a4esl.org - Building Vocabulary using Smartboards
October 9, 2007 by Martha Rankin
Are you looking for a virtual picture file by topic with instant assessment built right in? Look no further than http://a4esl.org/. It’s a homerun! Read on. Lead on!Here’s how it works.
- Go to this site. It’s a4esl.org…vocabulary…easy with pictures.
- Choose a topic that fits your current unit or theme.
- Example: If you are doing a housing unit, you might pick Furniture.
- Review the names of all of the pictured items before you begin.
- Click on Start.
- Read aloud the four options.
- Point to the picture and ask the group, “What is this?” or “What are these?”
- Only accept a complete answer
- Example: This is a chair.
- Example: These are speakers.
- Tap the the correct answer on your Smartboard to model how it works.
- Go to the next picture, repeat steps 5-6, but have a student come up and select the correct answer.
- Go to the next picture.
- Ask for a volunteer teacher to come up and a volunteer student to come up.
- Volunteer teacher, “What is this?” or “What are these?”
- Volunteer student, “This is a ________.” or “These are ___.
- Next set of volunteers…
- Ask a volunteer to come up.
- Ask, “What is this?”
- The volunteer says, “
Students will get so good at this exercise, they can become self-sufficient…logging on, getting to the webpage, and rotating volunteer teachers and students, which gives you a chance to meet with a small group for differentiated instruction! You just hit a homerun with content and technology.
First base: Introducing students to technology resources
Second base: Using technology resources to enhance targeted instruction.
Third base: Using technology and curriculum as a management system for differentiated instruction.
Home base: Using technology and instruction to teach student study skills, self-efficacy so students become independent learners.
Today in my Intermediate — Mixed — ESL class today at Whittier School in Costa Mesa, I told the students after the break, “Get Ready! You are going to be the teachers now.” They seemed a bit apprehensive at first, but warmed up very quickly.
I went to one of my favorite ESL Websites on the Internet: http://www.manythings.org and projected it onto the Smart Board. I selected an exercise on “Rearrange the Scrambled Words.” It consists of as few as four to as many as ten words that are scrambled. Each word has a question mark to the left of it. The person at the Smart Board must tap each question mark in the proper order to create the actual sentence that the exercise wants. I had each of about 17 students in rotation in this particular morning class (7:45 to 10:45) come to the Smart Board and rearrange the words on the commands of the rest of the class members. I have never seen the students so excited! They were actually shouting answers at the student at the board!!
I instructed each student that they needed to proceed slowly and not move until they got instructions from the class as a group. That they were the “teacher.” The most difficult aspect of the drill was getting the student at the board to slow down and move slowly.
I sat at the computer in view of the Smart Board, and when a student didn’t tap the board hard enough to have the word appear in the answer box, I clicked on the question mark next to the word with the cursor so that it would appear.
I have never seen students this motivated since I started teaching ESL five years ago! Some were standing at their desks shouting instructions at the student at the Smart Board. We were all laughing uproariously! They seemed to love it. One student said, “This was a very good idea, Mister Herron!” I insist they call me “Mister Herron,” as I would be addressed in a classroom in an English-speaking culture, rather than “Teacher,” which is a form of address for the teacher in Spanish-speaking cultures. After all, we are teaching them to aculturate, as well as to speak English, aren’t we? It also gives each student a brief peek into how difficult our jobs can be as teachers of ESL.
I have heard it said throughout my 60+ years, “If you truly want to learn something well, try teaching it to others.” This seemed to be a good example of this old chestnut. I intend to use this teaching technique in conjunction with my Smart Board often in the future. Give it a try! You WILL have fun!! And so will your students.
Good web site that Steve found! I’ll try it with my class.
Thanks, Steve, for the great website and instructions on how you have effectively used this in your class. I checked out the sentence scramble activity and I am going to try this with my Intermediate Low class. I think it will help them tremendously with their grammar! I’ll report back in another blog if it was an effective learning tool for my students.
Suzette
I love your website and as an ESL teacher have been using it a lot. Today I tried to get on a4esl for a lesson and its gone. Do you know anything about this? My lessons went to pot, needless to say. I hope this is only temporary …please let me know..Janine
Janine,
I’m so glad that you find our website valuable!
I checked on http://a4esl.org/. It is up and running; you’re good to go!! (Sorry to hear about the “potted” lessons; I know how that goes!)
My best to you,
Martha
Hello, just wanted to share a link that I thought may help ESL students build their english vocabulary and donate to charity at the same time. Check it our at
http://www.aidtochildren.com
Fantastic website! Can’t wait to use it with my esl students.
God bless you!
Nancy