Over the past month I’ve compiled a short list of teaching ideas that I will try to implement come September when I start teaching English at Novosibirsk State Technical University. This is what I’ve come up with so far, but I’m looking to improve upon, eliminate, and add teaching ideas…
1. On the first day of class, pass out a questionnaire asking students why they’re in the class, what they hope to achieve, and a couple of personal questions.
2. Bring in pictures of yourself, family, America to show class on first day as an introduction.
3. When students make mistakes in English try to correct them on the spot if it won’t disrupt their train of thought.
4. Sometimes jot down notes of the mistakes you hear during class, then at the beginning of the next class pass out examples of sentences that were spoken and ask students to look for the mistakes.
5. Make students give presentations. I’ve heard Russians tend to love to speak, particularly in front of people. They may be reluctant at first but over time they will likely open up and get into it.
6. Make them recite a poem in English in front of the class. I’ll break the ice by reciting some poems in Russian first. Pick out some poems to assign as defaults, but allow students to pick their own if they wish.
7. Show good American movies or cartoons, or at least some clips (depending on time).
