Do You Have ELLs Looking to Expand Their Language Skills Outside of Class? Share ESL GOLD With Them:)

Every class has those few students who just never seem to tire of learning English.  This group will attempt anything the instructor offers and more.  Often times, this group will ask for more practice in any form.  For these students, motivation is never an issue.  Instead, the issue may be how to find just the right website where students at all 3 levels (beginning, intermediate, and advanced) will be challenged, but never bored or frustrated. 

ESL Gold is a site with a wide variety of options for students to select from.  They may also self-select the level of difficulty which is wonderful for those who feel confident enough to undertake more academically challenging materials. 

What is in the site?  Students will find activities in speaking (only this section needs a textbook while the others don't), listening, reading, writing, grammar, vocabulary, business, pronunciation, TOEFL (for ESL students overseas who wish to study in the U.S.),  and TOEIC  (measures the ability of non-native English-speaking examinees to use English in everyday).  Many of the options here are probably geared for 9th grade on though a few might work at middle school (ex. writing, vocabulary, etc.).  One suggestion I have here is provide a quick tour of what the site has and then let students gravitate to what they enjoy.  The reading comprehension section maintains a steady current flow of news articles on international stories.  There is no modification of language here though the difficulty of language seems to vary with the subject matter.

Though no site will ever replace quality teaching in class instruction, this one easily supplements it for those students who really wish to go beyond the class material on their own time (if your classroom has some computers in it, kids who finish work early could do additional practice here).  

ESL GOLD Hope they like the link:)

Denise

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Prove To Your Students That Learning A Language CAN Be FUN:)

If you teach ELLs (ESL students) at the beginning level, you will like the following site:

FREE LANGUAGE COURSES

In this site, students can practice basic vocabulary, do some writing based on dialogues,  focus on listening/repeating, and complete a wide variety of exercises.  The conversations are geared to beginners.  With the summer fast approaching, beginners will need some support in maintaining their English skills over the summer.  This is one source, but there are many more within my blog (just go to SEARCH box on the home page and type in English activities).  Since all the sites are free and on the internet, all a student needs is access to a computer (or smart phone).

For ELLs with more English, why not have them try the following site:

ELLO

Here students will hear people speaking English from all over the English speaking world.  The topics addressed cover an fascinating collection of subjects that students will find amusing to say the least.  One that caught my eye was on a young man who was broke in New York City.  He had been living in a bust boom cycle over several years.  Here (as with all the other scenarios) you have real world conversations on high interest topics.

Students will also find listening games.  Students are presented with several pictures which are talked about in a short dialogue.  Students need to identify the specific objects the narrator addressed and if they do, they score high:)

There are also many videos in many different language settings.  Speakers of English talk about a wide range of topics of interest to them.  This is great listening practice and for free.

Why not make it an assignment to have them find their favorite section and report back to the class on what they discovered? :)  Over the summer, how about having them create their own videos?

Denise

ELL TEACHER PROS

Free Library of Worksheets and Instructional Resources for Teachers of ELLs:)

Leave it to teachers to put together a website like this:) The site offers an incredible variety in the basic language skill areas of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Membership to access the materials is required, BUT it is FREE to join:)

Their section on writing essays was quite thorough. The explanations as to how to write the various essay types are geared to teachers of any discipline. Most times, the explanations are geared to teachers of English (English literature/language arts), but not here. They are written in a friendly manner and therefore accessible to a teacher of any discipline.

There is also a wide selection of posters that teachers submitted to be shared. Some of them are subject specific, others inspirational, others fun, etc. As a member, you can enlarge most of them and print them out with ease. The ones that don't fill up your screen entirely, you can print out and have enlarged at any copy center if you wish to keep the vivid colors.

As far as worksheets go, they are all teacher designed (and, as a member, YOU may submit your own worksheets to share with others). It seems that any teacher of ELLs (aka ESL students) will find the ready-to-go materials a major asset for both students who need more practice as well as those who wish to be challenged.

The site also contains some creative teacher tips. This month offered 10 great sources for real listening practice. Each suggestion is one that can easily be implemented in any classroom-guest speakers, another teacher, radio, TV commercials, etc. Hearing English spoken by many different people in many different situations boosts their listening skills.

BUSY TEACHERS

I hope this site helps make your job a little easier:)

Denise

ELL TEACHER PROS