6 tips for teaching elementary English learners

I sometimes think that elementary is the most challenging level to teach because the learners have very little language to work with. But I had a new elementary class today who refreshed my teaching tactics and reminded me that this level can be very rewarding as well. These tips are to remind myself just as much as anyone else :)

1. Grade your language

Bad: "How do you think he might be feeling?"

Better: "How does he feel?"

Bad: "What would you buy if you won the lottery?"

Better: "Imagine: you win the lottery. What do you buy?"

When explaining instructions, be careful not to use language which the learners haven't learnt yet. This means avoiding modals (might, can, should...), the conditional, and all tenses other than the present tense.

2. Practise your board writing

Bad: Unnecessary capital letters, joined-up writing, and writing which slopes down or up the board as it goes along.

Better: Clear text of an adequate size arranged logically on the board. This is especially important for learners whose first language uses a different alphabet - at an elementary level they are just getting to grips with reading English.

3. Be clear when grouping students

Bad: You give all the students a number from 1-3 and ask them to move so that ones sit together, twos sit together, etc. It turns out that some of them weren't listening and just follow their friends so you end up with groups of wildly varying sizes.

Better: Give all the students a number from 1-3 (or however many groups you want) and then say "Who's number one? Who's number two?" while raising your hand. When you can see that the learners have understood which group they are in, then ask them to move.

4. Don't hand out worksheets until the last possible moment

Bad: You give the worksheet to the students before explaining it. Some of them decide to get started straight away and get the wrong idea. Others are so busy reading it that they don't listen to your instructions and you end up explaining five times to individual students.

Better: Hold up the worksheet in front of your chest, explain the task, and check understanding before giving out the worksheets. You can also take this approach when the students have a workbook: just explain the task before giving the page number. This is important for low levels because getting the learners to understand the task can be the hardest part.

5. Use L1 to your advantage

Bad: A student in your class is having trouble understanding an instruction and you can't put it any more simply in English.

What you can do: Unless your class is of completely mixed nationalities, you can allow a stronger student to explain in L1. While it's generally best to have only English in the classroom, this solution is sometimes necessary, especially with lower levels.

6. Gesture, mime, demonstrate... just move your body!

Bad: a sea of blank faces.

Better: At low levels, anything you can do to convey meaning non-linguistically will help your learners understand. If you want them to close their books, mime closing a book. If you want them to put their hands up, put your hand up!

Discovering sonnets (free printable worksheet) - intermediates and up

I decided to do something a bit different with my intermediates today and take a look at a Shakespearean sonnet. For most of them this was completely new ground and they had some wonderful thoughts about the nature of beauty. Some didn't like it, so it was good food for debate.

William Shakespeare - Sonnet CXXX

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;

Coral is far more red, than her lips red:

If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;

If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.

I have seen roses damasked, red and white,

But no such roses see I in her cheeks;

And in some perfumes is there more delight

Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.

I love to hear her speak, yet well I know

That music hath a far more pleasing sound:

I grant I never saw a goddess go,

My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground:

  And yet by heaven, I think my love as rare*,

  As any she* belied with false compare.

*rare = special, superb (old English usage)

*she = woman (old English usage) 

This is a great introduction to sonnets since most of the language is pretty accessible, and the concept is engaging. Maybe that's why it was on my GCSE English syllabus!

Since this was only an introduction and not an in-depth reading, I prepared a few simple questions to skim the surface of the form and meaning.

Click here to view or download the full worksheet.

Links open in Google Docs format and you can then download, edit, or print as required.

Have you ever tackled poetry with your class? If these worksheets are useful to you, please leave a comment.

Why are you learning English? - an inspiring video for learners

I played this video to my pre-intermediate class of teenagers at summer school for a couple of reasons. I wanted to get them thinking about the different motivations that people have for learning English, and know that video is the most captivating medium for teens.

Video posted with permission from the owner Alexandra Guzik.

This video was perfect to spark some ideas and I think it encouraged the students to see non-native speakers communicating effectively and confidently.

Movie writing - a project lesson for teenagers

I did this today with two different classes of intermediate teenagers in summer school. The students produced stories ranging from the surreal to the surprisingly complex. A good degree of choice and flexibility means that the students can really let their imaginations run away with them.

• Lead in by talking about movies and get a feel for which types of movies your students like.
• Brainstorm vocabulary related to that type of movie. I went for horror so recapped some different types of horror baddies (zombies, vampires, werewolves...).
• Place the students into groups of 3-4 and have each group design one evil character and one good character, including name, picture, and a short description plus details of any special powers.
• Collect the characters, mix them up, and let each group choose a good guy and a bad guy (that they did not design).
• Let each group choose a location from a set of 'cards' (aeroplane, school, hospital, beach...)
• Each group now writes the storyboard of what happens when the good guy meets the bad guy in the location they have chosen. What happens? Who wins and how? Is it a happy ending?
• Each group presents their story to the class and then students vote on their favourite.

Of course this format can be adapted in any number of ways to account for the students' tastes. What would you do differently?

Numbers quiz (free printable worksheet)

The first thing I want to share with you is a maths quiz I wrote for my class of pre-intermediate summer school teens last week. In a summer school environment, kids don't want anything too intimidating, so a little quiz is just the ticket. It starts with some general knowledge...*

...progresses to idiom-matching...

...and finishes with some maths practice. The students may want to use a calculator for the later questions. Don't let them!

If any students finish early, I like to give them some bonus questions to keep them busy, such as "How many seconds in a week", "How many days in six years"...

This is the full quiz... Pre-intermediate Number Quiz

...and here is the answer key Number quiz teacher key
documents open in Google docs format and you can then save a copy, download, edit or print as required

*Note - since I prepared this quiz, it transpires that there are now 7 billion people in the world. If any students spot this, reward them with a bonus point.