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The TEFL.net Inspire Newsletter: Issue #111  August 2010 ISSN14751941 Welcome to TEFL Inspire   Dear Ajaan Rob, Welcome to this issue of TEFL Inspire. This month Lucy answers a question about teaching with 48 students in a class, while Liz'sTalking Point worksheet is based on Jabs - the medical kind. Please join in the Hot Topics at TEFL.net Forums and add your views. Other new pages include Michelle Worgan's  review of Primary Music Box, and articles about thinking time and the Profile of an ESL School Owner. As always, you'll find your regular Quick Quiz and the latest ESL jobs. Stay Inspire!d Josef Essberger, Founder TEFL.net Hot Topics The following topics are under discussion at TEFL.net Forums. Please swing by and add your thoughts. All comments welcome :-) Observations on TEFL Teaching Prospects in Hong Kong Expected pay in China?? Out of control boys! How could I manage them? What if you do not hold a passport from the UK/US/Canada?   TEFL Help Desk Teaching style - Oral English - 48 students/class Q: Dear Lucy: I want to just talk about teaching style. Splitting into groups/talking to the whole class/or traditional lecture? When I did my TEFL course, the suggested teaching style was split them into groups. Whilst this is feasible in a class of 20, it is less appropriate for a class of 48. So the best I can do is eight groups of six. Even then, it seems there are just too many students to keep track off. Should I get one student per group to speak, and go around to assess them? Thanks Lucy, Rob A: Dear Rob: This is a tricky one. They need to be able to speak freely in order to use the language but I understand what you're saying about the size of the class and the difficulties that represents. I suggest you try splitting the group into 2 groups of 24. Give half of the class a written task to complete and do your communicative activities with the other... read on ESL Lessonplan  Talking Point: Jabbering about Jabs! A lesson on the little-covered global topic of "Jabs" and associated words and phrases (e.g vaccination). Students discuss questions such as "Do you know anyone who is scared of needles?" in a fluency activity before moving on to discover expressions and idioms connected with the topic. For example, "to inoculate" and "booster shot". Further opportunities for fluency practise are  provided with stimulating questions such as "If you could invent a vaccine against just one disease, which would you choose?" and "Should vaccines be free?" Worksheet & Teacher Notes Talking Point worksheets are designed for pre-intermediate and above levels. They are printer-friendly and come with Teaching Suggestions and answers.   Quick Quiz How many languages are spoken in the world today? a) about 300 b) about 3,000 c) about 13,000 See end of newsletter for answer. ESL Jobs  Find the latest job offers for teachers posted by schools around the world Subscribe to Job Alert Resume bank Jobs FAQ Employment Forum Top 10 Interview Questions 7 Interview Tips Finding the Perfect ESL Job Find English teaching job Find English teacher Book Review  Primary Music Box Reviewed by: Michelle Worgan A useful and easy-to-use way of adding variety and fun to your classes with photocopiable materials based on traditional songs Traditional songs and activities for younger learners is the subtitle of Primary Music Box and it gives an accurate description of what you will find inside. The book is a collection of photocopiable worksheets complete with comprehensive Teacher's Notes that provide plenty of activities to use to accompany the audio CD... Read on Latest Pages Multilevel ESL Activities Discover three fun multilevel ESL activities that are easy to implement with low or no prep time. Even celebrities hate TEFLers "The year before was a bloody disaster - I was rambling around the streets of Los Angeles, drinking way too many frappucinos and wondering what the hell I was doing here. I had no work and my mother was threatening me with Tefl courses in Barcelona." Now apparently she's going to be famous. 20 fun ways of teaching body vocabulary to kids Games and other ideas for teaching the useful and fun topic of body parts vocab to kids Putting yourself in their shoes When language teachers become language learners they learn much more than a new language. Finding a balance in the use of competition How to deal with over-competitive classes without losing the positive effects of points etc Thinking time in ELT Thinking time in the classroom can be both a positive and a negative thing. This article argues that the two sides are closely linked and gives ideas for accentuating the positive, reducing the negative, and choosing which half to concentrate on in particular classes. Profile of an ESL School Owner To be the owner of a language school requires a comprehensive skill set. This article profiles the typical owner of an ESL school, outlining the general characteristics, outlook and skills of those who take the plunge and open their own schools. Answer to Quick Quiz b) about 3,000 This is a level 5 question from Word Up, the world's most popular ESL board game that's fun to play in class.  Easy to play, fun and interesting! Kaye Mastin Mallory, English-Zone.com In This Issue Hot Topics TEFL Help Desk Lesson Plan Quick Quiz ESL Jobs Book Review Latest Pages © TEFL.net 2010 All Rights Reserved

Welcome to TEFL.net—a site dedicated to ESL teachers and staff. This is where you can:

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TEFL.net is written mainly in British English, taking theThe Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English as a reference. For American English we use Webster's New World College Dictionary as a reference.

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TEFL.net is part of the EnglishClub.com community. Like English Club, access to all parts of TEFL.net is free. But, unlike English Club, which provides resources both for students and for teachers of English, TEFL.net is designed exclusively for teachers.

TEFL.net is your resource. Please feel free to use it in any way you wish to help you teach English. And please let us know what you think about TEFL.net and what you would like to see added.

Hoping you enjoy TEFL.net.

Founder, TEFL.net
Cambridge, England

Educational Applications:

I promote other sites and links as long as the teaching resources that are free and can be used in the classroom. This is the case with TEFL.net. They are for "Newbee EFL /ESL teachers but season teachers can review and up date their teaching materials.  Even though theses folks are my British counterparts in teaching EFL /ESL, the material will enhance students learning of English. Personally, I follow the Natural Approach of Stephen Krashen and Tracy D. Terrell embedded into my CLT/ Blended learning methods of teaching ESL / EFL. Some of the British teachers That I have worked with, will at times, force production or rote learning with drill after drill. I try to build off English that the user has learned and redirect to everyday functional usage and related vocabulary.  I also incorporate metacognitive learning strategies within my teaching style.  Give TEFL.net a look and try out the free teaching resources.The link is here.