343. Pulling the carriage close together

Here is a list of key points one headteacher presented to the staff of teachers, for a summer course of English. Picture from www loscaboshorses com. The following document draws the big picture of the course.

Issue #4. Logistics. Written May 5, 2010.

1. Please give me the general method, program, syllabus that you are going to implement in the summer camp. We have 11 days of classes, 2 hours each day. So, in total 22 hours (classes)! It is an intensive course. Think how to “fill” that large amount of time.


2. Please program activities (in general), variety for the classes, how to avoid boredom, how to make your students get satisfied.


3. Take as much initiative as you wish, regarding the program or syllabus. Feel free. Anyway, I would tell you to set as the main goal: speaking. I mean, they should notice they are actually learning, they aren’t wasting both time and money, they participate many times per class. Avoid them saying they know more English than their teacher! It’s not worth to go to the camp! Puuuf! – I big trust you guys. And at your disosal! Ask and suggest to me whatever you want!


4. Tentatively there will be 5 groups: Advanced for NN, second (following NN’s level) for NNN, third for NNNN, fourth for NNNNN. And if there is a group of kids who have an exam of English in September, I myself will take this group in charge. If there are very few students this latter case, I’ll make individual interviews.


5. Discipline. They will put you to the test. Most of you have experience at teaching, and this is a great point in favor. Make the students continuously work, work, rope each of them into the class-period. You may set a few rules at the beginning of the course, and... be coherent with those rules. You may stop talking to the class whenever two kids are chattering between them: the important thing is precisly you are speaking. Listen to them, with sincere concern, whenever they want to tell you something. Keep cool, don’t lose your temper: serenity. Avoid them getting bored, and leaning on their desk, drowsy, instead of sitting up right. Don’t be afraid to tell them to sit nice. Praise one student when he says an answer correctly. In your class-groups you will have mixed-ability groups: avoid also the more advanced students get bored, and the poorer-achievement students feel absolutely lost because they understand nothing.


6. Plan the grammar you are going to teach. Better said, the grammar you are going to work on with them, because classes are interactive. Answer their questions.


7. Program the semantic fields of vocabulary you are going to study in the class. They have to learn and use many words.


8. Bring to the camp real interesting topics and materials for the classes, like texts. These past years there was a copier at the secretary-office.


9. On http://fernandoexperiences.blogspot.com you have a label column with one label that contains more than 100 games.


10. Discipline has a lot to do with tidiness of the classroom: neat rows of desks at the beginning and the end of one day-classes, no papers on the floor.


11. I’d advise you to speak all the time in English. In this way we create a special environment like a place where English is the only language for communication. As an example, if any helpful for you, guys, in my classes of winter I “pretend” I don’t understand Spanish. My students are aged 10 to 14 years.


12. As much fun as possible, with order. You must, you as teachers, you must have fun in the classes.