Patrick, South Carolina TESOL Online & Teaching English Jobs

Vocabulary, grammar and functions Learning a new language basically needs the under mentioned points: ?be exposed to it, ?understand its meaning, ?understand how it's constructed, ?and be able to practice and produce it. The introduction must be done in a balanced but manageable to befit both the teacher & student. Vocabulary, Grammar, & Functions are the keys ingredients to spoken and written English. At this stage new vocabulary will come into play which will need explained and understood, thus we will need the rules of grammar & functions. Normal methods to use are: Grammar & Vocabulary Straight arrow ESA approach Functions on the whole will use the boomerang or patchwork systems ESA. At the end of the day the teacher has to decide what will work best with the students as all situations vary from place to place. Teaching Vocabulary Has many ways and teacher must follow the path where students are receptive to the path he/she follows . In the beginning students eager to learn and practice as in most cases and this should be capitalized on as soon as possible. Certain factors apply here which are under mentioned. ?Similarity to students' own language ?Similarity to English words already known ?Spelling and pronunciation ?Appropriacy Selecting Vocabulary Selecting new words to teach comes with a little help from the background of the students, although there are course books we must take consideration of the following: ?Appropriacy to the students ?Appropriacy to the task ?Frequency and coverage – how often are the students likely to use/come across the language and can it be applied to different situations . ?Teachability – for example, beginner students need very clear and visual language Teaching techniques Engage stage: use Realia, Mime, Pictures Contrast ,Discussion,& Discovery Activities for Study: Gap-fill exercises, Word searches , Crosswords, Matching exercises,Example sentences, Pronunciation exercises such as drilling , Study from texts and dialogues Activate stage : Open class, small group or pair discussion, Role-play,Simulation,Story building Poster building, &Debates. Typical ESA vocabulary lesson: straight arrow methods different for lower level students keep to basics here e.g. household furniture. Engage:Discuss students residence, what do they have, use pictures, of all house furniture & utensils Study: Have small check list items owned make sure of pronunciation, spelling, meaning, and small activities . Activate: Set up pairs or groups with idea of their dream house with money as no object. Later discuss pros and cons of the house. Grammatical structures Introduction of structures consider level English level , & course syllabus . The meaning of the language, use, and what is grammatically right. Spoken precisely with correct written spellings. Techniques for presenting and practising language structures Engage: Study/discussion/Scenario building/Prompting/ Question and answer/ Using pictures, drawings, real objects, mime etc Study : Accent & pronunciation, Texts & Dialogues , Repetition, Gaps fills etc Activate: Communication games , Role play, story building, Discussion & debates Typical ESA grammar lesson: e.g students at mid level at the end should be able to talk and write about books or films in past tense. This should use the patchwork method where Engage: Students discuss favourite books/films ,and bring in materials which the teacher has asked in advance Activate: summarise the topic in pairs or groups Study: From the synopsis, analyze the usage of the past simple tense. Further study activities to reinforce meaning,formation and pronunciation. Activate: In groups students write short story from picture prompts. Study : Group passes story to another group who check for correct usages of the past tense . discuss any errors in the class Activate: By Chain story communication game Teaching language Functions: Language functions are used in various ways protocols, invitations , refusals , This is where grammatical pattern is correct, terms of the kind of language they use – formal, informal, tentative, technical etc. Here boomerang & patchwork methods will apply. Role-plays are very useful here. Engage: Talk of leisure activities, likes dislikes, frequency , and then teachers gets opinions Activate: Students walk around class inviting peers to join them in their favourite activities until they have found at least two students who would like to do so. Study : Whole class listens to a tape of invitation dialogue. Compare to the language they used and analyze ways of inviting formally/informally and accepting/rejecting such invitations appropriately. Get pronunciation clear here, its important. Activate : Using new language students role-play in pairs. One wants a date with the other and invites. The other isn't keen on the date so makes excuses.The winner is the student who doesn't run out of invitations or rejections.