Podcast Review

Here is my review on the ESL Podcasts. They can be found on my Symbaloo site:

1) ESL Teacher Talk- This podcast is hosted by educators who have worked with ESL's for over 15 years. They cover many important topics that us teachers are constantly thinking about- classroom management, lesson plans and advice, job searching, and collaboration. It is geared towards beginner teachers, but I believe that anyone could benefit from a listen! They post monthly! 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/podcasts-esl-teacher-talk-esl-podcasts-for-teachers/id138155144

2) The English We Speak- This podcast is hosted by BBC. They are quick, enjoyable podcasts that are under 5 minutes in duration. They have 300 episodes out, and they focus on an English word or phrase. I think this would be enjoyable for my entire classroom. We could discuss how a phrase that is so "normal" to one person might be beyond confusing for another. BBC posts an episode weekly.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-english-we-speak/id262026989?mt=2

3) Learn English Elementary Podcast- This podcast is hosted by the BBC and their elementary branch. It is made for elementary (beginner/intermediate) ESL's and focuses on different scenarios and entertainment tales. Each podcast is approximately 25 minutes in duration. Students will be entertained by this blog because it the hosts act out the scenarios! They can easily create a mind movie!

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/elementary-podcast/id1316934716

Collaboration Is Key

   Have you ever heard the phrase, "your kids", said by a general to a special education teacher? Any time I do, I cannot help but cringe. Imagine being that student the teacher is talking about. You might feel as if you didn't belong in both classrooms, or unaccepted by one. For ELL's, and all students, inclusion and collaboration is key.

   An article popped up on my Google Alerts entitled, ELLs are Everyone's Kids, and right now that is something that everyone needs to be reminded of. Whether we are struggling to modify during online learning or how to work on a project collaboratively with the ESL teacher, we need to know that we are a team. With the world at its divide, we need to teach our children about inclusiveness and collaboration.

  How does this relate to ELL and technology? Easy. We need to provide our students with vast amounts of tools and technology that they can use to grow as learners- intellectually, emotionally, socially, etc. As teachers, we need to find what works best for our students, all students, not just the majority. Tools provided by companies such as Google allow for just that!

  Google Slides and Docs allow students to work on papers and presentations with others, regardless of the location! It have built in voice-to-text, allowing students ease of usage. We have spent the past few weeks in class discussing applications that our students could use in the classroom. Google apps encompasses many of the qualities we prefer, while allowing students the opportunity to be included and work with their peers. I am looking forward to using them in the fall.

  If you are interested in reading the article that caught my attention this week, please click here.