Imagine you had your own English language academy in Spain. What would you do to promote it and […]
Category Archive: Teaching English Blog
Have you thought about teaching Business English? Don’t you need business experience to teach Business English? Is it […]
In this post, I’ll look at what activities you can do with a short text in your English […]
You’re going to be observed. How do you react? At some point this year, you are likely to […]
If you don’t ask any questions at an interview for a TEFL job, you may regret not doing […]
In this post, I’ll present my 10-step guide for teaching effective conversation classes to adult English learners. Many […]
One of the most popular TEFL activities for practising and reviewing vocabulary is called ‘The Hot Seat’ game. […]
The first conditional is used for more than just talking about future events. We need to explore common […]
In this article and accompanying video, I will talk about using the board effectively in ELT (English language […]
From Storytelling to Digital Storytelling Throughout human history, stories have been used to share ideas, opinions and experiences. […]
Podcasts are a great resource for English language teachers interested in professional development. Teacher trainers on TESOL courses […]
Book Review: Jason Anderson: Trinity Cert TESOL Companion Disclaimer: The author of this Trinity Cert TESOL guide is […]
There are many reasons why you might want to teach English here in Spain. Read on… If you […]
Are you thinking about teaching English in Spain? There are thousands of English teachers working in Spain. Why […]
The 10 Guiding Principles of TEFL An Accidental Manifesto By Dylan Gates Introduction This was a post I […]
Observations in ELT should be supportive not just evaluative, but how often is this the case? When I […]
Walk into any bookshop selling English language materials and you’ll be met by a bewildering array of options. […]
The reason why I took a TEFL course in 1996 (imagine, smartphones didn’t even exist then) was the […]
It’s amazing how much you can learn from observations. Unfortunately, in my experience, many language schools use observation […]
So, you have spent a considerable amount of money on taking a TEFL course. You’ve heard that everybody […]
How often do you play board games with your English learners? With a little bit of imagination, you […]
What is TEFL anyway? TEFL, TESOL, ESOL, ELT, CELTA, EAL, EAP, ESP etc. The list of acronyms (abbreviations […]
Why write things on the board for the students to write in their notebooks when you can dictate […]
Whoops! You’ve completely forgotten that Valentine’s Day is round the corner and you haven’t planned anything with a romantic […]
So, you’ve been accepted onto a TEFL course. How are you feeling? Relaxed because you are a fluent […]
Over the years, I’ve interviewed about 50 TEFL teachers. Some people walked through the door and I automatically […]
This is a source of constant debate in the TEFL world. Here in Spain, many Spaniards (employers and […]
Throughout human history, the number three has been seen as something magical. Stories have a beginning, a middle […]
I’ve worked with and trained recent graduates who were able to manage classes without raising their voices and […]
Sometimes I think the ideal one-to-one class is just two people talking about things that matter to […]
I’ve been in the business since 1996 and I’ve watched a wide range of people enter a […]
YouTube is a wonderful resource for language teachers and learners. When I mention this to trainee teachers, many […]
Asking a series of questions to a new private student has many benefits as you get some idea […]
I’m sitting here, drinking a cup of coffee and eating a chocolate biscuit and thoughts pop into my […]
Do you ever despair of your learners and wonder why they can’t understand your explanations of grammatical structures? […]
All you need for these fun speaking games are some dice. I recommend you buy a few sets […]
What do these animated movies have in common? Toy Story, A Bug’s Life, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., The […]
The times they are a-changin’ Back in the old days of TEFL, learners could count themselves lucky if […]
Do you find one-to-one teaching frustrating? Do you find it hard to keep your students interested and motivated? […]
Although they may not be great for the environment, the humble ‘post-it note’ is one of my favourite […]
First of all, it is common in ELT to establish a difference between an error and a mistake. […]
Back in the good old day, teachers would stand in front of a blackboard with a piece of […]
Once we have instructed our learners, they can begin doing the task or activity we have set them. […]
As well as presenting, explaining and defining new language, teachers also have to give students plenty of activities […]
Concept check questions, also known as CCQs, are used extensively in English language teaching. They are used when […]
Summer is on its way here in Southern Spain but the 10 teachers on the TEFL in Spain […]
I’ve recently participated in an online discussion about “corruptions in the English language”. Here are a few of […]
As ’tis the season to be jolly‘, I’d like to begin this post on a positive note: Actually, […]
You sit back, take a deep breath and relax. The person sitting opposite you has asked all of […]
A former trainee asked me which TEFL books she should buy to improve her teaching. Naturally, I admonished […]
