Choose Speaking Topics that Interest You

People write about what they find interesting, they read about what they find interesting, and when learning a new language it's easiest to speak about what you find interesting.  I encourage all of my students to tell me stories from their lives or to talk about their interests with me, as it's unlikely that they'll be motivated to speak about a topic in a second language that doesn't interest them in their native language.  For example, politics are a great conversational topic as people often are very passionate about their political views, but some people hate politics and have no interest in talking about them.  Same thing with sports, as some people love them where others are apathetic.  There's no point to force the issue on topics that people don't like because they're more likely to shut down when they should be progressing. Bottom line is tell a story that's interesting to you, or talk about a subject that's fun because that way you'll be more motivated to speak a new language.  Don't be ashamed or embarrassed, make mistakes and improve every day on your quest to master a new language :-)

  

Master the Past and You'll Master English Grammar

From a young age I was always taught to tackle the most difficult task first because after that everything else will seem easy.  I've carried this piece of advice with me throughout life, and I'm now encouraging my students to do the same when they learn English.  Israeli students have a difficult time with all of the different tenses in English, especially with the past tense.  The past tense is so challenging because of all of the irregular verbs in the simple past (V2) and past participle forms (V3), and the fact that these irregulars follow no concrete patterns or rules.  Bottom line if you're a new English learner, you just have to memorize all of the irregular verbs in the past, and until you do that you'll often make mistakes when using the simple past and past perfect tenses.

Before you panic, think about it like this: If you memorize five to ten irregular verbs per day you'll have this task done in two to three weeks.  Not so scary right? I recommend flashcards, and once you know the forms make sure that use the irregular forms in a few different sentences.  Write down these sentences and say them out loud to practice, and soon the you'll have all of the irregular verbs in the past memorized.  It's not fun, and there's no way around it, but I promise that once you master the past tense, the present and future will seem easy.  Master the past and begin your path to conquering English grammar.  Good luck!

Here's a list to get you started. If you don't like the colors you can Google "List of irregular verbs in the past tense" and you will find plenty.  If you want to print out the list just add "pdf" to your search.

Parents are Your Allies

Most young teachers fear parents more than their students, and this fear is often completely unfounded. Nearly every parent wants their child to succeed in school, and if you share that same desire your students' parents should be your allies.

People run into problems when they don't have clear objectives and procedures that align with such objectives. As a teacher you have to make goals for your students and do everything you can to help them reach their goals. You have to be flexible, humble, respectful, and patient with every student, and especially with their parents. Show parents that you have a plan with an end goal and a logical path to achieve that end goal, and they will most likely be on board.  

There should be no ego or power struggle when teaching a student.  Just like any relationship trust must be the foundation.  As a parent you should trust your child's teacher that they know what they're doing and that they're here to help.  As a teacher you should trust your student's parents to back you up when you need it and to stay on top of their kids to make sure that they finish any homework and attend all lessons.

I've been very lucky so far (knock on wood) and I have a lot of great parents who trust me and have faith in my system and goals for their kids.  As a teacher keep your students' success and respect towards your students as your top priorities, and by doing so you'll eliminate nearly every struggle that you may have with parents.

The Rewards of Teaching

I had a great feeling last week when I found out that one of my students scored a 98 and another scored 100 on their English tests (same school, different classes).  It's a great feeling to see that my hard work and effort leads to results. It's so important for me that my students succeed in school, and that they approach English with an attitude of confidence.

I had another parent tell me that her six year old started to read in English on her own when they were at a cafe (she didn't read at all before I began lessons with her).  It's a truly amazing feeling to know that my students are progressing. I take pride in what I do, and it fuels me to help all if students achieve their goals.  It's so important to choose a profession that you're proud of and to use your integrity as fuel to put out the best possible service or product that you can. Days like Sunday of last week are why I teach, knowing that I'm truly making a difference by helping my students improve their English.