A student success story
Helping a Thai student bring home the bacon
In teaching, we, teachers, must think of an ingenious way to make our students learn using varied types of materials and different kinds of strategies for every student has his/her own learning style.
An introduction to Montessori 101
An analysis of Montessori philosophy and benefits
The Montessori Method consists of a carefully developed set of materials to create the proper environment for children at each stage of their development
Review until they are blue in the face
Approaches to pre-test or exam review
Never forget the golden rule of review work: what may seem incredibly repetitive to you is very stimulating for students because they know what all of the questions and answers mean and they’re communicating in a foreign language.
How to get them talking
How can teachers get their students to interact in a way that's beneficial?
If students don't learn to interact with their teacher and other students in English during P1 to 4 then they'll find themselves struggling to do so by the time that they enroll at a private language centre because they're preparing for university or want a better job.
Playing to the gallery
Successful class-management and learner success is dependant on having fun
We are all familiar with the fact that every class has its own special chemistry. For obscure reasons some classes are friendly, others not; some bright and perky, others lackluster and heavy going.
The paddling pool of critical thinking in the English classroom
The important thing is that you're not teaching critical thinking itself
What I’m presenting here are the essential basics of a 6-step process to help your students expand the English that you’re teaching them so that they can use it in more and different ways. All or some of which may help them to retain more of it and actively use it.
Some solutions to the challenges of teaching in Thailand
Some ideas on how to make life easier for yourself
Don’t take complaints or awkward suggestions to your local head. Go to them with easy to understand positive solutions instead. And don’t push your case or demand an immediate response.
Games for large unruly classes
Should games always have a pedagogical value? No.
Some of these appear in different versions and with different names on Dave’s ESL Café, but most of those were designed for smaller classes in countries like South Korea and Japan and don’t work very well with larger groups in Southeast Asia.
Phonics for teenagers and adults
Why should students feel intimidated?
Phonics for absolute and false beginners? Yup, and even up to intermediate level too. And beyond if your students benefit from it.
Writing your own readers
Why not design your own student reading material
Let your textbooks dictate the level and style of language to use and only introduce new vocabulary if it’s cool and/or funny. Students have a nice habit of always remembering these types of words.
