INSPIRATION

This week I started to read about the project and the plan. I have to prepare a plan because I am on the leave -I have just delivered a baby. I read some articles Donna proposed in the week 5 and I began to think about the theory and technology I should choose to prepare my lesson plan. Suddenly, two emails I got opened up my mind:

a video from facebook:

FOTO PAL FACE


a slideshare:

Mobile Education


There are two technological tools I would like to implement in my lessons:

FACEBOOK

MOBILE PHONES

I think students push me to use them. I think I will choose at least cell phones.

Three Articles to Work On-line

Language Acquisition theories are left aside after having teaching for more than 15 years. When reading the article Using Internet-Based Children's Literature to Teach EFL (2007), by Larry J. Mikulecky. 
http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Mikulecky-OnlineChildrensLit.html, L.A. Theories came to my mind. The way children acquire a language is forgotten when we become adults and for Foreign Language teachers is a great help. Thus, the tips the article offers are worthwhile to remember:

• Ask students with access to younger relatives to read and teach the English stories to their younger relatives.
• Ask future teachers of English to read simple stories and then design lessons for younger students.
• Ask students to keep a list of what they have read, brief summaries of stories or chapters, and new vocabulary learned.
• Have students do presentations on stories to "sell" them to other students.
• Have students create their own simple stories in English, possibly with illustrations.

The article Three Extensive Reading Activities for ESL/EFL Students Using E-books (2004)

http://iteslj.org/Lessons/Liang-ExtensiveReading.html  offers very nice activities to work with students and e-books. The study guides present a list of questions that can be profitable for teachers to prepare lessons:

1. What is the title of this story?
2. What type of story is it?
3. Who is the main character in this story?
4. Is it suitable for me, too easy or too difficult?
5. Is this book interesting to me?

1. Who is in the story?
2. Where does the story take place?
3. When does it happen?
4. What is it about?
5. How does it turn out?

1. What are the main characters like?
2. How does the setting affect the characters?
3. What are the unexpected developments or problems in the story?
4. How did the author create the mood (the overall impression)?
5. What is the lesson of the story?

1. Does this book tell a good story? Is this story original and fresh?
2. How well do events build to a climax? Are these events plausible and logical?
3. Does the theme emerge naturally from the story or overpower the story?
4. How well are the characters developed? Are they convincing or stereotyped?
5. How does the style of writing compare with other books?

1. Do we have to consider other aspects than the text itself?
2. How well designed is this book? Is it aesthetically satisfying?
3. Do the sound or the graphics enhance the story?
4. What is the quality of the web pages?
5. How are the parts of the story presented and linked?

Using the Internet in ESL Writing Instruction (2000) http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Krajka-WritingUsingNet.html  reflects on the wide range of possibilities internet provides teachers when preparing a writing lesson and the three internet components the author takes into account to prepare a lesson. The author considers the role of the teacher, the resources needed, the inclusion of technology into the curriculum and the benefits of on-line instruction.

The three articles offer variety, authenticity and updates material for teachers to prepare their lessons. Students can be more motivated and they may have the opportunity to work with realia or do different activities to learn the language.

GOING UP, GOING DOWN

I thought this week would be easier. My baby got a cold and I could not create my delicious account. In fact I have one I had created a couple of years before butI signed up with twitter. I assure that posting in the blog is a way of rounding up what I have studied along the week -this is the teason why I am doing it today; there is an assignment left, though.

This week I read all the articles Donna suggested: 

         Developing Listening Skills with Authentic Materials: Lindsay Miller, ESL Magazin article.

         New Perspectives in Teaching Pronunciation: Maria Busa.

         The Employment of CALL in Teaching Second/Foreign Language Speaking Skills:Julia Gong.

I enjoye reading all of them. I was comparing my lessons plans with the examples Linsay Miller provides in her article. I posted my reflection in the conferencing of this week. 

Maria Busa's article caught my attention because I include pronunciation  in my classes. While I was reading the article Edu soft CDROM came to my mind - students could record their voices and compare it to a native.

Julia Gong made me reflect on the use of the new multimedia products offered by Apple in an iPad. The possibilities internet offers are amazing. The introduction of video in a lesson helps to develop speaking - students can watch gestures while natives talk.

In a nutshell, this week was hard, but I am still here learning web skills, thinking about my project.

Ethel from Argentina.

TAKING OFF

This week I could finally accomplish with all the assignments. It was an ardous task because I had to participate in all the discussions of wek 1 and 2 and post a reflection in my blog.

Reading and reflecting on the Ground Rules for discussion was a profitable activity or this course and a good idea for my English lessons. It reminds me when I was a student at university: trying to reach an agreement with my classmates and teachers to deliver a speech that is a trigger for discussion where all must participate and are given a mark. It also made feel important as a student because my values and thoughts are respected.

Creating a blog to keep record of my learning process is an excellent register to revise in the future. After teaching for several years, teachers tend to forget how students feel or learn. Reading about our own experience when learning helps us become more sympathetic with our students and better teachers.

In week 2 I had to use a web searching tool different from google. It was a challenge because I tried using new web searching tools proposed by Donna. Reading about techniques for searching was useful for my online English lessons at university where I am writing a project about "digital citizenship".

In this week I also had to describe a class that I teach and share a learning objective following the ABCD style. It was interesting and new for me to write the objectives in this way.  I regard valuable and helpful reading and commenting on other classmates' objectives.

Last discussion on nicenet was a starting point on the final project. I resorted to work with an online primary school student group because it is novel and original. This experimental project of working online with children is revolutionary in education and I am sure all my classmates will consider this experience fruitful.



I found Nahla's facebook idea as beneficial for all the members of this course.