How to take the most of THE WORLD CUP

2014 World Cup Mascot

With the World Cup in motion and our students enjoying their summer break (though not the teachers), time for fun and some learning in-between, don’t you agree?

I’ve collected some resources / links with stuff connected to football and the World Cup.

1. Let’s start with books - simple ones and not that expensive, ok?  ;)

Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby, is an award winning football classic.

Horrid Henry and the Football Fiend by Francesca Simon has a low level of English and is therefore great for newly confident readers.

The Story Of Football, by Rob Jones, takes a look at Football through the ages, from the Roman Army to the modern day.

The Story of The World Cup, by Richard Brassey, is definitely a book for all ages that I'm sure you'll enjoy.

World Football Facts and Records, unlike the previous books, is packed with info and stats on football.

2. In what concerns vocabulary - or games - there is absolutely no shortage, but quantity means we have to be very careful in selecting the most appropriate ones for our classes. 

Here you will find a very clear, simple and organised soccer / football guide. Do have a look! Also here you'll find basic football vocabulary.

However, the most comprehensive place for students to practise football vocab is at the British Council - check its variety and quality!!!

3. Now, finally, games:

Check FIFA! Yap, there you'll find plenty of interesting games for you to play.

There is another great place for nice games. At ESOL Games, especially under the heading "Activities for English Beginners and Elementary Students", the games are quite easy for 7th / 8th graders. Why not check this one or this to have an idea?

Again, the British Council has fantastic games for all to play here.

There are also movies. An example is "Bend it Like Beckham", a 2003 comedy about bending the rules to reach one's goals and explores the world of female football (some worksheets included here).

As a curiosity, I'm including a video about the introduction of QR Codes made with Portuguese cobblestone in Brazil  in order to guide and provide tourists with relevant information. Technology also at the service of the World Cup!

Now that so many of our students already have smartphones, QR Codes are also a great idea to use in our classes - for scavenger hunts, for worksheets, for pics...

Have fun and enjoy the matches!

World Cup 2014

Narrable in my classroom

What it is
Narrable is an online platform that allows users to create narrated slideshows. It is very user-friendly and teachers may now create free unlimited projects.

How to create Narrables

Fast and easy steps to follow:

1. Sign up

2. Click “Create” in the top-right corner

3. Upload photos, pictures, images to start with

4. Resize your pics, change order

5. Record audio or upload a file

6. Share your narrable if you wish – by email, on Facebook… I am embedding my first narrable below J

Here is also a Tutorial by the Narrable folks on how to create a narrable.

It’s no news that I am an avid reader and that I instill my students to read even if they start reading in Portuguese; it’s no news either that I love to showcase my students’ work, and not just what’s perfect, but our / their best efforts. Indeed, the students who have moved forward with these book recommendations belong to a very weak class yet they have shown some willingness to overcome their difficulties and improve. While recording – and some recordings took us well over 3 or 4 attempts – the students reported anxiety and trembling voices which says a lot about their commitment. They wish to feel proud of their work as they know it is going to be heard giving their best, even a special needs student included in this slideshow.  This has been our first attempt with narrable and, as such, for a new one, I will only use a mic and / or a mobile phone recording to add to the pics to improve sound quality.
Possible uses
Though I tend to use the web 2.0 tools I come across primarily for book recommendations in English (and in Portuguese for the school library), some other ideas for implementing this tool in the classroom are, for example, for digital storytelling, to tell a story using pics as prompts, to describe historical sites, to introduce yourself using personal pics, for physical description even if with avatars… an endless array of possibilities according to our goals, right?

Now my students' reading recommendations on Narrable.

Well, what do you think?