Lesson Planning Tools

Planning and sharing  lessons online is now possible and teachers  can rely on many  tools which are free and which can help them develop their lessons: in most cases teachers need to have an account and start browsing  lessons or  create their own  lessons. Lessons can be used in a flipped learning mode and they can contain the main documents, videos, images, audios which teachers have chosen for their students. They guide the students as they can also  find activities to do with quizzes.
Most of the tools enable the teachers to create their content by using  OER and documents which are online.
Students can have access to the lessons thanks to a link and can be embedded in many  LMS or blogs and websites.

This new way of working is based on cloud-based tools and lessons can become more engaging  while students can work from home and also have access to  documents and lots of visuals  and language input.

Here you can find interesting tools:

For Italian  Teachers  :  RAISCUOLA

Teachers can rely on a database of documents and choose the content which will be later  shared with the students and other teachers :

RAISCUOLA LEZIONI


Online there are interesting lessons:  the links I am providing is from a lesson  about  the Elizabethan Theatre. Most of the lessons are in Italian and created for Italian learners.


http://www.raiscuola.rai.it/lezione/elizabethan-theatre/11587/default.aspx#1

LESSONPATHS : a tool for browsing and  creating  lessons online

http://www.lessonpaths.com/splash


Here is an example of a lesson about   The Diary of Anne  Frank- it is based on videos related to the time and the life of  Anne Frank.

Create your own Playlist on LessonPaths!



Here is a tutorial teaching about  it :

Another interesting tool is  TES:

https://www.tes.com/lessons

You can find  here  my lesson plan about  V. Woolf:

https://www.tes.com/lessons/QVKo3kvQ6BG4Kw/virginia-woolf-and-the-modern-age

The tool is versatile and enables you to work online while choosing materials like videos, images and creating context and quizzes.
 

TED-ED LESSON SHARING AND CREATING LESSONS

https://ed.ted.com/lessons

This tool enables you to create  lessons  starting from a video : https://ed.ted.com/videos

You need to have an account and then you can  create and share  the lesson. I have often used these lessons for presenting further materials with listening comprehensions in English.  Usually videos are short and students are guided online by using  wh-questions and detailed reading questions.


A new and interesting tool is Symbaloo  Learning Path: it shares  similarities with TES. You have access to lessons online.

SYMBALOO LEARNING PATH

https://learningpaths.symbaloo.com/

An interesting tool which enables teachers  to create lessons and check the students' working online.

Here is a short introduction online  about it :
https://en.blog.symbaloo.com/easily-build-custom-learning-paths/

Shared lessons can be found online : 
https://learningpaths.symbaloo.com/Marketplace

This is a lesson plan for Italian teachers  studying and learning about  Google:

https://learningpaths.symbaloo.com/preview/L50576/


Here is my  first learning path about the Victorian Age - it needs improving but  I managed to create it in a short time:

https://learningpaths.symbaloo.com/preview/L59597/




All these tools share a lot of good features : they are created online and can be seen from any device.
You only need to rely on the many documents online which are also on Youtube and sometimes channels  can be closed.  It is therefore important to rely on good channels for the videos.

Big Ben in London

Landmarks in London :  The Big Ben Tower

You travel through London and this tower is a famous  landmark for any tourist. It's  famous  because of it has  Big Ben, this  is a stricking clock inside the tower.


By Guilherme Peev dos S…, CC BY 3.0, Link

A bit of  History about this famous Tower
from http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2014/07/podcast-episode-189-truth-big-ben/#

Let's listen to true story about Big Ben





Big Ben and its Technology

What's going to happen to Big Ben?

#London #Freak #Out After #Big #Ben #Silenced. https://t.co/EyL3oISU1g

— Bill Chivil (@Bill_Chivil) August 15, 2017

Stop Racism

13th August  2017

I have just watched the news and it seems that  racism and negative attitudes are prevailing in many parts of the world.  People hate the ones who are different from them.
Right now in the USA there are   white people who  showed that they have not learnt the lesson from the past. They believe in a society which discriminates the black people....... meanwhile we are living in the XXI century.

It is the old past that is not forgotten and that makes America a modern country full of contradictions.

 http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/king-charlottesville-ugly-reminder-racism-thrives-2017-article-1.3406189

Racism is still in the mind of many citizens because they are afraid of the others .  This is also true for many  European people who are against foreign people who are arriving from lands where they lived  the experience of wars and also hate.

I really liked to find President Obama twitting and  reminding us that we are not born hating another person:

"No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin or his background or his religion..." pic.twitter.com/InZ58zkoAm

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) 13 agosto 2017

The poem  by Langston Hughes should remind many people living in the USA that we are not living in the  XIX century now, people have the same rights and there should not be any discrimination  for people who are living in the globalized world. The color of the skin and religion do not matter, what really matters is to be friends.

#BookLoversDay

9th August

I must have always been in love with  Reading. I was born in the XX century and I consider myself a bit old compared to the young students I am teaching now. They work and read books but they have acquired different skills from me. They use e-readers and depend on the internet. Some love reading while others  prefer the new media and tools.

My world has become a new one. I can read books, ebooks and I also  read online. At school I can work in the traditional way but  I can also use interactive books.

Why do I love reading books in my free time ? Because  reading can open my mind and I can learn and develop ideas about some topics.   But first of all I am a lover of the book, in the way I can see it and touch it. I may fall in love with a book when I read it for the first time. I may decide I do not like it and give up. I have read a lot and I have met a lot of characters and visited a lot of places.

I can say that I could not live without my books. Some have been piled in the  bookcases and the bookshelves.  Others  lie on the floor, they have become part of me and they show my interests in different fields: Literature, History and  Art.   Sometimes a book can make you dream or it can help you learn about  yourself.  A good book will never disappoint the readers' expectations.

Today is a special day for the ones who love books.
I hope more people will continue  reading.  A good book can really make us feel better and we  will never get bored.

For all the book lovers out there. #BookLoversDay pic.twitter.com/gyAzhiP51c

— Dictionary.com (@Dictionarycom) 9 agosto 2017

A child who reads will be
an adult who thinks...#BookLoversDay pic.twitter.com/Sn6HkZ2cXa

— Suzanne Pardue (@PardueSuzanne) 9 agosto 2017

Teaching Art and English (2)

Learning  English, Discovering  Art and Using Modern Web 2.0 Tools and enhancing  Learning among Learners and Educators






Patricia Macgowan shared these interesting links in her mail to the educators of Edweb. I found some which are  worth sharing as they are related to the world of  Art and  also because  in most schools  English Language Teachers  work together with Art Teachers.

Google Art  Project and how it works

 

 

 

Web links  related to Art and Learning online

 

 

https://sites.google.com/a/apps.edina.k12.mn.us/techresourcesforteachers/curriculum-resources/art

https://www.theartofed.com/2015/03/13/what-is-the-perfect-balance-of-technology-in-the-art-room/

https://www.pinterest.com/ctartteacher/technology-for-art-education/

http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2013/10/8-good-art-resources-for-teachers-and.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzOGTthXyjQ

https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/beta/

https://smarthistory.org/

https://www.wdl.org/en/#

http://www.artbabble.org/

http://www.coudal.com/moom/

 

 

 

VISITING SOME MUSEUMS ONLINE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Learning about  CANTERBURY CATHEDRAL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Famous  Painters: CARAVAGGIO

 

 

 

 

The documents online provide a high level of English in some cases  and thus videos  could be assigned as homework to the students doing  Art in English  after teachers have worked on the content and language input . Edpuzzle or any type of editors for videos could be used to enhance the students' listening and viewing comprehension.

 

 

As a follow -up  activitiy students could write and present a text with the information provided in the videos.

 

Learning by doing while listening, watching, reflecting and........visiting some museums abroad. This could be an example of activities which Teachers of English  and  Teachers of Art  might do together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

First Day of School and Back to School

Beginning a new  school year and how to approach  the learners

@justintarte @teacher2teacher Thank you for sharing these words of wisdom! #T2T pic.twitter.com/XRKM9Tvj64

— April Lents (@mrs_lents) 7 agosto 2017

The key words are  " get them engaged " and "  make them feel part of the class " 

It is importat to start in the best way and to remember that learners need to be  " cared" and find interest in what we are going to do.
It is vital to be focussed on the relationships and our  learners.  If we don't connect with them, we may lose them. When  beginning a new  school year and when meeting our  new learners we are  asked to be " open" and more " interactive " with them, so that our first meeting can have a positive impact on our way of working and their learning . Dealing with  teenagers can be hard, we must remember that  if we  cannot  establish a  good relationship , we might  find a lot of difficulties as they will  skip our lessons and feel that they cannot manage with the new subjects or learning English in my present situation.

Sources online :  http://www.shellyterrell.com/back2school.html


POEMS  IN  ENGLISH
Reflecting on the first day at school  : reading a poem in English

http://www.bbc.co.uk/learning/schoolradio/subjects/english/poetry/roger_mcgough/first_day_at_school

FOR EDUCATORS- YOU MUST READ THEM OR LISTEN TO THEM! 

Here are some interesting  reflections which some educators have  provided us with.
I am aware of the difficulties but educators need to  focus more on the learners than on the " content" when dealing with them on the first day at school.











Finally, I would like to go back to the precious  tips which  Shelly  Terrell shared in her  slides
last year:

Back to School Survival Tips from Shelly Sanchez Terrell

I hope your students will have a nice day on their first day back to school this  year!!

GLOBAL STUDENT CONFERENCE 2017

An Interesting Conference online mainly dealing with Students'  activities  with the focus on STEM and  ENTREPRENEURSHIP                                          

4th  March 2017

                                           Access to Recordings on line 

 

http://globalstudentconference.com/page/recordings

I was online and did some webinars- I was favourably impressed by the presentations of the students who shared ideas and made me understand that education is changing everywhere. Projects and  the use of Internet are reshaping our lessons and tasks. This is happening in the developing  world and  also in countries  where technology is not always  the best. Our students need to be equipped with the best tools and they should know how to work and live in this new world.
Dealing with STEM implies that educators aim at providing  learning opportunities that can open new job opportunities in a world that is globalized.  In most countries  STEM is considered  a priority as girls usually prefer to study humanistic  subjects. Hopefully, things are changing.

                                     Worth  checking

Robert  Hernandez  " Jovrnalism" -web journalism

It was an interesting webinar dealing with the changes that are  happening in the world of media.

 

The presenter focussed on the use of new media tools, virtual realities, games and also art. He provided with interesting examples as he is currently  teaching at university.

I would  suggest watching the recording.

bit.ly/jovrnalism-android

 

 

Finding and Using Great Open Source Media - Presenter   Margaret "Laney" Blair

 

An interesting but also short presentation focussed on how to use  Open Source Media

Using  Google search for images:

https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/29508?hl=en

 

 

The Search Engine for  Creative  Commons 

 

https://search.creativecommons.org/

 

 

                                   Using   Soundcloud for listening to  Music

                                   https://soundcloud.com/creativecommonsmusicfree

 

As more and more we are working online , it is important to know how to use sources!

 

More links online for finding pictures :

 

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

 

By Dietmar Rabich - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link

 

  

https://www.flickr.com/creativecommons/



 

http://photopin.com/ ( free photos for bloggers)

 

 Here is an example  of a picture which I found by using this website

 

photo credit: Piyushgiri Revagar misty morning via photopin (license)

I searched online and found this interesting resource dealing with open domain  and also creative commons:

http://guides.library.harvard.edu/c.php?g=310751&p=2072816

Robert Burns - a Mooc by FUTURE LEARN

By Alexander Nasmyth - Unknown, Public Domain, Link

Discovering the  Poet     Robert Burns

" Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796), also known as Rabbie Burns, the Bard of Ayrshire, Ploughman Poet and various other names and epithets, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who have written in the Scots language, although much of his writing is also in English and a light Scots dialect, accessible to an audience beyond Scotland. He also wrote in standard English, and in these writings his political or civil commentary is often at its bluntest."
( source:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Burns)


The Platform Futurelearn ran an interesting Mooc last year about one of the most important poets of Scotland: Robert Burns. I did the Mooc and  I could learn a lot about  him and also Scotland.
I had studied only some poems he had written in English but I had never studied his poetry. The Mooc was an interesting opportunity  online which helped me appreciate  a voice I had never  understood and the man  Robert Burns, the poet and also the lover.

 

 

THE MOOC

The Mooc focussed on three main modules :
- presentation of the life of the poet  and what we  knew about  him

-  some poems and songs  he wrote were analyzed and explained

-  what  we can remember  about him and that was focussed on Scotland and other places where we can  still find  monuments dedicated to the man and lover

We were given a lot of resources and weblinks, I might read more online when  I have more time but I think that I have liked  the man who has become a  symbol of  freedom in Scotland and in other countries.

Some videos about  the man and the poet




An interesting video about the legend:


 


What we wrote about him online when we  started the Mooc:






Music is still related to his songs and that's the main reason why we can say that  Robert Burns is still alive and  is loved by people living in different parts of the world:

                                               My love is like a Red Red Rose

What we continue  reading and studying in Literature:

Sharing our  resources in the Padlet

Resources online
http://www.robertburns.org/

http://www.burnsscotland.com/

http://www.dsl.ac.uk/    ( Dictionary of the Scots Language)

http://www.scotsman.com/heritage/more-heritage/the-history-of-robert-burns-statues-around-the-world-1-4007818

Using Videos in the Classroom

Teaching  English  by using   videos provides interesting  language input for learners.
I have always thought that I could have learnt more in the past if I might have relied on viewing clips and short videos in my English classes as a learner. Hopefully, our learners can see a lot of documents online and  there are a lot of Youtube channels which can help teachers develop  great and interesting lessons. Some channels  are free and they can develop their listening skills while  learning new idioms or new words.
This teacher's guidebook can help us think about better ways for implementing our lessons. It was presented by  David  Deubelbeiss who is involved in providing  support and  lessons for  Elt learners and also  ELT  teachers.

 

Video in the classroom - a teacher handbook from English Central

If we teach English or any foreign language we are also aware of the importance of  engagement while  learning.

For this reason I think that  Shelly  Terrell who is an expert in using  technology has some interesting ideas about  using  Video Projects while doing  also English.
Our students live in a digitalized world and use many apps and smartphones. We should take advantage of these tools - some are free and thus we could also use  video creations for  using the English Language in a meaningful way.
Students will learn how to choose  images and music, they will be focussed on a specific topic and will try to make their own presentations. They will work together and they will develop their digital skills while having fun.
 

Video Projects for Digital Learners de Shelly Sanchez Terrell

 

 

Some ideas and topics  for  Video  Making in  ELT:

 

-  creating an advertisement for a product  for students  studying   Business English

-  an interview with a  famous  artist or a singer

-  presenting  a book you have  read in English

-  presenting your  town / your country  in English

-  presenting your lesson about   a grammar topic  - students can revise what they have learnt

-  creating a story in  English

-  creating a lesson about   history or literature in English

-  making a video to present a project 

 

 

Which  skills?

 

English Language  Skills  : speaking and  writing

Digital  Skills
Critical  Thinking  Skills

Competences  ?

Learning  together as a Group

Selecting and  choosing  materials and tools

Discussing and  agreeing