Марина Грабарь - Дизайн урока и планирование с нуля / Lesson Design and Planning from scratch. Technology integration

1 – Food

2 – Hobbies

Openly asking what your students do in their free time and what they’re interested in will give you cues about what to discuss – some might be really interested in history, while others like designing cute lunch boxes. Even if their hobby isn’t that interesting to you, ask a lot of questions about it and use it to lead into other topics.

3 – Entertainment

Ask students what music, sports, TV shows or films they like – this can work with everyone, from small children to older adults. Getting them to explain the storyline of a movie can be a fun challenge for more advanced students.

4 – Travel

Challenge their English by getting them to describe what they see in the pictures, and let them guess where it is. Some students will warm up by asking you questions about your travels, and in turn, you can ask about where they have traveled to, or where they’d like to go. Some students learning English are very passionate about traveling and can regale you with their stories.

Although you will find students who want to discuss their opinions – many find the

Western openness to debate refreshing and seek it out – nothing will bring uncomfortable silence like pushing a student for their opinion (especially in a group).

5 – Their Opinions

Although you will find students who want to discuss their opinions – many find the Western openness to debate refreshing and seek it out – nothing will bring uncomfortable silence like pushing a student for their opinion (especially in a group).

6 – Too Much About Your Country

Meaning anything that compares your learners` home country to your country and seems like you are extolling the superiority of your own country, e.g. «Well, in… people aren’t afraid to express their opinions…»Some students will be very interested in your country and will ask you questions about it; by all means, talk about it then, but remember that people can get pretty defensive if you suggest that your country is somehow better than their in any way!

7 – Their Personal Lives

However, if you try to delve too much into your students’ personal lives, they might close up and feel uncomfortable. This completely depends on the students – some told me all about their marital problems, while others didn’t want to discuss a thing. Don’t push it, but if it comes up naturally, that’s fine!

8 – Money

If your students happen to be economists of some kind, it’s different – you can happily chat about banking and economics for hours.

Of course, every student will have different topics that they like and dislike, but the general rule for starting out is – keep it trivial and light!

Your lessons should be light-hearted and fun, not heavy and serious. As you get to know your students, you’ll get a better idea of how to get them to talk!

Authentic-based materialsas the materials which are prepared for native speakers and not designed to be used for teaching purposes.

Authentic-based materialscan be motivating because they are proof that the language is used for the real-life purpose by real people. The difference is not in the language materials themselves but rather on their outcomes and their effectiveness. What is the age of the students you are planning this material for? Describe your students’ language proficiency. List the title and author. Discuss why you think this material would be appropriate for your learners.

How to Find Reading and Interest Levels for Books

Accelerated Reader Bookfinder

Lists reading levels and interest levels of books in the AR program. Can search by keyword to find books on a topic.«Collections» tab lists awards list by state and category.

The Internet Archive

Like a paper library, they provide free access to researchers, historians, scholars, the print disabled, and the general public. Their mission is to provide Universal Access to All Knowledge.

Shift your perspective Join TED Recommends

TED is a nonpartisan nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks. TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics – from science to business to global issues – in more than 110 languages.