Jul 17, The Most Useful Everyday Phrases in English

Traditional English language textbooks and courses will do a great job of introducing you to vocabulary and grammar, but they don't always teach you the important everyday phrases in English. When students visit an English-speaking country, they can sometimes be confused by some of these phrases.

Sometimes the problems are because pronunciation is different in spoken English, and sometimes the problems are because English speakers use idioms that cannot be translated literally into another language.

When you are learning everyday phrases, it is important to learn if they are formal, informal or slang. Here are some examples:

"How are you?" is a little formal.

People will often say the more informal:
"How're you doing?"
"How's it going?"
or "How's everything?"

They all mean pretty much the same thing really; the speaker wants to know if you're OK.

You might also hear "What's happening?" or "What's up?"

These questions are asking you about your activities now – "What are you doing?"

"Thank you."

Of course that's fine, but people will usually say "Thanks." You may also hear "Cheers," or "Ta" (especially in British English).

"Gonna," "wanna," "coulda," "shoulda," "woulda," etc.

Sometimes you will come across these in spoken English.

They are shortened forms of "going to," "want to," "could have," "should have" and "would have."

They can cause a lot of confusion among learners so listen out for them. Again, they are very informal.

"Have a nice day!"

I love this phrase. It's a kind of nice, happy way of saying goodbye to someone and is often used if you don't know someone very well.

You will also hear the more informal expressions, "see ya!" (see you), "take care," "later," and "bye bye" as often as "Goodbye."

"Cool" is probably the most used word in the English language.

If you can start using this naturally in your English speech you know you are making progress towards sounding like a native English speaker!

Obviously these are all pretty general phrases and words but there are many more that are used in particular situations.
The most important thing is to listen. Listen to conversations between other people, listen to dialogue in movies, listen to radio talk shows. etc.
Put yourself a target for each movie/radio talk show you watch or listen to.

For example:
Put a target of learning one or two new useful phrases on the next English speaking movie you watch.  Then, during the movie, remind yourself to put attention on the speech of the characters.  Spot a phrase that is commonly used in the movie, and is also new to you. Write it down.  Clarify fully what it means. Use it a few times in sentences of your own. And try to include it in your following English writing/speaking. Learn some new phrases on the next movie!
This can be a great way to learn new phrases because you catch them in  "real" life situations. You get to see and note down how it is used. This can be very helpful.

If you hear a phrase and you aren't sure if it is formal, informal, or slang, the best thing to do is either to ask someone you trust, or check in a good dictionary. Many good dictionaries will tell you how formal a word or expression is.

If the word is a swear word, the dictionary should tell you. It may have the abbreviation vulg (for "vulgar") next to the definition. You certainly don't want to start using swear words in a formal situation, so it's good to be careful!

There are so many useful everyday phrases in English that no single article will be able to help you with all of them, so just listen and practice when you can.

Jul 18, Improve Your Lessons with ESL Vocabulary Games

I've seen some really boring vocabulary lessons, from teachers who ignore ESL vocabulary games.

Uninteresting reading activities, followed by lists of words to define or translate. Sometimes students having to do spelling tests.

Although these vocabulary activities can be productive, if done incorrectly, they aren't very exciting for students.

Here are some suggestions of how to use ESL vocabulary games.
Most people have a competitive side to their personality. If you put your students into teams for any quiz or test then they will be likely to work together to try to beat other teams. Even a simple quiz becomes much more fun this way.
Don't use the same game all the time. Hangman and Hot Seat (where two students sit with their backs to the board, you write a word on the board, and the teams have to describe the word for the two students to guess) are popular with teachers because they are easy.

Try to find some different games to use to stop your students (and you!) becoming bored.

An example of a quiet game, which works with individuals or in pairs or groups is word transformation. Ask students to give you a four-letter word and write it on the board. Then ask for another four-letter word and write this underneath the first, leaving space between them.

Then ask your students to change the words, one letter at a time, each time creating a new word. The object is to reach the second word with the least possible number of moves.

Obviously, this is best for higher-level classes but it can bring up some good new words.

Games with movement are good to break up a long class (to break up means to put short activities in between longer ones).

You could stick words and definitions (or translations) around the room and have a race to see which individual, pair, or group can match the most pairs.

Or you could give the students the words and definitions and get them to find the person who matches with them. This is also a good technique to get students to work in different pairs.

Memory games work well with vocabulary. You could have some objects on the table and give students 5 minutes to find out the words for them together (if they don't already know) and to remember as many as they can.

You can also use pictures for this, getting students to look at the picture then describe it, or answer questions about it.

Storytelling is a great classroom favourite of mine, and of my students. I get a bunch of unconnected words, including nouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, and conjunctions.

I then get students, in groups or pairs, to write a story using as many of the words as they can. Sometimes I award points for each word and turn it into a competition.

I have also had the students work in pairs, with one reading the story and one acting it out.

Vocabulary activities don't have to be boring. With a few new ideas and a little imagination, ESL vocabulary games can make your lessons much more lively and fun.

Jul 8, Vocabulary Lesson Plans

Having good vocabulary lesson plans is key to helping your students improve. Increasing vocabulary is important to learning a language, as anyone can communicate if they know enough words, even if their grammar isn’t great. If they don’t know the words they can’t do anything.
Well, here are some key points to help you. Students won’t remember random words so teach new vocabulary in groups. For example personality adjectives, weather words, clothing, words connected with travel, etc.
It is usually quite ineffective to simply let students try and work out meaning from context. But seeing or hearing words in context will help them remember. So for example you can pick out words from a reading text and get them to look them up in a dictionary and make their own sentences using these words.
If you see or hear a word once, will you remember it? It isn’t likely is it? Use the words more than once and present them in different ways. Students have different learning styles – some will remember from reading a word, others will remember from hearing it. Others will need to use it to remember the word. So try and give them plenty of opportunity to read or hear the words.
If the students use the word, producing it in their own sentences, they are much more likely to remember it. Let them use the new vocabulary in written texts, role plays or presentations. Make sure they use the new words and don’t stick to old, ‘safe’ words they know. It’s important to get them to make sentences that show they understand the meaning. For example if you’ve taught ‘stormy’, the sentence ‘It is stormy,’ does not show understanding. A sentence like, "We didn't go out because of the stormy weather," would probably be much better. Push the students to do the best they can and don’t let them get lazy.
That may not always be true but if you are teaching adjectives, it makes sense to teach them in pairs as students will be more likely to remember them that way.
Make it fun.  Vocabulary teaching is a great opportunity to get some games into the classroom. Many teachers resort to Hangman as a filler at the end of the lesson but it isn’t much fun, can be culturally insensitive, and doesn’t really help learning all that much. Pairs matching/memory games work well with vocabulary and there are a load of games you can make more interesting by setting up teams and letting them compete against each other. 
Don’t teach vocabulary in one lesson then forget it. Always have an activity in the next lesson to reinforce the learning.
Of course you can tell your students new words, but you may need to show them how to learn them. Let them see different techniques of organizing vocabulary notebooks – mind maps, lists, translations, sentences, etc, and encourage them to look up new words they encounter.

If you follow these tips when you are writing vocabulary lesson plans, then your lessons should become more effective and more enjoyable.

Jul 11, How to Help Your Students Learn to Read English

If you want to help your students learn to read English you need to give them some guidelines, and some interesting materials to read. Here are some suggestions to keep your reading lessons fresh and useful. The first thing you need to do is find interesting texts. No students want to read if they have boring texts. If you can find real news stories or magazine articles then that is much better but make sure the vocabulary and grammar isn’t too difficult. You can also use excerpts from books or scripts, or song lyrics, depending on the level of the group.

Finding interesting texts for beginners can be more difficult. You need to reinforce the vocabulary they know rather than give them too many new words, which means it is difficult for them to understand the text. Of course you can use children’s picture books, but if you are teaching teenagers or adults these often won't be appropriate. And even kids' books can use a lot of new words. One option if you have a very low level class is to use the English Short Stories for Complete Beginners. This will help them read but won't give them complicated vocabulary.

Teaching your students to use dictionaries is important at every level. Either a bi-lingual dictionary or a picture dictionary for lower levels, or a single language dictionary for advanced students. Encourage them to look up words they don't know, and not guess them. If a student looks up a word, they are more likely to remember it, and you can be sure they understand the meaning.

In class, reading can become a little boring. You can make your reading lessons livelier by trying some of the following techniques. Most of them can be adapted to suit any level.

Put a short reading passage on a wall somewhere. Students are in pairs, one goes to the text, remembers a section of it, goes to their partner and repeats it. The seated partner writes exactly what their ‘running' partner says. Check for spelling and punctuation at the end.
Each pair of students has two connected texts. Each reads and then gives their partner a summary of their text.
Instead of you giving the students the comprehension questions, get them to write their own.
Ask questions to see how much the students remember.
Cut the text up in sections. Place them around the class. Students work in small groups to find a complete set and put them in order.
Ask them to find an example of a certain grammar point or a synonym for another word. They raise their hand when they find it.

If you want your students to learn to read English then the most important thing they can do is practice. That isn't something you can force them to do. Make them aware of where they can get appropriate reading material and you will be giving them the best help you can.

Jul 7, "Complain" using Different Parts of Speech

 

What is the difference between "complain," "complaint" and "complained"?

 

"Complain" is a verb. It means you are unhappy with something and you express it.

For example: "I want to complain about the quality of the food."

The past form of "complain" is "complained."

For example, "I complained about the quality of the food."

"Complaint" is a noun. It's what you say or write when you are unhappy with something.

For example: "I wrote a complaint about the quality of food."

Jul 17, How to Learn English Fast

Many students want to know how to learn English fast, but I have to disappoint them with my answer.

There is no foolproof way to learn English fast. Besides, if you learn something fast, you very often forget it.

Consider actors who are in a series that is filmed over a short space of time. They are very good at learning their lines quickly for one episode. By the time they record the next episode, they have forgotten the first set of lines. Learning a language can be a little like that.

If you learn too quickly without practicing what you have learned, it is easily forgotten.

There are different methods of language learning, and some may work better for you than others. If you want to know how to learn English fast, you would be better to think about how to learn English effectively.

Firstly, there is self-study. This is where you use a book which will teach you the grammar and vocabulary you need to know. Some books also come with CDs or DVDs to give you listening or interactive practice. Self-study is also possible using computer software or the internet.

What are the benefits and problems of self-study?

You have to be very self-disciplined. You need to set aside time for study when you won't be distracted. You may also find that it is difficult to stay motivated if you are studying alone.

Practice is also a problem if you are not studying with other people, so maybe you can find people online who can practice with you.

But the biggest downside, in my opinion, is when you can't ask your questions. In other words, it's always good to have someone (a teacher, an expert) to consult with.

A benefit of self-study is that you can take as much time as you like and you don't have to keep pace with a class.

It's usually more affordable, too.

Secondly, you can join a local class. This has the advantage of helping you stay motivated and gives you the opportunity to practice. It can be expensive though, and you will have to do things at the same pace as the rest of the class.

Research local courses and try to speak to teachers and students before you choose a class. 

Thirdly, you can find a tutor to help you with your English progress. A good tutor will give you all the attention you need and guide you through a step-by-step program built specifically for your needs.

Studying with a tutor can be great. However, hourly rates tend to be expensive. So the number of hours you study with them may be too little to make significant progress fast. To achieve that, make sure you also work and practice on your own.

Fourthly, you can study in an English speaking country. This is often very expensive, but it is the best way to learn. Do some research and find a school that is right for your needs.

They have different strengths and weaknesses.

You will find if you take this option that your speaking and listening skills will increase much faster. This is particularly true if you live with a host family, and try to be involved in life there.

In many schools you will have the opportunity to take classes in a group or individually, so the program can really be made to fit your needs.

Whichever learning method you choose, practice is the key to learning English effectively. Read and listen to English as much as you can. Speak to people at every opportunity.

Don't worry about how to learn English fast, just concentrate on finding the methods to help you learn English in the way that suits you.

Jul 13, How to Find the Best English Language Schools – UK

If you want to improve your English fast then you should consider studying in an English speaking country, and the UK is one option. Spending time in an English speaking country is a great experience. You will meet students from other countries, and be able to use the language in everyday situations. If you want to find the best English language schools, UK or anywhere else, then you need to know what to look for.
Is the language school registered? If it is in the UK then it should be registered with The British Council, and the school’s literature and website will show this clearly. This registration shows that the school meets minimum standards of facilities, teaching and organization.

How many teachers are there? What are their qualifications? A good school will have a mixture of teachers, but should have some who have diploma qualifications. The school’s website may have pictures and biographies of the teachers and this will give you some idea of how experienced they are.

Are the staff checked for criminal records? This is very important. Some schools don’t check their staff and if you’re sending your kids to study there you want to be sure it is safe.

What accommodation is available? Some English schools provide accommodation in schools or hostels but most send students to stay with local families. Are these families checked? Do they cater for special dietary requirements? Check these things out if they are important to you. There may be alternative accommodation options available, at different prices.

Does the school have a syllabus? Do they follow set books or do the teachers do what they want? What proportion of the lessons is grammar/conversation/games? These things may be important to you so it is a good idea to ask.

What age group does the school teach? Some schools specialize in teaching adults, some teenagers and some younger kids. Make sure you choose one that has expertise in the right age group.

Do you want specialist English tuition? Some schools can offer 1 to 1, individual tuition. This is usually more expensive. Other schools can offer specialist business English, exam tuition, legal English, financial English, academic English or medical English for example. Find one that suits your needs.

Bear in mind that if you want to study for an exam then a language school in the UK will usually concentrate on the UK-based exams such as the Cambridge exams (KET, PET, FCE, CAE, CPE and the BEC business exams) and the IELTS exam, rather than the TOEFL.

How much time do you want to spend there? Most students go to summer language schools for 2 weeks, but a longer time may be better for you. So make sure the lessons won’t be repeated after two weeks.

The most important thing to do when you are trying to find the best English language schools, UK based or anywhere else, is to ask questions and get as much information as you can. A language course abroad is a big investment and you want to make the decision that is right for you.

Once you do that, you can take that giant step to improving your English!