Being a teacher means you have to expect the unexpected but I don't think any of us could have imagined what 2020 would entail. Coronavirus has pulled the rug from all of our feet; the devastating loss of lives, the fear and uncertainty, the financial repercussions, it's changed our lives forever. Living in Italy, the [...]
I still to this day remember the first time I stood before 15 pairs of eyes, a board marker in hand and the overbearing sense of foreboding that weighed down on my shoulders as they waited for me to teach them something. That nervous anticipation thankfully now feels very foreign and I barely bat an [...]
Why the only teaching voice you need is your own: an important point to remember if you are a developing teacher
“There's just not enough time!” Ever said that? Funnily enough most ELT teachers have. Read my latest guest blog on elt.training here to find out what you can do about it and how you can gain both time and motivation to realise your goals.
Reflection is the most important part of personal develop and the only way to foster a growth mindset, as I’ve written about here and here. So it’s no surprise that I jumped at the chance for a 5 day CPD challenge, which ELT.training have been running on their Facebook page. But what have I learned? [...]
While thinking of ways to reduce our environmental impact, as part of a scholarship opportunity which I'm sad to say alas for me wasn't successful, I started to think about rethinking my whole approach to teaching to take the paperless classroom to the next level. While my idea went no further in the competition, I [...]
Languages are as alive as the people who speak them. They live, breathe, evolve and are influenced by their social and historical context. Therefore, a rigid non-flexible approach is ineffective in teaching as in order to own a language our students need to live it. We, as teachers, need to make sure that we do [...]
As teachers our most influential tool, other than ourselves of course, is our board. It is often also the focal point of the classroom and so it is important that we make the most of our space. Let's face it, we're all guilty of classroom cardinal sins and so I'd like to suggest some ways [...]
I have already underlined how crucial I think the reflection process is in both the development of a teacher and language learning in general. I know I am guilty of spending so much time discussing, planning and crafting materials for my lessons that I can be guilty of not dedicating enough time afterwards to deconstructing [...]
Learning lessons from TEFL 