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<p>Autonomous, self-directed, or independent learners have the academic and life skills required to take control of their own learning journeys. They can fast-track their language learning through self-study, seeking out learning opportunities, and using effective learning strategies.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In my previous blog post on independent learning, I looked at <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/the-importance-of-self-directed-learning-transforming-the-elt-classroom-with-independence"><strong>5 Benefits of Encouraging Learner Autonomy</strong></a>. In this post, I will cover some practical ways to do this.&nbsp;</p>

<h3>1. Explore learning strategies</h3>

<p>Every learner is different, so what works for one may be less effective for another. Some learners may feel the need to write up notes straight after class, while others may prefer to watch videos or do activities with a similar theme.</p>

<p>Give&nbsp;students the opportunity to share learning strategies with their classmates. This can help them to find out&nbsp;what works for them and to&nbsp;understand that everyone learns differently. It also lets them&nbsp;take inspiration and guidance from their peers and discover new learning techniques.&nbsp;</p>

<p>For a simple and creative classroom idea for how to do this, check out the <strong>container activity</strong>&nbsp;in this blog post:&nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/learning-that-sticks-the-power-of-post-its-in-the-elt-classroom">Learning That Sticks: The Power of Post-its in the ELT Classroom&nbsp;</a></p>

<h3>2. Encourage problem-solving</h3>

<p>Students who haven&#39;t developed the ability to work autonomously&nbsp;can often be full of excuses. For example, they may claim that they didn&#39;t know what the homework was, that they didn&#39;t have the right worksheet, or that they couldn&#39;t log in.&nbsp;</p>

<p>These are all valid excuses in certain contexts. However, it is the student&#39;s responsibility to find out what the homework is, to make sure they have the right worksheet, and to find a way to log in.&nbsp;</p>

<p>We have to help students see excuses as problems to be solved. One way to do this is to write common excuses on the board and have them discuss&nbsp;solutions.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Problem</strong>: &quot;I didn&#39;t know we had homework.&quot;</p>

<p><strong>Solution</strong>: Ask another student, keep a diary of the homework, or check emails, notes, or the learning platform.</p>

<p><strong>Problem</strong>: &quot;I didn&#39;t have the right worksheet.&quot;</p>

<p><strong>Solution</strong>: Keep homework tasks in a separate folder, ask a friend, identify&nbsp;the homework worksheet with a post-it or a star, take a photo of someone else&#39;s, and complete it in their notebook.</p>

<p><strong>Problem</strong>: &quot;I&nbsp;couldn&#39;t log in.&quot;</p>

<p><strong>Solutions</strong>: Ask the IT team,&nbsp;another student, or a friend for help. Follow the password reset functions.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Getting students into the habit of finding their own solutions before asking for help promotes resourcefulness and stops them from relying on you more than necessary.&nbsp;</p>

<h3>3. Use learning journals</h3>

<p>Learning journals can help students keep track of their learning. They can use them to jot down homework tasks, class schedules, topics covered, and upcoming themes. They can also use them&nbsp;to reflect on progress so far.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Learning journals are a great way to help students get organized, assess their own learning, and track their distance traveled.&nbsp;</p>

<h3>4. Set goals</h3>

<p>Setting goals lets learners consider where they want to be and how they are going to get there. It gives them direction and an attainable target to work towards and motivate them.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here are some posts on the topic:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/creative-ways-to-set-personal-academic-goals-with-students">Creative Ways to Set Personal &amp; Academic Goals with Students</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/4-goals-to-help-you-focus">Struggling to Focus? 4 Types of Goals to Get Your Language Learning Back on Track</a> (for students)</li>
</ul>

<p>Here are some&nbsp;Ellii resources on the topic:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>Discussion Starters:&nbsp;<a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5541-goal-setting" target="_blank">Goal-Setting</a>&nbsp;(Adv)</li>
	<li>Discussion Starters: <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5543-goal-setting" target="_blank">Goal-Setting</a> (Low Int)</li>
	<li>Discussion Starters: <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5657-grit">Grit</a>&nbsp;(High Int &ndash; Adv)</li>
	<li>Discussion Starters: <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/5439-growth-mindset">Growth Mindset </a>(Adv)</li>
	<li>Grammar Stories: <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/4421-more-simple-future-stories">More Simple Future Stories</a> (Goals)</li>
	<li>Student Reflection:&nbsp;<a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2224-goal-setting-can-do">Goal-Setting</a>&nbsp;(Can Do)</li>
</ul>

<h3>5. Use self &amp; peer assessment</h3>

<p>Why spend hours on grading when you can give students the answer key or rubric and have them correct their work themselves? This way they can get into the habit of assessing their own progress in their own time and learning from their mistakes.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Of course, this is simpler for activities with clear-cut answers (e.g., yes/no, true/false, multiple-choice)&nbsp;than for written or spoken work.</p>

<p>However,&nbsp;it is also good to have students get into a routine of checking their productive work against a checklist before they submit.</p>

<p>For example, have them check:</p>

<ul>
	<li>Did they answer the question?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Have they used the right punctuation?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Is the word count suitable?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Have they used the language they are focusing on (e.g., sequence words, phrases for introducing opinions)</li>
	<li>How is the spelling?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>For extra support, you can have them check each other&#39;s work in groups or pairs. That way, they can learn from each other and give feedback and support.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

<h3>6. Try project-, task- &amp; inquiry-based learning</h3>

<p>Project-, task-, and inquiry-based learning are great ways to help students explore topics in more depth. They can develop their research, collaborative, and presentation skills too.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Check out these posts for more:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/takeaways-from-tesol-2022-project-based-learning">10 Tips for Successful Project-Based Learning</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/task-based-learning">Task-Based Learning: An Introductory Guide</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/inquiry-based-learning-a-quick-guide-of-elt-professionals">Inquiry-Based Learning: A Quick Guide for ELT Professionals</a></li>
</ul>

<h3>7. Give them choices</h3>

<p>It can be tiring choosing learning topics that will interest our learners. Giving them a choice lets them decide for themselves. You could set aside time in class where students can pick their own activity.&nbsp;</p>

<p>For example:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>read a book</li>
	<li>research something online</li>
	<li>create a poster</li>
	<li>make a video</li>
	<li>write a blog</li>
</ul>

<p>This way, they can choose a mode of learning that works for them and a motivating subject that interests them.&nbsp;</p>

<p>On Ellii, you can use the built-in feature called <strong>Student Picks</strong>.&nbsp;</p>

<div class="videoWrapper"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eSi7E0R3b4I?si=nbcUwXPOnHAaioAE" width="640"></iframe></div>

<p>Our comprehensive self-study platform, <a href="https://ellii.com/solo">Ellii Solo</a>,&nbsp;lets students choose from a full library of courses, study packs, and videos, as well as studying vocabulary at their own pace. The content helps students target specific skills and reach their language learning goals faster.</p>

<p>For more on the topic of self-directed learning, check out my previous posts:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/the-importance-of-self-directed-learning-transforming-the-elt-classroom-with-independence">5 Benefits of Encouraging Learner Autonomy</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/5-ways-to-supercharge-your-students-study-skills">5 Ways to Supercharge your Students&#39; Study Skills</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/developing-learner-autonomy-with-ai">Developing Learner Autonomy with AI</a></li>
</ul>

<blockquote>
<p>How do you encourage learner autonomy in your classroom? We&#39;d love to hear which tips and tricks have worked for you! Let us know in the comments.&nbsp;</p>
</blockquote>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


Self-Directed Learning: 7 Ways to Develop Learner Autonomy in the ELT Classroom

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<p>Self-directed learning is the key to long-term academic success. It empowers students to personalize their learning journeys, think critically, solve problems, and ultimately take control of their language learning.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this post, I will explore some of the benefits of developing learner autonomy. In short, it answers&nbsp;<em>why</em> autonomous learning is so powerful.&nbsp;</p>

<p>For more, check out my post on&nbsp;<em>how </em>to support learners students to become independent learners:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://ellii.com/blog/7-ways-to-develop-learner-autonomy-in-the-elt-classroom">7 Ways to Develop Learner Autonomy in the ELT Classroom</a></p>

<h2>What is self-directed learning?&nbsp;</h2>

<p>Self-directed learning is&nbsp;a bottom-up approach that puts students at the center, controlling their own academic success.&nbsp;</p>

<p>A self-directed learner can manage their time, set their own goals, and find their own ways to achieve them.&nbsp;</p>

<p>These are the students who complete their homework, write up their notes, and actively seek additional&nbsp;practice for their language skills.&nbsp;</p>

<p>They have developed the study skills to put them on the&nbsp;fast track to success.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>What are the benefits of self-directed learning?&nbsp;</h2>

<p>There are many advantages to promoting learner independence.&nbsp;Let&#39;s look at a few.&nbsp;</p>

<h3>1. Independent learners are self-motivated</h3>

<p>When learners know what they want&nbsp;and choose how they learn, they are motivated. This self-motivation compels them to log in to learning portals, repeat tricky tasks, learn from their mistakes, and&nbsp;reflect on what works for them.&nbsp;</p>

<p>This self-motivation can make them lifelong learners, seeking out ways to try new things and master new skills.&nbsp;</p>

<h3>2. Independent learners have transferrable skills</h3>

<p>The ability to take the initiative and complete challenging tasks independently is essential in the workplace. Employers actively seek to recruit people who are creative, can think critically, and have strong digital skills.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Learners who can do this in the language learning context can transfer these skills into further and higher education as well as&nbsp;nab themselves meaningful employment.&nbsp;</p>

<h3>3. Independent learners are determined</h3>

<p>When something gets too difficult, it can be very easy to give up. Learners who haven&#39;t yet developed their ability to learn autonomously may get put off by even the smallest obstacle&mdash;a forgotten login, a lost document, or an overwhelming liguistic concept. They will likely be dependent on you to get them back on track.&nbsp;</p>

<p>However, nothing stops an independent learner. They will find a way to reset their own login, find the document, and understand that tricky language point.&nbsp;</p>

<h3>4. Independent learners reduce teacher workload</h3>

<p data-end="436" data-start="271">Teachers are busy, and sharing our time equally between all our students can be a challenge. However, when students can work automously, we can become a&nbsp;guide or facilitator to learning. We can set learners&#39; tasks and give them time to complete them in their own way.</p>

<h3 data-end="436" data-start="271">5. Independent learners know their own needs&mdash;and how to meet them</h3>

<p>Students who know how to learn by themselves know what kind of techniques and tools they like to use. They can choose to learn in a manner that supports their needs.&nbsp;</p>

<p>These are just a few of the benefits of encouraging learner autonomy. For more on this topic, check out these blog posts:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/5-ways-to-supercharge-your-students-study-skills">5 Ways to Supercharge Your Students Study Skills</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/developing-learner-autonomy-with-ai">Developing Learner Autonomy with AI</a></li>
</ul>

<p>You may also want to check out <a href="https://ellii.com/solo" target="_blank">Ellii Solo</a>, our comprehensive self-study platform that is perfect for independent learning success.&nbsp;</p>

<div class="videoWrapper"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/l-C2mk0YszA?si=58gjBGwMsPzoL-Bi" width="640"></iframe></div>

<blockquote>
<p>What are your thoughts on self-directed learning? What benefits would you add?&nbsp;</p>
</blockquote>


The Importance of Self-Directed Learning: 5 Benefits of Encouraging Learner Autonomy

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<p>Photographs are wonderful teaching tools. They capture moments in time and help us to tell stories and facilitate discussions.</p>

<p>In this blog, I share some ideas for how to use Ellii&#39;s <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lessons/photo-prompts">Photos of the Week</a>&nbsp;to bring current affairs and global news into the ELT classroom.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Our Photos of the Week section shares five photos each week from our media partner, <strong>The Associated Press</strong>. These photos depict diverse stories from around the world&nbsp;and help learners to explore these topics in more detail.</p>

<p>You can use these hot off the press&nbsp;or take a step back in time to find out more about&nbsp;key stories from recent history.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>1. Assign as speaking homework</h2>

<p>These photo prompts&nbsp;are designed for self-directed learning. You can assign them to a class or an individual student to prepare them for an upcoming lesson&nbsp;or to give them additional practice of something you&#39;ve been working on in class.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Students are prompted to look at a photo, read a short description, and talk about the photo. The instruction is deliberately flexible to allow students to add their own ideas, knowledge, or creativity to&nbsp;the topic.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

<p>For example, take this photo of women voting in Guinea:&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="screenshot of women from Guinea" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4940/content_Guinea-Vote.jpg" /></p>

<p>You could encourage students to:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>Describe the photo using adjectives</li>
	<li>Say what the people in the photo might be thinking or saying</li>
	<li>Say what they know about the topic&mdash;and what they&#39;d like to know more about</li>
	<li>Predict what might happen next&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Guess what happened before the photo was taken</li>
	<li>Imagine what the story is about</li>
</ul>

<p>Students don&#39;t necessarily need to know the backstory to the photo in order to use it as a speaking prompt. The aim is to get them talking and using their English. But you could let them research the story more&nbsp;before recording their answer.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>2. Discuss in class</h2>

<p>These photos work really well in class. Simply present one at a time or all of them at once and ask students to share what they know&nbsp;and what they&nbsp;would like to know about each photo.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here is a photo of Venezuelan migrants on a boat between Panama and Colombia:&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Venezuelan migrants" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4941/content_Venezuelan-Boat.jpg" /></p>

<p>You could ask the students:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>What can you see?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>What&nbsp;do you know about this story or place?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>How does this photo make you feel?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>How do you think the people in the photo feel?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>What would you do in this situation?</li>
</ul>

<p>Before the lesson, you could read about each story and share some interesting extra information. You could also facilitate some debate around each photo.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>3. Improve research skills</h2>

<p>These photo prompts are perfect for developing research skills. They can serve as a introduction to the topic.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Have students work in pairs or small groups. Have them&nbsp;choose a photo that intrigues them. Ask them to write a list of all the questions that they have about the photo.</p>

<p>Let&#39;s use this photo as an example:&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Melanie Santiler" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4942/content_Havana.jpg" /></p>

<p>Students may write questions such as:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>Who is Melanie Santiler?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>What kind of music does she play?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Who else plays at Shangri La in Havana?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>In what ways is the music scene in Havana changing?&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

<p>Once they have a list of questions, have them research the answers online and take notes. Finally, have them share their findings.&nbsp;Some ways they could do this include:</p>

<ul>
	<li>a vlog</li>
	<li>a presentation</li>
	<li>a poster</li>
	<li>a sketchnote or infographic</li>
	<li>a blog post</li>
	<li>a social media post</li>
	<li>a news article</li>
	<li>a role-play&nbsp;interview of&nbsp;one of the people in the photo</li>
</ul>

<p>Here are some further classroom ideas, taking an inquiry-based learning approach:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/inquiry-based-learning-a-quick-guide-of-elt-professionals">Inquiry-Based Learning: A Quick Guide for ELT Professionals</a></li>
</ul>

<p>If you&#39;d like some more ideas&nbsp;on how to use photos in class, check out these blog posts:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-one-image-can-develop-visual-literacy-and-critical-thinking">How One Image Can Develop Visual Literacy &amp; Critcial Thinking Skills</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-to-use-pictures-as-grammar-prompts">How to Use Pictures as Grammar Prompts</a></li>
</ul>

<p>How do you use photos in class? How would you use <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lessons/photo-prompts">Photos of the Week</a>? Share your ideas with other teachers in the comments!</p>


How to Use Photos of the Week

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<p>Sometimes I need to give myself a shake and remind myself that everyone has the power to make<strong> <em>tiny changes to Earth</em></strong>.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Those last four words are taken from one of my favorite songs by Frightened Rabbit. They play like a mantra in my head on days when the world seems overwhelmingly tough.&nbsp;</p>

<p>I might not be able to move mountains, regrow felled trees, or end world hunger, but I can&nbsp;do little things that make a difference. Many small actions can soon add up to much bigger collective improvements to the world we live in.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this post, I look at ways we can support our learners to make tiny changes that can have a huge impact&mdash;and give you some real-world good news stories.&nbsp;</p>

<h1><strong>Believe in yourself &amp; others</strong></h1>

<p>Roza Salih has long been one of the humans I admired the most. Her story is so inspiring that it was made into a <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3792220/" target="_blank">film</a>&nbsp;and a theater production, and she also features in the book&nbsp;<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/123331351-spectacular-scottish-women" target="_blank">Spectacular&nbsp;Scottish Women</a>.</p>

<p><img alt="Roza feature in Spectacular Scottish women book" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4922/content_Roza-salih.png" /></p>

<p>One of five &quot;Glasgow Girls,&quot; Roza is now the first councillor from a refugee background in Scotland. Her family came to Scotland&nbsp;from Kurdistan to claim asylum&nbsp;when she was a teenager.&nbsp;At the time, the Home Office was carrying out dawn raids on asylum seekers whose claims&nbsp;had been unsuccessful.</p>

<p>Roza and her school friends saw the injustices of their classmates being&nbsp;placed in detention centers or deported. With the help of their teacher&nbsp;and&nbsp;the community, they successfully petitioned the Scottish government to&nbsp;end the detention of minors in Scotland.&nbsp;</p>

<p>This story is a testament not only to the power of youth voice, but also to how teachers can support learners to be changemakers.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You can watch Roza sharing some of her tips for how to make a difference and believe in yourself here:&nbsp;<a href="https://youtu.be/8hyWY5qNw44?si=zRQSOLMpob4C8ipE" target="_blank">Standing Up for Refugee Rights</a>.</p>

<h1><strong>Work collectively</strong></h1>

<p>Ali Waters is a young changemaker who has managed to collect one million pieces of litter around the world. This is an epic achievement to complete by the age of 11. Unsurprisingly, Ali did not collect all these individual pieces herself. As &quot;Chief Picking Officer&quot;&nbsp;for Kids Against Plastic, Ali&nbsp;enlisted the help of other litter pickers globally.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Ali is now working towards a new two-million target! You can find out more about Ali&#39;s campaign and get involved&nbsp;here:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/one-in-a-million-plastic-litter-challenge">One in a Million: Plastic Litter Challenge</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/46-greening-the-elt-classroom-tips-teaching-ideas">Greening the ELT Classroom</a></li>
</ul>

<p>In the classroom, we can facilitate discussions on&nbsp;topics that matter to our students&nbsp;and have them think about how they could work together to make a difference. We can also encourage students&nbsp;to work with parents, local community groups, charities, politicians, and any other willing volunteers.</p>

<p>For instance, students could take part in <a href="https://unhabitat.org/world-cleanup-day-2025">World Cleanup Day</a>. This annual event takes place on&nbsp;September 20 and gives people&nbsp;around the globe the opportunity to participate in efforts to preserve and maintain a clean and healthy environment.</p>

<h1><strong>Inspire with changemakers</strong></h1>

<p>Nothing reminds us that we can make a change more than real stories of&nbsp;humans like ourselves who have made a difference. You could share the inspiring stories of&nbsp;Ali Waters, Roza Salih,&nbsp;or your own local heroes.</p>

<p>You could also use ready-made&nbsp;lessons on famous activists such as <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2822-viola-desmond">Viola Desmond</a>, <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2087-malala-yousafzai">Malala Yousafzai</a>, <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2566-martin-luther-king-jr">Martin Luther King Jr.</a>, and <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/3121-greta-thunberg">Greta Thunberg</a> from Ellii&#39;s <a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/famous-people?">Famous People</a><strong> </strong>section.</p>

<p><img alt="screenshot of the famous activists" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4923/content_Activists-Ellii.png" /></p>

<h1><strong>Include globally important&nbsp;topics</strong></h1>

<p>Ellii has hundreds&nbsp;of lessons on current affairs, politics, activism, and protests. These are all a brilliant starting point to get students thinking about their own impact on the world.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here are some sections you may like to explore:&nbsp;</p>

<h3><strong>1. </strong><a href="https://ellii.com/resources/photo-prompts"><strong>Photo Prompts</strong></a></h3>

<p>These lessons start with a photo and are designed to boost discussion and critical thinking. Ellii&#39;s&nbsp;<strong>Photos Of The Week</strong> series compiles a selection of the key&nbsp;headlines while <strong>Photos in the News</strong> features&nbsp;popular news stories.</p>

<p><img alt="photos in the news" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4924/content_Photos-in-the-news-Ellii.png" /></p>

<h3><strong>2. </strong><a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/that-s-news-to-me"><strong>That&#39;s News to Me</strong></a></h3>

<p>This series of lessons, featuring content from Ellii&#39;s media partner&nbsp;<strong>The Associated Press,</strong> covers social justice, politics, environment, health, and education. New weekly lessons are often available at two or three proficiency levels.&nbsp;</p>

<h3><strong>3. </strong><a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/historic-events"><strong>Historic Events</strong></a></h3>

<p>The lessons in this section allow classes to explore topics such as racial issues, wars, movements and milestones, politics and economics, and diasters and emergencies.&nbsp;</p>

<h1><strong>Celebrate wins</strong></h1>

<p>Even small wins deserve to be celebrated. Get creative as you reward or visualize progress. Certificates, sticker charts, or visual progress trackers can all make participants feel good, and motivate people to continue.&nbsp;</p>

<p>I loved this idea from Harry Waters:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/harry-waters_for-past-couple-of-weeks-ive-been-spending-activity-7363572501924270082-aVc2/" target="_blank">Applauding wins with applause</a>.</p>

<h1><strong>Do what you can with the tools you have</strong></h1>

<p>I am not a politician&nbsp;nor a billionaire, so my power and influence may seem&nbsp;small. It is easy to let your inner troll win and think of all the things you <strong>can&#39;t </strong>do. However, as educators, we all have a&nbsp;variety of skills that we&nbsp;<strong>can</strong> use to make a difference.</p>

<p>Here are some of mine to get you started:</p>

<p><strong>1. I can cycle.</strong> So I have completed <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/the-importance-of-growth-mindset-for-learning-teaching">various long-distance rides</a> to raise awareness and funds for good causes.</p>

<p><strong>2. I can write materials.</strong> So I created a resource pack of visual tools, a sketchnote, and an infographic to educate people about the <a href="https://www.emilybrysonelt.com/product-the-boiling-river" target="_blank">Boiling River</a> and raise money to conserve this special place.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>3. I can edit. </strong>So I compiled a couple of books for <a href="https://www.handsupproject.org/shop" target="_blank">The Hands Up Project</a>,&nbsp;which delivers English language learning through the context of stories, plays, and songs to kids in Gaza.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>4. I can share.</strong> Social media allows us to easily share campaigns and content that we want more people to know about&nbsp;or help us with. The post I am most sharing at the moment&nbsp;is about my friend <a href="https://www.justgiving.com/team/teamhuphope">Ashraf Kuhail</a>, author of &quot;Stories Alive&quot;&nbsp;and &quot;Stories Reborn&quot; for The Hands Up Project. He&nbsp;has been offered the chance to study a PhD in the UK and&nbsp;is raising money to bring his family to the UK from Gaza.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>5. I can sketchnote.</strong>&nbsp;So I collaborated with other sketchnoters to be part of the prettiest recipe book in the world:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.siepomaga.pl/sketchy-recipes-for-szymon" target="_blank">Sketchy Recipes for Szymon</a>. Sales of the book raise funds&nbsp;for a boy who desperately needs gene therapy. &nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>6. I can educate.</strong> So I can bring globally important topics into the classroom,&nbsp;facilitate debates, inspire learners, and support them&nbsp;to be changemakers.</p>

<p><strong>7. I can blog. </strong>So I can write posts like this to remind educators that we can make the world a better place, even if just a teeny tiny bit!</p>

<p>Everyone has a skill they can contribute, whether it is&nbsp;organizing a concert, selling cookies, attending a rally, making posters, or teaching a class to write poems or stories. We can ALL make (tiny) changes to Earth.&nbsp;What could&nbsp;you do?&nbsp;</p>

<p>How have you helped your learners to make the world a better place? Which ideas from this post would you like to use?&nbsp;</p>


Teachers & Learners as Changemakers: Making the World a Better Place

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<p>What&#39;s&nbsp;not to love about post-it notes?&nbsp;These delightfully colorful bits of paper come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. They can instantly make the classroom a more joyful, interactive, communicative, and multisensory place.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this blog, I share some of my favorite post-it note activities. They are perfect for adapting and using for your own needs and learning context, so prepare to get inspired and creative!</p>

<p>If you are teaching online, many digital whiteboards such as Canva, Zoom, Miro, and Mural have sticky notes, so you can still use these ideas in class.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Processes &amp; problem-solving</strong></h2>

<p>Sticky notes are incredibly effective at helping people think and solve problems. In&nbsp;Tom Wujec&#39;s TED Talk, <a href="https://www.ted.com/talks/tom_wujec_got_a_wicked_problem_first_tell_me_how_you_make_toast" target="_blank">&quot;Got a Wicked Problem? First Tell Me How You Make Toast,&quot;</a>&nbsp;Tom explains some crucial steps and tips for simplifying processes.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Using post-its forces people to simplify content and keep ideas focused. It also allows them to move ideas around, trash&nbsp;nonessential ideas, and add new ones. Collaboratively, this can lead to creative solutions for large-scale problems.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In class, have students work in groups. Give them some post-its and have them work together to describe a process.</p>

<p>For example: how to make toast, a cup of tea, or a sandwich, or something more complex, like&nbsp;the water cycle. Then have them write the steps of the process or describe them in a presntation format.&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="mage of post-its - making tea" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4873/content_Cup-Of-Tea-Post-It-Process.jpg" /></p>

<h2><strong>Brainstorming &amp; ideation</strong></h2>

<p>Sticky notes are amazing for getting ideas out of the brain and onto paper. They are small enough to keep ideas short and simple, and flexible enough to move around or bin if and when necessary.&nbsp;</p>

<p>One classroom idea is to have students write suggestions for things they want to learn on post-its (one idea per post-it). They can then add them to the whiteboard, group similar ideas, and discuss which ideas they like the most. This is a great way to make lessons as&nbsp;learner-centered as possible.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Forehead stickies game</strong></h2>

<p>This game is a classic. It&#39;s a great way to practice asking and answering closed questions and various vocabulary items.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Start by giving students a&nbsp;post-it note. Have them write a vocabulary item or a famous person on it. Then mix up the post-its. Invite one student to the front of the class and have them put one of the sticky notes on their forehead. Make sure they don&#39;t see what is on it. Then have them ask questions with yes/no answers. The aim is to guess what is on their post-it with as few clues as possible.&nbsp;</p>

<p>For example:</p>

<ul>
	<li>Do I need to go to university for this job? &gt; Yes</li>
	<li>Do I work in an office? &gt; No</li>
	<li>Do I go home every day after work? &gt; No</li>
	<li>Do I sleep at work? &gt; Yes</li>
	<li>Am I an astronaut? &gt; Yes</li>
</ul>

<p>Once the first student has guessed correctly, move on to the next learner so that all students have a turn.&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Emily with post-it with astronaut on her head" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4874/content_Emily-Bryson-Post-It.jpg" /></p>

<h2><strong>Container activities</strong></h2>

<p>In graphic facilitation, a &quot;container&quot; is a large-scale doodle or icon that creates a space to think or add ideas. These can be drawn large scale on a flipchart or whiteboard, or form part of a printable worksheet or <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/graphic-organizers-for-language-skills-development">graphic organizer</a>.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Container activities are brilliant as they allow students to think and add their ideas anonymously. They also allow learners to move around the classroom and discuss different topics.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this example, I wanted to help learners think about their study habits and preferences. I drew containers to represent different ways that learners might study. For example:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>videos</li>
	<li>podcasts</li>
	<li>online&nbsp;</li>
	<li>books&nbsp;</li>
	<li>radio</li>
	<li>apps</li>
</ul>

<p>Students then wrote examples of books they liked, apps they love, videos they recommend, etc., on their sticky notes. They then added them on the whiteboard and discussed the best ways to learn.&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Study skills containers" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4875/content_Study-skills-containers_with-post-its_Emily-Bryson-ELT.jpg" /></p>

<p>You can find more container activity ideas and other&nbsp;examples in these blog posts:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-to-simplify-complex-tasks-with-visual-prompts">How to Simplify Complex Tasks with Visual Prompts</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://www.emilybrysonelt.com/visual-templates-for-engaging-environmental-discussions" target="_blank">Visual Templates for Engaging Environmental Discussions</a></li>
</ul>

<h2><strong>Post-it note prompts&nbsp;</strong></h2>

<p>Students often need prompts to focus their ideas, discussions, and reflections. In <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/janecarvell_postitnotes-icebreaker-businessenglishtraining-activity-7360550618102464513-w0bs/?utm_source=social_share_send&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop_web&amp;rcm=ACoAAAi7ip0BCqZAlTHCFG8wTwULtYB8nWVFeUM" target="_blank">this LinkedIn post</a>, Jane Carvell uses post-its to prompt her learners to think about their key moments from recent experiences. Often&nbsp;when we ask or get asked &quot;What have you been up to?,&quot;&nbsp;our minds go blank, but this activity supports a deeper level of conversation.&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Jane's high point/surprise/challenge post" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4876/content_Jane-Carvell-post-its.jpg" /></p>

<h2><strong>Visual storytelling (aka &quot;stickytelling&quot;)</strong></h2>

<p>Another benefit of sticky notes is that they immediately make information sharing less intimidating. Give a learner a blank piece of 8x11&nbsp;paper and ask them to write or draw on it, and they may feel overwhelmed by the size they have to fill. Give someone a teeny-tiny post-it note and they&#39;ll instantly relax, knowing that whatever they add will be viewed as a draft attempt.&nbsp;</p>

<p>That&#39;s one of the reasons why post-its are so fun when it comes to storytelling. Here are a couple of&nbsp;ideas:&nbsp;</p>

<ol>
	<li>Give students a sticky note. Have them doodle something or write a word on it. Mix up the stickies. Pull a sticky out of the pile. Have one student start the story based on what is on that sticky note. Ask the next student to choose the next sticky and continue the story. Continue until the whole class has created a story.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Have students work in groups. Give them a set of sticky notes. Ask them to use the stickies to tell a story. Have them draw one icon or add a prompt word to each sticky. This could be as simple as describing their day so far, their daily routine, or their English language learning story so far. You could also have them retell some of the stories from Ellii&#39;s collection:</li>
</ol>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/stories-songs">Videos: Stories &amp; Songs</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/word-bank-readers">Word Bank Readers</a></li>
</ul>

<p>Here are some more storytelling themed posts:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/the-stories-we-tell">The Stories We Tell&nbsp;</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/simply-storytelling-inspiring-english-learners-with-story-prompts">Simply Storytelling: Engaging English Learners with Story Prompts</a></li>
</ul>

<h2><strong>Visual check-ins</strong></h2>

<p>Sticky notes are blissfully color-coded. To check in with learners to see how they are doing, give each one a pink, orange, and green sticky (or one per table). If students are feeling confident, have them display the green sticky. If they are feeling a little confused, have them display the orange sticky. If they really need your attention and support, have them display the pink sticky. &nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Post-it progression walls</strong></h2>

<p>Stickies also work well to show learner progress. At the beginning of a course, create a poster or wall display outlining the course content. For an added element of fun, you could make this into a journey map, stairs, stepping stones, or footprints. Have students create an avatar for themselves on a post-it&nbsp;and then move it at the end of each lesson or as they complete different&nbsp;the sections of coursework.&nbsp;Different shapes of post-its, such as butterflies, work really well for this, so feel free to go wild in your local stationery store.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Are you a fan of the humble post-it note? How have you used them in class? Have you tried any of these ideas? We&#39;d love to hear your own experiences and top tips! Share your ideas in the comments.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here are some other blog posts that you might be interested in:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/the-multi-modal-multi-sensory-multi-cultural-power-of-multi-literacy-learning">The Multimodal, Multisensory, Multicultural Power of Multiliteracy Learning</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/getting-to-know-your-learners-supercharging-learner-centred-teaching">Getting to Know Your Learners: Supercharging Learner-Centered Teaching</a></li>
</ul>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


Learning That Sticks: The Power of Post-its in the ELT Classroom

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<p>Our number one goal as language teachers is to help our students communicate in the real world. Inviting guest speakers into the classroom is a fantastic way to bring learning to life&nbsp;and provide authentic language practice opportunities.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this post, I&#39;ll explore the benefits of guest speakers, share some ideas for who to invite, and give you some top tips for scaffolding the sessions.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>The benefits of guest speakers</strong></h2>

<p>Throughout my years as a language teacher, I jumped at every opportunity to have a guest speaker in the classroom. I always found that students benefited from what the guests had to say and the opportunities that they offered.</p>

<p>Here&#39;s why:&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Guest speakers are inspiring</strong></h2>

<p>Everyone has a story to tell. Bringing someone new into the classroom to share their experiences can be powerful. There are limitless options for who to invite and what information and ideas they might share with learners.</p>

<ul>
	<li>A previous student may give learners the confidence to know that one day they too could reach a high level of English proficiency.</li>
	<li>A storyteller might give students the skills to share their experiences with the world.</li>
	<li>An employment agency representative might transform a learner&#39;s career path.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

<p>I could go on! But I&#39;m sure you&#39;ll agree that having the opportunity to connect in this way can open minds, share possibilities, and get heads away from dwelling on perfecting their use of the passive voice!</p>

<h2><strong>Guest speakers can offer opportunities&nbsp;</strong></h2>

<p>As teachers, we can equip learners with language and communication skills. Our role is to support learners to achieve their English language learning&nbsp;goals.&nbsp;</p>

<p>But behind every language learning goal, there is a wider goal&mdash;perhaps to get into university,&nbsp;secure a better job, or support their kids with schoolwork after resettling in an English-speaking country.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Local and global organizations are often looking for ways to connect with language learners. Universities and colleges may want to recruit for their classes. Community groups may be looking for volunteers to look after their grounds or get involved in cooking lessons. Other language classes at the other side of the world may be looking for pen pals.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Each of these is an opportunity to practice English, open new doors, and create social connections.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Guest speakers are REAL&nbsp;</strong></h2>

<p>Richard Cauldwell&#39;s &quot;botanic&quot;&nbsp;metaphor for language learning springs to mind here. He described the classroom as a &quot;geenhouse&quot;&mdash;a safe space for growth&nbsp;where conditions are <em>controlled&nbsp;</em>and every student is nurtured to flourish. In the &quot;garden,&quot; students experience more independence to practice their language in a safe environment through<em> freer</em> practice. Lastly, in the &quot;jungle,&quot; students are released into the real world where they experience the wild organic&nbsp;world of fast speech, slang, idiomatic language, and unfamiliar accents.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Inviting a guest speaker is a chance to let students venture&nbsp;into the jungle with a supportive guide at their side. The speaker may not be well practiced in modifying their language usage to be understood, so learners may need to work harder and push themselves to new levels in order to communicate successfully.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Who to invite</strong></h2>

<p>The guest speakers you choose to invite depend on your learning context, location, and learners&#39; needs. In some ways, this could&nbsp;be simpler if you teach in an English-speaking country. However, you could also invite people to deliver an input session online, show&nbsp;pre-recorded videos, or use&nbsp;emails/letters.</p>

<p>Here are some guest speakers that you may wish to consider:&nbsp;</p>

<h3><strong>Previous students</strong></h3>

<p>There is nothing more rewarding than re-connecting with a previous student and discovering that they have opened their own restaurant, written a book,&nbsp;started working in&nbsp;a retirement center, or gotten an&nbsp;opportunity to teach in a preschool.</p>

<p>For learners, hearing true stories from relatable individuals who have similar stories to them helps them believe in themselves. It&nbsp;can also support them to make plans and set their own goals.&nbsp;</p>

<h3><b>Representatives from educational organizations</b></h3>

<p>Universities and colleges often have teams specifically for engaging with potential students. If students are thinking of applying, consider inviting a representative in to talk them through the process.&nbsp;</p>

<p>This can be helpful in introducing learners to the application system, course requirements, and other aspects of further and higher education.&nbsp;</p>

<p>These speakers are particularly useful if you are teaching workplace English, such as&nbsp;career-specific pathway&nbsp;courses:</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/nursing-assistants/materials" target="_parent">English for Nursing Assistants</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/pharmacy-technicians/materials" target="_parent">English for Pharmacy Technicians</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/dental-assistants/materials" target="_parent">English for Dental Assistants</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-phlebotomists/materials" target="_parent">English for Phlebotomists</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-paraeducators/materials" target="_parent">English for Paraeducators</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-custodians/materials" target="_parent">English for Custodians</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-emergency-medical-technicians/materials" target="_parent">English for Emergency Medical Technicians</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/packs/english-for-medical-assistants/materials" target="_parent">English for Medical Assistants</a></li>
</ul>

<p>The tricky part may be finding an interest that the class shares. However, application systems can be similar across organizations and every guest is a language learning experience.&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
</ul>

<h3><strong>Community Organizers</strong></h3>

<p>Charities and nonprofit organizations often have funding to deliver projects or engage with the wider community. Look out for opportunities online and by joining email lists and connecting with local (and global) potential partners.&nbsp;</p>

<p>I always remember a particularly fun partnership with a local museum. Students got to attend a variety of workshops exploring diverse cultures and religions around the world&nbsp;and telling their own stories. They all loved getting out of the classroom and learned a lot from the immersive experience. One learner even went on to volunteer with the museum.&nbsp;</p>

<h3><strong>Potential employers</strong></h3>

<p>Large employers are always looking for staff&nbsp;and often have recruitment teams or apprenticeships. Reaching out to speakers who would like to find new employees can help learners find the right opportunities for them.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It can also be helpful to connect with recruitment agencies or charitable organizations that provide training.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here&#39;s some further reading on this topic:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-to-teach-workplace-english">How to Teach Workplace Engish</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/the-importance-of-workplace-english">Why You Should Teach Workplace English</a></li>
</ul>

<h3><strong>Creatives</strong></h3>

<p>It can be a lot of fun to invite someone to deliver a creative workshop or project with learners. This way students can practice their language whilse developing their life skills and critical thinking.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Consider inviting people to:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>perform a play, song, story (and have students perform&nbsp;their own)</li>
	<li>read/write poetry</li>
	<li>create a piece of artwork</li>
	<li>learn how to <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/sketchnoting-101-supercharged-professional-development-with-visual-notes">sketchnote</a>&nbsp;</li>
	<li>explore topics of global importance</li>
	<li>start a community garden</li>
	<li>write and publish a magazine</li>
</ul>

<h3><strong>Other teachers</strong></h3>

<p>It can sometimes be challenging to find the right guest speaker&nbsp;and convince them to join your class. Teaming up&nbsp;with other classes and teachers can be a good way to add some energy to classes and try something new. This can be particularly beneficial towards the end of term,&nbsp;when class numbers inevitably drop as&nbsp;students&nbsp;sneak away on vacation!&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Top tips for successful guest sessions</strong></h2>

<p>Guest speakers are fantastic for so many reasons. However, I learned the hard way that they can be challenging to understand.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The first thing English language teachers learn to do is modify our language use to be as intelligible as possible.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Guest speakers often don&#39;t know these simple tricks&mdash;or they know the theory but haven&#39;t mastered the practice!&nbsp;</p>

<p>Before a session, it is wise to remind speakers (even and especially previous learners)&nbsp;to slow down, choose simpler words, and avoid regional language. Here&#39;s a sketchnote I created that you could share with them.&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Communicating Across Languages Sketchnote" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4872/content_how-to-communicate-across-languages.png" /></p>

<p>You can share this sketchnote easily via this <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/brysonemily_sketchnoting-sketchnotes-visualrecording-activity-7315274798643707904-YITe?utm_source=social_share_send&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop_web&amp;rcm=ACoAAAi7ip0BCqZAlTHCFG8wTwULtYB8nWVFeUM" target="_blank">LinkedIn post</a>.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It is also a good idea to come up with strategies with the speaker in advance to engage students and ensure that they can follow along:</p>

<ul>
	<li>pause at regular intervals and ask concept check&nbsp;questions to review and make sure students have understood</li>
	<li>take (sketch)notes on the whiteboard as the speaker is presenting&nbsp;so students can have visual support</li>
	<li>scaffold the visit&nbsp;by pre-teaching vocabulary or previewing content (e.g., slides)&nbsp;</li>
	<li>review the session after the visit and invite questions or further explorations</li>
</ul>

<p>Have you invited any guests into your classroom? Who did you invite? How did it go? What are your top tips? We&#39;d love to know!&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here are some related blog posts we think you&#39;ll love:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/stem-tips-and-resources">Tips &amp; Resources to Make Content More Accessible in STEM Subjects</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/simply-storytelling-inspiring-english-learners-with-story-prompts">Inspiring English Learners with Story Prompts</a></li>
</ul>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


From Experts to Everyday Heroes: Bringing the Classroom to Life with Guest Speakers

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<p>If there is one thing you should never do as a language teacher (or in life), it is to ask &quot;Do you understand?&quot;</p>

<p>No one wants to admit in front of their peers that they don&#39;t understand! Humans live in fear of being the only person in a group who hasn&#39;t understood something. It makes the palms sweat, the&nbsp;heart beat faster, and the face turn a telltale shade of red.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Faced with this question, most people will nod, agree, and hope that the next activity will bring clarity&mdash;or at least be simpler.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this blog post, I will share much more effective ways to check that students have understood.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>1. Concept check questions</h2>

<p>Concept check questions zoom in on detailed aspects of the language. They allow teachers to check that students have understood a grammar point or the meaning of a vocabulary item. They are particularly helpful after presenting a new grammar target.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Asking the right concept check questions can take some practice. When you&#39;re starting out in teaching, you might want to prepare them before a lesson. Over time,&nbsp;you&#39;ll likely be able to create your own as and when the need arises.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here are some top tips for concept check questions:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><strong>Keep it simple</strong>.&nbsp;Questions with short&nbsp;answers are the best. Aim to use very simple <em>wh-</em>&nbsp;questions, or questions with <em>yes/no</em> or <em>either/or</em> answers.&nbsp;</li>
	<li><strong>Use language students already know.</strong>&nbsp;Try not to use more complex concepts or vocabulary than the one you are checking. So don&#39;t ask questions in past perfect progressive&nbsp;when you&#39;re checking understanding of the simple past.&nbsp;</li>
	<li><strong>Play around with different questions.</strong> It&#39;s okay to ask a few questions to check meaning.&nbsp;</li>
	<li><strong>Ask questions to focus on the meaning and form.</strong>&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

<p>Let&#39;s use the following sentence to teach the simple past:&nbsp;&quot;She went to the ice cream shop last night.&quot;&nbsp;Some concept check questions might be:</p>

<ul>
	<li><em>Where did she go? &gt; The ice cream shop.&nbsp;</em></li>
	<li><em>Is she at the ice cream shop now? &gt; No.</em></li>
	<li><em>When did she go? &gt; Last night/yesterday.&nbsp;</em></li>
	<li><em>Is &quot;last night&quot; about the past, present, or future? &gt; Past.</em></li>
	<li><em>Is &quot;went&quot;&nbsp;present or past tense? &gt; Past.</em></li>
	<li><em>To talk about &quot;now,&quot; do I use &quot;went&quot;&nbsp;or &quot;go&quot;? &gt; Go.</em></li>
</ul>

<p>You can find more about concept check questions in this British Council blog post:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/professional-development/teachers/managing-lesson/articles/checking-understanding">Checking Understanding</a></p>

<h2>2. Physical concept checks</h2>

<p>To check understanding and get students our of their chairs, you could bring an element of movement into the classroom. Designate each corner of the classroom as &quot;yes,&quot; &quot;no,&quot; or &quot;maybe.&quot; Have students stand up,&nbsp;ask them a concept check question, and ask&nbsp;them to move to the corner of the room that answers that question. You could also do this by having students stand in a line and step left for &quot;yes,&quot; step right for &quot;no,&quot; and stay in the same place for &quot;maybe.&quot;</p>

<h2>3. Mediation</h2>

<p>Mediation is another way to check understanding. While concept checking relies on the teacher asking the right questions to assess students have understood, mediation allows students to take a more active role in demonstrating it.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Mediation tasks prompt students to take notes, summarize, critically evaluate, compare information, and rephrase content. They allow learners to share their understanding with others by putting their learning into practice and perhaps explaining it to others.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You can find out more in this blog post:&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/blog/mediation">Mediation: The What, Why &amp; How Explained</a></p>

<h2>4. Visual checks</h2>

<p>Visuals are a great way to check understanding. You could have students create their own visual summaries, <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/sketchnoting-101-supercharged-professional-development-with-visual-notes">sketchnotes</a>, mind maps, infographics,&nbsp;timelines, or doodles to check meaning. For example, ask them to draw (or point to) a tomato or the verb &quot;run.&quot; You could also show them a couple of visuals and ask them which is correct or to adapt it to be correct.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You could also use visual metaphors to allow students to share how confident they feel about a topic. Leave colored circles with &quot;traffic lights&quot;&nbsp;on their desk and have them display &quot;red&quot;&nbsp;if they definitely need support, &quot;orange&quot;&nbsp;if they might need help, and &quot;green&quot; if they are happy with their understanding. This also works well with weather symbols (a rain cloud = I need help&nbsp;/&nbsp;a sun = I&#39;m all good)&nbsp;and emojis (sad face = help me&nbsp;/ happy face = I don&#39;t need help).&nbsp;</p>

<h2>5. Peer-to-peer learning</h2>

<p>The best way to learn is to teach something!&nbsp;I&#39;ve always found that students love to &quot;be the teacher.&quot; It is an instant confidence boost to be trusted to explain something to someone else&nbsp;and a great way to give students a chance to share their understanding with others. It also has the added bonus of allowing students to potentially explain concepts in their first language&nbsp;so they can express and understand&nbsp;it more easily.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You could&nbsp;pair a student who feels confident with a student who needs more support, and have them explore the linguistic point in more detail. Alternatively, have students check each others work or write quizzes or comprehension questions for each other.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

<h2>6. Assessment tools</h2>

<p>Ellii has over 70 assessment tools designed specifically to help teachers check students&#39; understanding. These range from placement tests to needs assessments and&nbsp;reflection tools.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here is an example from the Exit Slips&nbsp;resource. Students can complete these before leaving to help them evaluate and share what they learned in class that day.&nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2228-exit-slips"><img alt="Ellii's exit slips" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4861/content_exit-slip.png" /></a></p>

<p>You can access these resources here:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2228-exit-slips">Exit Slips</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/resources/assessment-tools">Assessment Tools</a></li>
</ul>

<p>Here are some other blog posts on checking reading comprehension that we think you&#39;ll love:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/pre-reading-activities-to-boost-comprehension">Pre-Reading Activities to Boost Comprehension</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/10-activities-to-increase-understanding-while-reading">10 Activities to Increase Understanding While Reading</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/9-post-reading-activities-to-help-students-reflect-on-a-text">9 Post-Reading Activities to Help Students Get the Most Out of a Text</a></li>
</ul>

<blockquote>
<p>Have you tried any of these techniques to check understanding? What are your top tips? We&#39;d love to hear your experiences and ideas. Let us know in the comments!</p>
</blockquote>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


The Perils of "Do You Understand?" & How to Check Comprehension Effectively

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<p>Yes! It&rsquo;s a &quot;thing&rsquo;.&quot; There<em> really is</em> an International Sketchnote Camp! And it<em> really is</em>&nbsp;as much fun as it sounds.</p>

<p>Every year, visual thinkers from all over the world get together to share ideas, collectively doodle, and inspire each other.</p>

<p>When I discovered it was in Birmingham, UK, I immediately booked a ticket and raised my hand to volunteer.</p>

<p>In many ways, it was a no-brainer. The venue was right across the road from the NATECLA venue, where I would be delivering the keynote the week before.</p>

<p><img alt="Emily visually recording the closing plenary at NATECLA" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4779/content_Emily-Bryson-at-NATECLA.jpg" /></p>

<p class="caption">Emily visually recording the closing plenary at NATECLA</p>

<h2><strong>ELT conference to International Sketchnote Camp!</strong></h2>

<p>It struck me that my professional career has led me to frequent English Language Teaching conferences such as <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/reflections-from-iatefl-2025">IATEFL</a>, <a href="https://www.natecla.org.uk/">NATECLA</a>, <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/perutesol-2024-reflections-and-take-aways">Peru TESOL</a>, and <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/anglo-congress-2024-reflections-take-aways">Anglo Uruguay</a>. Occasionally, I&rsquo;ll dip my toes in wider educational waters, but in general I stick in the cozy realms of communicative language classrooms.</p>

<p>I was intrigued to see what a sketchnoting conference would have in store for me. In this post, I&rsquo;ll share some of my ELT-brained reflections.</p>

<h2><strong>Lesson 1: Conference names have character</strong></h2>

<p>I absolutely love that ISC markets itself as a &quot;Camp,&quot;<em>&nbsp;</em>albeit one that doesn&rsquo;t involve waking up in a soggy tent. The name immediately exudes fun, relaxed, and creative vibes.</p>

<p>Sketchnoting&nbsp;is one of the most therapeutic, enjoyable, and impactful skills that I have developed.</p>

<p>Then there is&nbsp;&quot;International.&quot; ISC is now in its eighth year. The event passes the organizational baton to enthusiastic visual thinkers around the world, making it a truly global event. This year, the event was organized by Paddy Dhanda and Grant Wright from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thevisualjam.com/">The Visual Jam</a>, who also run supercool visual thinking meetups.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Previous camps have taken place in Birmingham (UK),&nbsp;San Antonio (USA), Leiden (The Netherlands), Szczecin&nbsp;(Poland), Brussels (Belgium), Paris (France), Lisbon (Portugal), and&nbsp;Hamburg (Germany).&nbsp;Next year, the event will be in Verona (Italy) in September. Watch out for #ISC26 for updates or follow the organizer,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/federica.tabone_visual.psy/">Federica Tabone</a>.&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Federica holding up 'Verona'" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4780/content_The_big_reveal_Mike_Rohde_with_Federica_Tabone.jpg" /></p>

<h2><strong>Lesson 2: Visual games are a great way to connect</strong></h2>

<p>ISC 2025 kicked off with as much fun as you&#39;d expect from 120 or so creatives. I teamed up with fellow volunteers&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/sketchnotesbygeorgina/">Georgina Dean</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ania_staskiewicz/">Ania Staskiewicz</a> to bring everyone together for visual games. While ELT conferences I&#39;ve attended start with speeches, it got me wondering why, as a playful profession, we aren&#39;t starting with games!&nbsp;</p>

<p>I got everyone warmed up with an activity I learned from&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/inksight.nl/">Maaike Borsboom</a>. We drew our own portraits while holding a piece of paper&nbsp;to our face. Then we added an interesting&nbsp;fact, scrunched up the paper, and launched it across the room. Campers were then asked to retrieve a paper ball and find its owner.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Ania then handed out her beautifully presented &quot;Human Bingo&quot;&nbsp;(aka &quot;Find Someone Who&quot;) cards. Instead of writing, our campers&nbsp;doodled&nbsp;an icon on finding a match&mdash;all while hunting for the creator of some rather interesting self-portraits.&nbsp;</p>

<p>For the finale, Georgina Dean gave out playground chalk and task cards representing the theme for this year:&nbsp;Human Connections. The campers then created a collaborative artwork by doodling themes such as &quot;new best friends&quot; and &quot;social bonds.&quot;</p>

<p>If you&#39;d like some templates for Bingo or Find Someone Who, check out Ellii&#39;s&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/resources/warm-ups-fillers">Warm-Ups &amp; Fillers</a>. There are some pretty great ideas to help people get to know each other&nbsp;or kick off a conference in style.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Lesson 3: FOMO lessens when you can share pretty notes</strong></h2>

<p>Conferences can lead to tough decisions. Often there are so many fantastic sessions happening at the same time that we are forced to choose.</p>

<p>ISC was no different. I was challenged to decide between Georgina Dean&rsquo;s Adobe Fresco session or Stuart Young exploring Emotional Intelligence in the Age of AI. I also had to choose between bringing my doodles to life with Alejo Porras or developing my drawings of emotions with Andy Gray.</p>

<p>I needn&rsquo;t have worried&nbsp;as I soon realized that multiple stunning crib notes would shortly appear on the camp Padlet and Whatsapp chat. These beautiful notes allowed me to catch up on what I missed and let me see a variety of sketchnoting styles.</p>

<h2><strong>Lesson 4: Every conference needs (GIANT) visual notes</strong></h2>

<p>As well as delegates&#39; own personal notes, the conference also had Andy Gray taking large-scale visual recordings of each session.&nbsp;Having a live illustator&nbsp;capture the event meant that all the key takeaways could be shared easily&nbsp;and referred to for years to come.</p>

<p>It was a joyful experience to see Andy at work. For me, it brought the event to life and added a touch of magic. I feel like every conference needs a graphic recorder, whether they are working big on large sheets of paper&nbsp;or creating something digitally! 😉</p>

<p><img alt="Andy's giant visual notes" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4781/content_Visual_Recording_by_Andy_Gray.jpg" /></p>

<h2><strong>Lesson 5: Embrace your own style</strong></h2>

<p>It would be impossible for everyone&rsquo;s notes to look the same. This camp very much celebrated crafting our own unique style and the freedom of not comparing ourselves to others.</p>

<p>As someone with no formal art training who found sketchnoting in recent years, this was a powerful message. When I first signed up, I had been worried about feeling out of place, but I immediately felt at ease.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It was freeing to see messy, scribbled, quick notes that were functional. The purpose of visual note-taking is not art, but communication.</p>

<h2><strong>Lesson 6: Bar camps give everyone a voice</strong></h2>

<p>On the final day of the camp, <a href="https://www.stuartyoung.uk/">Stuart Young</a> organized a &quot;bar camp&quot;&nbsp;session. This allowed all delegates the opportunity to explore topics of their choosing and share their skills organically.</p>

<p><img alt="Stuart's drawing of how to deliver Bar Camp" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4782/content_Stuart_Young_Bar_Camp.jpg" /></p>

<p>Stuart set up a space for attendees to add their ideas on Post-its. These could be things people would like to explore more or informal workshops they would like to deliver.</p>

<p>I enjoyed the flexibility of this space and made two suggestions&nbsp;based on my own expertise and interest: neurodiversity and language teaching.</p>

<p><img alt="image of post-its" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4783/content_Bar_Camp_Post-its.jpg" /></p>

<h2><b>Bar Camp 1: Neurodiversity in the visual thinking community</b></h2>

<p>This session was inspired by some discussions and sharing that had evolved in the ISC Whatsapp group. Many shared their personal experiences of neurodivergent thinking and how visuals have supported them to plan, organize, and focus.</p>

<p>We noticed&nbsp;that our community of visual thinkers has more neurodiverse minds than average. This cemented our view&nbsp;that&nbsp;visual thinking and sketchnoting are highly effective ways to support neurodiverse&nbsp;learners.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><b><b>Bar Camp 2: Language teaching for visual thinkers &nbsp;</b></b></h2>

<p>My second bar camp session was on visual thinking for language teachers. I wanted to bring together educators who were currently using their graphic facilitation skills and visual tools to support language acquisition. The session was extremely well attended and I was delighted to meet so many like-minded individuals.</p>

<p>This gave us&nbsp;the opportunity to share some of our favorite tools and techniques. Our plan is to stay connected and continue to share these ideas. <a href="https://padlet.com/emilybrysonelt/visual-thinking-for-language-teachers-btf5z4xu9q481ysr">Here&#39;s a Padlet we are working on</a>. Feel free to add your own ideas.&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Fernanda and Jane" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4784/content_Emily_Bryson_with_Fernanda_Freytes_and_Jane_Carvell.jpg" /></p>

<p class="caption">I got to meet two of my visual-thinking-in-language-teaching heroes: <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/fernanda-freytes-ramos/">Fernanda Freytes</a> and <a href="https://www.jcenglishtraining.com/">Jane Carvell</a>.&nbsp;</p>

<p>If you&rsquo;d like to find out more about sketchnoting and visual thinking in ELT, check out these blog posts:</p>

<p><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/sketchnoting-101-supercharged-professional-development-with-visual-notes">Sketchnoting 101: Supercharge Professional Development with Visual Notes</a></p>

<p style="margin-bottom:11px"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/graphic-facilitation-101">Graphic Facilitation 101: Teaching English through Visual Communication</a></p>

<div>
<div class="msocomtxt" id="_com_2" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('_com_2')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('_anchor_2','_com_2')"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-to-simplify-complex-tasks-with-visual-prompts">How to Simplify Complex Tasks with Visual Prompts</a></div>

<div class="msocomtxt" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('_com_2')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('_anchor_2','_com_2')">&nbsp;</div>

<div class="msocomtxt" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('_com_2')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('_anchor_2','_com_2')"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/graphic-organizers-for-language-skills-development">Using Graphic Orgnizers for Language Skills Development</a></div>

<div class="msocomtxt" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('_com_2')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('_anchor_2','_com_2')">&nbsp;</div>

<div class="msocomtxt" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('_com_2')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('_anchor_2','_com_2')"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-to-use-pictures-as-grammar-prompts">How to Use Pictures as Grammar Prompts</a></div>

<div class="msocomtxt" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('_com_2')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('_anchor_2','_com_2')">&nbsp;</div>

<div class="msocomtxt" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('_com_2')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('_anchor_2','_com_2')">If you&#39;d like to see more photos and ideas from the camp, check out <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DLzEtDHoiPt/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&amp;igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==">this post</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DL7fyY0IKrh/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&amp;igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==">others</a> on my Instagram.&nbsp;</div>

<div class="msocomtxt" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('_com_2')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('_anchor_2','_com_2')">&nbsp;</div>

<div class="msocomtxt" language="JavaScript" onmouseout="msoCommentHide('_com_2')" onmouseover="msoCommentShow('_anchor_2','_com_2')">Have you tried sketchnoting or using visual thinking strategies in the classroom? What would you love to see at ELT conferences? We&#39;d love to hear your ideas.&nbsp;</div>
</div>


What ELT Conferences Can Learn from Sketchnoting Camps

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<p>We&#39;ve all attended online workshops and webinars that have bored us to the point of checking our emails or cleaning our desk. Perhaps the content wasn&#39;t what we were expecting, or maybe the presenter was just reading word for word from a set of busy slides.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this blog post, I&#39;ll share some of my top tips for delivering awesome teacher training online. These are tips and tricks I use myself and that I&#39;ve learned through watching other experts in the field at work.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Make it count</strong></h2>

<p>In&nbsp;any training session, we want participants to feel like they have invested their time wisely. Time is precious, especially for teachers. No one wants to waste it on a poorly researched session delivered in mono<em>dr</em>one. We need to make each second count&nbsp;and aim to have delegates leave feeling like they&#39;ve really learned something transformative.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Know your topic</strong></h2>

<p>To make the session count, you need to be knowledgeable about your topic. Make sure your information is up to date by&nbsp;joining groups on social media, watching webinars, listening to podcasts, and chatting to colleagues as well as&nbsp;reading research, articles, and blogs.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It is often best to choose something that you have lived experience with or a subject that you have researched passionately. Your enthusiasm will shine through if you choose to speak about something that really excites you.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Value the audience</strong></h2>

<p>Every teacher brings their own unique skills and experience to the session. As teacher trainers, our role is to help teachers share their ideas, tips, and activities with each other.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Harry Waters, one of my teacher training idols, once made the point that teacher trainers give teachers ideas&nbsp;so&nbsp;they can&nbsp;add their own spin to them and make those ideas bigger and better.</p>

<p>Allowing the training room to be a sharing space lets teachers capitalize on the expertise of the trainer as well as their own and their peers&#39;.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Be interactive</strong></h2>

<p>Making sessions interactive gets the audience involved, makes them feel valued, and helps them learn through each other by sharing their expertise. It also avoids turning an online workshop into a lecture. One of the simplest ways to do this is through posing questions in the chat&nbsp;and reading out any interesting and helpful ideas.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Depending on the size of the audience&nbsp;and the learning platform, you&nbsp;could also make use of online tools such as:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>Polls:&nbsp;Ask questions and get people voting in Zoom or via Mentimeter or perhaps even with an&nbsp;<a href="https://app.ellii.com/gather/polls">Ellii Poll</a>.</li>
	<li>Reactions: Ask participants to share their thoughts using emojis in the chat&nbsp;or the reactions tool.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Annotation: Have participants interact on screen using&nbsp;text, drawings, or icons by&nbsp;using annotation tools.</li>
	<li>Breakout Rooms: Give attendees time in pairs or groups to share their ideas, solve a problem, or create an activity.</li>
	<li>Shared Documents:&nbsp;Use Google Docs, MS Word Online, or Padlet&nbsp;to have participants collaborate.</li>
	<li>Whiteboards: Complete tables, add information in visual templates, or create mind maps using interactive whiteboards such as <a href="http://Canva.com">Canva</a>, <a href="http://www.miro.com">Miro</a>, or <a href="http://mural.co">Mural</a>.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

<h2><strong>Use minimal text&nbsp;</strong></h2>

<p>Too many words on a slide can be distracting. Participants will naturally aim to read the text, which can be quite confusing if they are also trying to listen&nbsp;to what the presenter is saying at the same time. This can often lead to neither textual nor oral input being comprehensible.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Instead, use text sparingly to remind yourself&nbsp;of points you&#39;d like to make. A few clear bullet points will support the participants to follow your talk. Alternatively, use icons, images, or doodles as visual cues.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Use engaging visuals</strong></h2>

<p>Visuals are an impactful way of generating discussions, simplifying complex information, and helping your audience think more deeply about a topic. Some of the best workshops and webinars I have attended used only images to express information, add a touch of humor, and generate questions to get the audience involved.&nbsp;</p>

<p>For example, say you are delivering a session on student well-being. Instead of presenting a comprehensive&nbsp;list of challenges that may affect a learners&#39; mental health or confidence, you could display this image of &quot;Storm Man.&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Ellii Photo prompt, storm man" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4744/content_Ellii-Photo-prompt-storm-man-image.jpg" /></p>

<p>Then you could have people write their own ideas in the chat or by using annotation tools. This way the activity is more interactive and you can actively involve your audience in the session.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Encourage movement</strong></h2>

<p>As in face-to-face training, sitting still for too long can make us stiffen up, feel sluggish, and&nbsp;even induce aches and pains. Online English language classes are more fun with a bit of movement and so too are training sessions.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You could try these techniques to re-energize:</p>

<ul>
	<li>Doodling: Describe or demonstrate how to draw something and have participants draw their own image. For example, have them draw their own &quot;Storm Man.&quot;&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Movement Voting: Host an interactive poll where participants stand up for yes, shake their head animatedly for no, lift&nbsp;their arms in the air for maybe, and bend to the right or left for not sure.</li>
	<li>Pass the Pen: Hold a pen and introduce yourself or share a teaching tip, and then pass the pen remotely to another participant. They have to pick up the pen and add their own input to the task, and then pass the pen to the another person of their choice.</li>
	<li>Chair Yoga: Do some gentle stretches from your chair.</li>
	<li>Movement while Brainstorming: If you&#39;d like to give participants five minutes to think about something, have them walk around the room as they do it and then come back to share their ideas.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

<h2><b>Get the lighting (and tech) right</b></h2>

<p>Make sure your face isn&#39;t in a shadow. Aim to have the light source in front of you. Natural light is best so sitting facing a window can often be the best option. However, a strong lamp or ring light can be just as effective.</p>

<p>It is a good idea to arrive a little early in case you need to play around with curtains, blinds, or lamps. This is also a good opportunity to check that there is no clutter (or anything embarrassing) in the background and that all your tech is working correctly. Check your mic, camera, and screensharing capabilities as a minimum.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Be yourself!</strong></h2>

<p>I&#39;m sure everyone has their own online teacher training idols. These are people whose sessions you attend with awe and&nbsp;aspire to be just like them. The reality is that everyone is different and will present in different ways. Some speakers are natural comedians, others are fantastic at telling stories, and some even use singing, drawing, or drama to bring their sessions to life. Share your own unique self and shine as brightly as&nbsp;only you can!</p>

<blockquote>
<p>What are your top tips for delivering teacher development sessions online? Who are your teaching training idols? We&#39;d love to know what makes an awesome webinar to you.&nbsp;</p>
</blockquote>

<h2>Check out these Ellii webinars</h2>

<p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1ZeOTiexGtM?si=-vPzmRRGLmS_09cU" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZeOTiexGtM&amp;list=PLP0N5nuiA3aOnP9kH4IYJ4INeniYQpYGa&amp;index=24" target="_blank">How to Use Ellii&#39;s Lesson Planner</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1BucslnAsw&amp;list=PLP0N5nuiA3aOnP9kH4IYJ4INeniYQpYGa&amp;index=23" target="_blank">Boosting Student Talk Time</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMlFNOxnhwg&amp;list=PLP0N5nuiA3aOnP9kH4IYJ4INeniYQpYGa&amp;index=22" target="_blank">How to Use Ellii&#39;s Career Pathway Content: Allied Healthcare Webinar 2024&nbsp;</a></li>
</ul>


How to Deliver Online Teacher Training That Rocks!

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Learn how to make the most of your Ellii subscription with tips from our publishing team.

Teaching with Ellii

<p>Once upon a time, literacy skills referred to reading and writing. However,&nbsp;we now access and process information in multiple ways, not simply through interpreting texts. Therefore, we need to support learners to develop multiple literacy skills to help them navigate the world successfully.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this post, I&#39;ll explore the more complex and intertwined nature of the various literacies learners need, and how to integrate them into the English language classroom.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Multiliteracies</strong></h2>

<p>There are various interpretations and classifications of multiple literacies. These depend on the organization and their&nbsp;goals. These&nbsp;often include literacies such as: &nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>Textual Literacy (also referred to as Reading and Writing Literacy)</li>
	<li>Critical Literacy (the abilility to think critically and&nbsp;question sources of&nbsp;information)</li>
	<li>Information Literacy (aka Media Literacy)</li>
	<li>Visual Literacy&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Digital Literacy, which could also include Social Media and AI Literacy</li>
	<li>Financial Literacy</li>
	<li>Mathematical or Numerical Literacy (aka Numeracy)</li>
	<li>Global Literacy (aka Intercultural, Cultural, or Social Literacy)</li>
</ul>

<p>In some ways, there is crossover between life skills development and multiliteracy development. For example, mathematical literacy could also be referred to as math or numeracy skills. Likewise, visual literacy requires other skills such as critical thinking, interpretation, and creativity.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You can read more about life skills development here:&nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/top-tips-for-incorporating-life-skills-into-your-classroom">6 Tips for Incorporating Life Skills into Your English Language Lessons</a></p>

<h2><strong>Multimodal&nbsp;</strong></h2>

<p>The information we interact with today is multimodal. Therefore, in order to prepare learners for the real world, we need to equip them with a variety of literacy skills to interpret&nbsp;and use it successfully and responsibly.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here are some examples of the different modes of information sources:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>Photos</li>
	<li>Videos</li>
	<li>Infographics</li>
	<li>Diagrams &amp; Graphs</li>
	<li>Illustrations &amp; Artwork</li>
</ul>

<p>Students can be guided to develop their skills in understanding,&nbsp;interpreting, and creating the content within these information sources. In order to do so, they will need to use multiple literacies.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Luckily for teachers, many resources are already full of multimodal texts. For example, let&#39;s use some of Ellii&#39;s money-themed lessons.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Word Bank Readers: At the Bank&nbsp;</strong></h2>

<p>At first, learners watch the video. They use their textual literacy skills to read the subtitles and write down notes. As they watch, they use their visual literacy skills to follow the story of Sheila going to the bank. After watching, they might discuss what problems Sheila had and how she solved them, utilizing their financial, digital, critical, and social&nbsp;literacy skills. They could personalize this further by comparing alternative ways to do this, such as using their digital skills to bank online. To incorporate global skills, they could investigate currencies or banking differences around the world.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You can access this lesson here:<strong>&nbsp;</strong><a href="https://ellii.com/video/a-trip-to-the-bank">https://ellii.com/video/a-trip-to-the-bank</a></p>

<p>As extension tasks, learners could use their digital literacy&nbsp;to work through the tasks in their Ellii Classroom.&nbsp;</p>

<p>They could also:</p>

<ul>
	<li>activate their global and visual literacy by discussing this intriguing photo prompt: <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/3956-money-money-money">Money, Money, Money</a></li>
</ul>

<p><img alt="Ellii Money Money Money Photo Prompt" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4690/content_photo-prompt-money-money-money-Ellii.jpg" /></p>

<ul>
	<li>use textual and visual&nbsp;literacy to watch and take notes of this self-study video:&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/video/at-the-bank">At the Bank</a></li>
	<li>Explore their financial literacy more with this lesson on <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/1210-retirement-savings">Retirement Savings</a></li>
	<li>Have them use their digital and media literacy skills to create a vlog, podcast, or blog on the topic</li>
</ul>

<h2><strong>Multisensory</strong></h2>

<p>The multimodal nature of information consumption is a multisensory process. Learners will interact with the content using a range of senses. This can help them to learn through doing as well as keeping them motivated by adding variety and movement&nbsp;to classroom activities. For example:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>listening to a story</li>
	<li>reading a text</li>
	<li>talking to a partner about the topic</li>
	<li>writing notes or an article</li>
	<li>performing a role-play</li>
	<li>smelling or tasting food from a recipe they followed</li>
	<li>creating a poster or information board</li>
</ul>

<h2><strong>Multicultural</strong></h2>

<p>English language classes are often multicultural. Our learners bring a wonderfully unique blend of beliefs, experiences, cultures, and backgrounds to class. Helping them to develop their social, emotional, and global literacies aid intercultural understanding and can facilitate some interesting real-world discussions.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here are some Ellii materials&nbsp;you might want to use to incorporate global literacies:&nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/easy-news-stories">Easy News Stories:</a> These simple news articles cover a range of real-world topics. They are perfect for having students consider unfamiliar cultures, learn about global challenges. and consider ways that they can make the world a better place.&nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="https://ellii.com/media/videos/current-events">Associated Press Videos:</a> These short video clips cover diverse topics such as <a href="https://ellii.com/video/k-pop-exhibition-in-london-museum">K-pop culture</a>, <a href="https://ellii.com/video/stranger-things-stars-open-up-about-mental-health">mental health</a>, and <a href="https://ellii.com/video/india-s-hindus-celebrate-colorful-holi-festival">religious festivals</a>. Students will enjoy using their visual and media literacy skills to explore authentic topics of social, emotional, and global importance.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You may also be interested in this blog post on <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/social-emotional-learning">social-emotional learning</a>, which shares some ways to develop learners&#39; social and emotional literacies.&nbsp;</p>

<p>We also highly recommend watching this video of Nik Peachey&#39;s session on Multimodality in the English Language Teaching and Learning&nbsp;at the APPI Conference in Portugal.</p>

<p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ky_tP7FM4fw?si=tqKDSL8hJ6kqvKjw" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></p>

<blockquote>
<p>What experience do you have of incorporating multiliteracies into the classroom? Which ones do you feel are particularly important to your learners? We&#39;d love to know your thoughts, ideas, and tips in the comments.&nbsp;</p>
</blockquote>


The Multimodal, Multisensory, Multicultural Power of Multiliteracy Learning

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<p>Putting&nbsp;learners at the center of their learning experience is absolutely critical for successful teaching. It helps us&nbsp;plan lessons on topics that interest them, which, in turn, helps them to stay motivated and achieve their goals. It also shows our learners that we care about them, have their best interests at heart, and have considered their needs.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this blog post, I&#39;ll explore some ways to get to know your learners better, whether on the first day of class or throughout the term.&nbsp;</p>

<h1><strong>Learn their names</strong></h1>

<p>This sounds super basic, but it is one of the most important ways to show that you care about every individual learner. <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/1211-your-name" target="_blank">Your name</a> is a core part of who you are, so hearing it said correctly makes you feel valued. On the flip side, when someone gets it wrong, it can be annoying or even make us feel unimportant. Therefore, we have to take time to learn every student&#39;s name.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As language teachers who teach learners from around the world, we may often have to learn new and unfamiliar names. It can be helpful to use name badges, write students&#39; names&nbsp;on the board, or have a seating plan to refer to until you have committed their names&nbsp;to memory.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It is especially important to get the spelling and pronunciation correct. Don&#39;t be afraid to ask for clarification on how to say someone&#39;s name. They&#39;ll appreciate that you are trying to get it right.&nbsp;</p>

<p>To help you remember names, you can use Ellii&#39;s printable <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2209-class-list%C2%A0">Class List</a>. This handy chart&nbsp;also&nbsp;has a column for &quot;preferred name&quot; in case students prefer to use a nickname or shortened version of their name. You may also want to try this popular Ellii Poll about <a href="https://app.ellii.com/gather/polls/names" target="_blank">Names</a>.</p>

<p><img alt="Ellii Class List" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4681/content_Class-list-Ellii.png" /></p>

<h1><strong>Use introduction activities</strong></h1>

<p>The first days of class are critical for making a good impression and getting to know your learners. They are an opportunity to find out your learners&#39; language level, skills, interests, and goals. They are also a great excuse to have a bit of fun, <a href="https://ellii.com/collections/academic-subjects/communication-skills/getting-acquainted" target="_blank">help learners get to know each other</a>, and instantly start using their language skills to communicate.&nbsp;</p>

<p>One activity&nbsp;I love (which also&nbsp;helps the class learn each other&#39;s names)&nbsp;is a simple ball game. Have students stand in a circle. One student calls out a classmate&#39;s name, asks a question of their choice&nbsp;(e.g., What is your favorite sport?), and then throws the ball to the person whose name they called. That person then answers the question, calls another classmate&#39;s name, asks another question, and throws the ball. This continues until everyone has had a turn and has learned&nbsp;a few facts about each other.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You can find&nbsp;ideas for activities to do on the first day of class here:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/4-fun-ways-to-warm-up-a-new-class">4 Fun Activities to Warm Up a New Class</a></li>
</ul>

<h1><strong>Build relationships</strong></h1>

<p>Getting to know your learners isn&#39;t just an&nbsp;activity for the first week of class. Developing strong rapport with them happens over time. Taking&nbsp;note of topics that interest them and then using these to choose future lessons will be appreciated by learners.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The language classroom has many opportunities for learners to share their interests. These will undoubtedly come up in conversation organically. However, you can also build in time at the beginning or end of lessons for relaxed &quot;small-talk&quot; conversations.&nbsp;</p>

<p>For example, you could set aside the first five minutes of a lesson for learners to share:</p>

<ul>
	<li>something exciting&nbsp;they did recently</li>
	<li>something they are planning to do&nbsp;</li>
	<li>something interesting they read online</li>
</ul>

<p>Relaxed discussions such as these are a great way for&nbsp;students to practice their conversation skills and for you to get to know them better.&nbsp;</p>

<p>You could also try these materials&nbsp;from&nbsp;Ellii:</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/1749-making-small-talk">Making Small Talk</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/mini-debates">Mini-Debates</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/resources/warm-ups-fillers">Warm-Ups &amp; Fillers</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/3351-conversation-questions-group-digital" target="_blank">Conversation Questions</a></li>
</ul>

<p><img alt="Getting Acquainted screenshot" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4677/content_getting-aquainted-Ellii.png" /></p>

<h1><strong>Create individual learning plans&nbsp;</strong></h1>

<p>Individual learning plans (ILPs) are a great way to get to know learners. They allow students time to reflect on their current skills, prior learning,&nbsp;language level, goals, and ways to achieve those goals.</p>

<p>You can use ILPs in class to have students think about their learning. Although ILPs are&nbsp;personal by nature, it can also be impactful for learners to share their ideas, goals, helpful resources, and learning strategies with each other. Use your discretion to decide if&nbsp;this could work with your particular learners.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Check out one of <a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2127-my-language-goals">Ellii&#39;s ILPs</a>:</p>

<p><img alt="My Language Goals screenshot" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4680/content_My-language-goals-2-Ellii.png" /></p>

<p><img alt="My Information Continued screenshot" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4679/content_My-language-goals-1-Ellii.png" /></p>

<h1><strong>Use visual storytelling techniques</strong></h1>

<p>Using visual metaphors can be a fun way to help learners&nbsp;think about their learning. You can draw these, use Ellii&#39;s flashcards, or look for copyright-free icons online.</p>

<p>Here are some ideas for visual metaphors:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li>use a road map, pathway, or river to have students think about the distance they have traveled and where they would like to be in their language-learning journey</li>
	<li>use a target with arrows to have students think about their goals and how to achieve them&nbsp;</li>
	<li>use a seed, a sapling, a small tree, and a fully grown tree to signify their current level of skills&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

<p>You can find more ideas on how to implement these suggestions using Ellii&#39;s flashcards&nbsp;in this blog post:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/twelve-ellii-flashcards-for-reflection">12 Ellii Flashcards for Planning &amp; Reflection</a></li>
</ul>

<blockquote>
<p>These are just a few ways to get to know your learners. What has worked for you? Share your ideas in the comments.&nbsp;</p>
</blockquote>


Getting to Know Your Learners: Supercharging Learner-Centered Teaching

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<p>There are many reasons why teaching teens may be considered&nbsp;a daunting task. Teenage learners face many social, academic, family, hormonal, and life pressures that can impact&nbsp;their classroom behaviors. However, teaching this age group is also a lot of fun, as they can be super energetic, entertaining, and inquisitive.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In this blog post, I&#39;ll share some of the tips I&#39;ve learned about teaching teenagers over the years.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>1. Get to know your learner</h2>

<p>I guess this is my number one tip for any age group really. Knowing your learner helps you put them at the center of their learning experience and tailor your lessons to their needs and interests.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In the very first class, have learners introduce each other and share their learning goals as well as hobbies, likes, and dislikes. Finding out what makes them tick can help you choose topics that will engage and motivate them. If many of your learners love computer games, consider delivering the next lesson on that topic.&nbsp;</p>

<p>These Ellii tools&nbsp;can help you get to know your learners better:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2123-autobiography-beg">Autobiography - Beginner</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2124-autobiography-int">Autobiography - Intermediate</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2125-autobiography-adv">Autobiography - Advanced</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://app.ellii.com/lesson/2127-my-language-goals">My Language Goals</a></li>
</ul>

<h2>2.&nbsp;Create a welcoming atmosphere</h2>

<p>All learners want to feel included, welcomed, and important. This may be particularly crucial for&nbsp;teenage learners, who might lack confidence, feel socially anxious, or want their English class to be an escape from reality more than just a learning opportunity.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Welcome learners into the classroom with a smile, learn their names, and get to know each one as individuals. Building rapport in this way can help strengthen relationships and build mutual respect for each other.</p>

<p>You can also facilitate&nbsp;discussions where students can share their opinions, thoughts, and ideas in a safe space. Encourage learners to listen and respond to each other with respect for differing viewpoints and cultivate an inclusive atmosphere.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>3. Foster social-emotional awareness</h2>

<p>The teenage years can be an emotional roller coaster. Try to include class activities that help learners to become aware of their feelings and manage their responses&nbsp;in practical ways.</p>

<p>For instance, at the beginning of class, have learners select an emoji that represents how they are feeling. They can choose one on their phone or computer, or draw one in their notebook. Discuss the reasons for their emotions&nbsp;and things they could do to turn negative emotions into more positive ones.&nbsp;</p>

<blockquote>
<p>🥳<em> I am excited because it is my birthday today.&nbsp;</em></p>

<p>😕<em> I am worried about an exam. I will feel better once I study more&nbsp;and relax in front of the TV later.&nbsp;</em></p>

<p>😡<em> I am annoyed because my football team lost, but I think I will feel better when I see my friends&nbsp;after class.&nbsp;</em></p>
</blockquote>

<p>This blog post has more information and ideas about social-emotional learning:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/social-emotional-learning">A Quick Guide to Social-Emotional Learning</a></li>
</ul>

<h2>4. Up the pace</h2>

<p>Teenagers get bored quickly. A fast-paced lesson with varied activities will keep them interested.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here are some ideas to try:&nbsp;</p>

<h3>Ellii Polls</h3>

<p>These interactive group activities allow learners to connect via their device using a QR code. There is an ever-growing selection&nbsp;of polls, so there is bound to be one related to the content you&#39;re planning to cover.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Learners discuss questions and then share their opinions by voting anonymously.</p>

<p><img alt="Ellii Poll &quot;What is your superpower?&quot;" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4634/content_Ellii-Poll.png" /></p>

<p>They can then pause and discuss the answers in more detail:&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Ellii Poll Question" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4633/content_Ellii-Poll-Question.png" /></p>

<h3>Ellii Flashcards&nbsp;</h3>

<p>There are over 6,000 Ellii flashcards, and the activity opportunities are infinite. They are perfect for teaching vocabulary and&nbsp;practicing storytelling, and they serve as excellent visual thinking tools.</p>

<p>These blog posts are full of&nbsp;suggestions for teaching with flashcards:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/twelve-ellii-flashcards-for-reflection">12 Ellii Flashcards Perfect for Planning &amp; Reflection</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/3-tips-for-using-flashcards-no-prep-required">3 Tips for Using Flashcards&mdash;No Prep Required</a></li>
</ul>

<h3>(Silent) Videos</h3>

<p>Ellii&#39;s Media Gallery&nbsp;currently has over 600 videos to choose from. These videos are perfect as the starting point of a lesson or as a complement to the topic you are teaching. They could also be used as warmers or as a way to switch the pacing and engagement in a lesson.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Here are some ideas for your class:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-to-use-videos-in-class">4 Ways to Use Videos Effectively in Class</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/4-ways-to-use-silent-video-clips">4 Creative Ways to Use Silent Video Clips in Class</a></li>
</ul>

<h2>5. Get creative</h2>

<p>Teenagers love the opportunity to express themselves in creative ways. Give them a chance to draw, do origami, create posters, cut up magazines, and make things from craft materials. This is the perfect opportunity to develop critical thinking and team-building&nbsp;skills too.&nbsp;</p>

<p>However, creativity in the classroom isn&#39;t just about playing with felt-tip pens and glue. You can also get creative with projects, inquiry-based learning, and activity choices.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Check out these blog posts for more ideas:&nbsp;</p>

<ul>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/not-your-ordinary-english-9-creative-ideas-for-teaching-language-learners">Not Your Ordinary English! 8 Creative Ideas for Teaching Language Learners</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/inquiry-based-learning-a-quick-guide-of-elt-professionals">Inquiry-Based Learning: A Quick Guide for ELT Professionals</a></li>
</ul>

<h2>6. Introduce competition</h2>

<p>I haven&#39;t taught a single teenage class that hasn&#39;t got excited at the idea of a bit of competition. This could come in the form of a quick game&nbsp;where a student is nominated to keep score. It could also be a longer-term group effort&nbsp;where scores are totaled up monthly. For example, you could give prizes to the group who completed the most tasks on&nbsp;<strong><a href="https://ellii.com/teachers/management/classes">Ellii Classroom</a></strong>.</p>

<p>The prizes themselves don&#39;t have to be costly or sought-after. They could be as simple as a check mark&nbsp;on a poster on the wall or coupons to save up to get&nbsp;sweets, stationery, or stickers.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Likewise, the games don&#39;t need to be intricate or time-consuming, either. Here are some I have found to be low-prep and highly&nbsp;effective:&nbsp;</p>

<h3>Spelling Race</h3>

<p>Put students in groups. One representative from each group stands at the back of the classroom. The teacher (or a nominated student) shouts out a word. Students then race to write the word on the board with the correct spelling. For an added challenge&nbsp;or to balance a clear difference in abilities, you could have learners draw the word or write a sentence using the word too.&nbsp;</p>

<h3>Dice&nbsp;Game&nbsp;</h3>

<p>Put students in groups. Each group takes turns to nominate a representative to answer a question, spell a word, create a sentence (using the target language), etc. Once their chosen group member completes their task, they can roll the dice. The group gets the number of points on the dice roll.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Alternatively, you could assign each number on the dice with a different outcome.&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="Ellii dice flashcard image" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/4635/content_Ellii-Dice.png" /></p>

<p>For example:&nbsp;</p>

<blockquote>
<p>1 = 10 points</p>

<p>2 = multiply current score by 10</p>

<p>3 = lose all your points</p>

<p>4 = miss a turn&nbsp;</p>

<p>5 = -10 points</p>

<p>6 = pass the dice to a team of their choice</p>
</blockquote>

<h2>7. Use technology (or don&#39;t)</h2>

<p>The question of whether to use technology in class is becoming more polarized. Some believe the classroom is a space for learners to develop the digital skills they need for further study and employment. Others feel the classroom should be a device-free zone and&nbsp;an opportunity to get away from screens and deepen&nbsp;social connections.&nbsp;</p>

<p>If you want to enhance students&#39;&nbsp;digital skills, consider activities such as <strong><a href="https://app.ellii.com/gather/ellii-polls">Ellii Polls</a></strong>, set tasks via the <strong><a href="https://ellii.com/teachers/management/classes">Ellii Classroom</a></strong> portal, or have them use digital tools to create blog posts, websites, or presentations.&nbsp;</p>

<p>If you would prefer the classroom to be device-free, consider printing <strong><a href="https://ellii.com/lessons">Ellii&#39;s PDF lessons</a>&nbsp;</strong>for use in class and doing activities such as <strong><a href="https://ellii.com/lessons/role-plays">role-plays</a></strong>,<strong>&nbsp;<a href="https://ellii.com/blog/simply-storytelling-inspiring-english-learners-with-story-prompts">storytelling</a></strong>, and&nbsp;<strong><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/improv-in-the-classroom">improv</a></strong>.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>8. Give them&nbsp;independence</h2>

<p>While most adults want to feel younger than they are, many teenagers want to feel older. In some ways, adolescents are in&nbsp;limbo between childhood and adulthood. Teens can&#39;t wait to be independent, make their own decisions, and choose their own path.&nbsp;</p>

<p>An easy way to do this is to give them options&nbsp;in class. For example, let them choose whether they want to&nbsp;deliver a presentation, write a blog post, or record a podcast. Or have them decide whether to work alone, in pairs, or in groups. You could even let them choose the topic of the next lesson or which game to play next.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>9. Let them be the teacher</h2>

<p>This is another great way to give them independence. It is also fun and a huge boost to their confidence. Plus, teaching knowledge or skills to others is one of the best ways to learn.&nbsp;</p>

<p>My learners have always responded well to taking the whiteboard marker from my hand. It is often followed by a giggle, a smile, and then lots of examples and ideas I would never have thought of myself being added to the board. Students can use their own language to explain language points, tell a story, spell words, correct errors, or draw a diagram.</p>

<p>To make this more collaborative and supportive, have students work together to help each other. And, of course, you can always take the marker back whenever they need your input.&nbsp;</p>

<h2>10. Relax &amp; enjoy!</h2>

<p>English class is an opportunity to develop&nbsp;communication skills. The main objectives&nbsp;of any lesson is to learn the language, practice, and gain confidence. Teens appreciate it when the teacher relaxes and goes with the flow&mdash;and perhaps even throws the lesson plan out the window when the discussion is juicy!</p>

<p>If the lesson has gone off on a tangent and students are animatedly using their English skills to discuss Pok&eacute;mon cards (or whatever), roll with it. You&#39;ve found what makes the students tick! You are winning and they are using their language. If there is no imminent examination on the horizon, use the opportunity to teach the language&nbsp;that emerges from this conversation.&nbsp;</p>

<blockquote>
<p><em>These are my top tips for teaching teenagers. Which ones do you relate to most? What are your top tips or activities?</em>&nbsp;</p>
</blockquote>


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Emily Bryson