English as a Second Language Articles

Cheat Sheet / Updated 05-09-2022

Si tienes planeado viajar a un país que habla inglés, de vacaciones o por negocio, vale la pena aprender algunos saludos, frases de cortesía y preguntas de carácter general.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-18-2022

Teaching English as a foreign language is an exciting and challenging experience. Here, you will find words of wisdom on everything from choosing a course to lesson planning, and all the stages in between.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 03-24-2022

Use these helpful resources to help you speak English quickly and fluently. Build your confidence by saying the days of the week, months of the year and numbers, as well as practicing common greetings and questions.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Want to learn the days of the week and the months of the year in English? Keep this Cheat Sheet handy and use the pronunciation guide to practice. And here are months of the year:

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

When you’re learning English as a foreign language, print out and keep this alphabet handy. We include a pronunciation guide to help you say the English letters correctly.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

When you’re learning English as a foreign language, practise these greetings and questions to sound like a British native in no time. Remember to tailor your greetings – whether formal or informal – depending on who you’re talking to. Formal Greetings Good morning Good afternoon Good evening Nice to meet you Goodnight Goodbye Informal Greetings Hello Hi Bye Bye for now See you soon Questions Who: Who is that man over there? [Asking about people.] When: When are you going on holiday? [Asking about times and dates.] Where: Where is the nearest bank? [Asking about places.] What: What’s that box for? [Asking about things / activities.] Why: Why is she crying? [Asking for reasons.] How much: How much is that book? [Asking about quantities.] What time: What time does the film start? [Asking about times.] What . . . like: What’s David's wife like? [Asking about characteristics.]

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Counting in English, when English isn’t your native language, is easy to learn with this useful Cheat Sheet and pronunciation guide. Use this Cheat Sheet to practise telephone numbers, currency and people’s ages.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

When you teach English as a foreign language, you can show what the grammar actually looks like when, for example, you manipulate verb tenses in different ways. Here are some examples: Positive: He had written it. Negative: He had not written it. Question: Had he written it? Contraction: He’d written it. Here are other useful points for presenting grammar: Pronunciation: Consider any features that you need to highlight and drill. Function: Demonstrate exactly when you use the grammar by putting it in context. Timelines help to represent this visually. Examples: Use realia (examples from everyday life) or pictures as well as sentences to explain. Concept check questions. Use questions to check that students understand what they are being taught. Comparison with other grammar if necessary. Use examples from what the students have already learned to help clarify new ideas.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Here are some general points of good practice that you’ll find helpful in almost all situations when you are teaching English as a foreign language: Plan ahead Ask for and welcoming feedback. Start off quite strict and easing up later if you can. Start and finish on time. Respect your students. Maintain a sense of humour.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

No matter what country you are teaching in, use this handy checklist to make sure that you’re really prepared for each lesson when you’re teaching English as a foreign language. I know what level my students are at. I know who my students are – their nationality, language, background and so on. I know how long the lesson is. I set aims and objectives. What I want to teach fits in with the course syllabus. I know what my students need to know about this piece of language – its rules, patterns and so on. I have an appropriate context for this language point. I anticipated problems and have thought of ways to prevent them from occurring. I have a planned activity or exercise for providing controlled practice. I have a planned activity for providing free practice. I have any materials I need. My activities are communicative, which means the students spend some time interacting with each other to complete a task. My teacher talking time is 30 per cent or under.