Tag: Vietnam

A Guide to Visiting Vietnam | Introduction.

Work and Play in Vietnam

I have lived in Vietnam teaching for over 15 years and I have found this country and its people to be enthralling, captivating, frustrating, and challenging. But I have never found it to be boring. Whether you come here for a holiday or to teach, or a mixture of both, I can promise that you will have adventures that will stay with you for the rest of your life.

From the simplicity of sitting on plastic chairs on a footpath, surrounded by Vietnamese workers on their way home from work and slurping down bowls of soup. To the experience of cruising on a 5-star “Junk” taking in the scenery of the awe-inspiring karst seascape of Halong bay. Your senses will be on overload.

It is appreciated by the locals if before your visit you have made some attempt to understand a little about the people, their culture and country. This will give you a quick overview and feel of the country before you arrive.

The Hue Citadel.

A Brief History of Vietnam.

Viet Nam is located in a region considered the cradle of mankind. An early agricultural center practicing rice farming, where stone and metallurgical inventions began

The Vietnamese people had to cope with various foreign aggressors. During 12 centuries through to the 3rd century B.C until the late 20th century, the Vietnamese had to cope with multiple struggles against foreign aggression.

From war with China over trade and land to the French trying to dominate with missionaries and trade and on to Japan after WW11 who were used to “police” Vietnam, all the way through to the Vietnamese American war.

Vietnam has been forged in the flames of battle. And like the bamboo they sway and bend but ultimately come back stronger than before. Even with such a violent background, The Vietnamese have remained a proud and gracious people.

Custom, Culture, and Etiquette.

The family is the glue that holds Vietnam together. It is not uncommon to find 3 or 4 generations all living under one roof. Many families strive for a large number of children and grandchildren under the belief that “more children equals more fortune.” Confucianism and the feudal notion of masculine domination have an influence on them. In the household, men play the most significant roles and are always in charge.

In the household, men play the most significant roles and are always in charge. he “three obediences and four virtues” of feudal ethics—obedience to one’s father during childhood, one’s husband during marriage, and one’s sons during widowhood—shape women. The four virtues are diligence, good manners, proper speech, and morality.

However, the traditionally male-dominated viewpoints have greatly weakened, and equality is now the norm (at least in urban areas).

there are things that are unique to Vietnam that are polite and impolite, it is well worth the time and possible embarrassment saved to take a few minutes and read my post on “Etiquette in Vietnam” It is only a 4-minute read and may save you a lot more than just embarrassment.

Weather and Climate and Best Times to Visit.

Covid has certainly put a dent in the tourism industry worldwide and Vietnam has suffered from a lack of tourists just like most other countries. The only good thing to come out of this is the quietness of so many normally busy tourist spots.

Unlike many people, the rain does not bother me. This is just as well in Vietnam as you can go from a sunny day to a torrential downpour in minutes. There is nothing like seeing hundreds of motorcycles scuttling to the side of the road so the driver and passengers can don ponchos and raincoats. When it rains in Vietnam it can be like driving in a bucket of water. And much of Vietnam is barely above the water level so expect to get flooded.

I can still remember the first time I was caught in a downpour on my motorcycle. The water was halfway up the wheels and driving was impossible. And having a snake swim past me was the icing on the cake.

So if you aren’t fond of rain here is a rain and weather chart for Vietnam so you can plan your holiday accordingly.

The chart is in Fahrenheit and inches

The chart is in Fahrenheit and inches.

Top 11 Cities in Vietnam by Population.

The 66th-largest nation in the world is Vietnam. And this nation is the 15th most populated in the globe with a population of about 94 million. Vietnam only has six cities with a population of more than 1,000,000 people which surprises a lot of people considering the total population.

With a population of more than 8.6 million, Ho Chi Minh City is the biggest city in the nation. And Hanoi is the second-largest city with over 4.7 million people but is still well behind Ho Chi Minh City in terms of size. Statistics from: Statistic Times.

The nation contains 32 cities with at least 100,000 citizens and an additional 51 cities with populations between 10,000 and 100,00. With the rest of the population living in rural areas.

Not all the cities, in my opinion, are worth visiting. But some are definitely worthwhile investigating. Starting with the top 11 cities by population, I am going to separate the corn from the chaff. There are also many sites that are not cities that we will look at over the coming weeks. So buckle up, lets start with some of my favorites.

From this list we are going to look at 3 cities. Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Vung Tau.

Hanoi.

The attractive capital of Vietnam, Hanoi, has aged well, maintaining the Old Quarter, monuments, and colonial architecture while creating places for new construction. Although the city has dropped many of its previous names, including Thang Long, or “ascending dragon,”

it hasn’t lost its history, as seen in places like Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum and Hoa Lo Prison. More than 600 temples and pagodas, as well as lakes, parks, and shady boulevards, add to the charm of this city, which may be conveniently toured by cab.

Things to do.

From a $10.00 walking tour to an upscale visit of Halong Bay there are many sights to see in Hanoi. The walking tour takes about 3 hours and covers Hanoi’s lively Old Quarter of nearly 40 streets packed with shops selling all kinds of goods, each street named for its primary good or service.

You can take public or private transport to Halong Bay from Hanoi, and it is well worth the time. Tours on the Junks are usually for 2 to 3 nights and are around the $200 mark. There are around 1,600 islands and islets that makeup Ha Long Bay in the Gulf of Tonkin, creating an amazing panorama of limestone pillars.

Most of the islands are abandoned and undisturbed by human habitation due to their precipitous nature and are surrounded by emerald waters and thousands of tall limestone islands covered in rainforests. Visitors can travel on junk boat tours and enjoy sea kayak excursions. Scuba diving, rock climbing, and hiking are popular activities in the area, especially in the hilly Cát Bà National Park.

Ho Chi Minh City.

My home, on and off for the last 15 years, is a bustling metropolis that never sleeps. Ho Chi Minh City, the main hub of the southern region, is teeming with activity, innovation, and transportation. It is also the economic center of Vietnam. The dynamic cityscape of HCMC unites the old and new Vietnam in the smallest of areas, symbolizing both the past and the future of the city.

The Reunification Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, Saigon Central Post Office, and Bitexco Financial Tower are some of the city’s most well-known tourist attractions, making District 1 in Ho Chi Minh City undoubtedly the most populated district. Hotels, restaurants, cafes, and bars abound in this region as well.

Things to do.

Discover the Saigon Opera House, the Central Post Office, and the Notre Dame Cathedral by strolling down Dong Khoi street. Local attractions include the Jade Emperor Pagoda and Benh Thành Market.

Take the locals’ advice and climb onto the back of a motorcycle to explore the city from the ground up and experience its vibrant pulse. You can take motorbike trips at dusk and travel around the city when the nightlife starts to buzz. Evening is also a time when the street vendors open their stalls and you can buy anything from Levi jeans to steaming bowls and plates of food.

Locals in Ho Chi Minh City enjoy congregating around kiddie-sized plastic tables and dented metal tables for fantastic roadside feasts. Highlights include bánh mi, savory pancakes made in the tradition of the South (bánh xèo), and broken rice.

Or if the mood hits you, you can take a boat to Vung Tau which is a coastal city that is close to HCMC. It has a couple of beautiful beaches and some great seafood. However, on long weekends it is packed out with residents from HCMC escaping the heat and noise of our bustling city.

Vung Tau.

Vung Tau is the perfect weekend escape from HCMC and is even better if you can get there through the quieter weekdays. Prices to get there are cheap and accommodation ranges for all budgets. You can get there by bus with prices ranging from $7.00 to $15.00 for luxury minivans with WiFi or you can catch a high-speed ferry that will whisk you there in less than 2 hours. The cost for this express service is around the $18.00 US mark. Catching the bus will take around 3-4 hours depending on stops and traffic.

Vũng Tàu is a port city and is situated on a peninsula in southern Vietnam to the east of HCMC. It was once a French colonial settlement but is now a well-known beach destination with hydrofoil transportation bringing many people from Ho Chi Minh City. With the lush Small Mountain and Big Mountain serving as a backdrop, it features a long, crowded stretch of sandy shoreline that includes Front Beach and Pineapple Beach. It is simple to navigate, and it takes only 15-20 minutes to walk from the front beach to the back beach. There are several restaurants, offering both a wide variety of regional seafood and a fair selection of western cuisine.

Things to do.

The name of the game is relaxation. Soak up the sun and fill up on the food. for those more adventurous spirits, there are a whole range of day trips and also kayak and canoe tours. Additionally, you may take a day trip to some of the most stunning beaches in southern Vietnam, stopping along the way to see a local dragon fruit farm and nature reserve. While there, you can enjoy the tranquil surroundings and a fantastic Vietnamese meal with a local family.

Vung Tau is best known for its nightlife.  And there is a good selection of clubs and bars that cater to all. After a day of relaxation and eating you can let your hair down in the myriad of bars that are open through the night at Vung Tau. Clubs range from the loud to the lewd. With perennial favorites like Matildas, Vung Tau beach club, Peace and Love, The black pearl bar, vitamin C2 Beer club and so many more.

Vung Tau is a party town and the daytime is recovery time. A lot of the older ex-pats end up retiring here for the laid-back lifestyle and cheap living.

Final Thoughts.

This is an introduction to what sights and experiences you can have in Vietnam. More in-depth blogs have been written and will be continued to be updated under this section of my website.

Whether you are an ESL teacher looking to get away for a holiday or a tourist on a limited time and or budget, this should help you. I will expand over the coming weeks as to what I see as the best places to visit during your time in Vietnam.

A bit of knowledge goes a long way in making your trips a lot more enjoyable. If you have any questions, I am happy to provide answers to make things easier.

Stephen.

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

 

How to Teach English One-on-One.

This is about teaching English to ESL students

Private Tuition for ESL.

At some stage in your ESL career ( English as a second language), you will be asked if you can provide private tuition. Some teachers can get needlessly worried about doing this. However, teaching one on one can be a lot of fun and extremely rewarding. The rewards are not always financial but they are something we should cover first.

Pricing for Students

Teaching one on one can be a fiscal boon, but you have to be careful not to rely on private tuition only. Let me explain. If you are teaching for a private school you will have a regular income. And if any students depart, you will still get paid.

If like me, you do a lot of private tuition you will probably be teaching groups rather than individuals. So you have to take into account how much per hour you are making for your groups then average that out for your “one-on-one” student.

Lets do some rough accounting. I have a class of 12 students who individually pay 1,000,000 dong per month. ( $43.00 US) and I teach this class approximately 13 hours per month. So 12 million dong ( Vietnamese currency) divided by 13 gives the rate that I could charge my individual student.( about 900,000 dong)

Price high or price low.

This works out in US dollars to about $38.00. I know a lot of teachers will say that is too expensive, my student or my students parents can’t afford that. But you can’t afford to go below that. Let me explain why.

If you are working at a private English school you will probably get about $20 US per hour. If you cancel the class at the private school there should be no problems. That is only one class or 3-4 hours per week. You still get the rest of the classes in your schedule.

But if you have taken on your individual student and they leave after 3 weeks it may take you another month to pick up another class at your private English school. So, not only would I price higher, I would also want payment of 3 months upfront. And this is what I do. I have lived in Vietnam for 15 years and the parents will pay this if they trust you.

In a nutshell, the 2 main things to remember are price higher and endeavor to get an upfront payment of at least 2-3 months. You are the one who is taking the financial risk.

Teaching English One on One.

The great thing about teaching one-on-one is you can tailor each session to the specific needs of the student, especially the ability to tailor activities to the students strengths and shortcomings. The most important thing is that the pupil has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to practice intensively.

The student will progress more quickly if he or she speaks for the majority of the class, practice makes perfect. The same can be said regarding the other English skills; Listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Nonetheless, it is the teacher’s responsibility to make sure that the time spent with the student is spent effectively.

If you have a happy student, not only will they stay with you, they will provide referrals to your teaching business.

Customized Lessons.

If you’ve never taught individual students before, the first few lessons can be challenging. Even if you’re an expert, the first few one-on-one classes with a new student will be difficult because each student has their unique personality, learning style, interests, and educational needs.

The first step to building an environment conducive to learning is to build rapport with your student. This is done by getting to know your student and what they need to get from your classes.

Tips for One-on-One lessons.

Whether your student is a young child ( I have taught individually to a 7 year old) or an older student, the tips I share with you are non age related. By which I mean you can use the overall concept for any age.

Introductions. The first lesson should be about getting to know the student and their life. They may tell you about their country and how it is to live there and customs and traditions. When discussing Christmas, for example, you might compare how the holiday is observed in your home country compared to your students. If your student works in a certain industry, have them describe it to you: what the job entails, what the company does, and who their clients are?

If you have a younger student, chat to him or her about their family and the school that he or she attends. What are their favorite video games or TV programs. Also, don’t forget to introduce yourself to the student. Encourage the student to initiate the dialogue about you by asking relevant questions. Overall it is an “introduction” lesson.

Real Life Objects. Real-life items (Realia) can be used in any type of class, whether one-on-one or in large groups. However, if you have a map (for example), you can sit next to your student as he or she gives you instructions to their house, a hospital, or a specific spot that you can both follow on the map. “Realia” also makes the lesson more fascinating and enjoyable in general, and it can be a useful icebreaker.

Adults will enjoy Realia because it allows them to use and relate to almost anything. Newspapers, work brochures, restaurant menus, and ad pamphlets are just a few examples. And with children it is just about essential that you use them. Twinkl is a great resource for the younger student and you can check out the range of resources they provide here at”Twinkl Resources“

Video Lessons. Remember that the main advantage of one-on-one sessions is that pupils have more time to communicate. Using video and audio to start a conversation is a terrific approach to get a student talking. Show a video to your student, check for listening comprehension, and then talk about what you watched.

Any audio file can be used in the same way. Keep in mind that the Internet offers a wide range of audio and video files, the majority of which are simple to download. There are a number of websites dedicated to children that also feature videos. And for shorter lessons consider YouTube as well.

It is also worth considering opening your own Youtube channel where you can post prepared homemade videos. Or make one with your student. Here is one I made about “Our House in Vietnam“.

Video Recording. Most students do not like getting recorded by video or only audio, however, a one-to-one lesson is a much better opportunity for this to take place than in a full class of students.

Audio and video recording are great for students to become self-aware of their speaking and pronunciation difficulties. And while the younger student will not be interested for that reason, they will have a lot of fun making the recording.

You could get the younger student to be the “presenter” of a house walk-through. Similar to the YouTube video shown above. ( via link )


Internet lessons. When it comes to one-on-one instruction, the Internet is ideal. You can use genuine websites for reading assignments, play an online game, listen to a podcast or view a video, and even have your student take an online test. The options are limitless.

However, keep in mind that adequate lesson planning is still necessary. Before your class, double-check all links and web pages. And depending on which country you are in, have a back up lesson in case the internet is down. However, Vietnam has improved a lot, but I still make sure I have a paper based alternative lesson just in case.

Quiet time. Although some advanced students are willing to talk for hours, the majority of them find it difficult to speak for more than ten minutes. Make sure to follow up a particularly busy speaking activity or game with a more relaxed and quiet tasks. A young learner may sketch a picture of the tale they heard; a business English student could write a resume or an email.

Silence isn’t something to be scared of. Remember that your students will need some time to process what they’ve learned. Keep in mind, though, that encouraging a student to work on something independently while you do something else could be seen as a lazy practice for the teacher. Because the student may think they could complete the task outside of class if you weren’t present. Such activities should be completed informally, with the teacher reviewing each answer with the student.

Final Thoughts.

One-to-one teaching has many advantages for both teacher and student. It does, however, require a slightly different mindset compared with group teaching.

One big advantage that I haven’t talked about is that teaching only 1 student gives you the opportunity to take the classroom outside. For example, you can go to the local supermarket and talk firsthand about the vocabulary related to the supermarket. Or even just visit a coffee shop where you can sit and talk (hopefully) with other foreigners.

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

How to Travel and Work Abroad in Vietnam

That Perfect Asian Experience.

Vietnam is a country that’s still relatively unknown to many tourists. It is a country of adventure, culture, and beauty. It’s the perfect destination for anyone who wants to explore Asia without the hassle of flying all the way to China or India. And yet it still borders China, Laos, and Cambodia if you get the urge to cross borders and discover the differences.

It offers many different types of tourism, from the mountains and beaches to foodies heaven. You can start your day in Vietnam over a steaming bowl of Pho before wading through the markets with the locals who are buying their daily supplies. Almost every district has one major market or “cho” where the local inhabitants do their food shopping for the day. A bustling, shoulder-rubbing experience that proves people have forgotten about Covid perhaps more than they should have.

Work or Play in Vietnam.

Or are you planning to do a bit of both? Vietnam, like a lot of Asia, has become a hot spot for backpackers who beef up their travel funds by teaching English. However, things have changed, and not just because of the pandemic. Even prior to the lockdown there was a push by the Government to get better-qualified teachers into the Vietnamese Education system.

And now with the doors slowly creaking or in some cases cast aside quickly, open, there are many deals on offer for both the dedicated traveler, part-time tourist, digital nomad, or ESL teacher to take advantage of.

But first things first, let us look at the safety factor of traveling around this slightly pungent country. Has covid been entirely eradicated and what are the new visa and covid regulations.

The New Visa and Covid Regulations.

While Covid has not been eradicated it is under control with new cases dropping to under 100 in many localities on May 21, with a total of 1,457 new cases recorded in the past 24 hours from 4 pm May 20 to 4 pm May 21, according to the Ministry of Health ( Vietnam ).

On the streets, it is now common to see a lot if not most people walking around without masks, but that depends on what district you are in and if you are in a business building or not. People are becoming much more tolerant of others not wearing masks. Maybe it is complacency, but I do feel safer than I did 9 months ago.

The Visa Process.

The visa process can be confusing if you are not sure what you need to do and when. The best way to avoid any problems is by getting your visa before you go on your trip. You will also need a valid passport with at least six months left before it expires

There are some countries that have visa exemptions, and these countries are. From  Vietnam visas.

Chile90 daysFor tourist visas only
Panama90 daysFor tourist visas only
Cambodia30 days 
Indonesia30 days 
Kyrgyzstan30 days 
Laos30 days 
Malaysia30 days 
Singapore30 days 
Thailand30 days 
Philippines21 days 
Brunei14 days 
Myanmar14 days 
Belarus15 days· The 30-day interval between 02 stays with visa exemption has been removed in accordance with the new law on entry, exit, transit, and residence of foreigners in Vietnam which takes effect on July 1, 2020.
Denmark15 days
Finland15 days
France15 days
Germany15 days
Italy15 days
Japan15 days
Norway15 days
Russia15 days
South Korea15 days
Spain15 days
Sweden15 days
United Kingdom (Not applicable to BNO)15 days

These are the Countries requiring Visas.

If you are coming to work as an ESL teacher you will need a business visa.

CountriesTourist visaBusiness visaVisa on arrival
AustraliaRequiredRequiredEligible
CanadaRequiredRequiredEligible
ChinaRequiredRequiredEligible
FranceNot required (15 days)Not required (15 days)Eligible
GermanyNot required (15 days)Not required (15 days)Eligible
Hong KongRequiredRequiredEligible
IndiaRequiredRequiredEligible
JapanNot required (15 days)Not required (15 days)Eligible
NetherlandsRequiredRequiredEligible
New ZealandRequiredRequiredEligible
PolandRequiredRequiredEligible
SingaporeNot required (30 days)Not required (30 days)Eligible
South AfricaRequiredRequiredEligible
South KoreaNot required (15 days)Not required (15 days)Eligible
SwitzerlandRequiredRequiredEligible
TaiwanRequiredRequiredEligible
ThailandNot required (30 days)Not required (30 days)Eligible
United Arab EmiratesRequiredRequiredEligible
United KingdomNot required (15 days)Not required (15 days)Eligible
United StatesRequiredRequiredEligible

The following is a short, clear checklist of documents required for a Vietnam visa application. It applies to those who are not exempted from Vietnam visas.

Documents required for getting a Vietnam visa include:

1. Passport: valid for at least 6 months following your arrival date to Vietnam and have at least 2 blank pages for immigration stamps. A temporary passport maybe not accepted.

2. Visa Approval Letter: required if you want to get a Vietnam visa on arrival at Vietnam international airports.

3. Photo: two (2) passport-sized photos (4×6 cm) and must be taken recently without glass-wear.

4. Visa application form: Immigration entry and exit application form for Vietnam visa on arrival.

5. Vietnam Visa Stamping Fee: paid in cash upon arrival (for Vietnam visa on arrival)

Notes:

  • Travelers who transit through Vietnam airport should check the airlines for Vietnam visa requirements;
  • Travelers directly visiting Phu Quoc Island, either by boat or airplane from a country other than Vietnam, and staying for less than 30 days are not required to have a Vietnam visa.
  • In case you are granted visa-free access to Vietnam, you just need a passport with at least 6 months of validity following your date of entry into Vietnam.
  • The visa approval letter is valid at the airport only. So if travelers enter Vietnam by land or cruise, they can apply for a Vietnam visa via the local embassy.

Source; Vietnam Visa.

The Best Destinations in Vietnam.

From Hanoi in the north to Phu Quoc island in the south of Vietnam, you will be inspired and enthralled every step of the way. It has become common practice for tourists to travel from South to North, although in my opinion, I think going from North to South is better.

There are many sights and places you can stop off and see and I will cover some of these. But I will show you how you can organize your own holiday and stop off at some more obscure places. Do not think you will get to see all of Vietnam in 4 weeks. I have been here 15 years and still discovering new places in this amazing country.

Three Regions.

Vietnam is typically classified into 3 regions. The North, Central, and the South. Each of these regions has its own climate and with coastal influences and Mountainous regions you can break these down again into sub-climates.

To find out more about when the best time to come, click on “Is Vietnams rainy Season a bad time to visit?”

The Cities of Vietnam.

The ten biggest cities of Vietnam population-wise are listed below, however, in my opinion, not all are equally deserving of your time. And there are some smaller cities and regional centers that are well worth a visit for various reasons.

RankBiggest Cities in VietnamPopulation
1Ho Chi Minh City8,244,400
2Ha Noi7,379,300
3Hai Phong1,946,000
4Can Tho1,238,300
5Bien Hoa1,104,495
6Da Nang1,007,700
7Vung Tau450,000
8Nha Trang392,279
9Buon Ma Thuot340,000
10Hue333,715

Choices.

Depending on the length of time you have would define your choice in what you see. The cities I would make an effort to see would be;

Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is the most developed and the most bustling seemingly dis-organized city, yet it all comes together in a perfect mix of food, nightlife, and shopping. Although Saigon is not rich in natural resources, it has a wide range of street food and nightlife activities to choose from. If you can drag yourself away from the beaches or mountains, you will have a ball.

If you want to learn something new, there are a number of museums and galleries distributed across the city that you may visit while also seeing the city.

Hanoi.

It is always worth visiting the capital city of any country and when I was in Hanoi a few years ago staying in the French Quarter the architecture amazed me. There was a saying in Vietnam, Same same but different and it would apply here perfectly.

There are never-ending streets that crisscross and take you from back lanes, through markets, moving from silk street to funeral street. Cotton street to chicken street. Appliance street to noodle street. And then a “bia hoi” stall where you can relax with locals on plastic stools slurping down. 25-cent beers and restoring some semblance of sanity to your day.

Hue.

The best time to visit the imperial city is in March. Hue has a reputation for great cuisine, which dates back to when it was Vietnam’s capital and its imperial courts were brimming with refined fare.

Hue is also known for its lush streets lined with mossy pagodas, art déco palaces, and vibrant marketplaces. The Perfume River runs through the entire picture, providing a relaxed rhythm that the rest of the city is pleased to follow. A slightly calmer and more easygoing city to visit.

DaNang

March to May and September to October are the best times to visit Da Nang. Personally, I prefer Nha Trang to Da Nang but chose Da Nang as it is close to Hoi An and My Son Sanctuary.

Da Nang is a coastal sea paradise. It has some of the most beautiful and secluded beaches around which are hardly ever busy. It is worth the time taken to stop over with spectacular mountain temples, nice bars and restaurants.

You can also take a motorbike and go for a road trip around Son Tra Peninsula, then set out to conquer the Hai Van Pass or simply walk the majestic Golden Bridge.

Da Nang represents “boom time” in Vietnam and it has become a gleaming, modern tourist magnet, complete with condos, theme parks, and brand-new resorts. But the city’s earlier charm is still present, including laid-back, friendly locals and incredible street eats.

Hoi An

November to February is tourist season in Hoi An and it won’t be long until it becomes a tourist mecca all year round again.

Hoi An, also known as the Ancient Town, boasts hundreds of years of cultural exchange between China, Japan, and Vietnam. This small town will captivate you with its bustling lifestyle and historic architecture.

The speed and quality with which you can have garments created and shipped are still extraordinary but they are no longer as inexpensive as they once were.

Hoi An is also known for its wonderful cafes and restaurants, many of which have tranquil views. Even for a local, the town’s specialties are one-of-a-kind, and choosing between the delicious meals will be difficult.

My Son Sanctuary

During the 4th to 13th century, a unique culture came to Vietnam from India. Commonly referred to as “Champa culture” the remaining temples, in various states of decay, are well worth a visit. And you can easily spend a day walking around the ruins of the once political and religious capital of the Champa kingdom.

You will also get some fantastic photo opportunities. Find out more about “My Son at UNESCO“

Dalat

 

I have to add at least one city from the more mountainous regions and I would choose Dalat.

Dalat is a small city in Vietnam’s Central Highlands surrounded by mountains and waterfalls, calm lakes, pine forests, and lush agriculture. The area’s 4,900-foot elevation ensures pleasant spring-like weather all year.

It’s dubbed as “the Flower City,” and you’ll see flowers almost everywhere—on practically every street and in every city park. Outside of town, flower fields spread for miles, bursting with the vibrant colors of lilies, chrysanthemums, and roses.

There is a population of just over 400,000. And the lifestyle is much more relaxed and the weather more accommodating in this “Little Paris of Vietnam”.

There are so many more places to see in Vietnam that I could continue to write for another 2 days and still not cover everything. But as a start, whether you are here as a tourist, digital nomad or ESL teacher there is a lot to do.

Getting Around Vietnam.

Ever since I arrived in Vietnam there is only one booking agency I have used for my trips in Vietnam and around Asia. And that company is Booking dot com.

I have used them for short trips from Ho Chi Minh city to Vung Tau and also longer trips to Thailand. I have never had any problems in 15 years and strongly recommend them.

Yes, I make a commission from them but this does not influence the rate that you pay, also I sometimes get discounts because of my relationship with booking dot Com which I pass along to my readers.

So, if you would like to see what discounts you can get from, whom I believe, are the best in the industry, please click on the booking dot com logo.

Travel Advisors

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

Is Learning the Alphabet Still Important for ESL Students?

The Importance of the ABC.

Do you still think teaching the alphabet is worthwhile or just an excuse to fill in time in the classroom? Do you get sick of hearing the sing-song of the young students attempted at the ABC and then appalled when they can’t say it without singing?

I think the ABC is like the foundations of a house, if you have bad foundations your house is not structurally sound and it is the same for your younger and older students. Why is it important, let me explain.

Why is it important?

What is the alphabet, and why should our students learn it? The alphabet is nothing more than a set of letters and sounds. . The ABCs are the foundations of language exactly like the foundations of a house give the structural integrity to the whole house.

Our students must be able to recognize each letter, both in sequence and out of order, as well as the sounds associated with every letter, in order to become literate. Once your student has such understanding, he or she is well on their way to learning to read and write.

So, if we agree that learning the ABC’s and teaching the ABC’s are still important, how can we as teachers teach the alphabet effectively?

How to Teach The ABC’s.

This can be either a fun activity for your students or turn into one of the most boring lessons ever depending on your approach or teaching style.

Teachers can engage students in a variety of activities to help them learn the alphabet. Some of this learning may happen as a result of life experiences, things you know that can be fun and passed onto your students. Specific alphabet resources, such as puzzles and matching games, might provide additional learning opportunities.

Children will appreciate using specialized alphabet materials if they are simply one aspect of a larger literacy curriculum because they will know which experiences in the world they relate to. Children find learning the alphabet dull and useless only when it is taught in a restricted, linear,’skills-first’ manner.

This can happen, for example, if the teaching methodology consists of studying one letter each week for the entire school year, or writing one letter on a workbook page repeatedly each day. However, there is no necessity to learn the letters in this manner. These days, there are so many alternatives and better ways to do it.

Lessons for Teaching the Alphabet.

Students must learn to recognize and name the letters, both in and out of sequence, as well as the sounds associated with each letter, as the alphabet is the cornerstone of literacy.

Begin with the basics. Don’t attempt to teach all 26 letters at the same time. Simply do 5-6 letters at a time, allowing your pupils to see, hear, and experience the letter in a variety of ways.

Remember that children learn via all of their senses, so while books can be great, teach the ABCs using a variety of tactics and materials. Use ABC blocks, coloring pages, ABC mats, and even play dough to learn the alphabet.

The most crucial piece of advice is to have fun with it. Make it a game for your students, and they’ll enjoy learning with you.

Alphabet Teaching Resources.

As teachers, we are spoilt with the ever-increasing amount of resources we can use to teach the alphabet. In my 15 years of teaching ESL in Vietnam, there have never been so many different tools we can use. Mixing it up and making it fun is the name of the game. Here are a few of the many tools you can use. From apps to coloring pages, online games, PowerPoint, and a plethora of other tools, here are some of my favorites.

Apps.

ABC Kids.

Children will enjoy learning phonics and the alphabet with ABC Kids, a free phonics and alphabet app. It includes a series of tracing games designed to help children recognize letter shapes, link them with phonic sounds, and apply their alphabet knowledge in entertaining matching activities.

By just following the arrows with their finger, any young student can learn English and the English alphabet. As kids complete tracing games, they can even “win” stickers and toys.

Online Games

British Council.

The British Council website has so much to offer, not just the alphabet. Here you can make your own flashcards or worksheets, listen to songs and so much more. A wonderful site put together by teaching professionals.

Websites for Worksheets.

LanternFish/ Bogglesworld.

One of my all-time favorites that I keep coming back to, even after 15 years I find things on this site that are new to me. Again, it offers so much more than your basic worksheets. Well worth a look and definitely a useful site.

These are just a few of the many websites and apps that you can use to keep your students interested and excited about learning. You can also look here at “Online Teachers Tools” for more ideas.

Teaching the Alphabet in the Classroom.

Before teaching the alphabet consider the age of the student. You would not teach adults the same way as teaching young learners. Teaching adults is in some ways easier as the motivation to learn has already been established by the student, otherwise they would not be in the classroom. Teaching adults is mainly making sure that the pronunciation is correct as I put the onus on learning the alphabet onto the adult student.

However with your younger student you must create the reason for learning and that reason will be “fun”. We have to make the learning experience fun and exciting for the students.

Also remember the attention span of the younger student is not very long so you need to have sets of, approximately, 10 minute maximum activities.

Techniques I Use to Teach the ABC.

For the very young student, kindergarten or pre-school, I will use as one tool an animal ABC song that you can find on YouTube. The Animal ABC Song.

Flashcards.

Memory.

Flashcards are another “oldie but goodie” tool to use. With flashcards, you can play a myriad of games. From placing them face down and getting students to find the correct letter. A flashcard version of the old ‘memory game“

To make it more exciting place your students in teams. Boys verse girls always works well. Then place no more than 10 cards face down and call out one letter. Lets say you are using A to J, then you may call out A for example. Then each team has alternate turns in trying to find that letter. A point is scored for each letter “found”

You can also “tweak” this game by adding 2 sets of flashcards and the participants must match A with A, B with B etc. Be aware that this version can take longer so adjust your lesson times accordingly. Scoring remains the same.

4 Corners

A very simple game where you choose 4 flashcards or 4 letters in this case and place them in the corners of the room. You then call out 1 letter, and the last student to touch the card or stand within a set boundary must sit down and are “out” of the game.

You need a good size room and should be able to clear the floor of all chairs etc. This is a fast paced game and watch out that the students don’t push or accidentally hurt one another.

Guess the Card

Similar to the memory game, but rather than placing the cards face down you hold them against your chest. You can make this a lot of fun by kidding with the students as to what you have or not in your hand.

ABC animal/ ABC food/ ABC Country.

I use this not so much as a teaching tool but more as a task for remembering and introducing new words for the higher grades and older learners. By this I mean 10 to 12-year-olds.

Once again, I will split the class into 2 groups and points will be scored only when a student gets the answer wrong. For example, if A team gets the answer wrong, B team will collect the point.

If you try to give a point for all correct answers your back will be towards the class for far too long.

So if you choose ABC food, the teams must alternate in their answers with the correct responses being A- apple, B-banana, C- coconut, etc. I also put a time limit of 3 seconds for the answer and penalize any shout-outs.

I don’t prompt the alphabet and each person on the team must be able to both recite their ABC’s and find the correct name of food, animal, or country for their answer.

The students have a lot of fun with this game and it has become very popular and is a great way to get the students to remember their ABC’s.

ABC Listen and Write.

Two teams and points scored on the accuracy of the listening and writing skills.

All you need for this game is a sheet of paper for each student and a whiteboard the students can copy their work to.

The students are given a sheet of paper, preferably pre-drawn, with numbers from 1 to 7 in the corresponding columns. (as shown). The teacher then reads out any letter from A to Z and the students must copy in the correct column.

You might say, number 1 letter S, number 2 letter X, number 3 letter B, number 4 letter P, and so on. Once both teams ( As individuals) have written down all the letters from 1 to 7 you will choose one person to copy the letters to the board. They will get one point for each correct letter.

I have played this game with children as young as 7 who picked up the rules very quickly. You will need to do one game as an example first so your students understand.

This is a great listening skills game and it also reinforces letter recognition. You will find this helps students recognize some of the similar-sounding letters like P’s and B’s and S’s and X’s.

A popular game with great listening skill outcomes for the students.

Conclusion.

There are so many ways you can teach the alphabet to make it interesting and fun. The above are only a few ways that I use for my students. Some of the best games are those you make up yourself. Never be scared to try something new because your students will respond positively to something that is fun.

And for the younger student change your activities frequently so they don’t get bored. It is a terrible feeling if you look around and see your students yawning.

And who am I?

My name is Stephen and I have been teaching in Vietnam for 15 years and have my own school as well as placing students into private and public schools around Vietnam.

If you wish you can look at my Alphabet video by clicking on the YouTube button below. And if you wish to support my website, subscribe to my YouTube channel. It doesn’t cost you anything. Thanks.

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

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Teaching Phonics to ESL Students.

What is Phonics?

Phonics refers to the sounds of a language and includes how sounds are pronounced, how syllables or words are stressed, and intonation. If students learn early on what sounds each letter or combination of letters makes, it may help them improve their reading, listening, and speaking skills.

In a nutshell, phonics is the study of how to read and write in an alphabetic language. Students must study the relationship between sounds and letters in order to do so. Starting with individual letter sounds is simple, but things become more complicated when you realize that each vowel has two distinct sounds and that some letters can be combined to create new sounds.

Teaching Phonics.

When talking with other ESL/EFL teachers, phonics tends to be a forgotten subject. Phonics is being taught much less or not at all in conventional ESL (English as a Second Language) classes. As a result, deciding whether or not to utilize phonics with pupils learning English can be tricky.

Though much of English adheres to phonetic norms, the exceptions can appear to be more frequent at times. Do the disadvantages of phonics outweigh the advantages?

Is phonetics a superior technique to teach reading and pronunciation? Or will it do more harm than good to ESL students? If you’re having trouble answering the phonics question, here are some of the benefits and drawbacks of phonics to think about while you answer it for yourself.

Benefits of Phonics.

Like most learning and teaching styles there are pros and cons to phonics. Here are some to consider before teaching.

ABC.

Students who are learning the English alphabet can benefit from phonics.

When learning English, Vietnamese students face an additional obstacle. The Vietnamese language is a tonal language with six distinct tones. Learning a new alphabet and the sounds that go with it can be tough for a Vietnamese ESL/EFL learner.

Phonics can be quite beneficial to these students. Students learn the sounds that each letter or combination of letters produces, which aids them in reading and pronouncing new words.

Spelling.

It can also help the students in spelling. Breaking down the components of a word into phonetically understandable sounds helps the students become better spellers. The student will recognize the sound as it corresponds to the letters.

Different Words.

Students who utilize phonics are generally better at pronouncing unknown or unfamiliar words. They will attempt the sounds that they have learned in relation to the letters that they see.

Confidence.

In the 15 years, I have been teaching in Vietnam I have seen the difference between those students who use phonics to sound out a word and those that don’t. If nothing else, the confidence attributed to the students who use phonics is much higher than those that don’t.

The Downside of Phonics.

Comprehension.

ESL pupils who excel at phonics may develop into so-called false readers. When they encounter a written article, they may be able to read aloud and pronounce new and unfamiliar words with ease.

However, they may have problems with comprehension. They can read what is on the page and because it sounds ok they will be held to have understood what they read. But in reality, while they can pronounce the words correctly they have little understanding of what the word, phrase, or article means.

Extra Work.

You as the teacher must put in a lot of effort when teaching phonics. You must continually name and point out letter patterns in words, assisting your students in recognizing and remembering them. If you teach phonics, it will become a part of every day’s material, as well as each class. You’ll have to show your students the phonic breakdown of every new vocabulary word they acquire until they can do it on their own. And depending on age and skill level this may take from 1 to 2 years.

Your Choice.

For ESL students, phonics provides substantial benefits as well as drawbacks, and each instructor must determine whether or not to utilize it in the classroom. In the end, no single approach will be sufficient to teach your ESL students correct English usage.

The majority of ESL teachers, that I know, believe that a balanced approach is beneficial for their students. It’s up to you how you implement phonics into your classroom, or even if you want to. So, if you want to teach phonics, here we go.

Let’s Teach Phonics.

Teaching phonics to ESL students involves four steps. These can be broken down into, learning the letter sounds, learning to write letters, blending sounds, and segmenting sounds. Twinkl is a great resource and I have used them on numerous occasions.

Step 1:

Learning sounds. Students need to learn the sounds and the letters that match them, both uppercase and lowercase (it’s best to start with uppercase), as well as the sound that can be made by joining two letters together. I would recommend spending more time on similar sounds and letters. The letters ‘d’ and ‘b’ for example, can be hard for ESL students to learn.

Step 2:

Blending sounds. Once the students know the sounds that each letter makes, they need to know how to put these together to read words. So, they see the individual sounds ‘d’ ‘o’ and ‘g’, but they need to put those sounds together to read ‘dog.’ This can be really tricky for some students, and others will learn quicker than others.

Step 3:

Segmenting Sounds. This is the reverse of blending; students must learn to break down the words they hear into their individual sounds. They should hear the word ‘pig’ and break that down into the sound’s ‘p’ ‘ai’ and ‘g’. This is how students learn to spell.

Step 4:

Sight words. These are words that often appear in the English language (think ‘and’, ‘on’ or ‘it’). These are words that students should learn to recognize on sight. Mastering these will significantly speed up the progress of reading.

Twinkl.

Source; Twinkl.

Resources;

You will find a large range of resources online, with Twinkl being but one of many businesses that can help you as a teacher. I have done 2 posts about online teachers’ tools that will help in the classroom. “On-Line Teachers Tools”

And, “The Top 10 Websites for ESL Teachers”

MES English, which you will find in the above list has a comprehensive range of materials that cover phonics. They are one of my go-to’s for English worksheets, but there are many online to choose from.

Why It’s Important to Teach Phonics.

Phonics helps with pronunciation. Have you ever played the game, ship, sheep, or shop and seen the mystified looks on your students’ faces? Unless you have been taught phonics the sounds of these words to many students may sound the same.

The ship, sheep shop game is a listening game where you as the teacher start and you have to say the words, and the students write down what they have heard. It becomes more interesting when it becomes the student’s turn to be the “teacher”

Use words with the same vowel sounds but different consonant clusters.

There is a lot more to the game as you add the “extras”. For example, you may ask “where did you see the ship?” The students may mishear the question and answer, “I saw the ship on the farm”. Great for listening and comprehension.

And can be a lot of fun at the same time.

Conclusion.

The purpose of learning English is for the learner to be able to effectively communicate with other people around the world in a meaningful and realistic way.

No matter what level your pupils are at, no matter how advanced or fluent they are, if they pronounce certain essential sounds incorrectly, other English speakers will misunderstand them. And that is where phonetics comes into play and what it is all about.

It is up to you as a teacher if you want to use Phonics as one of the tools in your arsenal of teaching weapons to help your students.

However, there are potential drawbacks as discussed, but in my opinion, it is yet another tool that can be used to help English literacy.

Who Am I?.

My name is Stephen and I have been teaching ESL/EFL for the past 15 years in Vietnam. I have traveled and worked extensively around this wonderful country and find myself still being amazed and frustrated, quite often at the same time.

Vietnamese students are generally hardworking and respectful to the teacher. And most schools are professional in the development of their students. However like anywhere there are always exceptions to the rule.

If you ever consider becoming an English teacher in Vietnam, leave me a message and I will help you achieve your goal.

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

Technology Tools for the ESL Classroom | Part 2.

Technology for the ESL Classroom.

In my last post, I wrote about the “Essential Tools of the ESL Classroom” In a nutshell, those are tools that I would find hard to do without. Namely, my “Sony blue tooth speaker” with which I could play any recording loud enough for the class to hear, 30 watts RMS.

And also my trusty Aporo headset that saves my voice and stops me shouting in the public school classrooms of Vietnam. Where it is common to have 50 people in a classroom all talking and never being able to hear the “foreign teacher” another 30mwatt output piece of equipment, and protector of my voice.

And my Samsung phone where I store a lot of my lessons on “Google Drive”. Easy to use and I wouldn’t “cry” if my phone was accidentally dropped or misplaced. Unlike a past iPhone that cost me in excess of $1,500 US$. Not a happy day.

In my last post, I also provided information about class sizes and the types of schools, and problems you might come across.

So if you are interested in looking at that information, click on the link “Essential Tools of the ESL Classroom” above.

My Extra Tech.Tools for the ESL classroom.

This post is going to cover the other tools I have and some of the tools I wish I had. Our tech tools make our job so much easier in the classroom and can make it a better learning experience for the students. As well as making it more fun.

Tech Tools I have and Why?

Lenovo ideapad530s i7. Being able to access the various resources online has become vital no longer can you front up to the classroom and be expected to be taken seriously if you can not provide online resources. Also, with Covid still affecting our daily lives, we need to have the option of providing online teaching.

Here are some of the on-line resources I use.” My Top 10 Websites for ESL Teachers“

If you aren’t getting the hours you need, you should look at the service you provide. Good services provided means a happy school and teacher.

The webcam and quality of the image on this computer is exceptional. I have now had this for over 18 months and still run it with 20 tabs open at a time. I have no complaints about the SSD storage and I feel it is as fast as the day I bought it.

The only thing I find disappointing is the battery life, as I have to start thinking about recharging after 4 hours. This may have something to do with the number of programs I run at the same time.

Sony RX100V11 Camera. My camera is used for recording the students in the classroom and playing it back to them so they can learn from interacting with the camera and how they sound and the problems they have when they speak.

Go Pro Hero 4. I use this small Go Pro cube for the same reasons as above but generally for the younger students or in a more robust environment where something more delicate could get damaged.

Canon Laser Printer. This is used for worksheets, gap fills, or any exercise not found in the book that is being used for the class. I also use it for any relevant text or image games that are relevant to the lesson. This is one of the tech tools on my upgrade wish list.

My Schools Tech.

Overhead Projector and Smart screen. and Televisions and DVDs are the tech tools that come standard in my schools classroom, however with the use of other technology, these are becoming outdated and not used as much anymore.

The televisions and DVDs will not be replaced, but overhead projectors that work in with computers and smart screens are becoming more common in the classroom. Well, at least mine.

Tech Tools I would like, and Why?

Go Pro Hero 10 creator edition.

I would like this as an all-in-one vlogging unit I can use to record both students and classroom activities or to replay or upload to YouTube or my website. A simple to use all-in-one unit that is ready off the shelf.

Canon wireless printer.

As a busy teacher who does not have time to rely on schools that do not have the equipment or will not provide it, I prefer utilizing my own gear. And I want to move to wireless as the time taken in hooking up a cable between laptop and printer is wasted time. Also, being able to print directly from a mobile phone will be a big time saver.

Don’t Lose Focus.

Having all these gadgets and tools are great, but they will not automatically make you a better teacher. Your style of teaching, the fun you bring into the classroom, and the quality and skills you provide to your students are still the most important thing.

What you do in the classroom is much more important than what you bring into the classroom. These tools are here to help make life easier for you and ultimately provide a better platform for the student to learn.

Most ESL students are still worried about their listening and speaking activities and there is a lot you can do without using tech. Have a look at my post “How to improve English Speaking Skills” You don’t need a lot of tech to make a worthwhile class, but to make a class more worthwhile it can be of great help.

It’s how you teach, at the end of the day, not what you use. Here are some words on teaching styles that, in my opinion, are more important than most of the other resources talked about here today. We just need to prioritize our classroom content.

Teaching Styles

As you gain experience as a teacher, you will create your own teaching style and classroom practices. T.P.R (Total physical reaction), communicative method, meaningful learning, and old-fashioned rote learning are some well-known teaching styles. Most teachers will pick and choose from the instructional techniques listed below to fit their needs.

Total Physical Response

Professor James Asher, a psychology expert, invented T.P.R, a language acquisition approach. TPR engages students in the language learning process by combining words and physical actions.

The Communicative Method.

The communicative approach is founded on the premise that the most effective way to learn a language is to have to express genuine meaning. Learners’ natural language acquisition mechanisms will be applied when they are engaged in genuine communication, allowing them to learn to use the language.

Meaningful Learning.

Meaningful learning is the feeling that all the parts of a concept, idea, theory, equations, or argument come together to make learning meaningful. Meaningful learning is frequently contrasted with rote learning, which involves memorizing knowledge without considering our relationship to other objects or events.

Rote Learning.

Rote Learning is a more conventional method of instruction. It is centered on students repeating the words and phrases until they recall them. Rote learning is the process of memorizing knowledge through repetition.

So use your teaching style and the methods in planning lessons to accommodate the introduction of technology that will put you firmly in the drivers seat.

You can find out more about teaching styles in my post ” Teaching English Abroad in Vietnam“.

Conclusion.

After teaching for 15 years across various schools and regions, I have come to the conclusion that a little money spent saves me more in the long run. And it provides a more seamless environment for teaching in the classroom. I control the flow of the class whether it is in my own school a public school or another private school

My name is Stephen and I have worked in Vietnam for over 15 years. I have my own school and also provide ESL teachers to those schools that need quality.

Affiliate and privacy policy

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

Lesson Plans for ESL students | Cooking in the Classroom.

Feed their stomachs then feed their brains.

As an ESL teacher, I am always looking for different ideas and ways to get my teaching ideas out there.

One of the joys of being a long-time ESL teacher is you are never stuck for an idea to use in the classroom. After 15 years I can walk into just about any classroom and have a fallback lesson plan. 

However, for me, it is not something I would want to do continually. To have an informative, fun, and interesting lesson you need prior preparation.

Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.

You can only follow your student and teacher class books for so long until you need to mix things up a bit to keep your students and yourself motivated and your lessons fun and focused. 

In Vietnam, you will quite often see “Mum” walking down the street with a bowl of rice or other breakfast for her child. 

A slightly different attitude from where I was brought up. My mealtime option was, to eat it now or have it again for lunch.

So my amusement level was kicked into overdrive when I saw this, and I wondered if I could do something similar with my students?

No, not to chase my class down the road, but to get them to cook,( under my directions) and then sit around talk and eat.

It’s Time to Pre-Plan our Pre-Planning.

Pre-planning has not changed much over the years and it still comes down to these concepts for the classroom.

Lesson plans use a variety of tactics to engage students, measure progress, and encourage learning and understanding.

At the same time as keeping the students at the top of the teachers mind. It’s a time when teachers see all the teaching resources and consider how they’ll fit together to create a successful learning experience.

Teachers who plan lessons ahead of time arrive in the classroom each day fully prepared to explain new concepts and conduct important conversations, rather than winging it.

Without a lesson plan, students may lose concentration rapidly, and teachers may find themselves trying to figure out what to do next.

Getting the culinary vocabulary in order.

Decide on what you are going to teach, and what is your focus of the day. Don’t feel bound to teach just one thing, you may want to teach vocabulary first, followed up by the color, size, taste, smell, and feel/texture of their food. Students can share their work with the rest of the class.


When teaching ESL the points we want to cover are listening, speaking, reading, and writing, in that order. I try to cover at least 2 of these areas in every class. Listening is the first skill and you can find out more here at ” Listening Skills“

Grammar.

And as unpopular as it is, I will try to cover at least one grammatical point along the way. I will do this by pre-reading some grammatical points.

For Example; Countable and Uncountable nouns and can we make uncountable nouns countable by adding a countable word before the “noun”.

  • A bottle of water. There are three bottles of water on the table.
  • A cup of tea. I want three cups of tea, please.
  • A bowl of rice. I often have a bowl of rice for dinner.
  • A bar of chocolate. Can I have a bar of chocolate,?
  • A piece of pizza. Here is a piece of pizza for you.
  • A jar of jam. How many jars of jam should I make?

There are many things you can cover when teaching “cooking in the Classroom” here is a great website that I have used on and off for years. ESL Kidstuff. They cater more to the younger student.

Or you may wish to have a look at a previous post that shows you my top 10 websites for anything from Vocabulary to videos, songs, and Language Learning. “My Top Ten Websites for ESL Teachers“.

Keep it Age Relevant.

I wouldn’t do a class 100% focused on cooking for kindergarten. However, I have done it for younger students with simpler recipes and no sharp utensils or plates and bowls that can be broken.

If there is a chance for students to drop bowls, plates, etc, it will happen. Make sure you have replaced your “fine china” with plastic and you have a mop and rags on hand.

Keep it culturally appropriate and check for Allergies.

Some of the students in your classroom will have allergies or will be unable to eat certain foods due to religious or cultural restrictions. So consult with their parents and the school before making any final decisions about what you want to cook in class.

You may have to alter your plans, but it is well worth the effort if it means that everyone can fully participate and that there is no risk of anyone becoming ill or unable to consume the food.

Younger Students.

If you have decided to have fun with your younger students, well done. Most teachers will put this in the too-hard basket and revert to the book. However, it is not impossible or complicated to have a successful “cooking class”.

A little preparation will go a long way. Think about what you want to teach (Easy Vocabulary) and in a way that is the least messy. A simple “recipe ” to use for children is “fairy bread”

Fairy Bread.

You can have everything pre-prepared in your classroom or Kitchen. ( More on this soon). This is so simple that all you need is the bread, hundreds and thousands, and margarine or soft butter.

You can butter the bread, sprinkle on the hundreds and thousands and then “iconically” cut it into triangles for that perfect shape.

Teaching Goals for the younger student.

My major goal for the younger student is to develop and nurture the joy of wanting to learn. In this case, it happens to be ESL or English as a Second Language.

The secondary, although some say it’s the primary goal, is to increase the vocabulary and pronunciation skills of the young learner. But if you have instilled the joy of learning, vocabulary and pronunciation will be a breeze to teach.

Getting your student to talk and communicate in English is the ultimate outcome for the ESL Teacher.

Songs.

There are many enjoyable songs about food and cooking that can be learned and sung. Make sure you have at least one of these for your class.

Songs make learning vocabulary for younger students much easier, especially if there is an amusing video to go along with it or funny gestures to follow in the classroom.

Here are some more…” Tips for Using Songs in The Classroom“

Classroom or kitchen.

I count my blessings, as one of my schools is within a house. So I have ample room to bring out 15 to 20 chairs for my students to sit, watch and join in with the cooking experience.

And directly behind me, there is seating for up to 25 people with, the all-important, air conditioning.

So I am lucky to be able to provide a flexible environment where the students can learn. However, for those who do not have the same flexibility as me, you can still do a lot in the classroom.

My lesson Plan for Students in the Kitchen is as follows.

1. Vocabulary.

  • Food Nouns.
  • Food Utensil Nouns.
  • Food preparation verbs.

2. Food preparation Instructions.

  • Introduce the recipe and make sure the students understand the different terminology used in cooking.
  • Break the students up into groups and get them to perform the different activities needed to make a meal.
  • Don’t forget to get all the students to perform the more onerous tasks like washing the dishes and cleaning up.

3. Cook, Eat and Talk.

Discuss with the students what they found the hardest things to do. Turn the conversation into a general English-speaking free for all. Have a backup list of prepared questions that you can introduce to keep the conversation flowing.

Recipes; Use a recipe that is not too difficult. Or with words and phrases that may overwhelm the students. But I have certainly gone beyond “eggs on toast”. Introducing foreign food is a great way to stimulate conversation.

Basic Questions.

  • Do you like this meal?
  • Is there any part of the recipe you would change?
  • What are your favorite dishes?
  • Can you cook?
  • Who does most of the cooking in your house?

Add your own questions.

Example of Utensil Nouns.



Think outside the square (table). Food challenges in 2022.

Although not strictly within the category of cooking in the classroom, it does introduce another area for talking about food that could be used to start debates about the ethics of binge eating while there are people dying from starvation.

Like all lessons and lesson planning, we are only limited by our own imagination.

Conclusion.

Laugh and learn.

When you’re in the middle of a classroom with “hundreds and thousands” ( The candy, not the students) rolling around the floor and your dog is greedily eating their 5th piece of bread, Relax.

Even if everything appears to be a train wreck, keep laughing and try to stay calm and enjoy yourself.

And you will probably be amazed at how much your students learned through that lesson.

They will remember it for a long time because they had so much fun even if it went off the rails a bit.

A great lesson is a lesson with a lot of laughter and learning!

Who Am I?

My name is Stephen and I have been teaching ESL in Vietnam for over 15 years. It has given me equal measures of joy and frustrations, sometimes at the same time.

One thing it has never given me is boredom. If you are looking for a satisfying career in helping others attain their dreams, reach out to me and see if I can help you find a job in Vietnam or Thailand.

You can check me out on my YouTube channel below.

TET 2022

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

Essential Tech Tools for the ESL Classroom

There are tools we want and tools we need. these are the tools we need.

My Essential Tech Tools for the ESL Classroom.

After spending 15 years in Vietnam teaching, I have experienced a wide range of tech availability in the classroom.

I have seen everything from high-end whiteboards like the one above to classrooms with just a fan. One thing I have learned is to make sure you are prepared before you step into the classroom.

There are a range of situations and classroom environments that if you are not prepared, will keep your teaching skills below par.

And with only a small investment and pre-planning you can go from zero to hero for both your students and your employer.

Where are you Teaching?

Most opportunities for teachers in Vietnam are either in a public school, like primary or high school or in an after-hours private school.

Some will teach in a business environment, but that is not our focus today.

Public Schools

The public schools in Vietnam start early in the morning with classes starting around 7 am to 7.30 am. They will generally finish around 4.30. This sounds like a long day but the students and teachers normally have a 2-hour lunch break.

This will give the students and teachers time for a nap if needed. It is not uncommon to see students stretched out on a mat fast asleep after eating their lunch. You will also see teachers stretched out in their chairs catching up on some sleep, especially if they had a big night prior to the day’s class.

In most cases, the classes are made up of 45-minute intervals, sometimes with 2 periods of English back to back.

I had one school put together 4 x 45-minute lessons back-to-back. Challenging for both the students and the teacher. Luckily this is something that rarely happens anymore, at least for me.

One of the biggest challenges in public schools is the physical size of the classroom and the number of students in the classroom.

As teachers are used to 20 to 30 students in a western-style classroom. It should come as no surprise if you walk into a classroom of more than 50 students in Vietnam.

Public School Problems.

After reading this you probably understand the problems you are going to have in the classroom already. And I’m not talking about the crowd or behavioral control.

By keeping our focus on tech in the classroom the problems we see are the size and the noise in the classroom. Unless you have a decent microphone you will lose your voice by the end of the day.

You will want a microphone that provides a hands-free option, so you can use your hands for other classroom tasks.

Most schools will have WiFi but that does not mean you will have access to it immediately.

If you have planned a lesson that involves using a song or anything online you may have problems if you don’t have immediate Wifi access.

You can also read about, “What are some of the common problems of ESL teachers in the Classroom” in one of my other posts.

Private schools

Private English schools are run outside public school times and run through week-nights and on the weekends. The school’s teaching times will be early to late evenings, either 1.5 or 2 hours in length per class.

Saturdays and Sundays are the busiest days with classes operating through the whole day. There will be 2 classes in the morning, one in the afternoon and 2 in the evening.

Schools will close over lunchtime from 11.30 and re-open mid-afternoon.

Generally speaking, your private schools will be better resourced and will have CD players, TVs with HDMI cables, and in some cases “IQ” boards, overhead projectors, and computers in the classroom.

I prefer not to rely on any school’s resources and now provide all my own. It saves teaching downtime, shows your professionalism and your lessons flow a lot more smoothly if pre-planned.

My Tech Tools.

Let me show you my essential tech tools for the ESL classroom in no particular order. And then I will show you how I use them and the alternatives you may need to consider if you can’t find the exact ones I use.

Aporo headset.

This is my favorite tech lifesaver. With classroom student sizes hovering around the 50s and the actual area being quite large, you don’t want to be straining your voice all day.

This wireless headset will give you good control of the level of your voice and the tone and clarity continue to amaze me.

The output of this microphone is 30 watts which always gives me “more than enough” power for my classroom needs.

What’s Provided.

It comes with 2 headsets and can be pre-charged the night before your next days class. A full charge needs 6 hours of charging time which will give you 8-13 hours of microphone time or 6-8 hours of music time.

The size of the unit is approximately 135mm lengthwise, 101mm width-wise, and a height of 37mm. This is a good size that gives you the option of leaving it on the desk or carrying it over your shoulder with the secure fabric strap.

The monaural “headset” is comfortable and covers 1 ear, leaving the other ear free.

Sony Bluetooth Speaker.

When you play songs or any audio in the classroom, you want the sound to be the best that you can get in a size that is convenient. I have a Sony SRS-XB43 which delivers 30 watts of clean and clear audio.

The model I have while still described as SRS-XB43 has different length width and height specifications than the newer models. I measured my speaker, and it is 30cm x 10cm x 10 cm. All other specs look the same, however, the image is slightly different than what is advertised on the Sony website.

New Sony Image.

The speaker is waterproof and washable. Even though there is only 1 speaker it can link with up to 100 other speakers, however, I have never tried this. It also has a great battery life which means you can use it for up to 24 hours or 14 hours in party mode.

Party mode involves tweeter lights, speaker lights, and a colorful bezel that flashes in the same rhythm as the music. You can also change the color of the bezel lights to suit your mood. I use this in the Private schools classroom in the evenings and the students love it.

Sony products tend to be a bit pricier but the quality is fantastic and if you don’t want classroom problems, this is a great choice. This comes with the standard Sony charger.

This has played without a skip for the last 2 years and I have been very happy with this product and strongly recommend it.

Samsung A12 Mobile phone.

Here is where I will get a lot of people disagreeing with me. Why Samsung? Why not Apple? Why a lower-end phone? 

First, why do I use an ‘Android” or any phone in the classroom? The answer is easy, I use “Google Drive” to store all my working material for the classroom. Whether it’s the “family and friends” books or songs or whatever resource the school is using on that day.

The night before I will prepare all my lessons and have them queued up ready for teaching. A little bit of preparation will make life so much easier in the classroom.

So why do I go for a lower-end Samsung for classroom use?. First and foremost, cost. The number of times either I, or someone else has bumped my phone and caused damage is not worth counting. Even with a slightly damaged phone, you can continue to work.

If I was to drop a $2,000 high-end phone my budget would be out the window for a month. However, if it was only $200-$300 I would not be so upset.

Conclusion.

These are my essential tech classroom tools. Things that save my voice, my sanity and keep me on track in the classroom. There are a number of other optional tech tools I use in the classroom. Not the least is a sturdy laptop or iPad.

However, these tools cover the basics and keep on ticking over because of the quality of the products.

I recommend you invest in the bare minimum to keep your classroom effective and efficient.

My name is Stephen and I have been teaching in Vietnam for 15 years and have my own school in HoChiMinh City.

Mynah School

If you need any help as to where you can purchase these from, leave me a message and I will help you choose the correct product.

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

Tips for Using Songs in the ESL Classroom.

Using Songs in The ESL Classroom.

Music can be used in English classes in a variety of ways. It provides numerous advantages for both the teacher and the pupils, including boosting memory and focus, stimulating learning, and, most significantly, making learning enjoyable.

Nothing makes a teacher happier than seeing their kids laugh and grin while they learn. Students are in the same boat. Students enjoy coming to class when they are taught in a pleasant and creative manner. Teachers can accomplish success with their pupils by incorporating music into the classroom.

It’s also worth noting that listening to music can assist learners to enhance and develop their general English skills. Let’s have a look at some of the approaches for using music to augment conventional English sessions.

Planning your Musical Lessons.

What is your learning focus?

Will the focus of your class be on vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, or a specific topic? Whatever your focus, keep in mind that there are no restrictions on what you can do with the song.

For example, you might utilize the song to demonstrate a specific verb tense or make use of the opportunity to examine the lyrics for any intriguing idioms.

What is the Age level of your learners?

Teaching songs to children, teenagers, and adults all require different approaches. If you’re a young learner’s teacher, you’ll most likely want to employ songs that are repetitious and simple to understand.

However, for teenagers, use current or recently released pop and rock tunes. My recommendation is to ask them ‘what’s popular.’ Use songs that are appealing to their age group.

Adult learners will be more receptive to different types of music as long as they perceive a learning reward.

Cultural Inappropriateness.

What are some of the things that are commonly considered inappropriate in the culture where you teach? Whatever you do, don’t utilize music only to satisfy your own cultural expectations. Consider your audience and their tastes; better yet, let them choose the tunes you play.

What classroom tech do you have?

There is no good preparing a fantastic musical lesson and arriving into the classroom to find you do not have the tech tools available to play your songs.

Some schools have limited resources so it is a wise idea to invest in a few basic classroom tech tools to help you with your lessons. I now record all my lessons on to my phone and playback through a wireless blue tooth speaker.

Tips for Using Songs in the Classroom.

Busy Teacher has a large range of free songs you can use in the classroom, click on the link to discover these resources.

The Young Learner.

Children have an inherent affinity towards music. You don’t need to persuade them that it will aid their learning. They will quickly respond and remember what is being taught. Here are some ideas for activities to do with children.

  • Use a variety of alphabet songs (not just the classic ABC) to help kids recall their letters in English.
  • Colors: Use a variety of color songs and rhythms to teach the colors.
  • Simple action songs that demand kids to stand up and move about should be taught. Consider traditional song-based birthday games like pass the parcel or musical chairs.
  • Children enjoy learning about animals through songs. Use songs like “Old McDonald had a Farm” and “There was an Old Lady who swallowed a fly” to teach animals and animal sounds.
  • Simple number songs, such as “there were ten in the bed, and the little one said, roll over, roll over,” will get your pupils up and moving.

Children are arguably the easiest to provide lessons to in a song setting as they are naturally receptive to listening and singing along.

The Teenage Learner.

Songs are an excellent listening exercise for teenagers. Songs also have the ability to tell stories and convey emotions. Music can help to establish the tone or modify the mood. You may start or close a class with a song, or create a whole course around it, its message, and the artist or band.

  • Print out the lyrics to the song for students and listen to the song a couple of times while students read along.
  • For older learners, rather than have them sing the song, rely on them listening only and getting hem to fill in a song close sheet. You may want the older student to fill in the word close before the listening activity and see how close they get.
  • After listening, encourage your students to discuss the song and share what language they were comfortable with and where they struggled.
  • Rewrite the Song
  1. Older ESL students will require a bigger challenge to put their language skills to the test. So consider trying to get them to rephrase the song into a story.
  2. The pupils will need to have a basic comprehension of the original song before moving on to the next stage.
  3. The pupils will then have to completely rewrite the song into a story.
    Many students would simply substitute well-known synonyms for keywords, while experienced students may completely rewrite the song into a story format.
  4. Make sure students present their work to the rest of the class.

Teenagers will know exactly what kind of music they like and don’t like! Ask them what they like and incorporate a variety of musical styles in your classes. you don’t want to lose them at the start of the lesson just by choosing the wrong song.

The Adult Learner.

You can use some of the same approaches to songs with Adults as you have done with the teenagers.

Do your stop-gap exercises and blank out the lyrics that you wish to focus on or get the adults to also rewrite the song. And you are only limited by your own imagination. Here are some other ideas that will provide a more meaningful experience for your students.

  • Create a whole new verse of lyrics in the same mood and style as the ones before. You can do this I individually or in groups with your students. Then get each person or group to read them out. The remainder of the class can listen to the new lyrics.
  • A song usually gives you the singer’s point of view. Write a response from the perspective of the person about whom the song is being sung. It doesn’t have to be in lyric format.
  • Get the students to plan a music video for the song. They decide the setting, the people, and what happens in groups. After that, each group presents their concept to the rest of the class, and the students vote on which one is the best.
  • Role Play; Select a song that tells a tale or describes a relationship. Learners work in pairs or small groups after listening to the music to build a scene from the song, or even what happened before or after the story depicted in the song. Students could then perform their role-play in front of an audience.

Why Use Songs in the Classroom.

Language learning is aided by rhythm.

Students of all ages are naturally motivated to learn more efficiently when knowledge is provided rhythmically.

Consider your own experience as a student. Musical rhythms were most likely used to deliver stories, nursery rhymes, and even the alphabet.

Consider how difficult it would be to learn the alphabet with the letters jumbled up in a random order. Even as adults, we are considerably more likely to remember the words of a song than the contents of a speech we had just heard a few times. And this is because of the rhythm and melody.

Music has the ability to capture people’s attention.

Furthermore, few things capture the attention of ESL students like a great tune. During your lessons, you will inevitably have students that struggle to pay attention.

Additionally, kids may have a harder time understanding particular language elements that you give. You can assist your pupils by presenting linguistic topics in a more accessible manner utilizing ESL songs and music.

There are a few disadvantages to teaching with songs.

The songs can be;

  • be very fast for ESL learners;
  • contain slang or ungrammatical sentences
  • have difficult vocabulary that even upper intermediate students will not understand.

So please choose your songs carefully to be both age and skill relevant.

Final Thoughts.

In an ESL classroom, music can be used in a variety of ways. It is a readily available resource, and music can be used to teach a variety of skills.

Most teachers use music as a supplement, but it can also be used as a stand-alone unit, a lesson, or a part of your regular class activities.

Furthermore, there is a wide range of music to pick from that can assist you in conducting a number of fun activities in the ESL classroom.

My name is Stephen and I have been teaching ESL in Vietnam for over 15 years and have my own English school .

You can check out “Tet” in Vietnam on my YouTube channel below.

Tet in 2022

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.

Why Use Video in The ESL Classroom?

Using Video in the ESL Classroom.

Can you remember the 2 distinct feelings you felt, as a student, when a Video lesson was going to be taught?

First.

The first one was when a TV and DVD unit was wheeled into the classroom. You felt like Christmas had come early and you weren’t going to have to sit through another boring book-based lesson today. That feeling of relief and excitement all mixed together with anticipation.

Second.

And the second one, where the teacher took out his movie recorder and placed it onto a tripod. You felt your stomach slowly moving southward while the nausea in your gut slowly moved north. It was like the double-edged sword of doom.

First off, you knew you were going to have to prepare a speech. And secondly, you were going to have to read it out in FRONT OF THE CLASS.

This article is going to cover both of these situations.

After 15 plus years of teaching ESL and EFL in Vietnam I have used, and still do, various techniques to make these lessons fun and rewarding for my students.

Below you will find some of the “advantages” and the “how to’s” of using or creating your video or vlogs. Whether they are short or long, aesthetic or on-point, there is something for everyone.

Pro Tip; Screencast-O-Matic is a great recording tool you can use to capture video for the classroom.

Watching and using Video in the Classroom.

When it comes to studying English, video is a fantastic tool. Your students will almost certainly respond well to the combination of sight and sound in cinematic harmony, regardless of their age.

Here are a few of the advantages of using video.

  • This is normally more entertaining, than purely book-based learning, and can help make lessons enjoyable and memorable.
  • Video is ideal for visual learners or those who haven’t yet mastered the basics of reading and writing.
  • Using video gives the language context and helps students understand the subject by providing lengthier and more relevant visual background.
  • It’s also great for honing a variety of language skills other than speaking and listening. For example, You can drill down into certain grammatical points or even slang and other structures that ESL students find dificult to understand.
  • Short “YouTube” videos can be a great warm-up activity for your classroom or can be used as an intro for a lengthier video.

How to use video in the Classroom.

Using any tech in the classroom comes inherent with the standard tech risks, “will it work on the day”

Check Your Gear.
Arguably the most important thing to do before any lesson is to check your gear. Make sure where you are teaching has a strong internet connection and you have access to the password and are set up close to a power outlet.

Your laptop’s speaker will not be loud enough for even the smallest classroom. So invest in a blue tooth speaker that is both portable and loud enough so the sound can carry clearly all the way to the back of the classroom.

Vietnams public schools quite commonly have 40 students, so you need to be heard from the front of the class all the way to the back.

I also use an Aporro wireless blue tooth speaker that I connect up to my Sony SRS-XB41 blue tooth speaker. At 30 watts RMS it gives me enough power to project my voice all around the classroom.

This is a great tool for saving your voice after teaching all day in large classrooms.

Write a Lesson Plan.

If you don’t have a lesson plan, you’re not doing yourself or your pupils any favors. Prepare your pupils for what they will need to do before, during, and after the video.

Also, make sure it’s relevant to the lesson’s objectives. Always try to keep everything connected to the rest of the course and never just watch a video to pass the time.

You can find out more here about “how to design a lesson plan” This includes some free resources in helping your preparations.

Pre-Teach Difficult Vocabulary.

If there are any specific language concerns with parts of the video, like difficult vocabulary, you will want to write these words on the board and pre-teach what they mean and how they’ are pronounced.

Another option is to read these words out and get the students to write them down. They have to spell the words correctly and give meanings for each word.

Depending on your time frame, you can also get the students to write an example sentence for each word.

Turn this into a game that you can keep flowing through the length of your lesson.

Keep it Clean and Culturally Appropriate.

For your younger student, everything must be “Micky Mouse”. Only use PG-rated content for younger kids and watch the video yourself in its entirety before your classroom public screening.

You must be aware of local culture and legislation whenever you use films in an ESL classroom. If you’re not sure if a video is appropriate, have a coworker preview it.

My Cultural Test.

When I first came to Vietnam to teach, I accepted a job a short distance away from the center of Saigon. It had a lovely mix of normally talkative students.

Yet that night the students shuffled in and sat down very quietly. Although they looked rather intensely at me. We had a new student that night who feigned being a slow learner. He sat quietly through the first half of the class and then disappeared at the start of the second period.

It was later my students told me that the “new student” was actually a policeman checking me out to see if I was saying the right thing. Or more importantly, was not saying anything I shouldn’t have re politics or culture.

Do a warm up Task.

You should have a warm-up task for your students to do. Give them a reason to watch the video carefully. Here are a couple of warm-up tasks that I use.

The “The” Game.

One task I use is to get the students to listen for one particular word. E.G. “The” is a good word because it is used often and scattered evenly throughout most articles.

It is also helpful if you have a written copy of the text you are listening to. If you wish to turn it into a game then whoever comes closest to the correct answer (Times ‘the’ is spoken) wins.

The Directors Cut.

Or, as another option, you can mute the sound and play the video. Get the students to work in teams and write the script for the visual content. Then get the students to act out the video.

Describe What Happens Next.

Another popular activity that uses students’ imagination and language skills is to guess what happens in the next scene. This can be done by simply pausing the video and asking the students to write down what they believe will happen next.

They can then use their writing to elaborate on what they believe will happen in next. Or you can make it more difficult by adding different scenarios to what is currently happening. E.G. If it was raining, how would it change things?

Video Recording in the Classroom.

The impactful learning that comes from watching yourself or listening to your own voice can best be attested by my remembrance of my father recording me when I was seven years old in Broadlands, New Zealand.

It was so different and so strange hearing my own voice that it is something I have never forgotten. The actual reason for recording has long been forgotten but such was its impact on me, it is something I have never forgotten.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words.

When I first started recording my students on video, I was much the same as everyone else and recorded the students’ reading out what they had written. The double-edged sword of unhappiness for the student.

It was informative and fun for everyone but the student who was actually doing the work. Yes, it showed the weaknesses of the student and was helpful in showing them how they could improve.

But it was still something the students didn’t look forward to.

So What Did I do.?

I became less possessive and let my students use the vlogging tools, not me. And what things did we do. Well, we put the learning experience firmly in the hands of the student and let them take control of their learning experiences.

If you don’t have expensive vlogging cameras or video recorders to pass around, the “smartphones” of today have enough functionality to be able to produce some “kick-ass: content.

Here are some of the things I have done with my students to make the lessons more exciting.

Book Reviews.

Instead of writing a book review, the students did a ” movie trailer” about the book in question. You can have 2 or 3 students participating in a review of one book. They can even ask pre-prepared questions to make it like a panel discussion.

Instructional Videos.

The students created how-to videos. They taught other students everything from how to do a Rubik cube in under 3 minutes to how to draw chickens.

Another great topic is video games where you can explain “how to beat the boss” or any other feature needing an explanation.

International Introductions.

Rather than doing the same old “introduce yourself” to other students in the classroom, we put together a video introduction to go to international schools in other countries.

You will find if you reach out to other schools they will happily become involved and it builds a reason to learn English.

Video Projects.

Instead of drawing a poster for the next project you do, why not practice English, and put a Video presentation together in its place.
Teaching Tip: When putting together a video you can add the photographers’ name, scriptwriter’s name, and any other position and name you see as being relevant.

Parental Permission.

The school must obtain written parent permission to videotape when the video is for a purpose other than safety or classroom instruction. If the school is going to display video on a school website or other public medium, individual students should not be identified without parental consent.

Miller Nash

Source; Miller Nash (LLP)

Conclusion

Students become more involved and learn quicker when they are exposed to video information related to the topic in hand.

Using videos and video recordings dramatically boost remembering the lesson much like I remembered the recording of my voice by my father.

Also asking questions during both processes improves research, teamwork, organizational skills, and problem-solving abilities. These are the most important abilities to have when we enter adulthood.

Much like the brain is undergoing restructuring during the teenage and young adult years. Going from the links in the brain being multiple “streets” heading to the same destination to one large “superhighway” enhancing the brains ability to process information faster.

Who Am I?

My name is Stephen and I have been teaching ESL for over 15 years in Vietnam, and own an English school in Vietnam.

I love experiencing different cultures and enjoying their food as well as meeting new people. And I still have a passion for teaching students of all ages and levels.

You can look at my house in Vietnam here below by clicking on the YouTube button.

My House in Vietnam

Any or all links on this site may be affiliate links, and if you purchase something through those links I will make a small commission on them.

There will be no extra cost to you and at times due to my affiliation, you could actually save money.

You can read our full affiliate disclosure here.