We avoid risks. We avoid risks because we want to avoid failure. So we do nothing. And so we avoid the risk in order to avoid the failure that we are afraid of and then we are permanently floating around in the world of never knowing what could have been or what we could have …
Trying to decide which college to study in is hard enough. Or trying to figure out which course is the right one for you to do. But then to make the biggest and most important decision of your life — which country should you study in? And as you wade through all the college information, …
Are you looking for an English speaking lesson that deals with more challenging subjects and topics? I write lessons for ESL classes that are perfect for any English conversation class, English speaking class, IELTS class or just a general ESL class. This lesson deals with the subject of teenagers – a topic that would be …
English students must study English vocabulary. Without expanding their vocabulary they lack the word power to express themselves. They become frustrated and even feel resentment in studying English. They may regard the whole process as impossible and give up. As an English teacher, it is your job to motivate them. One thing you can do …
This is another in my series of free lessons to use in any ESL/EFL class. I think these lessons could also be used as part of IELTS training to help the students learn how to talk about a wide variety of topics. These are not IELTS topics but I think useful for IELTS students to …
Kids in Danger? — a Talking Points lesson for English reading and speaking Read More »
In most English listening classes the students sit in class and listen passively to a tired old recording. Then they answer mundane questions to check they understood everything. It is no wonder that when students hear real English it sounds something like this: Howzitgoing?Didjagettaclassontimthotherday? (Interpretation: How’s it going? Did you get to class on time …
The examiner might ask you to describe one of your parents in English. This could also be in your class or it could be as part of the IELTS speaking test. In which case, you need to be able to describe your mother or father in some detail. When describing people, students often fall into …
How to describe your Mother or Father in the IELTS test Read More »
Don’t you just hate those really basic lesson plans that you find? They might appear in one of the ESL books that you have to use or – even worse – one of the lesson plans that your school or training centre has fobbed you off with. Nothing inspired me less than seeing one of …
Childless or Child-Free? — a Talking Points lesson for English reading and speaking Read More »
Something I have seen many times is students in an IELTS or TOEFL class and completely out of their depth. They sit in the class and labour through the exercises, barely able to comprehend what is going on. Every time they come across a new or strange English word they pull out their phone. They …
In the IELTS test, the examiner will ask you to compare people or things. This could happen in Part One of the Speaking test but more likely in Part Three. The examiner will then expect you to make comparisons between the two things at length. You may have to make comparisons between two objects, two …
Talking about Similarities and Differences in the IELTS Test Read More »