Stay up-to-date with ELT trends and ideas with articles from experts and teachers in the field.

Articles

<p>If you&rsquo;re thinking about making the transition into teaching English online, you might be feeling overwhelmed. I remember how excited I was when I decided to take the leap a few years ago. I loved the idea of having total freedom over what I wanted to teach and the material I would choose. What also intrigued me was the potential to travel and explore different parts of the world while earning an income and being my own boss at the same&nbsp;time.</p>

<p>But making the transition was not simple. There are hundreds of online English tutoring platforms to choose from. How do you decide where to&nbsp;start?</p>

<p>Teaching online gets even more complicated if you&rsquo;re not specialized in teaching kids. The majority of online companies and platforms, such as&nbsp;<a href="https://t.vipkid.com.cn/?refereeId=7679478" rel="noreferrer nofollow noopener" target="_blank">VIPKid</a> and <a href="https://t.mmears.com/v2/" rel="noreferrer nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Magic Ears</a>, are geared towards tutoring children. But what if you&rsquo;re like me and your main area of expertise is in teaching adults <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/one-to-one-vocab-review">one-on-one</a>? Where can you find the&nbsp;students?</p>

<p>I&rsquo;ve been teaching English exclusively online now for over three&nbsp;years and in today&rsquo;s post, I&rsquo;m going to share&nbsp;six platforms that helped me kick‑start my online teaching&nbsp;career.</p>

<h1>1. Verbling</h1>

<p><a href="https://www.verbling.com/" rel="noreferrer nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Verbling</a> is an American company headquartered in San Francisco and it&rsquo;s one of the first online platforms I used. It&rsquo;s a marketplace where students can look for tutors and teachers in any language, not just English. Their website is user‑friendly and getting a profile set up is straightforward.</p>

<p>This platform&rsquo;s support features make the experience so much more immersive and engaging for the students. Also, everything you&rsquo;ll need is available within the website, which makes organizing schedules and payments a lot easier. Verbling offers a video conferencing system, and they also provide a space where you can upload and share your lesson plans and other content with your&nbsp;students.</p>

<p>Some companies only accept teachers who live in the US or Canada, but Verbling is open to teachers&nbsp;worldwide.</p>

<h4>Commission Structure</h4>

<p>On Verbling, you earn 85% of whatever you charge students, and a 15% commission goes to the&nbsp;platform.</p>

<p>Keep in mind that Verbling, and the other platforms I&rsquo;ll be sharing with you today, are highly competitive. Since you&rsquo;re in control of what you charge, you might want to consider offering a lower rate at the beginning, then gradually increasing your rate as you get more students and a few reviews on your&nbsp;profile.</p>

<h1>2. First Tutors</h1>

<p><a href="https://www.firsttutors.com/" rel="noreferrer nofollow noopener" target="_blank">First Tutors</a> in an international private tuition service and it&rsquo;s open to teachers residing in the UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, and&nbsp;Italy.</p>

<p>One disadvantage of this platform is that it&rsquo;s not equipped with any of the features that Verbling and the other websites offer,&nbsp;such as&nbsp;video chat options, scheduling, or payment facilitation. But the good thing about First Tutors is that they don&rsquo;t take any commission from the teacher. If students choose to take lessons with you, they will have to pay a small one‑time fee. After the payment is made, your contact information will be provided by the platform. You can then set up your sessions with the student and arrange to meet with a video chat app of your choice, such as Skype, Zoom, or Google&nbsp;Hangouts.</p>

<h1>3. Take Lessons</h1>

<p><a href="https://takelessons.com/" rel="noreferrer nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Take Lessons</a> is a platform headquarted in San Diego, California, that has been around since 2006. Interestingly, when they first started&nbsp;they offered tutoring for music only, but now they&rsquo;ve expanded into a huge network of language coaches, dance instructors, and music&nbsp;teachers.</p>

<p>Their website is easy to use and facilitates a lot of the day‑to‑day management of your business, including scheduling, payment, and&nbsp;communication.</p>

<p>A possible disadvantage of Take Lessons is that if you&rsquo;re not legally eligible to work in the United States, you will not be able to join the&nbsp;platform.</p>

<h4>Commission Structure</h4>

<p>With Take Lessons, you&rsquo;ll start out earning 60% of the price your student paid for lessons. Then, for every five&nbsp;lessons you teach that student, you&rsquo;ll earn 10% more of that student&rsquo;s lesson price&mdash;up to&nbsp;90%.</p>

<h1>4. Preply</h1>

<p><a href="https://preply.com/" rel="noreferrer nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Preply</a> is an online private tutoring company based out of Brighton, Massachusetts. It matches students with tutors to have sessions in person or online and it&rsquo;s open to teachers worldwide. They also offer scheduling and payment management within the&nbsp;platform.</p>

<h4>Commission Structure</h4>

<p>They take 100% of your first lesson payment with every new student. That first lesson is considered a trial, and if a student chooses to continue with you and purchase a package, the commission will start from 33% to 18% depending on the number of completed lesson hours with that&nbsp;student.</p>

<h1>5. Italki</h1>

<p><a href="https://www.italki.com/" rel="noreferrer nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Italki</a> is the biggest platform in this list. It&rsquo;s an online language learning platform headquartered in Hong Kong with over 5 million students and 10,000 teachers offering lessons in more than 130 languages. There are currently around 500 English teachers on this&nbsp;platform from around the&nbsp;world.</p>

<p>Getting set up with Italki takes a bit longer than the other platforms. It takes about two weeks for your profile to get reviewed, and you will also need to do a short interview if you get&nbsp;accepted.</p>

<h4>Commission Structure</h4>

<p>Italki charges a 15% commission fee on every lesson, but they do not take any commission for trial&nbsp;sessions.</p>

<h1>6. Amazing Talker</h1>

<p><a href="https://en.amazingtalker.com/" rel="noreferrer nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Amazing Talker</a> is a Taiwan‑based international online learning platform that started in 2016. There are more than 76,000 active students and 1,000 teachers from different&nbsp;countries.</p>

<p>Like Italki, it takes a little longer to get started with Amazing Talker. It will take at least a few days to have your profile reviewed, and if you are approved, you&rsquo;ll need to have an interview with one of their team&nbsp;leaders.</p>

<p>A nice feature with Amazing Talker is that you can choose to be matched with a mentor. Teachers that have been on the platform for a long time can become mentors and create teams of teachers. The mentor can then refer students to their team members. This is great for teachers who are just joining the platform because their AI ranking system is somewhat disadvantageous to new&nbsp;teachers.</p>

<h4>Commission Structure</h4>

<p>Similar to the other platforms, Amazing Talker offers a regressive commission model with relatively low rates&nbsp;from 0% to&nbsp;15%.</p>

<p>We hope this information helps you find the best platforms to get started with your online English teaching career. And remember, getting started is always the hardest&nbsp;part!</p>

<p>Thanks for reading. Please share if you found it&nbsp;useful!</p>


6 Best Platforms to Find English Students Online

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<h1>What are Koans?</h1>

<p>Earlier this year, I wrote a post called &ldquo;<a href="https://ellii.com/blog/introducing-students-to-meditation" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Introducing Students to Meditation</a>.&rdquo; One reader included a link to a Wikipedia article with her <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zazen" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">comment</a> that describes the Japanese discipline of meditation called&nbsp;Zazen.</p>

<p>One distinguishing feature of Zazen is its use of &quot;koans&quot; (pronounced&nbsp;<em>ko&rsquo; an</em>). Koans are paradoxical statements, dialogues, parables, and questions. Clicking on this term, I learned that koans are used &ldquo;to provoke &lsquo;great doubt&rsquo; and to practice or test a student&rsquo;s progress in Zen.&rdquo; I began to wonder if koans could be used in the ESL&nbsp;classroom.</p>

<p>While researching the concept of koans, I came across one particular koan again and&nbsp;again:</p>

<blockquote>
<p>When both hands are clapped, a sound is produced. Now listen to the sound of one hand clapping. What do you&nbsp;hear?</p>
</blockquote>

<p>At first glance, the obvious answer is &ldquo;silence.&rdquo; But is it really so obvious? Upon analysis, the answers turns out not to be so black and white after all. By definition, clapping requires striking two objects together. Can one hand even be said to clap, much less make a noise (or lack thereof) when it does, or rather&nbsp;doesn&rsquo;t?</p>

<p>By exposing students to koans, we encourage them to embrace the &ldquo;grayness&rdquo; of life. Using koans in class may help students realize that most situations can be approached from many perspectives. And perhaps they will dig deep within themselves to come up with the language needed to express their own unique take on a given&nbsp;koan.</p>

<h1>Using Koans</h1>

<p>I suggest using koans in the following&nbsp;way:</p>

<ol>
	<li>Dictate the koan to the&nbsp;class.</li>
	<li>Have pairs compare their&nbsp;dictations.</li>
	<li>Put students in small groups and have them discuss the meaning of the&nbsp;koan.</li>
	<li>Have students write a one-paragraph response to the&nbsp;koan.</li>
</ol>

<h1>Sample Koans</h1>

<p>Here are a few koans to get your students thinking:</p>

<div class="white-box">
<h5>Koan #1</h5>

<p>What can you do when you can do&nbsp;nothing?</p>
</div>

<div class="white-box">
<h5>Koan #2</h5>

<p>Maybe you are searching among the branches for what only appears in the&nbsp;roots.</p>
</div>

<div class="white-box">
<h5>Koan #3</h5>

<p>One day, two monks, Tanzan and Ekido, were walking down a muddy road during a heavy rainfall when they came upon a beautiful young girl. The young girl was in distress because a big mud puddle was preventing her from crossing an&nbsp;intersection.</p>

<p>&ldquo;Don&rsquo;t worry, girl!&rdquo; Tanzan called out. Then he lifted her in his arms and carried her across the&nbsp;puddle.</p>

<p>Ekido was troubled by what he saw. He didn&rsquo;t say anything until later that night when the two monks arrived at a lodging temple. Finally, he couldn&rsquo;t be quiet any&nbsp;longer.</p>

<p>&ldquo;You know it is against the rules for us monks to talk to young girls, much less touch them. What were you&nbsp;thinking?&rdquo;</p>

<p>&ldquo;I left the girl there,&rdquo; Tanzan replied. &ldquo;Why are you still carrying&nbsp;her?&rdquo;</p>
</div>

<div class="white-box">
<h5>Koan #4</h5>

<p>Two monks were arguing about the temple flag. One monk said, &ldquo;The wind is moving.&rdquo; The other monk said, &ldquo;No, the flag is&nbsp;moving.&rdquo;</p>

<p>A wise man came along and said, &ldquo;Do not argue, my friends. It is not the wind that moves or the flag that moves. It is your mind that&nbsp;moves.&rdquo;</p>
</div>


Paradoxical Thinking in the Classroom

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<blockquote>
<p>&ldquo;Everybody likes a&nbsp;compliment.&rdquo;</p>

<p class="attribution">&mdash;Abraham Lincoln</p>
</blockquote>

<h1>Word Wall + Valentine&rsquo;s Day = Community</h1>

<p>Whether you&rsquo;re freshening up your classroom for the second half of the school year or getting ready to start a brand-new term, January is a great time to focus on building community in the classroom. One way to do this is by creating a word wall and calling it &ldquo;Positive Personality&nbsp;Traits.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Between now and Valentine&rsquo;s Day, have students suggest words&mdash;such as <em>generous</em>, <em>confident</em>, <em>patient</em>, and <em>kind</em>&mdash;for this new wall as they come across them in and outside the classroom. Before you know it, you will have a large collection of feel‑good&nbsp;adjectives!</p>

<p><img alt="Illustration of a word wall poster" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/205/content_Ann_Word-Wall-Poster.png" /></p>

<p>When Valentine&rsquo;s Day is close at hand, get a blank piece of paper for each student and write their name at the top. Distribute the papers to everyone in your class, making sure that no one gets the paper with his/her own name on it. Ask students to write one or two adjectives from the &ldquo;Positive Personality Traits&rdquo; word wall that describe the student whose name appears on the paper they have. When they have finished, have them switch papers with a classmate so that they have a new name on their paper. Do this until students have had a chance to write adjectives for each of their classmates. Collect the papers for the next&nbsp;step.</p>

<p>Now the fun part. Take a minute to write your students a valentine card. At the end of each card, add &ldquo;Your classmates think you are&hellip;&rdquo; In speech bubbles, write the adjectives that show how classmates perceive this student. You will be amazed at how these cards help your students develop rapport with each&nbsp;other!</p>

<p><img alt="Illustration of a valentine card" src="https://esllibrary.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/ckeditor/pictures/204/content_Ann_Word-Wall-Card.png" /></p>

<h1>Related</h1>

<ul class="resources">
	<li class="collection"><a href="https://ellii.com/collections/4/lessons" target="_blank">Love &amp; Relationships Lesson Collection</a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/92/lessons/2615" target="_blank">Giving &amp; Receiving Compliments</a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/88/lessons/2093" target="_blank">Adjectives</a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/93/lessons/1959" target="_blank">Valentine&rsquo;s Day &ndash; Beg </a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/93/lessons/1863" target="_blank">Valentine&rsquo;s Day &ndash; Low Int </a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/93/lessons/1862" target="_blank">Valentine&rsquo;s Day &ndash; High Int </a></li>
	<li class="resource"><a href="https://ellii.com/resource_categories/107/resources/2145" target="_blank">Love Idioms Poster</a></li>
	<li class="flashcards"><a href="https://ellii.com/flashcard_genres/21/flashcard_categories/107" target="_blank">Valentine&rsquo;s Day &ndash; Flashcards </a></li>
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/how-to-give-a-compliment/" target="_blank">Giving and Accepting Compliments</a></li>
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/compliment-vs-complement/" target="_blank">Compliment Vs. Complement</a></li>
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/valentines-day-interview-a-love-story/" target="_blank">Valentine&rsquo;s Day Interview: A Love Story</a></li>
</ul>


Everybody Likes a Compliment

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<blockquote>
<p>&ldquo;I have no special talents. I am only passionately&nbsp;curious.&rdquo;</p>

<p class="attribution">&mdash;Albert Einstein</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Einstein credited curiosity as the driving force of his success. By asking questions and indulging his curiosity, he was able to challenge centuries‑old views about the universe and turn them upside&nbsp;down.</p>

<p>And who knows? You could have the next Einstein right in your classroom. By introducing your students to the concept of thin and thick questions, you may be able to pull out the Einstein in all of&nbsp;them.</p>

<p>Reading fiction can serve as a conduit for developing curiosity. To start the process, first make sure that students understand the basic storyline of the passage you are working with. A fail-safe way to know students have gotten the gist is to ask &ldquo;thin&rdquo; questions&mdash;literal questions that ask about the specific details of the text. Questions that can be answered with a few words, yes/no, or a number fall into this category. They often start with <em>who</em>, <em>what</em>, <em>when</em>, or&nbsp;<em>where</em>.</p>

<p>Once students have the confidence that goes hand‑in‑hand with comprehension, the real engagement with curiosity can begin. By learning how to ask &ldquo;thick&rdquo; questions, students can begin to probe beneath the surface of the reading. Unlike thin questions, thick questions require students to activate prior knowledge, and the answers are open-ended and often complex. If you have 20 students in a class, you may get 20 different answers to the same thick question. The answers to these questions don&rsquo;t jump off the page; students have to use their imagination to respond to&nbsp;them.</p>

<p>So how does this actually work in the classroom? Take <em>Jack and the Beanstalk</em>. First, have students read the story. To check comprehension, ask a few thin questions. For&nbsp;example:</p>

<ol>
	<li>Who are the main characters in the&nbsp;story?</li>
	<li>Where does the story take&nbsp;place?</li>
	<li>What happens to the seeds after Jack&rsquo;s mother throws them out the&nbsp;window?</li>
</ol>

<p>Once you have made sure that students understand the story, pose several thick questions and have students discuss them in groups or pairs. For&nbsp;example:</p>

<ol>
	<li>What character traits describe&nbsp;Jack?</li>
	<li>Why is the ogre&rsquo;s servant willing to help&nbsp;Jack?</li>
	<li>What do you think happens to Jack and his mother after the story&nbsp;ends?</li>
</ol>

<p>Remind students that there are no right or wrong answers. After the discussion, challenge groups or pairs to come up with their own thick questions. Give them a few question starters as a&nbsp;guide:</p>

<ol>
	<li>What if&hellip;?</li>
	<li>How did&hellip;?</li>
	<li>Why is&hellip;?</li>
	<li>What character traits describe&hellip;?</li>
	<li>What would happen&nbsp;if&hellip;?</li>
	<li>How would you feel&nbsp;if&hellip;?</li>
	<li>What caused&hellip;?</li>
	<li>What does the author mean&nbsp;by&hellip;?</li>
</ol>

<p>Once students have created their own thick questions, put them in small groups to discuss the new questions. (Hopefully they will enjoy piquing their classmates&rsquo;&nbsp;curiosity!)</p>

<p>As students become comfortable with this new skill, encourage them to ask thick questions before, during, and after a reading. And always keep in mind what Einstein said, &ldquo;The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for&nbsp;existing.&rdquo;</p>

<h1>Related</h1>

<ul class="resources">
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/80/lessons/1328">Albert Einstein</a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/72/lessons/2919">Wonder</a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/88/lessons/1627">Wh- Questions</a></li>
	<li class="resource"><a href="https://ellii.com/resource_categories/103/resources/2462">Question Formation</a></li>
</ul>


Thin & Thick Questions

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<p>There are few feelings more uncomfortable than reaching the end of a lesson plan, glancing at the clock, and discovering that the bell won&rsquo;t ring for another 10 or 15&nbsp;minutes.</p>

<p>Here&rsquo;s a list of 10 fillers that will make those extra minutes fly by. (And best of all, you won&rsquo;t need to run to the teachers&rsquo; lounge to make&nbsp;photocopies!)</p>

<ol class="spaced-list">
	<li>Have students look around the classroom and write down all the objects that begin with the letter <em>b</em>. Set a timer for two minutes and make it a competition to see who can name the most items. Let the winner choose another letter and play the game&nbsp;again.</li>
	<li>Ask students to describe their country&rsquo;s flag as you draw it on the board. If you have a multicultural class, pair students with someone from a different country. Have them describe their flags to each&nbsp;other.</li>
	<li>Put students in groups of three. Direct students to choose something in their wallet, purse, or backpack and tell their group members about it. They should say where they got the object, how long they&rsquo;ve had it, why it&rsquo;s important to them,&nbsp;etc.</li>
	<li>Erase the board and have students call out any new words and expressions from the day&rsquo;s lesson that they can remember. Then have students rank these vocabulary items based on how useful they think the items&nbsp;are.</li>
	<li>Write a four- or five-letter word, such as <em>tooth</em>, on the board. See if students can change just one letter to make a new word. For example, you can change the first <em>t</em> to <em>b</em> to form the word booth; then change the <em>h</em> to <em>s</em> and you have the word <em>boots</em>. Challenge students to make ten new&nbsp;words.</li>
	<li>Tear a piece of paper into several slips, which you&rsquo;ll distribute as needed during the game. Sit in a circle with your students. Draw a simple object on one of the slips. Show the picture to the student on your left. Have that student whisper the name of the object they think the picture depicts to the person on his/her left. That person should then draw a picture of the word they hear, and so&nbsp;on.</li>
	<li>Have students sit in a circle. Choose a category of nouns, such as animals. Call out a word from this category: <em>bird</em>. The person on your right must say an animal that begins with the last letter of this noun: <em>d</em> (e.g.,&nbsp;<em>dog</em>).</li>
	<li>Tell students that you have a friend named Mrs. McGillicutty and that this friend likes many things, but there are some things she doesn&rsquo;t like at all. It is their job to figure out what makes her fond of certain things&mdash;they all have double letters in their names. Give students a few examples: Mrs. McGillicutty likes cheese, but she doesn&rsquo;t like crackers. She likes soccer and she adores volleyball, but she doesn&rsquo;t like sports. Then have students ask you questions about things Mrs. McGillicutty likes and doesn&rsquo;t like. (E.g., Does she like dessert? Yes, she does. Does she like chocolate? No, she doesn&rsquo;t. Does she like apple pie? Yes, she&nbsp;does.)</li>
	<li>Give students a few minutes to think about a mistake they have made while speaking English this week. Ask them to write down a sentence that contains this error. Have them show the sentence to a partner and see if their partner can correct&nbsp;it.</li>
	<li>Write a fairly long word on the board such as dictionary. Students must make as many words as they can from the letters in the word (e.g., <em>a</em>, <em>dart</em>, <em>any</em>, <em>day</em>, <em>city</em>, <em>yard</em>, <em>tidy</em>,&nbsp;<em>ration</em>).</li>
</ol>

<h1>Related</h1>

<ul class="resources">
	<li class="resource"><a href="https://ellii.com/resource_categories/105/resources">Warm-Ups &amp; Fillers</a></li>
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/opposites-a-fun-way-to-learn-new-vocabulary/">Opposites &ndash;&nbsp;A Fun Way to Learn Vocabulary</a></li>
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/bell-ringers">Engage Learners with Bell-Ringer Activities</a></li>
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/tearable-puns">10 Tearable Puns: An English Language Activity</a></li>
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/my-favourite-warm-up-activity">My Favorite Warm-Up Activity</a></li>
</ul>


10 Zero-Prep Fillers

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<p>When asked what they get out of the classroom in addition to language skills, ESL students will often tout the friendships they&rsquo;ve made with their classmates, their increased confidence when interacting with native speakers, and a better understanding of English-speaking cultures. Wouldn&rsquo;t it be great if they could add a coping strategy to deal with stress to their&nbsp;list?</p>

<p>Introducing students to meditation teaches them a way to find calm in their hectic lives. It&rsquo;s a strategy that&rsquo;s easy to incorporate into ESL lessons and complements a number of language topics including the present tense, sensory verbs, the imperative, and prepositions. It also lends itself to general themes such as health, modern life, and daily routines. Below you will find a guided meditation used to reinforce vocabulary related to body&nbsp;parts.</p>

<p>Before you begin the mediation session with your students, pre-teach any unfamiliar words or phrases (e.g., breathe, breath, rise, fall, tighten, loosen, inhale, exhale, etc.). Share some of the benefits of meditation (e.g., reduces stress, controls anxiety, lengthens attention span, etc.).</p>

<p>Briefly explain the activity. Tell students you are going to guide them through a number of steps that will help them focus on different parts of their&nbsp;body.If possible, turn off or dim the lights before you lead the meditation. Then read out the following steps to your&nbsp;students:</p>

<ol class="spaced-list">
	<li>Close your eyes. Make sure both feet are on the floor and your back is touching your&nbsp;chair.</li>
	<li>Take a few deep breaths. Breathe in through your nose. Breathe out through your mouth. Put your hand on your chest. Notice how it rises when you breathe in and falls when you breathe&nbsp;out.</li>
	<li>Now bring your attention to your feet. Move your toes around a little. Feel them as they touch your socks and&nbsp;shoes.</li>
	<li>Slowly move your attention up to your legs. Notice how the chair feels against your&nbsp;thighs.</li>
	<li>Think about your back and where the chair touches it. Allow yourself to relax into the chair. Notice where you feel the chair on your back&nbsp;now.</li>
	<li>Move your attention back to your chest. Focus again on the rise and fall of your chest as you&nbsp;breathe.</li>
	<li>Now tighten your jaw. Hold it there. And relax. Feel the muscles as they&nbsp;loosen.</li>
	<li>Direct your attention to your nose. Feel your nostrils as you inhale and&nbsp;exhale.</li>
	<li>Take one more deep breath. As you breathe out, slowly open your&nbsp;eyes.</li>
</ol>

<p>Make sure to ask follow-up questions after the session (e.g., How did you feel before the session? How did you feel during it? How do you feel&nbsp;now?).</p>

<p>If this practice is something your students enjoy, consider letting a student volunteer lead subsequent meditations. You can also write the meditations with the class on the board or assign them as group work. The important thing is to keep the stress level as low as possible. And&nbsp;breathe!</p>

<h1>Related</h1>

<ul class="resources">
	<li class="collection"><a href="https://ellii.com/collections/27/lessons" target="_blank">Health &amp; Safety Lesson Collection</a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/95/lessons/1836" target="_blank">Stress</a></li>
	<li class="lesson"><a href="https://ellii.com/courses/97/lessons/1990" target="_blank">Yoga</a></li>
	<li class="flashcards"><a href="https://ellii.com/flashcard_genres/4/flashcard_categories/27" target="_blank">Daily Routines &ndash; Flashcards </a></li>
	<li class="blog-post"><a href="https://ellii.com/blog/7-stress-busters-for-teachers/" target="_blank">7 Stress Busters for Teachers</a></li>
</ul>


Introducing Students to Meditation

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<blockquote>
<p>&ldquo;Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found&nbsp;words.&rdquo;</p>

<p class="attribution">&mdash;Robert Frost</p>
</blockquote>

<p>It is National Poetry Month, but year round students can enjoy learning from poetry. Different forms of poetry appeal to various age groups and literacy levels. All our students can discover poems that make them laugh, smile, or think.</p>

<p>Additionally, teachers can find poems about any topic that help students make a deeper connection to the vocabulary and ideas related to the topic. Students can learn from the examples of poetry they consume to produce their own poems, which gives students the opportunity to experiment with language structures, rhythm, phrasing, figurative language, and literary&nbsp;devices.</p>

<p>The following resources are filled with lesson ideas, activities, and generators to help students write various forms of poetry.</p>

<p>You will also find websites with glossaries of poetic terms and devices so that students can try using these poetic devices in their writing. There are also examples from various famous poets of the different forms of poetry that are listed in this&nbsp;post.</p>

<h2>General Poetry Resources</h2>

<ul>
	<li>The <a href="https://www.poetrygames.org/poetry-machine/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Poetry Machine</a> is an awesome website with different poetry generators that walk students through the process of creating several different forms of poetry, including the ones listed&nbsp;below.</li>
	<li><a href="https://storybird.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Storybird</a> has a library of beautiful artwork created by professionals that students can choose from to create a poetry book. This is a great way to display all the poems they write in your&nbsp;class.</li>
	<li>For lesson ideas, check out the ESL&nbsp;Library lessons <a href="https://www.ellii.com/courses/74/lessons/2026" target="_blank">How to Write a Poem</a> and <a href="https://www.ellii.com/courses/80/lessons/1343" target="_blank">William&nbsp;Shakespeare</a>.</li>
	<li>The <a href="https://www.poets.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Academy of American Poets</a> shares a database of thousands of poems, activities, videos, audio recordings, and other materials for teachers to browse and&nbsp;use!</li>
	<li><a href="https://www.youngwriters.co.uk/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Young Writers</a> is a website with regular competitions for students and a poetry glossary with examples. Also find poetry collections and teaching&nbsp;materials.</li>
	<li>Below find several poetry student interactives from <a href="http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/calendar-activities/april-national-poetry-month-20478.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Read Write Think</a>, which is one of my favorite websites for helping students write in any&nbsp;genre.</li>
	<li>Find printables, videos, and poems very young children will enjoy on the <a href="http://www.shelsilverstein.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Shel Silverstein&nbsp;website</a>.</li>
</ul>

<h2>Acrostic Poems</h2>

<p>Acrostic poems are one of the simplest forms of poetry to write. Students choose a word and then write a poem with the first letter of each line spelling a word or phrase (e.g.,&nbsp;<strong>CAT</strong>&nbsp;&ndash; <strong>C</strong>urious <strong>A</strong>nimal <strong>T</strong>iny tiger).</p>

<p>I usually have students begin with their names. Students simply find adjectives or create phrases to describe themselves. The poem does not have to rhyme and this is a great way for our students to get to know each other!</p>

<p>For a challenge, students can also write acrostic poems where the last letters in the line spell out a word. <a href="https://www.youngwriters.co.uk/types-acrostic" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Find a definition and examples&nbsp;here</a>.</p>

<p>Read Write Think has an interactive that defines acrostic poetry, provides examples, and helps students create their own. Students can download their acrostic poems or email&nbsp;them.</p>

<p><a href="https://commaful.com/create" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Commaful</a> is a very simple and free creative writing online tool that allows users to choose a background image from their library and easily type text on top of the image. Students will enjoy using Commaful to compose several different types of poetry, including acrostic poems. Students don&rsquo;t have to register to create, publish, or share the link to their&nbsp;poems.</p>

<p><a href="https://app.edu.buncee.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Buncee</a> is a multimedia presentation tool students can use to animate all forms of poetry with stickers, images, audio clips, banners, and more. See this <a href="https://app.edu.buncee.com/buncee/96d282f325e944709c2c4cff4af71d9e" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">example</a> of an Acrostic poem created with&nbsp;Buncee.</p>

<h2>Blackout Poetry</h2>

<p>This is one of the newest and most popular ways to get students to enjoy writing poetry.</p>

<p>Give students newspapers, magazines, or other texts. Students scan the article and put brackets around anchor words or words that jump out at them. Then students take a black marker and blackout all the words in the text except those they earlier put brackets around.</p>

<p>Blackout poetry was made popular by the famous author, Austin&nbsp;Kleon. Introduce blackout poetry by showing students the video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqB9kXzJ0UA" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">interview with Austin Kleon</a> or <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKpVgoGr6kE" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">How to Create a Newspaper Blackout Poem by Austin&nbsp;Kleon</a>.</p>

<p>Check out several examples of <a href="http://newspaperblackout.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Newspaper Blackout Poetry</a> on Austin Kleon&rsquo;s Tumblr. Students can pick out their favorites and then see if they can find these poems in their own&nbsp;newspapers.</p>

<p><a href="https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/lesson/8b7fcd91373afa80742ca8b226047a6a" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">K20 Learn</a> has a great lesson plan creating blackout poems and lists more&nbsp;resources.</p>

<p>This <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5ngjrLo_Ao" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">video</a> shows you how to create blackout poems online with Google&nbsp;Draw.</p>

<h2>Magnetic Poetry</h2>

<p>Magnetic poetry is easy and fun for learners! Students simply make poems from words they see on magnets. I have had students create magnet poems with cookie or pie pans and magnetic words. Students can also make their own set of magnetic words by writing them on a magnetic sheet and cutting them out. You can find magnetic sheets in the craft area of stores or at a craft&nbsp;store.</p>

<p>Students can also create magnetic poetry digitally using the <a href="https://magneticpoetry.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Magnetic Poetry</a> and <a href="https://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/student-interactives/word-mover-b" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Word Mover</a> websites. No registration necessary.</p>

<p>Another web tool where students choose words to create a poem is <a href="https://piclits.com/piclit-types/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">PicLits</a>. Students pick a picture and then drag words onto the image from a list provided.</p>

<p>Students can also create magnetic poems by using the free Google Drawing and Google Slide templates created by <a href="https://shakeuplearning.com/magneticpoetry/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Shake Up Learning</a> and <a href="https://www.controlaltachieve.com/search?q=magnetic+poetry" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Eric&nbsp;Curts</a>.</p>

<h2>Concrete Poetry</h2>

<p>Concrete poems are shape poems. Students choose a shape and write phrases and adjectives to describe their feelings and thoughts about the shape. Check out any of these free shape cloud generators that make it much easier for students to create their shape&nbsp;poems:</p>

<p><a href="http://neoformix.com/Projects/WordHearts/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Neoformix</a> and the <a href="https://www.poem-generator.org.uk/concrete/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Poem Generator</a> are free shape generators where students can choose from a free library of shapes, type their words, and choose the shape. An image will be generated for them to download and&nbsp;print.</p>

<p><a href="https://wordart.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Word Art</a> and <a href="http://www.tagxedo.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Tagxedo</a> are word cloud generators with several different types of fun shapes for students to choose. They can also color the fonts and styles of the words. A word cloud generator scatters the words inputted, but students can keep phrases together by adding a ~ between words. The words that are most repeated will also be much bigger than other&nbsp;words.</p>

<h2>Diamante Poetry</h2>

<p>Diamante poems are in the shape of a diamond and about two topics. It is a simple poem to write with only a few words, adjectives, and ing ending words. <a href="https://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/student-interactives/diamante-poems" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Read Write Think</a> has an interactive that walks students through the process of writing this type of poem. Find a definition, the format, and examples&nbsp;<a href="http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/diamante_poems_2/diamante_examples.pdf" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">here</a>.</p>

<h2>Haikus</h2>

<p>Haikus originate from Japan and are usually about nature. A haiku is a 3-line poem that follows a specific syllabic structure: line 1 is 5 syllables, line 2 is 7 syllables, and line 3 is 5 syllables. Find simple interactives for students to create their haikus on <a href="https://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/student-interactives/haiku-poem-interactive" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Read Write Think</a> and the <a href="https://www.poetrygames.org/poetry-machine/poetry-15.php" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Poetry&nbsp;Machine</a>.</p>

<p>What other resources do you recommend for teaching with&nbsp;poetry?</p>

<p>If you want to receive more of Shelly&rsquo;s tips for online resources for teaching English, then check out her <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/authors/shelly-terrell" target="_blank">blog&nbsp;feed</a>.</p>


20+ Ideas, Web Tools & Resources to Help ELLs Compose Poetry

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<blockquote>
<p>&ldquo;To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a&nbsp;spark.&rdquo;</p>

<p class="attribution">&mdash;Victor Hugo</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Spelling is an important ingredient of literacy. Spelling words accurately means students make a connection between letters and sounds, which can enhance pronunciation. Students who spell accurately also know the English alphabet and recognize word patterns, which helps them develop reading comprehension. Learning how to type letters on a keyboard is an engaging and hands-on way for students to enhance their spelling&nbsp;skills.</p>

<p>The free online typing games below display letters and words for students to locate on a keyboard quickly to accomplish a fun mission! Some of the websites also sound out the letters, which helps students remember the way letters and words&nbsp;sound.</p>

<h2>Preparing Students</h2>

<p>Before engaging in typing practice, students should be familiar with the alphabet and learn proper finger placement on the keyboard. The following are tips and resources to help you pre‑teach&nbsp;both:</p>

<ol class="spaced-list">
	<li>Make sure students review the alphabet and become familiar with the sounds. Check out the post <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/digital-alphabet/" target="_blank">Let&rsquo;s Learn the Alphabet Digitally</a> to find several free websites and apps to help students learn the alphabet and associated letter sounds in fun&nbsp;ways.</li>
	<li>If you assign students a specific game, you can see what letters they will practice typing ahead of time and can introduce example words with these&nbsp;letters.</li>
	<li>This <a href="https://newsandstory.com/tempImage/21072115395120185088.gif" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">visual</a> will help students locate the keyboard letters and know where to place their fingers to type the words more quickly and&nbsp;comfortably.</li>
	<li>Get students to practice this finger placement on a keyboard and practice several times typing the home row keys: <strong>A</strong>, <strong>S</strong>, <strong>D</strong>, <strong>F</strong>, <strong>J</strong>, <strong>K</strong>, <strong>L</strong>,&nbsp;<strong>;</strong>.</li>
	<li>Students can also start learning about finger placement and where letters and symbols are on the keyboard with the Typetastic game, <a href="https://typetastic.com/keyboard-builder.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Keyboard Builder</a>. This game gets students to use the arrow keys and type letters to build sections of the keyboard. The game is made for elementary age&nbsp;students.</li>
</ol>

<h2>Online Games &amp; Typing&nbsp;Practice</h2>

<p>These are recommended websites and descriptions to help you choose the most engaging typing practice for your students. At the top are recommended free websites with little or no advertisements and no registration. However, some of the websites may have advertisements, which is why they are free and do not require any registration. Make sure if you choose a game with advertisements that you let students know so they don&rsquo;t accidentally click on the&nbsp;ads.</p>

<p><a href="https://typetastic.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Typetastic</a> is one of the best websites for elementary age children (11 years old and younger). The website offers free typing games and no registration is required. You can simply share the website url with your learners and they can begin. I recommend the following typing games, which are also advertisement free: <a href="https://typetastic.com/frog-pond-patrol.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Frog Pond</a>, <a href="https://typetastic.com/cupcake-bugs.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Cupcake Bugs</a>, <a href="https://typetastic.com/astro-bubbles.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Astro Bubbles</a>, <a href="https://typetastic.com/ducky-trouble.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ducky Trouble</a>, and <a href="https://typetastic.com/letter-trucks.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Letter&nbsp;Trucks</a></p>

<p><a href="https://www.bbc.com/bitesize/articles/z3c6tfr" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dance Mat Typing</a> is from the BBC and is advertisement free. The purpose is to help students learn the home row keys and gain accuracy as well as build on their typing speed. The lessons build off each other with four different levels. Students learn to type sentences with animated animals and fun music. The website is geared to learners 12 years old and&nbsp;younger.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.free-training-tutorial.com/typing-games/towncreator/tc-typing.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Typing Town</a> has some advertisements but is free and requires no registration. Students 12 and younger love this game which gets them to type words presented on the screen and rewards them with houses, swimming pools, buildings, cars, and other items to help them build their own towns. There are three levels for beginners to&nbsp;advanced.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.typing.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Typing.com</a> is full of tons of typing drills and <a href="https://www.typing.com/student/games" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">games</a> to help students learn the home row and practice typing words and sentences. Students get to see their typing speed and accuracy as well as receive certificates. The website is appropriate for teens, adolescents, and advanced typers. There are&nbsp;advertisements.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.nitrotype.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Nitrotype</a> is a great game for adolescents and teens. Students type complete sentences they read on the screen. Their typing speed and accuracy determines how fast their race car goes. Students compete with other participants worldwide and win virtual prizes like new cars and money. The reading level is much higher, because students type paragraphs. Students can play as guests, but most will want to register for free to keep track of their earnings and compete against their&nbsp;classmates.</p>

<p>What other websites do you recommend to help young learners type and&nbsp;spell?</p>


Fun Web Games & Resources to Help ELLs with Typing and Spelling

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<blockquote>
<p>&ldquo;Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates&nbsp;love.&rdquo;</p>

<p class="attribution">&mdash;Lao Tzu</p>
</blockquote>

<p>&#39;Tis the season to give and show kindness and compassion! Technology gives our students the opportunity to help others and learn at the same time. When we tie learning to making a difference, we intrinsically motivate&nbsp;students.</p>

<p>The following ideas and resources will provide you with a variety of ways to motivate students of all ages to practice and develop their English fluency. Some of the ideas require only a little bit of technology and time if you have limited resources. There are also ideas for longer projects that enhance all four skills&mdash;speaking, listening, reading, and&nbsp;writing.</p>

<h2>Feed Others</h2>

<p><a href="http://freerice.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Free Rice</a> is an online game where students answer multiple-choice questions in a variety of categories, including English Vocabulary and Grammar, Math, Science, Geography, Chemistry, Languages, SATs, and Humanities. For each correct answer, Free Rice donates grains of rice to the World Food Programme. No registration is&nbsp;required.</p>

<p>I recommend first introducing students to the World Food Programme and letting them know that they actually do feed people. Once my students learned this they spent hours at home answering questions to increase the amount of rice they could&nbsp;donate.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.freekibble.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Free Kibble</a> is an online game where students only answer one trivia question a day related to pet care and 10 pieces of kibble are given to animal shelters to feed hungry cats and dogs. Students can actually answer two questions a day, one question to donate for dogs and one to donate for <a href="https://www.freekibble.com/kat/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">cats</a>.</p>

<p>The trivia can be used as a writing or class discussion prompt. You can ask students to write down what they believe is the right choice and to explain their answers to a partner. You could also access several past trivia questions on the website for more&nbsp;learning.</p>

<h2>Uplift with Digital Greetings or&nbsp;Ebooks</h2>

<p>Check with an organization to see if there&#39;s an email address to send digital greetings created by your students. Your students could design digital greetings thanking firemen, policemen, or troops. They could send digital greetings to uplift the spirits of people in nursing homes or children or others in cancer wards or with terminal&nbsp;diseases.</p>

<p>Students can use the following free websites and apps to design their greetings: <a href="https://www.edu.buncee.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Buncee</a>, <a href="https://www.redstamp.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Red Stamp</a>, <a href="https://sincerely.com/ink" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Ink Cards</a>, <a href="https://www.canva.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer no follow" target="_blank">Canva</a>, <a href="https://www.magisto.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Magisto</a>, <a href="https://pic-collage.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Pic-Collage</a>, <a href="http://www.123greetings.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">123Greetings</a>, or <a href="http://www.duckduckmoose.com/educational-iphone-itouch-apps-for-kids/chatterpixkids/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Chatterpix Kids</a>&nbsp;app.</p>

<p>If you have more time and access to computers or Chromebooks, then students can design digital books to teach younger students the alphabet, basic math, grammar or other topics. The best part is to get them to read their books aloud to&nbsp;others.</p>

<p>You could also partner with a nursing home and get students to create a digital book to read and show to an elderly person. This enhances their literacy and also uplifts&nbsp;others.</p>

<p>Students can use the following free websites and apps to design their digital books: <a href="https://storybird.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Storybird</a>, <a href="https://www.mystorybook.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">My Storybook</a>, <a href="https://www.edu.buncee.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Buncee</a>, <a href="http://storyjumper.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Storyjumper</a>, Google Slides, <a href="http://www.toondoo.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">ToonDoo</a>,&nbsp;or the <a href="https://bookcreator.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Book Creator&nbsp;app</a>.</p>

<h2>Donate with Photos</h2>

<p>Get your language learners to visualize their learning and build vocabulary by taking&nbsp;photos.</p>

<p>You can provide students with topics or vocabulary each month to focus on. Students can then donate these photos to raise money for charities or help scientists with important&nbsp;research.</p>

<p>The free <a href="https://www.donateaphoto.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Donate a Photo</a> (iOS and Android) app allows you to share photos to raise money for a charity you choose. For every photo shared Johnson &amp; Johnson gives a dollar to a&nbsp;cause.</p>

<p>Older students can download this app for free on their devices and begin taking photos of the vocabulary, phrases or topic you assign them. If you teach young learners, download the app on a specific device and allow a few students each week to take photos around the school or school&nbsp;grounds.</p>

<p>You can also encourage parents to allow students at home to take photos of the vocabulary and topic then email you the photo to add to the&nbsp;collection.</p>

<p>With the free <a href="https://www.inaturalist.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">iNaturalist</a> (iOS and Android) app students take a photo of the plants, bugs, and species around them and share what they observe. The questions are simple and students learn so much vocabulary and grammar just by entering the data. These photos and observations are shared with scientific data repositories like the Global Biodiversity Information Facility to help scientists find and use it to advance their research and&nbsp;discoveries.</p>

<h2>Citizen Scientists and Archivists</h2>

<p>Researchers and archival organizations need help from people around the world to collect and sort data. Students can volunteer their time to advance all kinds of research&nbsp;projects.</p>

<p>Some projects ask students to investigate photos or maps and write down what they observe or locate specific species or occurrences. Other projects involve recording sounds, taking photos, playing online games, answering surveys, or translating old handwritten&nbsp;documents.</p>

<p><a href="https://scistarter.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Scistarter</a> is a free database to help you find the right project your learners can get excited about. Some projects can be completed online and require no&nbsp;registration.</p>

<p>The <a href="https://www.archives.gov/citizen-archivist" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Citizen Archivist Dashboard</a> does require free registration with an email. Once the account is created, learners can begin joining projects where they get to study important literature, writings, historical documents and logs from the past that are handwritten. The goal is for students to create a digital copy by transcribing what they&nbsp;read.</p>

<h2>Help the Blind</h2>

<p>Students with advanced speaking skills can use their English to help a blind person complete a task with the free <a href="https://www.bemyeyes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">BeMyEyes app</a>.</p>

<p>I downloaded the app and let my classes know that at anytime a blind person might call us and we need to be great at giving specific directions to help the person. I first showed them the <a href="https://vimeo.com/113872517" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">BeMyEyes video</a> so they would know how the app works. This was a great way to encourage them to learn how to give specific&nbsp;instructions.</p>

<p>You could have them practice by pairing them up, blindfolding one student, and asking the other partner to help that student find a marker you&rsquo;ve placed&nbsp;somewhere.</p>

<h2>Crowdfunding Campaigns</h2>

<p>Websites like <a href="https://www.donorschoose.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Donorschoose</a>, <a href="https://www.pledgecents.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Pledgecents</a>, and <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">GoFundMe</a> allow students and teachers to create an online campaign and raise money for a local need or the&nbsp;school.</p>

<p>If you need ideas, you could get students to raise money to provide blankets to a shelter, buy shoes for the homeless, or purchase gifts for the poor. They may also be able to raise money to help those impacted by natural disasters or&nbsp;fires.</p>

<p>Students can design videos or digital posters to spread the news about the campaign and also to enhance their English vocabulary and other&nbsp;skills.</p>

<h2>3D Printing Projects</h2>

<p>If you have access to a 3D printer, get students to design projects they can sell to raise funds that help provide a need or to give as&nbsp;gifts.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.tinkercad.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Tinkercad</a> is a free website with many easy projects for beginner coders. Students follow very simple and brief instructions in quick tutorials to design rings, name tags, and more. Students build their English fluency and learn important design skills and coding. Students and teachers must register for a free account using&nbsp;email.</p>

<p>In what ways do you or your school tie language learning to helping&nbsp;others? If you want to see more of Shelly&rsquo;s tips for online resources for teaching English, check out her <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/authors/shelly-terrell" target="_blank">past&nbsp;posts</a>!</p>


10 Uplifting Ways Students Can Use Tech This Season

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Learn tips on how to teach grammar and usage from our editors and grammar experts. 

Grammar & Usage

<p>Commonly confused words can be tricky for language learners (and native speakers too) but can also be interesting teaching points. Recently a staff member at ESL&nbsp;Library mentioned that it would be great to have a post on the spelling of <em>Philippines</em> and <em>Filipino</em>. Why is the country spelled with a &ldquo;ph&rdquo; but the language and people with an &ldquo;f&rdquo;?</p>

<h1>Historically Speaking</h1>

<h2>Country</h2>

<p>In 1542 after the Spanish conquest, the Spanish named the islands <em>las Islas Filipinas</em> after King Philip II (the name <em>Philip</em> being <em>Felipe</em> in Spanish). The English spelling of the country name became <em>the Philippines</em> (since <em>Philip</em> is the English spelling of the name <em>Felipe</em>). Since there was no <span class="inlineBlock">/f/</span> sound in almost all of the islands&rsquo; many languages and dialects at that time, the country name was pronounced <em>Pilipinas</em> (with a <span class="inlineBlock">/p/</span> sound) by the native inhabitant of the&nbsp;Philippines.</p>

<p>Today, we say <em>the Philippines</em> in English and <em>Filipinas</em> in Spanish and Filipino. However, many Filipino people still prefer to call their country&nbsp;<em>Pilipinas</em>.</p>

<h2>Language</h2>

<p>The two current official languages of the Philippines are Filipino and English. <em>Filipino</em> is spelled with an &ldquo;f&rdquo; in almost all languages, including English and Spanish. There was a time where Filipinos called their language <em>Pilipino</em>, but its official name is now <em>Filipino</em>. Interestingly, there are approximately 182 languages in the Philippines, 12 of which have more than one million speakers each and are spoken by more than 90% of the population. The Filipino language was developed in the 19th century and is mainly based on Tagalog, which was the language spoken in the capital of&nbsp;Manila.</p>

<h2>People</h2>

<p>The terms Filipino (male) and Filipina (female) are used for the inhabitants of the Philippines. These words function as both nouns and adjectives (e.g., a Filipino [noun] / Filipinos [noun] / Filipino people [adjective]). English never came up with a suitable equivalent (possibly because the use of <em>Filipino</em> for an inhabitant of the Philippines only came about in the late 19th&nbsp;century), so the Spanish <em>Filipino</em> (with the &ldquo;f&rdquo; spelling) was adopted into&nbsp;English.</p>

<p>Like with the country name, many Filipino people still prefer to call themselves&nbsp;<em>Pilipino</em>.</p>

<p>What commonly confused words or spelling difficulties come up in your classroom? Share them with us in the comments section below. You might even inspire another blog&nbsp;post!</p>

<h1>Related</h1>

<p>See blog posts on <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/lay-vs-lie-lets-lay-this-matter-to-rest/" target="_blank">Lay Vs. Lie</a>, <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/especially-vs-specially" target="_blank">Especially Vs. Specially</a>, and <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/everyday-vs-every-day" target="_blank">Everyday Vs. Every Day</a>. </p>

<h1>Sources</h1>

<ul>
	<li><a href="http://www.pilipino-express.com/history-a-culture/in-other-words/127-the-basics-of-philippino-filipino.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">http://www.pilipino-express.com/history-a-culture/in-other-words/127-the-basics-of-philippino-filipino.html</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2010/04/why-is-filipino-spelled-with-an-f.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.grammarphobia.com/blog/2010/04/why-is-filipino-spelled-with-an-f.html</a></li>
	<li><a href="http://www.hawaii.edu/cps/filipino.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">http://www.hawaii.edu/cps/filipino.html</a></li>
	<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_the_Philippines#National_and_official_languages" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_the_Philippines#National_and_official_languages</a></li>
</ul>


Tricky Spelling: Philippines Vs. Filipino

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<blockquote>
<p>&ldquo;Soccer isn&rsquo;t the same as Bach or Buddhism. But it is often more deeply felt than religion, and just as much a part of the community&rsquo;s fabric, a repository of&nbsp;traditions.&rdquo;</p>

<p class="attribution">&mdash;Franklin Foer</p>
</blockquote>

<p>The 2018 World Cup takes place in Russia from June 14&nbsp;to July&nbsp;15. The World Cup is celebrated by learners around the world. Not only does the World Cup introduce students to different countries and cultures, but they can also learn math, geography, current events, economics, and world&nbsp;news.</p>

<p>The big World Cup news today is that the US, Mexico, and Canada will host a joint World Cup in North America in&nbsp;2026!</p>

<p><a href="http://www.fifa.com" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">FIFA</a> is the official site of the World Cup and presents information in different languages. Below, you&#39;ll find over 18 activities and resources related to the World Cup, which are sure to engage learners of all&nbsp;ages.</p>

<h2>Study the Countries, Teams &amp; Players</h2>

<p>The World Cup encourages your learners to celebrate several countries, their teams, and their players. FIFA lists information about <a href="https://www.fifa.com/tournaments/mens/worldcup/qatar2022/qualifiers" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">the teams</a>&nbsp;and about the&nbsp;players.</p>

<p>Students can create interactive posters sharing statistics and facts about the different teams or players. Encourage students to pick a player or team from a country they&rsquo;ve never visited. Each student should research a different team or player so that all can learn from each other&rsquo;s posters. <a href="https://www.genial.ly/en" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Genially</a> and <a href="https://www.thinglink.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Thinglink</a> are two free web tools to create interactive and hyperlinked digital&nbsp;posters.</p>

<p>Students can create infographics comparing facts and statistics about two teams or players. <a href="https://venngage.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Venngage</a> has several comparison and contrast infographic templates that are free for students to&nbsp;edit.</p>

<p>You can also create infographics with these free web tools: <a href="https://www.canva.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Canva</a>, <a href="https://piktochart.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Piktochart</a>, <a href="https://www.visme.co/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Visme</a>, and&nbsp;<a href="https://infogram.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" rtarget="_blank">Infogram</a>.</p>

<h2>Plan a World Cup&nbsp;Trip</h2>

<p>Students can work in small groups to plan a pretend class trip to the World Cup in Russia or to the 2022 event in&nbsp;Qatar.</p>

<p>FIFA provides information about the countries where the event takes place on their&nbsp;website.</p>

<p>Give each group a budget, the amount of days, and any other necessary criteria. The groups will need to study the currency exchange, landmarks, culture, weather, laws and customs to ensure the trip goes smoothly. They will need to look up ticket prices and come up with a schedule that includes the matches, tours, and leisure time. They will have to plan accommodations, flights, transportation, clothing, dining, sightseeing and leisure activities. Each group should present their plans to the&nbsp;class.</p>

<h2>Follow the Matches</h2>

<p>FIFA lists&nbsp;<a href="http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">when each match takes place</a> in multiple languages, networks, and areas. Encourage students to practice English while watching the matches with the following&nbsp;activities:</p>

<h3>1. Act As a Reporter For the Match</h3>

<p>Students take down notes during the match and report the highlights in a news article or in a short video news segment. Try the free <a href="https://www.touchcast.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Touchcast</a> video producer or <a href="https://outfit7.com/apps/talking-news/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Talking Tom and Ben News</a> iOS and Android app to produce the video news&nbsp;segments.</p>

<p>Students can either choose the matches they want to see or you can assign pairs a specific match to cover. If two students cover the same match, then get them to compare their reporting of the events, jot down the differences, and have a conversation about the&nbsp;game.</p>

<h3>2. Reenact a Highlight</h3>

<p>Show students one of the videos in this <a href="http://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLDgxLNKesJl6D9GsBdjq3lngqH-AYc8Ev" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">playlist</a> of some of the matches reenacted using LEGO characters. Students then recreate one of their favorite World Cup moments by producing a similar video using LEGOs, playdough, or drawn&nbsp;characters.</p>

<p>They could also show this highlight in a comic. <a href="http://www.friendstrip.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Friendstrip</a>&nbsp;is a&nbsp;free app&nbsp;students can use to transform their own drawings into a comic&nbsp;strip.</p>

<h3>3. Act As a Commentator For One Of the Matches</h3>

<p>Introduce students to football/soccer vocabulary, rules, and phrases. Use ESL Library&#39;s <a href="https://www.ellii.com/courses/97/lessons/1476" target="_blank">Soccer/Football</a> lesson to teach learners the vocabulary and interesting&nbsp;details.</p>

<p>You will also want to introduce students to the idioms and expressions used by commentators to describe what is happening in the game. You can adapt this <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/boogafrito/9681785406" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Football Commentator Bingo&nbsp;card</a>.</p>

<p>Motivate students to practice the lingo they&rsquo;ve learned by playing a commentator&nbsp;game!</p>

<p>Play a current or previous video clip of any of the World Cup matches without sound. Provide students with background information about the teams, players, and match. Students watch the video clip at least 2 times without the sound and write down what they want to say as a commentator. They should use the vocabulary and idioms they were taught. Then call on two students at a time to stand in front of the video and pretend they are the commentators while you play it again without the&nbsp;sound.</p>

<h2>Make Predictions</h2>

<p>FIFA&rsquo;s Fan Zone has different options for users to create their own fantasy World Cup team or make their own World Cup predictions. Students can play the digital games listed below or you can always create your own prediction activity based on these&nbsp;examples.</p>

<ul class="spaced-list">
	<li><a href="https://bracketchallenge.fifa.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">The Bracket Challenge</a>: Compete with others and predict the group stage results and knockout matches. Earn points and win&nbsp;prizes.</li>
	<li><a href="https://www.fifa.com/tournaments/mens/worldcup/2018russia/news/match-predictor-heats-up-join-now" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Match Predictor (web/iOS/Android)</a>: Predict the winners of each of the 64 matches. Compete with&nbsp;others.</li>
</ul>

<h2>More Resources</h2>

<ul class="spaced-list">
	<li>Our low-intermediate <a href="https://www.ellii.com/courses/93/lessons/1895" target="_blank">World Cup lesson</a> includes a listening and short reading about the World Cup as well as a few vocabulary review exercises. Students also read a fun story about Pickles the World Cup&nbsp;hero.</li>
	<li>Our intermediate to&nbsp;high-intermediate <a href="https://www.ellii.com/courses/93/lessons/1894" target="_blank">World Cup lesson</a> includes a listening and short reading with basic history about the FIFA World Cup. Friendly and competitive vocabulary games are used to review new words. Students practice summarizing in an information gap pair&nbsp;activity.</li>
	<li>Check out this <a href="https://www.slideshare.net/ShellTerrell/a-world-cup-of-knowledge-teach-the-world-cup" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">slide presentation</a> with these ideas&nbsp;visualized.</li>
	<li>Don&#39;t miss <a href="http://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/2018/01/26/the-best-sites-for-learning-about-the-2018-world-cup-in-russia/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Larry Ferlazzo&rsquo;s Top Sites For Learning About The 2018 World Cup In&nbsp;Russia</a>.</li>
	<li><a href="http://www.eslgamesworld.com/members/games/vocabulary/WorldCup/Worldcup.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">ESL Games World</a> has a fun World Cup vocabulary online&nbsp;game.</li>
	<li>ESOL Courses has <a href="https://www.esolcourses.com/search-results.html?cx=partner-pub-4907793087507170%3A7922225246&amp;cof=FORID%3A10&amp;ie=UTF-8&amp;q=world+cup&amp;sa=Search" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">online games and video quizzes</a> for English&nbsp;learners.</li>
</ul>

<p>What other World Cup activities and resources do you use to teach&nbsp;English? If you want to read more of Shelly&rsquo;s tips for online resources for teaching English, check out her other <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/authors/shelly-terrell" target="_blank">ESL&nbsp;Library&nbsp;posts</a>!</p>


A World Cup of Knowledge! 18+ Resources & Activities

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<blockquote>
<p>&ldquo;The world needs dreamers and the world needs doers. But above all, what the world needs most are dreamers that&nbsp;do.&rdquo;</p>

<p class="attribution">&mdash;Sarah Ban Breathnach</p>
</blockquote>

<p>The <a href="http://englishagenda.britishcouncil.org/events/eltons" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">ELTons</a> are highly regarded international awards that have been recognizing innovation in English Language Teaching (ELT) for 16 years.</p>

<p>Each November, innovators are invited to submit their projects and products for consideration in five separate categories: <em>Excellence in Course Innovation</em>, <em>Innovation in Learner Resources</em>, <em>Innovation in Teacher Resources</em>, <em>Digital Innovation</em>, and <em>Local Innovation</em>. The submissions are judged by a panel of experts in the field of English language&nbsp;teaching.</p>

<p>In March, the shortlisted projects and products are announced and the project contributors are invited to the awards ceremony, which takes place in London in June.</p>

<p>In addition to announcing the winners, the British Council Lifetime Achievement award is given. The blue carpet event is live-streamed for anyone to watch online.</p>

<p>Check out the <a href="https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/eltons-finalists-2018" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">full list of&nbsp;2018 finalists</a>. We wish them luck! Follow <a href="https://twitter.com/bceltons" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">@BCELTons</a> or the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/eltons?lang=en" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">#ELTons</a> hashtag on Twitter to find out when the event is live-streamed.</p>

<p>Below, you&#39;ll&nbsp;discover a list of 19 English language teaching innovations from past winners that provide teachers with free&nbsp;resources.</p>

<h2>Excellence in Course Innovation</h2>

<h3><a href="https://www.moderna.com.br/qrcode-richmond/peace.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Students for Peace</a> (2017)</h3>

<p>View a digital version of the first of its four English series, which helps secondary school students develop English fluency and skills to promote peace and&nbsp;tolerance.</p>

<h3><a href="http://dystefl.eu/index.php?id=20&amp;L=%27%27%272%2Ftrainers.php%3Fid%3D%270%3DA" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Dyslexia for Teachers of English as a Foreign Language</a> (2014)</h3>

<p>This free online self-study course is 10 units and covers four&nbsp;main topics: understanding dyslexia, understanding the effect of dyslexia on learning, classroom management and teaching techniques, and&nbsp;assessment.</p>

<h2>Innovation in Learner Resources</h2>

<h3><a href="https://developeap.weebly.com/resources.html" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Develop EAP: A Sustainable Academic English Skills Course</a> (2017)</h3>

<p>This is a free course for university students based on the UN&rsquo;s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).</p>

<p>Download a free PDF of the course booklet and a file to upload to Moodle with a variety of assessment tools and engaging activities that develop students&rsquo; academic skills as they reflect on their role as responsible global&nbsp;citizens.</p>

<h3><a href="http://www.learningunlimited.co/publications/free-resources" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Literacy for Active Citizenship</a> (2016)</h3>

<p>Learning Unlimited is a not-for-profit organization that provides books and resources to ESOL teachers, programs, and communities with a focus on adult and family learning and literacy. Some of the resources include: the <em>Parents&rsquo; integration through Partnership (PIP) Toolkit</em>, <em>PIP into the Kitchen</em> (a collection of over 20 recipes from 12 countries), <em>Family Learning in Prisons - A Complete Guide</em>, and <em>Maths4Us</em> (three&nbsp;online courses to help adults manage money better and support their children with&nbsp;math).</p>

<h3><a href="https://bit.ly/3riTcS1" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Sounds: The Pronunciation App</a> (2012)</h3>

<p>This was the first app to win an ELTon. It is available for iOS and Android devices. The free version provides access to the Interactive Phonemic Chart in British and American&nbsp;English.</p>

<h2>Innovation in Teacher Resources</h2>

<h3><a href="https://www.tigtagworld.com/clil/mindmap/#/lessons/CLASS00269" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Tigtag CLIL</a> (2017)</h3>

<p>Teachers can access one free science and geography lesson about various materials, their composition, and their uses. The lesson is complete with short film clips, learning objectives, a glossary, a word bank, a description of instructional strategies, and engaging activities. The online digital lessons are based on the CLIL approach and aimed at learners ages 7 to&nbsp;11.</p>

<h3><a href="https://peacheypublications.com/books/digital-video-a-manual-for-language-teachers" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Digital Video &ndash; A Manual for Language Teachers</a> by Nik Peachey (2016)</h3>

<p>The digital book is available at a very low price and Nik Peachey offers several free resources, lesson plans, activities and valuable information for teachers integrating technology on his various&nbsp;blogs.</p>

<h3><a href="http://www.macmillanenglish.com/life-skills/classroom-resources/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Life Skills</a> (2015)</h3>

<p>Find several lesson plans for adult learners to download on a variety of topics, such as social skills, critical thinking, networking, time management, cultural awareness, and study&nbsp;skills.</p>

<h3><a href="http://film-english.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Film English</a> by Kieran Donaghy (2013)</h3>

<p>Find several lesson plans and activities based on film&nbsp;clips.</p>

<h3><a href="http://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Teacher Training Videos</a> by Russell Stannard (2010)</h3>

<p>Features screencasts and tutorials for teachers to introduce them to various free web tools and apps to teach English&nbsp;learners.</p>

<h3><a href="http://lessonstream.org/lessons" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Lesson Stream</a> by Jamie Keddie (2009)</h3>

<p>Previously called TEFLClips. This website provides tons of free lesson plans based on engaging YouTube videos for English learners of various levels and&nbsp;ages.</p>

<h1>Digital Innovation</h1>

<h3><a href="https://textinspector.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Text Inspector</a> (2017)</h3>

<p>Analyze up to 250 words of an English text you want to use with learners for free. Just copy and paste the text into the website&rsquo;s box and a score will be given as well as statistics and information about the difficulty and&nbsp;level.</p>

<h3><a href="http://www.mooveez.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Mooveez</a> iOS/Android App (2016)</h3>

<p>Learn English with famous movies and documentaries. Scripts and subtitles are provided along with grammar exercises. You can also create audio flashcards based on the&nbsp;movie.</p>

<h3><a href="https://www.littlebridge.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Little Bridge</a> (2015)</h3>

<p>The free basic account allows teachers to create 20 student accounts. Little Bridge is an online platform where children worldwide, ages six&nbsp;to 12, meet others in a virtual English-speaking community. Children play games and complete activities to improve their English and learn how to respect and communicate with learners of different&nbsp;cultures.</p>

<h3><a href="http://www.speechinaction.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Cool Speech by Richard Cauldwell</a> (2013)</h3>

<p>Find lesson plans, recordings, and other resources to help instructors teach listening and pronunciation more&nbsp;effectively.</p>

<h3><a href="http://maryglasgowplus.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Mary Glasgow&rsquo;s Magazines</a> (2009)</h3>

<p>Find print, audio, and video resources to help teens learn grammar, speaking, pronunciation, listening, reading, and&nbsp;writing.</p>

<h2>The Macmillan Education Award for New Talent in Writing</h2>

<h3><a href="http://www.onestopenglish.com/esp/eap/eap-for-the-21st-century-learner/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Academic English for the 21st Century Learner </a> by Aylin Graves (2016)</h3>

<p>Find free PDFs of several of the lesson plans from the book to enhance students&#39; Academic&nbsp;English.</p>

<h3><a href="https://www.onestopenglish.com/esp-lesson-plans/teaching-eap-literature-shakespeare-part-3/555101.article" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">EAP Shakespeare </a> by Dr. Chris Lima (2015)</h3>

<p>Find free PDFs of lesson plans to help students learn Academic English and about Shakespeare and his famous&nbsp;writings.</p>

<h3><a href="http://www.onestopenglish.com/skills/integrated-skills/compass/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Compass</a> by Lizzie Pinard (2014)</h3>

<p>Find free PDFs of lesson plans for upper-intermediate adults. Each of the 12 one-and-a-half-hour lessons complement each other and focus on&nbsp;culture.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>What other important English Language Teaching Awards do you know about that recognize the incredible contributions to our field?</p>

<p><em>Our contributing writer <a href="http://teacherrebootcamp.com/about/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Shelly Terrell</a> has attended two ELTons ceremonies for the shortlisted projects she co-organized, <a href="https://twitter.com/eltchat?lang=en" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">#ELTChat</a> and the <a href="http://www.virtual-round-table.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Virtual Round Table Language and Technology online conference</a>. If you want to receive more of Shelly&rsquo;s tips for online resources for teaching English, check out her other <a href="https://ellii.com/blog/authors/shelly-terrell" target="_blank">ESL&nbsp;Library posts</a>!</em></p>
