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Teacher Recommendations

. Create a welcoming and supportive classroom environment
A. Learn the students names
B. Create and implement activities that facilitate interactions among the students
C. Recognize accomplishments as readily as mistakes
D. Do not be overly critical
E. Be patient
F. Have a good sense of humor
G. Be active/energetic

. Involve/Engage the students
A. Make eye contact with the students
B. Ensure that all students participate in the daily activities
C. Identify the students interests and incorporate them into the class
D. Focus on having the students speak as much as possible to keep them engaged

. Ask questions that require students to demonstrate they understand the concepts
A. Avoid Yes/No questions
B. Avoid questions that include the answers
C. Require students to answer questions using complete sentences
D. Ask questions that require students to use information presented in an original way

. Speak clearly and at a pace that the students can understand
A. Speak as slowly or quickly as required - try to maintain a pace that allows your slowest
students to learn while keeping your swiftest students engaged
B. Enunciate
C. Speak so all your students can hear you
D. Repeat things as often as necessary but dont underestimate or demean your students by
moving too slowly
E. Use nonverbal cues - drawing and miming both liven up the students and communicate
concepts better than translating to the students native language

. Present information in different ways
A. Create activities that require students to use information presented in class in original
ways without assistance (e.g., writing assignments, role-plays)
B. Use structured book or workbook activities that allows students to use information
presented in class (e.g., gap-fill and multiple choice exercises)
C. Utilize both group and individual projects
D. Utilize both written and oral activities
E. Use games and other fun activities



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. Be prepared
A. Identify the activities/concepts you will teach during each class and how you will
teach/implement them
B. Bring all your necessary materials with you to class - dont interrupt class or wait until
class breaks to print/prepare materials for that day
C. Be familiar with the vocabulary and grammar in each unit
D. Prepare a written lesson plan for each lesson. This is an important tool that helps a
teacher know what materials to prepare and bring for the day and also provides a
guideline if the teacher gets nervous or off track during a class
E. It is better to overplan than to under plan

. Create assignments with clear instructions and expectations
A. As much as possible, instructions should be in English. Use the students native language
only as a last resort
B. Model the task you want your students to complete by creating your own examples
and/or completing the first question/task of the activity together
C. Ask questions after you present instructions/expectations to ensure students understand
their tasks
D. Consider the level of your students when preparing instructions; Be as simple as possible
for basic/elementary students

. Present your class in a uniform way each day
A. Begin each class with an introduction/warm up
a. On the first day, prepare an icebreaker for you and the students to get to know each
other
b. After the first day, it is helpful to review new concepts and vocabulary taught and/or
address errors from the previous day
B. Present the goals/objectives for the class. Writing these on the board helps provide
structure for the class and sets student and teacher expectations
C. After your warm up, the majority of your class will vary based on the activities you
planned for the day
D. Always leave time for a review/wrap up at the end of each class. During this time, review
new vocabulary and/or pronunciation issues from the day and reinforce any new concepts

Ensure that students spend more time producing the target language than you do
A. Ask the students to read aloud
B. Ask students to form sentences using new grammar/vocabulary
C. Create interesting writing exercises that require the students to use grammar/vocabulary
D. Games/Activities focused on concepts related to the lesson

Correct pronunciation and grammatical errors soon after they occur
A. Error correction should occur soon after (if not immediately after) a mistake is made
B. If the student is speaking for a period of time, you can correct them when they are
finished so as to not interrupt their thinking
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C. Make a note of common mistakes students make in class so they can be addressed

Provide pronunciation, definitions, and contextual usage of vocabulary
A. Demonstrate how each word is pronounced
B. If a word has more than one definition, explain the context in which the word is being
used
C. At the higher levels, explain if a word has different meanings depending on how it is
pronounced (e.g., conflict)
D. Create example sentences