Web Activities Swap Meet for ESOL

ORTESOL 2008

Luciana Diniz and Elizabeth Cole

Wikis in plain English (video)

1. Adult Education

• Spelling program
  • Level: All, especially beginners
  • One idea of how to use it: Students can practice spelling specific words before a spelling quiz.
  • Type: Students can use it for self-study or in a CALL class

• Adult Learning Activities: News stories with media and exercises written in plain English from the California Distance Learning Project
  • Level: Intermediate
  • One idea of how to use it:  Students can practice reading comprehension skills by reading simplified English articles.  After doing exercises, students can email you their scores.
  • Type: Students can use it for self-study or in a CALL class 

• USA learns
  • Level: beginners
  • One idea of how to use it: listening activities for students; handouts
  • Type: Students can use it for self-study

• Nancy's Quia
  • Level: Intermediate
  • One idea of how to use it: games for students
  • Type: Students can use it for self-study

2. Writing

• Bubbles
  • Level: Intermediate to advanced
  • One idea of how to use it: Students can brainstorm ideas before writing an essay.
  • Type: Computer lab
  •  

• Paragraphs and Essays (English Works)
  • Level: all levels
  • One idea of how to use it: show examples of academic paragraphs and essays

3. Grammar

•  Fun with Randomly Generate Sentences: Basic sentences patterns of English in different tenses with different tenses by Interesting Things for ESL Students
  • Level: Intermediate
  • One idea of how to use it: Show this to students for a grammar activity in class or assign as fun project.  Students could have to write down the sentences from the random sentences generator
  • Type: Computer lab or self-study

• The Purdue Online Writing Lab
  • Level: advanced
  • One idea of how to use it: handouts for students (on different grammar topics) 
  • Type: Resource for teachers

4. Listening and Speaking

• Conversation questions
  • Levels: Intermediate to advanced
  • One idea of how to use it: Students have discussions in small groups using the questions.
  • Type: Resource of teachers

5. Reading

• Academic reading skills: Act Test Tutorials from the E-Resource Center from the John Jay College City University of New York
  • Levels: Upper-intermediate to advanced
  • One idea of how to use it: Assign as homework to supplement in-class practice with finding the main idea, inferring information, and other reading skills.  Main website also has writing practice for ACT test, which could benefit students.
  • Type: Self-study for students

6. Pronunciation

• Common pronunciation mistakes
  • Level: All
  • One idea of how to use it: Teachers can find out common pronunciation mistakes according to students' first language.
  • Type: Resource for teachers

•  Pronunciation tips from BBC Learning English: Part of a comprehensive language learning and teaching site from the BBC
  • Level: All
  • One idea of how to use it: Teachers can direct students to this site or use it to downloand and print material.
  • Type: Self-study or resource for teachers

• Writing phonetic symbols
  • Level: Intermediate to advanced
  • One idea of how to use it: When presenting IPA for the first time, teachers can show how to draw some of the symbols.
  • Type: Resource for teachers 

• SPLIS (pronunciation websites) 
  • Level: all
  • One of idea of how to use it: show students the resources in the computer lab; students can listen to songs and to tongue twisters
  • Type: Self-study or resource for teachers

7. For children

• MES-English
  • Level: Beginners (some activities could also be adapted to adult education)
  • One idea of how to use it: BINGO cards are very helpful to practice new vocabulary.
  • Type: Resource for teachers

• Starfall: An interactive, phonics-based reading site which moves learners from the individual sounds to texts
  • Level: Pre-K through grade 4 (can also benefit adult learners)
  • One idea of how to use it: Ask parents to use with children at home or use it during class to help teach specific sound and letter combinations.
  • Type: Self-study, use with students

• The Futures Channel: A collection of short, easy-to-understand videos on topics related to science and math
  • Level: Low-intermediate to Intermediate (also great for low-intermediate adults)
  • One idea of how to use it: Prepare listening comprehension questions and show video to class.
  • Type: Resource for teachers

• Boggles
  • Level: beginners
  • One idea of how to use it: flashcards (with prepositions)
  • Type: Resource for teachers

8. Resources for teachers

• ESL Printables
  • Level: All, but especially beginners and children
  • One idea of how to use it: Create a free account. Upload a worksheet that you created. Every time someone downloads your worksheet, you get one point. You can use the points you have to download other teachers' worksheets.
  • Type: resource for teachers

• Wordsmyth
  • Level: Intermediate to advanced
  • One idea of how to use it: Teachers can create word lists for a specific reading passage.
  • Type: Resource for teachers.

9. Other

• Conversation with a robot
  • Level: Beginners
  • One idea of how to use it: Students could print out the conversation and practice it in pairs in the classroom.
  • Type: CALL class