Marmara Elt Resources

Here’s a useful tool to assist in the learning of a new language or just communicating with people around the world in different languages. It’s called Meglobe, it is a web based instant messaging (IM) application that also performs language translations.

It’s very easy to use, just type in your own langauge and Meglobe will translate your message into the language of whoever you are chatting with. I recently had an opportunity to test Meglobe with an uncle in Mexico who I’ve never spoken to because of my poor Spanish and his almost non existent English skills.

My initial impression was that we were going to have some trouble communicating because of the poor translation quality you normally get with Machine Translation (MT) products but actually I was impressed. There were only a couple times when some of the translations didn’t look quite right but when that happened we used Meglobes contribution feature to make some quick edits to the translations. Since the UI is very crisp and easy to use and there’s nothing that needs to be done in order to use the translation features my uncle didn’t have any problems using Meglobe the first time out.

You can take a look at: www.meglobe.com

People love to create top ten lists. This technique can be very effective in sharing ideas and creating a lively classroom. You might want to introduce some core verbs and nouns related to the topic.

it has often asked my ESL students to create, in groups, their top ten tips for:
- staying healthy and happy?
- making and keeping friends?
- avoiding boredom and finding satisfaction?
- getting good grades?
- learning English?
- traveling to a new city/country?
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Melting Ice

Objectives: Students will observe the melting of ice and understand the basic physical changes that occur. They will gain knowledge of how different substances change the rate of melting.

Materials: bag of ice; coarse, rock, or table salt; commercial melting compound (such as Prestone Driveway Heat); pie tins; timers for each group

Procedure:

1. Discuss with the class the properties of water and ice, the definition of melting and melting point. A simple introduction to the states of matter would also provide a good background and starting point for this lesson.
2. Brainstorm with your class and write down on the board ideas and concepts concerning the physical change that occurs during melting. Ascertain the knowledge level of the class.
3. Ask some questions during the brainstorming session:
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Lesson Plan-The Eye of the Hurricane (grade level 3-5)
Overview:
This lesson introduces students to the structure of a hurricane, particularly the eye. You might want to use it as an introduction to a unit on hurricanes or weather phenomena. Students will view a video about hurricanes, do a simple hurricane simulation, take a tour into the eye of a hurricane, and write reports about their tour.
Connections to the Curriculum:
Geography, earth science
Connections to the National Geography Standards:
Standard 7: “The physical processes that shape the patterns of Earth’s surface”
Time:
One to two hours

Materials Required:

* Computer with Internet access
* Large round bowl or tub of water (one for each pair of students)
* Spoon (one for each pair of students)
* Food coloring with a dropper top
* Writing materials

Objectives:
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