Overview of All English Tenses - Present Tenses - Present Simple - Teaching Ideas
Here's a teaching idea that focuses on two very specific aspects of the present simple tense, one of which will be making statements about a habit and a routine. The other will be conjugating the verb into the 'he', 'she' or 'it' form. Here we'll present students with a picture. They will see various objects in the picture. Based upon the presence of these objects in someone's room, the students will have to make an observation such as 'She drinks coffee,' 'She plays the guitar,' 'She watches television,' 'She doesn't smoke.' Again, it's very specific used for the 'he', 'she' or 'it' form and habits and routines. At the end of the activity, the teacher will have the pairs or the small groups report back their various findings. Another idea for the present simple tense will be the classic '20 questions'. The teacher could frame this into the context of 'What's my job?' 'Who am I?' or even 'What am I?' for objects. In order to set this activity up, the teacher will ask a student to come to the front of the room and the teacher will give him or her a card. For jobs, the card will obviously have jobs such as doctor or architect or even teacher. From that, the students will have to ask questions to find out the person's job. These typical questions might be 'Do you work Monday through Friday?' 'Do you work in an office?' 'Do you work with people?' The student at the front of the room will also be answering with present simple short answers 'Yes, I do.' 'No, I don't.' The teacher will give a time limit for each student at the front of the room, perhaps two minutes. At the end of those two minutes, the students in the room will be asking 'Are you a doctor?' 'Are you an architect?' or even 'Are you a teacher?' hopefully by the end of those two minutes, based upon the information given, the students will be able to guess what that job was. The same can also be done for famous people. 'Who am I?' Of course that famous person would still have to be alive, as, have they passed away, we would speak about them in the past tense. You can also use it for objects as well.
Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next.
Eyes - for holding the attention, to show that something is correct and to give the anchorag.
Voice - for use the language at the level you are teaching and to speak more slowly and carefull.
Gesture - for reducing TTT, convey meaning, to add visual interest and increase or decrease changing the space of the clas.
We group the class by 3 ways: whole class, individuals and pair wor.
The positive points of the whole class are: + give a sense of belonging, + always for whole group interaction, + good for contro.
The negative points are : - can reduce STT, - can be 'off putting' - difficult to manage the activitie.
For individuals the + points are: + allow the teacher to respond to individuals, + allows the students to become more self relian.
The - points are: - little chance of student to student interaction, - creates more pressure to produce their answer.
For pair work the positive points are: + increases STT, + create safer environment.
And - points are: - may not 'get on' with their partne.
To use the names of students helps (by putting the end of question): - organize the class - to acknowledge - to indicate who should respond To arrange the class is depends on the following: - age of student, - physical space, - material available, - students personalit.
There are several forms to arrange the class: orderly raws, circles and horseshoes, separate table.
To work in the class more effectively helps:
1. Writing on the board (to use pre-prepared material, ask a student to write for you, put work up before the class and 'cover it\", use the study activity time to write info on the board.
2. Giving individual attention (don't ask question in a predictable order, don't allow individuals to dominate, use the students' names when asking the questions, allow all students to answer when they can, don't force students to answer.
3. To use TTT ( advantage: you are the only real model for correct the language; disadvantage: reduce the opportunity for STT) To reduce TTT by: - use mime, gesture and pictures; - use language at their level; - avoid jargon and elaboratio.
4. Giving instructions (to use simple language, do a visual demonstration of the activity, use common terms, check understanding by asking the students what they are going to do)
5. Rappor.
At the start of the course make a name card which everyone can use, do some ice-breaking activities; throughout the course - use pair work as much as possible, don't allow students to dominate, allow students correct each other, personalize activities with their name.
6. Discipline in the classroom (you should always to seem to be fair, you are punctual, you are well prepared the materials, don't make treats without carrying out them, show your respect, if you give homework then follow up, to be enthusiastic, always act immediately, use non verbal techniques first, keep calm, to use humor and smil.
