HAVE FUN WHILE PLAYING TIC-TAC-TOE

This is a template to use while playing tic-tac-toe. It is an easy way to make SS practise English grammar or vocabulary.
These are the rules:
1. The game is played on a grid that's 3 squares by 3 squares.
2. You are X (tail), your friend or team is O (head). Players take turns putting their coins in empty squares. To place the coin in an empty square you have to choose a card and answer it correctly.
3. When all 9 squares are full, the game is not over. Players continue moving following the yellow lines.
4. The first player to get 3 of his coins in a row (up, down, across, or diagonally) is the winner.
Enjoy yourselves!!!

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Learning English with Shrek - A lesson plan about love

The following lesson plan aims at making Ss become involved in the lesson while learning idiomatic expressions. I have used a song and a video to provide them with context. The idioms that are introduced are related to the context LOVE. For extra activities, Ss can play Mime the idiom and Dominoe.

!!! The section Appendix contains the worksheets as well as the webpage for the video.

Warming up (previous knowledge, students´ imagination)	The teacher (T)makes students (Ss) listen to a piece of music. They try to guess who is singing. The song´s writer is Bryan Adams. This song belongs to the song Shrek 2. While the Ss are listening, the T makes questions like: ---Who can be the singer? ---Do you like the song? ---What is it about? --How do you imagine the video clip of the song?
Practice nº1 Oral practice	Now the Ss watch the video and confirm predictions. The T asks for the scenes related to love. She also asks what types of relationships Ss can find in the video.
Practice nº2 Listening	Now the T gives Ss a photocopy with the lyrics of the song. Ss have to do two different activities. First they decode the images. To check they listen to the corresponding stanzas. Secondly, they listen and put the lines in order.
Practice nº3 Writing	Now the T hands out photocopies with a multiple choice exercise with idioms related to love. Ss work in pairs and deduce their meanings. To check, different Ss read aloud and discuss the possible answers.
Practice nº4 Drawing	Each S draws a picture for two idioms and adds an example of his own. Then they present their pieces of work and explain their drawing. The pictures are stuck on a poster.

*Web page for the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUyu5prWjTE

*Lyrics of the song I´m a believer by B. Adams

I thought love was only true in fairy tales
Meant for someone else but not for me
Love was out to get me, thats the way it seemed
Disappointment haunted all my dreams

And then I saw her face
Now Im a believer
Not a trace of doubt in my mind
Im in love
Im a believer
I couldnt leave her if I tried

I thought love was more or less a giving thing
More I gave the less I've got, oh yeah
Whats the use in trying, all you get is pain
When I wanted sunshine I got rain

And then I saw her face
Now Im a believer
Not a trace of doubt in my mind
Im in love
Im a believer
I couldnt leave her if I tried

Whats the use in trying, all you get is pain
When I wanted sunshine I got rain

APPENDIX

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TECHNOLOGY - ENTRADAS DESDE CORREO ELECTRÓNICO

Technology in the English classroom
Estas lineas pertenecen a una actividad práctica correspondiente al curso 'Blogs, guía completa para Docentes y Emprendedores a distancia' de la Universidad Nacional del Litoral.
Indudablemente, la posibilidad de publicar desde un simple mensaje de correo electrónico es increíble. El avance tecnológico nos permite atravezar todas los límites y estar intercomunicados sin importar el tiempo y el lugar.

LET´S CONTINUE WITH THE BLOG...

I would like to share with you the following extracts written by Michael Morgan (University of Detroit Mercy, Detroit, Michigan, USA):
. . . Bits (binary digits) can be used productively or unproductively in the ESL/EFL classroom. Users who are bit literate (Hurst, 2007) recognize when technology is unproductive. ESL/EFL teachers should achieve "bit literacy" (Hurst, 2007) because it would allow them to reclaim their classroom from any technology that interferes with English Language Teaching. It is becoming easier to equip students with technology. Central to making technology more productive is to know how it will equip ESL/EFL students with the skills they need. Technical skills are no substitute for language skills. ESL/EFL students are empowered when teachers harness new technology in ways that promote language learning. . . When teachers use technology responsibly, when they accept that it is okay sometimes to "let the bits go" (Hurst, 2007, p. 167), then teachers and students will benefit from technology in its supporting role in the ESL/EFL classroom. . .

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