Hi everyone! Today I started my teaching practices at school and it was definitely amazing. I must confess that I was scared of speaking in public, but as I met my students, I enjoyed the classes so much. As it was my first day, I introduced myself to all the students, in view, to those from 3rd and 4th of secondary education and one of the groups from 2º year of pre-university (bachillerato). I spent 5 hours today at school.
The first class was given to one of the groups of 4º of ESO at half past eight in the morning, what means that their motivation was quite low. I didn’t do anything, I was just listening to the teacher, observing her methodology in class; however, I suggested her some activities I carried out in our class at university and she agreed to put them into practice with these students in time to come. In today’s class, students learned work vocabulary with exercises in which they had to fill the gaps with a suitable word from that vocabulary. Later on, they read a text containing future expressions and had to translate it into Spanish orally. Together with this reading, the teacher played a CD in which a person was reading that text, so students could check the pronunciation of each word.
The second class was given to one of the groups of 3º of ESO. In today’s class students learned vocabulary on action and protest, focussing on verbs and nouns and their formation. In the middle of the class the teacher had to leave because she had to deal with an important issue (she is the director of studies) so I was completely alone in front of the students. I got by better that I thought as some of them asked me about my degree and my Erasmus year, so they could practice some speaking with me.
The third and fourth class were given to the other groups from 3rd and 4th ESO. There is nothing else to add as the content was the same, what was quite boring for me. However, I have to acknowledge that there is a huge difference between the two groups of the same year of ESO; I don’t know if these students were grouped that way in purpose or randomly, but be that as it may, group A’s level is a far cry from that of B.
The fifth and last class was given to one of the groups of 2º of pre-university. The teacher told me beforehand that this group is quite problematic and that the teaching staff of the school is upset with it because of their marks in the previous term. I could confirm what she told me when I saw that none of the students were listening to her. To be honest, I don’t understand why they take this stance because selectivity is coming closer and their professional future depends on it. Anyway, she tried to teach them reported speech and vocabulary on truth and lies, learning words such as ‘to two-time’ (poner los cuernos) or ‘to be economical with the truth’ (no decir toda la verdad). I didn’t really like her methodology as she read every word from the vocabulary and most of the grammar theory, so students didn’t participate at all.
In conclusion, I’m glad of carrying out my teaching practices at this school, as I like its atmosphere. Tomorrow I will give my first class to secondary years and I’m quite nervous, but I hope I motivate them and make them understand the content, which is the future tense.
Hi gyus, here's my day: Today has been my first day in the high school. I arrived at I.E.S Villarrubia at 8.30 a.m to talk to the main teacher of the English department. Once we arranged the schedule, I was introduced to Eva, the teacher with whom I am in the classes as a teacher assistant . My first two hours were with 3rd of E.S.O. group. She introduced me to the class and then she started a new unit. It was related to films and vocabulary connected with that. However, before she started the class, Eva spoke with the children about 15 minutes as a warming-up exercise. She asked to them how the Easter holidays were and what things they did. After that, a girl told us she went to the cinema and that was the trigger to start the new unit. With the warming-up we made a revision of the past tenses and some interesting vocabulary. As for the unit, we did a mind map on the blackboard with types of films and people related this field. Once we finished, we made a revision of the vocabulary with the children and we started to use the student book. It was useful to do some exercises related to film vocabulary. One thing I think it is quite essential is that the exercises were done orally, what makes students speak and practice the language, acquiring in that way more fluency. The last ten minutes we did a “guessing game” by which all the students had to guess the film we have in our mind by means of using the vocabulary seen in the class. The third hour was with 4th of E.S.O. in that class we did a complete revision of the past tense by means of a speaking activity as a warming-up. After that, we started a new topic related to past simple and past continuous. Finally, my last hour of today, Monday, was with 2nd of P.C.P.I ( Programa de cualificación professional inicial). The topic they were studying was “food”. We made a complete revision of vocabulary related to food by asking the students what they remember about it. We wrote several words on the blackboard and then we made an exercise to reinforce the vocabulary.
Firstly, I was supposed to give two classes today, but students from one of the groups of 3º of ESO had an important meeting with the headmaster during the English class time because they had committed a serious infraction. Therefore, I just gave class to one of the groups of 4º of ESO.
I’m so excited because the English teacher let me give the class alone without having prepared anything. Students had to learn the future tense, so the first thing I did was telling them to read a text from the book which contained a large number of examples of will and going to (taking into account that they had already read a text with future expression yesterday). When they finished, they had to underline those verb phrases that express future according to their knowledge. After sharing their comments on it, I asked them questions about future plans such as what they were going to do in summer or where they will be in 10 years time. This practice would be a kind of warm-up activity.
Once students were familiar with the future tense, I drew a brief scheme on the blackboard with students’ help; that is to say, I wrote the uses of will, going to and present continuous according to what students told me, as they had studied this tense in previous years. For instance, I asked them: what do you know about the future tense in English? And they told the three ways of expressing future and most of their uses and differences, what positively surprised me. Therefore, I wrote everything they told me, adding some details they missed and examples that I asked them to tell me in order to check that they really understood the topic.
The last part of the class was devoted to exercises in which students could practice the future tense. First, they filled the gaps of some sentences with will, going to or present continuous and we corrected it all together. Later, in pairs, I asked them to talk about future events as I previously asked them. It was a bit complicated to control all of them because there are too many students in class. However, they made good use of the activity as at the end of the class, they told the English teacher that they had learned so much with me today, what really made my day!
1st April 13 Yesterday, I began my practices. My first class was in the second (group A) of E.S.O. My teacher (Marco Benitez) told students about me, and we started remembering the class before Christmas: vocabulary about weather and sport, and also, will, be going to and the first conditional. Then, teacher gave students some explanation for the following exercise, a reading and listening comprehension. In my second hour, I was in the first year (group B) of E.S.O. with another teacher, Noemí. During all session we were checking exercises about present continuous, present simple, can´t/can, must/mustn´t and about comparatives. 2nd April 13 Today I have had only one class with 3º E.S.O. B because the rest of my groups have been in Malaga. She has introduced me to the students and then I have been observing as she explained what a phrasal verb is. After it, students have been making exercises related to phrasal verbs. In the first exercise the phrasal verbs were related to change positions as for example lie down, curl up, stand up, fall over and sit up; the second is related to travel with phrasal verbs as check out, drop someone of, pick someone up, set off, take off and check in. The rest of exercises will be checked the following class, so they will make these activities at home.
Today has been my second day as a teacher. I arrived at 10 o’clock to look for the class because I did not want to be late. The first hour was devoted to 3rd of E.S.O. Eva and I started the classes correcting the homework and she did a little revision of vocabulary to evaluate that they know the vocabulary requested. Two voluntary students wrote the answer on the blackboard and we corrected together. After that, we used the electronic book they usually follow in class and we started the main activity of the hour: a reading. As a warming-up Eva put a listening related to the text and she asked for some interested information. Then, they did a skimming reading to match some predictions related to each paragraph of the text. Later, five of the students in class read the text and once they did it, we did an exercise using the scanning reading. It consisted of looking for some words in the text with some synonyms, previously given. Last but not least, the students looked for some words they were not familiar with and we gave them a definition so that they got the meaning. The second hour was with the group of 4th of E.S.O. We corrected some pieces of homework and I passed to the students some papers to do at home. Besides, the main activity in this class was a reading about urban legends. As a warming-up, students were divided into 4 groups and we passed to each one a paper with a sentence. They had to do a Chinese whisper: they were put in 4 queues and we gave to them the sentence about an urban legend. They were given 10 minutes to play the game and afterwards Eva wrote on the blackboard what the children had listened to the other mates. Then, students read the main reading and did some exercises related to it. The next hour was devoted to the preparation of some material. Eva and I were in the English department and I proposed some curious activities to do during my period there. We talked about it and now I am preparing some interesting activities. The last hour was with students of P.C.P.I. We corrected some exercises related to food and we used the laptops to do some exercises in the platform of the high school called “Helvia”. Eva and I helped them and answered some doubts in class. It was a very interesting class and I was very comfortable helping them and trying to explain some exercisies.
Today I taught the same group of 4º of ESO as I did yesterday and one of the groups of 2º of pre-university. Therefore, I spent 2 hours at school.
In the first class, I recalled with the students everything we saw yesterday, that is, future tense with will, going to and present continuous. Similarly to yesterday’s class, I made a scheme on the blackboard with the information students gave me about this tense, and I must acknowledge that they knew every details they learned yesterday so I didn’t need to add anything, although I asked most of them individually to tell me new examples of each expression. This means that my explanation was very good and comprehensible yesterday. After this review as a kind of warm-up activity, the English teacher told them to do some exercises on the future tense and they did them with no mistakes. In the last 5 minutes of the class, some of them asked my questions about where they can learn English and I embarked on a dialogue in English with them about it, so I made good use of time with them today.
In the second class, I didn’t do anything important. Students continued learning reported speech and, at the beginning of the class, the English teacher told me to correct the exercise from the previous class with them. After this, I just sit on the teacher’s chair and didn’t do anything at all; I was just a listener, what was quite boring. The teacher explained the different reporting verbs reading the theory from the book and using the digital blackboard to write the following scheme of these verbs:
Group 1: V+(not) to Group 2: V+O+(not) to Group 3: V+(not) ing Group 4: V+ (O)+ Preposition+ (not) ing Group5: V+ (O) + that…
Before finishing the class, the teacher asked them to do some exercises on these verbs for the following class.
Hi guys! Today I have had class with 1º A because the rest of students were in Granada. In this class, teacher has commented to me that some children present individual differences, so I have been working with one of these girls about the present continuous and some exercises about vocabulary. The rest of students have checked exercises about the verb to be in past in the blackboard firstly, and then, they have made a reading and listening comprehension about the president of USA (“Moving into the White House”). When we have finished the lesson, some children have made to me a magic game. They are wonderful.
My third day has been exhausting due to I had to be in class at 8:10a.m. We started the day with 2nd of PCPI. Eva and I started the class with a speaking as a warming-up activity. This helped to students to get and understand the structure “Do you like…?” After that we read a dialogue about food and with tenses in present simple. Once students read it, they asked for some new items of vocabulary and we explained to them their meaning. With that, Eva gave to them about 10 minutes to translate the dialogue of the book into Spanish and then they corrected their own translation among all. Finally they had to write a new one in order to perform it. I helped them with some doubts and I explain some new structures to learn them. The last 10 minutes of class I did a game with them to revise the vocabulary of food. The second and third hours of my practices were tutorials. Then we had classes with 3rd of E.S.O. We corrected the homework and started a new grammatical point: the future. Firstly we read a text in which several structures related to future tenses were shown. Then, with the assistant of the digital blackboard some voluntary students underlined in the text the future structures according with their background knowledge. With that, Eva explained the forms and the uses of the future tense and she made interactions with the class to see if they catch up the explanation. Then we do some exercises and I helped the students with several doubts. The next hour were dedicated to some corrections of Easter homework. Eva and I were in the English department and she explained to me her method of correcting. Then, I helped her and after that she explained to me how she put marks in her notebook for the evaluation. The last hour of today, 3rd of April, were with another group of 3rd of E.S.O. In that class we corrected the homework, firstly; after that, I put a listening to them whereas Eva helped a new girl who came from Dominican Republic. She had to do a test to see her level and thus knowing in which group she has to be. After the warming-up activity of listening, student read a text and we resolved some doubts of vocabulary. After that, Eva put on the blackboard two exercises to do at home.
4th of April Today, 4th of April, has been a long day. At 8:10 we had class with 2nd of P.C.P.I Eva explained to them the countable and uncountable nouns. As a warming-up activity we did and speaking related to that in order to understand that grammatical point. We put in a square several words and students had to guess and classify the nouns according to the explanation. After that, we continued with the explanation and as a way of revision Eva made a summary in Spanish to understand those points of grammar perfectly. These students have an A1 level of English so we have to go slow and repeat several times some points. The next group was 3rd E.S.O. We corrected the exercises and resolved several doubts. After that students had to read a text where they had to find all the forms of future tenses. I put the book in the digital board so as to make the activity easier and funnier. This is new for me, so sometimes I still doubt how to use it and they have to help me with its working. Once they did this activity, Eva explained the form and uses of Future and the students helped her because she knows how to motivate them very well. One of the students asked for the meaning of one adverb and she explained how to use definitely and probably. Besides, I attended to a meet in the English department. It was new for me but I think it was rather interesting and crucial to the working of the classes. I heard how the groups were working and which of them need more time to get the explanations. The last two hours were devoted to 4th E.S.O and 3rd E.S.O. With the first group we did a reading, but previously Eva let the students make some predictions with some cartoons linked to that previous activity. Once the text was reading, some voluntary students translated into Spanish and they do some comprehension questions. We corrected them and afterwards I helped some students to look for verbs in past simple in the text as a way of checking the grammatical point. With the group of third of E.S.O. we corrected some exercises and we do one oral exercise in class to practice the future tense. Students had to create questions and then they had to ask to other mate. After that Eva and one of the students explained together the way to use some adverbs ( probably and definitely) 5th of April Today we started the day with 2nd of P.C.P.I. We corrected some exercises on the blackboard and after that we followed with the reading of a book they have as a compulsory activity on Fridays. They are very motivated with the argument of the story so they told me the story very eagerly. When they read the chapter, Eva and I resolved some doubts of vocabulary. The next hour was with 3rd of E.S.O, with whom we corrected some homework and I helped some students with some doubts about how to use will and going to. Eva explained the future with “will” and “be going to” using the blackboard to make the student copy some examples. Plus, we did some oral exercises to use both forms. With the last group was 4th of E.S.O we did a revision of the past simple tense throughout the text of the book they read the last day. Besides, we saw some items of new vocabulary and with the students Eva made a complete oral revision of the past simple.
Hello! In my fourth day, I taught the two groups of 4º ESO, one of 3º ESO and, for the first time, one of the groups of the first year of pre-university. Therefore, I spent 4 fours at school.
At 8:30, I gave a class to 3ºESO B focussed on “might & will”. I asked them what they knew about it and I wrote what they told me on the blackboard. Then, I made a scheme adding information they missed. When they understood the theory, I asked them to do some exercises using both expressions so that they can practice their use. At the end of the class I played a CD to make a dictation. The English teacher told me that students love this kind of activities, and she was right because they were excited writing what they were hearing. I really liked this class because students participated so much despite it was the very first class of the day, which is supposed to be the time when students are more tired.
The second class was given to 4ºESO B. In the previous class, in which I was not present due to the timetable, the English teacher explained the future tense with “will, going to and present continuous”. Therefore, I thought it was a good idea to revise the theory by means of a scheme on the blackboard according to what they could remember. Then, we had to stop the class because students had to hand in an essay on a topic they had chosen while the teacher was marking it. In the last 15 minutes of the class, I asked students to do some exercises from the workbook on work vocabulary (previously learned) and future.
The third class was given to 1ºB of pre-university. Today was my first day with this group, so the teacher introduced me and then started the class. Similar to 2º of pre-university, I was just a listener, what was very boring. The teacher corrected exercises on the passive from the previous day with volunteer students. Then, the teacher explained those verbs with two objects with examples such as the following:
They gave Daniel the prize The prize was given to Daniel Daniel was given the prize.
After this, the teacher explained “have sth done”, which is called causative have (it was the first time I heard it). Before finishing the class, I could ask them to do some exercises on this point.
The last class was given to 4ºESO A. From the very beginning of the class, the teacher asked them to hand in their essay on a topic they had chosen, as previously with group A, so that she could mark them at the same time. Therefore, I just had very limited time to start my teaching of future continuous and future perfect. I gave them a text containing a large number of these expressions as well as more work vocabulary, which is the topic of unit 7. We read it all together and three students translated it little by little; they found it very difficult because they didn’t know many expressions. However, at the end of the class, they told me they really liked the text. We couldn’t advance with the text because the bell rang and the class was finished.
Today was my fifth day and I taught the two groups of 3rd ESO and one of the groups of 4th ESO; therefore, I spent 3 hours at school.
The first class was given to 3rd ESO A. I recalled the uses of might/will with students by making a scheme on the blackboard according to what they told me. After this, I asked them to do some exercises to practice it. When we corrected them, we worked on reading. I asked three students to read the text and to translate it little by little. When the text was completely understood, students did some exercises on the reading, which I must acknowledge they did it very well. At the end of the class, the teacher collected assignments from those who failed the subject in the previous term.
The second class was given to 4th ESO B. I gave students the same text I used with the other group yesterday. We read it and translated it little by little and when students understood everything, I asked them to underline the instances of both kinds of future, continuous and perfect. After this, I asked them to deduce which the rules of this tense were, and they did it right. Then, I made a scheme of future continuous on the blackboard according to what they told me but I couldn’t continue with future perfect because of the time.
The last class was given to 3rd ESO B, which was similar to that of group A. There is nothing else to be added as they even have the same mistakes.
This was my fourth day, I had two classes. The first class was with the first (A) course. At the beginning students were checking some homeworks while I was checking exercises to the children who present individual differences (They worked about present continuous). After it, they completed the exercise about Obama, they made a listening comprehension where they had to ask some questions about Obama and his family. When they finished the listening, they began a writing that came in the book (students who did not finished it, they had to make it at home).
The second class was with second (A) course. They started remembering what they had learnt the last day: 1st Conditional. Teacher asked them some examples and students said some like that: If it rains, it will stay at home. The teacher explained that the first part of the clause is the condition and comes with present simple whereas the second part is a result and comes with "will+vb (infinitive)". We were also seeing the first conditional in negative, in interrogative and the short anwers. We were cheking exercices about past simple, possesives, etc. Then, students were doing a reading comprehension about "Life in the Year 2060". I answered all questions that students had about the reading. At the end of the class, teacher explained how was going to be the exam of the following day (Reading Comprehension).
In my fifth day, my first class was in the first course. We made the same that the previous day in 1st E.S.O. A. We were hearing a listening about "Obama´s family". After it, we checked some acitivities that children had maden at home. Before to finish the class, we were doing exercises in the blackboard about linking words (but, because, and, etc).
Then, I was two more classes with second groups, we were doing a test about a lecture book that they had read at home "Seasons and Celebrations". While they were doing the test, teacher was explaining to me about "Schoology", a web page with which students work everyday. The exam consisted of 20 questions (multiple choice, matching, and true or false).
Today I've been to Santa Victoria school for the first time in my teaching practice. I am going to work only with students of the second year of secondary education. Unfortunatelly, today they had exams. The first group I've been with, was doing exercises from the school website because 5 students were doing a "retake" exam. I have spent the hour talking to their teacher about the contents of the unit I'm going to teach (Unit 7: future and imperatives). The second group I've been with was taking a vocabulary exam. I have collected the essays they had to write about famous people and superstition. I have kept an eye on them while they were doing the exam and I also had a look at their essays. I'm going again tomorrow and, hopefully, I'll have something more interesting to say.
Today was my sixth day and I spent 5 hours teaching both groups of 3rd and 4th years of ESO and one of the groups of the 2º year of pre-university.
First of all, I have to say that I taught the same grammar points in each year of ESO today. In 3rd ESO, I explained the first conditional asking them what they knew about it and then I made a scheme on the blackboard to make it clearer. When they understood it, I asked them to do some exercises on it from the student’s book and we corrected them in class. Before finishing the class, I asked them for homework to write one of the Zodiac signs from the horoscope using the first conditional. The idea I had for this task is similar to the following text:
(Virgo) “You will be too surprised if things get a little crazy today, so you need to make sure that you’re on the right side of it all! If you have to turn your schedule upside-down, you will do it okay by you.”
Obviously, I’m not sure if this task will work, but I trust my students and I reckon they will enjoy doing it and will write very interesting predictions for the Zodiac signs. Actually, I’m thinking of taking some cardboards and sticking their brief texts on it if they want to, so that their work will decorate their classroom.
In both class from 4th year of ESO I explained future continuous and future perfect after having read the text I gave them in the previous class and having underlined both kinds of future expressions on it. I must confess that they found it very difficult so I had to explain it three times. Be that as it may, they understood it at the end so they could do some exercises on it although we didn’t have time to correct them.
In 2nd year of pre-university, once again, I was just a listener, although I correct some exercises on reported speech with students. They asked me a lot of doubts on this grammar point and I was glad of resolving them. Then, the teacher and students did more exercises orally on reported speech again, but I have to acknowledge that most of the students didn’t pay attention.
Hi! My week began with a group of 2nd, teacher began with a warn-up about how their weekend had been. Teacher made some questions as "Did you have a good weekend? , "What did you do this weekend?, What is the most interesting thing you did this weekend?, What is the worst thing you did this weekend?, etc."). After it to practice the vocabulary related to unit, they made a listening about sports. When they finished all activities, they have to pick a partner and to practice the dialogue of the activity #6, then they will have to present the dialogue in front of the classroom.
Then, I had classes in a group of first year (b). We began cheking homework about vocabulary and then, they made a listening about "Dan´s house after a burglary". In the listening the structure of there was/ there were was being used, so, they were working a new grammatical topic which will be explained in the following days. After it, we were listening the CD of their reading book, England. After listening it, they translated it individually.
Today, I have begun with first (A). They have made a teest about vocabulary.When they have finished the exam, they have practised a speaking in pairs using there is/there are. While they were practising it, I was helping students with their activity, and also, I was resolving doubts to pupils who was doing adapted exercises. Finally, all have listened the Cd about England´s book.
My second hour has been similar to the first one. I have had classed with the other group of first. They have made vocabulary´s test, they have practised the speaking activity. We don´t have time for more, because before their next class they usually take a break of 5 minutes.
Then, I had classes in third course, but Marcos (teacher of second course) asked me yesterday to go with him to explain "will, be going to, present continuous with future meaning and the first conditional". So, I have tried to explain it by means of games where students worked in pairs.
Today was my seventh day at school I spent 3 hours teaching both groups of 3rd of ESO and 4th ESO A.
In both class of the third year of ESO, students took a vocabulary exam of ten minutes from letter A to F. After it, they read a text from the student’s book where some phrasal verbs were underlined. I asked them to try to find a synonym of English to those verbs and I was very surprised to see that they knew most of those phrasal verbs and for those of which they couldn’t guess the meaning, I helped them. Those phrasal verbs were related to action and protest, which is the main topic of this unit. Before finishing the class, I explained the difference between ‘going to’ and ‘will’ to them on the blackboard as it was the next grammar point of the unit. They had some doubts that couldn’t be resolved due to the time, so tomorrow I’ll revise this grammar point again with them.
In 4th ESO A, I correct the exercises I asked to do for today on future continuous and future perfect together with students. Many doubts raised but I managed to resolve all of them despite students were converting my class into a chaos as most of them were talking to me at the same time. When everything was clear, I gave out more exercises and I asked them to do one of them in class and we had time to correct it. The rest of the exercises are for homework. The last 15 minutes were devoted to a video they watched in the audiovisual room I chose for them; it tells the history of English in ten minutes. As the narrator speaks very fast, I made a brief introduction to it by explaining the different conquests that took place in England from the Anglo-Saxon period onwards and more historical details, so that they could had a previous idea of what they would watch. However, thanks to the drawings it contains, students could understand at least what happened in the evolution of the English language. Here you have the link of the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rexKqvgPVuA . I’m glad of saying that at the end of the class, students told me that they liked the video and they way it shows the history of English.
Today I have had three classes. The first one was with 3rd of E.S.O. We corrected the exercises that Eva set as homework and then she explained some mistakes that the students made when they wrote the answers on the blackboard. After that, the class was devoted to a listening related to films. Firstly we put the listening once and afterwards students read a series of questions related to what they listened to. We also corrected some exercises of true or false in relation with the listening previously put. The next hour, with 4th of E.S.O, was devoted to the correction of exercises. Besides we did some extra-exercises of past simple in contrast to past continuous. As a revision Eva explained the differences among while, when and suddenly and how to use them. The last hour was with the group called 2nd of P.C.P.I. I gave the whole hour of class by myself. I was a bit nervous at first but then I started to become more confident. I firstly did a warming-up activity: we played the hangman. I put some words on the blackboard and the students had to guess some items of food. After that, I put a song as a listening. Then the same song was useful to put into practice the vocabulary they had learnt through the week. I gave to them the lyrics of the song which was related to food and they had to fill some gaps with nouns. As their level is elementary, I think this is a good activity to start up.
Today I taught one of the groups of 2º year of pre-university and 4th ESO A, so I spent 2 hours at school.
With group A of 4th ESO, I corrected the last exercises on future continuous and future perfect with students and, fortunately, they didn’t have questions or doubts about it any more. Then, they learned personality vocabulary by reading the words from student’s book and, once they knew each meaning, they did exercises on it. After this vocabulary section, I introduced them 1st conditional. I asked them what they knew about it and I wrote it on the blackboard by means of a scheme. When they copied that scheme down, I asked them to do some exercises on it for the next day’s class.
2nd-pre-university-year group are still working on reported speech and, while I was taking notes, the teacher correct exercises on this grammar point with students. Later on, as they may be asked to write a story in Selectivity exam, the teacher explained the structure of this kind of writing and asked them to write a story for Monday (which I won’t be able to see before I’ll have finished my teaching practices). The teacher read the instructions for this writing provided by the student’s book; some of them were that it must be written in past tense, it could be imaginary or real and, at least, it must be divided into 3 paragraphs: introduction, development and conclusion. After this, the teacher introduced “values and belief” vocabulary, containing words such as left/right wing, agnostic, to disapprove…etc. Then, students also learned idioms on this topic, such as to play devil’s advocate, to be black or white, to sit on the fence, to see eye to eye and to wind sb up. Once they learned the meaning of these expressions and words, they did some exercises on it to consolidate this new knowledge.
Today I taught 3rd ESO B, both groups of 4th ESO and one of the groups of the 1st year of pre-university. Therefore, I spent 3 hours at school.
Students from 3rd ESO B continued the reading activity they started the previous day focussed on action and protest vocabulary. This text contained many expressions of ‘going to’ and ‘will’ and they did some exercises on the reading using them. Then, the teacher played a CD with a listening activity for students; they had to repeat what they heard while completing some questions on it. Once they somehow understood the use of these future expressions by means of warming-up activities, I only explained the theory of ‘will’ on the blackboard because we didn’t have time as the bell rang, so tomorrow I’ll deal with ‘going to’.
Today I gave my last class to 4th ESO A, which made me a bit sad; I didn’t know I could become too fond of those annoying and, at the same time, loving students. The took a vocabulary exam of 15 minutes with the teacher; then, I told them to continue practising 1st conditional by means of exercises from the workbook, so when they finished, we all corrected these exercises and those from the previous class that I asked to do for today. Therefore, first conditional grammar point is already done for this group. At the end of the class, I gave a very brief speech to students telling them that I enjoyed so much giving them English class during these two weeks and they answered with applause.
Students from 4th ESO B corrected some exercises on future continuous and perfect with me at the beginning of the class (at this time of the week this groups seems to be behind the other group, but it is simply because they don’t have English class on Wednesday. Group A, however, doesn’t have English class tomorrow, so this group will quickly catch it up). Then, I gave them a sheet with the last exercises on this grammar point, and we corrected them in class. Before the class came to an end, students took a vocabulary exam of 15 minutes.
Today’s last class was addressed to one of the groups of 1st year of pre-university. I corrected some exercises on the passive voice with them at the beginning of the class. Then, the teacher had to repeat on the blackboard an exercises focused on “have sth done” because students didn’t totally understand it. After this, I taught students some vocabulary on “describing species”, learning words such as lay eggs, prey, offspring…etc. Apart from these words, they also learned some idioms such as getting it straight from the horse’s mouth, to have butterflies in the stomach, to let the cat out of the bag, to take the bull by the horns and wouldn’t hurt a fly. To conclude this lesson, the teacher asked them to do some exercises on this topic so that they can consolidate this vocabulary.
The first class was with P.C.P.I. We have corrected some exercises related to “some” and “any”. Besides, Eva put a sentence on the blackboard and the students had to an oral sentence as an exercise with some and any. That kind of exercise is rather good for the enhancement of the elementary grammatical point. After that, we put a video of cultural manifestations where vocabulary of food was shown. We played the video one time with no subtitles at all, and another time with subtitles in order to see if they got some words. The second class was with 3rd of E.S.O. I started the class asking if anyone know something about New Zealand. This warming-up activity was connected with the reading of the course book, which was the main activity. Students read the text and I resolved some doubts of vocabulary. After the whole reading, I showed a couple of slides in connection with New Zealand and its cultural manifestation. This activity was also done with the other group of 3rd of E.S.O. With 4th of E.S.O we read another the text, but this time in connection to Wales. I helped to them with some vocabulary doubts and then we looked for some verbs in past simple as a way of enhancing this grammatical point. Students, then, wrote down some exercises related to the text.
12th April Today I have had three hours of classes. The first hour was devoted to a reading with the students of 2nd of P.C.P.I. We finished the book they are reading during the whole year and we resolved some vocabulary doubts. After that, we did an oral exercise for the revision of some doubts that they had in relation with the countable and uncountable nouns. The next class was with 3rd of E.S.O. This time I was alone with the students. I put six sentences on the blackboard in English and they had to translate into Spanish orally, taking into account the future tense with will. After that, I did the main activity of the day: a listening. I divided the class in six groups of five people each one and I started saying if they knew famous soundtracks of films. We spoke like 5 minutes and then I explained the exercise I wanted to do. It consisted of the lyrics of the song Skyfall sung by Adele. I divided the song into three parts. In the first part I put a series of words with a similar resemblance among them, phonetically speaking (for instance: can’t/can/count) and they had to choose one word. The second part consisted of putting in the right order the chorus of the song. The sentences were in a wrong order and they had to put them in the correct order. And finally the last part consisted of filling a series of blank gaps with a word they heard in the song. Finally, we resolved some doubts of vocabulary. In 4th of E.S.O I finished to explain the text of yesterday (Wales cultural things) and I showed some photos of the typical food of Wales, together with the main poet of that region: Dylan Thomas. We read one of his poems in English and then in Spanish to understand it well. After that, students were divided into six groups and I put the same exercise of listening already explained with 3rd of E.S.O.
Today was my last day at school, so I had to say goodbye to teachers and students from both groups of 3rd ESO and 4th ESO B. Therefore, I spent 3 hours on teaching these groups, what means that I’ve finally spent 31 hours altogether at school.
As students from 3rd ESO A didn’t have class the previous day because the English teacher had to leave school and I had already finished my classes for that day, the teacher asked them to do 8 pages of exercise from workbook to do at the time of the class while another teacher was watching them. Therefore, today we corrected all those exercises until the bell rang. Needless to say that class was quite boring and students were unable to be motivated.
The English teacher couldn’t come to class due to an important issue so I gave the class on my own. Students asked me if I could let them study about 15 minutes before finishing the as they had an important exam today. I accepted if they behaved properly and let me teach the material I had prepared for this class. We corrected the last exercise of future continuous and future perfect and had a look at ‘personality vocabulary’, for which they did an exercise. After this, I explained the structure of first conditional on the black board and solved students’ doubts on it, and once they understood the theoy I asked them to do exercises on it from student’s book and workbook. We all could correct most of the exercises and, those they couldn’t do due to the time will be corrected on Monday. Therefore, the last 15 minutes of the class was devoted to the studying of their history exam.
My last class was addressed to 3rd ESO B. I continued explaining the differences between ‘going to’ and ‘will’, as the bell rang in the previous class when I started to explain it. Most of the students had some doubts so I was pleased to solve them. Once they understood the theory, I asked them to do exercises on this grammar point from the book. We corrected them in class and, after this, the teacher played a CD to do a listening exercise on the reading they did in the previous class. They had to answer some questions according to what they listened to. I must confess they did it very well.
After my last class of my teaching practices, I said goodbye to all the teachers in the staff room and I couldn’t help crying because I’ve felt at home and every teacher has devoted constant attention to me in case I needed anything. Actually, I have no words to express how this experience has changed my life because now, more than ever, I want to be an English teacher.
I explained "There was/there were". Beginning with my explanation, I said them a riddle with some clues to guess it. After they guessed the riddle, I asked them if they know what were the grammatical elements we were using here. They answered correctly, so I followed my presentation asking about the meaning, and explaining the main difference between there is/there are and there was/there were. In all moment, I tried that they deduced about examples. Finally, I proposed them an exercise where they had to look for the differences between two pictures, before and after a party; they had to say things that there were before the party that after there weren´t. After my explanation, teacher put more exercises about there was/there were. They began this activity at classroom but as they did not had enough time, they finished it at home.
In 3th group, we were checking exercises about passive. In this exercises they had to complete sentences with present passive or past passive. Depending on the exercise they had to use passive in affirmative, negative or interrogative. After it, students made more exercises about passive. They didn´t have the interrogative part clear so teacher explained again, and proposed an exercise where they had to make questions for statements, for example: in the 20th century (When was invented the TV?). To finish this class, whe sqw some false friends as for example operated.
In first course (group a), we checked some WB exercises about "there was/there were". Then, students said riddles about "there was/there were" because previous day Noemí proposed them to bring some riddles similar to my riddle. People who made this activity had a positive mark. Children were enthusiam with the activity the day before, and many were pupils who invented riddles. After it, I worked with people who have adapted activities. They were working about present continuos. Then, while teacher was revising writing exercises, I was checking as children translated aloud their reading book "England".
To finish my day, I was in 2nd B. Students had a test about reading comprehension, so I was checking that they didn´t cheat in the exam. When they finished it, teacher showed me "schoology", a platform similar to moodle.
I had three classes. The first one was with 1st B. In this hour, I was explaining my presentation about "there was/there were" (it´s the same that I explained the day before in 1st A). After it, my teacher was checking writings, and I was hearing how students translated their reading book England. I was helping them with words they didn´t know to translate.
My second and my third class I had classes with second courses. They were doing a test about grammar, so, I only resolved doubts about exam´s questions.
Today, I have had two classes. The first one has been in second A. I have introduced a new unit, "As good as gold". I have explained the meaning of this stament, introducing comparison of adjectives. After it, I proposed them to divide classroom in 4 groups of 7 people to practice an exercises. They had to answer questions about some images made of gold that came in the Student Book, as for example about Marc Quinn´s Siren, Fifa Word Cup, Gold Gate Bridge, etc. They didn´t know many about it, but when we have checked it they have learnt more about them.
My second class has been in 1st B. We have been checking exersises about there was/there were. They had a lot of exercises, so I have passed almost of time working about it. At the end of the class, teacher have spoken about the past (a new tense for them). The next day, we will continue with past and irregular verbs.
2ºC - The teacher has played a track about numerology. The students have done an exercise from their book. Then they have listened to the track two times to do another exercises and then two times more in order to correct it. One of the students asked about the construction "Am I?" and the teacher explained what question tags are. Finally they have used their dates of birth to find out their numbers and what it means according to numerology. Some of the students have read the description given in the book and they have given their opinion about it.
2ºA - This group had to finished an exam because they had problems with the copies last week so they have devoted 30 mins to finish it. Then they have watched a video about Independence Day three times. While they were watching it I have written on the blackboard some words and key expressions in case they didn't know them. They took notes about the information provided in the video and after that they have talk about what they had in their notes in order to make a summary of the whole video. The last 5 mins of the lesson has been used to clarify some aspects and instructions for the following class.
2ºB - Today I have worked with the group of students from 2ºB with special needs. They are a group of 6 students and twice a week they go to a different classroom with a different teacher. They have revised the future with "will". Working in two groups they have written down how to use it, when, which time expressions usually appear with "will", how can we translate it into Spanish and some examples. After doing this one group has explained to the other group what they have done.
Today I have worked with 2ºB. It has been the first lesson I have taught. I started the lesson by asking the students a few questions about sports: Do you play any sports? Do you think everybody should practice sports? Have you ever been skiing? What do you think is the most popular sport in the world? What is the most dangerous sport? Do you prefer watching sports or playing sports? After this acticity, I have introduced the grammar. By reading examples of the imperatives, the students have extracted the rule of use. In order to help them I asked them the following questions: What’s the difference between the affirmative and negative? Do you use a subject with the imperative? Then, they gave examples of imperative sentences in affirmative and negative. Next we have worked with the book. They have completed an exercise about imperatives and 3 exercises about the vocabulary. Then we have completed a questionnaire from their book to test if they would be good team managers. Finally we have checked the answers of the questionnarie and of the exercises.
Hello guys! Today has been my first day at Ferroviarios and I have to confess that definetly I love teaching! I have had 2 classes, the first one with 2nd of ESO and the second one with 1st of ESO. I am very happy with the welcoming that students have made to me! They were all the time asking for my help to complete their exercices. In my first class we have been revising grammar for the test they are going to take tomorrow. We have focused on the past simple and past continuous and their combination, and also we have done activities about the comparative and the superlative. In my second class we have done a writing activity using computers in groups of two or three people. The task was to write an e-mail to a friend to comment something about your favourite sport in order to revise the previous unit focused on sports vocabulary. In addition, in this class there is a girl, called Marta, who needs special attention and does different activities adapted to her capacities. Today she has been working on vocabulary related to the school, the days of the week, the months of the year, numbers and the verb TO BE. I like the experience and I am looking forward to going on the next day!
16th April That was my last day at the High school. We had class with 3rd of E.S.O firstly. In that class, I corrected some exercises and then we learn some vocabulary with suffixes and prefixes. We followed the book but then, we gave the student some dictionaries to look some words up with the contrary suffix or prefix. I mean, if they had the word useful, they had to search the antonym (useless). After that we read an article about films. With that we conclude the session. Secondly, I had class with 4th of E.S.O. As a warming up, we did a speaking about books. Then, we did some vocabulary exercises and finally we played a listening in which many of the previous words (already learnt) appeared. Thus, they could do some exercises related to that listening in the book.
Today I have worked with 2ºA. I started the lesson by asking the students a few questions about sports while I tried to figure out why the projector wasn't working. I wasn't able to find a solution but I had a plan B so I explained the Imperative using examples from the book. After the explanation, they gave examples of imperative sentences in affirmative and negative. Then we worked with the book. They completed an exercise about imperatives and 3 exercises about the vocabulary. Then we have completed a questionnaire from their book to test if they would be good team managers. Finally we have checked the answers of the questionnarie and of the exercises.
Hi guys! In my second day I have worked with 1st ESO group again. We have started unit 7 (House and Home).Students have listened to a recorded audio about the topic of the house and home, and then they have done a writing exercise taking into account the previous listening as model for their texts. Marta, the special girl of this class, has been working with me about the vocabulary of Unit 7 and then I proposed her to create sentences in order to work on such vocabulary. I have asked Mari Paz (my tutor) for giving me permission to prepare some adapted activities for Marta for the next week, and she has agreed. Finally, Mari Paz has given students a series of homework activities which will be checked on Monday.
I had three classes. I started my day with 1st A and 1st B, in these two hours students were doing a test about reading and listening comprehension (during 45 minutes). The rest of the hour we were doing a summury about all things learnt in this unit. Then, I was in 3rd, where we were checking exercises about passive. After, whereas they finished the unit (they revised connectors and false friends), I was looking over some writing exercises. To finish our hour, we began "Unit 8: Sports" where students had to say all sports that they knew to learn vocabulary. (I wrote these at blackboard).
17th April
I had only one class with 1º A. We began unit so I explained them "Past Simple". Before to start I asked them what they knew about past and then, I put examples where they had to say differences between sentences and what they thought about verbs whether these were irregulars or regulars. I also explained Past Simple´s uses, and to put it in practising I suggested a game in group. The game consisted of making sentences with verbs given in past simple. They had to throw the die and to move foward the box. In the box they found verbs (regular/irregular) with which they had to make sentences in affirmative (1st round), in negative (2nd part) and in interrogative (3rd part). When one member of group had the turn the rest had to checked if his/her partner said well the sentence. They were learning whereas they enjoyed. I think that they learnt many irregular verbs and also to construct the past simple, so, it was a great activity.
18th April
I had three classes. In the first hour I was with third where they made a listening comprehension about the body. Before the listening they had to answer some questions as "How many times does the heart beat in one minute?" "How many bones has an adult got in his/her body?", etc.They checked their answers when they heard the record. I think that this trivial game was interesting and that they learnt many about the body and vocabulary. To finish the class, they were making exercises about sport equipments where they learnt many vocabulary and what a compound noun was. They had to look for compound nouns in these exercises to practice this new concept and some compounds as cycling helmet, baseball and baseball helmet appeared in the exercises. I think that it was a productive class for them.
In the second hour I was in first A. They had an irregular test exam (25 minutes). The rest of the hour we were practising the past simple with some exercises in the interactive blackboard. These exercises were very traditional (from my point of view), they had to fill the gap so, a little bored from my point of view.
It was my last class in this group, so, I said goodbye to them. It was difficult for me, I will miss them.
To finish my day, I was in second B. The day before, my teacher had made them the exercise that I had prepared to introduce the new unit "As good as gold", so teacher showed gratitude to me because it had a good result in this class. During this hour, they were doing a quiz in order to learn vocabulary (plain, heavy, light, cheap, expensive, etc). They learnt opposites of some adjectives. Then, they made a listening comprehension about the quiz where they had to checked their answers.
19th April (The last day)
It was a difficult day for me, it was not easy to say goodbye. I was in first B, they had a test about irregular verbs. After the exam, I made them the game about past simple, we enjoyed a lot during the hour. I will miss them. They are great!
Then, I expected to had classes in second A and B, but Marcos had some personal problems and they can´t come to class, so I went with Noemí at third again. They were checking some exersises about vocabulary and the rest of hour, they were listening some chapters about their reading book "British and American Festivities". After they heard it, they translated it. Finally, I checked their translations.
Hello guys! Today has been my third day at Ferroviarios. I have had 2 classes, the first one with 1st of ESO and the second one with 2nd.
In the first hour we have been checking the homework of the last day, and we have completed the activities with the translation of some sentences of these exercices. Then we have worked with a photocopy about new vocabulary of the house (the inside and the outside). At the same time, I have focused my attention on Marta. I had prepared adapted activities for her in relation to the vocabulary she is studying now, House and Home: we have done a memory test activity about the objects of the picture of a house by doing questions that she had to answer True or False; an activity for detecting mistakes in my oral description of a picture of the inside of a house; a Where-is-it activity based on a series of sentences I was giving to Marta so that she could draw a picture of the objects I mentioned in a bare house; and finally, a game including dice in which each number corresponds to a different object of the house, so that Marta identifies it and places in the correct site of the house.
Finally, Mari Paz and I have prepared homework for the next day: students have to revise the vocabulary of this unit for taking a test the next day.
The second hour I have worked with 2nd of ESO. Today they have been split up in groups of 5, 6 and 7 (depending on their levels). Reyes, one of the school support teachers, have come to help Mari Paz and me. She usually comes once a week to help in the English classes with the more difficult students. So, while Mari Paz and Reyes were paying attention to the majority of the students, I was working with the group of the seven students who have the lowest level: Isabel and Nacho are the ones who need more help and they do different adapted activities. Today they have worked on vocuabulary related to the parts and objects of the house, the names of animals, the objects of the classroom, and the description of a mate. The rest of the students I was taking care of are the slowest and more difficult in the classroom. They tend to distract their attention from the activities they have to do and get bored all the time. So my task today has been keeping their attention on the exercices and try to help them. The activity which they have worked on was related to the new vocabulary of unit 6 (jobs): they had to describe the jobs that appear in their books and also in a photocopy. Then we have done a listening activity in which there was a dialogue and students had to detect the different jobs that were described by the speakers.
Today I have worked with my three groups. 2ºC I have done the same lesson I did with the other two groups, the one about Imperatives and sports vocabulary.
2ºA & 2ºB First we have corrected the exercises we did last week. Then I have asked them to give me examples of imperatives in affirmative and negative to make sure they remember what we saw in the previous lesson. Then I have introduce some new grammar: be going to. Then they have given me examples using what the plan to do tomorrow. I have also explained the differences between will and be going to using slides. After this we have done a comprehension exercise. I have played a track and they have followed it reading the text. Then they have done an exercise completing some sentences with information from the text. Finally they have done some grammar exercises to practice the construction "be going to"
Today it was my first day of practices in "las Esclavas". I have been with the students of 1 º A, 1º B and 3º B. The classes of 1º A and 3º B have practically done the same. First, they have corrected the homework which was a reading. The reading of 1ºA was about museums and the reading of 3º B about health and diet. Afterwards, they, both classrooms, did a listening. But in the class of 1ºB, the teacher forgot to send homework the day before, so they had nothing to correct. Therefore they did the reading in class. The problem was that some students were doing much fuss and the teacher got angry. Then she said: “if you are not quiet, I will punish you with more exercises” and she sent seven exercises more for homework. I think is an absurd way to keep discipline. I got the impression that she focuses to much on written English and forgots about speaking. However, in general, most students have a good pronunciation in English. I forgot to mention that in 1ºA there are three students who do not work with the rest of the class and do other exercises more basic because it is assumed that they are slow learners. But honestly I have corrected their exercises and they were very well done.
Hello guys! My second day on “las Esclavas” has been a little boring. Again I have been with 1º A and B. Basically, they have been all the hour correcting the homework. Frankly, I do not understand the new techologies. Interactive whiteboards can be very cool and very nice but it takes twice to correct the exercises. The system fails and the students are a bit slow typing the answers. Personally, I think that if students caught up a pen and wrote the solutions on the board it would be much faster and it would allow more time to do other activities related to listening and speaking. On the other hand, in 1º A, I've been monitoring Rocio, a slow learner who makes easier exercises and I believe her main problem is her lack of vocabulary and bad memory. Finally, I was going to has class with 3ºB but it is the solidarity week, so they have cut classes at 10 to begin a series of extracurricular activities.
Things are getting more complex these days. It's very difficult to follow the same rythm with all the groups, specially with 2ºB because they usually need more time to do the exercises and tomorrow I'm going to have the group with special needs in my class so I have changed my lesson plan to make something more accesible to all the students. Today I've worked with 2ºA and 2ºB.
2ºA We have corrected the exercises they did about "be going to" Then I have explained how to make questions using this same construction. We have done some practice and after that we have done a listening activity. They have listened to an interview three times in order to answer some questions and by the time we finished checking the answers the hour was over!
2ºB First we have checked the exercises they had to do at home. Then I have explained how to make questions using "be going to" followed by some practice. I have also explained that we can use the present continuous to talk about the future and they have done some more practice.
Today, as I explained yesterday, I have worked with the whole group of 2ºB. We have worked with listenings. We have devoted the hour only to this skill because it's the hardest one for them. They have worked individually answering 6 questions about an interview and then they have done two dictations. I have collected the papers and the teacher is going to mark them.
Today, I have only been in the class of 1º A. Continuing with the routine, all they have done is correct the homework on the interactive whiteboard. As for me, I have been helping the three children, slow learners, who make different activities which are much easier.
Hi guys! Today has been my 4th day at Ferroviarios. I have started with 2nd of ESO by doing an oral activity called guessing job definitions: one student had to describe a job and another one had to guess the name of such job. It has been a funny activity and its main purpose is to revise and check the vocabulary learnt the previous day. Then we have made a reading and listening activity from the Course Book and some other activities related to jobs. But most of the time I have been with Isa and Nacho (the two special students of this group). I have prepared two different games for them: for Isa I have brought a cut-out doll and her clothes so that Isa had to say the name of each piece of clothing and also choose a color for it before putting it to the doll. She has had a great time and she loves this kind of activities, because she gets bored very easily and sometimes it is difficult to find motivating activities for her. And the same happens with Nacho: he needs a lot of attention and motivation. The activity that I have prepared for him is a roulette that I had and I modified the other day to adapt it for creating activities. Each box corresponds to a different number and each number refers to a different semantic field. So the activity consists of playing the roulette and then say the name of an animal (for the number 1), an object of the class (for the number 2), a color (for the number 3), etc. He has also enjoyed very much this activity and has shown for the first time since I know him a little bit of enthusiasm for learning English.
Then in my second class I have past more than 2 hours with the group of 1st ESO. We have celebrated the day of the book today, so we haven been reading some legends and myths to the 6th of Primary group, and then they have read us the tales they have made up. It has been an amazing and satisfying activity in which every single student has been implicated and really interested in it. I am very happy with today's lessons.
Today I have repeated the reading lesson with group 2ºC, I have also explained "be going to" and how to distinguish it from "will". After the lesson I have attended a tutors meeting. They have talked about things like the cleaning of the classrooms, and some tests the kids have to take in order to assesst the level of the school.
Today I have worked with 2ºA and 2ºC. The first group has worked with a reading. First they had read the text individually and then 3 volunteers have read the text out loud. We have done some comprehension activities and then I have given them some instructions on how to write the composition they have to write. They are going to write about Rafa Nadal and how sports changed his life. The students had brought their laptops so they had started looking for information and I have help them with their doubts.
The second group has worked with a listening. First we have revised what we saw in the previous lesson and we have corrected some activities. Then we have studied some new vocabulary and we have listened to 3 interviews in which people talked about disable atheletes. We have listened to the track 3 times and then we have checked the answer to the activity they had been doing while listening.
Hello mates! Today has been my 5th day at Ferroviarios. I have only had one class with the group of 1st ESO, but half of the class has not been dedicated to the English lesson but to the instructions of an extra-academic activity based on creative writing. Students seem to feel very attracted by this kind of activities, so I think that most of them are looking forward to participating in it.
The time dedicated to English has been very productive: we have been practising an oral dialogue in order to use grammatical structures such as "What are you doing?" and its answers. Before the students started creating their own dialogues (in groups of 4) they read an example from the Course Book and translated it. The next day they have to perform their own dialogues in class.
Today I have brought a game for Martha (the one that I used with Nacho in the previous class with 2nd of ESO group). She enjoys very much this kind of activity and it is a way to show me her level of knowledge and the quantity of vocabulary that she has learnt before I came to the school.
The last two days I didn’t have time to post in the blog. On Thursday I was with 3ºB. They did two exams, a listening and reading. The listening lasted about 10 minutes and they listened to it twice. The first exercise of the listening was to fill the gaps and the second one was a question with three answer a), b) or c) so, they had to choose the correct answer. Next I was with 2ºB. The teacher explained the comparative and the superlative with the aid of a PowerPoint. After that he made a game. It consisted of comparing two photos. For example, there were two photos, a picture of a rabbit and a picture of a snail and in between the adjective "slow". Students had to write the comparison "the snail is slower than the rabbit" and so on with different photos. On Friday I was with 1ºB. First, they did a test of irregular verbs which was the typical table with gaps to fill: present, past, past participle and translation. After, they corrected the homework on the interactive whiteboard and finally they took the reading book. The book is about England: its population, cities, customs, history and monuments. They read a chapter a week and then translated each into Spanish. The book is very interesting because children learn new vocabulary and a lot of curiosities about England. Later, I was with 2ºB. They did a reading about why California is called “the Golden state”. But before that, the teacher made a kind of warmer asking to the students what they knew about California. They situated California in the map and spoke about the rush fever, Los Angeles Lakers, The Galaxies, Hollywood, San Francisco, San Diego, the Death Valley, etc. Eventually, I was with 2ºA. It was my first class with them, so I introduced myself. They are more backward in the unit than the other class because the teacher was missing on Monday. Consequently, the teacher explained to them the comparative and the superlative and did the game that I have explained above.
Today I wanted to go through all the types of future to make sure the students can distinguish them so I had prepared a powerpoint presentation. I have shown it to the three groups and after that I have done different things with each group.
2ºC I have explained to them how to write a formal letter and I have asked them to write one applying for an English course for this summer. Finally the students have given me examples of sentences using the future.
2ºA We have revised the grammar and vocabulary because they have a vocabulary exam this week.
2ºB We have done some vocabulary excersises and corrected some other exercises they did last week.
Hi guys!Today I have had again 2 classes at Ferroviarios. The first one has been with the group of 1st ESO. We have been revising the exam which students did some days ago. The activities in which we have focused our attention were the ones related to dictation, error correction and translation in connection with the use of Present Simple and Present Continuous. These exercices have been checked on the blackboard. after this, students have performed the dialogues that they had prepared in the previous class. Today I have also focused my attention on not only Marta but also Luisa. She is a girl who has problems with anorexia, so se needs a lot of attention too, because she isolates from the group and does not want to participate in anything. So I am very happy today because I have managed to make her feel motivated and participative in the classroom. We have worked on vocabulary related to clothing, colors, pieces of furniture, classroom objects and the creation of simple sentences by means of the Twister game I used with Nacho the other day. This game is amazing for the students and it is very easy to change the target vocabulary or structures that I have them to use, so I think it is a good idea for the sake of motivation.
In the second class, with the 2nd ESO group, we have been also revising the exams. Then we have been working on the structure BE GOING TO by using it in an improvised dialogue. Mari Paz and I were asking students about their weekend plans and they had to answer. After this, we have explained the grammar point of BE GOING TO. When everything was clear, we started checking homework and finally new homework was assigned for the next day. As usual, during this class I have been working with "the difficult students": the ones with attention deficit disorder, hyperactivity, and Down syndrome. And I have to say that today they have colaborated with me very well and I have felt that they were motivated to do it.
Yesterday, I was with the kids of 3º B. Noemí, the teacher, explained the difference between object sentences and subject sentences . I helped children solving their doubts. Later, I was in the two classes of first course. Both did the same. First, they corrected the exercises on the whiteboard and then, in order to revise the past simple, I brought a game for them. I divided the class in groups of four. I gave a card with questions words (who, which, how many, where etc) to each student; and I gave anwer cards to each group. The objective of the game was to make interrogative sentences in past, using one of the question words, which match with the answer cards. For example, player 1 picks an answer card “pizza”, so he may create the sentence “What did you eat last night?”. So, as the sentence makes sense and it is grammatically correct, the player takes the answer card and places it over the interrogative word “what”. Thus, he cannot use that question word again. The winner is the player who completes earlier his question words card. The game worked quite well and the kids enjoyed, though at first they did not understand how to play. Today, I have only been with 2ºA. I have explained to them the use of too + adjective, adjective + enough and the comparative of equality as + adjective + as. For this, I have used a Power Point presentation and then I have made a game. The class has been divided into groups of three. Each group has received two kinds of cards, topic cards and adjective cards. The aim of the game is to make comparative sentences. The topic cards have to be faced up and the adjective cards faced down. One player picks a adjective card and then he chooses a topic and have to make comparative sentence related to the topic. The sentence can be in comparative of superiority, inferiority, equality, too + adjective or adjective + enough, whatever they like. If the sentence is grammatically correct, the player gets a point, if not he loses turn. I think they have enjoyed the game and they got it very quickly.
Today I have worked listening with 2ºA, they have done two dictations, one consisted of 5 sentences related to sports and the other one was a conversation. After that we have corrected some exercises they had.
With 2ºB I have worked reading & writing. First they have read a text an they have answered some questions about it. Then I have explain how they have to prepare their composition about sports. Finally we have corrected some grammar practice.
Hello mates! Today I have only had one class at Ferroviarios, with the 1st ESO group. In the first part of the class we have been checking homework, and then, the students who did not have the time to perform their dialogues the previous day, did it today.
I have been working again with Marta and Luisa, but today I have tried a new way of motivating them: I have prepared a kind of competition between them in playing some games, such as The Hangman and Guessing definitions. The winner has been Luisa. I am very happy with their attitude in today's lesson, because even after the class had finished, they wanted to continue playing and consequently learning more vocabulary.
I have been in the school Seneca for two days. I am helping two different teachers, Charo, who is the teacher of the 3rd year of compulsory education and Juan, who is the teacher of the two first years of compulsory education.
The first day, Monday the 29th, I was with Charo for the first two hours. In the first hour, we were in the 3rd grade class. The teacher had told them to bring the computers the week before but they had forgotten it. So, she wrote some sentences in the blackboard using the construction “verb + -ing” or “verb + infinitive”. For example, she wrote “Did you remember bringing your computers?” and “I would like you to bring them tomorrow”.
After this brief review, they corrected the homework they had. It was about film vocabulary (genres, characteristics of films, type of audience); there were also questions about their preferences regarding cinema. As Charo is the tutor of that class, they spent some time talking about other subjects.
In the second class, 2nd grade, they had an exam on irregular verbs and I helped two of the students were not prepared to do the exam. The teacher had told me that there were two boys in the class who have not the proper level they should have and they are the “troublemakers”, so they need special attention.
The last two hours, I was with Juan and the courses of 1st grade. They did the exact same thing. They week before they had watched a video of the history of Great Britain within the Roman Empire, so they had to listen to it carefully in order to complete the exercises. They also were given a sheet divided in section A and B. Both sections had the same questions but different answers. The activity was, working in pairs, question themselves and giving the right answer using some useful expressions like “I don’t think your answer is right”, “I’ve got no idea”, “I think you’re wrong”… The teacher asks for some random sheets to check the people who have done it.
These two classes are very different. On the one hand, one of the groups work very well, they do not cause any problem and they are usually quiet. On the other hand, the group does not show the same interest, even when they are the same age, except for one of the kids who has a very good level of English.
Today, Tuesday the 30th, I have been with the same class again, so we finished the activities (because we were out of time the day before).
In the second of hour, I was with the class of the 2nd grade. They watched a similar video to the one the 1st degree groups have watched, but related to the history of the United States. They watched the video three times and then, they answered the questions they were given.
I have not had the opportunity of doing too much in class, except for commenting the activities with the teacher and the kids. Also, I have helped the two students that I have mentioned before with the use of the present perfect.
Yesterday, I was in 3ºB. They made revision exercises for the exam. Next, I was in 1ºA where the teacher and the students were correcting the exam in the board. Finally, I was with 2ºA. I explained to them the use of too + adjective, adjective + enough and the comparative of equality. I used the same PowerPoint that with 2ºB and did the same game. However, 2 º A did not understand very well my explanation. I do not know if I explained it badly or too fast or maybe, as it was the last class of the day, they did not want to listen to me. Who knows? Anyway, I think 2ºB students learn faster. Today, I've been in the class of 1ºB. They have been correcting the exam, as 1ºA students were the day before. Afterwards, I have been with the two classes of 2º. The professor had prepared a listening activity. Each student had his laptop and headphones and they had to listen to the song California dreamin 'and fill the gaps, and then submit the activity to see how many mistakes they have made. This was with 2ºA but with 2ºB the teacher forgot to tell the students to bring the computers. Therefore, 2ºB made the activity in the computers room. Unfortunately, there weren’t enough computers for everyone so; they had to do the activity in two turns.
Yesterday I worked listening and reading with 2ºC. First they did a dictation (like the other two groups did) and after that they read a text and answered some questions about it. After that I asked for stories of famous people whose life changed because of sports. Some students gave examples. We then revised the grammar of the unit and I answered the questions they had.
Last Thursday I had class with 2ºC but they took their vocabulary exam so there's nothing to say about that day. Next week the students are taking what they call "pruebas de diagnostico" so I won't have class on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday.
Hi guys! Last Friday I didn't have the time to post my teaching practices. On Friday I was with 1st ESO group. We did a listening activity for the sake of differentiating the use of Present Simple and Past Simple. Then students had to do some "fill in the gap" activities from the Course Book by using Present and Past verb forms. After this we also worked on Countable and Uncountable nouns. And finally some homework was given to them for the next day.
As usual, I focused on Marta's progress. We studied also the contrast between Present and Past Simple, and looked at vocabulary related to animals living at home, in the jungle, in the forest, in the sea, and in the sky.
Hello! Today I have been with the 1st ESO group. For the first time, Mari Paz has left me totally alone in front of the class and I have enjoyed a lot with this experience. My task has been to check the homework in the blackboard. We have corrected some exercices related to vocabulary of the house and "There was/were/wasn't/weren't" activities. Then we have made an improvised activity orally: students had to say sentences by using time expressions with Past Simple, such as "ago", "last" or "in 2008". After this, we have also made some sentences to show the contrast between the Present and Past in the forms "There is/are" and "There was/were". The following activity has been a listening from the Course Book which deals with a dialogue between 2 people who are comparing the 18th century houses of rich and poor people and the objects that they usually had or lacked. This is again a way to show them the forms of "There was/were" and "There wasn't/weren't". Finally, some homework has been given to students for checking the next day.
Today it was not a very productive day of practices. At nine o'clock, I got to 2ºA and my surprise was that they had to make a kind of test to measure their language and audiovisual skills. The test took all the hour, so I did nothing. I just went to the staff room and started to read a book. Later, at 10 o'clock, I was with 3ºB. The teacher got angry because the students were not paying attention. So she ordered homework, turned off the computer and left the class. Finally, I was in the class of 1º A where they made a listening about child progidies and they talked about Picasso. After that, they started unit 9, which is titled “On Holidays”. They had to look at some pictures of world-famous monuments and identify them. As for me, I've been helping the slow learners, Javi and Angelo, who are reviewing the modal verbs.
May, 2nd The first hour, I was for the first time with the other class of the 3rd grade. They should have done some exercises about when using the “to infinitive” or the “-ing form” but they did not so the teacher explained the same thing again (as she did in the class of the 29th). The two classes of the 1st grade had an exam so we did not do anything else. The last class of the day was with the 2nd grade and we finished correcting the exercises about the history of the United States. May, 3rd Today, the teacher had prepared an activity with the song “Somebody that I used to know” by Gotye. There were exercises about finding the preposition, matching the lyrics, finding the correct word, find the right synonym and the translation of some verbs within a list he had given, note down the different verbal forms and noticing the different pronunciations of the same sound. We only had the time to do three of the exercises and the rest would be corrected on Monday. Also, I went to the pre-school class because I had a spare hour. It was fantastic! This is the first bilingual class in the school, so it is the first year of pre-school education. The teacher only addresses to them in English, which is perfect because they are learning a lot. They listened to some songs which use a particular sound like in /æ/pple, /s/nake, the sound of the sprinkling water /t/, /p/op corn… At one point, they started to sing one of the songs by themselves, without the help of the teacher or the music. May, 6th Today, me and the other girl who is doing her practice, corrected the exercises of the “to infinitive” and “-ing form”. Then, I was in the class of the two classes of the 1st grade. They listened to the song and did some of the exercises I have explained before. And, finally, with the other class, we finished correcting the exercises of the song and I explained the irregular forms of the past simple. I used the lyrics of the song to introduce them because there were a lot of them (felt, said, told). As they have previously studied the past form, I made a brief resume of the affirmative, negative and interrogative structures but using one of the irregular verbs. Then, we searched for the past forms of some irregular verbs in a text of the book.
Today, I have been in the two classes of 1º. Both have done the same. They have heard a listening twice. The listening was about holydays, whether it is better to travel to a warm country or a cold one. After that, I proposed an activity to revise vocabulary related to clothing and accessories. The activity consisted in imagining they were going to travel to Alaska. They had to tell me what items of clothes would pack. Next, I proposed the same activity with a warm country like Egypt. In 3ºB, students have already completed the student book so now what they do is reviewing activities. Today, they have reviewed phrasal verbs I have learn one I didn 't know it "to put up with" (tolerate). This is funny. Students are teaching me new words instead the other way round.
Hi guys! Today we have had less than one hour for our class because we have been interrupted several times due to technical problems with the speakers when doing a listening activity about "A school trip". Basically the task was to match 5 images from the Course Book to 5 places mentioned in the listening. We have also checked homework and then we have made an improvised oral activity in order to practice the sequence "Were you in X place of town yesterday? Yes, I was/ No, I wasn't". Finally, new homework has been assigned for the next day.
Eventually, I have completed my 30 hours of practice. Today, I've been with the class of 1ºA. First, they have corrected the homework, which was a reading and then I have used a powerpoint to explain "be going to". After they have read a chapter from his book of readings. Although in theory I've finished my practices, tomorrow I'm going back to explain "be going to" to the children of 1ºB and on Friday I will introduce the new unit to the students of 2º.
Hello guys! Today I have been working with the 1st ESO group. In the first part of the class we have checked homework in the blackboard and then I proposed the following activity: the creation of a school magazine in which students have to be split up in groups of 5 or 6 people and each member of the team is in charge of a different function: 2 or 3 for writing the articles, 1 person for the layout, another person for taking photos, and all of them for the decoration of the stage in which they are going to launch their final products in order to compete with the other groups for having the better magazine. This idea has been very well welcomed by students, so we will dedicate some time for it each day of the following weeks until they have finished their magazines.
I just got from "las Esclavas" and I'm done. Today I have introduced the unit 7 to the two classes of 2º. The truth, now, I'm sad to leave. At first, I was very bored because I wasn't allowed to do anything. The entire class I was just standing on the corner, observing. But now it is different. Teachers let me explain a few things so, I feel useful. Besides, I'm fond of the children, especially the students of 1º. Definitely, I want to be a teacher.
Hi guys. Today I have had two classes. The first one has been with the 1st ESO group and the second hour with the 2nd ESO group.
In the first hour we have been checking homework in the blackboard and then we have focused on the activity that I proposed the last day: the creation of a magazine. The groups have been split up and the inner functions of the members of each group has also been assigned. This has been a team decision rather than an impossition from me or Mari Paz. I just wanted my students to feel comfortable with their roles and find personal motivation in them. The task of each team today has been to think of the name of their magazines and the type of information that they want to deal with in them. For the sake of it, each team has spoken separately.
Then, in the second hour, we have also checked homework and then we have focused on the use of "should" in relation to the topic of Health problems and first aid. We have made an oral activity by which the students have to imagine several situations in which they were suffering an illness or pain(such as a headache, a broken arm, etc) so that another student adivises him something by using the modal verb "should". It has been a funny improvised dialogue. After this, we have made a writing activity by using the computers. The task was to send an e-mail to a friend who tells you he has a big health problem and asks for your advise.
Last Friday I worked with 2ºC. They asked me some questions about the distinction between present continuous for future and be going to. After solving all the problems we corrected some exercises they had to do for homework. After that there was an event to offer flowers to the Virgin Mary so they interrupted the classes.
Today I have done some revision with 2ºC. After that we have done a listening and a speaking activity. They have listened to a conversation between two boys talking about their plans for the weekend. We have practiced the key phrases and then they have represented the conversation and written their own.
Today it has been my last day with 2ºA and 2ºB, I have played a video in both classes. The video was about football in England and in the US. They have watched it three times and then they have summarize it. After that both groups have surprised me with cakes. They had written letters for me. We have chatted and enjoyed the cakes together.
Hi guys! Yesterday I didn't have the time to post my teaching practices, so I do it now. Yesterday I had two classes: one with the group of 1st ESO and another with 2nd ESO.
In the first our we did a reading-aloud activity and then we translated the text into Spanish. This text was focused on the use of the structures "There is/are" and "There was/were", and also the Present and Past Simple of the verb To be. The text was about the contrast between an old house and a new one. After this, students had to write a composition basing their texts on the previous model, but now they had to compare their bedrooms when they were little children and their current rooms.
In the second hour, with the group of 2nd ESO, we made a listening activity and then we answered some questions in a "Writing & comprehension" activity. During this class I focused my attention on Isa and Nacho, because this time there were 3 teachers in the classroom: Mari Paz, Reyes and me. Mari Paz was leading the class, whereas Reyes dealt with the other difficult students and I was in charge of the ones I have mentioned. I proposed to them to do an activity for the sake of learning how to construct sentences in Present Simple by using vocabulary related to objects of home, pieces of clothing, etc. Then the whole group worked in the theme of "Health problems and first aids", and we focused on expressing advice through the modal verb should. Finally, we did a listening activity also related to this topic.
Hi guys! Today I have spent only one hour at Ferroviarios. I have been working with the group of 1st ESO. Today I have been totally alone in front of the class (and tomorrow will be the same) because Mari Paz is in Seville in a course for teachers. So I thought that I had to take advantage of this situation and prepare a special activity for these two days. So I have proposed them to do a kind of team work competition in which they have to make a power point presentation about a special natural place they know. Today we have arranged the groups (in pairs) and they have worked very hard and being very motivated. Most of them have already finished their presentations. Tomorrow is their turn: they have to show their work to the rest of the class. The best presentation will serve to arrange a scholar trip to such natural place mentioned in the power point at the end of the course. I have felt that everyone has been very enthusiastic about this activity and all of them were concentrated and working hard.
Hello guys! Today I have had an amazing day at Ferroviarios. I have spent 3 hours instead of the usual 2 because, in addition to my 2 English classes, I have remained there during the class of Lengua in order to help the sustitute of Mari Paz (María) in this hour.
In the first hour I have been totally alone with the group of 2nd ESO. We have been checking homework in the blackboard. It was about the topic of health and illness and also the use of the modal verb should. After this I have split up the class into 3 groups in order to do a free writing activity about a crazy and funny story using some of the vocabulary and structures learned during the two last lessons. Each team had different roles for its members: there was a leader (who took the big decisions), an artist (who wrote down the story), the speaker (who read aloud the text) and the rest of members were just giving ideas for the composition of the text. When everything was prepared, each team had to perform infront of the class their stories and all of us had to decide which one was the better. Every student has been motivated with this funny activity and the results have been very good also.
During the second hour, I have been with the 1st ESO group and we have started the presentation of the Power Points. Still there are some groups which have not had the time for their presentations, so we have to continue the next day, on Friday. But again, I have felt that they were very motivated and happy with this kind of task.
To sum up, today has been a perfect day at Ferroviarios!
Today I have worked with 2ºC, the last lesson before their exam. We have corrected some exercises. after that they had asked me questions and doubts about the unit. After going through all the grammar I have noticed that some of the students had problems distinguishing present continuous for future and "be going to" so I have asked one of the students to come to the front of the classroom and to play the role of the teacher. He has explained it to their classmates and after that we have moved on to the students book. We have done some consolidation exercises working as a group. Finally we have talked about the exam, my last lesson and we have agreed on meeting on Monday, the last day of my teaching practice.
Hi guys! Today I have spent only one hour at Ferroviarios with the group of 1st ESO. Mari Paz has come back from Sevilla, so we together have continued with the power point presentations of the students. There are still some groups that have to present their projects the next Monday. I am happy with the students' work and effort.
Today has been my last day at Santa Victoria. I've been with 2ºC and we had some fun activities planned. We have done a karaoke! First they have played a song and they have given me some presents. After that the students have written a list of their favourite songs in English and we have sung all together some of them. Then we have made a competition. I have divided the class in two groups and they have sung a song together. After saying goodbye to the students I have doe the same with the teachers. It has been a great experience and I am very happy with the results.
Hello mates! Today I have had 2 hours at Ferroviarios. The first hour has been devoted to the group of 1st ESO and we have continued presenting the Power Point presentations. There is still one group that has not presented its PwP, so the last day for this task will be tomorrow.
In the second hour I have been working with the 2nd ESO group. First we have checked homework and then we have made some exercices about the contrast between the different uses of the Present Continuous. After this we have also made an activity related to the different uses of "also" and "too" and their position in sentences. The next exercices were related to the personal description, by using adjectives and its opposites, together with some funny crosswords.
Hello guys! Today I have spent one hour at Ferroviarios with the 1st ESO group. During the first part of the class, I have listen to the last Power Point presentation and then I have decided which one has been the best. The wining team has been the one that has talked about the so-called "Baños de Epopea", so when the classes are finished in summer, the whole class is going to plan a school trip to this place, which is here in Córdoba.
Then, we have made a listening activity and then a listening and repeat activity in order to assimilate better the vocabulary of the first listening activity. Then we have started the explanation about the irregular verbs and their past form, in contrast to the regular ones. After this, we have made some book exercices about the use of irregular verbs in the past.
Hi mates! Today I have spent 2 hours at Ferroviarios. First I have been with the 2nd ESO group explaining the use of the modal verbs should and must and also their negative forms. Then the rest of the class has been devoted to revision of homework, and particularly I was in charge of correcting the writing activity of each student. The last minutes have been used to make questions and doubts about the exam they are going to take next day.
Then, my second hour has been spent with the 1st ESO group. We have been checking homework and then we have also revised some difficult grammar points and then students have made their questions and expressed their doubts about the exam they are going to take next Thursday.
Hi mates! Today I have spent two hours at Ferroviarios. During the first hour, with the group of 1st ESO, I have been totally alone because Mari Paz had to go to visit the doctor. The first minutes of the class have been devoted to the checking of homework in the blackboard, and then, the rest of the time we have been revising grammar and vocabulary for the exam that students are going to take tomorrow. In order to motivate them in doing so, I have prepared a kind of game based in the Spanish TV show "Un, dos, tres, responda otra vez": I have split up the class in 3 groups and each of them had to give me an item of vocabulary or had to construct a sentence according to my instructions. In about 30 minutes we have revised all the contents of the exam. They have been very enthusiastic due to the competitive and funny nature of the activity, so I am very happy with their attitude.
In the second hour I have been working with the group of 2nd ESO. First we have done a listening activity about jobs, then we have read a dialogue also dealing with jobs and expressions of personal opinion, and finally we have started a team work activity: in pairs, students had to create a dialogue using the vocabulary and structures of the previous activities. For the next day, students have to perform in front of the class their own dialogues.
Today I have had an examination with the group of 1st of ESO. There were several listening tasks and then some activities focused on grammar points like Past Simple, and also vocabulary, as Pieces of furniture and Gadgets.
Hi mates! Today has been my last day at Ferroviarios. During the first hour, I have been with the group of 2nd ESO and they have took an exam. Then I spent two hours with the group of 1st ESO because I had prepared a game for them that required more than one hour, and my tutor Mari Paz has been very nice in "lending" me her next hour (Lengua) with this group. My activity was an adaptation of the so-called "Party & Co": I have called it "Party & English". So, I have split up the class in groups of 5 people, having each team a leader. I have used the materials that this game has, but I have created my own cards. Blue cards contained True or False statements about grammar points, and also "Do you know...?" multiple choice questions about countries and nationalities. Yellow cards contained vocabulary frames in order to make two members of the same group to coincide or not to coincide in, for instance, an item of food, and so on. Then, red cards contained mimic tasks about animals, jobs, etc. And finally, green cards contained tasks of drawing a picture about a piece of furniture, for example, or even plasticine modelling of some other vocabulary items already studied during this year.
We have had a great time during these two hours and at then end, students have "evaluated" my activity: all of them have coincide in that it has been a very funny activity and they have remembered lots of grammatical and lexical contents studied during this year. So I think they have appreciated my effort and they have compensated it with a big smile to me.
Then, the worst part of day has been to say goodbye to them. I was almost crying and they too, and even Mari Paz. It has been a sad farewell, but before I could finish it, all of them were getting stood up and embracing me. But any doubt, the best moment was when they have given me a letter saying what they think about me and my work with them. Finally, they have invited me to their end of the course party, so I will see them soon again!
FIRST DAY
ResponderEliminarHi everyone! Today I started my teaching practices at school and it was definitely amazing. I must confess that I was scared of speaking in public, but as I met my students, I enjoyed the classes so much. As it was my first day, I introduced myself to all the students, in view, to those from 3rd and 4th of secondary education and one of the groups from 2º year of pre-university (bachillerato). I spent 5 hours today at school.
The first class was given to one of the groups of 4º of ESO at half past eight in the morning, what means that their motivation was quite low. I didn’t do anything, I was just listening to the teacher, observing her methodology in class; however, I suggested her some activities I carried out in our class at university and she agreed to put them into practice with these students in time to come. In today’s class, students learned work vocabulary with exercises in which they had to fill the gaps with a suitable word from that vocabulary. Later on, they read a text containing future expressions and had to translate it into Spanish orally. Together with this reading, the teacher played a CD in which a person was reading that text, so students could check the pronunciation of each word.
The second class was given to one of the groups of 3º of ESO. In today’s class students learned vocabulary on action and protest, focussing on verbs and nouns and their formation. In the middle of the class the teacher had to leave because she had to deal with an important issue (she is the director of studies) so I was completely alone in front of the students. I got by better that I thought as some of them asked me about my degree and my Erasmus year, so they could practice some speaking with me.
The third and fourth class were given to the other groups from 3rd and 4th ESO. There is nothing else to add as the content was the same, what was quite boring for me. However, I have to acknowledge that there is a huge difference between the two groups of the same year of ESO; I don’t know if these students were grouped that way in purpose or randomly, but be that as it may, group A’s level is a far cry from that of B.
The fifth and last class was given to one of the groups of 2º of pre-university. The teacher told me beforehand that this group is quite problematic and that the teaching staff of the school is upset with it because of their marks in the previous term. I could confirm what she told me when I saw that none of the students were listening to her. To be honest, I don’t understand why they take this stance because selectivity is coming closer and their professional future depends on it. Anyway, she tried to teach them reported speech and vocabulary on truth and lies, learning words such as ‘to two-time’ (poner los cuernos) or ‘to be economical with the truth’ (no decir toda la verdad). I didn’t really like her methodology as she read every word from the vocabulary and most of the grammar theory, so students didn’t participate at all.
In conclusion, I’m glad of carrying out my teaching practices at this school, as I like its atmosphere. Tomorrow I will give my first class to secondary years and I’m quite nervous, but I hope I motivate them and make them understand the content, which is the future tense.
Hi gyus, here's my day:
ResponderEliminarToday has been my first day in the high school. I arrived at I.E.S Villarrubia at 8.30 a.m to talk to the main teacher of the English department. Once we arranged the schedule, I was introduced to Eva, the teacher with whom I am in the classes as a teacher assistant . My first two hours were with 3rd of E.S.O. group. She introduced me to the class and then she started a new unit. It was related to films and vocabulary connected with that. However, before she started the class, Eva spoke with the children about 15 minutes as a warming-up exercise. She asked to them how the Easter holidays were and what things they did. After that, a girl told us she went to the cinema and that was the trigger to start the new unit. With the warming-up we made a revision of the past tenses and some interesting vocabulary. As for the unit, we did a mind map on the blackboard with types of films and people related this field. Once we finished, we made a revision of the vocabulary with the children and we started to use the student book. It was useful to do some exercises related to film vocabulary. One thing I think it is quite essential is that the exercises were done orally, what makes students speak and practice the language, acquiring in that way more fluency. The last ten minutes we did a “guessing game” by which all the students had to guess the film we have in our mind by means of using the vocabulary seen in the class. The third hour was with 4th of E.S.O. in that class we did a complete revision of the past tense by means of a speaking activity as a warming-up. After that, we started a new topic related to past simple and past continuous. Finally, my last hour of today, Monday, was with 2nd of P.C.P.I ( Programa de cualificación professional inicial). The topic they were studying was “food”. We made a complete revision of vocabulary related to food by asking the students what they remember about it. We wrote several words on the blackboard and then we made an exercise to reinforce the vocabulary.
SECOND DAY
ResponderEliminarHi guys! Here’s my second day.
Firstly, I was supposed to give two classes today, but students from one of the groups of 3º of ESO had an important meeting with the headmaster during the English class time because they had committed a serious infraction. Therefore, I just gave class to one of the groups of 4º of ESO.
I’m so excited because the English teacher let me give the class alone without having prepared anything. Students had to learn the future tense, so the first thing I did was telling them to read a text from the book which contained a large number of examples of will and going to (taking into account that they had already read a text with future expression yesterday). When they finished, they had to underline those verb phrases that express future according to their knowledge. After sharing their comments on it, I asked them questions about future plans such as what they were going to do in summer or where they will be in 10 years time. This practice would be a kind of warm-up activity.
Once students were familiar with the future tense, I drew a brief scheme on the blackboard with students’ help; that is to say, I wrote the uses of will, going to and present continuous according to what students told me, as they had studied this tense in previous years. For instance, I asked them: what do you know about the future tense in English? And they told the three ways of expressing future and most of their uses and differences, what positively surprised me. Therefore, I wrote everything they told me, adding some details they missed and examples that I asked them to tell me in order to check that they really understood the topic.
The last part of the class was devoted to exercises in which students could practice the future tense. First, they filled the gaps of some sentences with will, going to or present continuous and we corrected it all together. Later, in pairs, I asked them to talk about future events as I previously asked them. It was a bit complicated to control all of them because there are too many students in class. However, they made good use of the activity as at the end of the class, they told the English teacher that they had learned so much with me today, what really made my day!
1st April 13
ResponderEliminarYesterday, I began my practices. My first class was in the second (group A) of E.S.O. My teacher (Marco Benitez) told students about me, and we started remembering the class before Christmas: vocabulary about weather and sport, and also, will, be going to and the first conditional.
Then, teacher gave students some explanation for the following exercise, a reading and listening comprehension.
In my second hour, I was in the first year (group B) of E.S.O. with another teacher, Noemí. During all session we were checking exercises about present continuous, present simple, can´t/can, must/mustn´t and about comparatives.
2nd April 13
Today I have had only one class with 3º E.S.O. B because the rest of my groups have been in Malaga. She has introduced me to the students and then I have been observing as she explained what a phrasal verb is. After it, students have been making exercises related to phrasal verbs. In the first exercise the phrasal verbs were related to change positions as for example lie down, curl up, stand up, fall over and sit up; the second is related to travel with phrasal verbs as check out, drop someone of, pick someone up, set off, take off and check in. The rest of exercises will be checked the following class, so they will make these activities at home.
Today has been my second day as a teacher. I arrived at 10 o’clock to look for the class because I did not want to be late. The first hour was devoted to 3rd of E.S.O. Eva and I started the classes correcting the homework and she did a little revision of vocabulary to evaluate that they know the vocabulary requested. Two voluntary students wrote the answer on the blackboard and we corrected together. After that, we used the electronic book they usually follow in class and we started the main activity of the hour: a reading. As a warming-up Eva put a listening related to the text and she asked for some interested information. Then, they did a skimming reading to match some predictions related to each paragraph of the text. Later, five of the students in class read the text and once they did it, we did an exercise using the scanning reading. It consisted of looking for some words in the text with some synonyms, previously given. Last but not least, the students looked for some words they were not familiar with and we gave them a definition so that they got the meaning.
ResponderEliminarThe second hour was with the group of 4th of E.S.O. We corrected some pieces of homework and I passed to the students some papers to do at home. Besides, the main activity in this class was a reading about urban legends. As a warming-up, students were divided into 4 groups and we passed to each one a paper with a sentence. They had to do a Chinese whisper: they were put in 4 queues and we gave to them the sentence about an urban legend. They were given 10 minutes to play the game and afterwards Eva wrote on the blackboard what the children had listened to the other mates. Then, students read the main reading and did some exercises related to it.
The next hour was devoted to the preparation of some material. Eva and I were in the English department and I proposed some curious activities to do during my period there. We talked about it and now I am preparing some interesting activities.
The last hour was with students of P.C.P.I. We corrected some exercises related to food and we used the laptops to do some exercises in the platform of the high school called “Helvia”. Eva and I helped them and answered some doubts in class. It was a very interesting class and I was very comfortable helping them and trying to explain some exercisies.
THIRD DAY
ResponderEliminarHello!
Today I taught the same group of 4º of ESO as I did yesterday and one of the groups of 2º of pre-university. Therefore, I spent 2 hours at school.
In the first class, I recalled with the students everything we saw yesterday, that is, future tense with will, going to and present continuous. Similarly to yesterday’s class, I made a scheme on the blackboard with the information students gave me about this tense, and I must acknowledge that they knew every details they learned yesterday so I didn’t need to add anything, although I asked most of them individually to tell me new examples of each expression. This means that my explanation was very good and comprehensible yesterday. After this review as a kind of warm-up activity, the English teacher told them to do some exercises on the future tense and they did them with no mistakes. In the last 5 minutes of the class, some of them asked my questions about where they can learn English and I embarked on a dialogue in English with them about it, so I made good use of time with them today.
In the second class, I didn’t do anything important. Students continued learning reported speech and, at the beginning of the class, the English teacher told me to correct the exercise from the previous class with them. After this, I just sit on the teacher’s chair and didn’t do anything at all; I was just a listener, what was quite boring. The teacher explained the different reporting verbs reading the theory from the book and using the digital blackboard to write the following scheme of these verbs:
Group 1: V+(not) to
Group 2: V+O+(not) to
Group 3: V+(not) ing
Group 4: V+ (O)+ Preposition+ (not) ing
Group5: V+ (O) + that…
Before finishing the class, the teacher asked them to do some exercises on these verbs for the following class.
Hi guys! Today I have had class with 1º A because the rest of students were in Granada. In this class, teacher has commented to me that some children present individual differences, so I have been working with one of these girls about the present continuous and some exercises about vocabulary. The rest of students have checked exercises about the verb to be in past in the blackboard firstly, and then, they have made a reading and listening comprehension about the president of USA (“Moving into the White House”). When we have finished the lesson, some children have made to me a magic game. They are wonderful.
ResponderEliminarMy third day has been exhausting due to I had to be in class at 8:10a.m. We started the day with 2nd of PCPI. Eva and I started the class with a speaking as a warming-up activity. This helped to students to get and understand the structure “Do you like…?” After that we read a dialogue about food and with tenses in present simple. Once students read it, they asked for some new items of vocabulary and we explained to them their meaning. With that, Eva gave to them about 10 minutes to translate the dialogue of the book into Spanish and then they corrected their own translation among all. Finally they had to write a new one in order to perform it. I helped them with some doubts and I explain some new structures to learn them. The last 10 minutes of class I did a game with them to revise the vocabulary of food.
ResponderEliminarThe second and third hours of my practices were tutorials. Then we had classes with 3rd of E.S.O. We corrected the homework and started a new grammatical point: the future. Firstly we read a text in which several structures related to future tenses were shown. Then, with the assistant of the digital blackboard some voluntary students underlined in the text the future structures according with their background knowledge. With that, Eva explained the forms and the uses of the future tense and she made interactions with the class to see if they catch up the explanation. Then we do some exercises and I helped the students with several doubts. The next hour were dedicated to some corrections of Easter homework. Eva and I were in the English department and she explained to me her method of correcting. Then, I helped her and after that she explained to me how she put marks in her notebook for the evaluation.
The last hour of today, 3rd of April, were with another group of 3rd of E.S.O. In that class we corrected the homework, firstly; after that, I put a listening to them whereas Eva helped a new girl who came from Dominican Republic. She had to do a test to see her level and thus knowing in which group she has to be. After the warming-up activity of listening, student read a text and we resolved some doubts of vocabulary. After that, Eva put on the blackboard two exercises to do at home.
Here are my two last days of the week:
ResponderEliminar4th of April
Today, 4th of April, has been a long day. At 8:10 we had class with 2nd of P.C.P.I Eva explained to them the countable and uncountable nouns. As a warming-up activity we did and speaking related to that in order to understand that grammatical point. We put in a square several words and students had to guess and classify the nouns according to the explanation. After that, we continued with the explanation and as a way of revision Eva made a summary in Spanish to understand those points of grammar perfectly. These students have an A1 level of English so we have to go slow and repeat several times some points.
The next group was 3rd E.S.O. We corrected the exercises and resolved several doubts. After that students had to read a text where they had to find all the forms of future tenses. I put the book in the digital board so as to make the activity easier and funnier. This is new for me, so sometimes I still doubt how to use it and they have to help me with its working. Once they did this activity, Eva explained the form and uses of Future and the students helped her because she knows how to motivate them very well. One of the students asked for the meaning of one adverb and she explained how to use definitely and probably.
Besides, I attended to a meet in the English department. It was new for me but I think it was rather interesting and crucial to the working of the classes. I heard how the groups were working and which of them need more time to get the explanations.
The last two hours were devoted to 4th E.S.O and 3rd E.S.O. With the first group we did a reading, but previously Eva let the students make some predictions with some cartoons linked to that previous activity. Once the text was reading, some voluntary students translated into Spanish and they do some comprehension questions. We corrected them and afterwards I helped some students to look for verbs in past simple in the text as a way of checking the grammatical point. With the group of third of E.S.O. we corrected some exercises and we do one oral exercise in class to practice the future tense. Students had to create questions and then they had to ask to other mate. After that Eva and one of the students explained together the way to use some adverbs ( probably and definitely)
5th of April
Today we started the day with 2nd of P.C.P.I. We corrected some exercises on the blackboard and after that we followed with the reading of a book they have as a compulsory activity on Fridays. They are very motivated with the argument of the story so they told me the story very eagerly. When they read the chapter, Eva and I resolved some doubts of vocabulary.
The next hour was with 3rd of E.S.O, with whom we corrected some homework and I helped some students with some doubts about how to use will and going to. Eva explained the future with “will” and “be going to” using the blackboard to make the student copy some examples. Plus, we did some oral exercises to use both forms.
With the last group was 4th of E.S.O we did a revision of the past simple tense throughout the text of the book they read the last day. Besides, we saw some items of new vocabulary and with the students Eva made a complete oral revision of the past simple.
FOURTH DAY
ResponderEliminarHello! In my fourth day, I taught the two groups of 4º ESO, one of 3º ESO and, for the first time, one of the groups of the first year of pre-university. Therefore, I spent 4 fours at school.
At 8:30, I gave a class to 3ºESO B focussed on “might & will”. I asked them what they knew about it and I wrote what they told me on the blackboard. Then, I made a scheme adding information they missed. When they understood the theory, I asked them to do some exercises using both expressions so that they can practice their use. At the end of the class I played a CD to make a dictation. The English teacher told me that students love this kind of activities, and she was right because they were excited writing what they were hearing. I really liked this class because students participated so much despite it was the very first class of the day, which is supposed to be the time when students are more tired.
The second class was given to 4ºESO B. In the previous class, in which I was not present due to the timetable, the English teacher explained the future tense with “will, going to and present continuous”. Therefore, I thought it was a good idea to revise the theory by means of a scheme on the blackboard according to what they could remember. Then, we had to stop the class because students had to hand in an essay on a topic they had chosen while the teacher was marking it. In the last 15 minutes of the class, I asked students to do some exercises from the workbook on work vocabulary (previously learned) and future.
The third class was given to 1ºB of pre-university. Today was my first day with this group, so the teacher introduced me and then started the class. Similar to 2º of pre-university, I was just a listener, what was very boring. The teacher corrected exercises on the passive from the previous day with volunteer students. Then, the teacher explained those verbs with two objects with examples such as the following:
They gave Daniel the prize The prize was given to Daniel Daniel was given the prize.
After this, the teacher explained “have sth done”, which is called causative have (it was the first time I heard it). Before finishing the class, I could ask them to do some exercises on this point.
The last class was given to 4ºESO A. From the very beginning of the class, the teacher asked them to hand in their essay on a topic they had chosen, as previously with group A, so that she could mark them at the same time. Therefore, I just had very limited time to start my teaching of future continuous and future perfect. I gave them a text containing a large number of these expressions as well as more work vocabulary, which is the topic of unit 7. We read it all together and three students translated it little by little; they found it very difficult because they didn’t know many expressions. However, at the end of the class, they told me they really liked the text. We couldn’t advance with the text because the bell rang and the class was finished.
FIFTH DAY
ResponderEliminarToday was my fifth day and I taught the two groups of 3rd ESO and one of the groups of 4th ESO; therefore, I spent 3 hours at school.
The first class was given to 3rd ESO A. I recalled the uses of might/will with students by making a scheme on the blackboard according to what they told me. After this, I asked them to do some exercises to practice it. When we corrected them, we worked on reading. I asked three students to read the text and to translate it little by little. When the text was completely understood, students did some exercises on the reading, which I must acknowledge they did it very well. At the end of the class, the teacher collected assignments from those who failed the subject in the previous term.
The second class was given to 4th ESO B. I gave students the same text I used with the other group yesterday. We read it and translated it little by little and when students understood everything, I asked them to underline the instances of both kinds of future, continuous and perfect. After this, I asked them to deduce which the rules of this tense were, and they did it right. Then, I made a scheme of future continuous on the blackboard according to what they told me but I couldn’t continue with future perfect because of the time.
The last class was given to 3rd ESO B, which was similar to that of group A. There is nothing else to be added as they even have the same mistakes.
4th of April
ResponderEliminarThis was my fourth day, I had two classes. The first class was with the first (A) course. At the beginning students were checking some homeworks while I was checking exercises to the children who present individual differences (They worked about present continuous). After it, they completed the exercise about Obama, they made a listening comprehension where they had to ask some questions about Obama and his family. When they finished the listening, they began a writing that came in the book (students who did not finished it, they had to make it at home).
The second class was with second (A) course. They started remembering what they had learnt the last day: 1st Conditional. Teacher asked them some examples and students said some like that: If it rains, it will stay at home. The teacher explained that the first part of the clause is the condition and comes with present simple whereas the second part is a result and comes with "will+vb (infinitive)". We were also seeing the first conditional in negative, in interrogative and the short anwers. We were cheking exercices about past simple, possesives, etc. Then, students were doing a reading comprehension about "Life in the Year 2060". I answered all questions that students had about the reading. At the end of the class, teacher explained how was going to be the exam of the following day (Reading Comprehension).
In my fifth day, my first class was in the first course. We made the same that the previous day in 1st E.S.O. A. We were hearing a listening about "Obama´s family". After it, we checked some acitivities that children had maden at home. Before to finish the class, we were doing exercises in the blackboard about linking words (but, because, and, etc).
Then, I was two more classes with second groups, we were doing a test about a lecture book that they had read at home "Seasons and Celebrations". While they were doing the test, teacher was explaining to me about "Schoology", a web page with which students work everyday. The exam consisted of 20 questions (multiple choice, matching, and true or false).
First day
ResponderEliminarToday I've been to Santa Victoria school for the first time in my teaching practice. I am going to work only with students of the second year of secondary education. Unfortunatelly, today they had exams.
The first group I've been with, was doing exercises from the school website because 5 students were doing a "retake" exam. I have spent the hour talking to their teacher about the contents of the unit I'm going to teach (Unit 7: future and imperatives).
The second group I've been with was taking a vocabulary exam. I have collected the essays they had to write about famous people and superstition. I have kept an eye on them while they were doing the exam and I also had a look at their essays.
I'm going again tomorrow and, hopefully, I'll have something more interesting to say.
SIXTH DAY
ResponderEliminarToday was my sixth day and I spent 5 hours teaching both groups of 3rd and 4th years of ESO and one of the groups of the 2º year of pre-university.
First of all, I have to say that I taught the same grammar points in each year of ESO today. In 3rd ESO, I explained the first conditional asking them what they knew about it and then I made a scheme on the blackboard to make it clearer. When they understood it, I asked them to do some exercises on it from the student’s book and we corrected them in class. Before finishing the class, I asked them for homework to write one of the Zodiac signs from the horoscope using the first conditional. The idea I had for this task is similar to the following text:
(Virgo) “You will be too surprised if things get a little crazy today, so you need to make sure that you’re on the right side of it all! If you have to turn your schedule upside-down, you will do it okay by you.”
Obviously, I’m not sure if this task will work, but I trust my students and I reckon they will enjoy doing it and will write very interesting predictions for the Zodiac signs. Actually, I’m thinking of taking some cardboards and sticking their brief texts on it if they want to, so that their work will decorate their classroom.
In both class from 4th year of ESO I explained future continuous and future perfect after having read the text I gave them in the previous class and having underlined both kinds of future expressions on it. I must confess that they found it very difficult so I had to explain it three times. Be that as it may, they understood it at the end so they could do some exercises on it although we didn’t have time to correct them.
In 2nd year of pre-university, once again, I was just a listener, although I correct some exercises on reported speech with students. They asked me a lot of doubts on this grammar point and I was glad of resolving them. Then, the teacher and students did more exercises orally on reported speech again, but I have to acknowledge that most of the students didn’t pay attention.
Hi! My week began with a group of 2nd, teacher began with a warn-up about how their weekend had been. Teacher made some questions as "Did you have a good weekend? , "What did you do this weekend?, What is the most interesting thing you did this weekend?, What is the worst thing you did this weekend?, etc."). After it to practice the vocabulary related to unit, they made a listening about sports. When they finished all activities, they have to pick a partner and to practice the dialogue of the activity #6, then they will have to present the dialogue in front of the classroom.
ResponderEliminarThen, I had classes in a group of first year (b). We began cheking homework about vocabulary and then, they made a listening about "Dan´s house after a burglary". In the listening the structure of there was/ there were was being used, so, they were working a new grammatical topic which will be explained in the following days. After it, we were listening the CD of their reading book, England. After listening it, they translated it individually.
Today, I have begun with first (A). They have made a teest about vocabulary.When they have finished the exam, they have practised a speaking in pairs using there is/there are. While they were practising it, I was helping students with their activity, and also, I was resolving doubts to pupils who was doing adapted exercises. Finally, all have listened the Cd about England´s book.
My second hour has been similar to the first one. I have had classed with the other group of first. They have made vocabulary´s test, they have practised the speaking activity. We don´t have time for more, because before their next class they usually take a break of 5 minutes.
Then, I had classes in third course, but Marcos (teacher of second course) asked me yesterday to go with him to explain "will, be going to, present continuous with future meaning and the first conditional". So, I have tried to explain it by means of games where students worked in pairs.
SEVENTH DAY
ResponderEliminarToday was my seventh day at school I spent 3 hours teaching both groups of 3rd of ESO and 4th ESO A.
In both class of the third year of ESO, students took a vocabulary exam of ten minutes from letter A to F. After it, they read a text from the student’s book where some phrasal verbs were underlined. I asked them to try to find a synonym of English to those verbs and I was very surprised to see that they knew most of those phrasal verbs and for those of which they couldn’t guess the meaning, I helped them. Those phrasal verbs were related to action and protest, which is the main topic of this unit. Before finishing the class, I explained the difference between ‘going to’ and ‘will’ to them on the blackboard as it was the next grammar point of the unit. They had some doubts that couldn’t be resolved due to the time, so tomorrow I’ll revise this grammar point again with them.
In 4th ESO A, I correct the exercises I asked to do for today on future continuous and future perfect together with students. Many doubts raised but I managed to resolve all of them despite students were converting my class into a chaos as most of them were talking to me at the same time. When everything was clear, I gave out more exercises and I asked them to do one of them in class and we had time to correct it. The rest of the exercises are for homework. The last 15 minutes were devoted to a video they watched in the audiovisual room I chose for them; it tells the history of English in ten minutes. As the narrator speaks very fast, I made a brief introduction to it by explaining the different conquests that took place in England from the Anglo-Saxon period onwards and more historical details, so that they could had a previous idea of what they would watch. However, thanks to the drawings it contains, students could understand at least what happened in the evolution of the English language. Here you have the link of the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rexKqvgPVuA . I’m glad of saying that at the end of the class, students told me that they liked the video and they way it shows the history of English.
Today I have had three classes. The first one was with 3rd of E.S.O. We corrected the exercises that Eva set as homework and then she explained some mistakes that the students made when they wrote the answers on the blackboard. After that, the class was devoted to a listening related to films. Firstly we put the listening once and afterwards students read a series of questions related to what they listened to. We also corrected some exercises of true or false in relation with the listening previously put.
ResponderEliminarThe next hour, with 4th of E.S.O, was devoted to the correction of exercises. Besides we did some extra-exercises of past simple in contrast to past continuous. As a revision Eva explained the differences among while, when and suddenly and how to use them.
The last hour was with the group called 2nd of P.C.P.I. I gave the whole hour of class by myself. I was a bit nervous at first but then I started to become more confident. I firstly did a warming-up activity: we played the hangman. I put some words on the blackboard and the students had to guess some items of food. After that, I put a song as a listening. Then the same song was useful to put into practice the vocabulary they had learnt through the week. I gave to them the lyrics of the song which was related to food and they had to fill some gaps with nouns. As their level is elementary, I think this is a good activity to start up.
EIGHTH DAY
ResponderEliminarToday I taught one of the groups of 2º year of pre-university and 4th ESO A, so I spent 2 hours at school.
With group A of 4th ESO, I corrected the last exercises on future continuous and future perfect with students and, fortunately, they didn’t have questions or doubts about it any more. Then, they learned personality vocabulary by reading the words from student’s book and, once they knew each meaning, they did exercises on it. After this vocabulary section, I introduced them 1st conditional. I asked them what they knew about it and I wrote it on the blackboard by means of a scheme. When they copied that scheme down, I asked them to do some exercises on it for the next day’s class.
2nd-pre-university-year group are still working on reported speech and, while I was taking notes, the teacher correct exercises on this grammar point with students. Later on, as they may be asked to write a story in Selectivity exam, the teacher explained the structure of this kind of writing and asked them to write a story for Monday (which I won’t be able to see before I’ll have finished my teaching practices). The teacher read the instructions for this writing provided by the student’s book; some of them were that it must be written in past tense, it could be imaginary or real and, at least, it must be divided into 3 paragraphs: introduction, development and conclusion. After this, the teacher introduced “values and belief” vocabulary, containing words such as left/right wing, agnostic, to disapprove…etc. Then, students also learned idioms on this topic, such as to play devil’s advocate, to be black or white, to sit on the fence, to see eye to eye and to wind sb up. Once they learned the meaning of these expressions and words, they did some exercises on it to consolidate this new knowledge.
NINTH DAY
ResponderEliminarToday I taught 3rd ESO B, both groups of 4th ESO and one of the groups of the 1st year of pre-university. Therefore, I spent 3 hours at school.
Students from 3rd ESO B continued the reading activity they started the previous day focussed on action and protest vocabulary. This text contained many expressions of ‘going to’ and ‘will’ and they did some exercises on the reading using them. Then, the teacher played a CD with a listening activity for students; they had to repeat what they heard while completing some questions on it. Once they somehow understood the use of these future expressions by means of warming-up activities, I only explained the theory of ‘will’ on the blackboard because we didn’t have time as the bell rang, so tomorrow I’ll deal with ‘going to’.
Today I gave my last class to 4th ESO A, which made me a bit sad; I didn’t know I could become too fond of those annoying and, at the same time, loving students. The took a vocabulary exam of 15 minutes with the teacher; then, I told them to continue practising 1st conditional by means of exercises from the workbook, so when they finished, we all corrected these exercises and those from the previous class that I asked to do for today. Therefore, first conditional grammar point is already done for this group. At the end of the class, I gave a very brief speech to students telling them that I enjoyed so much giving them English class during these two weeks and they answered with applause.
Students from 4th ESO B corrected some exercises on future continuous and perfect with me at the beginning of the class (at this time of the week this groups seems to be behind the other group, but it is simply because they don’t have English class on Wednesday. Group A, however, doesn’t have English class tomorrow, so this group will quickly catch it up). Then, I gave them a sheet with the last exercises on this grammar point, and we corrected them in class. Before the class came to an end, students took a vocabulary exam of 15 minutes.
Today’s last class was addressed to one of the groups of 1st year of pre-university. I corrected some exercises on the passive voice with them at the beginning of the class. Then, the teacher had to repeat on the blackboard an exercises focused on “have sth done” because students didn’t totally understand it. After this, I taught students some vocabulary on “describing species”, learning words such as lay eggs, prey, offspring…etc. Apart from these words, they also learned some idioms such as getting it straight from the horse’s mouth, to have butterflies in the stomach, to let the cat out of the bag, to take the bull by the horns and wouldn’t hurt a fly. To conclude this lesson, the teacher asked them to do some exercises on this topic so that they can consolidate this vocabulary.
The first class was with P.C.P.I. We have corrected some exercises related to “some” and “any”. Besides, Eva put a sentence on the blackboard and the students had to an oral sentence as an exercise with some and any. That kind of exercise is rather good for the enhancement of the elementary grammatical point. After that, we put a video of cultural manifestations where vocabulary of food was shown. We played the video one time with no subtitles at all, and another time with subtitles in order to see if they got some words.
ResponderEliminarThe second class was with 3rd of E.S.O. I started the class asking if anyone know something about New Zealand. This warming-up activity was connected with the reading of the course book, which was the main activity. Students read the text and I resolved some doubts of vocabulary. After the whole reading, I showed a couple of slides in connection with New Zealand and its cultural manifestation. This activity was also done with the other group of 3rd of E.S.O.
With 4th of E.S.O we read another the text, but this time in connection to Wales. I helped to them with some vocabulary doubts and then we looked for some verbs in past simple as a way of enhancing this grammatical point. Students, then, wrote down some exercises related to the text.
12th April
ResponderEliminarToday I have had three hours of classes. The first hour was devoted to a reading with the students of 2nd of P.C.P.I. We finished the book they are reading during the whole year and we resolved some vocabulary doubts. After that, we did an oral exercise for the revision of some doubts that they had in relation with the countable and uncountable nouns. The next class was with 3rd of E.S.O. This time I was alone with the students. I put six sentences on the blackboard in English and they had to translate into Spanish orally, taking into account the future tense with will. After that, I did the main activity of the day: a listening. I divided the class in six groups of five people each one and I started saying if they knew famous soundtracks of films. We spoke like 5 minutes and then I explained the exercise I wanted to do. It consisted of the lyrics of the song Skyfall sung by Adele. I divided the song into three parts. In the first part I put a series of words with a similar resemblance among them, phonetically speaking (for instance: can’t/can/count) and they had to choose one word. The second part consisted of putting in the right order the chorus of the song. The sentences were in a wrong order and they had to put them in the correct order. And finally the last part consisted of filling a series of blank gaps with a word they heard in the song. Finally, we resolved some doubts of vocabulary.
In 4th of E.S.O I finished to explain the text of yesterday (Wales cultural things) and I showed some photos of the typical food of Wales, together with the main poet of that region: Dylan Thomas. We read one of his poems in English and then in Spanish to understand it well. After that, students were divided into six groups and I put the same exercise of listening already explained with 3rd of E.S.O.
TENTH & LAST DAY
ResponderEliminarToday was my last day at school, so I had to say goodbye to teachers and students from both groups of 3rd ESO and 4th ESO B. Therefore, I spent 3 hours on teaching these groups, what means that I’ve finally spent 31 hours altogether at school.
As students from 3rd ESO A didn’t have class the previous day because the English teacher had to leave school and I had already finished my classes for that day, the teacher asked them to do 8 pages of exercise from workbook to do at the time of the class while another teacher was watching them. Therefore, today we corrected all those exercises until the bell rang. Needless to say that class was quite boring and students were unable to be motivated.
The English teacher couldn’t come to class due to an important issue so I gave the class on my own. Students asked me if I could let them study about 15 minutes before finishing the as they had an important exam today. I accepted if they behaved properly and let me teach the material I had prepared for this class. We corrected the last exercise of future continuous and future perfect and had a look at ‘personality vocabulary’, for which they did an exercise. After this, I explained the structure of first conditional on the black board and solved students’ doubts on it, and once they understood the theoy I asked them to do exercises on it from student’s book and workbook. We all could correct most of the exercises and, those they couldn’t do due to the time will be corrected on Monday. Therefore, the last 15 minutes of the class was devoted to the studying of their history exam.
My last class was addressed to 3rd ESO B. I continued explaining the differences between ‘going to’ and ‘will’, as the bell rang in the previous class when I started to explain it. Most of the students had some doubts so I was pleased to solve them. Once they understood the theory, I asked them to do exercises on this grammar point from the book. We corrected them in class and, after this, the teacher played a CD to do a listening exercise on the reading they did in the previous class. They had to answer some questions according to what they listened to. I must confess they did it very well.
After my last class of my teaching practices, I said goodbye to all the teachers in the staff room and I couldn’t help crying because I’ve felt at home and every teacher has devoted constant attention to me in case I needed anything. Actually, I have no words to express how this experience has changed my life because now, more than ever, I want to be an English teacher.
10th April 13
ResponderEliminarI explained "There was/there were". Beginning with my explanation, I said them a riddle with some clues to guess it. After they guessed the riddle, I asked them if they know what were the grammatical elements we were using here. They answered correctly, so I followed my presentation asking about the meaning, and explaining the main difference between there is/there are and there was/there were. In all moment, I tried that they deduced about examples. Finally, I proposed them an exercise where they had to look for the differences between two pictures, before and after a party; they had to say things that there were before the party that after there weren´t. After my explanation, teacher put more exercises about there was/there were. They began this activity at classroom but as they did not had enough time, they finished it at home.
11th April 13
ResponderEliminarIn 3th group, we were checking exercises about passive. In this exercises they had to complete sentences with present passive or past passive. Depending on the exercise they had to use passive in affirmative, negative or interrogative. After it, students made more exercises about passive. They didn´t have the interrogative part clear so teacher explained again, and proposed an exercise where they had to make questions for statements, for example: in the 20th century (When was invented the TV?). To finish this class, whe sqw some false friends as for example operated.
In first course (group a), we checked some WB exercises about "there was/there were". Then, students said riddles about "there was/there were" because previous day Noemí proposed them to bring some riddles similar to my riddle. People who made this activity had a positive mark. Children were enthusiam with the activity the day before, and many were pupils who invented riddles. After it, I worked with people who have adapted activities. They were working about present continuos.
Then, while teacher was revising writing exercises, I was checking as children translated aloud their reading book "England".
To finish my day, I was in 2nd B. Students had a test about reading comprehension, so I was checking that they didn´t cheat in the exam. When they finished it, teacher showed me "schoology", a platform similar to moodle.
12th April 13
ResponderEliminarI had three classes. The first one was with 1st B. In this hour, I was explaining my presentation about "there was/there were" (it´s the same that I explained the day before in 1st A). After it, my teacher was checking writings, and I was hearing how students translated their reading book England. I was helping them with words they didn´t know to translate.
My second and my third class I had classes with second courses. They were doing a test about grammar, so, I only resolved doubts about exam´s questions.
15th April 13
ResponderEliminarToday, I have had two classes. The first one has been in second A. I have introduced a new unit, "As good as gold". I have explained the meaning of this stament, introducing comparison of adjectives. After it, I proposed them to divide classroom in 4 groups of 7 people to practice an exercises. They had to answer questions about some images made of gold that came in the Student Book, as for example about Marc Quinn´s Siren, Fifa Word Cup, Gold Gate Bridge, etc. They didn´t know many about it, but when we have checked it they have learnt more about them.
My second class has been in 1st B. We have been checking exersises about there was/there were. They had a lot of exercises, so I have passed almost of time working about it. At the end of the class, teacher have spoken about the past (a new tense for them). The next day, we will continue with past and irregular verbs.
2nd day at Santa Victoria
ResponderEliminarToday I have worked with 3 different groups.
2ºC - The teacher has played a track about numerology. The students have done an exercise from their book. Then they have listened to the track two times to do another exercises and then two times more in order to correct it. One of the students asked about the construction "Am I?" and the teacher explained what question tags are. Finally they have used their dates of birth to find out their numbers and what it means according to numerology. Some of the students have read the description given in the book and they have given their opinion about it.
2ºA - This group had to finished an exam because they had problems with the copies last week so they have devoted 30 mins to finish it. Then they have watched a video about Independence Day three times. While they were watching it I have written on the blackboard some words and key expressions in case they didn't know them. They took notes about the information provided in the video and after that they have talk about what they had in their notes in order to make a summary of the whole video. The last 5 mins of the lesson has been used to clarify some aspects and instructions for the following class.
2ºB - Today I have worked with the group of students from 2ºB with special needs. They are a group of 6 students and twice a week they go to a different classroom with a different teacher. They have revised the future with "will". Working in two groups they have written down how to use it, when, which time expressions usually appear with "will", how can we translate it into Spanish and some examples. After doing this one group has explained to the other group what they have done.
3rd day
ResponderEliminarToday I have worked with 2ºB. It has been the first lesson I have taught. I started the lesson by asking the students a few questions about sports:
Do you play any sports?
Do you think everybody should practice sports?
Have you ever been skiing?
What do you think is the most popular sport in the world?
What is the most dangerous sport?
Do you prefer watching sports or playing sports?
After this acticity, I have introduced the grammar. By reading examples of the imperatives, the students have extracted the rule of use. In order to help them I asked them the following questions:
What’s the difference between the affirmative and negative?
Do you use a subject with the imperative?
Then, they gave examples of imperative sentences in affirmative and negative. Next we have worked with the book. They have completed an exercise about imperatives and 3 exercises about the vocabulary. Then we have completed a questionnaire from their book to test if they would be good team managers.
Finally we have checked the answers of the questionnarie and of the exercises.
Macarena Palma
ResponderEliminarFIRST DAY (17th April)
Hello guys! Today has been my first day at Ferroviarios and I have to confess that definetly I love teaching! I have had 2 classes, the first one with 2nd of ESO and the second one with 1st of ESO. I am very happy with the welcoming that students have made to me! They were all the time asking for my help to complete their exercices.
In my first class we have been revising grammar for the test they are going to take tomorrow. We have focused on the past simple and past continuous and their combination, and also we have done activities about the comparative and the superlative.
In my second class we have done a writing activity using computers in groups of two or three people. The task was to write an e-mail to a friend to comment something about your favourite sport in order to revise the previous unit focused on sports vocabulary. In addition, in this class there is a girl, called Marta, who needs special attention and does different activities adapted to her capacities. Today she has been working on vocabulary related to the school, the days of the week, the months of the year, numbers and the verb TO BE.
I like the experience and I am looking forward to going on the next day!
16th April
ResponderEliminarThat was my last day at the High school. We had class with 3rd of E.S.O firstly. In that class, I corrected some exercises and then we learn some vocabulary with suffixes and prefixes. We followed the book but then, we gave the student some dictionaries to look some words up with the contrary suffix or prefix. I mean, if they had the word useful, they had to search the antonym (useless). After that we read an article about films. With that we conclude the session. Secondly, I had class with 4th of E.S.O. As a warming up, we did a speaking about books. Then, we did some vocabulary exercises and finally we played a listening in which many of the previous words (already learnt) appeared. Thus, they could do some exercises related to that listening in the book.
4th day
ResponderEliminarToday I have worked with 2ºA. I started the lesson by asking the students a few questions about sports while I tried to figure out why the projector wasn't working. I wasn't able to find a solution but I had a plan B so I explained the Imperative using examples from the book. After the explanation, they gave examples of imperative sentences in affirmative and negative. Then we worked with the book. They completed an exercise about imperatives and 3 exercises about the vocabulary. Then we have completed a questionnaire from their book to test if they would be good team managers.
Finally we have checked the answers of the questionnarie and of the exercises.
Macarena Palma
ResponderEliminarSECOND DAY (19TH APRIL)
Hi guys! In my second day I have worked with 1st ESO group again. We have started unit 7 (House and Home).Students have listened to a recorded audio about the topic of the house and home, and then they have done a writing exercise taking into account the previous listening as model for their texts.
Marta, the special girl of this class, has been working with me about the vocabulary of Unit 7 and then I proposed her to create sentences in order to work on such vocabulary.
I have asked Mari Paz (my tutor) for giving me permission to prepare some adapted activities for Marta for the next week, and she has agreed.
Finally, Mari Paz has given students a series of homework activities which will be checked on Monday.
16 th April
ResponderEliminarI had three classes. I started my day with 1st A and 1st B, in these two hours students were doing a test about reading and listening comprehension (during 45 minutes). The rest of the hour we were doing a summury about all things learnt in this unit. Then, I was in 3rd, where we were checking exercises about passive. After, whereas they finished the unit (they revised connectors and false friends), I was looking over some writing exercises. To finish our hour, we began "Unit 8: Sports" where students had to say all sports that they knew to learn vocabulary. (I wrote these at blackboard).
17th April
I had only one class with 1º A. We began unit so I explained them "Past Simple". Before to start I asked them what they knew about past and then, I put examples where they had to say differences between sentences and what they thought about verbs whether these were irregulars or regulars. I also explained Past Simple´s uses, and to put it in practising I suggested a game in group. The game consisted of making sentences with verbs given in past simple. They had to throw the die and to move foward the box. In the box they found verbs (regular/irregular) with which they had to make sentences in affirmative (1st round), in negative (2nd part) and in interrogative (3rd part). When one member of group had the turn the rest had to checked if his/her partner said well the sentence. They were learning whereas they enjoyed. I think that they learnt many irregular verbs and also to construct the past simple, so, it was a great activity.
18th April
I had three classes. In the first hour I was with third where they made a listening comprehension about the body. Before the listening they had to answer some questions as "How many times does the heart beat in one minute?" "How many bones has an adult got in his/her body?", etc.They checked their answers when they heard the record. I think that this trivial game was interesting and that they learnt many about the body and vocabulary. To finish the class, they were making exercises about sport equipments where they learnt many vocabulary and what a compound noun was. They had to look for compound nouns in these exercises to practice this new concept and some compounds as cycling helmet, baseball and baseball helmet appeared in the exercises. I think that it was a productive class for them.
In the second hour I was in first A. They had an irregular test exam (25 minutes). The rest of the hour we were practising the past simple with some exercises in the interactive blackboard. These exercises were very traditional (from my point of view), they had to fill the gap so, a little bored from my point of view.
It was my last class in this group, so, I said goodbye to them. It was difficult for me, I will miss them.
To finish my day, I was in second B. The day before, my teacher had made them the exercise that I had prepared to introduce the new unit "As good as gold", so teacher showed gratitude to me because it had a good result in this class. During this hour, they were doing a quiz in order to learn vocabulary (plain, heavy, light, cheap, expensive, etc). They learnt opposites of some adjectives. Then, they made a listening comprehension about the quiz where they had to checked their answers.
19th April (The last day)
It was a difficult day for me, it was not easy to say goodbye. I was in first B, they had a test about irregular verbs. After the exam, I made them the game about past simple, we enjoyed a lot during the hour. I will miss them. They are great!
Then, I expected to had classes in second A and B, but Marcos had some personal problems and they can´t come to class, so I went with Noemí at third again. They were checking some exersises about vocabulary and the rest of hour, they were listening some chapters about their reading book "British and American Festivities". After they heard it, they translated it. Finally, I checked their translations.
It has been a great experience, I will miss them.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminarTHIRD DAY (22TH APRIL)
Hello guys! Today has been my third day at Ferroviarios. I have had 2 classes, the first one with 1st of ESO and the second one with 2nd.
In the first hour we have been checking the homework of the last day, and we have completed the activities with the translation of some sentences of these exercices. Then we have worked with a photocopy about new vocabulary of the house (the inside and the outside).
At the same time, I have focused my attention on Marta. I had prepared adapted activities for her in relation to the vocabulary she is studying now, House and Home: we have done a memory test activity about the objects of the picture of a house by doing questions that she had to answer True or False; an activity for detecting mistakes in my oral description of a picture of the inside of a house; a Where-is-it activity based on a series of sentences I was giving to Marta so that she could draw a picture of the objects I mentioned in a bare house; and finally, a game including dice in which each number corresponds to a different object of the house, so that Marta identifies it and places in the correct site of the house.
Finally, Mari Paz and I have prepared homework for the next day: students have to revise the vocabulary of this unit for taking a test the next day.
The second hour I have worked with 2nd of ESO. Today they have been split up in groups of 5, 6 and 7 (depending on their levels). Reyes, one of the school support teachers, have come to help Mari Paz and me. She usually comes once a week to help in the English classes with the more difficult students. So, while Mari Paz and Reyes were paying attention to the majority of the students, I was working with the group of the seven students who have the lowest level: Isabel and Nacho are the ones who need more help and they do different adapted activities. Today they have worked on vocuabulary related to the parts and objects of the house, the names of animals, the objects of the classroom, and the description of a mate. The rest of the students I was taking care of are the slowest and more difficult in the classroom. They tend to distract their attention from the activities they have to do and get bored all the time. So my task today has been keeping their attention on the exercices and try to help them. The activity which they have worked on was related to the new vocabulary of unit 6 (jobs): they had to describe the jobs that appear in their books and also in a photocopy. Then we have done a listening activity in which there was a dialogue and students had to detect the different jobs that were described by the speakers.
5th day
ResponderEliminarToday I have worked with my three groups.
2ºC I have done the same lesson I did with the other two groups, the one about Imperatives and sports vocabulary.
2ºA & 2ºB First we have corrected the exercises we did last week. Then I have asked them to give me examples of imperatives in affirmative and negative to make sure they remember what we saw in the previous lesson. Then I have introduce some new grammar: be going to. Then they have given me examples using what the plan to do tomorrow. I have also explained the differences between will and be going to using slides. After this we have done a comprehension exercise. I have played a track and they have followed it reading the text. Then they have done an exercise completing some sentences with information from the text. Finally they have done some grammar exercises to practice the construction "be going to"
Today it was my first day of practices in "las Esclavas". I have been with the students of 1 º A, 1º B and 3º B. The classes of 1º A and 3º B have practically done the same. First, they have corrected the homework which was a reading. The reading of 1ºA was about museums and the reading of 3º B about health and diet. Afterwards, they, both classrooms, did a listening. But in the class of 1ºB, the teacher forgot to send homework the day before, so they had nothing to correct. Therefore they did the reading in class. The problem was that some students were doing much fuss and the teacher got angry. Then she said: “if you are not quiet, I will punish you with more exercises” and she sent seven exercises more for homework. I think is an absurd way to keep discipline. I got the impression that she focuses to much on written English and forgots about speaking. However, in general, most students have a good pronunciation in English. I forgot to mention that in 1ºA there are three students who do not work with the rest of the class and do other exercises more basic because it is assumed that they are slow learners. But honestly I have corrected their exercises and they were very well done.
ResponderEliminarHello guys!
ResponderEliminarMy second day on “las Esclavas” has been a little boring. Again I have been with 1º A and B. Basically, they have been all the hour correcting the homework. Frankly, I do not understand the new techologies. Interactive whiteboards can be very cool and very nice but it takes twice to correct the exercises. The system fails and the students are a bit slow typing the answers. Personally, I think that if students caught up a pen and wrote the solutions on the board it would be much faster and it would allow more time to do other activities related to listening and speaking.
On the other hand, in 1º A, I've been monitoring Rocio, a slow learner who makes easier exercises and I believe her main problem is her lack of vocabulary and bad memory. Finally, I was going to has class with 3ºB but it is the solidarity week, so they have cut classes at 10 to begin a series of extracurricular activities.
6th day
ResponderEliminarThings are getting more complex these days. It's very difficult to follow the same rythm with all the groups, specially with 2ºB because they usually need more time to do the exercises and tomorrow I'm going to have the group with special needs in my class so I have changed my lesson plan to make something more accesible to all the students.
Today I've worked with 2ºA and 2ºB.
2ºA We have corrected the exercises they did about "be going to"
Then I have explained how to make questions using this same construction. We have done some practice and after that we have done a listening activity. They have listened to an interview three times in order to answer some questions and by the time we finished checking the answers the hour was over!
2ºB First we have checked the exercises they had to do at home. Then I have explained how to make questions using "be going to" followed by some practice. I have also explained that we can use the present continuous to talk about the future and they have done some more practice.
7th day
ResponderEliminarToday, as I explained yesterday, I have worked with the whole group of 2ºB. We have worked with listenings. We have devoted the hour only to this skill because it's the hardest one for them. They have worked individually answering 6 questions about an interview and then they have done two dictations. I have collected the papers and the teacher is going to mark them.
Today, I have only been in the class of 1º A. Continuing with the routine, all they have done is correct the homework on the interactive whiteboard. As for me, I have been helping the three children, slow learners, who make different activities which are much easier.
ResponderEliminarMacarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminarFOURTH DAY (24TH APRIL)
Hi guys! Today has been my 4th day at Ferroviarios. I have started with 2nd of ESO by doing an oral activity called guessing job definitions: one student had to describe a job and another one had to guess the name of such job. It has been a funny activity and its main purpose is to revise and check the vocabulary learnt the previous day. Then we have made a reading and listening activity from the Course Book and some other activities related to jobs. But most of the time I have been with Isa and Nacho (the two special students of this group). I have prepared two different games for them: for Isa I have brought a cut-out doll and her clothes so that Isa had to say the name of each piece of clothing and also choose a color for it before putting it to the doll. She has had a great time and she loves this kind of activities, because she gets bored very easily and sometimes it is difficult to find motivating activities for her. And the same happens with Nacho: he needs a lot of attention and motivation. The activity that I have prepared for him is a roulette that I had and I modified the other day to adapt it for creating activities. Each box corresponds to a different number and each number refers to a different semantic field. So the activity consists of playing the roulette and then say the name of an animal (for the number 1), an object of the class (for the number 2), a color (for the number 3), etc. He has also enjoyed very much this activity and has shown for the first time since I know him a little bit of enthusiasm for learning English.
Then in my second class I have past more than 2 hours with the group of 1st ESO. We have celebrated the day of the book today, so we haven been reading some legends and myths to the 6th of Primary group, and then they have read us the tales they have made up. It has been an amazing and satisfying activity in which every single student has been implicated and really interested in it. I am very happy with today's lessons.
8th day
ResponderEliminarToday I have repeated the reading lesson with group 2ºC, I have also explained "be going to" and how to distinguish it from "will". After the lesson I have attended a tutors meeting. They have talked about things like the cleaning of the classrooms, and some tests the kids have to take in order to assesst the level of the school.
9th day
ResponderEliminarToday I have worked with 2ºA and 2ºC. The first group has worked with a reading. First they had read the text individually and then 3 volunteers have read the text out loud. We have done some comprehension activities and then I have given them some instructions on how to write the composition they have to write. They are going to write about Rafa Nadal and how sports changed his life. The students had brought their laptops so they had started looking for information and I have help them with their doubts.
The second group has worked with a listening. First we have revised what we saw in the previous lesson and we have corrected some activities. Then we have studied some new vocabulary and we have listened to 3 interviews in which people talked about disable atheletes. We have listened to the track 3 times and then we have checked the answer to the activity they had been doing while listening.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar5th Day (26th of April)
Hello mates! Today has been my 5th day at Ferroviarios. I have only had one class with the group of 1st ESO, but half of the class has not been dedicated to the English lesson but to the instructions of an extra-academic activity based on creative writing. Students seem to feel very attracted by this kind of activities, so I think that most of them are looking forward to participating in it.
The time dedicated to English has been very productive: we have been practising an oral dialogue in order to use grammatical structures such as "What are you doing?" and its answers. Before the students started creating their own dialogues (in groups of 4) they read an example from the Course Book and translated it. The next day they have to perform their own dialogues in class.
Today I have brought a game for Martha (the one that I used with Nacho in the previous class with 2nd of ESO group). She enjoys very much this kind of activity and it is a way to show me her level of knowledge and the quantity of vocabulary that she has learnt before I came to the school.
The last two days I didn’t have time to post in the blog. On Thursday I was with 3ºB. They did two exams, a listening and reading. The listening lasted about 10 minutes and they listened to it twice. The first exercise of the listening was to fill the gaps and the second one was a question with three answer a), b) or c) so, they had to choose the correct answer. Next I was with 2ºB. The teacher explained the comparative and the superlative with the aid of a PowerPoint. After that he made a game. It consisted of comparing two photos. For example, there were two photos, a picture of a rabbit and a picture of a snail and in between the adjective "slow". Students had to write the comparison "the snail is slower than the rabbit" and so on with different photos.
ResponderEliminarOn Friday I was with 1ºB. First, they did a test of irregular verbs which was the typical table with gaps to fill: present, past, past participle and translation. After, they corrected the homework on the interactive whiteboard and finally they took the reading book. The book is about England: its population, cities, customs, history and monuments. They read a chapter a week and then translated each into Spanish. The book is very interesting because children learn new vocabulary and a lot of curiosities about England. Later, I was with 2ºB. They did a reading about why California is called “the Golden state”. But before that, the teacher made a kind of warmer asking to the students what they knew about California. They situated California in the map and spoke about the rush fever, Los Angeles Lakers, The Galaxies, Hollywood, San Francisco, San Diego, the Death Valley, etc. Eventually, I was with 2ºA. It was my first class with them, so I introduced myself. They are more backward in the unit than the other class because the teacher was missing on Monday. Consequently, the teacher explained to them the comparative and the superlative and did the game that I have explained above.
10th day
ResponderEliminarToday I wanted to go through all the types of future to make sure the students can distinguish them so I had prepared a powerpoint presentation. I have shown it to the three groups and after that I have done different things with each group.
2ºC I have explained to them how to write a formal letter and I have asked them to write one applying for an English course for this summer. Finally the students have given me examples of sentences using the future.
2ºA We have revised the grammar and vocabulary because they have a vocabulary exam this week.
2ºB We have done some vocabulary excersises and corrected some other exercises they did last week.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
Eliminar6th day (29th April)
Hi guys!Today I have had again 2 classes at Ferroviarios. The first one has been with the group of 1st ESO. We have been revising the exam which students did some days ago. The activities in which we have focused our attention were the ones related to dictation, error correction and translation in connection with the use of Present Simple and Present Continuous. These exercices have been checked on the blackboard. after this, students have performed the dialogues that they had prepared in the previous class. Today I have also focused my attention on not only Marta but also Luisa. She is a girl who has problems with anorexia, so se needs a lot of attention too, because she isolates from the group and does not want to participate in anything. So I am very happy today because I have managed to make her feel motivated and participative in the classroom. We have worked on vocabulary related to clothing, colors, pieces of furniture, classroom objects and the creation of simple sentences by means of the Twister game I used with Nacho the other day. This game is amazing for the students and it is very easy to change the target vocabulary or structures that I have them to use, so I think it is a good idea for the sake of motivation.
In the second class, with the 2nd ESO group, we have been also revising the exams. Then we have been working on the structure BE GOING TO by using it in an improvised dialogue. Mari Paz and I were asking students about their weekend plans and they had to answer. After this, we have explained the grammar point of BE GOING TO. When everything was clear, we started checking homework and finally new homework was assigned for the next day. As usual, during this class I have been working with "the difficult students": the ones with attention deficit disorder, hyperactivity, and Down syndrome. And I have to say that today they have colaborated with me very well and I have felt that they were motivated to do it.
Yesterday, I was with the kids of 3º B. Noemí, the teacher, explained the difference between object sentences and subject sentences . I helped children solving their doubts. Later, I was in the two classes of first course. Both did the same. First, they corrected the exercises on the whiteboard and then, in order to revise the past simple, I brought a game for them. I divided the class in groups of four. I gave a card with questions words (who, which, how many, where etc) to each student; and I gave anwer cards to each group. The objective of the game was to make interrogative sentences in past, using one of the question words, which match with the answer cards. For example, player 1 picks an answer card “pizza”, so he may create the sentence “What did you eat last night?”. So, as the sentence makes sense and it is grammatically correct, the player takes the answer card and places it over the interrogative word “what”. Thus, he cannot use that question word again. The winner is the player who completes earlier his question words card. The game worked quite well and the kids enjoyed, though at first they did not understand how to play.
ResponderEliminarToday, I have only been with 2ºA. I have explained to them the use of too + adjective, adjective + enough and the comparative of equality as + adjective + as. For this, I have used a Power Point presentation and then I have made a game. The class has been divided into groups of three. Each group has received two kinds of cards, topic cards and adjective cards. The aim of the game is to make comparative sentences. The topic cards have to be faced up and the adjective cards faced down. One player picks a adjective card and then he chooses a topic and have to make comparative sentence related to the topic. The sentence can be in comparative of superiority, inferiority, equality, too + adjective or adjective + enough, whatever they like. If the sentence is grammatically correct, the player gets a point, if not he loses turn. I think they have enjoyed the game and they got it very quickly.
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ResponderEliminar11th day
ResponderEliminarToday I have worked listening with 2ºA, they have done two dictations, one consisted of 5 sentences related to sports and the other one was a conversation. After that we have corrected some exercises they had.
With 2ºB I have worked reading & writing. First they have read a text an they have answered some questions about it. Then I have explain how they have to prepare their composition about sports. Finally we have corrected some grammar practice.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar7th day (30th April)
Hello mates! Today I have only had one class at Ferroviarios, with the 1st ESO group. In the first part of the class we have been checking homework, and then, the students who did not have the time to perform their dialogues the previous day, did it today.
I have been working again with Marta and Luisa, but today I have tried a new way of motivating them: I have prepared a kind of competition between them in playing some games, such as The Hangman and Guessing definitions. The winner has been Luisa. I am very happy with their attitude in today's lesson, because even after the class had finished, they wanted to continue playing and consequently learning more vocabulary.
April, 29th and 30th
ResponderEliminarI have been in the school Seneca for two days. I am helping two different teachers, Charo, who is the teacher of the 3rd year of compulsory education and Juan, who is the teacher of the two first years of compulsory education.
The first day, Monday the 29th, I was with Charo for the first two hours. In the first hour, we were in the 3rd grade class. The teacher had told them to bring the computers the week before but they had forgotten it. So, she wrote some sentences in the blackboard using the construction “verb + -ing” or “verb + infinitive”. For example, she wrote “Did you remember bringing your computers?” and “I would like you to bring them tomorrow”.
After this brief review, they corrected the homework they had. It was about film vocabulary (genres, characteristics of films, type of audience); there were also questions about their preferences regarding cinema.
As Charo is the tutor of that class, they spent some time talking about other subjects.
In the second class, 2nd grade, they had an exam on irregular verbs and I helped two of the students were not prepared to do the exam. The teacher had told me that there were two boys in the class who have not the proper level they should have and they are the “troublemakers”, so they need special attention.
The last two hours, I was with Juan and the courses of 1st grade. They did the exact same thing. They week before they had watched a video of the history of Great Britain within the Roman Empire, so they had to listen to it carefully in order to complete the exercises. They also were given a sheet divided in section A and B. Both sections had the same questions but different answers. The activity was, working in pairs, question themselves and giving the right answer using some useful expressions like “I don’t think your answer is right”, “I’ve got no idea”, “I think you’re wrong”… The teacher asks for some random sheets to check the people who have done it.
These two classes are very different. On the one hand, one of the groups work very well, they do not cause any problem and they are usually quiet. On the other hand, the group does not show the same interest, even when they are the same age, except for one of the kids who has a very good level of English.
Today, Tuesday the 30th, I have been with the same class again, so we finished the activities (because we were out of time the day before).
In the second of hour, I was with the class of the 2nd grade. They watched a similar video to the one the 1st degree groups have watched, but related to the history of the United States. They watched the video three times and then, they answered the questions they were given.
I have not had the opportunity of doing too much in class, except for commenting the activities with the teacher and the kids. Also, I have helped the two students that I have mentioned before with the use of the present perfect.
Yesterday, I was in 3ºB. They made revision exercises for the exam. Next, I was in 1ºA where the teacher and the students were correcting the exam in the board. Finally, I was with 2ºA. I explained to them the use of too + adjective, adjective + enough and the comparative of equality. I used the same PowerPoint that with 2ºB and did the same game. However, 2 º A did not understand very well my explanation. I do not know if I explained it badly or too fast or maybe, as it was the last class of the day, they did not want to listen to me. Who knows? Anyway, I think 2ºB students learn faster.
ResponderEliminarToday, I've been in the class of 1ºB. They have been correcting the exam, as 1ºA students were the day before. Afterwards, I have been with the two classes of 2º. The professor had prepared a listening activity. Each student had his laptop and headphones and they had to listen to the song California dreamin 'and fill the gaps, and then submit the activity to see how many mistakes they have made. This was with 2ºA but with 2ºB the teacher forgot to tell the students to bring the computers. Therefore, 2ºB made the activity in the computers room. Unfortunately, there weren’t enough computers for everyone so; they had to do the activity in two turns.
12th day
ResponderEliminarYesterday I worked listening and reading with 2ºC. First they did a dictation (like the other two groups did) and after that they read a text and answered some questions about it. After that I asked for stories of famous people whose life changed because of sports. Some students gave examples. We then revised the grammar of the unit and I answered the questions they had.
Last Thursday I had class with 2ºC but they took their vocabulary exam so there's nothing to say about that day. Next week the students are taking what they call "pruebas de diagnostico" so I won't have class on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar8th day (3rd May)
Hi guys! Last Friday I didn't have the time to post my teaching practices. On Friday I was with 1st ESO group. We did a listening activity for the sake of differentiating the use of Present Simple and Past Simple. Then students had to do some "fill in the gap" activities from the Course Book by using Present and Past verb forms. After this we also worked on Countable and Uncountable nouns. And finally some homework was given to them for the next day.
As usual, I focused on Marta's progress. We studied also the contrast between Present and Past Simple, and looked at vocabulary related to animals living at home, in the jungle, in the forest, in the sea, and in the sky.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar9th day (6th May)
Hello! Today I have been with the 1st ESO group. For the first time, Mari Paz has left me totally alone in front of the class and I have enjoyed a lot with this experience. My task has been to check the homework in the blackboard. We have corrected some exercices related to vocabulary of the house and "There was/were/wasn't/weren't" activities. Then we have made an improvised activity orally: students had to say sentences by using time expressions with Past Simple, such as "ago", "last" or "in 2008". After this, we have also made some sentences to show the contrast between the Present and Past in the forms "There is/are" and "There was/were". The following activity has been a listening from the Course Book which deals with a dialogue between 2 people who are comparing the 18th century houses of rich and poor people and the objects that they usually had or lacked. This is again a way to show them the forms of "There was/were" and "There wasn't/weren't". Finally, some homework has been given to students for checking the next day.
Today it was not a very productive day of practices. At nine o'clock, I got to 2ºA and my surprise was that they had to make a kind of test to measure their language and audiovisual skills. The test took all the hour, so I did nothing. I just went to the staff room and started to read a book. Later, at 10 o'clock, I was with 3ºB. The teacher got angry because the students were not paying attention. So she ordered homework, turned off the computer and left the class. Finally, I was in the class of 1º A where they made a listening about child progidies and they talked about Picasso. After that, they started unit 9, which is titled “On Holidays”. They had to look at some pictures of world-famous monuments and identify them. As for me, I've been helping the slow learners, Javi and Angelo, who are reviewing the modal verbs.
ResponderEliminarMay, 2nd
ResponderEliminarThe first hour, I was for the first time with the other class of the 3rd grade. They should have done some exercises about when using the “to infinitive” or the “-ing form” but they did not so the teacher explained the same thing again (as she did in the class of the 29th).
The two classes of the 1st grade had an exam so we did not do anything else.
The last class of the day was with the 2nd grade and we finished correcting the exercises about the history of the United States.
May, 3rd
Today, the teacher had prepared an activity with the song “Somebody that I used to know” by Gotye. There were exercises about finding the preposition, matching the lyrics, finding the correct word, find the right synonym and the translation of some verbs within a list he had given, note down the different verbal forms and noticing the different pronunciations of the same sound. We only had the time to do three of the exercises and the rest would be corrected on Monday.
Also, I went to the pre-school class because I had a spare hour. It was fantastic! This is the first bilingual class in the school, so it is the first year of pre-school education. The teacher only addresses to them in English, which is perfect because they are learning a lot. They listened to some songs which use a particular sound like in /æ/pple, /s/nake, the sound of the sprinkling water /t/, /p/op corn… At one point, they started to sing one of the songs by themselves, without the help of the teacher or the music.
May, 6th
Today, me and the other girl who is doing her practice, corrected the exercises of the “to infinitive” and “-ing form”.
Then, I was in the class of the two classes of the 1st grade. They listened to the song and did some of the exercises I have explained before. And, finally, with the other class, we finished correcting the exercises of the song and I explained the irregular forms of the past simple. I used the lyrics of the song to introduce them because there were a lot of them (felt, said, told). As they have previously studied the past form, I made a brief resume of the affirmative, negative and interrogative structures but using one of the irregular verbs. Then, we searched for the past forms of some irregular verbs in a text of the book.
Today, I have been in the two classes of 1º. Both have done the same. They have heard a listening twice. The listening was about holydays, whether it is better to travel to a warm country or a cold one. After that, I proposed an activity to revise vocabulary related to clothing and accessories. The activity consisted in imagining they were going to travel to Alaska. They had to tell me what items of clothes would pack. Next, I proposed the same activity with a warm country like Egypt. In 3ºB, students have already completed the student book so now what they do is reviewing activities. Today, they have reviewed phrasal verbs I have learn one I didn 't know it "to put up with" (tolerate). This is funny. Students are teaching me new words instead the other way round.
ResponderEliminarMacarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar10th day (7th May)
Hi guys! Today we have had less than one hour for our class because we have been interrupted several times due to technical problems with the speakers when doing a listening activity about "A school trip". Basically the task was to match 5 images from the Course Book to 5 places mentioned in the listening. We have also checked homework and then we have made an improvised oral activity in order to practice the sequence "Were you in X place of town yesterday? Yes, I was/ No, I wasn't". Finally, new homework has been assigned for the next day.
Eventually, I have completed my 30 hours of practice. Today, I've been with the class of 1ºA. First, they have corrected the homework, which was a reading and then I have used a powerpoint to explain "be going to". After they have read a chapter from his book of readings. Although in theory I've finished my practices, tomorrow I'm going back to explain "be going to" to the children of 1ºB and on Friday I will introduce the new unit to the students of 2º.
ResponderEliminarMacarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar11th day (8th May)
Hello guys! Today I have been working with the 1st ESO group. In the first part of the class we have checked homework in the blackboard and then I proposed the following activity: the creation of a school magazine in which students have to be split up in groups of 5 or 6 people and each member of the team is in charge of a different function: 2 or 3 for writing the articles, 1 person for the layout, another person for taking photos, and all of them for the decoration of the stage in which they are going to launch their final products in order to compete with the other groups for having the better magazine. This idea has been very well welcomed by students, so we will dedicate some time for it each day of the following weeks until they have finished their magazines.
Hi everybody!
ResponderEliminarI just got from "las Esclavas" and I'm done. Today I have introduced the unit 7 to the two classes of 2º. The truth, now, I'm sad to leave. At first, I was very bored because I wasn't allowed to do anything. The entire class I was just standing on the corner, observing. But now it is different. Teachers let me explain a few things so, I feel useful. Besides, I'm fond of the children, especially the students of 1º. Definitely, I want to be a teacher.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar12th day (10th May)
Hi guys. Today I have had two classes. The first one has been with the 1st ESO group and the second hour with the 2nd ESO group.
In the first hour we have been checking homework in the blackboard and then we have focused on the activity that I proposed the last day: the creation of a magazine. The groups have been split up and the inner functions of the members of each group has also been assigned. This has been a team decision rather than an impossition from me or Mari Paz. I just wanted my students to feel comfortable with their roles and find personal motivation in them. The task of each team today has been to think of the name of their magazines and the type of information that they want to deal with in them. For the sake of it, each team has spoken separately.
Then, in the second hour, we have also checked homework and then we have focused on the use of "should" in relation to the topic of Health problems and first aid. We have made an oral activity by which the students have to imagine several situations in which they were suffering an illness or pain(such as a headache, a broken arm, etc) so that another student adivises him something by using the modal verb "should". It has been a funny improvised dialogue. After this, we have made a writing activity by using the computers. The task was to send an e-mail to a friend who tells you he has a big health problem and asks for your advise.
13th day
ResponderEliminarLast Friday I worked with 2ºC. They asked me some questions about the distinction between present continuous for future and be going to. After solving all the problems we corrected some exercises they had to do for homework. After that there was an event to offer flowers to the Virgin Mary so they interrupted the classes.
14th day
ResponderEliminarToday I have done some revision with 2ºC. After that we have done a listening and a speaking activity. They have listened to a conversation between two boys talking about their plans for the weekend. We have practiced the key phrases and then they have represented the conversation and written their own.
Today it has been my last day with 2ºA and 2ºB, I have played a video in both classes. The video was about football in England and in the US. They have watched it three times and then they have summarize it. After that both groups have surprised me with cakes. They had written letters for me. We have chatted and enjoyed the cakes together.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar13th day (13th May)
Hi guys! Yesterday I didn't have the time to post my teaching practices, so I do it now. Yesterday I had two classes: one with the group of 1st ESO and another with 2nd ESO.
In the first our we did a reading-aloud activity and then we translated the text into Spanish. This text was focused on the use of the structures "There is/are" and "There was/were", and also the Present and Past Simple of the verb To be. The text was about the contrast between an old house and a new one. After this, students had to write a composition basing their texts on the previous model, but now they had to compare their bedrooms when they were little children and their current rooms.
In the second hour, with the group of 2nd ESO, we made a listening activity and then we answered some questions in a "Writing & comprehension" activity. During this class I focused my attention on Isa and Nacho, because this time there were 3 teachers in the classroom: Mari Paz, Reyes and me. Mari Paz was leading the class, whereas Reyes dealt with the other difficult students and I was in charge of the ones I have mentioned. I proposed to them to do an activity for the sake of learning how to construct sentences in Present Simple by using vocabulary related to objects of home, pieces of clothing, etc. Then the whole group worked in the theme of "Health problems and first aids", and we focused on expressing advice through the modal verb should. Finally, we did a listening activity also related to this topic.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar14th day (14th May)
Hi guys! Today I have spent only one hour at Ferroviarios. I have been working with the group of 1st ESO. Today I have been totally alone in front of the class (and tomorrow will be the same) because Mari Paz is in Seville in a course for teachers. So I thought that I had to take advantage of this situation and prepare a special activity for these two days. So I have proposed them to do a kind of team work competition in which they have to make a power point presentation about a special natural place they know. Today we have arranged the groups (in pairs) and they have worked very hard and being very motivated. Most of them have already finished their presentations. Tomorrow is their turn: they have to show their work to the rest of the class. The best presentation will serve to arrange a scholar trip to such natural place mentioned in the power point at the end of the course. I have felt that everyone has been very enthusiastic about this activity and all of them were concentrated and working hard.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar15th May (15th day)
Hello guys! Today I have had an amazing day at Ferroviarios. I have spent 3 hours instead of the usual 2 because, in addition to my 2 English classes, I have remained there during the class of Lengua in order to help the sustitute of Mari Paz (María) in this hour.
In the first hour I have been totally alone with the group of 2nd ESO. We have been checking homework in the blackboard. It was about the topic of health and illness and also the use of the modal verb should. After this I have split up the class into 3 groups in order to do a free writing activity about a crazy and funny story using some of the vocabulary and structures learned during the two last lessons. Each team had different roles for its members: there was a leader (who took the big decisions), an artist (who wrote down the story), the speaker (who read aloud the text) and the rest of members were just giving ideas for the composition of the text. When everything was prepared, each team had to perform infront of the class their stories and all of us had to decide which one was the better. Every student has been motivated with this funny activity and the results have been very good also.
During the second hour, I have been with the 1st ESO group and we have started the presentation of the Power Points. Still there are some groups which have not had the time for their presentations, so we have to continue the next day, on Friday. But again, I have felt that they were very motivated and happy with this kind of task.
To sum up, today has been a perfect day at Ferroviarios!
15th day
ResponderEliminarToday I have worked with 2ºC, the last lesson before their exam. We have corrected some exercises. after that they had asked me questions and doubts about the unit. After going through all the grammar I have noticed that some of the students had problems distinguishing present continuous for future and "be going to" so I have asked one of the students to come to the front of the classroom and to play the role of the teacher. He has explained it to their classmates and after that we have moved on to the students book. We have done some consolidation exercises working as a group. Finally we have talked about the exam, my last lesson and we have agreed on meeting on Monday, the last day of my teaching practice.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar16th day (17th May)
Hi guys! Today I have spent only one hour at Ferroviarios with the group of 1st ESO. Mari Paz has come back from Sevilla, so we together have continued with the power point presentations of the students. There are still some groups that have to present their projects the next Monday. I am happy with the students' work and effort.
16th day
ResponderEliminarToday has been my last day at Santa Victoria. I've been with 2ºC and we had some fun activities planned. We have done a karaoke!
First they have played a song and they have given me some presents. After that the students have written a list of their favourite songs in English and we have sung all together some of them. Then we have made a competition. I have divided the class in two groups and they have sung a song together.
After saying goodbye to the students I have doe the same with the teachers. It has been a great experience and I am very happy with the results.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar17th day (20th May)
Hello mates! Today I have had 2 hours at Ferroviarios. The first hour has been devoted to the group of 1st ESO and we have continued presenting the Power Point presentations. There is still one group that has not presented its PwP, so the last day for this task will be tomorrow.
In the second hour I have been working with the 2nd ESO group. First we have checked homework and then we have made some exercices about the contrast between the different uses of the Present Continuous. After this we have also made an activity related to the different uses of "also" and "too" and their position in sentences. The next exercices were related to the personal description, by using adjectives and its opposites, together with some funny crosswords.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar18th day (21st May)
Hello guys! Today I have spent one hour at Ferroviarios with the 1st ESO group. During the first part of the class, I have listen to the last Power Point presentation and then I have decided which one has been the best. The wining team has been the one that has talked about the so-called "Baños de Epopea", so when the classes are finished in summer, the whole class is going to plan a school trip to this place, which is here in Córdoba.
Then, we have made a listening activity and then a listening and repeat activity in order to assimilate better the vocabulary of the first listening activity. Then we have started the explanation about the irregular verbs and their past form, in contrast to the regular ones. After this, we have made some book exercices about the use of irregular verbs in the past.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar19th day (22nd May)
Hi mates! Today I have spent 2 hours at Ferroviarios. First I have been with the 2nd ESO group explaining the use of the modal verbs should and must and also their negative forms. Then the rest of the class has been devoted to revision of homework, and particularly I was in charge of correcting the writing activity of each student. The last minutes have been used to make questions and doubts about the exam they are going to take next day.
Then, my second hour has been spent with the 1st ESO group. We have been checking homework and then we have also revised some difficult grammar points and then students have made their questions and expressed their doubts about the exam they are going to take next Thursday.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar20th day (27th May)
Hi mates! Today I have spent two hours at Ferroviarios. During the first hour, with the group of 1st ESO, I have been totally alone because Mari Paz had to go to visit the doctor. The first minutes of the class have been devoted to the checking of homework in the blackboard, and then, the rest of the time we have been revising grammar and vocabulary for the exam that students are going to take tomorrow. In order to motivate them in doing so, I have prepared a kind of game based in the Spanish TV show "Un, dos, tres, responda otra vez": I have split up the class in 3 groups and each of them had to give me an item of vocabulary or had to construct a sentence according to my instructions. In about 30 minutes we have revised all the contents of the exam. They have been very enthusiastic due to the competitive and funny nature of the activity, so I am very happy with their attitude.
In the second hour I have been working with the group of 2nd ESO. First we have done a listening activity about jobs, then we have read a dialogue also dealing with jobs and expressions of personal opinion, and finally we have started a team work activity: in pairs, students had to create a dialogue using the vocabulary and structures of the previous activities. For the next day, students have to perform in front of the class their own dialogues.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar21st day (28th May)
Today I have had an examination with the group of 1st of ESO. There were several listening tasks and then some activities focused on grammar points like Past Simple, and also vocabulary, as Pieces of furniture and Gadgets.
Macarena Palma Gutiérrez
ResponderEliminar22nd day (29th May)
Hi mates! Today has been my last day at Ferroviarios. During the first hour, I have been with the group of 2nd ESO and they have took an exam. Then I spent two hours with the group of 1st ESO because I had prepared a game for them that required more than one hour, and my tutor Mari Paz has been very nice in "lending" me her next hour (Lengua) with this group. My activity was an adaptation of the so-called "Party & Co": I have called it "Party & English". So, I have split up the class in groups of 5 people, having each team a leader. I have used the materials that this game has, but I have created my own cards. Blue cards contained True or False statements about grammar points, and also "Do you know...?" multiple choice questions about countries and nationalities. Yellow cards contained vocabulary frames in order to make two members of the same group to coincide or not to coincide in, for instance, an item of food, and so on. Then, red cards contained mimic tasks about animals, jobs, etc. And finally, green cards contained tasks of drawing a picture about a piece of furniture, for example, or even plasticine modelling of some other vocabulary items already studied during this year.
We have had a great time during these two hours and at then end, students have "evaluated" my activity: all of them have coincide in that it has been a very funny activity and they have remembered lots of grammatical and lexical contents studied during this year. So I think they have appreciated my effort and they have compensated it with a big smile to me.
Then, the worst part of day has been to say goodbye to them. I was almost crying and they too, and even Mari Paz. It has been a sad farewell, but before I could finish it, all of them were getting stood up and embracing me. But any doubt, the best moment was when they have given me a letter saying what they think about me and my work with them. Finally, they have invited me to their end of the course party, so I will see them soon again!