Week 3 (January 25th-31st)
Moderators for this week:
Hana hprashker@aol.com
Sandra sandrogers123@yahoo.com
Objectives
During this week's session, we will:
- Share your favorite child-friendly Web sites with each other and explain how these Web sites assist your students' English language skills.
- Visit and critique one of the participants' recommended Web sites.
- Visit a non-EFL content site for young learners that offers visual learning, simple practice, and color coding.
- Visit a Web site with content specifically for EFL young learners.
- Compare and contrast the EFL language learning-based Web site with that of the non-EFL content site specific for young learners
- Complete and upload to grouply the list with Useful Tips While Selecting Online Activities.
- Register at Tapped In (TI) and prepare for a virtual text-based chat next week.
Activities
Share your favorite EFL Web sites
We want to hear from you!
1. Please share all the great child-friendly Web sites you aleady use successfully in the primary classroom.
2. Explain how the selected Web sites improve the overall English skills of your students. If you are not familiar with any sites, then respond with your impression of the participants' suggested sites.
Let us know by posting a message to the group at internet4younglearners@yahoogroups.com
3. After everyone participates, the moderator will make a list of all the suggested Web sites and publish them to this wiki as a link. Please remember to provide the full URL, the complete Web site name.
4. View Sandra's list of favorite children's Web sites: Favorite Kids Websites.doc
Take a survey: What is your favorite children's Web site?
Click to take a survey
Compare an EFL site with a non-EFL Web site
Give us your opinion!
1. Go to http://www.writingfun.com/
2. On the right hand side of this Web site's homepage, click on the narrative format.
3. At the bottom of the page, you will find the examples 1-6. These refer to grade levels. Choose the appropriate grade level narrative and investigate the site!
4. Then go to http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-writing-storymaker.htm and create a story.
5. You may wish to join the British Council (BBC) Teaching English Web site at: http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/ At the bottom of this Web page you will find, LearnEnglish Kids where children can develop their English skills with topic-based games, songs, and stories. I found the story writing activity under the the "Games for learning" tab.
Group discussion
1. After looking at both Web sites in activity 2, please tell us what you think.
- What are the drawbacks of using the non-EFL Web site for your students? Writing Fun by Jenny Eather provides lots of scaffolding for the mainstream (L1) student. Does it offer a sufficient amount of scaffolding for the young EFL learner in your classroom? Explain why or why not.
- Which site did you like the best and why? Give specific examples.
We look forward to reading your comments! We also encourage you to provide feedback to your classmates' comments, as long as you remember your Netiquette. Provide your feedback on the whiteboard at grouply.com.
Create a list:
1. Go to Internet4younglearners at grouply.com
Use the whiteboard to
a. Share your thoughts with us.
b. Upload your list with Useful Tips While Selecting Online Activities.
Homework for Week 4
Register at Tapped In (TI) http://tappedin.org/tappedin/
In preparation for a class meeting utilizing live text-based chat in Week 4, we ask that you register at Tapped In (TI). TI is a great online resource for holding meetings or discovering teaching material. Read the TI flyer for more information. TI2Flyer.pdf It is a free resource. The moderators have virtual offices in TI where we can meet for our discussion. We can also visit other areas of interest while we are there. Sign-up and explore a little bit in anticipation of next week's live text-based chat. Learn how to text appropriately prior to the meeting by reading this helpful conversation strategies at http://tappedin.org/tappedin/web/help/conversations.jsp.
Do not forget your project for week 5: Design your own lesson with Internet -based activites and upload it to our activity wiki at http://internet4ylactivities.pbworks.com/FrontPage.
