Teaching the Present Simple – Practical Tips Suggestions for Oral or Writing Activities: What do you usually do during the summer? I usually wake up… Sometimes… In the afternoon… In the evening… At night… and during the school year? Do you have any special interests / hobbies? What do you like to do?…
תג ארכיון עבור - reading comprehension
Can we teach Reading Comprehension?
Yes, we can teach Reading Comprehension. Actually, we must. The big question is HOW? In these posts I will not deal with theoretical aspects and principles regarding Higher-order and Lower-order Thinking Skills – Hots and Lots. I prefer to focus on practical tips illustrated by examples that can be quickly adapted to the class situation.…
Lesson Plan – Focus on Reading Comprehension
Today we will introduce a basic lesson plan focusing on Reading Comprehension. Remember, the lesson should focus on Reading Comprehension, but not consist of Reading Comprehension only. Every lesson should combine 2 or 3 of the following domains: Oral Activities, Writing Activities, Reading and Grammar. After all, We are teaching English, not Writing, Reading or Grammar.…
Reading Comprehension – Finding the main ideas
Finding the main ideas in a text, a paragraph, a sentence is the key to Reading Comprehension. How do we do that? Hand out a text (three/four paragraphs). The subject of the text should be relevant to your students’ interests. The paragraphs should be relatively short. The sentences should be about 1-2 lines long. What…
Oral Activities to promote Reading Comprehension
How can we promote Reading Comprehension? Can Oral Activities help? Can Cartoons stimulate discussion leading to deeper comprehension? Oral Activities and Cartoons can be very useful in the class situation. Reading Comprehension should not be taught by giving hundreds of texts for students to read and answer questions at home or in class. If students…
More Oral Activities to promote Reading Comprehension
How can we make students talk in the English class? Should we use more cartoons to stimulate conversation and promote Reading Comprehension? I think we should. The question is: How? We spoke about violence in my last post. Since violence is, unfortunately, a very relevant subject, let’s continue. As I have already said, I believe that Oral…
Group Activities to enhance Reading Comprehension
Can we use Group Activities to enhance Reading Comprehension? Yes. We can and we should. How can we do that? Let’s divide the class into groups of 4 – 6 students. The group has to become a cooperative learning group. Each student in the group must assume responsibility and participate actively in the group’s work.…
Comprehension – Relevant and Irrelevant Information
We have been working on analysis and integration of texts for a couple of weeks. This time we will focus on relevant and irrelevant information. How can we do that? We have to read the text carefully, find the main ideas and then discard any information that is irrelevant. If we can do that, it…
Improving Reading Comprehension – Step 2
In my last post we discussed Improving Reading Comprehension. The following is the second text presenting a new aspect of our general theme: Communication Devices. The objective is to enrich the students’ information and knowledge of the topic since prior knowledge certainly facilitates comprehension of a text. Introducing Text No. 2 (link to Text No.…
More Oral Activities leading to Reading and Writing
Today we will discuss more Oral Activities leading to Reading and Writing. We will again try to combine Oral Activities, Reading and Writing. We will start with Oral Activities. Look at the following cartoon. Click on the following link: Smoking Can you find a suitable title, saying or caption for this cartoon? Describe the cartoon…
More Oral, Reading and Writing Activities
As I wrote in my last post, my aim is to combine different activities from different domains. All the activities have to center around the same theme and lead to the Reading Comprehension text. This time, our theme is: Pets. We will start with Oral Activities. Look at the following cartoon. Click on the following…
The Generation Gap – Part 1
We are now moving to a more advanced level. In the next posts we will focus on a certain subject and design various activities around that subject in order to enrich the students’ Vocabulary and enhance Reading Comprehension and Writing Proficiency. So what’s new about it? Haven’t we been doing that all along (about 30…
Aliyah-A unique kind of Immigration-Part 1
The general subject of the unit that we are starting today is Aliyah – A unique kind of Immigration. Today, we will talk about one of the aspects of Aliyah. Look at the following cartoon: Aliya1 Let’s talk about it. Describe the characters you see in the cartoon. Where, do you think, they come from?…
Aliyah-A unique kind of Immigration – Part 3
This is my third and last post on Aliyah – A unique kind of Immigration. The first post dealt with the definition and special meaning of the term Aliyah. The second post dealt with Culture Shock. Our post today deals with the first steps of newcomers – olim – in their new country. Let’s talk…
Beauty, Money and other trifles – Part 1
The general subject of the unit that we are starting today is Beauty, Money and other trifles. Let’s talk about it. Give examples of cosmetic products. Explain the purpose / use of each. Name various brands, firms. How do you decide what brand to choose? Why do so many girls / women buy cosmetics? Helpful…
Beauty, Money and other trifles – Part 2
In my last post I introduced the first aspect of the general subject of this unit: Beauty, Money and other trifles. Today we will discuss another aspect: Credit Cards. Let’s talk about it. What are credit cards? What are the advantages of credit cards? What are the risks involved? How could the risks be reduced?…
Voluntary Activities – Part 1
The general subject of the unit that we are starting today is Voluntary Activities. Let’s talk about it. What is a voluntary organization? Mention names of well known voluntary organizations. How does a voluntary organization finance its work? What is more important: to donate money or devote time and effort? What kind of work can…
A Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body – Part 1
The general subject of the unit that we are starting today is A Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body. Let’s talk about it. A Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body What is the meaning of this saying? What does it suggest? Do you agree? Can you justify your answer? Can you bring examples from your…
A Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body – Part 2
In my last post I introduced the first aspect of the general subject of this unit: A Healthy Mind in a Healthy Body – The Maccabiah. Today we will discuss another aspect: Sport Addiction. Let’s talk about it. Can people be addicted to sports? Explain. What is the difference between active and passive sportsmen? Are you…
Coexistence
The general subject of the unit that we are starting today is Coexistence. In order to communicate effectively, people need a common language. Can you explain this sentence? Do you agree? Can you justify your answer? Why is it so important to know foreign languages? Is it important in Israel? Why? What is the most…
Work and Leisure – Part 1
The general subject of the unit that we are starting today is: Work and Leisure. Let’s talk about it. “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread”. Explain the quotation above. Where is the quotation taken from? What is the attitude to work in the verse? What is the attitude of most…
The Media – Part 3 – The Future of Newspapers
The following is the third post on the Media. In the first post of this unit, I introduced the first aspect of the general subject of this unit: The Radio. In the second post of this unit I introduced the second aspect of the general subject of this unit: The Press. Today we will discuss another…
Reading – Part 1 – Let’s Read Faster!
The general subject of the unit that we are starting today is: Reading. This unit will comprise three parts. Today we will focus on the first aspect of this subject. We will discuss why we read and how we read. Let’s talk about it. A page a day keeps ignorance away. Explain the statement above.…