Become a more confident language teacher.
If we want language to come OUT of our students’ mouths, we must get language IN to their heads. They need INput so that they can produce OUTput. » Input is reading and listening » Output is speaking and writing This is common sense. A learner cannot utter an expression in a new language if…
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Have you heard whisperings of March Music Madness, but aren’t quite sure what it is or how to implement it? You have come to the right place! While I left the classroom before I learned about March Music Madness (MMM), I am a huge fan and will absolutely implement when I return to the classroom. This tournament-style…
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It’s a new school year and you, dear language teacher, are ready for a new YOU! You have heard about comprehensible input centered instruction, you perhaps attended a workshop or six over the summer…maybe you have even given CI instruction a go in the past! Whatever your background looks like, you have decided that 2017…
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My first day of teaching in a public school, I planned the coolest lesson ever. Having committed to teaching 100% in the target language, my objective for the first class was to show my students that YES—they can understand me when I speak in Spanish, even when they don’t yet speak any! I wanted them…
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Have you ever gone to a session at a conference and been SO EXCITED about whatever you learned that you don’t eat, don’t sleep, don’t shower, and ignore everyone that you care about until you finally get the chance to try it out? No? That’s just a Martina thing? Shoot. Language teachers love BreakoutEDU Well…
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MovieTalk has quickly become a favorite strategy for providing comprehensible input to language learners since Michele Whaley brought it to the TCI world in 2012. Developed by Dr. Ashley Hastings as the listening module for the Focal Skills ESL program, MovieTalk is an incredibly effective activity because it provides loads of comprehensible input to students. I just…
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If you’ve seen some of the amazing novels written for language learners that are available but have yet to purchase any, you may be wondering: how do I use these novels in class? When teachers begin to study language acquisition and learn more about Comprehension-based teaching, it quickly becomes apparent that reading has a profound…
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If you could make your job easier…wouldn’t you? If you could make your students learn better, acquire faster, go further… wouldn’t you? A few years back, Gary Keller and Jay Papasan wrote a book about productivity and success entitled The One Thing. As the wife of a Keller-Williams Realtor, I have spent countless date nights…
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Discussing current events in your language classes can be an incredibly valuable part of your curriculum. Since 2016, The Comprehensible Classroom has been publishing bi-weekly news summaries of current events from the Spanish speaking world, written so that your Spanish students can understand them. How to use current events in class If you have a…
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Do you ever just need a day? You look at your lesson plans and think, “I…just…can’t”? A few days ago, I had a day. I got some news that knocked me out emotionally, and since I was 39 1/2 weeks pregnant (now 40 weeks pregnant…come on girl!….)…I just needed a day. I’m not teaching, but I had my three…
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