The Use of Games in the Classroom

For decades people have been using games as a tool to teach new languages, this happens because game sets can be used for different purposes, achieving different levels of knowledge with students. Even though games usually have their focus directed to communication, they can also be used to improve the other English skills: listening, writing, …

Rapport, a Paramount Tool for Your Classroom

Have you ever heard about rapport? If not, after reading this text you will never forget about this meaningful word. Rapport illustrates the idea of an interpersonal relationship in which you can relate to other people in communication. In other words, we may define rapport as harmony, empathy, and connection between teacher and student in …

The Importance of Keeping Classroom Notes

We have all had that time when we planned a lesson and thought to ourselves it would be a fantastic class, with students working around, discussing and very excited about the subject. However, it turns out that it does not quite work out as we had imagined and sometimes we may feel frustrated about it. …

Teaching in a Multilevel Classroom

As teachers, we are continually trying to achieve the best results with our students on the matter of improving their four skills in the second or foreign language. Thus, a right way of doing it is to get closer to your students and understand what their goals are, and why they decided to learn a …

Tackling the Pronunciation of Dental Fricative Sounds

It goes without saying that most Brazilian English language learners (BELLs) (and teachers, especially novice ones) have a hard time when they attempt to pronounce the dental fricative sounds /θ/ and /ð/, aka “th sounds.” First, it is hard because these sounds are not part of our Brazilian Portuguese language inventory. Second, students think that …

To Use L1, or Not To Use It, That Is the Question!

First of all, we need to systematize the definition of L1 and L2. When we are born, regardless of the location, we learn to use the language which surrounds us in our routine. We call such a language mother tongue, first language or L1. However, if you have any interest in learning another language, using …

Making Your Class More Engaging with Kahoot!

We all know that Brazilian students usually hate studying grammar, even in Portuguese. Maybe it is because they find it difficult to understand the real uses of those abstract nomenclatures that are given in their mother language, or just because it is boring for them to analyze structures over and over again. The fact is …

Why Do We Become Teachers?

Have you ever stopped to think about why you have decided to become a teacher? Or when had that idea come to your mind? You may say, “It was when I was in school, and I enjoyed helping colleagues with their lessons,” or “I had this amazing teacher who inspired me,” the point is, each …

The Challenges of Being an EFL Teacher in Brazil (and the Joys)

by Henrick Oprea, BRAZ-TESOL President "Being a teacher," they say, "is not something that will allow you to make a living." This is probably a sentence that many teachers (not, this is not only said to English teachers) have heard when they announced to the world that they wanted to work in education as teachers. …