Hello!
Today I want to tell you that I have found an interesting post about a tool that you will love: Diigo.
Here you have the link:
http://www.thelanguagesteachercorner.blogspot.com.es/2015/12/diigo-data-saver-dont-forget-anything.html
I hope that you enjoy it and I am sure Diigo will be useful for you!
miércoles, 23 de diciembre de 2015
Speaking and Writing Activity
Do you need a dynamic, funny, interesting and engaging speaking activity? If the answer is YES, read this post!!
The activity consists in forming groups of 10 or 12 students and gathering them in a circle. They have to invent a story by saying one word each person in each turn. Only one word! In this picture you can see an example:
At the same time that they create the story, they have to write it down. The teacher will help them if they have problems or doubts about the meaning of words and the teacher can also participate.
I have tried this activity in class and it always works. It is wonderful because you can ask students to create the story in present, past or future tense and they can use the vocabulary learnt in class. The last time that I put this activity into practice, I asked my students to invent a story in present tense about the daily life of a famous person. Students usually love this activity because it does not entail making an individual great effort. They work in group and the crazier the story is, the funnier it is for students.
Google Questionnaire
I am going to talk about Google Questionnaire and its uses in a classroom.
I absolutely love this tool! You just have to have a Google account, open Google Drive and create a Google Form. And that's it! You can start creating your Google Form. You can select the type of question: multiple choice, short answer, long answer, etc. It is also possible to set that only one answer per person will be valid, so you avoid cheating or editing the answers once the questionnaire has been completed and sent.
This tool can be used to create an English level test. At the beginning of the course, a Google questionnaire can be sent to students, or they can complete it in class if you have a computer room available, in order to know the level of the class and the results will help the teachers as they could know the starting point of the class, what points should be reviewed, what points are already known...
Google Questionnaire is also useful to elaborate exams. Multiple choice exams or exams in which short/long answers are required can be done with this tool, and then you can download and print the document.
When the questionnaire is completed online, and once the student has clicked on the button "Send", the teacher will receive an excel document with the answers given.
The only problem that I found is that these questionnaires are usually anonymous, so they are useful to know the level of a class in general. However, in case you want to know which person is answering the exam, you have to print it.
You can find the Google Questionnaire that I have created on the page "Google questionnaire" in this blog.
http://valgreenteacher.blogspot.com.es/p/google-questionnaire.html
I absolutely love this tool! You just have to have a Google account, open Google Drive and create a Google Form. And that's it! You can start creating your Google Form. You can select the type of question: multiple choice, short answer, long answer, etc. It is also possible to set that only one answer per person will be valid, so you avoid cheating or editing the answers once the questionnaire has been completed and sent.
This tool can be used to create an English level test. At the beginning of the course, a Google questionnaire can be sent to students, or they can complete it in class if you have a computer room available, in order to know the level of the class and the results will help the teachers as they could know the starting point of the class, what points should be reviewed, what points are already known...
Google Questionnaire is also useful to elaborate exams. Multiple choice exams or exams in which short/long answers are required can be done with this tool, and then you can download and print the document.
When the questionnaire is completed online, and once the student has clicked on the button "Send", the teacher will receive an excel document with the answers given.
The only problem that I found is that these questionnaires are usually anonymous, so they are useful to know the level of a class in general. However, in case you want to know which person is answering the exam, you have to print it.
You can find the Google Questionnaire that I have created on the page "Google questionnaire" in this blog.
http://valgreenteacher.blogspot.com.es/p/google-questionnaire.html
Webquest
Hello everyone!
In this post I want to tell you about Webquest and Wikis in Wikispaces.
Creating a Wiki is a good idea if you want to set homework in a "different" way. In a Wiki you can create pages, projects, events and you can check and assess the work that each member has done. A Wiki is a web page that can be edited by a group of people. The most famous Wiki is Wikipedia which I am sure you know!
In a Wiki you can also post a Webquest that is an “Inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all of the information that learners work with comes from the web”. In the Webquest, a task can be proposed and the students have to follow the steps given in order to complete the task. The task is guided by teachers at all times and these are the steps:
- Introduction: Here you can introduce a brief description of the topic of the task and include background information about it.
- Task: Here you have to explain the task that students have to complete.
- Process: Explain the details of the task. Set the number of members in each group and explain clearly the aims of the task and what students have to do to achieve these aims.
- Resources: In this part you have to provide the web links that students have to consult in order to carry out the task.
- Evaluation: In this part you have to include the assessment criteria to inform your students about how they will be marked.
- Conclusion: Add a conclusion summarizing all the points of the task so students can check if they have completed all the steps.
A Webquest is highly recommended for group works as all the members of the group can work and collaborate in the task. Internet connection is needed and they can work together even if they are not in the same place. You can set a deadline for the projects and you can keep track of the process.
Here you have the link to the Wiki that I have created with a partner:
http://becauseenglishisfun.wikispaces.com/Introduction
You will have to request for permission and join the wiki to have access to the task. The link to the Wiki and the Webquest is also placed on the page of this blog "Webquest".
I hope you enjoy it!
In this post I want to tell you about Webquest and Wikis in Wikispaces.
Creating a Wiki is a good idea if you want to set homework in a "different" way. In a Wiki you can create pages, projects, events and you can check and assess the work that each member has done. A Wiki is a web page that can be edited by a group of people. The most famous Wiki is Wikipedia which I am sure you know!
In a Wiki you can also post a Webquest that is an “Inquiry-oriented lesson format in which most or all of the information that learners work with comes from the web”. In the Webquest, a task can be proposed and the students have to follow the steps given in order to complete the task. The task is guided by teachers at all times and these are the steps:
- Introduction: Here you can introduce a brief description of the topic of the task and include background information about it.
- Task: Here you have to explain the task that students have to complete.
- Process: Explain the details of the task. Set the number of members in each group and explain clearly the aims of the task and what students have to do to achieve these aims.
- Resources: In this part you have to provide the web links that students have to consult in order to carry out the task.
- Evaluation: In this part you have to include the assessment criteria to inform your students about how they will be marked.
- Conclusion: Add a conclusion summarizing all the points of the task so students can check if they have completed all the steps.
A Webquest is highly recommended for group works as all the members of the group can work and collaborate in the task. Internet connection is needed and they can work together even if they are not in the same place. You can set a deadline for the projects and you can keep track of the process.
Here you have the link to the Wiki that I have created with a partner:
http://becauseenglishisfun.wikispaces.com/Introduction
You will have to request for permission and join the wiki to have access to the task. The link to the Wiki and the Webquest is also placed on the page of this blog "Webquest".
I hope you enjoy it!
Reading activity
Here you have a reading activity!
It is about Christmas and the grammar of the text is: future "will". Have a look at the vocabulary used which is on the page placed in the toolbar with the name "Christmas vocabulary":
http://valgreenteacher.blogspot.com.es/p/christmas-vocabulary.html
Moreover, you have an interesting matching activity in a post of this blog:
http://www.becauseenglishisfun.blogspot.com.es/
EXERCISE
Read the text and write True ( T ) or False ( F ). If the sentence is false, write the correct sentence.
It is about Christmas and the grammar of the text is: future "will". Have a look at the vocabulary used which is on the page placed in the toolbar with the name "Christmas vocabulary":
http://valgreenteacher.blogspot.com.es/p/christmas-vocabulary.html
Moreover, you have an interesting matching activity in a post of this blog:
http://www.becauseenglishisfun.blogspot.com.es/
Reading activity
1. Hello! I am
Mary. Next Christmas I will visit my grandmother. She lives in New York and I
will go with my parents and my sister. I think that my grandmother will cook
turkey because it’s my favourite dish! We will sing Christmas Carols around the
Christmas tree and in the morning…we will open our presents! I love Christmas!
2. Hi! I am John.
On Christmas I will stay at home. I hate Christmas, I do not like it at all. I
will have a normal dinner, like the rest of the days. I won’t have presents
because nobody will visit me. I won’t sing carols but I will read an
interesting book. That’s all. For me Christmas is and it will be a normal day
in my life.
3. Hello! My name
is George and I like Christmas because I love presents. This Christmas I will
open a lot of presents. All the members of my family will give me a present and
I am excited about it. I will put a Christmas stocking, which is a big sock,
hanging on the chimney and in the morning I will find a lot of sweets in it.
Presents are the best of Christmas.
4. Hi! I am Lisa
and I will fly to Brazil this Christmas to visit my brother. It won’t be cold
in Brazil because it will be summer at Christmas! We will go to the beach and
we will decorate a palm tree. I’ll buy some presents for my brother – I'm sure
he’ll love them! This will be the best Christmas of my life!
EXERCISE
Read the text and write True ( T ) or False ( F ). If the sentence is false, write the correct sentence.
- Mary will visit her grandfather. T / F ___________________________________
- Mary will have Turkey for dinner. T / F__________________________________
- John loves Christmas. T /
F____________________________________________
- John will sing Christmas Carols. T / F____________________________________
- John will read an interesting book. T / F_________________________________
- George loves presents. T /
F___________________________________________
- George will put a Christmas stocking in the
chimney. T /
F___________________
- Lisa will stay at home on Christmas. T / F_________________________________
- Lisa will buy presents
for her brother. T /
F________________________________
lunes, 21 de diciembre de 2015
Voki
In this post I will talk about the uses of Voki when teaching English.
Creating a Voki is an amazing process that engage students because they love using technology and they learn without realizing it . If you click on the link, you will be directed to the web page www.voki.com
The first thing that you have to do is to choose the character that you want to use. You can change the appearance of your voki ( hair, eyes, mouth...). There are animals, famous people, politicians, etc, but you can only choose the free characters if you are not a premium member. Then, you can write what your voki will say or you can record yourself talking.
Voki is quite useful for English teaching as students have the opportunity of listening to different English accents. When they decide to write the sentences that their vokis will repeat, they can select the language and the accent. For example, in English you can choose the voice of a woman or a man and the british or the american accent among others.
It is also a good tool for teachers to create funnier and more interactive presentations. These presentations can be shown in class or they can be uploaded to the moodle so all the students can have access to them. Moreover, if a student miss a class, he or she can follow the class in the moodle.
I have created my own voki! Have a look at the upper right-hand corner of my blog to see it.
Creating a Voki is an amazing process that engage students because they love using technology and they learn without realizing it . If you click on the link, you will be directed to the web page www.voki.com
The first thing that you have to do is to choose the character that you want to use. You can change the appearance of your voki ( hair, eyes, mouth...). There are animals, famous people, politicians, etc, but you can only choose the free characters if you are not a premium member. Then, you can write what your voki will say or you can record yourself talking.
Voki is quite useful for English teaching as students have the opportunity of listening to different English accents. When they decide to write the sentences that their vokis will repeat, they can select the language and the accent. For example, in English you can choose the voice of a woman or a man and the british or the american accent among others.
It is also a good tool for teachers to create funnier and more interactive presentations. These presentations can be shown in class or they can be uploaded to the moodle so all the students can have access to them. Moreover, if a student miss a class, he or she can follow the class in the moodle.
I have created my own voki! Have a look at the upper right-hand corner of my blog to see it.
Welcome to Miss Valgreen Teacher's blog
Welcome! In this blog I will talk about tools that are useful to teach and learn English. I will also provide some exercises for students to practice and for teachers to use them in class.
I hope that you enjoy the blog.
I will be pleased to receive your comments so I could add more ideas and know if they have been useful for you.
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