Teacher Discussion Forums

Hello, I do a lot of group work with my middle school ESL students too. In terms of keeping students on task, I have had the same problem. I try to make sure not to have friends in the same group. I also make sure the assignment has a clear due date or time that it is due. If a group doesn't finish ...

Hello, It can be tough with just one student. Especially if the class is 2 hours! I have done one hour classes with 1 student before. You can still do activities. For vocabulary words you can make flash cards with a picture on one side and the word on the other. After the student looks the words ove...

Hello all,

I have some new English listening comprehension exercises if you want to try them with your students. An example of one is at: http://drewseslfluencylessons.com/2-voc ... estaurant/ There are worksheets to go with them. Thanks

Andrew Lawton

I get asked this question by my Spanish speakers because many times they omit the article. You are talking about the "smile" it is a noun. We use articles before a noun.

Andrew Lawton
http://drewseslfluencylessons.com

My name is Andrew Lawton and I am an ESL teacher in Austin, TX. I am getting a chat group together online for ESL learners to practice speaking English outside of class. My students are always asking how they can work on their English when they are not with me. At http://drewseslfluencylessons.com y...

Hello, I think we all have that problem.... I like to get my students in the habit of knowing that everytime I ask a question I am going to follow it up with a "why" or "when". After a while, students know that I am not just going to let it go with a one word answer. Good luck! Drew Lawton http://dr...

I have the same issues with my adult ed night classes. The students don't have time to study a lot. Try to come up with assignments where the students are required to use the new material you are teaching out in their every day life. I have some guys that work construction all day. They speak Spanis...

Your experience is not enough? I volunteered at a local church teaching Spanish and Vietnamese students English in Dallas to get my foot in the door. I then used that experience to get a job teaching community college adult ed classes. From there, after getting a Master's, I got a couple of gigs tea...

Hello all,

I just finished a new site for advanced ESL students to practice "every day" English on. It is at http://drewseslfluencylessons.com. It is actually an improved version of my old one. Thanks

Andrew

I agree with you. Many ESL experts are very against translation from language 1 to English. I learned Spanish doing just that (English translation to Spanish). I really do feel that I am a more effective teacher when I teach English to a group of Spanish speakers. I can really be specific on what an...

Where do I find these articles? I am looking for something like that. My students are always looking for activities to do at home. Thanks!

Andrew Lawton
http://drewseslfluencylessons.com

What you say is true. My question is what to focus on if you have limited time with your students. A class that meets once or twice a week can be difficult. I would argue that you need to take into consideration the needs of your students. If you have a class that is learning Engllish to be able to ...

Hello,

When I have taught online ESL to individuals I used http://manythings.org. This site covers all major grammatical areas and there are activities. Good luck!


Andrew Lawton
http://drewseslfluencylessons.com

If you are teaching private classes I wouldn't worry about formally assessing the level of your students. After a few days you will get a feel of where they are at. If you are completely starting from scratch, and you have no text book, I would do the following: Pick a theme, present ten or so vocab...

Hello, The first one that comes to mind in terms of listening comp is Randall's ESL listening lab. Just type that in Google. He has numerous listening passages with questions for students to answer. There isn't much in terms of grammar, but for listening it can't be beat. For grammar practice go to ...