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(by Dr. Alva Lefevre - the "L" in L&M Educational Consulting) I’ve been teaching for what seems to be a very long time.   I’ve studied the research, practiced the strategies, and gathered a lot of information about my students. Some things worked and, over time, became part of my repertoire and others fell flat and eventually disappeared.   I tried models; didn’t like them; and finally realized that I must redefine the way I teach with each new group of students.   I am presently teaching a course titled “Theories of Second Language Acquisition” at the university level and my students often joke that the name alone is enough to put you to sleep.   Over the last several years, parts of my course have been moving online making it a “hybrid”, with some sessions taking place on campus and others being in an online format (asynchronous).   Embracing technology was not hard. Learning to live with it was another matter. It was already a challenge to get to know my...

With summer almost gone, it’s time to scour the ads for school supplies and to gear up for the new school year.   The beginning of school always brings up conflicting emotions for me.   First and foremost, the excitement and anticipation of meeting new students and trying new lessons, but also the anxiety of trying to meet so many new needs. Continuing with the trend of Fun and Games and with the understanding that engagement comes when students feel a connection with what they’re learning, here are some ideas gathered from two sources that inspired me this summer: 1)     David Warlick’s Smartbrief identified “four qualities of gaming and social networking experiences that provoke active and deliberate investment from the learner, into what they’re learning.”   He cites: a.      Responsiveness (“Choices work or don’t, but everything gets feedback”); b.      Collaboration (Learners discuss and build off one other ...

Here's another link to ESL games: http://www.manythings.org/e/abc.html. This is the alphabetical list on the "Many Things" website. The idioms and slang sections are a great reference for intermediate proficiency level students.

Hi Everyone! I have been taking some time to play with the Instant Poetry Forms (especially since I am writing some poetry for some world languages units :) ). It is listed under poetry resources on the right-hand side of our blog. I know that we had some interest in this site before, but I thought it would be worthwhile to remind you all of how fun these are! There are a ton of poetry frames. Here's one from my daughter that she wrote about her new beta fish: I am a beta fish blue as an ocean. I swim through my log. I eat freeze-dried worms. I can play guitar on my fins. I can stare at my best buddy, Liv. I am a beta fish. Try some of the forms out and post them here or on our Facebook page! Also, I just visited the New Mexico Chant Bank to see if I could find some inspiration for my own writing. They have a TON of new poems posted since I last checked them out (which was several months ago at least) . I like that you can add your own chants/poetry to the bank, too. Please take a ...

Hello everyone! Since summer is in full swing, we decided to make our focus for July -- games and activities. Here are a couple of links for you. The first one has thematic crossword puzzles that you might enjoy:  http://www.englishclub.com/esl-games/    The second one fun matching games: http://www.vocabulary.co.il/   Have fun and let us know which ones you like best!!

Can't believe it is the end of June already! Time flies... We have already posted Pat Wolfe's "Mind Matters" site on the right-hand side of our blog, but here is a page within her site that posts brain research related articles: http://patwolfe.com/articles-about-the-brain/ Happy reading!!

In this article, Ben Johnson talks about the Common Core and how the new standards address problem-solving. How is this related to brain research as it applies to our students? Creatively solving problems is a whole brain activity. And just what does problem-solving entail? According to Johnson, "a problem must be compelling enough to require a solution. The solution to a problem must be believable, plausible and doable." And furthermore, "a solution to a problem must be so integrated (like the brain) that the parts and pieces cannot be separated." He ends with a question: How do you get students to solve problems in your classroom? And I would add, what are some of the most compelling problems that your students have solved and what were the resolutions? Here is his article for further reading: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/common-core-standards-problem-solving-ben-johnson#.T4NoWlEKyTw.email