As the weather gets warmer, students get antsier. Spring is the time of new life, cherry blossoms and scattered attention. Honestly, it is not hard to sit in a classroom when it is zero degrees outside and sleeting, but as things start to turn green and inviting out there, convincing Read more…
OK, so it is your first day of class and you are all ready to start your students on their English speaking journey with you. You confidently look out over your brand new students and ask them a question, nothing hard, just a basic question like “Are you happy to Read more…
When was the last time you started watching, reading or participating in something, it didn’t catch your attention in the first 10 minutes but you kept at it and ended up loving it? It was probably a long time ago. Those first 10 minutes of anything are really important because Read more…
Before I actually learned Spanish I spent a couple of years in high school learning about Spanish. I was required to commit grammar rules and vocabulary to memory; both were forgotten as soon as the test was over. I read passages of text out loud with the fear of mispronouncing a Read more…
For the last six months I have been living in Spain, a country I love. I live in a village in the mountains which is both beautiful and stimulating in so many ways not the least of which is relearning Spanish. I am not a beginner at Spanish, in fact, Read more…
Wow, we are almost there, the end of another academic year! The sun is out, the days are getting longer and everyone is getting antsy. Some days the anticipation of summer vacation seems to be so thick nothing can get through it. What are some fun things you can do Read more…
Reading is one of my favorite activities; I am rarely caught without a book in public, what would I do when I find myself unexpectedly having to wait for something? I guess I could pull out my cell phone and start scrolling through stuff but I would much rather read Read more…
“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.”– Albert Einstein There have been times in my teaching career when I have been frustrated because my students don’t seem to be learning as much as I want them to learn or their test scores stay Read more…
Whether it is an unannounced drop by visit, or a carefully scheduled event, being observed can send cold chills and hot panic up and down a teacher’s spine. My first real teaching job in which I had to plan all the lessons and was solely responsible for teaching, was for Read more…
After calling a student into my office, this conversation ensued:Me (handing a student back her paper): This essay was taken directly off of the internet. Why did you plagiarize? Student (looking at her paper and a copy of the website): I didn’t plagiarize, I asked my cousin to write this essay and I Read more…