Upgrade Your Writing

There are many many ways to make sure your writing is up to the level it should be. One simple method is to use these two little worksheets cunningly pasted together. I've noticed a much more expressive nature coming into my students writing. It has been a real pleasure to read, which makes a change from the start of the year.
Neither of these worksheets are mine but I really love them and use them with all of my higher level classes.

I've added them to this link, Writing Help, as well so you can print them out and give them to your students at the drop of a hat.

I hope your students take full advantage of this as a number of mine have in the past. 

The Mind Boggles as does the game

Have you ever played boggle? It's a wonderful game to use in the classroom. you have a set of 16 dice each with 6 different letters on them. you shake them up and have to find as many words as you can. In the traditional games the letters have to be conected. In the classroom version I just get students to find as many words as they can. Or for the longest word they can conjure up with the letters on show in the time limit.  You can buy your own game then you can use it at home on those long cold rainy winter's nights or you can simply use an online generator.  I find the real game
engages my students more as they can be the ones in control of what letters come out and if there are 6 e's then they can blame Pablo and not just say it's impossible.
After the students have made a list or two I then ask them to use those words as the basis to a story or a dialogue between their teams. 
I tried this with my elementary adult class at the start of the year and saw they were porducing short sentences which often made very little sense. By the end of the year the students were trotting out bizarre and unique and often fairly racey stories. This game can really add to the studentes spontinaaity and helps them think on their feet about what to write. You can get students to keep a boggle folder and play the game a few times throughout the year. Your students will be able to see how much they've improved by the end of the year. Not only at writing but also at spotting hidden words within the game.

I trust you'll have as much fun with it as I have. Probably the best investment in a board game since buying Trivial Pursuit.

The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face. Johnny Cash's Version

Now, I know I'm a very lucky man. I am, obviously, accutely aware of that fact. Some mornings, though, I wake up next to my wife, look into her eyes and realise just how lucky I am. Today was one of those days. For that very reason I decided to make a gap fill activity weith some follow up questions to a song that will always be synonymous with our love.
It's great because it can really lead to a lot of debate about love at first sight. I also like to encourage my students to go out and listen to the covers. Next class we are going to discuss the difference in the different versions and which is the best.
 
I've added the andout to the materials site on the right.

I hope you enjoy it.