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How do we avoid avoidance? How do we find the inner resources to confront situations and move forward? “[F]eeling is what tells you you’re alive,” Bregman explains. By riding out our emotions like waves, we become less intimidated by them – and maybe even enjoy them. It’s like...

Class bookends, both beginnings and endings, deserve special attention. Here's a look at how I've concluded many satisfying summer English classes.

You can’t learn to speak a new language without making mistakes. How can we address English grammar and pronunciation errors in a friendly, productive way?

Quotations provide insight and perspective on a variety of topics, past and present. How can this carry over into English classroom discussions?

“A word is dead when it is said, some say. I say it just begins to live that day.” ―Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), American poet What are the benefits of intensive reading for ESL students? How can reading for pleasure spark teachable moments in the English classroom? Reading can...

“Be curious, not judgemental.” —Walt Whitman (1819-1892), American poet What makes classroom materials “student-centered”? How do fluency-focused materials help create a livelier learning environment? While the web allows English teachers to individualize instruction to an...

“If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am only for myself, what am I? If not now, when?” – Hillel the Elder (110 BC-10 AD), Jewish religious leader Why do we procrastinate? Whether the tasks be large or small, it’s all too easy to put off unpleasant tasks – and even...

“Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one.” —Malcolm Forbes (1919-1990), American entrepreneur and publisher How can you encourage your advanced ESL students to develop their speaking skills and tap into their interest in our rapidly changing world? By...

“Technology is a word that describes something that doesn’t work yet.”  –Douglas Adams (1952-2001), English author and satirist   Is the cult of oversharing online preventing us from establishing genuine connections? Do we expect more from our phones than our...

“Everything becomes a little different as soon as it is spoken out loud.”  —Hermann Hesse (1877-1962), German novelist and 1946 Nobel Prize winner   What’s the difference between speaking English fluently and speaking accurately? Which one takes priority in the classroom?...