Aspects of teaching English one-to-one

The idea of one-to-one teaching often provokes quite extreme reactions in teachers. They either love it or hate it. Those in the former category will point to the advantages of working with the linguistic needs of a single learner and the highly focused programme that can produce, while those in the latter group will often highlight in a negative way the affective factors that can come into play in the one-to-one classroom. “What if I don’t like my student and he or she doesn’t like me?” is a commonly heard complaint, as is “I don’t want to be stuck in a room for two hours with the same person”. Such comments are understandable, of course, but in focusing on these negative aspects it is easy to lose sight of the numerous advantages that one-to-one teaching can offer.
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Classroom management: classroom discipline
Author: Margot McCamley

Level: starter/beginner, advanced, elementary, pre-intermediate, intermediate, upper-intermediate Type: reference material

Advice and suggestions on getting students to behave well in class and using an appropriate level of discipline.
How do we get students to behave in class? Usually not by telling them to behave, but using behaviour patterns that ensure they behave.

Let me explain. I teach 18 students aged from 11-15 in the one class, some at varying levels of language ability to others. This means there is not only a sociological divide but also a language level divide. So how do I get my students to behave? I use these strategies and they are ones that all teachers need to try at least once in their classroom to see which ones work for them.

First ask yourself some questions:

* Have you set a code of behaviour in the classroom?

This should be set with the students, where possible so they know the consequences of their behaviour should it not be socially acceptable to the rest of the group or to you. I always have this code of behaviour on the board or on the wall on a big sheet of paper. Five or six key points are sufficient, e.g. I will work hard to learn the language. I sometimes just have to point to it to remind students of their decision, and this brings the student back on line… Also the teacher needs to add his/her code of behaviour too, what the teacher will do for the students, e.g. be patient, never yell, I will work hard to help you learn the language…etc.
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• The present continuous (progressive) is used only with action verbs. Example: I am working at the moment NOT I am believing you.
• The present continuous (progressive) is also used to describe an action which is happening around this moment: Example: I’m reading ‘Just in Time’ this week. I’m not reading the book at this particular moment, but around this time.
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  Posted in English Tenses, Teaching Grammar No Comments Tags: beginners, present continuous, present progressive

Simple Present for Beginners

Read the following interview using the simple present tense

Mark: Hello, Can I ask you some questions for an interview?
Jennifer: Yes, I can answer some questions.
Mark: Thank you for taking the time. Now, first question: What do you do?
Jennifer: I work in a library. I’m a librarian.
Mark: Are you married?
Jennifer: Yes, I am.
Mark: What does your husband do?
Jennifer: He works as a policeman.
Mark: Do you usually have dinner together?
Jennifer: Yes, we do.
Mark: How often does your husband exercise?
Jennifer: He sometimes exercises four times a week. But, he usually exercises only twice a week.
Mark: Where do you like going on holiday?
Jennifer: We rarely go on holiday. However, we like going to the mountains if we can.
Mark: What type of books do you read?
Jennifer: I often read horror stories.
Mark: Thank you very much for answering my questions.
Jennifer: You’re welcome!

Take a look at the following conjugation chart. Notice from the above dialogue and following chart that the present simple is often used to describe what we do every day. We use verbs of frequency (always, sometimes, usually, etc.) which indicate a habit.

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