Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Trick or treat??






Like every year .... Halloween is one of my most favourite American holidays and I really enjoy activities with my students this time of the year. After all we don't only teach the language, but also the culture of the countries this language is spoken!!
So what do you do to celebrate and also teach your students about Halloween?
Do they already know something about it?
You can easily find info on various sites about this holiday , maybe you can describe what it is about, in lower levels even in your own language.
  • With younger students, you an even teach shapes, colours and "festive" vocabulary. I am sure they will love colouring pages, you can them cut everything out, hang them on the windows or curtains, you can even tell your students to go from one classroom to the other and "trick or treat"!!!
  • You can even dedicate some time to have a Halloween party, have them dress up in scary or funny costumes. They don't have to actually buy a costume, just put a witch hat or a mask, or wrap them with toilet paper (like mummies!!!!)
  • Older students can do something more creative than costumes of course!!! You can ask them to describe their favourite scary story, write about it and then change the characters! So for example if you have a vampire story and a zombie story, put the vampire into the zombie story and vice versa and then write a new story!!
  • Ask them to make their own ghost! Draw it and then write its story! When they are done, they can interview eachother, like a TV show! You can even record them like a real TV show!
  • Scary (or not too scary movies) is a great idea also, if you have the time. Prepare a questionnaire for the students, which they can fill out during the movie!!
  • You can als find lots of online activities. I use the British Council site, they always offer fantastic ideas!!
And ... Don't forget!! HAVE FUN!!

Sunday, October 16, 2011

89 Blogging ideas....


Ok... now you got your students blogging....
You could get them do homework on their blogs, but you could ask them to write something more personal.. Here are some ideas I came across .... (some are for kids, some for adults, some more personal than others)

· The best summer you spent when you were a kid

· What is your biggest fear?

· Do you think you have an unusual personality? Why?

· What is your favorite beverage?

· What was your favorite book growing up?

· What part of the supermarket do you go first?

· What was the last song you downloaded?

· Recommend a good book

· If money weren’t an object, what would you do with your life?

· What is your favorite joke?

· Are you an early bird or a night owl?

· What are your favorite sweets?

· What do you think you will be doing 10 years from now?

· What was your last accomplishment in your current hobby?

· Of all deserts, name the one you hat most and why?

· What do you do with your free time?

· Are you always terminally late or always on time?

· What is your favorite thing about yourself?

· Do you prefer indoor or outdoor activities and why?

· What’s the one thing I can’t trust myself to bring home from the supermarket without getting into trouble?

· What’s on the walls of your room and why?

· What annoys you?

· Have you ever broken someone’s heart?

· What’s our favorite summer sport?

· How do you spend Sundays?

· What’s one thing you would change about your personality?

· What adjectives would you use to describe yourself?

· What was the last movie you watched in a theater?

· Recommend a great TV show

· What’s your favorite way to listen to music? In the car? At home? Exercising?

· Did your parents sent you to lessons that you didn’t want to take? Do you still practice that subject now?

· Who is your wackiest relative?

· What is your favorite magazine?

· What is the one item in the kitchen that would best describe your personality ?

· 3 favorite rock songs

· Are you superstitious? Do you have any superstitions?

· What is the best way to end a first date?

· What songs make you cry no matter what you’re doing?

· What’s your motto?

· What’s your favorite day of the week?

· What is your favorite word?

· 3 favorite romantic songs

· What is your favorite animation movie?

· If you could live half the year anywhere in the world where would it be?

· Who was the worst boss you’ve ever had?

· How well does your current job fit your personality?

· What was your first job and how much did you get paid?

· What was your most embarrassing moment?

· The worst vacation you’ve ever had

· Have you ever been camping? What was it like?

· What was the longest plane ride you’ve ever taken? Was it difficult or easy?

· What is your favorite family tradition?

· Who was your first boyfriend/ girlfriend?

· What was your favorite meal as a child?

· What was the naughtiest thing you did as a child, if you were caught, describe the punishment.

· Name some popular hit songs from your youth

· Have you ever had an imaginary friend?

· Have you ever broken someone’s heart?

· Name 3 guilty pleasures

· What is the most challenging thing about being married?

· 5 things in the kitchen I would not do without?

· What is your favorite movie quote?

· Who do you respect the most?

· Do you have a favorite scent?

· Cat or dog?

· Do you collect anything?

· How can you tell you’re in love?

· If you could have 10.000 Euros shopping spree to one store, which store would it be and how long would it take you to spend it?

· Who is the teacher who made the most difference in my life?

· Who is the one friend from elementary school you wish you could talk to and why?

· Describe a place you like to go and be alone?

· What is the best concert you’ve ever been to?

· What are your top three flavors of ice cream?

· What is your favorite candy bar?

· Have you ever broken a bone? How did it happen?

· Favorite piece of jewelry

· What was the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?

· What is your favorite article of clothing?

· What’s your favorite time of the year?

· Have you ever played a musical instrument?

· Have you ever tried to adopt a wild animal?

· What CD would your best friends be surprised that you own?

· What do you most often do when you get bored?

· Things I wish I had more time to do…

· The one album I can’t live without

· Best dinner recipe

· Worst movie ever

· Clowns… Love them or hate them?

·



Sunday, October 9, 2011

"Weather idioms" by Asmaa Ait Assoum


a face like thunder = to look very angry: "What's up with him today? He has a face like thunder!"

a fair-weather friend = a friend who doesn't support you in bad times: "I'm a bit disappointed in John and David. It turned out they were only fair-weather friends."

a snowball's chance = very little chance (as much chance as a snowball has in hell): "We don't have a snowball's chance of winning that contract!"

a storm in a teacup = a lot of fuss over something small: "Don't worry about those two arguing. it's just a storm in a teacup."

be a breeze = to be easy: "The exam was a breeze."

be snowed under = to be very busy: "We're snowed under at work."

blow hot and cold = to keep changing your attitude: "They're blowing hot and cold over this issue. It's impossible to know what they want!"

brass-monkey weather = very cold weather: "It's brass-monkey weather today. You'd better wrap up warm!"

come rain or shine = whatever happens: "He's always working in his garden – come rain or shine."

the lull before the storm = a quiet time before a busy or difficult time: "It's going to get very busy on Thursday. Today and tomorrow are just the lull before the storm."

save up for a rainy day = put money aside for when you might need it later: "I don't want to spend this extra money. I'll save it up for a rainy day."

see which way the wind blows = to analyse a situation before doing something: "I'm going to see which way the wind blows before asking her about a raise."

steal someone's thunder = do what someone else was going to do and get all the praise: "You'll steal her thunder if you wear that dress tonight!"

take a rain check = postpone something: "I don't really want to go the cinema tonight. Can we take a rain-check on it?"

under the weather = not feel very well: "I'm feeling a bit under the weather at the moment."

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