Language Sensei

A Language Teacher's Journey

November 9, 2016
by leesensei
2 Comments

Talk, Stand, Switch….Developing Independent “Mixing” Skills

In my classes we do a lot of talking with different partners, often gathering information from them to use in class. Whether it is Yr1 finding out how often their classmates eat their favourite foods, or Yr4 creating and sharing … Continue reading

April 15, 2016
by leesensei
2 Comments

Why Write When You Can Talk? – The Oral “Worksheet”

Worksheets. I’ve been thinking, and rethinking, about them a lot lately. I believe that teachers use them with good intentions. We want them to practice something. We want them to “learn” and show understanding of a new language point or … Continue reading

March 10, 2016
by leesensei
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Mash-Up: Interpretive Reading Meets Interpersonal Activity!

Interpretive reading is a new ‘push’ of mine and I’ve been making full use of my supply of graded readers for this. My Yr4’s are currently working in a food unit and I tapped the “Sushi” reading for this purpose. … Continue reading

April 6, 2015
by leesensei
1 Comment

“What Was Your Challenge? How Did You Overcome It” – Student Responses and What I Learned…

In my last post I wrote about my goal of ‘traction’ for my students. But the key for me is “Is the lesson on how to communicate/what to do if there are challenges?” getting through. My Year4’s do a group … Continue reading

March 9, 2015
by leesensei
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“Who Killed Him?” An Interactive TL Murder Mystery

The origins of this activity come from the textbook Yookoso (by Yasu-Hiku Tohsaku) – a text we own as a school but which I am not using as a ‘class text’ any more. In a daily routine section there is … Continue reading

January 24, 2015
by leesensei
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“It Was Cool!” Their First Group Interpersonal Oral…

I am so proud of my Year 1’s. In one (strike-shortened) semester they have mastered one new orthography and are well on their way to a second. They are learning how to feel confident and communicate in a second language … Continue reading

December 27, 2014
by leesensei
1 Comment

Best of 2014: No. 1 “How Did That Go?” An Oral Activity Feedback Rubric

We talk a lot in the #langchat community about evaluation and feedback for students. One of my focus areas has been in developing a more reflective classroom – and for that purpose I began to work with a self-evaluation rubric … Continue reading

December 15, 2014
by leesensei
0 comments

Best of 2014: No. 3 Reading & Understanding – The “Question Challenge” Activity

It’s always a challenge to construct activities that engage students – especially about a reading piece. I try a variety of ways to both help/determine if my students understand a piece from  group Q&A to discussion to drawing and more. … Continue reading

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