QUIZZES

WEBSITES HENRY & JONATHAN CONSULTED FOR CREATING THE QUIZZES


INTRODUCTION 
 In this blog post, Henry and Jonathan will present some quizzes we made, and the links of different websites with multimedia elements and applications, where we got the required information to elaborate questions. The objective is enriching our working tools as teachers, to use them in class, for students/teacher mutual benefit.


EARTHLIKE PLANET (ARTICLE) QUIZ (Adults): 
Henry & Jonathan's Quiz For Adults: Directions: There are 12 question items in this quiz, select the right answer out of the three possible.

   http://www.youthink.com/quiz.cfm?action=go_detail&sub_action=take&obj_id=208390

 In order to solve the quiz, adult learners will first read the article below and then answer the questions. The purpose of the quiz is having reading practice and  the use of memory and logic to select the right answer.

  http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2106061,00.html

  "IN TIME" MOVIE TRAILER QUIZ (Teens): 
 Henry & Jonathan's Quiz For Teens:

  Directions: There are 12 question items in this quiz, select the right answer out of the three possible. http://www.youthink.com/quiz.cfm?action=go_detail&sub_action=take&obj_id=208154 Teenagers will answer some questions after watching the movie trailer on youtube. The quiz is about a new movie that might interest students, its difficulty stems from having to remember details, specific information from the audiovisual resource. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdadZ_KrZVw

  SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS "NEW FISH" PROMO QUIZ  (Kids):
Henry & Jonathan's Quiz For Kids:

  Directions: There are 12 question items in this quiz, select the right answer out of the three possible.

  http://www.youthink.com/quiz.cfm?action=go_detail&sub_action=take&obj_id=208387

 Kids will answer according to the following youtube video that features a famous cartoon.  The quiz is aimed for audiovisual learners and intends to awaken their interest, as it's a character they most likely know.
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rsx8CCIqOJU

  CONCLUSION:

We believe that innovation in the teaching field is a must, thus, using online tools for students to take quiz, is a great example of making the evaluation process easier and less tedious. It is important that students get to know the resources that are available for them to take advantage. 

LESSON PLAN

Lesson Plan - Holidays

UNICAES

Intermediate Level

Topic: 

Holidays

Teachers:

Henry Santos Mendez Cartagena. 
Jonathan Ernesto Urrutia Figueroa.

Online Tools: 

-Youtube
-Youthink.com 
-Vocaroo 
-Mind42 
-Voicethread 
-Voxopop
-Facebook 
-Pro-Profs Brain Games
-Blogger
-ABC Article Directory 
-Slideshare 
-Google 

SWBAT Objective: 

At the end of the lesson students will be able to use “holidays” vocabulary and write sentences including it.

Warm-Up 

-Students will watch the “Last Holiday” movie trailer (to introduce the topic, with the purpose of observing some topical vocabulary): 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBUcxMNInL8

The teacher will ask students what places from the video they would like visit, or what activities they would like to experience. They will provide answers by sending them to the teacher's e-mail.

Presentation

-The teacher will present the “Holidays” topic to students by showing them a voicethread topic containing a descriptive audio, giving definition, common vocabulary and examples related to the content, with pictures that reflect what is being said.

http://voicethread.com/share/2786661/ 

The link above will be posted on a facebook group, previously created by the teacher, in which all students are members. 

CONTROLLED PRACTICE 

1. Students will take an online "holidays" quiz on the following link: 
http://www.youthink.com/quiz.cfm?obj_id=208726 

2. Students will solve the following online crossword:http://www.proprofs.com/games/crossword/holidays-puzzle/

HOLIDAYS crossword puzzle game » crossword creator

3. Students will read this article: http://www.abcarticledirectory.com/Article/Exotic-Holidays---Vacation-in-France/1072004

Afterwards, they will answer the following questions, and post their responses on the facebook group.

Questions:

-What factor makes France a great vacation destination?
-Who are french people used to be around?
-Why is it advisable to plan your trip forward of time?
-Is visiting France nowadays as expensive as in the past?
-What journey packages are generally appealing?

SEMI-CONTROLLED ACTIVITIES 

1. A short Toy Story Toon video - “A Hawaiian Vacation” will be played. Students will simply watch the video, which will be paused at some points in order to identify “holidays” vocabulary, and write it down, for later choral repetition.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VxgzOAdkzA

2. Students will be asked to write a blog entry, consisting of a 15-line paragraph, narrating their last holiday experience. The blog entries' links will be posted on the facebook group, for everybody to read. 

http://www.blogger.com/ 

3. Students will come up with a one-minute recording, after joining in a voxopop topic of a "holidays talkgroup" (created by the teacher), in which they will comment regarding the teacher's initial recording. In addition, they will write the transcription there, by attaching text in the "message options" section. 

http://www.voxopop.com/topic/fef70f33-e46d-41d0-9566-ed6fa766a847

FREE PRACTICE 

1. Students will create a Vocaroo recording, pronouncing 3 sentences of their own, using new words from the topic. They will share the links on the facebook group. 

vocaroo.com/ 

2. Students will open a new discussion (clicking in "record a new discussion") in the voxopop " holidays" talkgroup, and comment each other's participations regarding what they liked best of the holidays topic, using some of its vocabulary.  They will also write the transcription there, by attaching text in the "message options" section. They will share the link on the facebook group.  

http://www.voxopop.com/group/80a54aa0-95f7-40c3-9f60-3f2196e0b236 

3. Each student will create a new voicethread with pictures of their last holiday/vacation, including places they visited. The photos will be complemented wih an audio recording, in which they will describe their experience and what happened in those images. They will share the links on the facebook group.   

-Sample:

http://voicethread.com/share/2786499/ 
  
4. Students will open an account in mind42 and create a "holidays" mind map. They will add more branches to the existent topic and write about what they did in the last holiday they celebrated with their families. The link will be shared on the facebook group.

http://mind42.com/ 

WRAP-UP 

-Every student will post about what he/she liked the most of the "holidays" topic on the facebook group and use the newly acquired words. 

HOMEWORK

-Students will make a small powerpoint presentation, in which they promote the last touristic destination they visited during a holiday (they can use the same pictures from their voicethreads or google pics). The slides will be uploaded to this website (the links will be posted in the facebook group): http://www.slideshare.net/  

Internet skills

In the other hand, we have internet which works along with computers and due to its popularity, we obtain several benefits from it. I the course I took which I mention before, there were classes in which the teacher taught us how to use the internet, that is, how to look information properly. Something he also taught us was how to upload the webpage we designed. I know that there are several new computer programs that make it easier to design a web page so people can have more contact with people through the web. Using the web may seem an easy task, but it can be easier if we learn from any source how to use it properly. Adults are less skillful at computers but some of them struggle to keep updated. Kids in the other hand are pretty skillful now and they impress adults with their expertise at computer tasks. I think that private schools specially.


Often we find the necessity of using a computer and I think about the problem we could face if we were offered a job in which the only impediment we have is that we have to have a basic knowledge about computer. We as teachers have to master some of the most needed computer programs and internet tool otherwise our students can become our teachers in some areas, but putting this point aside, we have to take advantage of any resource to make our work easy. I really find useful my computer to prepare material for my classes and to prepare my lesson plans. I also use some tools like electronic dictionaries to look up words. Internet also provides several resources for making a class enjoyable and meaningful for the students. Internet and computers provide teachers and students with tools and sources that drag education from a traditional sphere making it fun, understandable, sociable and updated. So undoubtedly, we have to master our skills and start enjoying what this tools offer.

My computer and Internet skills

Definitely we are making easier our lives through the use of technology. We apply computer knowledge everywhere and at any moment.


I have heard that people in the past had to do everything in handwriting, but suddenly computers and typing machines appeared to make the workers and students’ lives easier. In these days, computers are popular and are used anywhere. There are thousands of tasks that can be developed in computers, and in addition to that, this technology continues evolving, so it is necessary that we keep updated in order to not to remain behind of the technological world. What can be implemented is that schools throughout the country have their own computer labs so the new generations of students don’t have the same lack of computing knowledge. But we witness the reality in which schools of the suburbs or from rural places don’t have these privileges. In my particular experience I can say that my school didn’t have such resources and that’s why I started High School without any computer knowledge.


Being in a classroom where the majority of the students had a basic knowledge about computers was difficult for me because it was embarrassing, and my teacher was not so patient to explain the procedures from the beginning. Thanks God I was offered a free coursed sponsored by the MINED in which we were going to learn how to design web pages. There, I learned a lot, starting from basic learning. It really helped me to enter into the technological world that computers offer. My computer skills gained through my academic education have influenced in my learning because I have done many homework assignments using my computer. Undoubtedly computer skills are essential in these days because we do almost everything via computer. Teachers don’t want hand written exams anymore; they want students use this resource since the very beginning of their education.

Dealing Large classes

Working with large classes is indeed a challenge that a teacher might face at any time. A teacher might feel overwhelmed by a very large class if he doesn’t know techniques to manage with this problem. Teachers have to have their senses alert due to the demand that teaching a large group of students involves and the unexpected behavior that students might present.

In some Salvadorian schools, teachers face the difficulty of large classes but they usually teach subjects different to English. I would say that large classes do exist in our educational system, but I would not say that their learning is a success because the teachers may be not properly prepared to work out this issue. I think that if teachers have the necessary knowledge and experience, and the physical conditions of the learning process, as the classroom space are comfortable, they can accomplish this challenge appropriately in our country.

Pedagogical planning:

Teachers must be smart enough to think of the outcome of the student’s behavior and the unusual events that might occur to plan their classes. The comfortable and supporting environment of the class is crucial for having a desired class and expected behavior. A diagnosing test would be appropriate to now students’ background from the very beginning, and then establish a set of activities and strategies that work well with each students or the group as a whole.

All teachers’ effort should be focused on making the students feel free and important in the class, so the teacher should not level students but view them equally.

Classroom learning systems:

The arrangement of the classroom must be the best due to the delicacy of the process; it must be large and free of noise. Students should be able to listen to what the teacher is saying. The classroom learning system must help the teacher to accomplish the goals, so is important that the teacher set the expectations and routines along with the students and agree with them that they are going to make an effort to carry them out.

Student behavior:

Students’ behavior has been a headache for the teachers in the learning process, but it may be controlled if we resort to a variety of techniques that are indispensable for dealing with students’ behavior. To begin, teachers have to treat the students fairly and respect them as important persons. Teachers must keep proactive all the time and they will see results of this behavior. The behavior expectations must be set and shown to the students for them to know and practice them. In some cases a reward might be useful to shape certain behavior. Knowing the factors that cause the bad behavior is important to cut the problem from its root.

As we have already taken didactics in Spanish, I remember that we had classes in which we studied about the problems that teachers face when teaching. We studied the different learning problems that students might have while learning and problems as large classes. During some English classes, some teachers have already mentioned those problems such as large classes, disruptive students and physical environment are indispensable problems.

We do know that when we teach children or adults, we always have problems, so we can apply the same techniques. We have to take into consideration the difference between teaching children and adults according to what we studied about age levels, and then adapt the techniques according to the age classes.

USING INTERNET TOOLS IN THE CLASSROOM

We all know that as the technology has evolved, and that along with it we have to change. We use technology almost for everything we do; teaching is one of the activities we develop by the usage of some technological devices. Internet is one of the sources that have come to be popular and useful while teaching.

Particularly, I consider that we count with a complete tool for teaching any subject when we talk about Internet tools. One of the advantages that we can find if we are teaching or studying EFL is a variety of information that may be useful. We can develop the four macro skills of the students since we can find web sites that offer divers activities and sources like videos, audios, tests, interview, etc. teaching a foreign language is indeed a challenge; to do so, we have to count with very effective tools, and Internet tools meet that demand.

The last time I used Internet tools was interesting as it used to be; I used them as a student, but I get stunned because I realize that in Internet we have so many sources to learn whatever we desire. I felt surprised when our teacher showed us some web sites where the learning process can be reinforced.

We can develop some intelligence through the different Internet sources we have access. For example, if we bring to the classroom a video or slices, we develop the visual intelligence, and if the video includes music, we work with musical intelligence.