Teacher Discussion Forums

Could any of you direct me to a good website or recommend me some other resources where I could refresh my memory on what words can and cannot be omitted when combining ideas? Just and example to illustrate what I mean: He stares at the coffee cups which are in a pile. + The coffee cups are stained ...

Thank you, fluffyhamster, for your reply. The online dictionary idea did occur to me, as well, but Merriam Webster didn't seem to have those words, neither did Collins Cobuild. Anyway, thanks for your help and the link.

Hi, Many adjectives that end in -ing can be changed into adverbs. Examples: surprising - surprisingly, disappointing - disappointingly, amazing - amazingly, etc. On the other hand, there are some -ing adjectives that don't take an -ly well. Examples: tiring - tiringly, exhausting - exhaustingly In t...

Hi, I was wondering if any of you who do dictations with your students could give me some pointers about scoring them. Do you score differently if you dictate a list of words and not a list of sentences (and vice versa)?Does every misspelt word count as a mistake, or would you give half a point for ...

Many thanks for your replies!

Could anyone, please, help me out with this phrase? When I use it, I always add an infinitive afterwards. However, there are plenty of examples on Google where it is followed by the base form of the verb. I've grabbed my Michael Swan book (Practical English Usage) to see if it had anything to say on...

Hi Jenny, What a coincidence! :) I'm also teaching my students how and when to use is/are/do/does in questions right now. :) I think the most important thing is that you take it rather slow and do plenty of practice, review and refreshers throughout the whole semester. Before you tackle questions, m...

Hi ESL Enthusiast, I've walked the same walks that you are walking right now. After moving to the US, I started out as a volutneer ESL teacher and as soon as I got my work permit, I let the orgainziation I was working for know that I was available for any ESL openings they might have. Within a week ...

I think Rebeca's explanation is a bit oversimplified. It would be a good way to explain the usage of "was/were" and "did" in questions in a beginner class, that hasn't talked about the continuos tenses yet. However, if you have a class that has tackled these tenses already, then Rebeca's explanation...

Business Options by Adrian Wallwork. It has a CD and a workbook, as well. I would say it's for students at a high-intermediate/advanced level.

Well, I don't work with teenagers, but you might want to check out "Children BBC" on the web. You can listen to their articles, and you can use them as a spring board for conversation. http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/default.stm You might find this one interesting as well: http://www.brainpop.com/hea...

Hi ouraka, I think that first of all you will have to sit down with your student and his/her parents and ask them what exactly their expectations are. Does your tutee need general English or English for specific purposes? What does (s)he want/need to improve most: speaking, writing, grammar, reading...

Hi Adlerjd, To be honest, I find both of the sentences awkward for the following two reasons: 1. If a country has good infrastructure, it's usually not labelled as a developing country. "Developing" is a euphamism for "poor" or "relatively poor." So, if you replace "developing" with "poor/relatively...

Hi Kresearch,

Here's a website you might find useful: http://www.newreaderspress.com/index_h.html

Does anyone know where to find it again on the net? It was bookmarked and listed amongst my favorites, but now it's gone. :cry: Each time I click on the link, I get a message saying that the page has moved and I will be connected in no time. Then I always get another message saying that the page is ...