Spanish Vs English Sentence Structure

  Spanish speaking countries offer some of the best destinations in the world for teaching English abroad. Spain itself has a large market for foreign teachers in towns and cities across the country, as do over a dozen other countries throughout Latin America.  [Read more]

There are many benefits to be enjoyed while working overseas as an English language teacher, including the unique opportunity to be surrounded by a new language on a daily basis. If your dream is to perfect your Spanish language skills by living and working in a Spanish speaking environment, then you have several great options to choose from. There are over twenty countries with a combined population of nearly half a billion people where Spanish is the main language. Many of these also have a large demand for English language teachers. If you are looking to immerse yourself in Spanish culture and language, where better to do it than in Spain itself. Famous for its stunning architecture, beautiful beaches, delicious cuisine, and laidback attitude, Spain has plenty to offer foreign...  [Read more]

  This video from one of ITTT's TESOL courses looks at how the future continuous tense is formed and used. Firstly, the structure: Positive: Subject + will + be + present participle. I will be learning to teach English. Negative: Subject + will + not + be + present participle. I will not be coming to the party. Question: Will + subject + be + present participle? Will you be staying for the weekend? Now the usages: Actions in progress at a future time. She'll be playing live at Wembley on the 16th. Predict the present. He'll be getting on the plane about now. Polite enquiries (without influence): Will you be coming to the party? For those wanting to learn how to teach English TESOL courses are great ways to learn the necessary grammar such as the future continuous...  [Read more]

  This video from one of ITTT's online TEFL courses looks at the structure of the future perfect tense. Positive: Subject + will + have + past participle I will have finished... Negative: Subject + will + not + have + past participle I will not (won't) have finished ... Question: Will + subject + have + past participle? Will you have finished ...? More and more people see teaching English abroad as great way to learn new skills and gain valuable experience in an international setting before returning home and embarking on their career. Alternatively, others see teaching English as an opportunity to change direction in their career and to try something new. Either way, anyone looking to start teaching English abroad will need to be appropriately qualified. Have a look at the link...  [Read more]

  "They're", "their" and "there" are three words that are often used incorrectly. "They're" is simply the contracted form of "they are". "Their" is a possessive and indicates ownership of something. "There" indicates a place. Due to the Internet and instant messaging, the three words have been icreasingly used incorrectly. However, if you'd like to use them correctly, you should keep their meanings in mind. When trying to decide which word to use remember that "they're" = they are, "their" = ownership and "there" = place. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly...  [Read more]

  This video covers the structure and usage of the past continuous tense. This structure of this tense is: Positive: Subject + was/were + present participle. She was working last night. Negative: Subject + was/were + not + present participle. He was not teaching yesterday. Question: Was/were + subject + present participle Was she driving yesterday? The past continuous is used to talk about actions that were in progress at a time in the past. For example: I was watching television last night. One option that may not occur to most TEFL graduates is that of teaching English online. Not only can you earn your certificate online, but you can also earn your wages by teaching English online. ITTT has many different courses available suited to your needs. Whether you are...  [Read more]

  In this video we look at the structure of the past perfect tense. This tense is formed in the following way: Positive: Subject + had + past participle. I had Negative: Subject + had + not + past participle. Question: Had + subject + past participle? You can earn your certificate in teaching English online from ITTT. We have many different courses available suited to your needs. Whether you are starting out as an English teacher or if you are looking to expand your skills with a specialised course in teaching young learners or business English and if you are looking for something more advanced, there is the TESOL Diploma course. To start the process of getting your certificate in teaching English online, visit us at the link above. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT...  [Read more]

  The three words lightening, lightning and lighting are easily confused by English learners and even native speakers. Let's take a look at the differences. Lightening is the present participle of the verb to lighten describing the action of making something less heavy. A good example would be "I was lightening the load on my horse because it was exhausted." Lightning refers to a streak of static electricity through the sky usually accompanied by thunder, as here "I was struck by lightning while playing golf in a storm." Lighting is the arrangement of light especially in photography. A suitable example for this would be "The photo was dull because the lighting wasn't good enough". Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL...  [Read more]

  In this video Linda explains the differences between "assure", "insure" and "ensure". They not only sound similar, but those three words also make an outcome sure but they are in no way interchangeable. "Assure" is used to speak out a promise or say something with confidence, for example "I assure you that he is a great lawyer". "Ensure" is used to make something certain, such as here: "Please ensure that you will be home at five o'clock today"."Insure" means to protect an object against risk by buying an insurance policy from an insurance company, like here: "I insure my television because it was expensive". Once you have realized the three different meanings and usages, there is no way you'll confuse them again. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one...  [Read more]

  This video is part of our series on the past tenses in English. We start off the series with the past simple tense. This tense is used to express completed actions in the past. In this video, we focus on the structure of the past simple. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. In this unit we look at different ways of evaluating students levels and progress, as well as some of the common external exams that you may need to prepare your student for. I...  [Read more]

  This video covers the structure of the future perfect continuous. Other videos look at the usage and possible teaching ideas. The structure is as follows: Positive -- Subject + will + have + been + present participle By the end of this week, I will have been teaching English for three years. Negative -- Subject + will + not + have + been + present participle I won't have been waiting long by the time you get here. Question -- Will + subject + have + been + present participle? How long will you have been teaching English in Korea by the time you leave? One thing that worries many people thinking about teaching English as a foreign language is the grammar side of things. Most simply won't have been taught the ins and outs of English Grammar while they were at school. ITTT's...  [Read more]

  This is the second ITTT video that looks at the structure of the Present Perfect Continuous tense. This time we focus on the question form. Question form: auxiliary verb 'have/has' + subject + been + present participle Have I/you/we/they been teaching for five years? Has he/she/it been teaching for five years? To learn more about the Present Perfect Continuous tense and the other tenses, why not have a look at our other videos online. You may then want to consider completing one of our popular courses. ITTT's courses will equip you with the necessary skills needed to make sure that you can become an effective English language teacher and to be able to confidently teach all aspects of the language. Then the possibilities as to where you can teach are endless. For more...  [Read more]

  This video explores the structure and usage of the past simple tense. The different structures of this tense are: Positive: Add --ed or --d to the base form of the verb She worked last night. Negative: Add did not or didn't before the base form of the verb He didn't teach yesterday. Question: Add did plus the subject before the base form of the verb Did she drive yesterday? The past simple tense is used to talk about completed actions in the past. For example: I watched television last night. In order to be a confident and successful English language teacher in the classroom, it is necessary to have a good understanding of the various English language tenses such as the one shown above. The best way to achieve this understanding is to complete a high-quality TEFL course as...  [Read more]

  This ITTT video outlines the structure of the Present Perfect Continuous tense, the tense that is used for events which started in the past and are still continuing, or which have stopped, but whose effects are still ongoing. This one of two videos -- this one focuses on the structure of the positive and negative forms. Positive form: subject + auxiliary verb 'have'/'has' + been + present participle I have been working for ten years. Negative form: subject + auxiliary verb 'have'/'has' + not +been + present participle She has not been working here for some time. It is essential for any TESOL course to provide teachers with a sound knowledge of the English language tense system and to give teachers the confidence to present productive, meaningful and correct information to...  [Read more]

  This TEFL certification video explores the structure of the present continuous tense. Tense forms have specific structures that TEFL teachers will need to know before they get a TEFL job. Even if grammar wasn't a strong point at school, our TEFL training courses will give you the lessons you need to conduct meaningful and productive EFL lessons. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. This unit offers an overall glimpse on the world of Business...  [Read more]

  In this video Linda breaks down the difference between "look", "see" and "watch". The differences surrounding these three words can be quite difficult to understand for non-native English learners. However, this video looks at the three words in detail breaking down exactly how to differentiate between them. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. ? have found this task to be quite challenging as i never realised here are so many methods in teaching....  [Read more]

  This video looks at the structure of the positive form of the Present Simple tense. The negative form and the question form will be covered in other videos. The Present Simple talks about facts, habits and routines. Positive structure: subject + base form of the verb I/You/We/They teach English. He /She/It teaches English. There are a number of rules associated with the formation of the base verb. For most verbs add s to the base form of the verb -- plays, works... Verbs ending in o, s, z, ch, sh add es -- does, goes, washes... Verbs ending in a consonant plus y, change the y to i and add es -- cries, flies tries.... The verb be becomes am/is/are. The verb have becomes have/has. As a certified TEFL graduate you could gain a teaching position in a public school, a private...  [Read more]

  The past perfect continuous is formed with two auxiliary verbs 'had' and 'been' along with the present participle. Positive: Subject + had + been + present participle I had been teaching... Negative: Subject + had + not + present participle I had not been teaching... Question: Had + subject + been + present participle? Had you been teaching...? Some of the highest paying TEFL jobs can be found in South Korea. In order to be successful in finding a well paid teaching position there you will need to get yourself a TEFL certificate. ITTT offers a number of different courses from 100% online courses to 100% in-class or even a combination of the two. Check out our website by following the link above for more information on the types of course ITTT offers as well as useful...  [Read more]

Within the world of English language teaching there are many acronyms used to describe what type of teaching is involved in any particular scenario. EFL is one of the more common ones you will come across and it stands for English as a Foreign Language. You will find EFL is most commonly used when describing the teaching or learning of English in a non-English speaking country, such as Spain, Japan, or Mexico. It is very common for either of these acronyms to be used when talking about any situation where a student is learning English, however, there is a technical difference between the two. As previously mentioned, EFL is when the student is learning English in a non-English speaking environment, for example, a Japanese student learning English in Tokyo. In this scenario there is often...  [Read more]

  This video is the first of two that looks at the structure of the Present Perfect tense. Positive: subject +auxiliary verb have/has + past participle I have played. / She has played. Negative: subject + auxiliary verb have/has + not + past participle I have not played. / She has not played. Question: auxiliary verb have/has + subject + past participle Have I played? / Has she played? This verb tense requires the use of the past participle. With regular verbs the past participle is the verb plus ed, for example work - worked. However there are many irregular verbs that do not follow this pattern and have to be learnt from memory. For example, eat- eaten, drink-drunk, teach-taught. Most good grammar books will provide you with lists of irregular verbs. The tense system is just one...  [Read more]

  This ITTT video is the second part of a lesson looking at the structure of the Present Perfect tense. It reviews an example of the structure with a regular verb -- played. I/you/we/they have played. She/He/It has played. The video then examines some of the spelling patterns that are used with irregular verbs. For example, verbs ending with a consonant + y. cry changes to cried, try changes to tried. Another spelling pattern with irregular verbs ending with a consonant + a vowel + a consonant Shop changes to shopped, ship changes to shipped. When teaching this particular point, as with other grammar points, it is important to explain to students that there are exceptions to most rules in the English language. Where specific patterns exist we need to introduce them to our...  [Read more]

  This video is part of our series on the past tenses in English. In this video, we take a look at the past continuous tense and how it is formed and used. This tense is used to indicate that a certain action was in progress at a particular time in the past. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. I've never learned about what a good teacher is and their various jobs. I was always in the position of \"learner\" and learning about what a good teacher is...  [Read more]

  This video is part of our series on the past tenses in English. In this video, we take a look at the past perfect tense. This tense is used to talk about a past action and a related past action before that. We relate two past actions to each other. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. The unit contains the basic aspects of what it takes to be a good teacher, the various levels of proficiency and what you will find in a good learner. It also...  [Read more]

  In this online TESOL course video the trainer covers the structure of the future simple tense. The basic structure is as follows: Positive: Subject + will + base verb Negative: Subject + will + not + base verb Question: Will + subject + base verb? As noted in the video 'will' can be replaced by other modals to express varying degrees of certainty. For suggestions and more formal situations we can substitute 'will' for 'shall'. For more information about this and other future forms see our other videos on the future tenses. If you are interested in teaching English abroad and studying TESOL online visit our website at the link above. We have a number of online TESOL courses and studying TESOL online is not only a convenient way to earn your teaching qualification but also a...  [Read more]

  This video is part of our series on the past tenses in English. In this video, we take a look at the past perfect continuous tense. This tense is used to talk about two actions in the past focusing on the fact that one of the two actions had been continuing at another point in the past. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. This unit was very beneficial because it has taught me all the different conditional speeches and direct speech. By using the...  [Read more]

  In this video, Linda explains the difference between "then" and "than" two words often confused by native and non-native English speakers alike. "Than" is a conjunction used for comparisons, such as here: "Her car is faster than yours". "Then", on the other hand, is an adverb used to situate actions e.g. "I did my homework, then I had a nap?. As you can see, the usages of the two words is very different and cannot be used interchangeably. Keep their differences in mind and you'll not make any mistakes in the future. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly...  [Read more]

  In this video, we focus on the difference between the usage of "do" and "make". We use the verb 'do' when someone performs an action, activity or task. Some common expression with 'do' include : do a crossword, do the ironing, do your job, do the dishes, and do homework. We also use the verb 'do' when referring to things in general and to describe an action without saying exactly what the action is. In this case, 'do' is often used with the words 'something, nothing, anything, everything, for example ' I'm not doing anything today', or ' He does everything for his wife'.There are also a number of fixed expressions that always take the verb 'do', such as: do badly, do business, do a favor, do good, and do harm, just to name a few. On the other hand, we use the verb...  [Read more]

  "Your" and "you're" often get confused, not only by English learners around the world but also by many native English speakers. Let's break it down. "Your" is a possessive adjective that indicates ownership, while "you're" is simply the contraction of "you are". Let's take a look at this example sentence: Your grades are great this semester. In this case, we use 'your' as we use it to indicate ownership. You're the best student in the entire school! This example require us to use 'you're' because it is the short form for 'you are'. Should you not be sure which one to use, think about if you want to express ownership or of you want to say "you are". Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online...  [Read more]

  In this video we take a look at the difference between "me" and "I". While they are often used without a problem in normal sentences, they are often used incorrectly in certain situations. For example, in the sentence "can you send the report to Ian and I" the use of "I" is incorrect. It should be "can you send the report to Ian and me" The reason for this is that "I" is a subject pronoun and ?me" is an object pronoun. If you remove Ian from the sentence, it becomes clear that the use of "I" is wrong. You would not say ?can you send the report to I" but you would say "can you send the report to me?". This is an easy trick to see which of the two is the correct one. Watch the video and give it a try. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their...  [Read more]

  This video covers the difference between 'in' and 'at' when used to indicate a location. They often cause confusion for English learners as they both refer to a location in a sentence. However, 'in', as a preposition of place, is usually used to talk about the position of someone or something inside large places such as countries, continents, big cities and similar, while 'at' is used to refer the position of someone or something inside small and unimportant places such as villages or small towns. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that...  [Read more]