342 New Worldwide Teaching Jobs this week!

This Week's Worldwide Teaching Jobs!

Azerbaijan 3, Bahrain 1, Belgium 1, Cambodia 2, China 100+, Czech Republic 10, East Timor 1, Ecuador 1, France 7, Germany 8, Greece 1, Honduras 3, Hong Kong 7, India 1, Indonesia 21, Iran 1, Italy 31, Japan 12, Jordan 1, Kazakhstan 5, Kuwait 4, Laos, 4,  Libyan Arab Jamahiriya 2, Malaysia 1, Malta 1, Mexico 3, Netherlands 1, Oman 4, Palestinian Territory 2, Poland 3, Portugal 4, Russian Federation 30, Saudi Arabia 28, Singapore 2, Slovakia 2, South Korea 10, Spain 22.

342 NEW Teaching Jobs Posted This Week!  Click this link to Earn your TESOL Certificate and then get ready to travel and teach in an exciting foreign country!

Learning English Idioms through Context

Here is a dialogue with three friends who meet up after not having seen each other for a long time. Try reading the dialogue one time to understand the gist without using the idiom definitions. On your second reading, use the definitions to help you understand the text while learning new idioms. You'll find idiom definitions and a short quiz on some of the expressions at the end of the story. (If your students are younger, you can easily adapt the story to make it more age-appropriate).

 

Party On Dudes!

Tom: Dude! I haven't seen you for ages! How are you doing?
Andy: I'm doing great. It's good to see you again. What have you been up to lately?
Tom: Nothing much. You know, the job, the wife, the kids, the dog, lots of responsibility. Still, it's a good life I lead. Nothing to complain about.
Andy: I'm glad to hear it. Have you seen Peter lately?
Tom: Speak of the devil! Here he comes now!
Andy: No, you're kidding ... You're right. There he is! Well, this is my lucky day. First I see my roommate from college, and then here comes our favorite drinking buddy.
Tom: Yeah, Peter's quite the party animal. Seems like the gods are trying to tell us something. I think we need to hang five together.
Peter: Hey dudes! What's up? Long time no see!
Andy: You can say that again. What have you been doing lately?
Peter: Oh you know, twiddling my thumbs. I haven't really done much of anything for the last few weeks. 
Tom: That can't be true. You were always a kick in the pants. I can't imagine you've been domesticated.
Peter:

No, no, I'm still single. I'm just mellowing out in my old age.
Andy: Ha! That doesn't sound like you. Hey, let's go to a bar.
Peter, Tom: Sounds like a good idea...

(three hours later somewhere in a bar)
Tom: Dudes, I have to get going. I need to conk out. Tomorrow's another day.
Andy: Why would you want to leave now?! We're feeling no pain!
Tom: Right, but tomorrow I'll be feeling plenty of pain right between the eyes!
Andy: (lets out a belly laugh) Come on, just hang around and shoot the breeze.
Peter: Yeah, at least one more for the road.
Tom: OK, OK, you've convinced me.
Andy: Name your poison.
Tom: I'll have a whisky sour.
Peter: Make that two, bartender. 
Tom: So Peter, what about your presentation tomorrow?
Peter: Oh that, yeah. I guess I'll have to wing it. I'm not going to get any work done tonight.
Tom: That's our party animal.
Andy: Party on, dudes!
Idioms Used in the Dialogue
belly laugh = to laugh hard from your abdomen
conk out = to go to sleep
dude = idiomatic / slang greeting used when addressing someone
feel no pain = to have consumed a lot of alcohol or other drug and feeling very good
hang five = to spend time relaxing
kick in the pants = a lot of fun
mellow out = to calm down relax
name your poison = to choose which type of drink / substance you would like
one for the road = a drink before leaving
party animal = someone who likes to consume a lot of alcohol or drugs
shoot the breeze = to speak have a relaxed conversation
speak of the devil = phrase used when someone appears shortly after s/he is mentioned
twiddle one's thumbs = to waste time
veg out = to relax by doing nothing in particular watching TV or some other easy activity
wing it = to improvise do something by intuition rather than following a set plan

Party Animal Quiz

1. I'm exhausted! I'm going upstairs to ______________ for a few hours.
2. I've got vodka, gin and whiskey. _______________ and I'll pour you a glass.
3. My cousin Tom is a _______________. He never stops!
4. Let's go home and ___________ in front of the TV.
5. Let's have _________________ before we go home tonight. I'm buying!
6. Bungee jumping is a real ___________________!
7. What are you doing? - Nothing, I'm just _______________.
8. I don't know all the details. I'll have to ____________ at the meeting. 

Source: http://esl.about.com/od/advanced-idioms/fl/Party-On-Dudes.htm

Quiz answers can be found by following the link - and will also be made available with my next post.

This Week's Worldwide Jobs – April 6, 2015

330 New teaching positions available around the world this week:

Burma/ Myanmar 3, Cambodia 2, China 100 +,  Colombia 4, Costa Rica 1, Czech Republic 6, Ecuador 1, Egypt 1, France 6, Germany 1, Greece 1, Honduras 2, Hong Kong 6, India 1, Indonesia 15, Italy 30, Japan 9, Jordan 1, Kazakhstan 6, Kuwait 2, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya 2, Malaysia 1, Mexico 3, Morocco 1, Netherlands 1, North Korea 1, Oman 4, Palestinian Territory 1, Poland 3, Portugal 2, Romania 1, Russian Federation 32, Saudi Arabia 34, Singapore 3, Slovakia 2, South Korea 16, Spain 35.

If you have a degree in any discipline but are missing a TESOL or TEFL certificate, click here and we can get you qualified in 4-6 weeks! 

Then, you will be ready to apply for any of the jobs listed above.

Many of our students apply for teaching positions even before they complete our course, telling prospective employers that they are "currently completing a TESOL Certificate Course and expect to be ready to accept a teaching position as of _________." Good strategy if you are anxious to go overseas!

Dr Robert

New Teaching Position - Week of March 23

This Week's Worldwide Jobs

The following jobs have been added to the TEFL.com database during the past 7 days. To view the complete announcement, click on the job title link (when online).

Austria 1, Bulgaria 1, Burma/ Myanmar 4, Cambodia 2, China 100 +, Colombia 4, Costa Rica 1, Czech Republic 6, Ecuador 1, Egypt 1, France 5, Germany 8, Honduras 2, Hong Kong 6, Hungary 1, Indonesia (incl. Bali) 14, Italy 35, Japan 9, Kazakhstan 3, Kuwait 3, Kyrgyzstan 1, Malaysia 3, Mexico 1, Morocco 1, Netherlands 2, North Korea 1, Oman 4, Poland 4, Portugal 4, Qatar 2, Romania 1, Russian Federation 24, Saudi Arabia 33, Singapore 3, Slovakia 2, South Korea 7, Spain 31.

Our TESOL Certificate Course can help you secure one of these teaching positions!

Aisle, I'll, or Isle?

Today, I was reading a recipe online and the writer was telling readers where they could find ingredients. She said in one sentence, “You can find it in the isle with the canned fruit.” This is incorrect so I thought this would be a good topic for my blog.  

A homophone is a word that is pronounced the same as another word but differs in meaning, and may differ in spelling. 

Aisle, I'll, and Isle...

These three words are often confused and especially for non-native speakers because they are all pronounced the same but have completely different meanings.

The noun aisle refers to a passageway or to a part of a church divided from the nave. For example, the aisle of a movie theatre or airplane.

“Would you like a window or an aisle seat?”

I'll is the contracted form of I will or I shall.

“I’ll see you tomorrow!”

The noun isle refers to an island or a peninsula, especially a small one.
“The movie was filmed on the Isle of Capri.”

Circle the correct answer quiz: 

1. (Aisle – Isle – I’ll) be there by ten o’clock.

2. Look in (aisle – isle – I’ll) number three near the vegetable section.

3. Our flight goes to the (Aisle – Isle – I’ll) of Mann on Friday morning.

4. Okay, (aisle – isle – I’ll) speak to the teacher about Sam.

5. (aisle – isle – I’ll) be right back, Sue!

6. Someone dropped their ticket in the (aisle – isle – I’ll).

Dr Robert

Look for the answers in my next post...

Exploding Text!

Exploding Texts
 
Taking short bits of texts and expanding them in different ways is a fun activity that will help students improve both their grammar and creative writing skills.

Here is an example of an exploding, telescoping or expanding text:

He is a boy.

He is a nice boy.

He is a nice boy who comes from London.

He is the nice boy from London who helped me with my project.

He is the nice boy from London who helped me with my science project.

He is the nice boy from London who helped me get an A on my science project.

Source: http://esl.about.com

7 Useful ESL Websites Every Professional ESL Teacher Should Have Bookmarked

For teachers looking for useful ESL websites with educational material to use in the classroom, we want to provide some links to help you increase your productivity in 2015!

1. ISLCollective.com

ISLCollective.com, a site financed by donation only, offers a huge user-fed database of ready-to-rock lesson plans with colorful pictures and illustrations. Free registration and a fast search interface make it a great site to frequent when you need supplemental material or a last-minute lesson.

2.  breakingnewsenglish.com

Breaking News English features a new lesson every two days on – you guessed it – a breaking news story. A story scales a variety of difficulties (word counts) with a staggering 26-page PDF version or a two-page mini lesson version. You can also find listening (various speeds and accents), vocabulary and spelling quizzes.

3. ITESLJ.ORG

Discussion questions out the ying-yang for conversation classes
This site has other lessons but the true jackpot is the bonanza of general discussion questions for conversation classes here. Each topic has well over 15 questions to burn up any one-hour conversation class without a problem. Copy, paste, print, ask, discuss, correct, class finished.

4. yourenglishsource.com

Discussion questions out the ying-yang for conversation classes
This site has other lessons but the true jackpot is the bonanza of general discussion questions for conversation classes here. Each topic has well over 15 questions to burn up any one-hour conversation class without a problem. Copy, paste, print, ask, discuss, correct, class finished.

5. busyteacher.org

Another community-contributing powerhouse
Another mind-blowing compilation of print & teach lesson plans. Look in their “More” menu for some unique things like a word search maker, flash card builder and other ESL website reviews. They advertise their own premium content a lot but still there is so much for free, Who cares?

6. usingenglish.com

Perfect for bringing fresh current events into your classroom activities
Beggars can’t be choosers. Well, here they can! Every idiom under the sun is cataloged for search with a simple regular English definition for students. Teachers can compile handouts like idioms used in Australia or idioms about animals. Plus you can use the site’s keyword search to access what you like.

7. englishvideo.com

Listening practice made fun and interesting for students of all levels
This site plays a YouTube video and provides a multiple choice quiz right beside the video. Submit answers and the site returns a score instantly. Register and create your own quizzes with online video content. Your students can email you their results right from the website also.


For more information on any of these sites, click on the links shown above or go to:


http://yourenglishsource.com/useful-esl-websites/