I feel it best to warn you in advance that this is a post that could potentially spiral wildly out of control! It may also, I fear, contain themes I’ve entered into from slightly angles during other posts in this…
Twenty Things in Twenty Years Part Three: kicking the grammar habit
As I’m sure I’ve mentioned elsewhere, my induction into English Language Teaching via a four-week CELTA at Westminster College (and, indeed, my subsequent year-long part-time DELTA) left me with that very same affliction that so many of our students still…
Back to School Part Three: lessons of forgetting and laughter
They say that learning a foreign language is a good way of avoiding dementia in later life, but with learning Russian I sometimes feel that maybe dementia has already set in! Words taught mere seconds ago can become a blank…
Back to school Part 2: TomAYto TomARto
In my last post, I described two basic routes to learning language as a means of communication. At this point, I should reiterate that what I am talking about here are not routes to any real kind of fully-functional fluency.…
Back to school: Part One
As you may have noticed, we recently wrote a Beginner’s book and I have written a series of posts exploring the ideas behind it. One thing that's driving this two-man campaign (you can decide for yourself if that means it’s…
A different kind of Beginner-level book 5: Pronunciation
Pronunciation: Really? Do I have to? While the bulk of Beginner coursebooks on the market are pretty uniform when it comes to the way they handle grammar and - to some extent - vocabulary, there seems to be little consistency…
Grammar nonsense 11: more verb patterns
So, following on from my recent post on verb patterns, I've managed another one already. You know how it is: you wait for hours for a bus and then two come along in quick succession. Not that this is a…
Grammar nonsense and curiosities 10: verb patterns
Welcome back? It’s been a while, but I'm now back by popular demand - by which I mean Hugh’s demand, if I'm honest! Here for your delight and delectation are some further thoughts on grammar nonsense. So step right up…
A different kind of Beginner-level book 4: a spiralling syllabus
A spiralling syllabus is NOT just about grammar Hopefully, you'll have read our previous post on a spiral syllabus. In this short post, I want to add that the spiral syllabus doesn’t only apply to grammar. The same principles also…
A different kind of Beginner-level book 3: choosing which vocabulary to teach
Making choices about vocabulary: teaching what’s relevant to most students, responding to individuals In our last post, we looked at how we've tried to ensure that Outcomes Beginner provides students with just enough grammar to have the kinds of basic…