Resources
RZSS Science Specialist Confucius Classroom - What's on offer?
7 November 2019 (RZSS)
RZSS Specialist Confucius Classroom has limited free places for two sessions at Edinburgh Zoo.
- Our P3-P4 'It makes Panda Sense' session is available to book from October through to December.
- Our P5-P7 'China's animals and habitats will be available from January to April but bookings are being taken now. The P5-P7 session is in our new amazing immersive space!
Please read the attached pdf flyer for more information and please include all the details requested in your email if you wish to book.
5 November 2019 (British Council)
International Education Week takes place 18-22 November 2019, and British Council has a range of ways to help your school #BeInternational.
International partnerships have changed the lives of pupils in thousands of schools. Pupils who have learnt new languages, developed their understanding of different cultures, and discovered more about the global issues that affect us all. Here are some of the ways you can participate in International Education Week 2019:
- Take the #BeInternational languages quiz
- Enter our Unexpected Voices speechwriting competition
- Partner with a school in Europe through eTwinning
- Partner with a school outside Europe with Connecting Classrooms through Global Learning
- Download The Great Languages Challenge and get your students to design their own challenges for their classmates or peers in their partner school overseas.
- Apply for funding to take your students on an international exchange
- Get recognised for your international work through the International School Award .
- Share your international activity with us using the hashtag #BeInternational
Visit the British Council website to find out more.
Read more...
Get ready for Hallowe'en!
25 October 2019 (Various)
A selection of spooktastic activities to celebrate Hallowe’en in the languages classroom:
Call for help!
12 September 2019 (SCILT)
You will no doubt have seen in the news the terrible situation our colleagues at Woodmill High School in Fife are facing. Janet Monaghan, the Principal Teacher of Languages there, has asked SCILT if the languages community could help her replace some of the materials that she and her colleagues have lost in the fire. Janet is determined to keep the learning experience for her young people as normal as possible and this is our chance to help her ensure that her youngsters don’t miss out. If you can help, please email us at scilt@strath.ac.uk with details of any materials you’re able to share with her. In particular she is focusing on the senior phase and is looking for the following resources:
- A4 plastic wallets
- Foolscap folders
- CD Players
- DVDS (French/German/Italian films or video clips)
- Verb Tables book (French / German)
- French, German and Italian pocket dictionaries
- French Hachette or Collins Grammar plus dictionaries (for Higher)
- German Collins and Grammar dictionary
- Plastic boxes (for storage)
- French & German literature e.g. le petit prince
- Show me boards/erasers/pens
- External Hard drives
- Voice recorders
- USBs
- Notebooks/tablets
- Studio 1, 2,3
- Echo 1,2,3
- Stimmt 1,2,3
- Study Guides - Nat 5 and Higher French and German
SCILT will be in touch about collating and distributing the materials to her.
11 September 2019 (Creative Multilingualism)
All the World is Our Stage: primary pupils never lost in translanguaging, a multilingual performance showcasing heritage and school languages, has brought pupils and teachers from Whinhill Primary School together with actress-singer, Rebecca Cameron, and creative language learning social enterprise, The Language Hub.
Warm and welcome feelings and emotions engulfed me the first time I set foot in Whinhill. Bilingual signs in English and Gaelic adorn the school, leaving no wall silent, and as you venture inside, the building also speaks through imagery and words in French. What a pleasure to the eye, and a delicacy for the soul!
The school currently offers Gaelic and French under the 1+2 language approach to language learning, and hosts a Gaelic Medium Education (GME) unit allowing pupils to learn through the medium of Scottish Gaelic.
The multilingual realities of our pupils is not always acknowledged, or even recognised, in the school context. English as the societal and school language can stifle pupils’ heritage languages. This project sought to combat that by raising awareness about multilingualism and celebrating linguistic diversity through the performing arts.
Visit the website to read the full article, which contains links to the resources used in the project.
Read more...
Education Scotland Gaelic resources
30 August 2019 (Education Scotland)
Education Scotland has recently published the Gaelic version of the Slavery and Human Trafficking resources. The Gaelic versions of the Review of Family Learning and the Review of Learning at Home are also now available.
19 August 2019 (RZSS)
The China Mobile Library panda packs are now available online and free! Although the expert visits and outreach have been free of charge since November 2018, the resources in the panda packs used to be either on loan or available to purchase. They are now available online to all - beyondthepanda.org.uk under the China Mobile Library section.
Associated expert visits and outreach sessions are still free and include different materials and resources which are only available on booking. These enhance the learning from the panda packs. Free teaching training sessions can also be booked. See the attached document for more information and visit the website.
Read more...
8 August 2019 (TES/British Council)
We believe every young person should have intercultural and international experience. As the UK’s cultural relations organisation, the British Council creates opportunities for schools and teachers in the UK and worldwide to connect and work together to share ideas and practices.
Our range of international education programmes can help develop teaching skills with funded professional development, connect schools across the globe and bring language learning to life.
TES and the British Council have joined forces to explore different ways to bring the world into the classroom and open the door to a host of international learning opportunities.
Visit the TES and British Council websites to access a wide range of resources and information.
Read more...
9 November 2018 (SCILT)
The job profiles on our website cover a range of professions where languages are being used.
We have a new profile from David Cant, Managing Director of Albion (Overseas) Ltd, a company which helps UK businesses to enter the Russian market. After learning French and German at school, David tells us that he took up Russian by chance at university - a choice which became life-changing.
Teachers use our profiles in the classroom to enhance learning about the world of work and how languages can play a part.
Read more...
Posted in:
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
French,
German,
Business,
Careers,
Language Learning,
Language Learning - Benefits,
Language Learning for Work,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news,
Russian
2 November 2018 (SCILT)
We have a range of job profiles on our website where language skills are being used. The latest addition comes from Erin Duffy, a student of Spanish and Linguistics at the University of Glasgow.
Erin is currently teaching in Spain and tells us her knowledge of languages has also enabled her to study and work in China. Her language skills have been integral to the job opportunities she has acquired and helped her form friendships across the globe.
Teachers, share Erin's profile with your pupils to demonstrate the advantages and benefits of learning languages.
Read more...
La Jolie Ronde free trials
29 October 2018 (La Jolie Ronde)
FREE TRIALS available of La Jolie Ronde's two award winning French and Spanish resources and classes.
La Jolie Ronde Languages For Children is a leading early language learning organisation offering a proven method of teaching young children French and Spanish. La Jolie Ronde’s award winning programmes are unique, modern and of the highest quality. FREE TRIALS on their resources are available as follows:
P1-P3 - Little Languages Resource - FREE TRIAL AVAILABLE
Little Languages is a unique resource for introducing languages to P1-P3. It provides the perfect solution for introducing some of the different languages and cultures from around the world. To support the non-specialist and as a guide to aid the expert language teacher, Little Languages enables you to start teaching straightaway!
Activities demonstrated in French and Spanish:
- Additional vocabulary & songs in Italian, Chinese, Hindi and African Shona
- Includes fun, play-based activities including IWB material
- Real life DVD clips featuring children from around the world
Product contains detailed lesson plans in a sturdy ring binder & software featuring:
- Lesson plans
- Resources
- IWB activities and games
- Colourful classroom wall frieze (5 x 2m lengths)
- DVD clips
- Also includes French and Spanish traditional and original songs plus songs from other languages
P4-P7 - French and Spanish Resource - FREE TRIAL AVAILABLE
La Jolie Ronde’s award winning resource contains everything you need to help plan and implement your policy for teaching a language in one go. The resource is a flexible four-year programme providing support to teachers with no previous experience of teaching languages and a guide for the more experienced, who can modify to suit. One of the biggest benefits of the resource is that everything is already pre-prepared and planned, so you can literally start teaching straightaway!
- Perfect for the non-specialist or an aid for the more experienced languages teacher
- Split into two schemes – for years P4-P5 and P6-P7
- Plenty of material to fill two years and four years
- Pre-prepared lessons, divided into short sessions for flexibility
- Comprehensive and detailed lesson notes
FREE French or Spanish Class
Years of development, dedication and experience in the sector of early language learning, La Jolie Ronde has become the market leader, committed to offering the best possible start to young learners. Through their loyal network of over 560 tutors, who teach in over 1,660 centres, they currently teach in the region of 20,500 children. To find your nearest French or Spanish class and book your FREE TASTER CLASS, visit La Jolie Ronde website.
For your FREE RESOURCE OR CLASS TRIALS simply email your request to La Jolie Ronde quoting SCILT - email schools@lajolieronde.co.uk
29 October 2018 (British Council)
Teachers and school leaders in the UK and across the world are being encouraged to bring the world into their classrooms to celebrate International Education Week (IEW).
Each year, the British Council encourages schools to celebrate International Education Week to promote the benefits of international collaboration, languages and cultural exchange. During International Education Week, 12-16 November, The British Council is focusing on global communication and particularly language learning, believing these skills are more important now than ever. That is why this year’s theme is ‘Be International’.
Visit the British Council International Education Week website to find out more about how your students can take part in the Great Schools Online challenge and to access the IEW teaching resources.
Read more...
Get ready for Hallowe'en!
23 October 2018 (Various)
It's that time of year again and to help celebrate Hallowe'en in the languages classroom we've compiled a range of spooky resources! Click on the relevant link below for more information:
Posted in:
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S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
Chinese,
French,
German,
Italian,
Spanish,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Resources,
Scots
Try the Unuhi iPad app for FREE! Read bilingual books to your kids in any 2 languages of your choice
16 October 2018 (Unuhi)
No matter what languages you speak in your family, Unuhi wants to help your children learn. Unuhi claims to be the most comprehensive bilingual book platform in the world and includes 4 launch books in almost 200 different language combinations.
Unuhi is offering a free trial of its bilingual book app for kids, free to any schools that have iPads (Android version out by Christmas) in return for feedback and spreading the word!
The app currently contains 4 original books in 20 languages, beautifully illustrated with interactive sound and flashcards to support learning.
Visit Unuhi and find out more
Find out how to trial the app for free
19 September 2018 (SCHOLAR)
The schedule of online tutor sessions for Higher and Advanced Higher Modern Languages 2018-19 is now available online.
Read more...
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Senior Phase,
Chinese,
French,
Gaelic,
German,
Italian,
Spanish,
Scotland,
Curriculum for Excellence,
Language Learning,
National Qualifications,
Resources,
News from language & education organisations
1 August 2018 (Linguacuisine)
For anyone interested in languages and food!
The free Linguacuisine web app helps you learn a language while you’re cooking a meal! Choose a foreign language and a delicious recipe from that country. Then your own smartphone or tablet will speak to you in the foreign language and talk you through all of the stages of cooking the recipe in your own kitchen. If you can’t understand, just press a button to get a photo or video explaining what to do. When you’ve finished, eat the food you’ve cooked and learn something about the culture of the country. Linguacuisine has a range of recipes now available for language learning from around the world. We now have recipes available in: English, Greek, Italian, French, Spanish, German, Quechua, Chinese and Korean.
You can also use the free recipe builder app so that you can upload your own favourite recipe in your own language. That means that anyone anywhere in the world will be able to watch videos and listen to audios of you guiding them through cooking your recipe and learning your language! Use your own smartphone or tablet to make recordings of yourself and upload them using our user-friendly software to create your own recipe.
You can also join our worldwide online community so you can rate and discuss other people’s recipes and post information, stories and photos. They can do the same for your recipe, so it’s a good way to make friends in other countries.
So Linguacuisine is a really fun way to learn about foreign languages, cultures and cuisines and you get to eat what you produce. You can also tell other people around the world about your own cooking, language and way of life. You learn foreign words better when you are physically touching food and cooking utensils and using them to prepare food. When you are cooking, you involve all of your senses in the learning experience – touch, smell and taste as well as hearing and seeing. So this is multi-modal and multi-sensory language learning. This is task-based language learning with a real product at the end of it and is intended to improve international understanding and communication.
Linguacuisine is available now for all devices, smartphones, tablets and computers from our website, where the online community will also be located https://linguacuisine.com/
The Linguacuisine app is the end result of a 10-year collaboration between computing scientists and linguists at Newcastle University. The Linguacuisine project is a collaboration between Newcastle University, Action Foundation (UK), Hellenic Open University (Greece), Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia (Italy) and the Workers’ Educational Association (UK). It is funded by an Erasmus+ KA2 Strategic Partnership grant of €324K.
For Teachers
The Linguacuisine app can be used for foreign language lessons, but also for cookery lessons and cross-curriculum projects. Students can use the app to cook and learn in the kitchen at home as well as at school.
The app is a good way of preparing students for a foreign trip as it helps engage them with the cuisine, culture and language in advance. Students can also write their own recipes in their own language, informing people abroad about their culture and cuisine.
It is also an excellent way of getting learners to communicate with learners in other countries. Video links have been available for some time, but Linguacuisine means that learners in different countries can do enjoyable shared activities together, cooking recipes from the other countries whilst learning about the other language and culture.
Digital skills can also be developed by using the ‘recipe builder’ authoring software. This was co-authored with learners and designed to develop a wide range of digital skills using the DIGCOMP 2.1 framework; it has been shown to be successful in improving learner competence.
For Professionals working with Migrants, Refugees and Asylum Seekers
The Linguacuisine app was co-designed with a group of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers from Action Foundation, Newcastle, UK and seeks to help them in two ways. Firstly, immigrants to a country can cook the recipes to learn about the language, cuisine and culture of their host country and help their integration. Secondly, immigrants can produce their own recipes in their own language using the recipe builder software, so they are able to have a voice and so people in their host country are able to learn something about their life prior to arrival here. A number of recipes currently on Linguacuisine have been produced by migrants in the UK.
For Catering Professionals
Chefs and other catering staff who are travelling to work abroad can introduce themselves to the language, culture and cuisine of their destination country by using the Linguacuisine app. They can also increase their repertoire and employability by trying recipes from around the world and improving relevant language skills.
Chefs can also produce their own recipes in their own language or English using the recipe builder software. Their recipes can then be tried out by users anywhere in the world. Users can post feedback about the recipes and rate the recipes, so chefs can gain an international reputation and increase their own job opportunities.
Invitation to London Event
Please come to our free London dissemination event in Europe House on 11 September. Book a place.
Try out the app, cook a recipe and learn a new language!
Read more...
20 June 2018 (Stòrlann)
Stòrlann have also published new literacy resources for Gaelic Medium Education, including a resource about legendary Gaelic rockers Runrig. This multimedia unit comes as the band prepare for their swan song gig in Stirling in August, bowing out after 45 long and successful years promoting Gaelic song and music. It is hoped the resource will teach learners about Runrig’s important legacy for many years to come. There is also a new resource about Highland Sporting Heroes - Laoich Spòrs Gàidhealach.
Read more...
20 June 2018 (Stòrlann)
Stòrlann Nàiseanta na Gàidhlig are about to publish online the second unit of the final book in the Ceumannan series for Gaelic Learners. Like all the resources in the series which launched in 2009, Ceumannan 5 Aonad 2 - Slàinte agus Sunnd, has been written by Emma Christie. It is aimed at Higher and Advanced Higher Gaelic (Learners). When the resource becomes available at the end of June 2018, it will be available on the Stòrlann website.
Read more...
19 June 2018 (SCDE)
The Scottish Council of Deans of Education (SCDE) Languages Group, which represents all language strands within the Schools of Education across Scottish Universities, has created a National Framework for Languages (NFfL) and associated digital resource to support teacher educators and teachers at all stages of their careers, with the aim of transforming the 1 + 2 Languages Policy in Scotland into purposeful classroom pedagogies promoting plurilingualism and pluriliteracies.
The NFfL is based on four overarching principles: plurilingualism, diversity, policy and legislation and transformative practice, and reflects the strands of the Professional Standards established by GTCS. For each of these strands the NFfL has identified a series of statements which encourage practitioners to consider a broad and inclusive understanding of the role of language in and for learning. These statements are linked to the associated digital resources: a reflective tool and digital resource bank.
The reflective tool includes a personal biography based on
Pepelino and the
European Language Portfolio as well as a series of reflective questions. These reflective questions are directly linked to the statements of the NFfL and aim to support teachers in evaluating their own practices.
The digital resource bank was created after a systematic review of the international literature covering formal language learning across all ages and stages, the increasingly complex demands of plurilingual and pluricultural classrooms and the need to develop a shared understanding of the role of languages for learning, which addresses the fundamental role played by languages (including the learners’ first language) in developing global citizens.
The NFfL and accompanying digital resources are now being piloted and can be accessed on the National Framework for Languages (NFfL) website.
Further information can be obtained from Ingeborg Birnie (
Ingeborg.birnie@strath.ac.uk).
Read more...
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S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
FE,
HE,
All Languages,
Scotland,
1+2,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Teacher Education,
Resources,
News from language & education organisations
4 May 2018 (SCILT)
For relevant, labour-market focused career advice on languages, direct from the workplace, read our latest Job Profile on Michael Dewar, whose love of languages has led to him working as a language tutor. Teachers, use this resource in your classroom to enhance learning about the world of work.
Read more...
23 January 2018 (IOE / British Council)
To help primary schools celebrate Chinese New Year and the Year of the Dog, UCL IOE and the British Council have developed some creative teaching resources.
The education pack is free to download. It contains information and activities to help teachers and pupils learn more about this important spring festival and explore Chinese language and culture.
Your pupils can read a traditional story to find out how Er Lang and his dogs captured the Monkey King and learn to give commands in Chinese to our animated dog called Dumpling (Jiaozi). You can also read letters from Chinese children about their pets and get creative making clay dogs and paintings and cooking Chinese dumplings!
Read more...
6 November 2017 (La Gazette du Sorcier)
This interview, in French, with Matthew Fitt, who has translated Harry Potter into Scots, will be of real interest to Harry Potter fans and a great opportunity for for learners to test their French.
Read more...
Language resources from Schools Online
29 October 2017 (Schools Online)
Polish your Polish
Grow awareness and understanding of Polish language and culture with our newest resource pack. Activities include fun facts about Poland and learning about culture through illustrated maps. For example, did you know that scientist Marie Curie was born in Poland’s capital, Warsaw? Download now
Fascinated by Arabic language and culture?
Explore the richly diverse world of Arabic language and culture with our resource pack. Created as part of the Arabic Language and Culture Programme, the pack enables students to learn about prominent Arabic inventions and discoveries like the art of calligraphy, and its creative cousin – calligraffiti. Download the pack
New resources from Schools Online for International Education Week
29 October 2017 (Schools Online)
International Education Week is just around the corner, running from 13 to 17 November.
This year Schools Online is inviting you and your class to take The Great Schools Online Challenge. Sound intriguing? A series of language-themed activity sheets encourage students to find out more about different languages and cultures. Can your students find out what the world’s most spoken language is? Or, how about learning how to write a phrase in a language with a different script? Download the resource
You can also download other activity ideas to help you celebrate. Schools Online will be adding to these over the following weeks, so go and take a look.
27 September 2017 (Stòrlann Nàiseanta na Gàidhlig)
An interdisciplinary resource which aims to provide Gaelic Medium Education teachers with a ‘one stop shop’ of topic-specific material for the classroom was launched at the national An t-Alltan conference for GME practitioners held in Aviemore last week.
An Dàrna Cogadh was developed by Gaelic educational resources organisation Stòrlann Nàiseanta na Gàidhlig in response to Gaelic Medium Education practitioners’ requests for a comprehensive teaching package, based online, on the subject of World War Two.
The online resource brings together many informative Gaelic texts and books— some created especially for this project — with a rich variety of other material from the wider world, including web, print and video. It is designed to support teachers delivering this subject in the primary sector.
Visit the website to access the resource and for more information see the attached press release.
Read more...
11 May 2017 (British Council)
Beginning your career or starting a new job brings to mind lots of questions, so we’ve designed a course to guide you through those initial weeks and months so you can make a positive start to your career.
You’ll see videos from employers, giving you insights from around the world into what they look for from their employees. You’ll learn how to communicate across cultures and discover the skills to build and maintain relationships with colleagues, managers and clients.
This is a free 4-week course and is hosted online by FutureLearn.
Read more...
28 April 2017 (SCILT)
The job profiles on our website cover a range of professions where languages are being used.
Our latest addition comes from Charlie Foot, founder of Bili, the online language exchange platform for schools. Charlie explains how speaking to people in their own language creates opportunities for much deeper connections and cultural understanding.
Teachers use our profiles in the classroom to enhance learning about the world of work and how language skills can play a part.
Read more...
Posted in:
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
French,
German,
Spanish,
Business,
Careers,
Language Learning,
Language Learning - Benefits,
Language Learning for Work,
Language Teaching,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news
21 April 2017 (SCILT)
We have a selection of job profiles on our website demonstrating languages being used in a wide range of professions.
Our latest addition comes from David Rodger, Area Manager at Amazon Germany. He tells how people engage with you and realise you're on their side if you demonstrate the willingness to understand their language and culture.
Teachers use our profiles in the classroom to enhance learning about the world of work and how language skills can play a part.
Read more...
Posted in:
French,
German,
Italian,
Spanish,
Business,
Careers,
Language Learning,
Language Learning for Work,
Language Skills,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news
31 March 2017 (SCILT)
We have a selection of job profiles on our website demonstrating languages being used in a wide range of professions.
Our latest addition comes from Jane Robb, PhD student at the Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich. Jane has studied several languages, including French, German and Spanish and says her Spanish language skills enable her to conduct fieldwork and live and work in Guatemala.
Teachers use our profiles in the classroom to enhance learning about the world of work and how language skills can play a part.
Read more...
Posted in:
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
French,
German,
Spanish,
Business,
Careers,
Language Learning,
Language Learning for Work,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news
17 March 2017 (SCILT)
For relevant, labour-market focused career advice on languages, direct from the workplace, read our latest Job Profile from Lynn Sheppard, Masters Student and travel writer, former English teacher, diplomat and civil servant.
Lynn tells how languages have not only helped in all her diverse job roles, but in developing and maintaining personal and professional relationships around the globe. Language skills have given her a cultural insight into how others think and behave.
Teachers, use this resource in your classroom to enhance learning about the world of work.
Read more...
Posted in:
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
All Languages,
Business,
Careers,
Language Learning,
Language Learning for Work,
Language Teaching,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news
13 March 2017 (CISS)
In order to build capacity for L3 in Scottish schools throughout Scotland, CISS has focused on developing a variety of resources. The latest L3 materials can be used to support the introduction of Mandarin as the L3 by using stimulating cultural contexts, whilst carefully building in progression. They are the first of a series of L3 resources which will support non-specialist Chinese teachers – including complete beginners! – as well as specialist Chinese teachers. The resources favour a gentle progression and will help practitioners embed Chinese into their learning context. These resources can be used as stand-alone resources or in conjunction with The Happy Emperor ebooks 1-5.
Read more...
10 March 2017 (SCILT)
We have a range of Job Profiles on our website designed for teachers to use in the classroom to enhance learning about the world of work and how language skills can play a part.
Our latest addition comes from Kirsten Matthews, a Distillery Tour Guide and Public Service Interpreter. Kirsten tells us her language skills make it possible for her to perform a service and to help people in her roles.
You can see Kirsten's profile on our website.
Read more...
Posted in:
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
Business,
Careers,
Language Learning,
Language Learning - Benefits,
Language Learning for Work,
Language Teaching,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news
3 March 2017 (SCILT)
For relevant, labour-market focused career advice on languages, direct from the workplace, read our latest Job Profile from Sandie Robb, Senior Education Officer for the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS).
Working on conservation projects around the globe, Sandie explains how knowing even a little of a language is respectable and polite when working with colleagues worldwide.
Teachers, use this resource in your classroom to enhance learning about the world of work.
Read more...
Posted in:
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
Chinese,
Spanish,
Business,
Careers,
Language Learning,
Language Learning for Work,
Language Teaching,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news,
Japanese
28 February 2017 (SCILT / Traidcraft)
#mfltwitterati it’s Fairtrade Fortnight! Please tweet @scottishcilt and @FairtradeUKEd the lesson ideas and resources that you’re using with your learners as a meaningful context for language learning #Fairtrade.
We’ve already found these from @traidcraft, tell us what you think.
- Explore the world of cocoa production in Côte d’Ivoire with a range of teaching resources for learners of French at 2nd level, 3rd level and in the Senior Phase.
- Explore a range of resources relating to Apicoop - honey and blueberry producers in Chile. Aimed at 2nd level learners of Spanish materials include a poster, an advert and a game.
Read more...
3 February 2017 (SCILT)
Our Job Profiles are designed for teachers to use in the classroom to enhance learning about the world of work and how language skills can play a part.
Our latest addition comes from student and part-time racing driver, Josh Martin, who appreciates how languages are key in helping him communicate with fans around the world and in negotiating sponsorship deals.
Read his profile and others on our website now.
Read more...
Posted in:
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
Business,
Careers,
Language Learning,
Language Learning - Benefits,
Language Learning for Work,
Language Skills,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news
20 January 2017 (SCILT)
If you're looking for relevant career advice on languages direct from the workplace, read the Job Profiles on our website. These resources are designed for teachers to use in the classroom to enhance learning about the world of work and how language skills can play a part.
Our latest addition comes from John Barry, a former petroleum engineer and manager with Shell, who explains how his language skills helped him to develop his career with the company.
Read more...
Posted in:
French,
Spanish,
Business,
Careers,
Language Learning,
Language Learning - Benefits,
Language Learning for Work,
Language Teaching,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news,
Russian,
Japanese
15 December 2016 (Consejería de Educación)
The Consejería de Educación has recently launched a digital library. If you are a teacher of Spanish, you can have an access to a myriad of resources.
Visit the site for more information and register now!
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5 December 2016 (British Council)
According to the Chinese Lunar Calendar, we enter the Year of the Rooster on January 28, 2017. This education pack for UK primary schools contains information and activities to help teachers and pupils learn more about this important spring festival and explore Chinese culture and language.
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26 October 2016 (British Council)
The British Council celebrates International Education Week every year, promoting the benefits of international learning and cultural exchange to a huge community of teachers and school leaders in the UK and all over the world. We believe that international learning, global communication and language learning is more important now than ever. That’s why this year’s IEW theme is ‘Make Time For Languages’.
We’ve got a whole raft of offers, opportunities and resources to help you celebrate International Education Week and make time for languages in your schools and classrooms.
Visit the British Council IEW website to find out how you can get involved from 14-18 November.
Read more...
11 October 2016 (SCHOLAR / Heriot-Watt)
SCHOLAR would like to bring to your attention their support for learners at Advanced Higher French, German and Spanish tackling the Specialist Study and Portfolio. Within the ‘Culture’ area, there is an extensive set of activities taking learners through every aspect of these areas. There is also a record, downloadable as a word document in both French and German, to help learners keep a record in the target language. This has the aim of helping them both prepare for the visit of the external examiner, and collect information to allow them to present their evidence for the Specialist Study Unit in the target language.
Search for Scholar HW, or use the login link.
Log in with your ID and password, which your school has!
Read more...
6 October 2016 (SCILT)
Today is National Poetry Day and the theme this year is 'Messages'. To mark the occasion we've created our own triolet poem in French on this theme.
You can see the poem on the National Poetry Day webpage of our MTOT website. We hope it will provide some inspiration for those taking part in the Mother Tongue Other Tongue competition in Scotland! There are lots of other poetry resources on our website too. So take a look and get creative!
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Primary,
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
All Languages,
British Sign Language,
Celebrating Languages,
Community Languages,
Cross-Curricular Working,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Mother Tongue,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
SCILT news
30 September 2016 (SCHOLAR)
SCHOLAR has a new feature: for all the SQA listening and reading assessments for Higher French, German and Spanish, we have put together a set of SCHOLAR activities which cover much of the vocabulary and concepts in each of those assessments.
When planning an assessment, teachers can give their pupils links to the SCHOLAR activities which will help them prepare for the assessment. They can be found in the Exam Preparation area of each language. Log in with your ID and password, which your school has!
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9 September 2016 (Goethe-Institut)
‘Deutsch mit Karla & Kai’ is a scheme of work that follows on from the ‘Deutsch mit Felix & Franzi’ programme. It is intended for children who have finished two years of German at primary level, having had around 40 minutes of German per week.
‘Deutsch mit Karla & Kai’ consists of 6 chapters, each of which opens with a video clip. The films introduce the new learning and teaching content in a playful way. The learners will already have a basic knowledge of German. They will therefore be able to access completely new structures and vocabulary in the context of the stories.
Access the resource on the Goethe-Institut website.
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6 September 2016 (British Council Voices)
For many young people in the UK, learning another language is not a priority – only nine per cent of teenagers progressed beyond a basic level in the language they were learning in 2013. But with so many people around the globe already speaking English, I wanted to know if learning another language is really worth it. Here's what I found out from some people who would know.
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26 August 2016 (SCILT)
SCILT's packs of materials to celebrate European Day of Languages 2016 have now sold out! We are delighted to know there are so many schools on board to celebrate this year’s event.
Don’t worry if you are too late to order materials. You can still visit our website for a range of ideas and resources to help your school to mark the day. We would love to hear how schools across Scotland celebrate the day. Email us (scilt@strath.ac.uk) with a short summary and some photos, and we will feature your event on this year’s EDL blog.
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7 June 2016 (ilanguages)
In September 2014 KS2 modern language teaching became compulsory in English primaries for children from the age of 7. Given that the vast majority of primary teachers are not trained or confident linguists this has been a challenge for many schools; especially as the new curriculum requires considerable learner progress in the four years leading up to secondary school.
Juliet Park and Wendy Adeniji, practising teachers and nationally renowned trainers and authors of creative resources decided to develop a scheme of work which would support teachers of all linguistic abilities. Additionally, they wanted to ensure that teachers had a comprehensive set of integrated resources which would work in harmony and be easy to follow.
The resources include pedagogical approaches which were presented at the language show in Glasgow in March such as Kagan co operative learner and Talk4Writing. These approaches raise engagement and also literacy levels and are equally useful to other areas of the curriculum.
The packs also include two effective approaches to teaching French and Spanish phonics, a key element for improving learner confidence in pronunciation and making the sound spelling link. Songs have also been embedded into the scheme from the Aberdeen based company The Language Factory.
To ensure children can get further practice between lessons, an app to support the scheme is being launched in the autumn.
The reaction from teachers using the ilanguages resources has been overwhelming and it is fast becoming the scheme of choice in England.
Helen Walker from Hursthead school says ‘my learners have made double the progress than in the past and I am an experienced teacher’
Richard Williams from High Lane school commented that he is a complete beginner in French but he ‘can rely on the resources do the talking because it’s such a user friendly scheme’.
Teachers can download free starter packs from the ilanguages website.
Juliet and Wendy are now looking to set up regional hubs in Scotland to support teachers in the 1+2 initiative. This will include expert training on the delivery of French and Spanish to regional networks and access to free resources.
If you would like to become a regional hub to support your local network please contact Juliet on julietpark@icloud.com. First come first served!
Find out more about ilanguages and what they can offer to primary and secondary schools on their website.
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2 June 2016 (ECML)
The LACS (Language associations and collaborative support) network mediates between ECML projects and language teacher associations and other networks at regional and national levels. Its purpose is to raise awareness of existing ECML projects and resources, and to motivate teachers and others involved in language education to adapt these to their local environment, in order to facilitate widespread impact on learning and teaching.
Discover the searchable online directory of language associations and organisations and how it can be used on the ECML LACS website, along with guidelines and examples of using ECML resources in different contexts.
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30 May 2016 (Goethe-Institut)
Register to join the learning and teaching community free of charge to help learn and improve your German.
Find out more in the 'Deutsch für dich' promotional video and visit the Goethe-Institut website to register.
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25 May 2016 (British Council Voices)
To communicate successfully in an international environment, you need to be able to grasp what is being said and respond appropriately.
In this blog, Chia Suan Chong offers three strategies to help students use English in international environments, including considering different cultural views of the same situation - an ideal exercise for those with a multinational class.
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23 May 2016 (Goethe-Institut)
Popular events like the European Football Championship 2016 provide ample opportunities for motivating young learners. The Goethe-Institutes in France have developed some practice materials for the German classroom suitable for various levels and ready for kick off.
Visit the Goethe-Institut website to download the free resources.
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9 May 2016 (Radio Lingua)
Radio Lingua is delighted to announce the launch of High Five Spanish which follows a similar model to our French resource. Learners can join Scottish learner Sophie who is learning Spanish, in Spain, with her friends Marina and Miguel.
We’re making the trial version of High Five Spanish available to all schools until 30 June. All existing High Five French schools are ‘pre-approved’ and the Spanish trial will automatically appear on their account. Any other schools should register for the free trial on the Radio Lingua High Five Spanish website and we’ll set up trial accounts for them. The free trial provides access to the first ten lessons of the series including video and audio resources, teachers’ notes, classroom ideas and activity sheets for pupils.
Visit the High Five Spanish website for full details about the resource.
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28 April 2016 (Goethe-Institut)
One of the main aims of this Erasmus+ project is to develop an assessment tool to be used in primary schools called THE LANGUAGE MAGICIAN. The game will be fun for the children, build on their language and IT-skills and provide information on their progression. It will support teachers by giving them a tool to assess their pupils’ abilities using non-threatening testing methods and hopefully also increase the enjoyment of learning a foreign language at this age.
The project is still under development, but visit the Goethe-Institut website to find out more.
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19 April 2016 (SCILT)
We have developed a pack of resources on Silence de la Mer which are suitable for Advanced Higher French pupils who have limited teaching input.
The pack includes information on the Specialist Study Unit; suggested timescales; character analysis; themes; suggested portfolio titles and a glossary of vocabulary.
The resource can be accessed on the Senior Phase French AH resources section of our website.
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New French and Polish resources
19 April 2016 (Education Scotland)
Education Scotland is pleased to launch new resources for French and Polish. Both resources include teacher’s notes, activity packs, film clips and sound files.
The French resource is designed as an L2 learning journey, aimed at second level learners and involves Astérix on a journey to Scotland, based on the story ‘Astérix chez les Pictes’
The Polish resource supports an L3 beginners’ language experience and can be used in either primary or secondary as an L3 insert. The language journey here is based on an animated film, based around the scientist Copernicus.
Links to both resources can also be found in the Primary and S1-S3 classroom resource sections of the SCILT website.
31 March 2016 (SQA)
SQA has published Modern Languages Audio Presentations providing additional support for centres and practitioners. The presentations provide a detailed overview of the standards and assessment for both Unit and Course assessment.
The presentations can be downloaded from the SQA website.
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23 March 2016 (Welsh Government)
Players from the Wales National Football team have been doing their bit to help pupils concentrate on their modern foreign languages lessons by launching a new learning resource pack linked to this year’s Euros.
The educational resources have been produced as part of the Welsh Government’s Global Futures plan which aims to improve and promote modern foreign languages in Wales.
The Euros-based resources have been published on Hwb, the digital learning platform for schools, so teachers can capitalise on their pupil’s excitement in the run up to June’s tournament, and use the packs to promote the importance and relevance of modern foreign languages.
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World Book Day - 3 March
3 March 2016 (SCILT)
Why not celebrate World Book Day with books in different languages? Here are some suggested websites:
19 February 2016 (SCILT)
We have a range of job profiles on the SCILT website to let your pupils see that languages are valuable in the world of work. People from a range of sectors - including sport, marketing, technology and many more - explain how language learning has influenced their professional lives.
Our latest profile features Adam Williams. a Spacecraft Operations Engineer working for the European Space Agency on the ExoMars mission, whose goal is to send a robotic vehicle to Mars to try and find evidence of past or present life on Mars. He explains how beneficial language skills are when working with a diverse range of international colleagues.
See this and other job profiles on our website now.
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18 February 2016 (Goethe-Institut)
Our new touring exhibition "Inventions from Germany" takes place from 21 March to 1 April 2016 and focuses on ground-breaking, German inventions which affect the daily lives of each of us and does so in an interactive way.
The exhibition promotes the concept of STEM teaching combined with German and is suitable for both, German-oriented and science-oriented school classes. We offer a guided programme (one-hour slots) with worksheet activities for school classes (group size up to 30, S4 to S6). Beginners are welcome too as English translations are provided.
Visit the Goethe-Institut Glasgow website for further information and to book a slot.
The exhibition is also accompanied by a dedicated website with more detailed information and resources:
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25 January 2016 (British Council)
This Shakespeare Lives schools’ pack has been created by the British Council in partnership with the Royal Shakespeare Company to mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death in 2016.
Specially designed to encourage learning across the curriculum, the resource is split into five key themes; Leadership and Power, Family and Relationships, Identity and Equality, Fate and Destiny, Justice and Rules. Within each themed section you will find a wide range of activities for pupils aged 7-14. These can be used as starting points in individual lessons or as elements of a cross-curricular project, which could be carried out with a partner school overseas.
Visit the British Council website for more information and to download the pack. On the site is a link to a number of videos created as part of the celebration. In addition to the English version, the 'Shakespeare Lives in 2016' animation is also available on YouTube in French, Arabic, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Mandarin.
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18 December 2015 (British Council)
It's World Arabic Language Day so why not learn about the language and culture with this resource from British Council Schools Online?
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17 December 2015 (British Council)
Discover what 2016's Year of the Monkey symbolises using our new pack filled with fun activities for primary pupils based on Chinese culture and traditions. Start preparing for Chinese New Year, explore the mythology behind the Chinese zodiac and uncover what the Year of the Monkey actually means in 2016.
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10 December 2015 (LEAP)
LEAP are coordinators of the Erasmus+ 'Creative Thinking in Literacy & Language Skills' project.
The project aims to bring the often illusive skills of creative thinking to teachers of literacy and/or languages, through a comprehensive 'how to' manual that is packed with instructional exercises.
This manual is now freely available to downlaod, along with two ready-to-use classroom activities, one from the project 'training package' and one based on a teacher submission to the project.
More of these type of activities will follow in the new year.
Please follow the links within the attached document or head straight to the project web site for more information.
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3 November 2015 (SALT)
Languagenut is a professional teaching tool that offers teaching resources across 19 world languages, including French, Spanish, German, Italian, Gaelic and Mandarin. Languagenut also supports EAL students by offering 80 native languages as support to learn English.
It is the perfect tool to support the 1+2 approach to language learning, as all audio files are recorded by native speakers. With a range of games, songs and stories, Languagenut supports the four key skills of language learning: listening, speaking, reading and writing.
In addition, Languagenut offers special integrated tools which allow teachers both create their own classes and content, and also set and track homework, generate certificates and evaluate students’ progress in real time. These timesaving tools help teachers to deliver more personalised teaching and customise lessons to fit each individual.
Accessible at school and at home and through GLOW, Languagenut helps to bridge the gap between classroom and home learning and is free for all Scottish schools.
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8 October 2015 (Heriot-Watt University)
The SCHOLAR programme offered by Heriot-Watt University offers a number of support sessions in a variety of subjects for students undertaking National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher examinations.
Attached is the programme of online events taking place from October 2015 to March 2016 to support Modern Languages.
For more information about the SCHOLAR programme visit the Heriot-Watt SCHOLAR website.
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8 September 2015 (Educaiton Scotland)
Education Scotland has just published a new principles and practice document for modern languages including new learning statements for P7.
Visit the Education Scotland website for more information.
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4 September 2015 (SCILT/CISS)
We are very pleased to publish the 5th animated e-book in the Happy Emperor series. This new adventure sees the Happy Emperor and his friends celebrating the Moon Festival and will help teachers develop children’s talking and listening, reading and writing skills in Mandarin.
Including interactive activities for use on a whiteboard, PC or tablet, the e-book presents an engaging way of introducing and practising simple vocabulary including food, clothes and telling the time. We hope you’ll enjoy using the e-book and would love to hear what you think of it and how you’ve used it with your learners.
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International Literacy Day - 8 September
20 August 2015 (British Council)
For International Literacy Day on 8 September, British Council has a range of activites you could try with your class.
- Bookworms - activity to study a piece of writing
- Words, Words, Words - explore words in English that have their origins in other languages
- 10 Words - see if your class can capture the essence of a language and culture in a short play using no more than 10 words in that language
20 August 2015 (British Council)
The Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival, is the second most important festival in the Chinese lunar calendar after Chinese New Year. This year the festival will fall on 27 September.
To tie in with the Festival, the British Council has developed an education pack to help primary schools celebrate the event with lesson plans, an assembly plan, activities and supporting materials.
Download the free pack now from the British Council website.
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27 July 2015 (Education Scotland)
Updates to first and second level learning maps are now available on the Education Scotland website.
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Posted in:
Chinese,
French,
Gaelic,
German,
Italian,
Spanish,
Scotland,
1+2,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Resources,
News from language & education organisations
11 June 2015 (Education Scotland)
Assessment route maps providing key guidelines, advice and support for qualifications at Advanced Higher modern languages are now available on the Education Scotland website.
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28 May 2015 (TES)
This “grammar challenge” was designed to motivate my 14- and 15-year-old pupils and make assessment more fun and interactive.
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28 May 2015 (TESS)
Pupils can learn a surprising amount from foreign language tweets about football matches
I began my lesson with that breezy staple “What are we going to learn today?” The answer to this question shocked the class: “Vamos a estudiar el encanto de la Copa FA.” Yes, the romance of the FA Cup. There was a palpable frisson of excitement.
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18 May 2015 (RZSS)
Danestone Primary P7 have designed a giant panda online game. It was created by the help of AVC Media and was part of Edinburgh Zoo's Beyond the Panda Take Action Challenge. Pupils presented the game at the recent SCEN China Day and had an official launch on Friday at their school. It has some language matching games. Take a look and why not play!
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Digital European Language Portfolio (ELP)
15 May 2015 (SCILT)
For anyone who has been experiencing difficulties using the electronic version of our European Language Portfolio, please note the technical glitch has now been resolved. The ELP is available on the following pages of our website:
11 May 2015 (Education Scotland)
This animated video resource aims to support and stimulate young language learners by exemplifying pronunciation in French and allowing them to match the written and spoken word. They also aim to support practitioners by offering a platform that can lead to wider learning opportunities.
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New resources for Gaelic Learner and Medium Education
27 April 2015 (Education Scotland)
New resources for Gaelic Learner and Medium Education
- National 5 Modern Studies Democracy in Scotland
- National 3, 4, 5, Higher Media and glossary of terminology
- National 2 Physical Education, Food, health and wellbeing, Business in Practice and Lifeskills Maths.
- Advanced Higher Gàidhlig and History.
- Advanced Higher Gaelic (Learners).
Please visit Glow for previously published support materials, National 3, 4, 5 and Higher Gàidhlig, Gaelic (Learners), and Gaelic Medium mathematics, Lifeskills mathematics, geography, history, modern studies.
24 March 2015 (Goethe Institut London)
"Lern Deutsch - Die Stadt der Wörter" is an online game for learners of German as well as absolute beginners. Beginners are enabled to enlarge their vocabulary and to compare their language skills to others. In addition, basic grammatical structures are learned in a playful way.
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23 March 2015 (Guardian)
Europe’s language of romance (and pizza) will be vital to the UK over the next 20 years. Here’s how to tackle it in your classroom.
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19 March 2015 (SCILT)
We have now created a digital version of the European Language Portfolio enabling primary pupils to record their language learning journeys electronically. You can find the ELP on the primary section of the SCILT website.
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3 March 2015 (British Council)
To celebrate the visit of the President of Mexico Enrique Peña Nieto to the UK, we have put together some resources to help schools to celebrate Mexico and the Spanish language. These include
- A PowerPoint presentation about Mexico that can be used in an assembly
- A story in Spanish and in English by the Latin American Children’s laureate Francisco Hinojosa (who is from Mexico) El peor senora del mundo/The worst woman in the world
- Two lesson ideas using the story – a writing activity and a Spanish activity
- An art activity based on the work of Mexican artist Diego Rivera
Access the resource pack on the British Council website.
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3 March 2015 (TLC Pack Project)
The European project TLC Pack, 'Teaching languages to Caregivers' has completed its first phase of development and published FREE language learning resources. The resources are primarily aimed at migrants entering or working in the care sector, but as we have found through our pilot testing, they are equally valued by language teachers.
The project will continue to produce a total of 30 video dialogues with accompanying in-class and out-of-class activities; currently printable but ultimately available via an online interactive platform.
The pilot videos in German, Italian and Spanish can be accessed on the website. You can also download the attached newsletter giving further details about the project.
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24 February 2015 (Education Scotland)
The Education Scotland website, Weather and Climate Change, is now available through the medium of Gaelic. This is aimed at providing practitioners with resources to help them include climate change within the curriculum for Gaelic Medium Education.
Resources for Media Studies National 3, National 4, National 5 and Higher for GME are now also available on Glow (login required).
Other Education Scotland websites that are available through the medium of Gaelic are: Scotland's History, Scotland's Songs, Scotland's Stories, and Scots and Canada.
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16 February 2015 (The Guardian)
Deutschland ist wunderschön! Our collection of lesson ideas and resources will help you get students excited about learning German.
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13 February 2015 (SCILT/CISS)
We have great pleasure in launching three new exciting Mandarin ebooks. These motivating stories, activities and suggestions will engage younger learners and will develop their literacy and language skills. We really hope you enjoy using them and please let us know how you have incorporated them into your classroom.
Download the three books in the ‘Happy Emperor’ series through the link below.
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CILT Cymru January 2015 newsletter
22 January 2015 (CILT Cymru)
See the January newsletter from CILT Cymru outlining the latest language news and events in Wales. There are lots of useful resources and ideas for language teachers to use.
15 January 2015 (British Council)
Celebrate Chinese New Year, the Year of the Sheep, on 19 February. Introduce pupils to the differences and similarities between the lives, languages and cultures of people in China and the UK with the Year of the Sheep primary education pack, available to download now on the British Council website.
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14 January 2015 (Radio Lingua)
See the preview episode of Coffee Break Italian and find out about the new course Radio Lingua are launching soon.
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11 December 2014 (SCILT)
Let your pupils see that languages are valuable in the world of work by visiting the 'Job Profiles' section of the SCILT website. People from a range of sectors - including sport, marketing, technology and many more - explain how language learning has influenced their professional lives.
Our latest addition to the section comes from the Reverend Alan Miller, who describes his language learning experiences and passion for Chinese.
See this and other job profiles on our website now.
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4 December 2014 (SCILT)
To support activities for the Mother Tongue Other Tongue (MTOT) competition, SCILT is sharing practical ideas for helping learners to write simple poems in the target language. These are published through our
“Creative Bag of Tricks” series on the MTOT blog. The second of our items about short form poetry,
“Chinese Portraits”, is available to read now on the blog.
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2 December 2014 (RZSS)
Thanks to a partnership with Jaguar Land Rover (China), Sandie Robb, Senior Education Officer for the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland got the opportunity recently to visit Chengdu and Ya'an - along with 10 students and 4 staff from Lasswade High School. You can see an excellent video of the trip on the 'Beyond the Panda' new website, which not only includes a wealth of information on the giant panda project but has excellent lesson plans and activities.
The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland outreach sessions 'Beyond the Panda' and 'Giants' are still available for schools, however they are always revised and redeveloped each year to build on new resources and ideas. Please email Sandie Robb, srobb@rzss.org.uk, for full details.
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24 November 2014 (Education Scotland)
Education Scotland has developed a new website on the Giant Pandas. The website provides access to relevant, contextualised resources to support learning and teaching about giant pandas through Curriculum for Excellence experiences and outcomes.
The resource features information about the arrival of Scotland’s giant pandas, current information about their life at Edinburgh Zoo, an image gallery, videos and learning journeys for languages, sciences and health and wellbeing.
Language teachers will particularly appreciate the second level learning resources which develop understanding and knowledge of the giant pandas through the medium of the modern language.
A learning journey takes learners through a number of foreign language tasks that will build on their knowledge of pandas and allow them to make comparisons between life in Scotland and life in China.
There are also two activity booklets - one in French and one in German - which contain a variety of challenges linked to cross-curricular themes.
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12 November 2014 (SCILT)
To support activities for the Mother Tongue Other Tongue (MTOT) competition, SCILT is sharing practical ideas for helping learners to write simple poems in the target language. These are published through our “Creative Bag of Tricks” series on the MTOT blog. The first of our items about short form poetry, “Cinquains”, is available to read now.
This is #6 in the "Creative Bag of Tricks" series. If you've missed any of the previous activities these can still be accessed via the blog archive.
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12 November 2014 (SEET)
Following on from the launch of this years’ Our Europe Film Competition, the Scottish European Educational Trust (SEET) has launched ‘Script Centre’. This brand new online language resource is designed to help pupils at various levels of learning construct sentences in foreign languages as well as provide the vocabulary they may need to talk about European issues. SEET aims for this new interactive study aid to assist Our Europe entrants in constructing sentences which they can use within their foreign language scenes. In addition, Script Centre should allow pupils to rely less on input from their teacher in terms of content and be able to express their views more independently, with only grammar needing checked.
The resource is available to any class who wish to use it, all teachers need to do is create an account. Script Centre is accessible via the ‘resources’ page of the Our Europe website or directly at the Script Centre webpage.
Please note that the Our Europe Film Competition is still open for registration, with the deadline for submissions being 10th December 2014. More details about the competition as well as links to register can be found at the website provided above.
If you have any questions or experience difficulties in using the resource, please contact: madeleine@seet.org.uk.
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11 November 2014 (CISS/SCILT)
We are delighted to let you know that the first CISS eBook, Warriors: The Emperor's Incredible Army has now been uploaded to the SCILT website. This free resource was created in partnership with our fantastic colleagues at LFEE and Scottish Opera. The animated book is accompanied by a number of resources which can be used in the classroom.
A number of additional eBooks will be uploaded in due course, so keep your eyes peeled!
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31 October 2014 (UK-German Connection)
With Germany as the current winners of the World Cup, now has never been a better time to kick-start a programme combining football and learning German! Double Club German is an award-winning educational programme for primary and secondary pupils using Arsenal FC to show pupils that language learning can be fun! Teachers have access to a range of recently updated resources, including detailed, step-for-step teachers' notes, interactive PowerPoint presentations and a brand-new, bright and colourful pupils' workbook.
If you are interested in taking part, please contact Steve Eadon, Double Club Languages Coordinator at languages@arsenal.co.uk - expressions of interest will be considered on a first-come, first-served basis.
Note: if organising Double Club German sessions as an after-school activity is not feasible at your school, it can also be run as an activity in lessons or during the lunch-hour.
Double Club German is a project developed and run in partnership between Arsenal FC, the Goethe-Institut London and UK-German Connection. More information is available on the Arsenal Double Club website.
New resources now include interactive video activities with Arsenal winger and German U19 international, Serge Gnabry. The full set of videos is available to all teachers participating in Double Club: German, however two sample videos are publicly available.
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31 October 2014 (UK-German Connection)
St. Martin's Day is fast approaching (11 November), and children throughout Germany are looking forward to making lanterns and singing songs at a traditional St. Martin's Day procession. Why not teach your pupils about these fascinating German customs with the voyage kids St. Martin's Day Special?
- Teach your pupils how kids celebrate St. Martin's Day in Germany
- St. Martin's Day memory game. How quickly can your pupils find the pairs?
- Basteln - Make a colourful St. Martin's Day lantern
- Laterne, Laterne & Ich geh' mit meiner Laterne songs – sing along with your pupils! (featuring recordings from UK primary schools)
Access the resources on the UK-German Connection website.
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9 October 2014 (SCILT)
To support activities for the Mother Tongue Other Tongue competition, SCILT is sharing practical ideas for developing creative writing skills through the “Creative Bag of Tricks” series published on the MTOT blog. The fourth item,
“I am” poems, is available to read now.
Read more...
8 October 2014 (National Library of Scotland)
A website to help primary schoolchildren learn Scots is launched today by the National Library of Scotland.
The 'Oor Wullie guide tae Scots language' site uses the famous cartoon character to get six-to 11-year-olds thinking about and using Scots words.
Several schools across Scotland worked with the Library to develop and test the learning activities, which include quizzes, a 'comic maker' and a word search.
Read more...
7 October 2014 (The Little Black Book Edinburgh)
Introduction to European Cinema is now in its tenth year and returns with another fantastic selection of classic films curated by specialists in European cinema at the University of Edinburgh. Each film screening is preceded by a brief introduction by Dr Leanne Dawson (Lecturer in German and Film Studies at the University of Edinburgh and IEC Course Organiser) or another University of Edinburgh academic.
The event runs from 1 October to 26 November and offers some screenings in French, German and Russian.
Read more...
19 September 2014 (GrowStoryGrow)
Every year, to help celebrate the European Day of Languages, GrowStoryGrow opens up its site allowing children all over the world to experience over a hundred enchanting stories, in several different languages, for free.
This year the GrowStoryGrow is free to use from 22 - 29 September 2014 and to link with this year's centenary of World War 1 there is a very poignant story about Remembrance Day.
Visit the website for further information and to access the materials.
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19 September 2014 (BFI)
Our collection of early films of China (1901-1949) are now available online in the UK (with plans to make them available in China next year). There’s an introduction to the collection on YouTube.
The collection includes clips on:
Thoughts about the films from director Xie Fei, amongst others, are also featured.
This collection is still being researched, so always very grateful to find new information about the films. If anyone has any additional information that they’d like to share (including further information about locations), please can they email Holly Hyams – holly.hyams@bfi.org.uk.
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16 September 2014 (SCILT)
To support activities for the Mother Tongue Other Tongue competition, SCILT is sharing practical ideas for developing creative writing skills through the
“Creative Bag of Tricks” series published on the MTOT blog. The third item,
“Calligrams”, is available to read now.
Read more...
10 September 2014 (SCILT)
To support activities for the Mother Tongue Other Tongue competition, SCILT is sharing practical ideas for developing creative writing skills through the “Creative Bag of Tricks” series published on the MTOT blog. The second item, “Metaphor”, is available to read now.
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10 September 2014 (Into Film)
Interactive languages resource using film to teach French in primary. This is a cross-curricular second level resource with CfE links for Technologies, Expressive Arts, Social Studies, as well as Literacy and Languages and comes with teachers' notes, activity sheets and an accompanying Powerpoint.
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9 September 2014 (British Council)
Learn some new languages and all about the Christmas truce during WW1 with this activity from the Football Remembers pack.
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9 September 2014 (British Council)
Our primary languages starter pack contains materials to support teaching of languages in UK primary schools.
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5 September 2014 (British Council)
The Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival, is the second most important festival in the Chinese lunar calendar after Chinese New Year. This year the festival will fall on 8 September. To tie in with the festival, our education pack helps primary schools across the UK explore Chinese culture and language.
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4 September 2014 (Goethe-Institut London)
The Eurotoolbox consists of 5 specially chosen collections of children's and youth literature from Europe in the original language - German, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Italian, with between 12 and 15 books in each language.
The exhibition of books is free to borrow for 2-4 weeks at a time and is available from September.
Visit the Eurotoolbox launch webpage for more information about the collections and contact Mariella Riccobono at the Italian Cultural Institute to arrange a booking slot: maria.riccobono.iic@esteri.it
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Posted in:
Early Years,
Primary,
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
French,
German,
Italian,
Spanish,
Language Learning,
Resources,
Portuguese
3 September 2014 (UK-German Connection)
Why not start the new school year by teaching your pupils all about school life in Germany with the 'voyage kids' Back to School special? If you're feeling creative, you could even get started the German way by making 'Schultüten', using our handy step-by-step instructions!
The Back to School Special includes:
- Find out: A typical school day in Germany
- Basteln: Make a Schultüte!
- Memory game: How quickly can your pupils find the matching pairs?
- 'School words' quizzes
If you're busy planning lessons, you might be interested in our calendar of features, which gives you a 'heads up' about forthcoming seasonal and topical specials on voyage kids.
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2 September 2014 (Education Scotland)
Please visit the Education Scotland website for resources to support learning in Gaelic Medium Education about World War I. These resources include looking at the causes of the war, stories from veterans and reflections on the impact of the conflict.
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1 September 2014 (Japan Foundation)
The Japan Foundation has released two new resources for teaching Japanese - the Japanese Taster Lesson Sample Activity Pack, and the JFL Scheme of Work for Primary Schools. These resources are absolutely free to download and use straight away!
You can find out more about the resources on the Japan Foundation website.
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29 August 2014 (TES)
Combat fear of new languages by using phonics techniques.
When I began teaching languages, I found that speaking was the biggest obstacle for most pupils. They needed to work on pronunciation, but at that time I had never heard of phonics being used in MFL. However, after speaking to primary teachers about how they used phonics and looking at phonics websites used by French schools, I built up a bank of resources suitable for children from beginners upwards.
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27 August 2014 (The Guardian)
The Guardian and the British Academy are holding a UK-wide Language Festival to celebrate the UK's diverse cultural heritage. The festival will provide a platform for schools, higher education institutions (HEIs), students, policy makers and businesses from across the UK to discuss, debate and explore the academic, cultural and economic benefits of language learning.
Downloadable language resource packs for both primary and secondary students are available on the Guardian website.
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19 June 2014 (British Council)
We have compiled resources and opportunities from professional development courses to online libraries and free teaching materials. Visit the Schools Online website and select a language or organisation to find out more.
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19 June 2014 (ASE)
Science across the World brings an international dimension to science education in schools and colleges.
Students gain a global perspectives on scientific issues related to their personal lives, their impacts on the environment and the varying cultural impacts of science on people in different countries. The project is open to all schools and the key to success is to build up your network of contacts between schools across the world.
Resources are free and most topics are available in several languages.
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10 June 2014 (ALL)
FLAME is an initiative led by the Association for Language Learning to support the integration of language learning with other curriculum subjects. They hope that the initiative will increase the number of primary and secondary schools that combine subject and language teaching, and that in this way help to transform the quality of language learning in schools. It’s called FLAME Plus and includes information about FLAME and links to cross-curricular primary resources.
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23 May 2014 (Radio Lingua)
Radio Lingua is delighted to announce that their new resource for primary French learners is now available. High Five French is a collection of video and audio resources featuring Scottish learner Emma and French native speaker Mathilde in a colourful, interactive and engaging format. The resource includes challenge activities, worksheets and teachers' notes with background information, cultural references and classroom ideas. Find out more at the Radio Lingua Schools website.
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22 May 2014 (UK-German Connection)
Read this year's winning essays on the UK's EU role, language teaching in the future and youth unemployment, written by participants of the German Scholarships Programme 2014.
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21 May 2014 (CLIL4teachers)
CLIL4teachers is part of the Association for Language Learning's FLAME initiative to support cross-curricular approaches to language learning. FLAME stands for Future for Languages as a Medium of Education and our aim is to provide support for cross-curricular language learning and to raise awareness of its benefits. CLIL4teachers enables teachers to share and find learning resources.
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19 May 2014 (Comhairle nan Eilean Siar)
The Multimedia Unit of the Education and Children’s Services Department of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar has developed a new website to support 3-18 Gaelic Medium Education. Resources support Gàidhlig as well as a range of other curricular areas. The website is being continuously updated with new materials to enhance young people’s learning opportunities through the medium of Gaelic. For more information, visit the website or contact evelyn.coull@cne-siar.gov.uk.
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New materials for BGE and Senior Phase in different languages from European Parliament
12 May 2014 (European Parliament)
Looking for new materials for BGE and Senior Phase in different languages?
If you would be interested in hosting a talk in your school from the European Parliament Information Office in Edinburgh, please contact:
European Parliament Information Office in Edinburgh
Marta Majchrzyk
Communications Assistant
The Tun
4 Jackson's Entry
Holyrood Road
Edinburgh
EH8 8PJ
+44 (0)131 557 7866
www.europarl.org.uk/edinburgh
9 May 2014 (British Council)
An education pack from the British Council is launching today to commemorate the truce. The pack contains accounts from soldiers from Germany, France, Belgium and India who were there in 1914 and wrote about what they had seen.
There is a section of the pack with resources in French and German that can be used to support MFL teaching, as well as video material in those languages
The pack acts as preparation for a mass participation call to action in December 2014 when clubs at every level of the game in the UK (and beyond we hope) will play matches to commemorate the Truce.
We hope that schools will select from these activities, adapt the suggestions and resources for their own use and for use with partner schools, and join in this special Centenary event.
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New resources for secondary German
25 April 2014 (SCILT)
We have uploaded materials to support secondary German onto the SCILT website. These materials were developed by the Modern Languages Department at Greenwood Academy.
The Gruffalo
Are you looking for a different way to teach descriptions to your German classes? Here is a novel approach one teacher took. By using the German translation of The Gruffalo, S2 German learners were exposed to different and unusual vocabulary in an engaging and interesting way.
Access materials
Erlkönig
Looking for a way to incorporate the literature of another country into the new Higher syllabus and develop literacy skills among your learners? Here is an approach taken by one teacher which links Erlkönig with Rammstein and develops learners literacy skills at the same time.
Access materials
22 April 2014 (Teaching Scotland)
Teachers working hard to meet the requirements of Curriculum for Excellence will welcome the arrival of FILMCLUB, an education charity which provides free access to thousands of films and educational resources and which, since August 2013, has become widely available to state schools throughout Scotland. The charity helps schools set up and run free film clubs to educate and inspire young people through watching, understanding and making film. With its emphasis on using film to introduce new ideas, arouse curiosity, boost literacy, raise aspirations and spark debate.
Films can be selected by topic or by age. It is also possible to browse films by language.
More information on FILMCLUB is available on the Teaching Scotland website or by accessing the FILMCLUB website directly.
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2 April 2014 (Goethe-Institut)
The songs and lyrics accompanying the Felix and Franzi primary materials are now available as a free download from our website. There is also an appendix available providing further information and materials such as flashcards, cultural tips as well as explanations on grammar and sounds.
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27 March 2014 (Institut français)
Did you know ther is no easter bunny in France, but a lot of flying bells which bring Easter eggs to the French children? Discover through this free ressource online for P5-P7 the tradition of "Paques en France" with your class.
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27 March 2014 (UK-German Connection)
The voyage Easter special will be online from 31 March, featuring quizzes, articles and recipes on Easter in Germany and the UK - read about the Ostereiersuche and Osterfeuer, and try your hand at making an Osterzopf!
Easter in Germany
Ostern in Großbritannien
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25 March 2014 (Primary Language Learning Today)
The blog outlines the use of “Listening Sticks” and how these could be used to encourage children to practise listening and responding for key information. The sticks can contain any core language you have been practising.
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19 March 2014 (Routes into Languages NE)
Stand-up comedian, Henning Wehn, takes a humorous look at the German language in ten short videos.
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19 March 2014 (Languages on Screen)
Languages on Screen is an exciting new educational resource that puts French, German, Spanish and Italian - and soon Gaelic, short films online for free download and use in schools across Scotland. With a Glow username and password you have free access to these educational resources - you simply login to this site via Glow. If you don’t have a login you can request one via the website.
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17 March 2014 (Education Scotland/Stòrlann Nàiseanta na Gàidhlig)
Education Scotland have supported Stòrlann Nàiseanta na Gàidhlig with a resource pack for Gaelic Medium Education to develop learning on Commonwealth Games.
The pack includes:
- posters illustrating the Commonwealth flags
- posters illustrating the 17 sports which will be at the Glasgow Games
- fact cards about the sports
- fact cards about the Commonwealth countries.
This pack has potential to be used as part of interdisciplinary learning for which the Commonwealth Games are used as a context. The resource presents opportunities for applying learning in numeracy and mathematics and literacy and Gàidhlig.
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13 March 2014 (Into Film)
Into Film seeks to put film at the heart of children and young people's learning, contributing to their cultural, creative and personal development. Our UK-wide programme of learning through and about film provides 5-19 year olds with unparalleled opportunities to see, think, make and imagine. Visit our website for details of the free resources and opportunities available in your area to support all curriculum areas.
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12 March 2014 (Audio Lingua)
Audio-Lingua offers mp3 recordings in several languages. It is a collaborative bank of authentic audio resources, recorded by native speakers, and can be searched by level, topic and language.
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Posted in:
Chinese,
French,
German,
Italian,
Spanish,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Resources,
Russian,
Arabic,
Portuguese
10 March 2014 (Goethe-Institut)
Discover the brand new playlist Pop from Germany on Spotify and combine language learning with the enjoyment of music. Spotify is a digital music service that can be used free of charge.
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7 March 2014 (Miss Myers: Learning Languages)
Revise numbers, learn to tell the time and talk about your day with native German speakers.
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7 March 2014 (UK-German Connection)
The latest edition of our online magazine, written by the UK-German Youth Ambassadors, is available now!
With content in both English and German, this edition focuses on society, integration and social inclusion as well as discrimination and exclusion. It features articles on inclusion in education, discrimination in the fashion industry, dealing with Alzheimer's disease, the effect of technology on society, and much more! You'll also find a fantastic podcast on whether the German East-West divide still exists in people's minds.
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6 March 2014 (YouTube)
As part of a series of free workshops by Oxford University Press for MFL teachers, Joe Dale presented this session on Languages and new technologies.
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18 February 2014 (Lisibo)
See the presentation shared at the #ililc4 conference last week on using iPads in the primary language classroom. The blog also includes links to further ideas and information including lists of useful apps.
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Posted in:
Primary,
French,
German,
Spanish,
Cross-Curricular Working,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Methodologies,
Teacher Education,
Technology,
Resources
18 February 2014 (Routes into Languages Cymru)
This new set of resources, authored by the Careers Department at Cardiff University and in partnership with Routes into Languages Cymru, includes a Sample Languages CV Format and a Cronological CV which will show how those studying languages or those who have language skills can present their skills and experiences in the most effective way possible. With a greater call for ‘global graduates’ the resources also include Tips for the Year Abroad for Language Students which will give ideas on how to make the best of time spent abroad and to continue to build on the CV whilst studying.
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17 February 2014 (Routes into Languages (London))
This activity aims to harness the enthusiasm surrounding the Brazil 2014 World Cup and provide an ideal opportunity for your students to:
- learn more about Brazil and the Brazilian World Cup
- pick up some basic Portuguese
- develop their team work and creativity whilst drawing on a range of skills across ICT, Geography, Languages, Numeracy, Art and Design and PE.
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14 February 2014 (Global Dimension)
One in eight children in the UK speaks a language other than English as their first language. This website is a growing collection of short stories, both new and traditional, from all around the world. The stories are available in English, plus their original language, and can be read and listened to online, or downloaded, all for free.
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ML resources for Valentines Day
13 February 2014 (TES)
Use the following resources to celebrate St Valentine's Day in the modern languages classroom:
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resources.
12 February 2014 (Education Scotland)
Education Scotland has new Urdu teaching materials for National 4 and National 5 available on GLOW. You will need a GLOW userid and password to access these resources.
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11 February 2014 (Mary Glasgow)
Tell your students about Justin Bieber with Mary Glasgow news.
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11 February 2014 (Canadian Games website)
Try this quiz with your class and test their knowledge of the summer and winter Olympic Games.
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11 February 2014 (UK-German Connection)
Karneval / Fasching is on its way! That's right, from 27 February to 5 March, large parts of Germany will descend into a jamboree of fancy dress, sweet-throwing and general merrymaking. Why not teach your pupils all about it with the voyage kids Karneval special?
This year's special includes an interactive 'through the telescope' feature, an online jigsaw, a quiz, and, of course, the ever-popular Karneval-esque song by a singing hairdresser! (with worksheet and PPTs to teach the vocabulary in the song).
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6 February 2014 (ECML)
European Language Label 2013 award winner Linguaswap is a moderated language swapping and learning web-site specifically for second level students developed by teachers Anne Burke, Aisling Crowley , Rhoda Brookes & Siobhan Carley in Carnew, Ireland.
The European Language Label is an annual award given to projects where participants have found creative ways to improve the quality of language teaching, motivate students, and make the best of available resources. As part of a promotional offer, all users can sign up for one year's free membership for a limited time only.
Watch the YouTube video to learn more about the ELL winning project and visit the Linguaswap website.
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5 February 2014 (Grazia)
Ooh la la! Bradley Cooper can speak French, but which other leading men have language skills?
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3 February 2014 (TES)
Templates to make it quick and easy to include varied speaking activities in lessons. Examples are in French and German but these could be adapted to any language/key stage.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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3 February 2014 (Zapatito Ingles blog)
A selection of ideas to help celebrate the Winter Olympics with your primary Spanish learners.
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3 February 2014 (One Year in Spanish blog)
Talk football with your pupils and teach Spanish sports idioms.
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27 January 2014 (GrowStoryGrow)
A video, lesson plan and resources to support this Chinese New Year story for young learners.
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27 January 2014 (One Year in Spanish blog)
Infographic to display on your white board and/or classroom blog, which might be handy to help Spanish students to remember the correct prepositions for means of transport.
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24 January 2014 (TES)
In this week's round-up of resources in TES magazine, the following have been highlighted for the modern language classroom:
- No 6 - En ville - a PowerPoint presentation that introduces phrases to help S1-S3 French students describe their home town.
- No 10 - Spanish spats - a collection of slides to help S1-S3 students argue in Spanish.
You will need a TES userid and password to access these resources.
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24 January 2013 (TES)
Collection of display and support materials for secondary students.
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23 January 2014 (SCILT)
If you are looking for ways of persuading pupils, parents and school managers that learning Modern Languages is a positive choice, then look no further. The team at SCILT have prepared some materials, ideas and suggestions that may help you.
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22 January 2014 (Glasgow Film Festival)
The Glasgow Youth Film Festival 2014 runs from 31 January to 7 February 2014 and offers a programme of screenings for both primary and secondary schools, including foreign language films:
Primary:
- Le Gruffalo et le petit Gruffalo (French)
- Sputnik (German)
Secondary:
- Playground Chronicles (Chroniques d’une cour de récré) (French)
- Sputnik (German)
- O Apóstolo (Spanish)
Full details of all the screenings and how to book are on the Glasgow Film Festival website.
Read more...
19 January 2014 (Vocab Express)
Sign up for your free Vocab Express account to learn the first 1,000 words in a new language!
Vocab Express is proud to be the official partner of the Speak To The Future 1,000 Words campaign for vocabulary learning and has teamed up with Oxford University Press to develop vocabulary lists to enable you to learn the first 1,000 words of a new language.
Read more...
19 January 2014 (TES)
A matching activity for some idiomatic french expressions for your S1-S3 students. The images are from TV Monde. You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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19 January 2014 (TES)
A booklet detailing some key free online websites which can be used in the teaching and learning of modern languages.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resources.
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17 January 2014 (TES)
Amongst this week's list of 'What's Hot' resources in TES magazine.
At number 7 is Facebook French - a PowerPoint-based lesson for developing French reading skills that imagines what Marie Antoinette would write on her Facebook page. For S1-S3.
At number 9 is Los Colores - a presentation on colours in Spanish. For S1-S3.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resources.
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17 January 2014 (TES)
I teach English as a foreign language at a high school in Stockholm, Sweden. My students are part of a cross-curricular technology programme, so I try to incorporate technology into my lessons as much as possible. One of my favourite methods is to use the hugely popular TED talks, in which prominent or knowledgeable figures explore issues of technology, entertainment and design.
Why not use the TED talks to promote discussion in the modern languages classroom?
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17 January 2014 (RGS)
For schools looking for IDL ideas, there are some interesting materials and photos from an exhibition provided by the Royal Geographical Society on the link below. The images might be used as a context for any language to discuss countries, weather, clothes, houses, etc. Worth a look!
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16 January 2014 (One Year in Spanish blog)
A resource to help persuade students to make a Spanish GCSE choice, that allows you to discuss the question of ‘Why learn Spanish?’ during your Spanish language lesson. There is even an extension activity, asking pupils to create a PowerPoint presentation that will convince others to take up GCSE Spanish.
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15 January 2014 (Film Club)
In 2013 we launched three exciting inclusion projects alongside The Paul Hamlyn Foundation, focusing on using film to help students who face different forms of disadvantage.
The project is well underway now, with approximately 50 schools on each strand — Identity and Belonging, Rural Inclusion and SEN Inclusion. Now, a new selection of films have been added to each strand, along with brand new resources for each. These additions now mean that each film on the project has a free, accompanying resource to really enrich their screenings.
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15 January 2014 (TES)
Useful lesson starter or online homework listening practice for introducing comparisons in French. 'Plus .. que' + age. Useful for encouraging chat about birthdays and being older or younger than somebody else. Suitable for Primary to early Secondary levels. You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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15 January 2014 (TES)
Spanish Vocabulary exercises to reinforce and expand the vocabulary for Leisure and Free Time activities. Suitable for secondary learners.
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13 January 2014 (TES)
This is a starter activity for students to consider the problem of the energy crisis, and provides a list of verbs for them to suggest ideas/solutions to the problem. Suitable for Senior Phase Spanish students. You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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12 January 2014 (TES)
Cross-curricular PowerPoint and worksheet to introduce Matisse's work to BGE French learners whilst learning colours, shapes and opinions.
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10 January 2014 (TES)
When teaching about intercultural issues, it is crucial to let students experience how it feels to be culturally isolated from another person. A great way of doing this is through a game I like to call Ninja Chopsticks.
This article includes several ideas to introduce Japanese language and culture to your students. You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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7 January 2014 (Goethe-Institut)
The 2013 calendar JUGEND in DEUTSCHLAND provides materials on themes such as ‘Hobby & Freizeit’, ‘Zukunft’, ‘Freundschaft’ and can now be downloaded from the Goethe-Institut website. This resource contains topical information, authentic texts and comes with teaching resources and worksheets for each of the 12 themes presented in this file.
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7 January 2014 (Goethe-Institut)
We are pleased to announce two further screenings of Colour of the Ocean accompanied by discussion and language specific workshops (German, French, Spanish). This recent German feature film mixes three languages in a testimony to a multilingual world. It is ideal to stimulate and motivate Modern Language students while exploring themes from the wider curriculum.
The film study days are jointly organised by the Institut Français d’Ecosse, the Spanish Consejeria de Educación and the Goethe-Institut Glasgow and will take place on 17 January and 7 February.2014 at the Goethe-Institut Glasgow and Institut Français d’Ecosse.
Visit the Goethe-Institut website for further details and to book.
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6 January 2014 (Teachersmedia)
Teacher’s Media International provide online professional development services for the education sector. Sign up for free to access a range of video clips sharing best practice in both primary and secondary modern language classroom settings.
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6 January 2014 (LearnGaelicNet)
Why not try LearnGaelicNet’s new online course as an introduction to the language?
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18 December 2013 (TES)
A resource for secondary German pupils. Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory describes his very precise daily routine. The text is followed by true / false questions, a find the phrase exercise, a manipulation exercise, and a reminder about the verb needing to be the second idea.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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17 December 2013 (GrowStoryGrow)
GrowStoryGrow is offering some free stories for Christmas in English, French, Spanish and German - the nativity amongst others.
Visit the website and log in (via the red button on the top right hand side of the screen)
username: Christmas
password: stories
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13 December 2013 (TES)
Can Japanese poetry really help with another language? Si, si.
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12 December 2013 (One Year in Spanish blog)
There are about 25 notable Christmas markets or Marchés de Noël in France. Among these the traditional Christmas market in Strasbourg is the oldest and one of the largest. It dates back to the 16th century and spreads from the place de la Cathédrale throughout the city.
In our French beginners’ magazine Allons-y !, we have an article about the Christmas market in Strasbourg. It provides a glimpse into the magical world of its market stalls and local produce. It also gives information about the history of the town itself. Why not use this article with your students in class?
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9 December 2013 (One Year in Spanish blog)
Sue’s Y7 students are doing detective work: They are looking for conjugations of “Vivir” in the article ¡Vivimos aquí! I always thought this is a great starter to learning verbs: familarizing oneself with the way its conjugations look through discovering them in an authentic text. Additionally, knowing the various ways a verb can look is a great tool for accessing written texts. It’s a fantastic reading tool. See how many conjugations your students can find in our article!
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5 December 2013 (Edudemic)
Learning another language is important. And even in the United States (where learning non-native language has typically been lagging a bit behind many other countries), nearly all students are studying another language.
Languages are a part of everyday life – whether you speak one or more, they are one of the main keys of communication. Other than being able to speak a language (or not being able to speak it) there are a lot of fun facts about languages more generally.
Read on to discover more.
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5 December 2013 (Pearson Education)
Your pupils know about Navidad, but have they heard about El Dìa de los Reyes Magos? As a special festive gift we're giving you a whole unit to explain about this very traditional Spanish festival from ¡Viva! 1, our new Spanish course. Just add sweets! Download the free unit now.
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4 December 2013 (The Language Point)
Christmas resources for use or adaptation with students learning Spanish, French and German.
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4 December 2013 (DaF-Gewinnspiel)
A German grammar exercise on the passive present tense.
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4 December 2013 (German Teacher Resources)
Powerpoint and worksheet for the German language classroom on cognates for food and simple opinions.
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3 December 2013 (fliplearningmfl)
A blog detailing our journey through flipping the MFL classroom in the UK in a techy school on the outskirts of Southampton, Hampshire, including podcasts, videos and lesson plans.
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2 December 2013 (Radio Lingua Schools)
Access our daily episodes of Festive Phrases and learn to say “Happy Christmas” or “Happy New Year” to 2.6 billion people around the world!
The Festive Phrases course is available to members only, but you can sign up for a free account with Radio Lingua Schools.
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29 November 2013 (TES)
An introduction to colour words in Spanish for your early primary learners. You will need a TES userid and password to access the resources.
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28 November 2013 (SALT)
Many of the presentations delivered at November’s SALT TeachMeet are now available in the members area. You must be registered as a SALT member to access these.
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Related Links
Presentations from TeachMeet Languages Glasgow (audio file) EduTalk, 4 November 2013
28 November 2013 (SALT)
Some new Secondary level German teaching materials have been published in the member area. You will need to register, or already be registered, as a SALT member to access these resources.
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28 November 2013 (SALT)
A set of Advanced Higher French teaching materials are now available in the members area of the website. You will need to register, or already be registered, as a SALT member to access these resources.
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26 November 2013 (Multilingual Books)
We have gathered together here a number of free language lessons and language courses for those learning languages, along with some other language resources, such as online courses and exercises, podcasts, video lessons, alphabets, dictionaries, lexicons, verb conjugations, language communities, newspapers, articles, and books.
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25 November 2013 (Francotoile)
Listen to children from Quebec speaking about school and holidays. A useful listening resource for the French classroom.
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22 November 2013 (One Year in Spanish blog)
Have you watched the new Hunger Games film yet? We wrote about it in our November/December issue of Ahora. It’s a big hit with teens world-wide, we’re sure your students would love to have an excuse to talk about it in class!
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22 November 2013 (TES)
What is the eternal fascination with guessing games? Shakespeare's work is full of riddles, the Victorians played charades, my own offspring loved Pictionary and schoolchildren will grab a pen and play hangman at any opportunity.
As a teacher of languages - French, Spanish and English as a foreign language - I have always tried to tap into this fascination as a way of helping students of all ages to learn vocabulary and structures.
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21 November 2013 (One Year in Spanish blog)
To start our new page of German MFL teaching posts, Britta has written about the beginning of the Christmas season.
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20 November 2013 (Classroom 2.0)
There are so many parts of a lesson that each teacher wants to successfully teach. I'm sure we all have different opinions on which parts are most important. But what happens when you have only a minute or two left and you don’t want to miss your closure? As a Spanish teacher, I often teach a grammar lesson and then feel that I have to rush my closure as the minutes tick by. I would like to share a few ideas to do as a wrap up at the end of the period…
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20 November 2013 (Radio Lingua)
In this new lesson in our series you’ll learn to talk about likes and dislikes in German.
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20 November 2013 (Create Your World Book blog)
Melody and rhythm are important to learning a tonal language like Mandarin, but learning a tonal language through music is not the same as learning a non-tonal language like French. Listening to the language’s melody is critically important if you want to learn correct pronunciation or understand natural speech, but real ‘music’ – as in songs – is somewhat less helpful (although not useless) in learning pronunciation than it is in other languages.
I think about melody and music much more in learning Mandarin than I ever have when learning any other language. Scientific research has also confirmed that tonal languages share space with musical memory in the brain. In this post, I would like to share the many ways that thinking musically will help you advance in Mandarin, as well as how to (and how not to) use songs as part of your language learning.
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18 November 2013 (UK-German Connection)
The festive season approaches, and our websites for both primary and secondary pupils will be full of UK-German seasonal cheer with our Christmas Special!
Your pupils can:
- find out about St. Nikolaus and Knecht Ruprecht - Have they earned presents or the Rute on 6 December?
- practise their festive vocab with a Christmas memory game and jigsaw
- sing along to German carols such as Stille Nacht and Kling, Glöckchen
- learn Christmas facts, play games and enter this year's Christmas competition in our interactive Advent calendar (online from 1 December)
- learn how to bake a Lebkuchenhaus and Herrenplätzchen
Follow the links below to the relevant magazine pages:
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15 November 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
In this new video clip Felix is telling about his life in a small village in Bavaria and in particular about his project “Plant-for-the-planet”. The video is available with English subtitles and in addition an interactive transcript is provided to make it easily accessible to young learners.
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14 November 2013 (One Year in Spanish blog)
Sue’s Year 7s have been working with the article ¡Uau! ¿Son Latinos?. As groups, they had to work out the meaning of the different paragraphs – as you can see and hear in the video.
Our Teacher’s Notes writer suggests that this article is a great springboard for beginners to learn to write a brief biography that introduces a person to a group.
Article and lesson plan available for free download.
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14 November 2013 (Lyrics Training)
Italian pop song by Laura Pausini with lyrics and games for beginner to advanced level.
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11 November 2013 (SCHOLAR)
New ‘How To’ video tutorials are available to help teachers familiarise themselves with SCHOLAR. “Succeed with SCHOLAR” is a new course that is available to teachers (a student version of the course is coming soon) after logging in to SCHOLAR, featuring a series of short 'How To' video tutorials that provide explanations and advice about how to make the best use of key aspects of the online materials.
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11 November 2013 (One Year in Spanish blog)
We are thrilled to announce that we will soon be adding pages for French, English and German to our blog, and we would love you to join in and use these pages to post your own teaching ideas. Whether you have testimonies, activities, lesson plans, pictures of classroom displays, student work or performances from your classroom to share with the world, we would love to hear from you. This is your invitation to become one of our guest bloggers!
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11 November 2013 (Sylvia Duckworth)
A Google Presentations interactive story where you choose the adventure Molly the cat takes.
Also see how to make a “choose your own adventure” story with Google apps via the link below.
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10 November 2013 (neiljones.org)
The resources attached to this post are linked to teaching the time in Spanish to beginners. In slides 22 and 59 there are links to some great websites where you can get some interactive practice taking place. The site contains a variety of resources and teaching ideas for secondary Spanish and French, with a small section on teaching numbers in Mandarin Chinese.
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8 November 2013 (UK-German Connection)
A reminder that the primary and secondary versions of the award-winning Arsenal FC Double Club: German resources have been updated for the 2013-14 season.
In particular, the primary module has been completely overhauled, with detailed, step-for-step teachers' notes, interactive PowerPoint presentations and a brand-new, bright and colourful pupils' workbook.
Visit the Double Club website for more information.
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8 November 2013 (TES)
A comprehension activity inspired by trailers for French- language films for secondary students. A great resource to use as a starting point for a lesson on French cinema, this reading activity is fun and focuses on key language skills.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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6 November 2013 (YouTube)
A Chinese TV programme, on YouTube, which gives insight into China and the Chinese and is very good for pupils who may not know a lot about China even if they have a Chinese background.
There are subtitles all the way through so it is suitable for many types of classes/teachers/pupils. It is a TV series called: “Dad, where shall we go?” Children and their fathers are followed in various places in China. The programme aims to develop the independence of the child, to develop them as responsible citizens and get them to think and stand on their own two feet.
Follow the link below to the first episode of 爸爸去哪儿
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5 November 2013 (Radio Lingua)
In lesson two of our new series, we’ll be listening to Sylvie’s reply to Monique’s email from last week.
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4 November 2013 (Mary Glasgow)
Reír es sano – laughing is healthy – is what they say in Spain. To help you restore your energy levels for the count-down to Christmas, we have compiled a list of 9 Spanish jokes – with a linguistic twist. Do you know what it is?
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1 November 2013 (GrowStoryGrow)
GrowStoryGrow is launching 50 new bite-sized stories in 6 different languages in summer 2014.
Find out more on the GrowStoryGrow website.
Read more...
Related Links
On the website you will also find a story for Guy Fawkes and Remembrance Day, available for free until the end of November. Visit
GrowStoryGrow.
1 November 2013 (TES)
Resources for the MFL classroom from TES:
- Onze, douze, treize - an activity for practising counting in French for lower primary pupils.
- Spanish scenes - a worksheet on towns and neighbourhoods for senior phase Spanish lessons. Fantastic for revision of key vocabulary and for practising dictionary skills.
You will need a TES userid and password to access these resources.
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1 November 2013 (Consejería de Educacíon)
Si, Si, Si is an effective tool for teaching Spanish to children from five years. The materials have been designed in such a way that they can be used by teachers with limited Spanish proficiency in most educational settings. Each volume includes: lesson plans, vocabulary cards, worksheets, audio and video scripts, songs, multimedia activities and flash animations.
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1 November 2013 (TES)
A bookmark to help senior phase students use idiomatic expressions in their speaking & writing.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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31 October 2013 (YazikOpen)
YazikOpen is an online directory linking to over 4000 items of FREE open access research into the teaching and learning of Modern Foreign Languages.
Whether you are a student, a language teacher or a researcher how wants to learn more about how people learn languages then YazikOpen is for you.
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31 October 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
‘German with Felix and Franzi’ is a brand new resource to support the teaching of German in the Primary School.
The content has been developed by German native speakers in partnership with UK primary teachers. Children will be introduced to the language by a frog called Felix Frosch and a duck called Franzi Ente. A central element of the course is to enable the children to develop cultural awareness of aspects of life in German speaking countries as well as creating a love for language learning.
The resource is free to download from the Goethe-Institut website.
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30 October 2013 (UK-German Connection)
St. Martin's Day is fast approaching (on 11 November), and children throughout Germany are looking forward to making lanterns and singing songs at a traditional St. Martin's Day procession.
Why not teach your pupils about these fascinating German customs with the Voyage Kids St. Martin's Day Special?
- Teach your pupils how kids celebrate St. Martin's Day in Germany
- St. Martin's Day memory game. How quickly can your pupils find the pairs?
- Basteln - Make a colourful St. Martin's Day lantern
- Laterne, Laterne & Ich geh' mit meiner Laterne songs – sing along with your pupils! (featuring recordings from UK primary schools)
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29 October 2013 (Radio Lingua)
Coming soon from Radio Lingua: learn French with Emma and Mathilde in our audio and video French lessons for children.
High Five French is aimed at learners aged 8-11 and encourages children to build their language skills, increase their understanding and to develop an awareness of another culture. Topics covered include greetings, personal information, birthdays, home, family, pets, clothes, sports and pastimes.
Full details of the course will be released in the coming weeks and months.
Read more...
28 October 2013 (Learning Spanish for Beginners)
Learn Spanish with ‘Monsters University’! Really engaging way to learn using a movie trailer.
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28 October 2013 (Radio Lingua)
In this first episode of our new series, we’ll be listening to Monique’s first email to her daughter Sylvie. As we heard in the season preview last week, Sylvie has recently moved to Paris and, like any mother, Monique is worrying about her daughter, but is equally excited for her as she begins this new adventure.
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25 September 2013 (TES)
List of celebrity quotes about the value of language learning from CILT, put into powerpoint, plus pictures (Google Images) for corridor display.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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24 October 2013 (TES)
Using J K Rowling’s novels, this worksheet contains five tasks to enable your secondary students to develop reading, writing and speaking skills in the context of describing self and others in German.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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23 October 2013 (Consejería de Educación)
Tecla is an online publication for teachers and students of Spanish. It is published monthly by the Consejería de Educación in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
It includes texts for levels A (beginner), B (intermediate) and C (advanced) of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, besides learning tasks and their solutions. It is also accompanied by recordings of the written texts.
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23 October 2013 (TES)
A PowerPoint to introduce your secondary pupils to some Halloween vocabulary in French, to practise quantities and to enable them to write their own magic potion recipes.
Follow the link below to access a German version.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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23 October 2013 (TES)
Activities for your Senior Phase French students including:
- map of France with task to do first (optional)
- Cards with new 'identities'
- Find someone who - personal details/description/likes/ dislikes (round 1)
- Find someone who - town/part of France one comes from (round 2).
You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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23 October 2013 (TES)
Sequence of questions relating to Van Gogh's painting of his bedroom. Practice of colour, prepositions, and bedroom objects. For the first set of questions, students can see the painting. For the second set they have to do it from memory. Suitable for S1-S3 German students.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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23 October 2013 (Palmyra Spanish blog)
One thing I know my students need more exposure to is listening to the target language from someone other than me. Today I tried an activity using the Mary Glasgow website that worked well and required little preparation. News recordings and readings are available in Spanish and French at different levels.
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21 October 2013 (Radio Lingua)
Welcome to this brand new season of Coffee Break French, and in this opening introductory episode, Mark and Pierre-Benoît talk about what you can expect in this season. They introduce two of the featured characters in the series, Sylvie and Matthieu, both of whom have recently moved to Paris for work.
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19 October 2013 (TES)
Video clips on a variety of topics, themes and skill areas for your French classroom. Use as starters, motivators and presentations to engage your students with the target language. Always check the clip before use in the classroom as a wide range of age groups are catered for.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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18 October 2013 (TES)
Thinking skills on food & drink for your secondary French students - a family have been poisoned, pupils use clues and menu to work out what they chose in the restaurant and which food they all had in their meal that poisoned them.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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18 October 2013 (One Year in Spanish)
El Día de los Muertos is celebrated between the 31st of October and 2nd of November. To help you to introduce your students to the Mexican holiday and to encourage your students to take part in the festivities we have prepared a variety of resources for you to download. First up our article ¡Viva el Dia de los Muertos!
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18 October 2013 (Lanternfish)
These Spanish Halloween flashcards can be used to teach the rooms of a house, prepositions of place, furniture in a house, and lots of monsters!
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17 October 2013 (TES)
This activity develops the use of the question 'How much does it/do they cost?' in Spanish and the response using euros. Incorporates cross-curricular themes: literacy and numeracy in the primary classroom.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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17 October 2013 (TES)
A Powerpoint quiz to introduce pupils to Spanish through some general knowledge on culture and language.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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15 October 2013 (TES)
Simple introductions in French for young beginners. A video to add a bit of joy to learning French if you have online access to YouTube. It introduces them to Billy - star of lots of other free resources by agreenmouse.
You will need a TES userid and password to access these materials.
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15 October 2013 (CILT Cymru)
Children’s and youth literature from Europe, in the original language: French, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian. The collection can be borrowed free for 2-4 weeks.
See the Eurotoolbox webpage for more information and how to book the resources.
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15 October 2013 (European Commission/ThirdYearAbroad)
The European Commission has teamed up with ThirdYearAbroad.com to interview UK language graduates and discover how their language skills have benefited their careers.
The graduates featured in the clips have found work in business, finance, the media, the police, international development, education, sport, diplomacy and translation thanks to their language abilities and the skills developed on the year abroad.
There are fourteen two-minute video interviews, each featuring a different graduate, and one longer five-minute video summarising the key message that languages boost your career.
Read more...
11 October 2013 (TESS)
If students are unable to speak English, how can they learn Spanish or French?
Alex Harrison, a foreign languages teacher in North London, outlines his techniques for addressing this issue.
The item also contains a list of Top 10 resources for teaching your French, German and Spanish learners. You will need a TES userid and password to access the resources.
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11 October 2013 (Education Scotland)
Education Scotland’s resource calendar contains links to a selection of Hallowe’en resources in French, German, Italian and Spanish.
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10 October 2013 (Dundee Contemporary Arts)
The Discovery Film Festival 2013 takes place between 19 October and 3 November and offers a variety of foreign language films for all ages.
Opening this year's festival is the UK premiere of 'Victor and the Secret of Crocodile Mansion' – a hugely enjoyable mystery thriller that will have all the family guessing as to exactly what lies behind the secrets of Crocodile Mansion. Suspenseful and atmospheric, it’s a classic Hitchcockian mystery for thrill seekers aged eight upwards. Screening is in German with English subtitles and open to the public.
For schools, there is a programme of events running from 22 - 31 October, with screenings suitable for primary and secondary students in a variety of languages including French, German, Spanish, Russian and Japanese.
See the DCA website for full programme details.
The schools programme and booking information can also be accessed directly via the link below.
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Posted in:
Primary,
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
French,
German,
Spanish,
Scotland,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Resources,
News from language & education organisations,
Russian,
Japanese
10 October 2013 (Speak to the Future)
We’re highlighting inspiring projects happening across the country which are promoting languages to the wider public – showing those in the languages community what you could do, and helping to give those outside an insight into the value of languages and language learning.
There are a host of projects and websites covering a number of languages for all ages – take a look and see what will inspire you.
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Posted in:
Early Years,
Primary,
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
FE,
HE,
All Languages,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
News from language & education organisations
9 October 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
This online course suits those with busy schedules who want to learn German fast. The course enables you to study an entire level in just 4 months. On offer are levels A1 (A1.1 & A1.2) and A2 (A2.1 & A2.2).
The course will be fully online through use of tailor-made online materials. Please plan to spend about 7 study hours per week. There will be written interaction with your fellow students on a dedicated website, regualr tutor support and virtual conferences for practising speaking with others.
Visit the Goethe-Institut website for further information and to enrol by 24 October 2013.
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8 October 2013 (SCILT)
See our Vampirschule resources for S1-S3 pupils.
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8 October 2013 (La Souris)
A selection of Hallowe’en themed games and activities for your pre-school and primary French learners.
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8 October 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
Available from mid October 2013, the Goethe-Institut are offering a new opportunity for pupils ready to embrace a new language. This free, motivational game is suitable for P7 to S3, with the main target group being S2 and S3 before subject choice.
This unique motivational game sends its participants on a discovery tour through 16 cities in Germany and Austria cities, each with an interactive task to complete.
A team of native German speakers will visit your school and set up a German adventure course with 16 discovery stations for a half-day of interactive German language fun.
Visit the Goethe-Institut website for full details and to register your interest.
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8 October 2013 (Filmhouse)
As part of the French Film Festival 2013 (Fri 12 Nov to Thu 25 Nov) Filmhouse are screening these fantastic new films for Edinburgh schools:
- Little Lion - Tuesday 12 November, 10am (101 min)
Suitable for P7 - S4 - Day of the Crows - Tuesday 19 November, 10am (96 min)
Suitable for 8+, P5 - S2
Tickets for both films are £2.60 per pupil, teachers free. To book please call our Duty Manager on 0131 228 2688 or email admin@filmhousecinema.com.
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7 October 2013 (The Guardian)
The British Academy and the Guardian are holding a national Language Festival throughout November 2013 to celebrate the UK's diverse cultural richness and raise the profile of language learning among learners of all ages. Throughout November, the festival will provide a platform for schools, higher education institutions, policy makers and businesses from across the UK to discuss, debate and explore the academic, cultural and economic benefits of language learning.
To celebrate the launch of the Language Festival, we have created a series of downloadable packs for primary and secondary schools, as well as businesses, to provide ideas for organising your own language-related events.
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6 October 2013 (TES)
A set of posters (6 in total) to be displayed and referred to in class as a reference point for students to improve their language. Includes formation of Verbs & Tenses, Opinion and Reason Phrases, justifying opinions and main Question words.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resources.
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6 October 2013 (Speak Italian)
Part of the Speak Languages! network of websites, the site offers a wide range of materials to help learn Italian, with phrases and vocabulary broken down into topics and themes. Access to the site is completely free. We are currently adding sound, and soon users will also be able to hear all the phrases and vocabulary spoken by native Italian speakers.
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6 October 2013 (Experiencia Prezi HCFN)
‘İBicis sí! ¿Por qué?’ is an eye-catching presentation created by Experiencia Prezi HCFN. This transport themed prezi in Spanish compares and contrasts bicycles and cars in terms of their impact on the environment. Freely accessible and suitable for BGE learners.
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6 October 2013 (Spanish Plans)
Radamel Falaco, who plays club fútbol for Atlético Madrid in Spain’s La Liga, is a major component of getting Colombia to the World Cup in Brasil in 2014. Read about this tremendous goal-scorer. Always a good debate: who are the 11 best soccer players ever? See if your Spanish students agree with this editor’s Starting 11 for All-Time World’s Best Players.
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5 October 2013 (Spanish Playground)
Traditional games in Spanish teach language and culture. These 12 games are from Latin America and Spain. All of them incorporate language, so they are excellent to play with children learning Spanish. In addition to vocabulary and common grammatical structures, the games are culturally relevant and fun.
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2 October 2013 (SCILT)
More from Game On! SCILT and Education Scotland have developed a learning journey designed to support the learning and teaching of modern languages at 3rd level.
Using the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games as a context this learning journey suggests opportunities for learners to explore ideas about how to promote Scotland as a destination to foreign visitors and encourages them to consider the importance of being able to communicate in different languages. Learners are also encouraged to consider the sustainability of the tourist industry by considering the impact of tourism on the environment, examining Eco-tourism projects overseas and designing similar projects in Scotland.
A Game On GLOW Meet to introduce all the literacy and languages learning journeys will take place later in the year. On your marks for GLOW tv!
The resource is available to download now at the Game On! website.
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2 October 2013 (TES)
Body parts bingo cards which can be used in any languages. Print and laminate them so they can be used with board pens, be wiped off and re-used over and over again.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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1 October 2013 (GrowStoryGrow)
A free Autumn story in English, French and Spanish which teaches colours, weather, seasons and sentence-building, of course! You can access this story with all its resources from the 1st of October to the 25th.
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30 September 2013 (TES)
Useful resources to help your secondary French students.
You will need a TES username and password to access the materials.
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30 September 2013 (Scots Language Centre)
National Poetry Day 2013 is on Thursday 3 October, and this year's theme is water. Among the poems being promoted is the Scots language poem by George Campbell Hay 'Seeker, Reaper'. Suitable for study by secondary pupils, the following resources have been provided by the Scottish Poetry Library.
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27 September 2013 (Parlons Français, C'est Facile)
Parlons Français , C'est Facile! is a free online resource for learning French, designed specifically for young adults.
Just like at the cinema: let yourself be guided by the webdocs and discover life in France through the eyes of four characters. As you go, workshops and games will help you to understand, learn and practise French.
Read more...
27 September 2013 (TES)
A collection of French language resources looking at fashion. Suitable for secondary students.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resources.
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27 September 2013 (TES)
A 40 page booklet on basic verbs and tenses: Presente, Futuro, Condicional, Pretérito perfecto, Pretérito indefinido, Pretérito imperfecto. You can print it in an A5 booklet. Perfect for exam skills and revision for the Senior Phase.
You will need a TES username and password to access the materials.
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27 September 2013 (Arsenal Football Club)
Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta has spoken about the importance of learning language skills ahead of the European Day of Languages, which encourages more people to learn a foreign tongue both in and out of school.
Arsenal in the Community has long championed language learning through its successful Double Club model – an innovative education and football programme which aims to fuse football and education to form a fun and enjoyable way for young people to engage with their academic studies and football at the same time.
In addition to Arsenal-themed language learning materials for German, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Italian, a DVD of one of Arsenal’s players speaking in their native language is provided as an exciting classroom resource.
Read more...
Related Links
Double Club German – new resources for 2013-14 season! (UK-German Connection, 24 September 2013) Double Club: German is a joint project by Arsenal FC, the Goethe-Institut London and UK-German Connection. It is an innovative education and football programme which aims to show pupils that German can be fun, improving their knowledge of the German language and culture in a joint football / German club. Pupils attend one session per week, which can take place after school, in lesson time or during holidays, and is split up into two 45-minute sessions. Available as a module for primary or secondary level pupils, new materials for the 2013-14 season are now available. Follow the link above to find out more about the programme and how to sign up.
Posted in:
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
French,
German,
Italian,
Spanish,
Cross-Curricular Working,
Language Learning,
Promoting Languages,
Resources,
News from language & education organisations,
Sport,
Portuguese
26 September 2013 (Education Scotland/SCILT)
Learning ideas around the context of the Commonwealth Games are available at the Game On! website.
SCILT and Education Scotland have developed a learning journey designed to support the learning and teaching of modern languages at primary level.
Read more...
Posted in:
French,
Gaelic,
German,
Italian,
Spanish,
Scotland,
Language Learning - Primary,
Language Teaching,
Resources,
SCILT news,
News from language & education organisations,
Sport
25 September 2013 (The Guardian)
According to recent reports the popularity of foreign languages at GCSE and A-Level has reached an all-time low.
Those of us involved in teaching languages – and anyone who's experienced the satisfaction derived from mastering another language – will find this disappointing and worrying. In our global world learning languages is important for many reasons – it expands cultural horizons, breaks down barriers and increases opportunities for young people interested in living or working abroad. In addition, studies have shown that studying a foreign language can improve memory, brain power and use of English. All of which is why we, as educators, must be creative and use all available tools to reverse the current trend and inspire more of our students to study languages.
One such tool is film.
Read more...
25 September 2013 (Linguanet)
In celebration of the European Day of Languages 2013 we are allowing everyone to access the popular online learning website 'Babelzone' from now until the end of September for FREE.
This special offer is ideal for MFL teachers celebrating the European Day of Languages, and for young French and Spanish learners. Packed full of songs, animated stories, games, worksheets and phonics, Babelzone is an exciting interactive resource for the classroom.
To login go to the Babelzone home page http://www.lcfclubs.com/babelzonenew/index.asp and login with these details:
Username: babelzone
Password: LCFCLUBS2013
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24 September 2013 (RTVE)
Ideal for your early Spanish learners. Cartoons including Peppa Pig, Spongebob, Postman Pat and many more favourites from the Spanish channel RTVE.
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24 September 2013 (Mary Glasgow)
A Mary Glasgow resource on Oktoberfest for your German classroom. Register for free to download the materials. The site permits 5 free downloads following registration or you can obtain an annual subscription to access all the language magazine materials for just £15 per year.
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23 September 2013 (Spanishbootcamp)
Try some active Spanish lesson resources with your primary learners. ‘Tres Saltos’ is another really simple game which gets the children actively involved in learning a language as well as physically fit. The game moves along at a nice pace and it’s only the next day when the children realise how much of a workout it is! It really works the legs and the core muscles when done properly.
Read more...
Related Links
La Lucha - ‘La Lucha’ is a favourite game for many of the children. So easy to play, extremely visual and kinaesthetic, perfect for a bit of competition.
19 September 2013 (ALL)
Free screenings of foreign language films to inspire young people From Therese Desqyeyroux to Wadjda, from Clara and the Secret of the Bears to AninA, over 30 foreign films in languages including French, German, Spanish, Dutch, Japanese, Arabic and Hindi will be on offer at the first National Youth Film Festival, taking place from 21 Oct – 08 Nov 2013.
This groundbreaking new Festival is free to school groups all over the UK and offers young people aged 5-19 the chance to enjoy a wide variety of films, learn about film-making and meet film industry professionals. Linked to a packed programme of over 1600 free screenings, Q&A’s, workshops and events are over 100 teaching resources, including several related to the curriculum, to enable teachers to use screenings to bring learning to life, develop review writing and critical skills, or teach pupils about film and filmmaking. These range from a Beginner’s Guide to French Movies, to teaching ideas for, and guides to, individual films to encourage post-screening discussions and continued work back in the classroom.
Visit the ALL website for full details.
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Posted in:
Primary,
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
French,
German,
Spanish,
Celebrating Languages,
Language Learning,
Resources,
News from language & education organisations,
Japanese,
Arabic
19 September 2013 (Mary Glasgow)
It’s fashion week in Madrid. Why not use this article to kick off your Spanish lesson in style!
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19 September 2013 (ALL)
26 September is the European Day of Languages, so to tie in with this event and help schools to celebrate Europe's linguistic diversity, ALL has teamed up with FILMCLUB to put together a new resource featuring five foreign language films, each from a different country and each with synopsis, talking points, teachers’ notes and activities.
Read more...
18 September 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
We are delighted to present this superb new German film in co-operation with a number of local cinemas. In German, Spanish and French with subtitles, it is ideal for the multilingual classroom and its relevant topic lends itself to further exploration in a cross-curricular learning context. The Colour of the Ocean is woven around attitudes to the waves of African refugees seeking a better life in Europe. The struggle to do the right thing places issues of responsibility, compassion and moral duty at the heart of an utterly compelling human drama.
There is also a study guide available with language specific exercises in German, French and Spanish. This resource has been developed by the Goethe-Institut, in association with the Institut Français d’Ecosse and the Spanish Consejeria de Educación. It can be downloaded from our website.
Screenings take place during October in Bo'ness, Edinburgh and Dundee.
For those unable to attend the screenings, the film can also be borrowed from the Goethe-Institut's own library.
Full details are available on their website.
Read more...
17 September 2013 (GrowStoryGrow)
Every year, to help celebrate the European Day of Languages, GrowStoryGrow opens up its site for two weeks allowing children all over the world to experience over a hundred enchanting stories, in 5 different languages, for free.
Visit the website for further information and to access the materials.
Read more...
16 September 2013 (Open University)
The book showcases some of the ways in which practitioners in different settings are engaging with the concept of openness in language teaching and learning. It contains contributions on: open tools for collaboration; sharing resources; sharing practices; collaborative learning and student-generated content; and learner autonomy. We hope it will provide ideas for language teachers who might want to dip their toes into the world of Open Educational Resources (OER) and Open Educational Practices (OEP), or maybe experiment further.
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Primary language resources
16 September 2013 (Primary Languages)
Primary Languages have highlighted new Peppa Pig and Caillou resources available free on YouTube. They are approachable with clear pronunciation and relevant vocabulary. You can do lots of vocabulary work prior to watching them plus the animations are short enough to keep their attention.
Versions are available in French, Spanish and Italian:
16 September 2013 (British Council)
The Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival, is the second most important festival in the Chinese lunar calendar after Chinese New Year. This year the festival will fall on 19 September.
To tie in with the festival, the British Council has created an education pack to help primary schools across the UK explore Chinese culture and language.
Focusing on the most famous story associated with the Mid-Autumn Festival, the legend of the great archer Hòu Yì and his love for the moon goddess Cháng É, the pack is designed to introduce young people to Chinese festivals, legends and geography.
Read more...
13 September 2013 (TES)
A French test where Senior Phase students must match questions and answers from an interview with the new Doctor Who.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resource.
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13 September 2013 (Institut français)
The Institut français has produced many activities around "Les nombres / numbers" which are free to download from their website.
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12 September 2013 (TES)
A powerpoint about French celebrities to revise and work on descriptions, with songs links for singers, just to add a little bit of fun.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
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11 September 2013 (eTwinning via Twitter)
Be inspired by this site set up by German students trying to motivate language learning. Follow the travels of Jeffrey the vulture…or get involved and invite him to visit your school! You could even start a travel buddy scheme with your own MFL students and get them to produce a travel diary in the target language.
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10 September 2013 (TES)
This lesson uses the song Du schreibst Geschichte by Madsen to explain the use of weil (nearly every line in the verses starts with weil). There is a gap fill sheet to do while listening to the song, and then a worksheet to practise using weil. Both sheets have two different versions depending on level.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the resources.
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9 September 2013 (Education Scotland)
Over the past few weeks, Education Scotland has published a number of new assessment and moderation exemplars, produced by practitioners, on the National Assessment Resource. This includes examples of innovative assessment practice in Gaelic in both primary and secondary sectors. The Gaelic exemplars may also be of interest to teachers of Modern Languages looking for creative ways to assess the broad general education.
Access the materials (you will need your Glow username and password)
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7 September 2013 (Mary Glasgow)
For more than two years now we, at Mary Glasgow Magazines, have been producing language-learning videos especially for the MFL classroom – like this video here, featuring Aitor and Ana, two siblings from Barcelona.
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7 September 2013 (TES)
This resource is a snakes and ladders board which could be used with any language - just teach them the appropriate vocabulary first. Suitable for S1-S3.
You will need a TES userid and password to access the materials.
Read more...
5 September 2013 (Mary Glasgow)
Use this article to discuss zoos and animal welfare with your secondary Spanish pupils.
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4 September 2013 (Radio Lingua)
Find out the difference between encontrar and encontrarse in this week’s episode of Coffee Break Spanish.
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2 September 2013 (The Guardian)
This week the Guardian Teacher Network has resources for pupils and teachers to help with learning and teaching Mandarin Chinese.
There are lots of useful materials and tips from various sources including Pete Goodman of Bamboo Learning.
The British Council's new pack exploring the Chinese mid-Autumn festival (also known as the Moon Festival), which this year falls on 19 September, will be available on Schoolsonline before the festival begins. The Confucius Institute at Manchester University has also shared their lovely PowerPoint on the stories of the Chinese Moon Festival.
Read more...
2 September 2013 (FILMCLUB)
Throughout September FILMCLUB will be going "tous les francais" and be challenging your clubs to screen a film from a special French topic from the FILMCLUB website. So dig out your berets, get baking those croissants and download our special resources which include fun ways to decorate your film club room as well as games and costume ideas.
Resources are available for primary and secondary on the website.
Read more...
29 August 2013 (TES)
These days the pupils have easy access to a zip-zap virtual world and the demands of foreign language learning can seem tedious, demanding and unreal. To survive, we need to harness the new technology - and have our zany moments. Read on for some creative lesson ideas to break free from repetitive languages teaching.
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28 August 2013 (UK-German Connection)
The traditional 'Back to School' special is now online on the Voyage Kids website. Why not start the new school year by teaching your primary pupils all about school life in Germany? If you're feeling creative, you could even get started the German way by making Schultüten, using our handy step-by-step instructions!
The Back to School special includes:
- Find out: A typical school day in Germany
- Basteln: Make a Schultüte!
- Memory game: How quickly can your pupils find the matching pairs?
- 'School words' quizzes
Lesson planning:
To help you plan and get the most out of our seasonal special features, we've created a calendar overview of all of the specials throughout the year. These include our Christmas and Easter specials, as well as topical specials (e.g. the Birthday special), which vary from year to year.
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27 August 2013 (Mandarin Explorer)
'Mandarin Explorer' is a platform for learners of Mandarin that is created & owned by Gabriella Belcher, an experienced Mandarin teacher based in Hong Kong. These visual tools are designed for Mandarin teachers & learners.
Read more...
23 August 2013 (TESS)
TESS has produced 10 lesson plans for the MFL classroom to help celebrate the European Day of Languages on 26 September.
You will need a TES userid/login to access the materials.
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22 August 2013 (Teresa Mackinnon)
Le français animé website contains bite-size clips explaining elements of grammar in an accessible way. Best suited to the secondary French classroom.
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Materials to support IDL learning in French
22 August 2013 (SCILT)
The following websites contain materials which could be used to support interdisciplinary learning in French:
For secondary learners:
Universcience.tv - short clips explaining aspects of science.
Culturetheque - online comics with a historical focus.
For primary learners:
Milan schools - register for authentic downloadables to support IDL in French.
22 August 2013 (SCILT)
Materials created by one of the teachers in North Ayrshire Council have been uploaded onto #mlscilt for National 4 Added Value Unit in French.
You will need a Glow userid/login to access the materials.
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19 August 2013 (Radio Lingua)
There’s nothing worse that bad weather when you’re on holiday and in this week’s Coffee Break German you’ll learn to avoid it so that you can enjoy travelling in a German-speaking part of the world even more.
Read more...
16 August 2013 (TESS)
Introduce your class to some of Dahl's much-loved characters in French - for example, Monsieur Fox and Le Bon Gros Geant.
Scroll down the Lesson Plans page to find this Roald Dahl Day resource.
Read more...
16 August 2013 (GFLI)
Here you will find video presentations, teaching material, study guides and useful links to key German films. All the material has been developed by postgraduate students at universities across the UK and is designed for students at Senior Phase. Even if you are not studying an individual film, the presentations and supporting materials will allow you to develop your understanding of key topics such as German national identity, regions of Germany, social issues and German history.
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12 August 2013 (Connect Learning Today blog)
Learning and teaching opportunities for languages sometimes occur in unexpected places. As exam pressure was starting to get unbearable for some of my classes, I discovered this summer how visuals from Facebook and Pinterest could be used to motivate students in my French and Spanish lessons as well as support their literacy in general.
Read more...
12 August 2013 (British Council eTwinning)
eTwinning promotes school collaboration in Europe through the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). This YouTube film illustrates how eTwinning can transform classroom practice to motivate teachers and pupils and help raise standards. Children and young adults of all ages from England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland all feature in the video celebrataing their success through eTwinning partnerships.
The video contains a strong focus on eTwinning partnerships providing a collaborative tool for language learning.
Read more...
Related Links
More information on eTwinning can be found on the
British Council eTwinning website. There is also free support available to help schools set up their eTwinning partnership.
9 August 2013 (TES)
A simple French Number Line to be used on display in a classroom. This could be printed full size or reduced to print in multiples to make flashcards. A lovely free teaching resource for an Early Years or Primary classroom.
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Short films for language learning
2 August 2013 (Languages on Screen)
Short films can make fantastic authentic texts for language learners.
Languages on Screen has a selection of shorts that is freely available to Scottish educators with a GLOW log in, and each is accompanied with teaching resources. Most appropriate for secondary learners. Films in German, French, Spanish and Italian.
Several of the shorts on the
Screening Shorts and
Moving Image Education websites have a soundtrack though no spoken word. Discussion and response to these films could be done in the target language. Teaching resources are also provided to accompany all of the films are provided. In addition, thanks to a creative commons licence, the shorts are available for download for education purposes. The films could then be imported into Windows Movie Maker and learners could add their own audio track in the target language. Potentially suitable for secondary and primary learners.
Also available to buy for primary learners of French, is the ‘Ciné-mini’ DVD from
British Film Institut which also includes teaching resources.
29 July 2013 (TES)
Why not begin the new term with this powerpoint guide for students on using a foreign language dictionary for their studies.
You will need a TES userid/login to access the materials.
Read more...
25 June 2013 (UK-German Connection)
Help us shape the future of voyage kids and win goodies for the classroom!
With the changing educational landscape in mind, we are currently in the process of evaluating the voyage kids website to ensure that it continues to meet teachers' needs and remains a useful source of information, ideas and features for use both in and out of the classroom.
As a UK primary teacher, your input in this review is vital! To take part, all you need to do is fill in a very brief questionnaire - this is designed mainly to gain an impression of how you use voyage kids and which features you find most useful, as well as gathering your suggestions for new content and features.
You can download the questionnaire from our website.
Your input and ideas would be greatly appreciated! If you can spare a few moments to take part, please fill in the questionnaire and send it back to us at kids@ukgermanconnection.org by Monday 22 July.
As a little 'thank you' for completing the questionnaire, we will be delighted to send you a pack of voyage kids 'animals / fairy tales' postcards for use in the classroom. We also have some fantastic goodies to give away to the senders of the most informative questionnaires, including picture dictionaries and geographical jigsaw puzzles - perfect for teaching geography in German!
Read more...
21 June 2013 (TESS)
LANGUAGES/ART
A personal touch
People love owning things that reflect their personalities. Ask your students to devise a business creating bespoke personal items for their friends. Even if they have to wear a uniform their pencil case can be unique, just like them.
Start with a "style board" of the kind used by professional designers: a collage made from scraps of material, photographs, text, sweet wrappers - anything that captures something of what they want from their finished design.
For a modern foreign languages lesson, incorporate words or short phrases in the target language. These could evoke the personalities of the student's clients by describing them or naming things that matter to them.
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21 June 2013 (TESS)
The use of social media sites in language learning does not have to preclude good grammar - in fact, it can introduce students to words through a familiar medium.
We begin with a lesson starter of verb conjugation. "Tuiteo, tuiteas, tuitea ..." The group soon deduces the words' meaning - tuit (tweet) and tuitear (Twitter) will be included in the 2014 edition of the Royal Spanish Academy's dictionary.
Next we follow an El Clasico football match between Real Madrid and Barcelona on the Twitter feed of sports daily Marca. Students quickly appreciate the value of the medium: bite-sized chunks of colloquial language prompting immediate intellectual engagement.
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20 June 2013 (Frenchteachernet blog)
I gather that some schools and departments have a policy which forbids teachers from showing films to classes at the end of term. I used to have slightly mixed feelings about this issue, but on balance I believe that showing a movie in the foreign language with subtitles, even without any attached work, is a valid activity.
Steven Smith explains why and suggests some French films to share with your students, including a collection of quirky short movies.
Read more...
19 June 2013 (SCHOLAR)
In an exciting change to our Annual Conference, we are pleased to announce that this year we will be touring Scottish schools in our own SCHOLAR Bus.
The SCHOLAR Bus timetable has still to be finalised, however, our staff will be on their journey during the 2nd to 6th September 2013. There will be 10 bus stops throughout the central belt of Scotland and we hope to stop at your school or one near you. If this venture is a success, then we will extend it to all of Scotland in future years.
Visit the SCHOLAR website for more information about the SCHOLAR bus and to experience some of the material provided by SCHOLAR for both teachers and students covering a range of subjects, such as Mandarin, Chemistry and Mathematics.
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14 June 2013 (TESS)
Bring language to life by retelling the story of Sleeping Beauty in Spanish.
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12 June 2013 (elearningeuropa)
Young Europeans Love Languages (YELL) is a network of European partners committed to promote language learning as a key skill of lifelong learning.
The project (2009-2011) identified a number of tools to raise awareness and to demonstrate the importance of language learning and produced the YELL Handbook, targeted at multipliers in non-formal and formal education, providers of cultural, social and sport activities for young people.
The Handbook provides insight on how to implement best practices on raising awareness about cultural diversity and motivation of young people to learn foreign languages. The tools are designed for all education and vocational qualification institutions and for the trainers.
Read more...
8 June 2013 (Radio Lingua)
In this latest episode of Coffee Break German you’ll be learning to deal with shopping situations in German.
Read more...
7 June 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
Looking for end of term activities? Have a browse on our resources pages. You will find presentations on topics such as recycling, Berlin, Frst day of School, Birthday celebrations and many more.
Read more...
7 June 2013 (TESS)
Got it licked.
We all know people for whom the phrase "when in Rome" was invented. They are usually the ones trying to familiarise themselves with the local language without a phrase book, mistaking bonjour for au revoir or turning a dinner order into a mime act.
Your students can take the lead on trips abroad with a lesson in transactional language.
Read more...
16 May 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
Our Meet the Germans Website now also features free teaching resources. The material is designed for A2 and B1 language levels. Introduce your pupils in a playful way to different aspects of German culture and train speaking, listening, reading and writing skills.
Read more...
16 May 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
Kurz und Gut macht Schule II is a selection of animated short films from Germany, which are great for your secondary German classes. Teaching resources are available as a free download online.
Read more...
15 May 2013 (Learn German Easily)
This website is full of funny things in German and English – for example: basic lessons, jokes, stories, articles, learning tips, songs and much more.
There are materials available for use across all levels from beginner basics to Advanced Higher.
Read more...
15 May 2013 (Consejería de Educación)
Why not have a look at our latest pack of TECLA teaching materials? The topics are as follows:
- Level A (Basic) El día de la madre. Mother’s Day in Spain
- Level B (Intermediate) El 1º de mayo. El día del trabajo. International Workers’ Day
- Level C (Advanced) Los Mayos. An Ancient Tradition Celebrating the Arrival of Springtime
TECLA is a collection of teaching material for teaching Spanish to adults and young adults. It deals with socio-cultural aspects of today’s Spanish speaking world. The learning units comprise of a reading comprehension part and a language section (vocabulary, grammar, discourse). A recording of the text is also available for pronunciation and listening comprehension work.
Read more...
14 May 2013 (BBC World Class)
See our new assembly packs for primary and secondary pupils. The packs contain scripts for teachers alongside a World Class film called 'Gaokao fever,' which is about the notoriously difficult Gaokao exams in China.
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14 May 2013 (TES MFL blog)
One of the most exciting things about teaching languages is that there isn't one universally-held view about how to do it. Although most of us would say that we pursue the goals of ‘communicative language teaching’, we might still differ in the ways we go about it. It’s always a good thing to question our preferred ways of doing things too, and to share ideas with others. Recently, I’ve been thinking about how we present new language to students.
I will be hosting a live web chat about this topic on Thursday 16 May at 8pm. Why not get involved and share your own ideas.
Rachel Hawkes is the TES MFL subject adviser. She’s a classroom teacher of languages with 13 years of prior experience as a head of department.
Visit the website to find out how to join her chat or to read some of her teaching ideas.
Read more...
13 May 2013 (FluentU)
This a catchy tune which might suit Intermediate 2 or Higher level pupils – or even lower levels if the lyrics were printed out for the pupils.
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10 May 2013 (SCILT)
SCILT has sourced a selection of texts in Italian which teachers may find helpful. These texts can be used for a variety of purposes. You may want to use them based on a common theme to help deliver the Added Value Unit at National 4. They could also be used in conjunction with Bloom’s Taxonomy to help pupils develop Higher Order Thinking Skills.
Access the texts on our website.
Read more...
10 May 2013 (Mary Glasgow)
The film, produced by physicist Andreas Heinrich and his team in IBM, appears in the Guinness Book of Records for being the smallest in the world with the stars of the clip being tiny atoms! Use the article to open up a discussion with your German students about the world of Physics.
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7 May 2013 (Zambombazo)
A wide range of fun activities based on songs, comics, movie posters, advertising, art, and more! Learn about the Spanish language and cultures of the Spanish-speaking world. Suitable for use with Secondary pupils.
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6 May 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
We are pleased to introduce another popular topic for your classroom which can be downloaded from our website. Recycling and the environment have been central topics in Germany since the 1970s. With this presentation we would like to familiarise young learners with some of the devices used in Germany in order to protect the environment, particularly the system of separating waste and recycling.
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6 May 2013 (SCILT)
Hwb now includes all the content from the NGfL Wales website and hosts a resources section, 'find and use', including materials for language learning in French, German, Spanish and Welsh from primary through to senior phase.
Read more...
2 May 2013 (Education Scotland)
Education Scotland have recently published new resources to support the implementation of National 4 and 5 in Cantonese, French, German, Italian, Mandarin (simplified), Mandarin (traditional), Spanish and Urdu.
To access the materials follow the link below to Glow (you’ll need your Glow password).
Read more...
2 May 2013 (Consejería de Educación)
Medardo Fraile sadly passed away in Glasgow last March. In order to pay tribute to this Spanish writer who lived in Scotland for most of his life, the Consejería has developed some materials from an interview published by El País in 2004.
El País News is a collection of materials for teaching Spanish at advanced level to Adults and Young adults. It deals with socio-cultural aspects of today’s Spanish speaking world. The learning units comprise of a reading comprehension part and a language section (vocabulary, grammar, discourse).
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1 May 2013 (Radio Lingua)
In this week’s episode of Coffee Break German you’ll be learning more words and phrases to deal with ordering food and drinks.
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26 April 2013 (All Media Scotland)
A German language magazine about Scotland is launch in June, to cater for the estimated 250,000 German tourists who visit the country every year and being published by an Edinburgh-based former journalist for the German edition of the Financial Times.
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28 April 2013 (Lingua Garden)
What do you do in order to motivate your students to speak the target language in your classroom? At home? As educators and loving caregivers, we understand that every child is unique; the way they acquire knowledge, their motivations, their struggles, and their strengths vary so much between each one. Motivating your students and encouraging them to participate in the foreign language is not an easy job. Although, it is not impossible.
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26 April 2013 (TES)
Immersion is helpful but so is relating a language to your own.
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24 April 2013 (Radio Lingua)
We’re back with a new episode of Coffee Break German, the first in a new season of ten lessons which focus on practical German you’ll need on a trip to a German-speaking country. In this episode you’ll be learning to order drinks – and coffees – in a café.
Read more...
23 April 2013 (Guardian Teacher Network)
A short booklet designed for complete beginners in French. Great for revision or cover classes as well as for students with no language background who come into the class in the middle of term.
You will need to register on the site to download.
Read more...
22 April 2013 (Voyage Kids)
Teach your primary German pupils about Walpurgisnacht (Walpurgis Night) - the night from 30 April to 1 May. Legend has it that on this night, witches hold a festival on the Blocksberg mountain to await the arrival of spring. People throughout Germany use this occasion to welcome the beginning of May and warmer weather. There is usually lots of singing and dancing.
With Spring around the corner, there is also a resource for pupils to learn some really useful German spring words! Follow the 'Der Früling' link below.
Read more...
Related Links
Der Frühling
22 April 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
The Goethe-Institut London offers twelve fascinating language materials covering the main topic “Youth in Germany”. We also provide you with attractive pictures, interesting texts and statistics tailored for young people. In combination with our teaching resources, you will be able to integrate them easily in your class.
Suitable for use with S3-S4.
Read more...
19 April 2013 (TES)
Every one of your students can have their very own "talking" pet in this lesson. All they need is a sock, some basic vocabulary and lots of imagination.
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16 April 2013 (British Airways)
British Airways’ award winning language programmes aim to improve students’ understanding and use of a number of key languages in practical situations.
Further details and resources are available from the British Airways website, including language learning resources for the BA Language Flag Award (BALFA), which is designed to promote the learning of languages and to show pupils how important languages are to business.
Read more...
3 April 2013 (Radio Lingua)
In this latest episode of Coffee Break German you’ll realise how much you’ve learned since you started following the course by listening to a conversation using lots of the language you’ve covered so far.
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24 March 2013 (My Languages blog - Isabelle Jones)
Download the slides and reference sheet for my session on using music in the languages classroom presented at Language World 2013.
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22 March 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
The Goethe-Institut San Francisco has developed this web resource which steps into the worlds of German music and Germany’s most popular sport, football, and provides an interesting web quest "Why German is 4 u!". Take a look for yourself and share it with your pupils.
Read more...
22 March 2013 (TES)
Let students learn by playing with language
"I learnED French at school. Spent 10 years doing French and can't speak a word." Sound familiar? Disillusioned scepticism is a common challenge faced by language teachers at parents' evenings. "I was never any good at languages at school." "We didn't do Spanish, so I can't help."
"Stop right there," you feel like saying. Basta! Unwittingly cast in the role of counsellor, you try some positive thinking: "The first step is belief, and fortunately most young children have it in spades. Don't write them off before they have given it their best shot. Try a little role reversal and let them teach you."
Read more...
21 March 2013 (Radio Lingua)
We’re delighted to announce that Coffee Break French has won Best Professional Podcast UK in this year’s European Podcast Awards. The shortlist of podcasts for each category was originally generated by listener votes, so we’d like to thank everyone who voted! A jury then considered each of the podcasts on the shortlist and Coffee Break French was voted Best Professional Podcast in the UK. Coffee Break Spanish came fifth in the rankings!
Radio Lingua offers language-learning for your iPod, iPhone, mp3 player or computer. Take your lessons with you wherever you go by downloading our free materials or purchasing our courses to learn even more. All the information you need is on the website.
Lesson 8 of Coffee Break German is now available. This episode build’s on the previous lesson, asking for more complex directions around town. The link below takes you directly to the podcast.
Read more...
Related Links
Coffee Break German - Lesson 8 (Radio Lingua, 20 March 2013)
20 March 2013 (United Nations blog)
This week we are celebrating Journée de la langue française. French is one of six official UN languages.
Find out about a few online resources with daily updates in French.
Read more...
18 March 2013 (Inside Education on 103.2 Dublin City FM)
On this week's programme, Joe Dale, who presented at the CESI Conference 2013, talks about many ways in which technology can support language learning.
Follow the link to the website to listen to the broadcast.
Read more...
18 March 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
On 18 and 19 April 2013 Martina Schwarz, songwriter and performer, will visit Springburn Nursery, Glasgow and Primary Schools in Paisley and Fife. Her resource “Learn German with songs” and “Learn more German with songs” has been a popular teaching resource for Primary schools and provided lots of fun and enthusiasm among pupils and teachers.
Visit the Goethe-Institut website for more information about these resources.
Read more...
15 March 2013 (LLAS blog)
iTunesU is an area within Apple iTunes which allows institutions to publish their own, branded educational content and LLAS have taken existing open educational materials from University of Southampton and repackaged them as learning modules in iTunesU.
A key aspect of the project has been to demonstrate that materials created for one particular discipline (Spanish language, migration studies) has wide applicability across the humanities. Open Educational Resources (OERs) used for this project consists of oral testimonies collected from Spanish migrants, and includes images, learning objects, and various teaching materials. Materials are in Spanish and English and may be of interest to pupils in the Senior Phase.
Read more...
15 March 2013 (TES)
Combining language lessons with gym sessions is a hit. French has always been popular with students at my school, but we continue to seek innovative ways to increase take-up and raise standards. So when we had the chance to teach French in the gym with Technogym's "active learning" gym equipment, it was too good to turn down.
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15 March 2013 (Radio Lingua)
It’s time for another episode of Coffee Break German and in this week’s episode we’re learning to get around the town using German.
In this lesson you’ll be learning to talk about places in the town and to ask for directions. You’ll learn:
- the German words for some places in the town
- to ask for help from a native speaker
- the phrase for “where is…?” in German
- how to ask someone to show you on a map where you are
This audio lesson is free, as are all the main audio lessons of Coffee Break German.
Read more...
14 March 2013 (YELL2)
Supported by the Lifelong Learning Programme, the main aim of the project is to disseminate the results of the European Language Label Award winning "Yell Network" to raise awareness of its main product, the Virtual Documentation Centre, which hosts an array of resources designed to:
- improve language learning
- encourage creative teaching to inspire more young learners to learn languages
We are pleased to feature as the Excellence of the month example, an exciting project submitted by Joel Josephson. The project, calledPopuLLar, takes a very interesting approach to harnessing a youthful enthusiasm for popular music within language learning contexts.
To find out more visit the PopuLLar site via the link below or visit the YELL2 website for more information on all their activities.
Read more...
11 March 2013 (Times Series)
Young entrepreneurs are hoping to boost children's love of languages with their hand-designed activities book. Fifteen teenagers at Jewish Community Secondary School in New Barnet made the book Flying Away with Languages as part of their Young Enterprise scheme. The group, known as TryLingual, were inspired by Michael Gove’s plans to provide more emphasis on languages in primary schools and are hoping the book will prove popular with schoolchildren across Barnet.
Read more...
8 March 2013 (TES)
The Passion play is an active way to prepare for Easter, dramatising the suffering, death and resurrection of Christ. Originally in Latin, it developed in European vernacular languages during the medieval period and is still performed in many countries, including Germany, Spain and Poland. From Europe, the tradition has spread as far as Australia and Brazil. Study and perform the religious play in different languages.
Read more...
5 March 2013 (Voyage Kids)
Easter is on its way, and children across Germany are looking forward to such seasonal activities as baking Easter cakes, going to Easter bonfire celebrations and, in some areas, even decorating village wells. Why not introduce your pupils to some seasonal German customs in the run-up to the Easter holidays with the 'voyage kids' Easter Special? Including:
- Can your pupils guess who's hiding in the Easter egg? Complete the jigsaw to find out!
- Colour your own Easter eggs the traditional German way with easy-to-make vegetable dyes.
- Teach useful vocabulary with our Easter memory game.
- Fun facts about 'Ostereiersuchen' (Easter egg hunts), Easter cakes and 'Osterbrunnen' (decorated village wells)
Read more...
Related Links
Did you know that
April Fools' Day is celebrated in Germany?
4 March 2013 (Lexiophiles)
After spending countless hours on trying to understand grammar structures, memorizing long vocabulary lists, learning idioms and struggling with pronunciation, you have finally reached your goal: fluency! It’s been a long way and you’ve worked hard to get here. The question is, now that you've mastered a new language, what are you going to do with it?
Read more...
Fair Trade Fortnight – resources
1 March 2013 (SCILT)
If your school is involved in Fair Trade Fortnight, you may well find these resources useful. SCILT has sourced these resources from YouTube and Glow.
Related Links
Glow
For those of you teaching French, a school in Aberdeen has posted interesting teaching materials in the “Resources and Sharing” section of the National Glow Site. This link will take you directly to the folder, but you will need your Glow login.
YouTube
You Tube is an open forum where anyone can post clips and comments. Please check the appropriateness of all content before using with your class.
Spanish Videos:
French Videos:
Italian Videos:
German Videos:
27 February 2013 (Glow Scotland blog)
Malcolm Wilson, ICT Curriculum Development Officer in the Curriculum Support Team of Falkirk Council Education Services, presented a session with primary class teachers on a variety of ICT resources to support teaching Modern Languages in the Primary School.
Read more...
26 February 2013 (The Guardian)
Simple and free web audio capture tools are creating exciting opportunities for students to develop oral proficiency and could boost the effectiveness of language learning portfolios.
Read more...
22 February 2013 (TES)
The topic of climate change provides a great opportunity to look at how different countries are tackling the problem. Once you get them started, pupils could pick one issue from the country in question and research it themselves. They could then present their findings in simple forms such as posters, giving them plenty of focused practice in the target language.
Read more...
15 February 2013 (TES)
How do you encourage your pupils to pick up a book written in a foreign language? Start with illustrated books to help them follow the story. Books written for children are good because they are designed to teach new vocabulary but have matching pictures.
Select a range of children's books in the target language and get your class to analyse the language. What tenses are used? What vocabulary? Are the sentences simple or complex? Then get your pupils to plan, write and create a short book of their own in the target language - for a younger brother or sister, perhaps, or for pupils in younger classes.
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15 February 2013 (TES)
Join communities around the world in celebrating Chinese New Year. Our collection of activities and ideas includes dance, films, flashcards and the zodiac.
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14 February 2013 (Goethe-Institut)
A series of contemporary German feature films and a new collection of 11 animated short films are now available on loan from our library: a great opportunity to improve young learners’ knowledge and understanding of German language and culture through the medium of film.
Read more...
8 February 2013 (TES)
How do pupils learn a language at school? One topic at a time, with plenty of time to think. But in real life we draw upon several topics at once, thinking on our feet. Revision followed by comedic role play gives children excellent practice in this. Select two or three language points to revise, then set up a brief role play with simple props. Plastic money and toy telephones work well.
Read more...
8 February 2013 (UK-German Connection)
It's that time of year again when large parts of Germany descend into a jamboree of fancy dress, sweet-throwing and general high jinx. That's right, Fasching / Karneval is almost here, and you can teach your pupils all about it with the 'voyage kids' Karneval special!
This year's special includes an interactive 'through the telescope' feature, an online jigsaw, a quiz, and, of course, the ever-popular Karneval-esque song by a singing hairdresser! (with worksheet and brand new PPTs to teach the vocabulary in the song).
Read more...
1 February 2013 (TES Resources)
Mr Men books are a great topic for language lessons. Excellent for learning new vocabulary and practising verbs and idioms, the books are almost guaranteed to be funny, which makes them perfect for a Red Nose Day class. Secondary school pupils love inventing new Mr Men using words such as "sarcastic", "worried" and "technophobe" in English. By translating these into the target language, they will learn some quite subtle new vocabulary in a memorable way.
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31 January 2013 (TES)
TES MFL subject adviser Rachel Hawkes looks at how foreign languages learning can support literacy without us needing to use English. The chat will be an informal way for you to share ideas on the topic as well as ask questions and seek advice from Rachel and each other.
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31 January 2013 (European Commission)
Arsenal Double Club Languages is the north London football club’s innovative education programme for children that are learning French, German, Spanish, Italian or Portuguese at school.
The programme uses Arsenal and football as a theme to inspire school children to learn a language. The Club produces fun, relevant learning materials in collaboration with specialist language partners including the Goethe Institute, Institut Français and the Consejería de Educación. These resources include colourful workbooks that are filled with language activities based around football, and also a DVD featuring one of the Gunners’ players speaking in their native language.
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Posted in:
Primary,
S1-S3,
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German,
Italian,
Spanish,
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Language Learning - Secondary,
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News from language & education organisations
31 January 2013 (Brilliant Teaching Resources)
Germany has only recently started to celebrate 'Valentinstag'. As in this country, it is celebrated on 14th February, when people send romantic cards and presents to each other. Visit the Brilliant Teaching Resources website for ideas on how to discuss this tradition in the German classroom.
Follow the additional links for similar resources for Spanish and French.
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29 January 2013 (RiL South West)
These YouTube clips of famous linguists will motivate your students.
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25 January 2013 (The Language Box)
This resource documents the evolution of an in-studio project at Swansea University, in the department of Languages, Translation & Communication. Students had to prepare a presentation on a current or cultural issue in the target language (French), read their presentation in the studio from a teleprompter, and then answer questions from the student panel and from the floor where their classmates sat during filming.
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25 January 2013 (TES)
Inspire pupils by introducing them to famous foreign activists. Do your pupils know the national motto of France: Liberte, egalite, fraternite? In any language, this makes an excellent topic for discussion and debate. Pupils could also write essays exploring whether one quality is more important than the others.
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18 January 2013 (TES)
Shopping online in a foreign language is such fun that pupils absorb new vocabulary without too much effort. Words in the target language are illustrated with photographs without the need for intervening translation. It is a great way to connect the new words with the reality they describe.
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15 January 2013 (Mary Glasgow Plus)
With the latest Hollywood adaptation of the Victor Hugo novel now released, this article in French can be used to discuss the story in your language class. Different versions are available to suit all levels from P7 to the senior phase.
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Chinese New Year Packs
15 January 2013 (Chinese Made Easy)
CME Books Europe are distributing (on behalf of Dragons in Europe) packs to celebrate the Chinese New Year of the snake. For more details and to order please see attached document.
11 January 2013 (TESS)
Recently, we made a short film in Spanish with a small group of Year 4 (P4) pupils. It won a competition and caused a stir. Now we have a learning epidemic, with children leading the way, writes Heather Martin.
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11 January 2013 (TES)
World travel and a Monty Python sketch will get pupils talking.
Learning a new language can take you anywhere. Pupils sometimes need reminding of this to motivate them. In the cold grip of January, they are learning words that could one day take them to new worlds.
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7 January 2013 (Language Box)
The why study languages calendar has been produced by LLAS Centre for Languages, Linguistics and Area Studies and includes a variety of languages, beginning in January with Italian. This is the first of a 12-month series lasting until December 2013. The calendar can be downloaded or printable versions can be ordered.
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FE,
HE,
1+2,
All Languages,
Celebrating Languages,
Promoting Languages,
Resources
Top 10 most dangerous... !
7 January 2013 (SCILT)
SCILT have sourced the following YouTube clips for use at 3rd Level with French classes. Not for the faint-hearted!
The top ten…
…most dangerous insects
…most dangerous marine animals
…killer animals
…slowest animals
…fastest animals
…ugliest and strangest
…animals with the shortest life expectancy
…animals who can hold their breath the longest
Please be aware that these links will take you away from the SCILT website. You Tube is an open internet forum where clips and comments are posted by the general public. Practitioners should therefore check the suitability of the content of the clips and any links, advertising materials and comments posted around them before using them with a class.
14 December 2012 (Brilliant Teaching Resources)
As MFL Coordinator, you know that teaching foreign languages is important. But does everyone else in your school? To help you convince them of the importance of MFL, we have produced an information sheet: 10 Reasons for Teaching Foreign Languages in Primary School.
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14 December 2012 (TES)
"What I love and hate about Christmas" is a rich topic for teenagers. Advertising tells us to aim for "the perfect Christmas". Yet Christmas is a strange and unpredictable mix. Different members of the same family experience it in different ways. Teenagers love expressing their opinions and feelings about things. Doing so in a foreign language motivates them to extend their vocabulary so they can say exactly what they want to.
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13 December 2012 (Mary Glasgow Plus)
You will find a variety of Spanish resources about Christmas posted on this Pinterest board. You will need to register to download the resources, however registration is free. The articles are all available to suit learners at different levels, from P7 to S6.
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13 December 2012 (Radio Lingua)
Read the latest blogposts from Germany and Italy and pick up some useful phrases relating to Christmas.
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Related Links
On location Italian (Radio Lingua blog, 13 December 2012)
13 December 2012 (Engage for Education)
Modren Scots Grammar: Wirkin Wi Wirds is one of the recent projects undertaken by Scottish Language Dictionaries to celebrate their first ten years.
The book accords with Curriculum for Excellence in that it seeks to give readers an understanding of how language works and to give them the tools with which to discuss Scots, English and other modern languages.
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Posted in:
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FE,
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1+2,
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Curriculum for Excellence,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Resources
A few Christmas activities for the second week of Advent
12 December 2012 (ALL)
Here are some ideas for celebrating Christmas with your class, from ALL. They cover different languages and different levels.
- Make some lovely French, German and Spanish Christmas cards, courtesy of MFL Sunderland
- Christmas cards from L’Internaute
- If that isn’t enough, use French instructions to make your own origami Père Noёl
- You can also write to Père Noel himself!
- A nice site for Christmas recipes, gifts, Christmas crafts and Christmas songs in different languages
- Activity ideas from Culturethèque @ the Institut français du Royaume-Uni
- There’s a whole range of French Christmas resources on the MFL Sunderland website, including sound files, flashcards, worksheets, fun activities, podcasts and videos
- Some more ideas for Christmas crafts and activities
- Say ‘Merry Christmas!’ to friends all over the world and learn how to say ‘Seasons Greetings’ in many languages
- There are more German activity ideas from the Goethe Institut and UK-German Connection
- Global Dimension offer their own ideas and inspiration for getting festive this Christmas
- Some Christmas game ideas from the lovely folks at MFLResources
- Woodlands Junior School offer a variety of Christmas activities
- The Lancashire Grid for Learning also have activities, resources and further links in French, German, Italian and Spanish
- How about a festive video clip of Pigloo, the French singing penguin?
- Last but not least, some festive resources to enjoy in Spanish
11 December 2012 (Mary Glasgow Plus)
Covering the topic of sport in your French language class? This article on French basketball players in the American NBA is a useful resource to introduce the sport. Different versions are available, adapted for use with pupils from P7 upwards.
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Celebrities speaking languages
10 December 2012 (Routes Cymru / YouTube)
Routes Cymru posted the following YouTube links on Twitter. We thought you would enjoy using them with your pupils to promote languages.
7 December 2012 (TES)
Heroes and heroines is a great subject for language lessons because it involves strong characters and exciting stories. Children can explore what they think a hero is and who may be a hero to them.
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7 December 2012 (SCILT)
We have pulled together a list of our favourite Christmas websites for teachers to use in class. These websites cover Christmas in France, Germany, Spain and around the world.
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Posted in:
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S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
FE,
HE,
1+2,
All Languages,
Celebrating Languages,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
SCILT,
Resources,
SCILT news
6 December 2012 (Radio Lingua)
With Festive Phrases you can learn a festive greeting each day of December, and you’ll soon be able to say “Merry Christmas”, “Happy New Year” or “Happy Holidays” to many millions of people around the world. In each short video Radio Lingua director Mark is joined by a native speaker of the language, and we’ll provide some background information about the number of speakers, where the language is spoken and much more.
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5 December 2012 (Radio Lingua)
The latest edition of the Coffee Break Spanish Magazine is now available. Join the team and improve your Spanish! In this edition:
- Alba asks her interviewees, ¿ayer hiciste algo especial? Answers cover a range of topics – and accents!;
- Laura teaches us what hablar por los codos means;
- and JP and Nahyeli discuss medical Spanish in response to a listener’s question.
The free version of the audio programme for this episode is available through the links and audio players.
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5 December 2012 (Radio Lingua)
Read the latest blogpost from Germany and pick up some useful German vocabulary for when you're moving house or feel under the weather and have to visit the doctor.
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30 November 2012 (The Comprehensible Classroom)
Martina Bex’s favourite traditional Christmas songs from Spanish-speaking countries, as well as some Spanish-language-versions of English songs. Contains YouTube videos and lyrics.
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30 November 2012 (TES)
Language mistakes can be funny - and a useful teaching tool.
Mistakes are comedy gold. Most children make corrections in a rush. Take time over them, though, and you can have a laugh while learning a lot about languages. Start a lesson by writing mistakes on the board and waiting for the class to notice. It's a fun way to recap the last lesson.
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28 November 2012 (Mary Glasgow Plus)
Read this article in Spanish about the richest athletes in the world. Different versions are available, adapted for use with pupils from P7 to S4.
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27 November 2012 (Mary Glasgow Plus)
Article in French about the nutritional and environmental impact of the spread, Nutella. Adapted for use with pupils from P7 – S5.
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26 November 2012 (Institut français d'Ecosse)
The Institut français d'Ecosse has produced some new resources about Noël (Christmas) for use with primary and S1-S3 pupils.
The resources can be accessed from the Institut français website.
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Related Links
Noël for S1-S3
23 November 2012 (UK-German Connection)
The festive season approaches, and the 'voyage kids' website is full of UK-German seasonal cheer with our Christmas Special!
Your pupils can:
- find out about St. Nikolaus and Knecht Ruprecht - have they earned presents or the 'Rute' on 6 December?
- practise their festive vocab with a Christmas memory game and jigsaw
- sing along to German carols such as 'Stille Nacht' and 'Kling, Glöckchen'
- learn Christmas facts, play games and enter this year's Christmas competition in our interactive Advent calendar
- learn how to bake a 'Lebkuchenhaus' and 'Herrenplätzchen'
- upload their own home-made German Christmas cards
If you are singing German Christmas carols such as 'Stille Nacht' or 'Kling, Glöckchen' with your pupils in the next few weeks, just send us a recording as an MP3, and we'll put it online. (All participating classes will receive 'voyage kids' goodies, so don't forget to mention your school name and address, class name, and number of pupils.)
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Related Links
Many thanks to the pupils of Vicarage Park Primary School, Kendal, and Logie Primary School, Dunphail, for their marvellous renditions of the St. Martin's Day
'Laterne, Laterne' song.
23 November 2012 (TES)
Fairy tales can be as much fun to make up as they are to read or listen to. Their magic ingredients are quite simple and they use a lot of pattern and variation.
Start by giving pupils familiar tales like Cinderella in the language they are studying. Cartoon versions in French, German and Spanish are plentiful on YouTube. Show them Jean Cocteau's masterpiece La Belle et La Bete. You could give them key words and phrases in advance to listen out for.
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Related Links
Spotlight on ... Twisted fairy tales (TES, 23 November 2012). Listen to storyteller Vicky Parson tell the creepy original French version of what we now know as Little Red Riding Hood in a TaleTimesStories video.
22 November 2012 (Mary Glasgow Plus)
Feature in German about the premier of the new Twilight move in Berlin. The article is suitable for use in the secondary German classroom.
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22 November 2012 (Mary Glasgow Plus)
Feeling Christmassy? Download this French resource about Christmas presents, which is suitable for P7-early secondary students. You will need to register to access the resource, but registration is free.
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21 November 2012 (CânSing)
New material for Christmas is now on the CânSing website with versions of the Christmas song ‘O holy night’ in Spanish (Santa la noche) and German (Heilige Nacht).
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Related Links
Heilige Nacht
21 November 2012 ('Speak Chinese with Hannah' / YouTube)
See the YouTube video telling the story of the band, Transition, their move to Taiwan and how they embraced Mandarin.
There's also a link below to one of their songs, sung in Chinese - a great resource to use in the classroom!
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20 November 2012 (Twitter - UEFA on YouTube)
UEFA.com speaks to the likes of Carlo Ancelotti, Gérard Houllier, Arsène Wenger and Roy Hodgson about how they handle multilingual squads.
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16 November 2012 (TESS)
Whatever your teaching style or subject, you could benefit from creating 'word clouds', writes Dan Roberts. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and that's certainly true of the Wordle website, where teachers or pupils can generate their own customised "word clouds".
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16 November 2012 (TES)
Foreign-language media such as films and advertising can be excellent teaching resources - their use of characters and stories is great for engaging pupils' attention and making vocabulary memorable.
Learning is reinforced when pupils use the target language in role play and written work. If they create a cheesy advertisement with a catchy slogan in Spanish, for example, the vocabulary they use becomes an in-joke they will remember long after the lesson has ended.
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9 November 2012 (TES)
Religion can be hard for small children to grasp as it involves abstract ideas. So it helps to have an activity that allows you to discuss world religions in a way that children of all faiths and none can relate to.
Start by asking pupils what problems people all over the world have. Put these words on the board and teach them in the target language.
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8 November 2012 (Channel 4)
Follow the links to see previews of Channel 4’s learning portal, Clipbank. Clips are available for learners of French, German and Spanish, all addressing a particular topic, or area of grammar in the target language:
French
Spanish
German
Please note this is a preview only. To access the resources you will need to subscribe to the service.
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Posted in:
Early Years,
Primary,
S1-S3,
Senior Phase,
FE,
HE,
1+2,
All Languages,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Resources
7 November 2012 (Education Scotland)
The National Assessment Resource now includes approximately 200 numeracy questions in Gaelic, which can be combined to form customised packages for assessment in the classroom at first, second and third level.
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7 November 2012 (Memrise)
Do you have trouble learning new words in a foreign language? Memrise makes vocabulary learning fast, fun and effective. Memrise improves your ability to learn vocabulary by adding three powerful ingredients to normal flashcards…what’s more, it’s free to use!
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Posted in:
Early Years,
Primary,
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Senior Phase,
FE,
HE,
1+2,
All Languages,
Language Learning,
Language Teaching,
Resources
6 November 2012 (MFL Sunderland)
Introduce a fun element to learning French sports vocabulary with this online interactive wordsearch from MFL Sunderland.
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6 November 2012 (Linguascope)
A range of Linguascope apps for individual learners are available from the Apple app store (vocabulary, verbs, word of the day, news, Linguatrivia, Talking Dice...). If you would like to advertise the apps to your students, we have a new colourful A2 poster for you to display in the classroom. If you would like to receive some posters free of charge, simply drop us an e-mail (www.linguascope.com/contact.php) with your name, school, school address and the number of posters required.
For more information about the apps, visit our website.
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2 November 2012 (Goethe Institut London)
The Goethe Institut in London have created an area of their website where you will find useful resources you could use in your primary school in the pre-Christmas period.
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2 November 2012 (Goethe Institut London)
While we were starting work on our new “Auf Deutsch” website we were pleased to see the positive feedback on our existing A-level website in our survey among German teachers conducted in 2011. It gave us a strong incentive to get going on a draft website that would include all the features of the final product and would cater for all levels of learning German including GCSE. Trips had to be made to Berlin, video footage as much as audio material had to be recorded, and blogs had to be written.
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2 November 2012 (TES)
When we learn a foreign language, we often deal with nice things such as buying ice cream and listing our favourite animals. But bullying is a topic that allows pupils to talk and write about darker things - and every pupil has opinions about it. Wearing a mask or adopting an "alter ego" can make it easier to tell the truth. Similarly, exploring this topic in a foreign language allows pupils to discuss painful things from a safe distance.
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30 October 2012 (Mary Glasgow Plus)
Bring 007 to the classroom with this article in French about the new James Bond movie, Skyfall. Several versions are available, adapted for use with pupils from P7 upwards.
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25 October 2012 (Consejería de Educación)
TECLA is a collection of teaching material for teaching Spanish to adults and young adults. It deals with socio-cultural aspects of today’s Spanish speaking world. The learning units comprise of a reading comprehension part and a language section (vocabulary, grammar, discourse). A recording of the text is also available for pronunciation and listening comprehension work.
In order to celebrate the success of the well-known Spanish novelist Arturo Pérez Reverte, the Consejería has developed three new TECLA teaching materials around the writer and his works:
•Level A (Basic) Carta desde Cartagena
•Level B (Intermediate) Arturo Pérez Reverte, autor de éxito
•Level C (Advanced) No queda sino batirnos
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25 October 2012 (Mary Glasgow Plus)
Read the magazine interview with Kristen Stewart, the American actress best known for her role as Bella Swan in the Twilight Saga. The interview is in French and is adapted for different levels from KS3 (P7) upwards.
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