Experiences of a teacher of English

I'm trying to find some gap of time to write further posts. I hope that soon I will find that span of time to write to you. I have the "stuff" and some pictures. Plus every day I gain 'experience' and 'experiences' to tell you. Best wishes.

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “I have two new students in my course of English.  I gave the worksheets we’ve worked on lately to the first lady in joining us, because she asked me for them. The second student asked me last Monday whether we follow any course book. I told her we don’t – I hand out photocopies of the worksheets I compose. Later, on the way back home I thought I’m going to ask that second student if she wants to borrow the worksheets – they together form something like a course book.  If you, teacher of a modern language want me to give some of them to you, let me know.” / Photo from: gentedejerez com. botas de vino en una bodega de Jerez. Tanks of Xerez or Sherry wine in a wine cellar in Spain. Have you ever tasted that wine?     

These days I’m watching Fiddler on the Roof . It’s great. I haven’t finished watching it – it takes some two hours and a half.  It’s a movie to be remembered. I’m enjoying it. The version is in Spanish, yet the songs – oh, the songs! – are in English, so in its original version. It’s useful to me, for I’m practicing listening and reading in English.  Do you remember "If I were a rich man"?  Basically the daughters of a Russian (Ukrainian?) family are being married with so different husbands from one another.  Another point: I’m also lingering for posting further. Please be patient. / Photo from: http://twu.ca/news/2012/008-fiddler-on-the-roof-full.jpg

One day teacher of English B said to teacher of English A, “Some days ago a colleague of ours told me that there were some ten students in one of his classes with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder.  So they were too many students with that disorder in order to have normal, regular classes. After some weeks within the academic year he wrote their parents so their sons would take some medicine before the classes.  Evidently he told them to take the boys to a specialist before giving the kids the pills. That teacher told me the classes were so stressing. As a curious thing the pills weren’t anxiolytics but the opposite: some medicine that should make them do many activities in the class.” / Photo from: fauklner info. C liffs of Moher in Co. Clare Ireland. top visitor's place.   

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “A few weeks ago a choir conductor that is a friend of mine told me that discipline in a choir – think of a class as well – depends on each singer’s own self-discipline:  to be attentive to the conductor’s directions,  to stay ready to start at the right moment,  to listen to the other singers…, and all that to produce like a single voice, where nobody stands out of the chant…  The best discipline is to have your students be aware of self-discipline. You’ll have to be patient and repeat that message a lot of times, till each student gets aware of the concept of discipline within a group.” / Photo from: tour de france - champs élysées

One day teacher of English B said to teacher of English A, “A competent and hard-working teacher of English or French or any modern language will likely pass on his commitment about learning that language to his students. I’ve seen that. The teacher passes on his interest to some students. Even one of the students could register in Philology of English. I could say the same concerning other school subjects, like biology for instance. If the teacher is eager and earnest at some field of knowledge he can do a lot of good to his students.” / Photo from: agardenofchildren blogspot com. brown bears

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “Sometimes I think that we teachers – and firstly the family – should help the kid become a better person more than helping him to work better. If we aid the kid to become a better person, he will become a better worker.  However, it’s also true that work is a source of bettering; for example, if the boy, or the girl, struggles to work better, he or she will better him or herself.  What values can we foster amongst our students? What virtues can we help them acquire, with their families’ consent?  First, bear in mind that parents and older siblings are the first educators of kids. Some values and virtues, well, think of honesty, solidarity, friendship, helping others, environment friends, sincerity, joy, fortitude, justice, temperance, respecting others, hard-working, politeness, order, generosity, thinking of others…” / Photo from: fathomaway com 08885d24d28fc777ff78b018339bc549    ...

One day teacher of English B said to teacher of English A, “Many people ask me how they can learn English. After having taught English for a nice number of years I tell them two things, which in my opinion are of a paramount importance: in order to learn (and to acquire) English you must wish, really wish. Secondly, necessity is also key here. In Spain there’re lots of immigrants, and they learn Spanish because they just need it to survive in a foreign country. Those two factors are just essential: it is what I have found in these last years. Evidently you as well will need a good methodology, course books, talking with people, a teacher or a coach or something similiar, etc. All of this is what experience has taught me, as I said.” / Photo from: perfectvisit nl. sailing caribbean sea. Wind pushes the sailboat.  

One day teacher of English A said to teacher of English B, “We’ve been talking a lot about teaching and learning English in this blog – which can be applied to any other modern language. Have you ever thought that language is something between two people – at least. I guess it’s sound to focus on this point now. Two people at least, ok, but, what about a person that is reading? The answer is so simple, as many of you may have thought of: that person is reading what someone has written: two people again. How can a person learn English, or even acquire it, on his own? He can learn a lot on his own, but coming to the head, that person will need at least one person who talk with. And in the clasroom obviously there’re many You’s to talk with. Any person needs a You with whom to talk to, in other terms – I mean, a person cannot live with anybody else, as a principle, tentatively. You and I as teachers of modern languages should think of all this, I would say.” / Photo from: s...