This is a continuation of an article that began last week. To read part 1, click here! Being lost in a comprehensible, compelling book creates an optimal condition for acquiring language. The more compelling the story, the more likely learners are to tolerate a bit ‘noise’...
Hands-down reading is one of the most powerful tools for facilitating acquisition of vocabulary–whether it is vocabulary from your first, second or third language. Most educators acknowledge the power of reading to enhance one’s first (already-established) language (i.e.: expand vocabulary, develop writing skills and improve...
Tasks in the Language Classroom By Eric Herman Many thanks to Eric Herman for sharing this informative post on task-based language teaching. If you are serious about understanding tasks, both from BVP's perspective and from the perspective of facilitating acquisition you'll need to settle in for a cup a...
Recently, a teacher posted the Five Working Hypotheses by Alice Omaggio-Hadley on one of the ACTFL listservs. (Omaggio, 1986, pp. 44-53; and Omaggio-Hadley, 2001, pp. 89-105) The teacher posted: Alice Omaggio-Hadley familiarizes us with "five working hypotheses, which have been the building blocks of proficiency-oriented language curricula...
[caption id="attachment_743" align="aligncenter" width="580"] Carrie Toth[/caption] Carrie Toth presented a fantastic workshop "Advancing Student Proficiency with Novel Studies." She began by discussing what proficiency is and what can be expected at various proficiency levels. She pointed out that only 3.7% of high school students can speak at...
The excitement in the room is palpable as the teachers prepare for the conference opening. It is always so awesome to me to think about the number of teachers who give up a week of their precious summer to learn and grow. But in...
[caption id="attachment_579" align="aligncenter" width="580"] photo by Rostislav Kralik[/caption] After many blog posts in the past couple of weeks regarding text or task, Can-Do Statements, this “camp”/ “that camp”/”your camp”/”my camp”, etc. I went on a quest to explore and clarify my thinking and to find where the...