Spanish Course New York

2 Fluency activities for lower level students.

Stem sentences

Give students the first part of a sentence which they have to complete. You can even provide a list of stems to make sure that they stay on course. Stop the exercise at the 10 minute mark and compare results. It nice to get as many sentences as possible, but make sure they know that they can go at their own pace.

Examples:

On Sundays I usually_____.
On School nights I wish I could_____.
In the Summer we used to_____.
On my birthday I love to_____.
At exam time I usually_____.
On Valentine’s day I usually_____.
In 1996 I was_____.
Last year was_____.
Last week I went to_____.
On my last holidays I_____.

Don't stop asking! - for improving conversation technique

Get each student to write four facts about themselves. Each takes turns saying one of these facts aloud, the rest of the group needs to keep asking him questions about it to keep the dialogue going on for as long as possible (you can stop it at the 10 minute mark.) You can give them example questions if necessary.

Page created: February 20, 2009

Last updated: February 25, 2009

Problems teaching?

My friend Johana had recently returned from a trip across Europe, and she told me that she had finally decided to start an entrepreneur career by establishing the best and most affordable Italian course New York had to offer for locals. Since she speaks several languages, she did some research to find out which one should be the best to start out with. She found out that if you were looking for a Spanish course New York was crowded with offers at reasonable prices, but the same didn't hold true if you wanted to learn Italian. So she got together with a couple of friends who were also excellent teachers and had capital to invest and started her business.

I ran into her about 8 months later and she told me that the institute was a success and that she was having a blast working there. She also said, however, that the other teachers and her were constantly running into trouble when they tried to develop fluency with their low level students. I promised I would contact some old friends who were teachers to try and help her out. I got their recommendations and compiled them for her:

General tips for class success

Make sure to give them plenty of information to prepare them. Give out lots of vocabulary and language practice beforehand.
Make some visual aids. A grid, a table or even a series of picture cards can be of great help for students trying to remember the language.
Don't go on for half an hour, our brains can't take it. Aim for short 10-15 minutes bursts.
Manage your class. Everyone needs to know what they are supposed to be doing for the class to run smoothly. Show them what to do rather than just telling them.