Salisccia e friarielli

(3/4/19)

On Wednesday, for our third cooking lesson we made Salisccia e friarielli (sausages and broccoli).

New vocabulary:

salsicce di maiale – pork sausages

friarielli – neapolitan word for broccoli (broccoli used throughout the rest of Italy)

pulire – to pull

eliminate – remove

padella – frying pan

forchetta – fork

MONDAY

(1/4/19)

5:30pm – Pet (B1 level)

Tonight, we spoke about risk and different activities and experiences that require you to take risks and step outside your comfort zone. Initially we discussed the different age restrictions on certain laws in Italy compared to the UK. The students and I found this very fascinating and spent a decent amount of time comparing the different ages for smoking, drinking, driving etc. and then tried to think of further examples to compare. Then, in the next exercise the students were introduced to the ‘Marathon of the Sands’ – a 7 day marathon across a desert. They completed a few listening exercising identifying the difference between ‘can’, ‘can’t’, ‘have to’ and ‘don’t have to’. They created sentences of their own using these words to describe risky experiences they have taken part in in the past.

e.g.

You have to wear a wetsuit when you scuba-dive but you don’t have to bring your own.

You don’t have to take off your shoes before going on a rollercoaster.

7pm – First (B2 Level)

Gilda, one of the other teacher working for Global Find, was off this evening so I covered her First certificate class. These students are working towards their B2 examination in June. As this was the first time i was meeting the class they were quite reserved and not overall chatty. This meant that during the speaking/conversation section of the exercise it was quite difficult to elicit a discussion from them. However, most of the lesson focused on listening so this was no a major issue. We completed a few different listening activities and answered questioned on Sarah’s experience of taking part in the ‘Marathon of the Sands’. At the end of the lesson, I played a mock listening exam for them to try. Most of the students managed with ease with only one or two making silly mistakes because they had not read the question carefully.

TUESDAY

(2/4/19)

5:30pm – Starters (A1 level)

Tonight with the starters we were speaking about different modes of transport. They were already aware of some such as car, bike, plane and lorry (from the activities last week) but they were also introduced to new vehicles like helicopters and motorbikes. We completed the various activity within their workbook: unscrambling words, filling in the blanks and matching words to make sentences. We also spoke about the difference between driving, riding and flying. For example, you would fly a bike or ride a lorry so we created sentences about how then get to different places throughout their day.

My mum drives the car to school.

I ride the train to Naples.

I fly to Scotland.

We also completed a task out of their other workbook under the topic of transport.

7pm – Ket (A2 Level)

“I don’t feel very well” was the title of this weeks work for the Ket class. We started by introducing the new vocabulary such as backache, toothache, sore throat, cold, fever, etc. followed by a number of listening tasks.

The next page focused on making an appointment and we did a role play.

Doctor: Hello, Doctors surgery,

Patient: Hi, can I make an appointment?

Doctor: Yes, we have Thursday at 4:30pm available, if thats suitable?

We discussed different ways to ask for an appointment and the different responses you may receive from the receptionist.

We also completed a second role play for asking for medicine at the chemist.

Chemist: Hello, how can I help?

Patient: Hi, I was wondering if you have something for …….?

Chemist: Yes I have these tablets/this cream.

…

Again, discussing the different ways to ask for medicine and how often or much you should take.

At the end, we completed one worksheet on types of illnesses where you had to unscramble to the words. Initially, they would this very difficult so I gave them a hand by give them the first letter of each word. The second worksheet pictured I gave as homework. I set them the first and second page as homework and we were start next weeks lesson by finishing the last two pages.

WEDNESDAY

(3/4/19)

6pm – Pet (B1 level)

Tonight, we continued our work on forms by talking about the various forms and applications that you are required to complete before, during and after you travel. The tasks asked the students to be able to read from different forms to find the required information to answer the question. At the end, they had to complete a form for a different travel card on behalf of He Ah Kim, a Korean student living in the UK for university.

At the end of the exercise, we spoke about the sound /ei/ and the various spellings that create this sound.

a + consonant + e

for example: plane, state, frame.

consonant + ai

for example: plain, stain, train.

ay

for example: stay, pay, play.

At the end of the lesson we had some spare time so I used the book:

1,000 Conversation Questions: Designed for Use in the ESL or EFL Classroom.

I had never used anything like this before but it was a great resource to use to fill the remaining 20 minutes. On each page their in a different topic (friendship, books, intelligence etc.) and around 10 questions surrounding that topic that you can ask the students in your class. I have had difficulty in the past trying to get this class so take part in a discussion. Usually it is the same students volunteering to speak. Therefore, this books allowed them to pick the topic and by able to broadcast their opinions on the chosen subject.

Pitts, L. (2014) 1,000 Conversation Questions: Designed for Use in the ESL or EFL Classroom. [INSERT LOCATION] ECQ Publishing.

THURSDAY

(4/3/19)

6pm – 1-2-1 with Elizabetta

Elizabetta found todays exercise more difficult than the past two weeks. Today, we were discussing spending money. There was quite a lot of speaking/conversation exercise which she enjoys. She wants to improve upon her pronunciation so speaking activities as best for this. The listening tasks proved to be very difficult and we both decided that we would skip these for this week.

FRIDAY

(5/3/19)

6pm – Pet (B2 Level)

I started the class tonight by finishing off the ‘risk’ unit from Monday. We spoke more about the different between ‘have to’ and its tenses. the students completed a ‘fill in the blanks’ exercise using either ‘have to’, ‘had to’ or ‘didn’t have to’.

The unit also offered practice of the use of adverbs. We discussed different adverbs and then work together to create adverbs from adjectives.

quick                 quickly

loud                   loudly

miserable         miserably

Then, i assigned each student with an adverb from the list we created together and asked them to say a sentence in the tone of their adverb. The other must have guess which adverb they had been given. The students were quite reserved at the beginning of this task, however I think the enjoyed it and were able to relax around each other more after it.

We finished the workbook activity with 30 minutes remaining so we looked at the worksheet ‘Home Swap’. We began by discussing, what amenities an average Italian home would have. The class were able to compare their homes to those of their peers and also to my British home. We read the passages and proceeded to answer questions of the passages.

We didn’t have time to complete the ‘Modern Families’ worksheet so we were do that at the end of Wednesdays lesson.

SATURDAY

(6/4/19)

10am – Puppies (pre-A1 level)

Last week, the Puppies were learning about typical British breakfast foods so this week we focused on lunch. The class seemed very tired from the off-set this morning so I knew it would be difficult to everything. We started by learning the words from the flashcards and listening to the sounds. Then moved straight onto the colouring sheet. They were very unsettled so I thought moving onto colouring would be the best option. All the class completed the British lunchbox however the two younger kids were having difficulty focusing. While the others two completed the Italian lunch worksheet I let the other two practice writing/drawing the foods on the whiteboard. Once the worksheets were done, we joined back together to play some games.

By next week, I hope to find some reading on behaviour management in a ESL classroom to aid in my organisation of this class. The age range is difficult and 2 hours on a Saturday morning can be difficult for them so I hope to find some tips or strategies I can follow.

Pizza di Scarole

(27/3/19)

Today, we had our second cooking lesson from Ida and we made Pizza di Scarole. This is a traditional Neapolitan dish and is very popular among southerns. You can often find versions of the recipe in shops and cafes throughout the south of Italy.

There are not as many stages to this recipe in comparison to the fresh pasta and bolognese sauce we made last week but it was equally as tasty. We started by talking through the recipe and learning any new vocabulary.

lievito di birra – yeast

uovo per spennellare – egg for brushing/painting

scarola – lettuce

pinoli – pine nuts

uvetta – raisins

spicchio d’aglio – clove of garlic

cucchari – tablespoon

peperoncino – chilli pepper

Then we fried the lettuce mixture and made the pastry. We added both to a tray and then cooked it in the oven for about 30 minutes. Lunch was good!!

23rd – 24th March

Last weekend, we went to Salerno. We knew the weather was expected to be nice so we wanted to spend our time on a beach, enjoying the sun. After teaching on Saturday morning, we caught the train and arrived in Salerno at around 2:30pm. We dropped our bags off at the hotel and immediately headed down to the beach.

Strangely, by chance we met 3 other english teachers who also live in Scafati. We talked to them all evening and even played some touch rugby on the beach together. I might have got a little too into the rugby as I walked away with a lovely back eye, which was loved by the kids at school. We stayed with the other teachers most of the night – eating together at a Mexican restaurant just off the beach.

The next day, we went back to the beach and enjoyed a rather large pizza at lunch time.

30th – 31st March

My friend Amy flew over from Amsterdam this weekend to visit. After such a good weekend in Salerno last week, we decided to go back. We arrived at around 2:30pm again, dropped off our bags and headed to the beach, following by Amy at around 4pm. We stayed on the beach for a while before going back to the hotel to shower and get ready for the night. We went out for a few drinks in a few different pubs before having a pizza for tea – shock!

On Sunday, we went back to the beach and later walked along the beach promenade to get an ice cream. We found a cute little market of different stalks selling anything from handmade chocolates and other authentic Italian foods to liqueurs and various oils and spices. At the end of the promenade, there was a little fun fair with rides and food vans. There was a ferris wheel, which if we had had more time I would have loved to go on.

On Sunday night, our host offered to take us out for tea to a nearby town. We went to a Chinese restaurant with her cousin and friends.

It was so nice to see Amy again and to meet more of Daniela’s friends and family.

I have made a little video of our weekend:

(21/3/19)

On Thursday, we had the morning off classes so we decided to do some sightseeing. We went on the train to a nearby fishing town called ‘Torre Del Greco’. We enjoyed a walk along the harbour wall, followed by a nice, cold drink at a cafe while soaking up the sun.

MONDAY

(25/3/19)

5:30pm – Pet (B1 Level)

Today, the class were to complete two booklets. One on filling out a form – expanding on what they learned last week – and another comparing the similarities and differences between the culture in America, South Africa and the United Kingdom. The class managed the first exercise very easily as the have had practice completing different types of forms over the past two lessons.

The second booklet inspired a lot of conversation, which is great for this level. B1 students can read and write to a high standard but often they need encouragement to speak and be involved in conversation due to a lack of confidence. We started by looking at the 4 pictures of the front of their workbook and trying to identify which country the photos were taken. We then discussed what existing knowledge we had of each country and compiled a list on the whiteboard. I think this was very successful as the students seemed to enjoy discussing their past experiences to create a list. Lastly, we read through two emails sent by pen-pals and had to compare their typical day. We didn’t finish the booklet completely so we will continue with it next week.

TUESDAY

(26/3/19)

5pm – Starters (A1 level)

Today, the starters were revising ‘toys’. We started off by completing two pages in their workbooks. They had to compare their cartoons of a toy shop and tell a story about what is happening from one to another. After, I asked them to identify toys which begin with a particular letter or are a certain a colour.

After, completing the various exercises in the workbook, we played games using the toy flashcards. We played Simon Says, missing object line-up and pass the parcel. The girls in this class are very well behaviour and I can tell they enjoy coming to class. The are able to stay on task for the majority of the lesson but towards the end the tend to be quite restless. Therefore, I thought it would be good to stay on task by using the flashcards but have some fun playing a game.

6:30pm – Ket (A2 Level)

This week, we had to continue with the same booklet as last week as they didn’t finish. This class is the most difficult I have experienced. They are 12 years old and unlike the first class, I can tell they do not look forward to coming to the school. They continually speak over me in Italian, despite being asked to always speak in English when they are in the school. I hope this will improve over the weeks once we get to know each other better but they only come once a week so it is hardly to build a relationship.

WEDNESDAY

(27/3/19)

5pm – Eagles (A1 Level)

On Mondays and Wednesday, there are two Eagles classes at the same time. A boys class and a girls class. However, the ability levels are extremely varied and so today we decided to mix up the class to make one higher ability and one lower ability class. We hoped this would also help to improve the boys’ behaviour.

Today, we were revising rooms within the house – specifically the bedroom. The class completed a listening/colouring task. I would say, for example: “Colour the bed red, colour the teddy bear brown, colour the table green”. Most of the class, managed this very well as they have previously learned the necessary vocabulary (bed, chair, table, flower).

Then, we completed a talking activity. I wrote on the board possible question starts:

How many …?

Where is the…?

and asked the children questions about the picture.

How many socks are there?

Where is the teddy bear?

We discussed different positional words such as in, on, behind, between, under etc. to help them to answer my questions.

6pm – Pet 2 (B1 Level)

This lesson focused on booking something online and the process of filling out a booking form. The worksheets given followed Soren Hedegaard and his journey from booking a flight to arrival and booking a rental car. First we discussed the necessary information for booking a flight (departure date, one way/return trip, etc) and also the different fare types e.g. economy, executive, first class etc. Then, when the rental car the students had the opportunity to practice filling out a booking form and difference between essential and non-essential information (essential is marked with an asterisk).

THURSDAY

(28/3/19)

4pm – Puppies (pre A1)

Today, the puppies were carrying on with their topic of transport. On Tuesday, Lisa taught them about buses then they made a double decker bus. I taught the students about taxis and school buses today.

6pm – 1-2-1 lesson with Elisabetta.

Last weeks lesson with Elisabetta was very successful so I was looking forward to todays. Global tourism was the topic of todays class.

FRIDAY

(29/3/19)

6pm – Pet (B1 level)

At the beginning of todays lesson we finished off the activity that was started at the end of Wednesdays’ class. The booklet was called ‘Everyday Life’ and a description of the task can be found under Monday’s Pet class. This class were not as interactive as the class on Monday. They are slighter older and therefore tend to be a bit more reserved and focused than the other class. This is very handy when completing a piece of writing or an exercise that requires concentration, however during conversation or speaking activities it can be difficult to elicit a discussion from the class.

Later, we started a different activity from their workbook talking about ‘risks’ and ‘risky behaviour’. The unit started by comparing the age restrictions from British and Italian laws. The class became more lively as they had to discuss what age you could legally drive or drink etc. in Italy.

SATURDAY

(30/3/19)

10am – Puppies (pre A1)

This morning, the puppies were learning about food. I started by using the flashcards to introduce the vocabulary. Followed by comparing a stereotypical English and Italian breakfast by colouring in breakfast foods and gluing them onto a paper plate.

MONDAY

(18/3/19)

5:30pm – Pet (B1 Level)

At 5:30pm, I had a B1 level class filled with 8 14-17 year olds. The lesson focused on booking something online and the process of filling out a booking form. The worksheets given followed Soren Hedegaard and his journey from booking a flight to arrival and booking a rental car. First we discussed the necessary information for booking a flight (departure date, one way/return trip, etc) and also the different fare types e.g. economy, executive, first class etc. Then, when the rental car the students had the opportunity to practice filling out a booking form and difference between essential and non-essential information (essential is marked with an asterisk).

TUESDAY

(19/3/19)

5pm – Starters (A1 Level)

This class was 5 girls, aged 8, 9 or 10. They were learning about food, specifically food they liked and disliked. We worked through pages 58 and 59 of their ‘Fun for Starters’ workbook and at the end played a game using their new vocabulary.

6:30pm – Ket (A2 Level)

In this unit, the children were learning about different stages of life: birth, growing up, going to school, moving house, going to university, getting married, having children and death.

This class were quite unsettled and continued to speak to each other in Italian despite being asking to speak in English when they are in the language centre. This was the first time I felt like I couldn’t communicate well enough with the class to deliver a strong lesson. They completed 3 of the pages but there were 6 or 7 in booklet.

WEDNESDAY

(20/3/19)

5pm – Eagles (A1 level)

This class was 5 boys aged between 6 and 8. Our lesson revolved around verbs such as throw, bounce, hit, catch, kick and roll. Myself and Lisa co-taught the class. The boys were very rowdy but this was mostly due to the nature of the lesson. Some of the tasks asked the children to throw and catch a ball leading to high levels of excitement. Although, it was quite difficult to keep the children on task, i do believe finished the lesson with a good understanding of the new vocabulary words.

6pm – Pet B1 Level

Buy it online.

THURSDAY 

(21/3/19)

5pm – Puppies with Jemma (pre-A1)

As mentioned previously, the puppies are very young children who cannot read of write in either Italian or English. Today, they were learning about flags and the countries within the United Kingdom. The completed colouring sheets of the Union Jack, the map of the UK and also the stereotypical dress of an Englishman and Scotsman. There was only two children in the class today, Luigi and Angelo – twin brothers, and they completed the tasks very easily while learning the vocabulary associated with the task: England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, flag etc.

6:30pm – 1-2-1 lesson with Elisabetta (B1 Level)

Elisabetta has recently started a new job in Scafati, which requires her to travel abroad and speak with (in English) partners or clients of the firm. She has recently begun english lessons with Global Find and uses her classes to develop confidence in conversation and to broaden her vocabulary. Today, we discussed the concept of ‘presentations’ and what makes a presentation successful or unsuccessful. Elisabetta was able to thoroughly explain her answers and expand upon them when asked. Occasionally, she would have difficultly finding the english translation but I she could provide synonyms and from there I could assist her.

FRIDAY

(22/3/19)

5pm – Ket with Katia (A2 Level)

I observed Katia’s lesson for an hour and a half today. The class was 1 girl and 2 boys aged 11 or 12. The were learning about modes of transport and how long certain journeys take. They also discussed  and revised the past and present forms of some verbs.

6:30pm – Conversation with Katia.

Katia is an Italian English teacher at global find and Daniela regularly alots time for her to talk with mother-tongue speakers to improve her pronunciation. We were discussing the topic of stereotypes and whether they are fair or true. The conversation was very casual and we regularly drifted of topic – giving her plenty of opportunity for conversation.

SATURDAY

(23/3/19)

10am – Puppies (pre-A1)

This morning, I had the same class as last week except this time I was alone instead of with Lisa. There are 4 in the class, aged 4, 6, 6 and 8. Today, they were revising clothing so I started with the flashcards to jog their memory of the different vocabulary words. Angelo (8) and Maria Francesca (6) were very good at reading the word at the bottom of the flashcards and making an educated guess at how to pronounce it.

Later, they completed a colouring sheet and had to create their own outfits on a seperate sheet of paper. As you can see from the pictures, Angelo and Maria Francesca managed this task and even turned the page to draw their own outfit using the clothing items on the flashcards. Emanuele and Aurora (brother and sister) had difficultly concentrating this morning. Aurora had to be removed from the classroom after around an hour and a half as she was violent towards her brother and distracting the others in the class. Emanuele managed to regain concentration but did not complete the task to the same standard as the rest of the class.

SECTION 3

Global Find language school prides itself in bringing a wide range of culture to its school. They have a mix of British mother-tongue teachers and Italian mother-tongue teachers, who can speak both English and Italian. They also take work-away teachers who come from all over the world. This is very important to the school as they want the students to hear English mother-tongue teachers from all corners of the globe. Before we arrived, there was an American woman teaching here, and after we leave there will be girls coming from New Zealand. The school believe that this is highly important as the students can learn English in different methods and be able to hear the difference between British English and other countries who speak English, encouraging them to notice different dialects.

All the teachers here share the love for teaching, it is amazing to see such a small group of teachers in a school who work so close together, so they can provide the best possible learning experiences for the children. Each teacher brings their own unique teaching style, two are native Italian speakers and have learned English through school or university, one is from England and moved here so has learned Italian from moving over, and Daniela, one of the associates, has lived in all corners of the globe, with English being her first spoken language. They all bring their own methods of teaching, at the same time, following the Cambridge English requirements of learning English, especially for students sitting exams.

Daniela and Ida are the two main associates of the school and each have a vital role in the daily running of the school – Monday to Saturday. Ida oversees payments to the school, and outgoings, along with speaking to parents, meeting and greeting each of them and the students as they arrive in the school. Maintaining the websites and advertising also. Daniela, who I refer to as the “main teacher” overlooks all lessons and plans. She has lesson plans made up for a whole week of what she wants each class to work towards and develop, following the Cambridge English requirements and ensuring they are upheld in each class.

As soon as the children come into the school, it is all about learning English. They have tea and biscuits waiting for them on arrival, to encourage them to be part of the English culture. The walls have different maps of the UK, and names of cities across the world. When they walk in, Daniela has said that the only words used should be English, this is to ensure they are totally focussed on practicing their English. The school encourage this, and make sure no one feels embarrassed or scared to make any mistakes – if you are trying then no mistakes can be made.

PASTA ALL’UOVO E RAGU’ ALLA BOLOGNESE

Today, as part of the culture side of our Italian lessons, we made pasta and bolognese sauce completely from scratch. We prepared the whole meal without speaking English. Eda spoke to us only in Italian so we learned a lot of vocabulary for kitchen utensils and verbs such as pour, stir, cut.

SUNDAY

(17/3/19)

On Sunday, we caught the train to Naples. Jemma and I have before stayed in Naples before and we excited to be able to show Lisa around. We got the train from Scafati to Naples, arriving at Piazza Garibaldi train station at 12:03pm.   

Some of the architecture in Naples is so beautiful. Big, bright colourful beautiful that you wouldn’t see back home in Scafati.

We walked from the station down to the port, where we stopped to have lunch and some cocktails.

We walked further along the water front to find a nice place to sit and enjoy the sunny weather. At the other end of the port, we found a nice park filled with locals enjoying their Sunday with their families.

(we may have enjoyed some wine while enjoying the weather)

On our walk back to the main shopping street in Naples, we passed the Castel Nuovo.

We very much enjoyed our first visit to Naples and will definitely return soon!