Phonics - Teaching Reading and Writing (ESL)

http://dollarstoremom.com/2011/04/make-a-phonics-flip-chart/

In one of my previous posts I wrote that my challenge for 2014 was going to be teaching reading and writing in English to some of my students who could already understand and speak English quite well.

Looking for some ideas and advice I came across such an abundance of strategies and material that I almost felt overwhelmed.

However, I've been able to design an effective plan that is already showing some results.

Everything started to become clearer when I was able to take a look at a collection of booklets specifically designed with the purpose of teaching phonics.

It's published by Collins and it's called Collins Easy Learning Age 5-7

It's interesting because the books cover many letter sounds with examples and colorful drawings. Also, there are a couple of workbooks to keep practicing a little more.

I decided to use them as a sort of guide through the maze of phonics, but also as a 'test' to use at the end of each module.

Then, following my 'guide', I searched the internet looking for entertaining activities linked to phonics, first of all because I wanted to dive deep into the topic and second because engaged kids are the secret to successful teaching.

Well… I would say I found a treasure. 

Look at this page and take your time to explore it, because it's an amazing source of almost anything you need to teach this topic.

The worksheets you'll find here are great! Crosswords, puzzles, cut and paste activities, cards. So far my students have enjoyed them a lot.

Furthermore, it's so nice to see how the children are getting more and more confident with every class.

I can see how they are reasoning about what letters they need to write every single word, making a big effort not to peep at the word bank that follows the exercises.

However, the best of all is seeing their eyes light up with satisfaction when they realize that they can spell correctly.

Below, I give you a list of other things I'm using these days to expand the phonics experience:

- Cards to teach Rhyming words and Phonics

- Spelling Games from Instant File-Folder Games for Reading grade 1-3 published by Scholastic
  (sample pages available)

- Success with Reading Comprehension Grade 1, also published by Scholastic
  (sample pages available)

- Dr Seuss rhyming books (Children love them!)

- Alphablocks cartoons. (Very engaging and fun. Available on YouTube)

As you can see, tons of material is available, so I personally selected those phonics that Spanish children would find the trickiest to recognize. I imagine that kids from other countries will need to focus on different sounds and patterns.

Good luck with your work and, as always, have fun!

More about reading

More about writing

---> Quiero leer esta entrada en español

Lucy dedicates a lot of time and love to thinking about and writing the posts she shares with all of you. Because she believes that a better teaching is the key for a better future. If you find any help, value or joy in this blog, please consider becoming a supporting reader. A donation, in any amount, will be gratefully accepted. 

                                                   

                    

Free Downloadable Odd One Out worksheets - Homophones

Hi there! 

More odd one out exercises for your students!

This time the new worksheet is about homophones: words pronounced in the same way but differing in meaning or spelling or both.

Challenge your pupils and have fun!!!

Download them for free!

If you're looking for more exercises, take a look at the PRINTABLES PAGE of this blog.

I design series of activities based on a communicative method that will help children to practice the grammar they're learning at school.

Many ESL activities, I see, are nothing more than 'fill in the blank' exercises that only teach kids how to fill in blanks and miss the whole point of learning to speak and understand a new language.

It's much easier and more fun to learn by doing, and you'll be surprised at how quickly you'll see valuable results. 

You can get my activities on my online store:

http://childreneslworksheets.bigcartel.com

Free downloadable game about clothes WEAR or CARRY?

Have you spent the last 2 weeks teaching the difference between CARRY and WEAR? If your answer is Yes, this new post is for you! 

This is an activity I designed for my 6-year-old learners a couple of years ago. 

It's composed by several tiles, on each one the students had something to do to complete it. On one half they had to write the name of the article of clothing / accessory I had drawn, in the second half they had to draw the garments I had previously written.

In those days my class was composed of 15 students, so I prepared, more or less, 3 tiles for each one to complete.

I had also prepared 'Wild Tiles', the green ones you can see in the pictures, to keep the game going in case of some missing word/drawing.

Once they (had) completed the tiles we started to play in teams of 3 pupils each. When they were putting down their tile, they had to say:  "I'm wearing / carrying … " the object they were placing. Of course the rest of the kids had to check if he was right or not. 

If you don't have time to make it by yourself, you can find the photocopiable PDF of the same game plus a suitable version for children who cannot write by themselves yet (4-5-6 years old) on this link: 

Two different sets of free downloadable Wear or Carry Tiles

Enjoy it!

I design series of activities based on a communicative method that will help children to practice the grammar they're learning at school.

Many ESL activities, I see, are nothing more than 'fill in the blank' exercises that only teach kids how to fill in blanks and miss the whole point of learning to speak and understand a new language.

It's much easier and more fun to learn by doing, and you'll be surprised at how quickly you'll see valuable results. 

You can get my activities on my online store:
http://childreneslworksheets.bigcartel.com

DOES HE/SHE/IT LIKE...? Students Start To Use 'DOES'

I'm teaching a lot of grammar these days! Related with food, of course! 

So this is a new activity I've designed for my students to learn how to use the verb 'like' in the 3rd person.

Here in Spain it is quite common that very young children might know the meaning of the verb 'like' and could use it to ask someone if he/she likes something.

But the introduction of the 3rd person in a question, with a verb different from to be or have got,  is a little bit more complicate for them, and they start to study it at the age of 7.

This is a simple 'interview' activity. Each table can be cut in two halves. One half presents the name of the boy/girl/pet and ticks on the food items that he/she/it likes or doesn't like. The second half hasn't got any tick because the student who takes it will interview the other one with the first half, to know where each tick must be placed.

This way they will use these grammar structures:

Does he/she/it like…?

Yes, he/she/it does.

No he/she/it doesn't.

The words for food items you'll find in the tables (and the names of boys and girls) are the essential vocabulary that your students must know to take any of the LEVEL A1 exams. 

The second part contains interviews about sports, games and other verbs, to use the -ing form.

But in the meantime you  can buy this first part on my brand new e-shop:

http://childreneslworksheets.bigcartel.com/

MORE GRAMMAR: To Be and Have Got

MORE EXERCISES ABOUT FOOD: Food Sentences

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DOES HE/SHE/IT LIKE...? Los niños empiezan a usar el auxiliar 'Does'

En estos días estoy enseñando mucha gramática relacionada con comida. Así que esta que os presento hoy es una actividad que he diseñado para mis estudiantes, para que aprendan a usar el verbo 'to like' en la tercera persona singular.

Es una actividad que se basa en 'entrevistas'. Cada ficha se compone de 2 partes: en una hay indicado con un 'tick'lo que al niño/niña/mascota le guste o no le guste. En la segunda mitad la faltan esos datos, que serán recopilados a por parte del niño entrevistador a través de preguntas y respuestas que utilizan las siguientes estructuras gramaticales:

Does he/she/it like...?
Yes, he/she/it does.
No, he/she/it doesn't

Os recuerdo que los nombres de comida utilizados en esta actividad son presentes en la lista de vocabulario que los niños necesitan conocer para poder decir de tener un nivel A1 de inglés.

La segunda parte presenta fichas con verbos en la forma -ing.

MÁS GRAMÁTICA: To Be and Have Got

MÁS EJERCICIOS SOBRE COMIDA: Food Sentences

I design series of activities based on a communicative method that will help children to practice the grammar they're learning at school.

Many ESL activities, I see, are nothing more than 'fill in the blank' exercises that only teach kids how to fill in blanks and miss the whole point of learning to speak and understand a new language.

It's much easier and more fun to learn by doing, and you'll be surprised at how quickly you'll see valuable results. 

You can get my activities on my online store:

http://childreneslworksheets.bigcartel.com

A TALE DARK AND GRIMM by Adam Gidwitz

A Tale Drak and Grimm Cover

It's universally known that the original Grimm brothers' tales were not exactly what we're used to hearing. The first version of Children's and Household Tales contained stories quite unsuitable for children, because of scenes of violence and sexuality, therefore, many details were changed in order to publish a less cruel and gory version of it (take a look on Wikipedia). 

Nowadays it is very easy to find sweet and generously illustrated versions of those tales, but where's the catharsis? What about the process of getting over life's difficulties to evolve into a wise adult? 

A Tale Dark and Grimm is a pretty complicated book to describe because it presents many different interesting aspects, but it especially guides the reader along the path of Hansel and Gretel's lives, exquisitely explaining the emotions that our young protagonists are feeling at every step of the adventure of growing up.

As the narrator says, this book presents 'the real story of Hansel and Gretel' from before their birth to their coronation as the new king an queen of the Kingdom of Grimm, passing through, not only the chocolate cake house and the old lady who wanted to eat them but, also, several other Grimm stories: Faithful Johannes, The seven Swallows, Brother and Sister, A Smile as Red as Blood and The Three Golden Hairs. From time to time The Three Ravens that can predict the future appear.

"A brilliant fairy-tale salad" as Gianni Rodari would have called it! (chapter 20, The Grammar of Fantasy)

The plot is basically based on these two siblings who run away from their original parents to look for new parents who will take care of them and won't hurt them. The reason they run away is that their father cuts their heads off in order to save his old servant Johannes' life, and when they are brought back to life by magic, they decide that they cannot trust their parents' love. But running away to find a new family seems more difficult and painful than expected. During their long journey they have many adventures, most of them gruesome and gory.

And here comes, if can I express my sincere opinion, the best part of the book: the narrator. Highlighted by bold type, pops up to warn the reader, with humour and pleasant fickleness, about the terrifying scenes waiting for him in the following pages. Also, he clearly gives us a pedagogic explanation of what we are reading. I've been imagining him as a sagacious little gnome coming out from the edge of this enchanted world to get some air during the entrancing reading of the story.

I was particularly pleased by the author's way of explaining the development of the parent/child relationship. Hansel and Gretel, after being beheaded, are naturally disappointed in their parents' behavior. Their parents, on the other hand, feel guilty for what they have done, and eventually these two emotions must be resolved in a final confrontation. It's not simple to forget and it's easier to be miserable, but in the end forgiveness and sympathy will triumph.

I have read many worried posts written by teachers and parents about this book.

  

While the reviews are generally positive, many people are worried that too much violence could traumatize their children or students forever. This impression reminded me a kind of comic moment in my teaching carer.

I was using fairy tales as activities in class, when an 8-year-old boy told me, referring to The Seven Kids and The Wolf : "I've never understood how it's possible that mother goat can cut the wolf's belly, take her kids out, fill the wolf's stomach with rocks and sew it again while the wolf keeps sleeping!!!"

In that moment I realized that we can't sympathize with anyone's pain if we haven't experienced pain in our own lives. Also, I think that children can usually distinguish real experiences from 'Once upon a Time' reality. 

Anyway, the author has a FAQ page on his website, to clarify any further doubts about it.

And while you are at it, take a couple of minutes to read Adam's posts and comments, he is a very nice and smart guy!

On the same page you'll find a Teacher's Guide with lots of classroom activities.

Lucy dedicates a lot of time and love to thinking about and writing the posts she shares with all of you. Because she believes that a better teaching is the key for a better future. If you find any help, value or joy in this blog, please consider becoming a supporting reader. A donation, in any amount, will be gratefully accepted. 

                                                   

A Christmas Carol - A Pantomime in Madrid

On the 7th, 8th and 9th of December 2012, at the Colegio Cardenal Spínola in Madrid, one of the most entertaining Christmas play for both children and parents is going to be performed: a pantomime version of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.

But what is Pantomime?

During the19th century in England children used to go to theatre especially during the Christmas and New Year's season to watch these entertaining shows that included music, magic, humour, flying and fantastic elements. This kind of show, which has children's stories as its main references, is called a pantomime, and has become a popular form of theatre.

It usually follows several performance conventions that will assure a hilarious effect.

The principal boy, for example, is always a girl wearing tight-fitting male garments that make her female nature evident.

The origin of this habit is in the 19th century because it seems that little girls could easily memorize the lines of the play.

The pantomime dame is, on the other hand, usually played by a man in drag.

Audience participation is another funny aspect of this type of play. If you go, you'll be call into the play to cheer for the victims and booh the villain. 

The music is also entertaining, it combines well-known tunes with re-written lyrics. Of course the audience will participate in it!  Last year we all stood up and sang along with the actors!!! It was absolutely embarrassing!!!

There is always an animal hanging around and a good Fairy that enters from stage right (Heaven, according to Medieval symbols) while the villain enters from the stage left (Hell). 

And finally there's always a chorus appearing here and there during the performance to delight us with a variety of songs and dances.

The contrast between the familiarity of a famous children's story and the re-written plot gives birth to an amazing comic and satirical effect.

I went last year and I'm really looking forward to seeing this new 'panto'. I'm sure it's going to be super captivating and lively!

As you have already read in the title it's based on Charles Dickens' book 'A Christmas Carol' and it is being performed for five shows only! 

WHEN?

Friday 7th December, 19.30

Saturday 8th december, 16.00 and 19.30

Sunday 9th december, 12.00 and 16.00 

WHERE?

Colegio Cardenal Spínola (C/ Cardenal Marcelo Spínola, 34)

Metro Duque de Pastrana- Bus 16, 29, 70, 107, 150

HOW?

Tickets: http://madridplayers.org/ReserveTickets.php

Information: christmascarolmp@gmail.com

Tickets on sale at:

Hastings School

Runnymede College

J&J Books and Coffee

Sabores del mundo

                                  

WRITING TIP nº2 -The arbitrary prefix

Here we are, talking about how to inspire your students to write a story.

The second story-inventing game from Gianni Rodari's Grammar of Fantasy is called the arbitrary prefix.

In some way, it could be considered a variation of the Fantastic Binomial (link), and it consists of taking word and placing prefixes in front of them in order to create new inspiring concepts.

Just write down a column of prefixes and a column of words. Then try to connect each one and observe the effect on your brain. 

micro        elephant 

sub           town  

un            bomb  

e              gap  

super        bug  

semi         ghost  

non          playing  

hyper       headed 

or 

micro       town (are there any giants around?)
sub          ghost (ghosts with fish tales?)
un           headed (an horror story?)
e             bug (a spy story?)
super       game (something like the hunger games?)
semi        bomb
non         elephant (?!?!?)
hyper      gap (double hole, double adventure)

etc.

Has any of the connections above already stimulated a brilliant idea for a story?

So, once upon a time, there were two cities that were always fighting. They were constantly busy with their war. But it was a very strange battle. They were struggling to be the best place to live in and they were using weird weapons called unbombs: very expensive devices that improved citizen's life instead of destroying it. 

So each city was spending lots and lots of money to buy these strange bombs

that brought new parks, schools and some kind of services, at every explosion.

People were very satisfied in both cities and when they met, they never stopped showing off the many improvements they got every month, 12 months a year.

Unfortunately one day the hyper-headed guy who made the brilliant unbombs started to suffer an incredibly painful headache. He couldn't do anything a part from lying in bed all day long. The doctor said that he had spent too many years thinking about how to make citizen's happy and now his head was almost blowing up, so he had to rest as much as possible.

What do you think people are going to do now? What about introducing a wicked semi-ghost to create a bit of suspense? 

As always this is only the skeleton of a possible story and not a completely developed tale. I'm sure you can make the most of this tip with your class.

Enjoy it and have fun!

WRITING TIP NUMBER 5

WRITING TIP NUMBER 4

WRITING TIP NUMBER 3

WRITING TIP NUMBER 1

MEET THE ANIMALS!, by Stephane Husar and Loïc Méhée

Today I'm talking about the second book of Cat and Mouse, edited by Anaya, that invite our young learners to get to know the animals!

Meet the Animals Cover

As animals are their favorite subject at this age (3-4-5) you won't have any problem capturing their total attention.

Exactly like in the previous one, Cat and Mouse - Learn the Colours!, we'll meet again the main protagonists, the big-headed orange cat and the little squeaky mouse, but this time they will introduce us to some farm and jungle animals.

The dialogue structure is repetitive and catchy and apart from animals' names we'll also discover their noises. Do you know what kind of noise a sheep makes?

After reading it I added some more activities as always.

First of all I seized the moment to teach the most appropriate song 'Old MacDonald' mentioning the farm animals we saw in the book.

I used this song during the next classes to play 'Musical Chairs' and the 'Statue Game': they were allowed to dance when the music was on but they had to freeze in position and hold it when the music was off.

Then I stuck some flashcards representing the animals from the book on the wall and lined my kids up into two queues. When I called out an animal they had to run towards the right card and touch it. 

You can also make the noise and they have to say the name and touch the corresponding animal.

Another game they love is performing the animals. Make them sit on the floor in a semicircle, call a student out, show him a card. He has to perform the animal and the rest of the class has to guess the animal performed.

Afterwards you can play again the "I spy" and "I can see a…across the sea" games. 

Finally if you have worksheets to color, that will help too.

This book has also a CD that you can use to make them listen and repeat. 

Actually it contains a lot of nature's sounds and my pupils enjoyed it quite a lot.

I still haven't tried the 'Theatre', but I've already noticed them saying stray sentences from the book, so I imagine it's not going to be difficult to arrange it. 

Have fun!