Online Activity – Website Task
Alyssa Weir
May 18, 2011
Practical Sites
Randall’s ESL Cyber Listening Lab
http://www.esl-lab.com/index.htm
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Various voices read aloud stories, interviews, everyday conversations (booking a flight,
discussing a car accident, etc). After listening to the recording, there are different activities for
the student to complete like multiple choice comprehension questions, vocabulary activities and
post-listening exercises related to the recording
There are also listening quizzes available for teachers, as well as a section called Learning
Language and Life Tips
Usefulness of resource: Great resource for developing listening and comprehension skills,
building vocabulary and learning tips for language acquisition. The listening activities are also
levelled from easy to hard depending on the student’s stage of fluency. What I liked the most
about the website was the variety of scenarios represented. Students can hear conversations
about expressing condolences or visiting the optometrist which exposes them to language and
situations which they may not otherwise be exposed to.
Lesson plans by topic and by level of language proficiency
http://esl.about.com/od/englishlessonplans/English_Lesson_Plans_for_ESL_EFL_Classes.htm
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Website contains hundreds of lesson plans and activities for ESL teachers and students
Lesson plans focus on wide range of topics like grammar, read, writing, listening, conversational
English, etc
Usefulness of Resource: This resource can be used by both teachers and students. There are
hundreds of lesson ideas for teachers and worksheets that vary in difficulty for ESL students.
Some of the activities, like the reading Dialogue: Interview with a Famous Actor also has
comprehension questions that teachers can use for assessment.
Resources for Teachers
Classroom planning for teachers of mainstream classes
http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/esl/policy/classroom.pdf
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Guide for classroom teachers (from British Columbia, published in 1999)
Explains stages acculturation stages, definition of ESL, strategies that a teacher can use to
support ESL students in the classroom (providing wait time for example)
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Provides a list of contextual supports for linguistic development such as establishing a
homework club and using the students’ native languages to check comprehension and clarify
problems
Usefulness of resource: This guide is basically ESL part 1 in a nutshell. It contains key definitions
and information like how to interpret cultural cues. Many of the topics discussed and the
strategies listed we have examined in this course. At the back of the guide is a list of useful print
resources for classroom teachers.
Responding to ESL students’ written work
http://www.mwp.hawaii.edu/resources/wm_6.pdf
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This resources provides information for teachers on how to deal with many issues pertaining to
an ESL student’s written work like ways to respond to grammar errors and encourage critical
analysis
There is also a section on how to tackle writing that does/does not interfere with understanding
using excerpts from actual student writing as an example
Main idea of the article is that it is better to first focus on the content and then approach
grammar problems in the context of ESL writing
Usefulness of resource: This article provides insight into, and many strategies for, reading,
understanding and assessing ESL writing.
Preparing tests and worksheets
http://esl.fis.edu/teachers/support/tests.htm
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Article provides useful information for teachers on how to prepare worksheets and tests that
are ESL-friendly
Provides strategies and tips on how to make language for tasks more easily understood by ESL
students
Usefulness of resource: This website does not have a theoretical basis but rather provides
concrete strategies that teachers can use when creating worksheets and tests for ESL students.
The site also gives examples of unfriendly worksheets and confusing questions so that teachers
can see explicitly what mistakes they should avoid.