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Sophisticated English for Global Souls
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14
JUL
2014

How Do You Teach the Difference Between “Make” and “Do” in Your English Classrooms?

Distinguishing the difference between make and do in English classrooms “Do all you can to make your dreams come true.” ―Joel Osteen (1960- ) American preacher How do you teach the difference between “make” and “do” in your English classrooms? What do you do? What do...
10
JUL
2014

Paraphrasing is an Essential Conversation Skill!

If English students can accurately paraphrase a reading, a radio segment, or a verbal statement, they can actively participate in common conversations and classroom discussions. Many English teachers underestimate the importance of this skill, and assume students understand more...
02
JUL
2014

Volume Matters – Even in Personal Conversations

Why volume matters, especially in difficult student-teacher conferences “Communication leads to community, that is, to understanding, intimacy and mutual valuing.” ―Rollo May (1909-1994) American author and psychologist Student conferences, especially those involving shy students...
01
JUL
2014

Creating Simple ESL Lesson Plans Around Top Ten Lists for Advanced English Classes

Advanced ESL/EFL classes benefit from making top ten lists “Share your knowledge. It’s a way to achieve immortality.” ―Tenzin Gyatso (1950-) 14th Dalai Lama Americans love to create, read, and discuss top ten lists. Newspapers and magazines use the simple format to summarize...
20
JUN
2014

Homophones Can Confuse: A Minor Mistake in Miner Valley

Why it is so important for English learners to tackle homophones in the classroom “For me the greatest beauty always lies in the greatest clarity.” ―Gotthold Ephraim Lessing (1729-1781), German writer English remains an often confusing and difficult language to learn (and teach!)...
17
JUN
2014

Fantastic YouTube videos for the ESL classroom

CompellingConversations’ compilation of YouTube videos for ESL teachers and students alike “We are not what we know but what we are willing to learn.” ―Mary Catherine Bateson (1939- ), American writer and cultural anthropologist Want to make use of YouTube’s gigantic collection...
16
JUN
2014

Skype Makes Tutoring English with Clients Across the Globe Easy and Comfortable

Explore the benefits of using Skype to tutor English learners around the world. “A conversation can be made easy. Just ask a question and then listen.” ―Robert Bly (1926- ), American poet and author As millions of English-learners across the globe take advantage of new...
15
AUG
2013

What Three Tips Would You Share with Novice ESL / EFL Teachers?

What three tips would offer new a ESL/EFL teacher? Hall Houston, author of Provoking Thought: Memory and Thought in ELT, posed this question to several prominent English language trainers and teachers last year. Sean Banville, Russell Stannard, Chia Suan Chong, Nik Peachey, Scott...
17
FEB
2012

Videotaping Helps ESL Students Recognize Their Good Mistakes – and Learn from Them!

How do you help your ESL students recognize their errors in speaking English? What techniques do you use to make their mistakes “psychologically real” to them? One technique I’ve found effective may seem rather counter-intuitive: encourage them! This unorthodox...
07
JUL
2011

Becoming an Autotelic English Teacher

“The wise are instructed by reason, average minds by experience, the stupid by necessity, and the brute by instinct.” Marcus Cicero, Roman statesman and orator How do potential English teachers gain the experience and knowledge to become successful English teachers? The answer is...