Become a more confident language teacher.
Running Dictation is a favorite activity among world language teachers, conceived by Jason Fritze and first taught to me by Michele Whaley. I first shared it on The Comprehensible Classroom blog here in 2011. In this high-energy game, students take turns with teammates to run to a poster, memorize a statement, and race back to…
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A few weeks ago, we began year 3 of homeschooling. What started out of necessity (no internet for virtual school) has become something that I love and that is working really well for our family. Last year, our family joined a local co-op that meets once per week. This year, I am tutoring several classes…
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Map Talk is a content-based, communicative language teaching strategy that our guest author, Benjamin Tinsley, has been using with his classes and empowering other teachers to try in their own instructional contexts. During a Map Talk activity, the class views a map while the teacher describes what is visible and leads a conversation that combines…
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The Somos Flex curriculum is a unique, multi-strand Spanish curriculum that takes care of lesson planning so that you can focus on the most important thing: connecting with your students. Just as the original SOMOS curriculum has given thousands of teachers the confidence to step into a new way of teaching, so has Somos Flex…
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Find hundreds of free resources for your language classes in our Subscriber Library. Since 2010, The Comprehensible Classroom has been sharing ready-to-go, acquisition-focused activities that you can use in your classes. Now, you can access ALL of them in one location! What materials are available? In the Administrative Items folder, find this parent letter that…
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The end of the year is tough, I know! Students are simultaneously exhausted and buzzing with energy… thank you, sun! You need lesson plans that teach themselves, and I’ve got one plan that will do just that. Try out this no-prep, hands-off “3 – 2 – 1” lesson for current events… or any texts! 3-2-1…
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Pre-ordered copies of the anticipated text Common Ground: Second Language Acquisition Theory Goes to the Classroom by Florencia G. Henshaw and Maris D. Hawkins arrived in mailboxes around North America this past week. Both authors have been active contributors to the community of language educators through online and real-world forums, and so it is no…
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Is your head swimming with the different terms that are used to describe language teaching? CI, ADI, TPRS, POLI… what do they all mean, and how do they work together? Most importantly, what does talking about teaching actually have to do with teaching? Listen to CI Diaries #2 I recently listened to Episode 2 of…
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In the Northern Hemisphere, it is SPRING! And with spring comes celebrations. Many of you reading this blog teach languages that are spoken in countries with deep religious roots, and those roots are super visible in March and April! Easter, Passover, Equinox, and Ramadan are all holidays and celebrations that occur in the Spring. It…
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Many of us learned language through an explicit instructional model, in which words and concepts were taught, practiced, and memorized. When I began teaching, I started out with that same explicit model of instruction: working from a textbook curriculum that laid out thematic vocabulary to memorize and grammar concepts to practice and master in each chapter.…
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