Delayed Update

I apologize for not keeping the blog up to date, as I have been sick the past week.

In our second class, I had each student select a favorite and a least favorite destination. Each student had time to ask several questions, to discover the secret destination of their partner. I then assigned a 10 sentence comparison of the city you like vs. the city you do not like.

In Class #3 we covered modals, like should, could, and would. We then read samples from the NY Times Advice "The Social Q" and in groups of four, each group came up with solutions to problem solve. There was a minimum of 20 sentences required. I allowed the rest of class to work on this, and until the following class to finish the assignment.

In Class #4 we had each group share their advice column responses. I distributed the corrections to the assignment between two cities, and discussed common mistakes that I found in the copies. I gave the rest of class to those students who wanted to read their comparisons aloud to the class, for oral practice.

In Class 5, I discussed the use of "for" and "since", and use of the words "trip, travel, vacation, holiday, cruise, voyage, and journey". The use of these last group of words is different than in France, although many are the same word in both languages. There are also differences in use between America and England. We split into partners, where each partner corrected the CV in English of the other. I distributed a document with frequently asked interview questions. Each student could use five questions from the worksheet I distributed, and then had to come up with five questions of their own for their partner. We then conducted interviews with each other. A lot of vocabulary used in interviews was discussed in class.

At the end of this last class, I also showed videos that cover some of the pronunciation problems when foreigners learn English, because there are so many irregular pronunciations.

Spelling Video

Irregular Verbs Rap Video
Since VS For; Travel, Vacation, Trip, Journey, etc.
Group 3 did not see clips

First Class & Week 1

Hello MAG 1 students!! The first day of class I gave an overview of the class, and my expectations. Attendance is mandatory as well as class participation. The groups are not split up into Levels, everyone is mixed, and I ask that everyone feel welcome to ask questions.

The first day of class, we came up with questions that you could ask someone upon first meeting them. We then interviewed a partner, and introduced them to the class. For the groups who did not finish introducing their partners, or for the students who did not attend the first day of class, you will be presenting your partner or yourself this coming Friday, January 20th.

Today, the 17th in class, we practiced asking questions, using a secret destination or place. Each student came up with a place they liked, and a place they didn't like. Students took turns asking other students questions in order to figure out which place the first student was thinking of. We rotated partners so everyone had a chance to speak with someone different. At the end of class, we totaled up the points for each team. I also assigned homework, 10 sentences written or printed out for Friday morning, on why you prefer the place you like, to the place you don't like. If you use sources, as always, please list them.

I will correct this assignment, and we will use it in class next Tuesday.