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Creative English Lessons ​& Teacher Support

1-on-1 EFL Lesson for TEENS and ADULTS | Proust Psychology Test

12/9/2019

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If you teach English as a Foreign Language (EFL) or English as a Second Language (ESL) to private 1-on-1 students, it's always nice to come to a lesson with something new and fresh that catches the student off-guard with something different than the grammar exercises or general conversation.

Be open

This is not intended to be one of those secret tests that you reveal it was a psychological profile after they answer the questions. (You can find one of those here as the students work on being descriptive in English.)

You can tell the student that you're going to ask them questions about themselves and to just say the first thing that comes to their mind. 
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Proust Questionnaire for Private English Lessons
Here are a few questions: (There are 35 in total)

1. What is your idea of perfect happiness? 
2. What is your greatest fear? 
3. What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? 
4. What is the trait you most deplore in others? 
5. Which living person do you most admire? 
6. What is your greatest extravagance? 
7. What is your current state of mind? 
8. What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
9. On what occasion do you lie?
10. What do you most dislike about your appearance?
​...
CLICK HERE to see ALL the questions

​(Don't worry, it's FREE with no sign-up)

Pro Tips:

1-on-1 Lessons - This works best with private classes of teenagers or adults. They LOVE it because it's different than a typical lesson. Not recommended for bigger classes, but play around with it.

Accept "I don't know" - Allow the students to answer or not answer honestly. For example, some teenagers may not have an answer for some questions like, "What do you consider the most overrated virtue?"

Write down their answers - If you do this, it will feel more important to them to take it more seriously, and you can offer them the answers after the test if they want it. 

It's like Instagram - Remember, this is only a snapshot of them on a given day. Answers may vary on another day or under different circumstances.

You do it for yourself first... in another language if you can. You'll probably surprise yourself with some answers.

Easter Egg Lessons:

Self-realization - Ok, that sounds a bit "mystical", but really, they will learn things about themselves. They will probably think about some questions even after your lesson.

Learn about your student - You will get insight on your student and how they think. This will help you know how to teach them in future classes as well!

What else can you find?
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EFL REAL Conversation | Ordering Fast Food

1/9/2019

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Many EFL students are learning English in order to travel, live, or work abroad. Chances are, if they are in a foreign country, they will eat some fast food at some point. In this lesson, we will work with some useful expressions to order fast food, specific vocabulary, and grammar that will help their conversation skills.

Class Objectives

Let’s go out and order some food. Where do you want to go? Let’s get some fast food. FAST FOOD?! You mean like McDonalds??? Yes. Ok, let’s look at some typical conversations to order fast food.
 
By the end of the class, you will have:
 
  • learned and used new vocabulary
  • practiced expressions to become more fluent
  • become more confident when ordering fast food
  • created ordering food conversations
 
Difficulty:Blue Belt and above
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Model Conversation

Server:Hi, welcome to McDonalds, how can I help you?
Customer:Yes, could I have a |Big Mac, please?|
                                                 |number 1 please?|
                                                 |number 4 with cheese, please|
                                                 |number 3 no tomatoes|
Server: Would you like |to upsize| for $0.99 (99 cents)?
|to super size| 
|a large size| 
Customer: No, thank you.
Server: |What drink would you like?|
             |What would you like to drink?|
Customer: Iced tea, please.
Server: Anything else?
Customer: No, that’s all.
Server: That’ll be $5.44.
Customer: Here you are.
Server: Out of 10? 4 dollars and 56 cents is your change. Your number is 48, thank you have a good day.
Customer: Thank you.

Vocabulary and Expressions

Take notes about the following words so you can understand the meaning. Use context, dictionary definitions, synonyms, explanations, example sentences, pictures,or any other creative way to learn the new words and phrases. NOTE: Please do NOT use your language to understand the concept.
 
Single order – Big Mac, cheeseburger, fish sandwich, chicken nuggets, etc.
A number of the menu - 
 
An order with ____ - extra cheese, pickles, etc.
An order no _____/ hold the _____.

Useful Grammar

FORMING QUESTIONS with nouns and verbs.
Ask “what” or “which” questions using n
 
 
Question with a NOUN
 
What <noun> would you like?
|What drink would you like?|
What sport do you like best?
What music do you like?
Which shoes do you want?
What ideas do you have?

Question with a VERB
 
What would you like <to verb>?
|What would you like to drink?|
What sport do you like to play?
What do you like to listen to?
What shoes do you want to wear?
What ideas did you come up with?

Get The Worksheet in .doc or PDF

Practice:​ Ask Questions

Ask “what” or “which” questions using nouns and verbs.
 
Question                              Speak                                          Play                                     Color                  
Go                                         Ask                                               Do                                       Food

 
  1. _______________________________________________________________?
  2. _______________________________________________________________?
  3. _______________________________________________________________?
  4. _______________________________________________________________?
  5. _______________________________________________________________?
  6. _______________________________________________________________?
  7. _______________________________________________________________?
  8. _______________________________________________________________?

​Your Task: ​Create Your Conversation

Now it’s your turn to practice these expressions to create a conversation of somebody ordering fast food. Create several conversations to practice different expressions.
 
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
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EFL Speaking Game | Who Am I? | Great for PRE-TEENS, TEENS, and ADULTS

24/8/2019

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If you've seen Inglorious Bastards, you may have noticed the soldiers playing a table game in one of the scenes. Let's bring that game to our English class, of course with a few tweaks to help it flow for a lesson.

In class, I like to combine games in a general theme for a given class. This helps the flow of a class as one activity builds on another. In this lesson, I like to use two types of games that go well together.

The focus  we're working with today are questions and answers. In particular, YES/NO questions.

How it works:

Activity I: ​20 Questions

LESSON PLAN
LESSON: 20 Questions/ Who am I?
OBJECTIVES: a.) Forming and asking questions b.) Using adjectives, nouns, verbs, and other vocabulary
LEVEL: Pre-intermediate+(Upper White Belt and above)
TIME:20-30 minutes

Pre-Activity: 4-6 minutes

· Say you're going to play a guessing game. Write a question on the board, "What am I?" 
· Write the forms of yes/no questions
(Are you ____?/ Can you____?/ Do you (have) ____?)
Picture
Tell the rules of 20 questions and begin playing. Teacher thinks of a word first. Choose a student to go next.
(8-12 minutes)

1) The chosen person thinks of a word, and the class has up to 20 YES/NO questions to figure it out.
2) The chosen person can only say YES/NO
3) The person who correctly guesses the word goes next (if they want).

· Break bigger classes into small groups to continue playing the game.
Get A Printable Lesson Plan and Much More As A Pro Member

Activity II: Who am I?

Explain the rules of "Who am I"
​
1) Give everybody a small piece of paper.
2) Students write a thing on the piece of paper.
3) Pass the paper to the right
4) Ask questions to figure it out
5) If the answer is 'yes', go again. If the answer is 'no', it's the next person's turn. (10-14 minutes)

· Begin playing in their groups.

​Pro Tips:

· More advanced classes can work with questions like, "Can I ____ with you?" and other types of questions
· Keep track of how many questions remain on the board for the class to see
· Explain Activity II to individual groups around the room for classes of 20 or more.

Good luck! Let me know how it worksfor you and if you have any special touches that I can try in my classes:

Easter Egg Lessons

Using Authentic Language - They want to find out the answer, so they will ask questions. It's our job to help them ask it correctly.

Listening - They will have to pay attention to other people's questions so they don't waste a question and repeat a question (which will happen in 20 questions)

Great for ​1-on-1 Lessons

Both of these games would work perfectly fine for you your 1-on-1 lessons, too!

The only adjustments you would have to make for your 1-on-1 students are:

  •  You would have to be their partner and play the game as well.
  •  It might be helpful to make a category if only two people are playing. If not, it may become boring because the options are too broad.

​Test it out and try different things, and let us know what works best for you!

Want more?

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EFL Icebreakers and More | You'll Never Guess

22/8/2019

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If you're looking for something to do in class on the first day of class, or even in the first couple weeks... or anytime, this is an activity that will help the students engage with each other, use genuine language, and learn a bit about each other. Turning it into a guessing game with points will get them involved even more!

How It Works:

LESSON: Guess and speculate about information
OBJECTIVES: a) Get to know others b) use speculation language
LEVEL: appropriate for most levels and ages except little kids
TIME: 4-6 minutes
MATERIAL: Post-it notes or small pieces of paper.

The Set Up:
Picture
  • Give each student a post-it note or a small piece of paper and have them divide it into 4 boxes.
  • ​Create a category for each box. (You can see an example above.)
  • Write a word for each category. Each word must have a reason for why you wrote it.
  • A partner tries to guess why partner one wrote the given word. 

Pro Tip:

Create your own rules and adapt the game play and categories for your class and your style.
      Possible adaptations could be: 
​         - each partner gets up to 3 guesses per word
         - the partners go back-and-forth until the first one answers correctly
         - award points
         - create a story based on your partner's words.

Be flexible and use several adaptations if the students are enjoying the activity

Easter Egg Lesson:

Community - This is abstract enough that students usually feel comfortable letting loose a bit during this activity. Sometimes, you'll get some real moments during this.

Fluency Expression - Take time to teach "You'll never guess". Include that it's usually followed up by a 'W' word. (Ex. You'll never guess who I saw today.)
Find Out More About Teaching A Foreign Language

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ELF Warmer Game | Pronunciation Phone Number | TEENS and ADULTS

9/8/2019

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Pronunciation is one of the most difficult details of English for speakers of other languages. You may think it's not crucial for them to pronounce things like a native speaker until you have words like:

WE'RE/ WERE
BOAT/ BOUGHT
EAT/ IT
SHEET/ SHIT

Pronouncing these wrong can cause some confusion in communication. 

Today's activity is a fun way for students to practice the details in the differences in these words. Essentially, you will make a PowerPoint with a grid like a telephone keyboard. Below each number, write a word that your students typically confuse. Have their similar sounding word under another number. (Look at the example below)

Lesson Plan

LESSON: Use as a class opener or to start a speaking lesson
OBJECTIVES: a. Speak with precise pronunciation b. Tune your ear for listening
LEVEL: Can be appropriate for most levels and ages.
TIME: 8-10 minutes

Activity: Telephone Grid
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·      Preview and practice the pronunciation for each word on the grid.
·      Tell students to get something to write on and something to write with.
·      I tell them my phone number by saying the words. They write down the number.
·      I ask them to take out their phones and call me. - I ask something like, "Did you get them all?" or "Who feels brave."
·      Find a partner and share phone numbers (the numbers can be fake if they prefer)
Picture
Download the PDF and Printable Lesson Plan

Pro Tips:

· Write down your phone number for yourself before the activity so you don't get confused with the words and numbers.
· Change the words on the slide for different sounds
- If you don't feel comfortable, don't use their real phone numbers.

Share any other activities you could use this pronunciation slide for.

Good luck! Let me know how it worksfor you and if you have any special touches that I can try in my classes:

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EFL Game For KIDS, TEENS, or ADULTS | Pass The Ball | Use For Any Lesson

6/8/2019

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Download this fun and engaging PowerPoint template to play a HOT POTATO style game to review any vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, homework, or expressions that your students have recently learned. Adapt the slides for your particular needs in your classes. The presentation has upbeat music that hold the students' interest.

Lesson Plan

OBJECTIVES: a) Practice vocabulary, grammar, or expressions students have learned b) Have fun and prepare to speak English

LEVELS: Virtually any age and level.

TIME: ​5-10 minutes
This is a type of activity that you can adapt to virtually any age, level, or lesson that you want to spice up a bit.
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What's the Game?

If you're familiar with HOT POTATO, you can play this. You can look below at the types of slides that are on the template. All slides that have the rubber band ball are accompanied with fun game show-type music during the pass the ball time. 

​The template can be adjusted to teach any lesson you want to teach. All you have to do is change out the photo slides for other photos or text.

What the slides look like...

Download the PPT Template

Pro Tips

Set time limits and sentence requirements for the game. (Ex. Student must speak for 15 seconds about the photo OR Student must say at least 3 sentences about the photo)
​
The students might get too excited and start using their native language. Encourage English communication with a point or elimination system.

Change the slides for fill-in-the blank questions or other exam review style content.

Easter Egg Lessons:

On-the-spot Thinking - Students will have to think instantly about the language they want to use

Creativity - You can add extra points for more creative answers

​What else can you find?

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EFL Grammar Challenge | Solve The Two-Island Riddle

2/8/2019

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Lesson Plan

LESSON: Describing Order of Events
OBJECTIVES: a. Learn and Use Sequence Adverbs b. Improve Fluency c. Problem-solving
LEVEL: Upper-beginner and Higher
TIME:10-15 minutes
INTRODUCTION: Set up the riddle (2-4 minutes)
·      Ask students to take out their notebooks
·      Draw 2 island-type circles on the board
·      Write or draw a FOX, a CHICKEN, and a BAG OF CHICKEN FOOD on one island, and a boat in between the islands.
·      Describe the task
·      Teach main language
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OBJECTIVE: 
Problem-solving (6-8 minutes)

·      Transfer all three items from one island to the other island.
·      You can only take one item at a time in the boat
·      If you leave the chicken and the bag of food, the chicken will eat the food in the bag.
·      If you leave the fox and the chicken, the fox will eat the chicken.

Pro Tips:

(adjust the grammar according to your students’ level)
·      You may need to explain that ‘chicken food’ is not like KFC.
·      Allow them to work it out before teaching the hint language
·      Hint (Teach the expression “Take back” if they need a hint)

Student Worksheet
​for Your Google Classroom

Download the Worksheet and Watch A BONUS Video

MAIN LANGUAGE – (First, Next, Then, After that, Finally, Take, Go, Go back, Pick up)
​
1. First, you have to take _____________________________________________.
2. _______________________________________________________________.
3. _______________________________________________________________.
4. _______________________________________________________________.
5. _______________________________________________________________.
6. _______________________________________________________________.
 
ACTIVITY (a) –Draw the islands, the boat, and the items.










​

Easter Egg Lessons:

Problem Solving: Most of your students will probably say it's "impossible" at first. Guide them in learning that it's NOT impossible.

​Logic: The students will have to think in a logical step-by-step order to solve this problem.

​What else can you find?
Good luck! Let me know how it works for you and if you have any special touches that I can try in my classes:

What did you think? Want more lessons?

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EFL Warmer Game| Conversation Interrupt

27/7/2019

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Having good conversation skills is an important skill to have no matter what language we're speaking. Parts of a good conversation are:

  • asking good questions 
  • active listening to the other person 
  • asking follow-up questions to show that we're interested in what the other person is saying.

This is a nice, short activity that we can fit in anywhere in a lesson, and we recommend doing it often enough that our students can build a good routine of asking follow-up questions and practice real conversation. Use this to turn the English mode on in their brains.

Lesson Plan

LESSON: Use as an opener, closing activity, or if you have a few minutes to kill
OBJECTIVES: Have interactive conversations
LEVEL: Can be appropriate for most levels and ages.
TIME: 6-8 minutes
PLAN: 
· Ask a student to tell you about their day in detail (or any conversation topic)
· Teacher models the task by interrupting the student's answers with 'follow-up' questions from what they say.

Example conversation:
Picture
Student: I woke up at 7:00...
Teacher: How did you wake up?
Student: Um, my phone alarm.
Teacher: Ok. Continue.
Student: Then I had breakfast.
Teacher: What did you eat?
Etc.
·      Students do this with a partner.
·      Share a few examples as a class to correct.

Pro Tips:

Create a point system that you see fit. (Ex. a point for each follow-up question)

Good luck! Let me know how it worksfor you and if you have any special touches that I can try in my classes:

Easter Egg Lesson

If we do this on a regular or semi-regular basis, the students will grow their interactive conversation skills that they can use in English or their own language. Being a good conversationalist can be difficult, but it's fundamental in making new friends and influencing people.
Join and Enjoy Extra Videos, Printable Materials, and Workshops

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Making Endangered Species From Household Items

10/7/2019

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For this lesson, we are going to study Endangered Species just in time for Earth Day. In our summer camp, we're working on the topic of  REDUCE, REUSE, and RECYCLE, so we've collected a ton of plastic bottles, toilet paper rolls, milk cartons, egg cartons, and bottle caps.

We are going to ultimately ask the students choose an endangered animal and create one using the given objects. (you can give the students any material you want, and see what their minds create).

If you have a whiteboard with a projector, show the following exercise on the whiteboard, and ask students to write their answers in the spaces.

Pre-teach

With a partner, discuss the following questions and write your answers. You can research the answers for questions 1 and 2 if you need to and write the answers IN YOUR OWN WORDS.

1. What makes a species endangered?



2. How many endangered animals can you list?



3. What are some reasons animals have gone extinct?



​4. Is it our responsibility to responsibility to save endangered animals? Why?




Expressions to AGREE or DISAGREE.

Use these expressions to have a discussion about questions 3 and 4. Have a conversation with a partner or group sharing your opinion.
Agree

​I think so, too.
I agree.
Yes, that's right.
That sounds right.
Disagree

​I don't think so because...
I don't agree because...
That's not necessarily true.
That can't be true.

Follow and Subscribe

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English Reading Lesson|Kahoot! (Smart Phones Changing Our Skulls)

19/6/2019

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Breaking News English is a fantastic resource for simple reading articles. This article is titled Smart Phones Could Be Changing Shape Of Our Skulls.

Lesson Objectives: (a) Practice reading comprehension  (b) Learn vocabulary in context

Level: Upper beginner or Lower Intermediate (White or Blue Belt)
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Pre-Teach

Survey the students and open a discussion with the following questions:
How often do you use a smart phone?

How many hours in a day would you say you're on your smart phone?

​(Calculate estimates with WhatsApp timestamps)
​
What do you typically use your phone for?
Pre-teach certain vocabulary from the text. Along with the Vocabulary Match from the PDF, there are plenty of vocabulary words to review that will show up on the Kahoot!

A bump
​A skull
Decade
Mostly
To bend (our necks)
To hunch (over)
An angle
​       An unnatural angle

Kahoot!

If you've never used Kahoot before: 

1. Go here to play the Kahoot! with your students!
2. Have your kids take out their phones or classroom computers and go to Kahoot.it
3. Enter the game ID
4. Create a Name

An Extra Touch

Bring a scale.
Put things on the scale and review numbers and weights.
Choose something in the class or bring something in that weighs 4.5 kg to show how much the head weighs.
Time our how long some students can hold that in an unnatural position.
              (Ex. Hold a heavy book out to the side.)

​This will give a didactic touch to the article.

Raise the Stakes

Let's face it, sometimes our classes can see a Kahoot lesson as a free class. (Especially teens)
​
To keep your students honest and giving effort PLUS an extra reward for the winners, give a small assignment to everybody except the top three teams​ as a prize.

Assignment Ideas:
  • Define or write examples of vocabulary words
  • Write answers for a 3 to 5 Discussion Questions from the article
  • Choose an activity from the Breaking News English mini lesson
Get The Lesson Plan and Print Materials

Easter Egg Lessons:

- Learn about some of the dangers of using mobile phones too much
​- What else can you find?

Extra Material and Lessons

If you're interested in other classes like this or getting worksheets and PDFs to take to your classes, support Jesse on Patreon, and he will help you in the classroom.

To print out the article, go to BreakingNewsEnglish.com or go here to print it out. Thanks!
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