Simple Past Verbs vs. Present Perfect Verbs

First Day ESL Icebreakers

Today was another "first day of school" where I am.  They tend to come around quite often, so I'm always looking for fresh ideas to break the ice and help the students get to know each other.

What works for you?

Here are a few ideas....

1. Classic "Find Someone Who" game.  This is great because it gets students talking to more than just the person sitting next to them, but it has been done.  A lot.

2.  Conversation questions.  I choose a mix of interesting and ridiculous questions, such as "What's your favorite potato chip flavor?" alongside "Does your name have any meaning?"  Here, students are talking to just one or two people, but at least they are talking and talking from the get-go.

3. Syllabus treasure hunt.  Here, students are put into small groups to answer questions about the class, using the syllabus as their source.  This is a cooperative learning activity that makes your explanation of the class a little less boring and gets students talking with their classmates right away.

4. Neighbor introductions.  Students introduce themselves to a neighbor, then introduce that neighbor to the class (and vice versa).  In one of my classes in which all the students know each other, I asked each student to tell me something I don't know about the person sitting next to him/her.  It was quite funny.

5. Four corners.  Each student gets a blank paper, folded twice, so that when unfolded the creases create four equal boxes on the page.  Students are given a few minutes to draw something in each of the four boxes that represents them, such as a hobby or interest.  Students may draw (crudely; we're not artists!) a basketball, a pot cooking on a stove, a beach, etc.  Then, the pictures are presented to the class with explanation.

6. Old Bag Speech.  Students bring a bag that represents him/herself and includes three items inside: something that represents his/her past, present, and future.  Students share with the class.

7. Alphabet Soup.  Write the alphabet vertically on the board.  Ask the students to brainstorm vocabulary words related to school/studying/your city that start with each letter of the alphabet.  Alternatively, doing it in small groups invokes competition.


Share your ideas!  How do you begin your ESL classes?



For ideas about how I begin my EAP reading or writing courses, visit here.

ESL Role Play Exercises

Role plays are incredibly useful in the ESL classroom!  These exercises can help students access and use vocabulary atypical in their own daily conversations, encourage quieter students to engage in conversation, and challenge otherwise private students to share their opinions.  

The best part about role play exercises is that students are talking and talking and talking – the entire time!

Unfortunately, the “roles” needed in role play exercises are difficult to find.  So, I set out to create some of my own. 

Check out my online resource page to find more information about the exercises I have used in my classroom!  Let me know what you think or if you have any more ideas.

Classroom Questions

Here are some common questions we use in the English language classroom:

Can you speak more slowly?

Can you repeat that?

How do you spell ____ ?

         Can you spell that for me?

         How do you write this word?

How do you pronounce this word?

         How do you say this word?

What does _____ mean? 
        
        What is the meaning of _____ ?

What’s the answer to question number ___ ?

Phrasal Verb Speaking Questions

Family

Do you take after your father or your mother?  How?

Did you grow up in a large family or a small family?

Do you get along well with your brothers and sisters?

Are you named after anyone in your family?

Work

Do you look forward to going to work?

Does your boss ever take advantage of you by having you do extra work?

School

Do you go over your notes after class?

Do you try to get out of doing your homework?

Do you ever have trouble keeping up with the assignments?

What is an important grammar point that you have to look out for?

Best Friends

What do you look for in a best friend?

What do you like to do with your best friend when you hang out?

Time Words to use with Present Perfect Verb Tense

Key Words to use with PRESENT PERFECT

Recently – in the past, a short time

            I have recently eaten  breakfast.

Already – finished in the past

            I have already eaten breakfast.

            I have already studied this verb tense.

            She has already asked that question.

            I haven’t already finished. Not used in neg.

Yet – not finished

            I haven’t finished my homework yet.

            I haven’t eaten my lunch yet.

Ever – in all my life until now

            Have you ever eaten camel?

Never – NO in all my life until now

            I have never eaten camel.

Since – (when did it start?)

            I have studied English since September.

            I haven’t visited my family since November.

            Robin has taught Algebra since August 2011.

For - length of time  (how long?)

            I have studied English for 3 months.

            I haven’t visited my family for 2 months.

Welcome!

You've reached the home page for Rebecca H. Yoon, MA TESOL.  Feel free to email if you need anything.

Have a GREAT day!