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Joe Dale explores how languages teachers have embraced technology in the classroom

The use of social media has allowed colleagues to get to know each other as real people not just teachers and this has strengthened the sense of cohesion, solidarity and collective confidence.

gy suited to MFL? Well, one of the fundamentals of language learning is re

“instrumental empathy” (sometimes known as “impact anthropology”) can go a long way.

“instrumental empathy” (sometimes known as “impact anthropology”) can go a long way.

ambitious imagination

So many opinions were out there on social media. I decided to focus this unit even more on this popular music event.

So many opinions were out there on social media. I decided to focus this unit even more on this popular music event.

Lots of comprehensible input there! They learned about new genres. Some said they added music that we learned about in class to their playlists. Love that!

It’s important to note that this process is different from, for example, simply giving students a video of grammar rules to watch at home, then going over the concepts from that video in class.

Posted by Kara Parker on April 17, 2017 in 3 Activities, Interpretive Reading, Reading, Techy Stuff, What's New

Highlighting is one of my top go-to interpretive reading activities. Today I will review an app for Apple devices and Chrome. Let’s see how highlighting can go digital! I blogged about this “Highlight Away” activity before… It was Idea #71 in 2012! If you haven’t read it, take a minute to see where this idea started. Why I love highlighting… It gives a focus while reading It takes away the frustration of “not knowing every word” (adjust the task, not the text) It preps them to summarize It preps them to discuss the reading No comprehension questions needed (low teacher prep) It lets them figure out the meaning and learn new words in context It shows comprehension without translating Here are a few examples of highlighting activities we’ve done in lessons:

s in the Street Art unit. They were reading opinions about graffiti before they gave their opinion. It was awesome seeing how this activity gave them so many solid reasons that support their opinions.

they use their comfort and skills with social media to connect students with the content area on a deeper level.

help students keep tabs on their upcoming assignments and assessments

I use Twitter as a way to provide practice during the days leading to macro-assessments, by providing sample test items, as well as study tips.

An unlimited number of users can contribute to a padlet at the same time, making collaborative work very easy.

  No account necessary to collaborate

adding example sentences to a shared class padlet

With VoiceThread, group conversations are collected and shared in one place from anywhere in the world.

By Natascha Chtena November 22, 2015 5 Comments   .blog-spacer { display: none; } @media (max-width: 420px) { .blog-spacer { display: block; height:1px; clear:both; } }   googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display("dfp-ad-story_level_pages"); }); Natascha Chtena is a PhD student in Information Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles. You can follow her on Twitter @nataschachtena.       One of the challenges I face teaching a daily language class is finding novel and creative ways to maintain student interest throughout my lessons. One of my favorite teaching “tricks” is using music to motivate learning, improve concentration, create a sense of community and help my students absorb material.   Music is a wonderful tool to integrate into your teaching repertoire, especially if you are a foreign language teacher. It has a

The key is to not be too ambitious (unless of course you are teaching a language AND culture class) and to set realistic goals: one song one major point! I usually keep it to seven minutes max, which includes a song, a very short “lecture” and some time for student questions at the end.

2. Incorporate listening and drawing activities with Pear Deck: Pear Deck is the perfect way to make your Google Slides interactive. Try using the Pear Deck Chrome extension for listening and drawing activities: Add a Pear Deck interactive “Drawing” slide and read a description aloud.For example, I will read the following description aloud (in Spanish) to my Spanish I classes: “The boy is tall, thin, and has black, curly hair and green eyes. The boy is feeling happy because it is warm and sunny outside. He likes to listen to music and read, but he does not like to study or play sports.”As I read off this description, students draw what they hear. Once their drawings are complete, I ask them to restate what they drew aloud. You can also ask them to write about what they drew. Students are enthused when I project all of their drawings on the board—each student’s drawing is different and has its own style, even though everyone heard the same description.

nearly a third of American college courses are now taught online.

anguage instructors need to be convinced that online education presents a responsible learning environment for students,

lexibility. S

It is an easy way to differentiate instruction while providing engaging choices to "show" learning, engage in conversation, and think openly and critically about content.

the value of a Web 2.0 tool is in its ability to enhance the student's learning experience, and allows teachers to be inspired to cultivate learning in a purposeful, dynamic way.