after a short break, I thought I'd write about some fun things that were launched on the (unsuspecting?) world yesterday.

The first - Google Nose.  Here's how Google describes this new feature on Youtube:

We're excited to announce our newest addition to Search: Google Nose. What do wet dogs smell like? Google Nose! How about victory? Google Nose! Try searching on Google for "wet dog" and explore other smells that people sniffed for, or visit google.com/nose to learn more. Happy smelling!

http://youtu.be/VFbYadm_mrw

The second story comes from the UK.

Dexter the internet crime sniffing police dog

Cyber crime is on the rise and online fraud and identity theft are major issues these days, that's why the Get Safe Online team have teamed with the City of London Police to utilise the talents of Dexter. He's a police dog that can sniff out crime through a desktop computer.

https://www.getsafeonline.org

Cute doggy!!  And clever too!

And the third story appealed to the teacher and linguist in me:

From Twitter:

"Starting today, we are shifting to a two-tiered service: Everyone can use our basic service, Twttr, but you only get consonants. For five dollars a month, you can use our premium 'Twitter' service which also includes vowels." it saysin a blog post. "We’re doing this because we believe that by eliminating vowels, we’ll encourage a more efficient and “dense” form of communication. We also see an opportunity to diversify our revenue stream. Here’s our mockup of the most retweeted Tweet of all time as it would appear in the new Twttr.

wttr.com
Twttr will roll out slowly to a small percentage of users, growing to 100% over the next few days. We recommend that you practice using only consonants (and “y”) with the hashtag #nvwls (or if you have paid for our premium service, use#icanhasvowels).

To make the transition easier for you, we’ve built a site that automatically transforms your Tweets into a Twttr friendly format. Try it today at twttr.com.

And just in case you're wondering what the connection of the above stories is, 

They all appeared yesterday, April 1st!