Experiences of a teacher of English

There should be a close connection between school and parents.  I mean, teachers and parents of students should have the chance to arrange appointments with each other, in order to pull the cart along the same way, and all this rather often, as a work group.  Thus the good results will be more aboundant. I mean good results by referring to grades, but not only: the whole education as well.  The line of importance in a school should be: parents, teachers, students. 

Yesterday a colleague of ours told me that his students don’t know how to compose an essay of history: they are used to tweeting, but cannot compose an extended and long answer to a history test.  This post is nothing against that social network.  They write short sentences but can’t write a composition.  What is the solution? Maybe to teach them to write compositions, making up threads of thought and using Spanish linkers. / Photo from: classroom synonym com

So you had planned your class, both aim and activities, and you encounter misbehavior amongst your students in the class-period.  Well, ultimately it’s their business.  Anyway you can implement a dictation, with which most of them will become focussed. A few of your students may carry on by doing bad things and acting out, yet the dictation is a “weapon” for reducing them into something specific, it’s something specific to rope them into the stream of the class-period. / Photo from: snowy landscape wallpaperswide com

Tentatively most of us are free.  And we make up relationships through our daily living. We select some of our relationships. These latter ones form us as specific persons.  It’s sound to establish relationships with other people. We people are social beings, aren’ t we? 

Education and raising up are too much important for the kid. Parents ought to be free to choose a school according to their beliefs and life philosophy. 

I was looking forward to writing something.  It's something evident and obvious, yet we kind of sometimes forget that the students themselves are more important than what I'd planned for today's class.  First the student. Even more: the first concerning of the teacher himself must be just the teacher himself.

We are not only educators at school, but all day long.  Our job as educators, or parents, isn’t confined to certain times.  Even though our students weren’t present at a given moment, we still are educators and parents and teachers. We pass them on educative values or contra-values, depending on our attitudes. / Photo from: teacher thestudentmanual com

After Christmas and some longer time, say mid-January, I’m testing my adult learners. The thing is that with them we practice aurally mainly, and the test will be written. So the point will be for me to some way learn my students’ level of English, in general. / Photo from: sierra nevada www cronicanorte es

I can count these days on a single computer, which is shared by several people, and the Internet doesn't always work. However, I'll try to contact you: I will carry on with this fight.

We oughtn’t to escape from real life, otherwise we should face up with trouble and problems, with God’s help ever.  However on the other side we should learn about other people, other places and times, in fiction and non-fiction literature.  It’s a way of thinking otherwise, but it doesn’t separate from reality, because we close the book or turn off the e-book. / Photo from: www huffingtonpost com

Learning how to learn. This is something the teacher of languages has to do. I mean, he or she has to teach their students to become autonomous and true learners.  The teacher can ask at a tutoring session how the kid learns, or should learn… just if he wished to learn…!  Also the teacher can have a class or part of a class to talk about learning strategies. He will ask the kids what they do when they wish to learn and acquire a language, like English.  The teacher can teach alike how he learned or still learns, and suggest learning strategies taken from Rebecca Oxford for example. The point here is for the learner to learn how to learn, and how to make good use of time in classes. / Photo from: www lakepacid com

Teens – male ones chiefly- tend to shout as if by making themselves for others to notice that they’re present over here.  As well teens tend to isolate themselves in their room, which may become like a shelter where their world is. They may not like their parents to enter there.  And be careful: there could have been some small conflict between us parents and them. Quite often now they prefer to stay with their gang of friends. We should respect all this stuff, yet at the same time we could make kind of their close friends: they expect us to give them some advice and comfort for their fears.  If we listen to them with close attention we won’t lose them. / Photo from: www teenawareness net

The kid or student who knows his tutor loves him with love of benevolence, lets this one educate him.  This educator or tutor or parent should listen to the kid as if he was speaking with an adult – I mean the educator will take the kid seriously and will listen carefully and with authentic attention. / Photo from: language-instructor org

Yesterday Wednesday was the last class of the term, with my adult students. They’re great. They’ve improved.  As well it was the last conversation session with the native speaker of English, a girl from Chicago. We made her realize we’re grateful for her volunteering sessions of conversation.  A female student gave her a present, a pen of Universidad de Granada .  After the classes my students invited me to have a coffee, in one of the most picturesque squares of Granada downtown. It’s close to the suburb of Albaycín, also near Alhambra. / Photo from: El_Partal_Palace,_Alhambra,_Spain iaunecaft blogspot com

I hope to have time to post more about teaching and learning English. The following days will be hectic for me. However I have many things to tell you. / Photo from: barrio-de-albaicin www minube com

Some students, a few perhaps, have Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder.  Have that student with that disease sit next to a more tranquil student. Praise him when he does a rather long activity.  Consult the psychologist of the school, if any. Some people say that these students ought not to take anxiolytic pills: these ones make him become drowsier and so he becomes more anxious because his body demands action while he feels worse.  You can peek at label list in my blog for further information about this disease. / Photo from: patio_de_los_leones_alhambra_granada www sevillaonline es

I know you wish to help your students to learn and acquire English – you speak a lot in English, well, all the class-period is in English.  However you think you lack information about the students, you think you have a superficial knowledge of them.  I would tell you that you should arrange a date with their parents, and you’ll win more information from them. As you can see the teacher’s labor is huge – do your best anyway, as much as possible. / Photo from: www hometuitionmalysia2u com

A la hora de enseñar un idioma o lengua, por ejemplo inglés, o al aprenderlo, es necesario contar con las virtudes de la continuidad y la perseverancia.  Hay que esforzarse. Uno mismo ha de esforzarse y aplicar el esfuerzo a sí mismo.  Decía no menos que Platón que “la primera y mejor victoria de todas es conquistar el sí mismo. Ser conquistado por el sí mismo es, de entre todas las cosas, lo más vergonzoso y vil.” / Foto de: La-conferencia-como-parte-del-trabajo www hacercurriculum net

Spanish writer José Ballesteros de la Puerta states that we learn through games, by games.  I agree partially. Fun helps, and that is clear, but as well students have to sit down and study with a book in their hands. Anyway, on post # 259 and on many other posts I've written about games at school. You have the Search box at the right hand of this blog and you can type "games", "speaking games", etc. / Photo from: US Swim Trial_Pata www foxnews com

Moms and dads oughtn’t to repeat their instructions to their babies or young children. I mean, not repeat the same thing many times, otherwise the young kids get used to doing just what they like at any time.  In my opinion those directions should be uttered in an easy and serene way, not shouting.  If the young kid cries, the parents can explain the reason why of their instructions.  Young kids have open eyes and a developing brain, capable to record close to everything. / Photo from: woman-walking-with-stroller www sheknows com

We should be aware that we have abilities and capabilities and aptitudes that we can develop, and they will push us upward in our own lives.  We, for example, should struggle in little things also to set a nice example to our children or students.  The students that have a clear purpose and resolution when thinking about their future, if they struggle in those areas and wish to become something specific, there are articles and papers that show you can reach high: the point is we wish to reach a crux target, and we go straight to that point.  An example: those learners that really wish to learn a language, like English, they have success and reach high. / Photo from: student-library www dcu ie

Traditional costumes, tradition itself, what we read, what we learn, what and how we speak, our ideas, our religion… all that is something from the general culture where we live, the treasure amassed by our ancestors and predecessors, all is learned inside family and school.  A practical example: our students can read abridged classics in the target language, otherwise original versions too. / Photo from: finding-old-books-online onlinelearningtips com

Quite often our students do not know how to get the most from grammar charts or boxes in their textbooks.  They say nothing to them; they aren’t meaningful.  We teachers can tell them: study this box on page 69 and make five or six sentences at home. Plus we can provide one or two examples, with the book open on that page.  This is the basis for later communication: yesterday I assisted a private student to use this factor. / Photo from: textbooks www alibris com

Some teacher or expert at teaching says that tablets aren’t good for our students, for they don’t write with handwriting.  Others say calculators shouldn’t be used: better use paper and your mind. With calculators you wouldn’t think.  I’m in favor of using tablets and handwriting and calculators: there’s an "in between" both, or changing from time to time.  Something useful, which teacher Angela says (see TeacherLingo by clicking on the link at the right hand of my blog) is that we can use warmers to shift into English after another school subject has been taught.  For example: writing a dictation, making questions, talking to them, relaxing techniques, asking them by using the grammar pattern we’re learning, etc. Some of the previous warm-up’s are of mine too. / Photo from: esquí en Sierra Nevada - Granada - Spain. We're waiting for you to come here!

Today, just some minutes ago, we had the penultimate conversation session with a native person of English, a girl from Chicago.  A student of mine offered a present to her, the book of Platero y yo , by Juan Ramón Jiménez. Remember my students in the morning are adults.  The experience of this term has proved to be excellent. Next term, after Christmas, another native young person will assist us with his or her conversation.  The book I mentioned is a classic of Spanish literature: basically it’s the story of a donkey and its owner. And it’s very poetic. Thank you, Kristin for your aid to us.  Although I’m the teacher I’ve attended some of the sessions: awesome. / Photo from: bajee org

Family. According to Spanish writer and philosopher Bernabé Tierno the relationships amongst siblings are pretty important for a person’s development and growing up and educating.  Parents can foster this, roping siblings together for example for a present to Mom, who turns to 40 next month, at the beginning.  A joined family is the soil for growing up good, and gain values and virtues.  Part of this post is by me, and its possible errors are of mine. / Photo from: familia-numerosa www domesticatueconomia es ayudas económicas a las familias numerosas

It would be a waste of time and something bad if we taught things at the level our students already have.  Always include new things: vocabulary, grammar, communication practice.  The students have to listen a lot, but keep in mind they should intervene and contribute to the classes – they must speak a nice percentage of the class time. / Photo from: albaicin_granada www xn-espaaescultura-thb es.  This suburb or neighborhood is called Albaycín – the spelling may vary. It’s part of the old town of Granada, Spain. Arabs lived there maybe until the 16th or 17th centuries, at the outskirts of Alhambra palaces.  President Bill Clinton visited it and said that he had seen the most beautiful sunset in the world. Don’t miss it and come! You have snow, culture, cuisine, beaches.

If you’re a teacher of retired people (or pre-retired), like my case partially and currently, I’d tell you to talk with them out of the classroom too, and not only confining to regular classes.  Oldies have their special way of looking at things and at current news, plus their experience of life. Take a coffee with them: I would dare to say that that is a part of your job. / Photo from: www 1903 rubylane com 

There are signals at adolescence that we teachers and parents ought to be in alert, and which ones could lead our teens to delinquency and crime, in the worst of cases.  Compulsive violence,  bad manners,  small stealing of money at home,  stealing at department stores,  alcohol and drugs,  secrecy,  bad companies…  We educators should prevent and foresee all this when the kid is younger. The thing depends on the class or layer of society where he lives mostly.  We have to be patient and affective, and gently scrap on their most inside parts of his conscience, with his permission and in a friendly mode. Always, as I said, and this is important, by counting on him, and talking with him as an adult, as someone we’re interested in.  We have to propose small targets of values: helping out at home,  studying,  honesty and sincerity,  generosity,  working hard,  earning some...

You Ukrainians (or from that country) are one among the first countries in visiting and stopping by my blog. You have my congrats! I pray for you. / Photo from: Ukrainian landscape

We’re writing history.  If you have a mental look at the 21st century, many remarkable things have occurred already: the attack to the World Trade Center in 2001,  wars,  three remarkable Roman Pontiffs (Saint John Paul II, Benedict XVI, Francis), the Islamic State,  the Youth Days with the Popes -- with many young people,  kids with brain paralysis that can walk,  the launch of satellites,  brilliant literature and movies,  aid to zones devastated by earthquakes,  the use of tablets and smart boards,  discoveries in medicine,  great research essays about teaching and learning… but please always remember that you, maybe in a lost village in Nebraska or in Las Alpujarras, near Sierra Nevada, etc., are pushing the world onward.  Tomorrow Monday alike you will carry out the advance of your dear students, and the advance of the world.  These today crises are crises of saints, said Saint J...

Students in our classrooms must feel nice. All the school must be nice.  The first premise is teaching the students to drop for instance wrapping paper into trash cans (or litter boxes).  In girls’ schools the classroom might be even cozy.  Take into account that we the teachers and the students spend long for a single day. And this is day after day, I mean, a lot of time.  The school is kind of a second home.  There should be central heating, and, if possible, air conditioning, or fans.  Something that has proved to be sound is to make a small job list.  You can have students who erase the chalkboard and clean the eraser, rearrange desks into rows,  turn off lights at the end of the day,  be in charge of selecting useful posters and projects to set on the notice boards,  open the window to air the stuffy classroom,  remind their classmates of rearranging desks into rows,  a team to ...

Politeness and good manners are essential because they help have a peaceful life.  So we teachers should teach good manners, also at tutoring sessions.  And as well we’ve got to teach politeness, good speaking, turn-takings, respecting to the teacher, good dressing, hygiene, to parents...  Also we’ll get a nice tutoring sessions with parents.  We can insist on this point to the parents in order to teach these nice things at home. Oh, and try, if possible, both parents attend the tutoring session with you: they’re the main educators of their children. / Photo from: friendly www gopixpic com

Talking with our children is essential.  We can make a nice positive comment whenever possible, “You helped out yesterday in our country house, and that’s good, you’re one of the eldest siblings.”  That is a positive reinforcement, and the kid can get a positive view of himself for example at adolescence, when crises may appear.  Obviously the thing isn’t praising all the time, but when necessary, and other times. / Photo from: helping out. gallery georgetown org

If you’re a non-native teacher of English and you’re trying to create and make up an atmosphere where English is the vehicle language, and you shift to Spanish a few times, so as to explain something a bit more complex, I’d tell you to go back to English, to hold the immersion up.  You can have a group of beginners or false beginners.  I would tell you to use English all the time. The point here is that you’ll have to explain with given words,  by using the whiteboard,  by using real objects (realia),  drawings on the board or posters,  worksheets,  cognates (similar words in both languages).  Thus the teaching and learning will be a slope or gradient upward. / Photo from: cow-eating-on-round-top-hill-mike-mcglothlen fineartamerica com

The atmosphere of our classes will be nice if we teachers get concerned with getting to know each and every student, and as much as possible, the teacher should treat each student differently.  With effort and commitment we can reach a lot, however not all we wish, but anyway we can reach far.  Oh, and remember to arrange a date with their parents. / Photo from: teignmouth-classroom.  I have got to clarify that the placement of desks on the picture above is not the only one to reach a nice class: mostly I’ve taught in classrooms where there were rows of desks.  So both are options that can serve the purpose of implementing nice and interesting activities.  Remember that the class with its teacher, should become a work group. / Photo from: teignmouth-classroom