Week Six, Around Town/Communities

Week Six

Around Town & Communities

TEACHING RESOURCES

Have you ever held a paying job, an internship or a volunteer position?

How did you learn about the position? How did you get the job?

What is your experience as a job seeker, and what stories have you heard from family members or friends about how they’ve found out about job openings and been hired?

Read the entire text on the NY Times Learning Network website: 

Is It OK to Use Family Connections to Get a Job?

EXIT TICKET
Have you used an exit ticket with your students lately? Here's one in Google Forms you could use: General Exit Ticket.

AN OLDIE BUT GOODIE: I always share this map this time of year: Town Map

Some resources from Oxford University Press: Teaching Adults

Students can talk away when you create your own board game. All you need is some dice (which you can probably borrow from the branch- maybe they have a Yahtzee game in the teen room). Tailor it to your own needs: Blank boardgame

PS- See more about playing games in the classroom below. 

CALENDAR

Save the date: our next
ALC Instructional Staff meeting
will be held on
Friday, April 27, 2018
Details to follow!

TEACHER READING

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

English Language Teaching Global Blog

Using games for win-win learning

One theory for the motivational power of games (both physical and online) is that players reach a mental state where they are completely focused on the task. This is sometimes referred to as ‘flow’ (1); in other words, the difficulty of the game is not too hard or too easy, equally matched to the player’s skill level.

It is at this level that games have the most potential as valuable classroom tools.

Read the entire blog post here: OUP Blog: Using Games for Win-Win Learning

CLASSROOM SHOWCASE

This week's pictures come from Diana Vayserfirova, and her level 5/6 class at Kingsbridge.

Please send me pictures, and be sure to include the branch name and level. I need them by the end of the business day on Wednesday. If I already have enough submissions for the week- that just means your pictures will be published the next week. Personally, I think the pictures that you share are the best part of the blog.

Thank you! elizabethschade@nypl.org

DID YOU KNOW?

Did you know that you can keep up with NYPL news on LAIR?

Don’t forget that staff receive a special 30% discount in the store or online 

with the code LASTFEB18 today. 
PS- I love my earrings and other things I got the day of the staff meeting.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

NYC ABE CONSORTIUM 2018 CONFERENCE

Celebrating Our 39th NYC ABE Conference Year 
This year's theme is: ​
​Empower Adult Educators, Empower Adult Learners  
Save the date: April 21, 2018, High School of Fashion Industries

Read about it in detail here:  nycabeconsortium.weebly.com

END QUOTE

“Good teaching is more a giving of right

questions than a giving of right answers.”

(Josef Albers)

Thank you for all that you do! Have a great week!

TEACHER HUB is a weekly blog of resources and information for instructors and staff of the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and Adult Literacy (ABE) programs of the New York Public Library in the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island

January 19, 2018

TEACHER HUB is a weekly blog of resources and information for instructors and staff of the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and Adult Literacy (ABE) programs of the New York Public Library in the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island

Week One

Welcome/Learning to Learn

TEACHING RESOURCES

Winter 2018 Curriculum

WEEK 1

Welcome/learning to learn

pages 2-5

WEEKS 2-4

Health

Unit 4

WEEKS 5-7

Around town & Communities

Unit 5

WEEKS 8-10

Time & Weather

Unit 6

This is a repost on how to access Ventures, just in case it might be handy:

1) Go to the website:  cambridge.org/ventures

2) Click "Sign In"  

3) Click "forgot password"

4) They'll email you a link to re-set your password (It should have 1 uppercase letter and 1 number)

5) With that new password, you'll be able to log in

6) Click on "Resources" in the middle of the page

7) Click the "Level" of Ventures you use on the left hand menu on the screen. Click on "Supplementary" on the menu on the left.

8) Identify "Teacher's Edition/Assessment Audio" section in the middle of the screen. Under this heading are the materials found in the teacher previous teacher's resource room.

9) You may get an email from Cambridge asking you to email them back to verify your account.  In the email, please provide them with your name, the name/address of the branch you work at and that you're an NYPL employee.

This should provide you with access to all the materials.

Wikis for the Winter 2018 session are here:

alc-health.wikispaces.com

alc-housing.wikispaces.com

alc-environment.wikispaces.com

alc-resources.wikispaces.com

alc-teachers.wikispaces.com   

alc-students.wikispaces.com (resources for students)

TECH TIPS

PikWizard - Another Place to Find Free Images

PikWizard is a free site that offers thousands of high quality images that you can download and re-use for free. PikWizard provides clear guidance on how you can use each picture that you find on the site. You will find that guidance posted to the right of any picture that you select from search results. PikWizard also provides clear directions on how to give credit to the photographers whose pictures you use. 

Read the entire blog post here: PikWizard

CALENDAR

Dates to Note:

1/22/18- Classes start
1/26/18- Instructional Staff Meeting

2/19/18- President's Day. NYPL closed.

2/19-2/23- NYC public schools closed

3/31/18- Winter 2018 term ends

ALC INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF MEETING

Our winter cycle teacher meeting is scheduled for next week! It's a great opportunity to meet with your fellow teachers, as well as get the latest updates from Ken and Steve.

Please be sure to have your employee ID on you to gain access to this room.

Friday January 26, 2018 - 10am- 1:30pm

Steven A Schwarzman Building (SASB)

Trustees Room, 2nd Floor

476 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10018

Please see the link and select the 2nd floor for directions on how to find the space: Floorplan

PS- The last Friday of every month, NYPL staff receive a special 30% discount at the Library Shop at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. Get your NYPL swag and check out the website here: NYPL Shop

PPS- I may have to get the "Book Stack" earrings. -Elizabeth

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

NYC ABE CONSORTIUM 2018 CONFERENCE

Celebrating Our 39th NYC ABE Conference Year 
This year's theme is: ​
​Empower Adult Educators, Empower Adult Learners  
Save the date: April 21, 2018, High School of Fashion Industries

The Consortium is accepting applications for presentations. 

Read about it in detail here: ABE Conference Proposal Guidelines or on their website: nycabeconsortium.weebly.com

CLASSROOM SHOWCASE

Diana from Riverside submitted this photo:

Family Tree by Miladys from RD Beginners

Please submit photos from your classroom by noon on Thursdays to: elizabethschade@nypl.org 

How to Create More Engaging Conference Presentations

Have you had the experience of attending professional conferences where you experienced death by PowerPoint—a presentation in which the person at the front of the room has too much text on too many slides? Often, the presenter then proceeds to read to the audience everything that is already written on the slides. This can soon become very dull indeed. But what if that presenter is you? How can those of us who find ourselves at the front of the room make our presentations more interesting and engaging to our participants?

Read the entire blog post here: TESOL Blog: Engaging Presentations

TEACHER READING

Education Tips: Managing Large Language Classes

Many English language teachers around the world face a common problem: large class sizes. A large number of students in a classroom can lead to difficulties for both the instructor and the learners.

In today’s Education Tips, we discuss what teachers can do to help manage large classes. We will also look at ways to increase student participation.

Read the entire blog post here: VOA: Managing Large Language Classes

TEACHER OPPORTUNITY

Teaching Materials Grant - Tina B. Carver Fund

The Tina B. Carver Fund was established by her family and colleagues to honor the life and work of Tina B. Carver, longtime member of TESOL and the ESL/EFL community. Grants are available for funding the purchase of student classroom learning materials and/or teacher-related materials (e.g., ancillary materials that can be used in conjunction with textbooks or other instruction materials) to support adult ESL education programs in the United States.

Read the entire blog post here: TESOL Teaching Materials Grant

A message from Tony Marx, NYPL President:

END QUOTE

“Those who know, do.
Those that understand, teach” (Aristotle)

Thank you for all that you do! Have a great week!

February 24, 2017

Week 6

AROUND TOWN/COMMUNITIES

 TEACHING RESOURCES

Working with the topic “Volunteers” in Ventures 4 or Ventures Transitions? Here’s a real life article about Venture’s “Running with Ropes” text  about helping visually impaired runners (p. 64).   If you would like the article in a Word doc, email Elke (elkestappert@nypl.org) Here's the link: Running for Amelia Also, for the LifeSkills activity around Volunteer Opportunities (p. 68), here’s a great listing by Time Out NY: Volunteer opportunities by topic (health, environment, youth, animals, other). Great for individual student research outside of class. If you’re interested in printing 15 short descriptions of non-profits, email Elke for a two page Word document (elkestappert@nypl.org)

Playing the Phonics Game

If you are looking for some fun ways to practice pronunciation with your ESL students, try one of the following games that puts the fun in phonology: 

Busy Teacher - Phonics Games

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS

English Language Teaching Global Blog

Going Mobile: Choices and Challenges

Do you already use mobile devices with your students in the classroom? If not, would you like to? Perhaps your students use their devices regularly during your classes, or perhaps you’re just starting out – either way, there are several key things to keep in mind to make sure that things go smoothly. Read the entire article here: 

Going Mobile: Choices and Challenges

The last Friday of every month, NYPL staff receive a special 30% discount at the Library Shop at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. Stop by February 24, or shop online with code LASTFEB17 to take advantage of this great deal. 

NYPL SHOP

Together We Can: Innovative Ideas for the Classroom

One Day Mini Conference

Sponsored by NYS TESOL and Kaplan International

Saturday, March 18^th, 2017

8:30am- 1:00pm

Kaplan International

Empire State Building

63rd Floor, 350 5th Ave

New York, NY 10118

Pre-register online:  http://tinyurl.com/Kaplan-Mini-Conf-March2017

For more information, please contact: Josh.Pangborn@kaplan.com

“Educators will leave with practical ideas that can be easily implemented into their lessons to make them more interesting, communicative and motivating to students. The communicative ideas presented will focus on the topics of English skills, using technology, grammar teaching, test preparation and developing leadership skills for ESL professionals. Participants in the mini-conference will also have the opportunity to network.”

THANKS FOR READING THE TEACHER HUB BLOG