Job Discussion Forums

Wanbro · Joined: 09 Sep 2003 Posts: 19 Location: Hong Kong

I'm just wondering if I could pick your collective brain. I appear to have acquired about half a dozen new one-to-one students, all of them female, all of them around 12/13. Now, never having been a teenage girl myself, I'd really appreciate any ideas you guys might have about what kind of material works well in this situations...

The level of the students vary, mostly around pre-int level, although i do have one or two advanced students. I'm looking for the kind of things that will grab their attention, promote a decent discussion with chance to then do a written follow-up, since exercises and grammar are fairly tedious for all involved, especially over 90 mins...

So, any ex-teenage girls out there with any tips on what's hot and what's clearly nerdy? Anyone with a similar situation?

Looking forward to your ideas... thanks in advance!

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

Whether you have one on one or group classes with private students, the first thing to know is what there goals are. So, what are your students goals? Improved fluency with slang and idioms? Better grammar? Conversation skills for restaurants and shopping, homestay situations, penpals, etc.? Written skills?

Gordon · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 5309 Location: Japan

Try to use games with them and make it fun. I'd recommend trying to put some of them together into small groups to teach. It is easier to teach 3 or 4 students than 1 if they are of the same level/age/goals. They will probably have more fun too.

Roger · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 9138

Their5 parents no doubt forced these poor kids into sacrificing their spare time for English - make it as painless as possible!
Identify their weaknesses - I quite go along with glenski who asked you to first find out what they actually need; dwell some time on that, and give them some entertainment for the remainder of your lesson.
Scrambling words has always captivated students' attention - especially after having learnt new vocables.

dyak · Joined: 25 Jun 2003 Posts: 630

You could try using the 'Cutting Edge' series of course books as a basis... everyone always whinges that they're just for <insert nationality> teenagers.

Wanbro · Joined: 09 Sep 2003 Posts: 19 Location: Hong Kong

Hmmm, thanks for replies.

Yes, you guessed it, 1-to-1 tuition is semi-forced upon the girls by their ambitious parents, eager for their children to ace the school tests which focus on grammar and writing to an almost frightening extent.

Obviously the parents will initially judge the success of the classes according to the school tests - but it's clear that what the students want to do and what their parents want don't seem to concur... I'm all for making the classes as fun as possible - games, discussions etc - (since 1-on-1s are pretty intense anyway) but I have to try and find some common ground between what the students want to do (slang, idioms, conversation etc) and what their parents want (grammar, writing etc).

At the end of the day, it's the parents who are dishing out the cash, so they have to be kept sweet - but 90 minutes on grammar is tedious for everyone...

Sadly small groups aren't going to be possible - I wish they were, it's a lot more fun all round - but Mum & Dad are paying for private tuition, and that's what they want, so....

Anyone know any grammar/writing games that work well with 1-to-1s?

Dr.J · Joined: 09 May 2003 Posts: 304 Location: usually Japan

Try combining grammar and writing by getting them to write cartoon stories; I think these are fairly popular in Asia. You can get each student to write a page , then the next student can add more to the story. Set grammar tasks by making them use a particular structure in each scene (e.g passive).

If you really are in doubt, use a coursebook and tailor it to each student's strengths and weaknesses.

shmooj · Joined: 11 Sep 2003 Posts: 1758 Location: Seoul, ROK

I use the OUP version of "The Wrong Trousers" video with Wallace and Gromit. It has a text/workbook with it and, of course, they love the animation.

While the OUP version is a bit pricey for you to purchase as an individual, the original contains too much ungraded language to make it understandable IMHO. The OUP version is narrated in easier English and is much easier to follow for students. The workbooks are colourful and good though sometimes the activities are a bit contrived.