Is My Textbook Just a Fancy Paperweight? Unveiling the Mysteries of Supplementary Material in ELT

Photo by Cottonbro Studio

by Katherine Reilly, originally published by ELT NEWS printed magazine.

As educators, we often contemplate the necessity of implementing supplementary materials to enhance and appease our students’ potential for learning. However, burdening ourselves with another ‘measly’ task while stacks of uncorrected papers demand our immediate attention is, in itself, a deterrent. Besides, we were told our shiny new textbooks are jam-packed with all the extra tools we need to offer students the most innovative and satisfying approach to embedding the language they so desire to command. ELT publishers have, without a doubt, made incredible advancements in offering the most accessible venue to learning, establishing their textbooks as the backbone of many language programs. Notwithstanding this marvelous feat, there are shortcomings which must be addressed, and addressed they shall! Fear not my disgruntled colleagues; when burdened with extra work, we always take it in our stride and never crib about it.

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Symphony in Slang short film 1951

During yesterday’s training at the Foreign Languages Forum in Heraklion, Greece, I mentioned this animated short film produced in 1951. The slang expressions of the time were all incorporated into this masterpiece. Although some are now outdated, many still resonate with English language speakers today. The above YouTube video is NOT the full version; the Vimeo link below, although lower resolution, is. You can also download some notes for Greek students (definitions in both Greek and English) as regards interpretation and use in class.

Materials:

Alternate Video link FULL video: https://vimeo.com/100989067

Training Resources for Gamification Seminar

A huge thank you to all who took part in our training. Below you will find links and my powerpoint file for your consideration.

PowerPoint File:

katherine-reilly-gamification

Genially: Interactive Boardgame (Inversions):

or EDIT here: https://view.genial.ly/627cd40567bf2f0011d35fe7/interactive-content-inversions

Allthingsgrammar: Printable Board Game

https://www.allthingsgrammar.com/grammar-city-free-grammar-board-game.html

Mentimeter: Create your own word clouds and open-end questions

https://www.mentimeter.com/app/home

Quizziz: Create and share your own tests. Also offers printable QR codes

https://quizizz.com/admin/quiz/5d535e853c3272001a04bf18?source=quiz_share

Kahoot: Create and share your own test. Add a tutorial video as well!

https://create.kahoot.it/details/7902fb5c-71c8-4689-9a10-391e0a273327

ESL Printables: Become a part of a large ELT community. Share materials with teachers from all over the world.

https://www.eslprintables.com

Word Search Maker: Create your own word search templates and tailor them to the needs of the students

https://tools.atozteacherstuff.com/word-search-maker/wordsearch.php

Online Puzzle Maker: Create Criss-Cross Puzzles for your students.

https://puzzlemaker.discoveryeducation.com

Happy Learning!