RTP Workshops - Active Grammar Teaching

       My participation in the RTP workshops at LIU  was a very enriching experience. I attended the "Active Grammar Teaching Workshop" with the trainer Mrs. Barbara Jean El-Hajj. I gained a lot of new information that I am so excited to share with you, my dear readers.
     
       First of all, The workshop had a very active start with a mingle activity that aimed to break the ice among the participants and get them to find common interests between them. It was very entertaining and communicative.

      Afterwards, we discovered different approaches to grammar teaching through a Gallery Walk activity. Then we focused on couple of approaches, and discussed their steps, advantages, and disadvantages. Some of the most useful approaches are Guided Discovery, Test-Teach-Test, and Present-Practice-Produce.

      Later on, Mrs.  BJ explained that a teacher should use variety of activities of different control level in her lessons. Students don't like lectures, and they rarely enjoy grammar. We as teachers should try our best to make our lessons as interactive, entertaining, and productive as possible. She first introduced us to some controlled practice activities that we could use with our students. In controlled practice activities, the teacher knows the answer that the student is going to produce. There is only one correct response. This is the type of activity that we should first go for with our students to practice. Some of the activities and games that belong to this type are: Scoot, which we applied in class, Bingo, Jeopardy, Who wants to be a millionaire? which we also enjoyed practicing, Cut up sentence Kabadi, Dictation and many others. The second type which comes right after the first one in terms of control is semi-controlled  activities. Here, there is an increased amount of freedom, which maintains interest and challenge for the student. The teacher can't guess all the specific answers so there will be an unanticipated and surprising few. Time marker - Make a Sentence, Adverbial charades and Grammar Auction are few examples on this type. The third type is Free Practice Activities. Usually, those activities come last in a lesson. Here the students have complete freedom in the language they produce. Students have the greatest opportunity to personalize the language, experiment, and incorporate previously learned grammar, vocabulary, and other points. Some examples on this type include: Adding to the Story, My Day Mingle, and picture dialogue.
(You can find the procedure of each activity online, but you surely can request that from me as well!)

     Finally, the participants sat in groups according to the classes they teach. I worked with my group on planning a lesson in which we used one activity of each type previously mentioned. Then we shared it with the whole group.

    At the end, each participant received a certificate and we took a group picture. Although we stayed till afternoon, but time flew by so fast. This workshop was very effective, practical and fun. Added to gaining educational skills and knowledge, I got to meet many teachers from different schools and extend my social network. I can't wait to attend another workshop and I would encourage all teachers to seek every possible opportunity to improve their skills and take their teaching up to the next level!

A smile ☺with the charming trainer ❤

Group Picture ✌

Interactive designed space ☺

Our Reading Corner

Yesterday, I spent some time setting up a reading corner for my little ones at my school. I found pleasure working on something I've always wanted to achieve. Although it is simple, but teaching kids to love reading is highly important. Through reading, students can improve many of their critical, comprehensive, and analytical skills, added to building up a word bank in their unique minds and practicing how to read fluently. Frank Serafini said, " There is no such thing as a child who hates to read; there are only children who have not found the right book." or the right motivation, I would add. Reading shouldn't be presented to children as a duty or an obligation that they would be punished if they don't fulfill. It should be presented as something precious, something enriching for their minds and souls. And referring back to what Serafini had said, it is also very important to supply students with books that are worth reading, books that can stretch their imagination, and can propel them to discover their inner self and reach out toward people who are different than themselves. Never under-estimate the value of reading!  ❤

Done by Me at Islamic Cultural School 

Did you like our little corner? 

This is what I love to do!

As I go through my fourth year of teaching, I realize how this job has become part of my personality. I've majored in Interior Design in parallel with English Linguistics. I enjoyed designing for I love art and have always enjoyed it. But once I started teaching, I felt that it is incomparable with any other profession. It is very rewarding in a humanistic and personal way (not financial though!). 

 I can't ever imagine how my life would be doing something else. I enjoy every second of it although it requires a lot of tenacity, effort and hard work. The positive influence I have on my kids wipes all my fatigue away. I will never give it up.