A couple of days ago I was giving the mid-year writing assessment to two of my fourth grade students.  I know it's a difficult assessment, but Mrs. Pokey and I believe strongly that it's important to assess the writing of our English Language Learners at least three times during the school year.  We do a beginning of the year assessment, another ...

Sorry I haven't posted for a while.  I've been busier than a one-armed paper hanger, as my dear sweet Granny used to say! Recently, I've been reading some Thanksgiving themed books from Reading A-Z.  The books, Maria's Thanksgiving and Carlos's First Thanksgiving are a great pair for building vocabulary and background knowledge about the ...

The Common Core Challenge for ELLs - http://goo.gl/KNPU2 – An article on the NASSP website. “To help English language learners attain the competencies stipulated in the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), educators need to both plan and deliver rigorous instruction both in the content areas and in promoting English language proficiency. Effective ...

Tweet A dissident is a person who objects to the politics of the government that rules their country, and actively protests against them. Most political protests are serious, but from time to time political activists decide to express their dissent in a way that is entertaining or amusing. Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei has produced ...

Tweet A preview is a special event, organised to showcase a film or product before it is launched onto the market. This week, we attended the UK preview of a new film called The Sapphires. We thought it was a great film, and we really enjoyed it!* Watch the trailer below to find out what the film is about. Is it a film you think you might ...

Colingo is a new (beta) site for learning English.  This is done in a fun environment through the use of video.  Also, these videos are hosted on YouTube and online classes are are offered all day by native English speakers. I highly recommend checking out Colingo by clicking here!! For a great iOS app for learning English click ...

ESL Library is a wonderful site for educators of the English language looking for lesson plans and flashcards.  There are over 500 lesson plans and 2000 vocabulary images.  Also, there are lots of activities for students such as: group, real world issues, role-playing, and more. I highly recommend checking out ESL Library by clicking ...

Tweet A surprise is when something unexpected happens. Watch the video below to find out what happened when a zombie flash mob turned up to surprise people in Alverado who were waiting to catch a bus home one Friday afternoon :-) Related Activities: Halloween - Online Quizzes, Games and ESL Printables >> Mexican Day of The Dead (El ...

Yes, the English language is complicated.  I see my students struggle every day to conquer the twists, turns and peculiarities inherent in the language.  They work hard, but sometimes the results are inadvertently funny to listen to.  I try hard not to laugh but to model correct usage/pronunciation instead.   Here is an example of an inadvertent ...

Download S8ter Boy Song worksheet for practicing Phrasal Verbs with intermediate and advanced... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]