I didn’t believe that gaming could make a better world, either, that is, until I watched this TED presentation by Jane McGonigal. She can explain how teaching the skills necessary for an “epic win” in gaming, successful social strategy, and achievement in science and technology lead to cohesion of our common goals and solutions of our world’s biggest problems so much better than I can. So watch…
For a while, it seemed possible. In fact, I still love this presentation and have listened to it several times. I enjoy her reference to “+1 intelligence” (the relationship between actual level and potential) that occurs frequently in games, seldom in real life, and what we always try to get our students to meet.
Shortly after watching this video and geared up with a dose of “urgent optimism”, I glimpsed (in this South Park clip) the reality of getting to where we need to be from where we are today.
So the first step to creating a sustainable future through gaming is…? I’ve always been a big fan of goal setting…maybe these can become your goals:
define what skills you’re learning by gaming
meet 3 new people you can network with during this session
accept challenges from other gaming characters
trust others
Jane McGonigal’s idea doesn’t sound impossible, now, does it? Isn’t this what we are trying to achieve in our classrooms anyway?
Abby Goodnough (New York Times) writes about the Martin Luther King Jr. Charter School of Excellence in Springfield Massachusetts which started a program to encourage philosophical debate among 2nd graders about issues brought up in children’s literature.
Ms. Runquist’s students managed to fit philosophy in between writing and science. This was their sixth lesson of the year, and by now they knew the drill: deciding whether or not they agreed with each question; thinking about why or why not; explaining why or why not; and respecting what their classmates said.
The project was initiated by Prof. Thomas E. Wartenberg from Mount Holyoke College, who lists some of the benefits as:
improving reading comprehension
critical thinking
understanding and asking some of the world’s most basic questions
learning right from wrong
developing abstract thought
filling gaps across curricular subjects
express and support opinions
showing courtesy to classmates
It seems like these would be good skills for any student, maybe even in ESL conversation classes.
When using the word “manners” meaning etiquette, it is plural. Some expressions you might see “manners” in context are:
He has good/bad manners.
Children are taught manners when they go to restaurants.
a person with good manners
someone with bad manners
It’s important to use good manners at a table.
Good manners are different in different countries.
Have a discussion about different acceptable manners in your ESL classes. The cultural differences among countries and regions are great conversation topics.
When similes and metaphors are introduced in school, it’s as easy as pie to recognize them in others’ writing. But have you noticed that it’s slightly more difficult to produce your own comparisons?
Here is an example of a simile gone amiss: “He was as lame as a duck. Not the metaphorical lame duck either, but a real duck that was actually lame,” submitted by John Kammer of Herndon to a Style Weekly contest to write bad analogies. More funny analogies can be found here.
Of course, Mr. Kammer’s simile was intentionally bad, but how can you tell the difference between a good analogy and a bad one? Here are some guidelines you can follow when you use analogies in your writing:
Don’t use cliches
Be descriptive (not literal)
Make your comparison blend with the writing (not stand out)
Compare things that your audience can relate to
Be able to justify your comparison
Don’t state the obvious
If you use these tips, your writing will be as polished as a new bowling ball, like the kind at a sporting goods store that has just opened.
Test yourself: Write a sentence in which both the subject and the object are noun clauses. One thing to remember is that noun clauses can appear in declarative and interrogative sentences, so don’t forget to punctuate correctly.
Examples:
What you see is what you get.
Did what you just said answer how we can fix the problem?
There are some nouns in English that are only plural. In other words, they don’t have a singular form. If they only have a plural form, the verb agrees with a plural.
clothes
glasses (as in eye glasses or sunglasses)
pants
scissors
If you want to use the singular form, here are some suggestions:
some clothes = an outfit
some glasses = a pair of glasses
some pants = a pair of pants
some scissors = a pair of scissors
Schoenberg, I.E. (2000). Focus on grammar: A basic course for reference and practice. 2nd Ed. Longman.
Brainstorming is a technique used not only in school, but also in college and the workforce. Brainstorming allows you to not only generate your own ideas, but also to share your ideas with others. Sharing your ideas could stimulate others’ creativity, too. By the end of a short brainstorming period, you’re ready to plan! After you’ve developed a solid plan, you’re almost finished!
The benefits of brainstorming include:
Develop a new project
Work on a team
Break the cycle of writer’s block
Share ideas with team members
Be collaborative
Practice social skills
Generate ideas for a speech or topic for an essay
Prepare for writing on a particular topic
Organize thoughts
Connect ideas
Practice graphic organizing skills
Decide what topic to present
But, make sure you have a strategy, or else this could happen:
Remember the game 20 Questions? Well, you don’t have to wait until the cable gets repaired or the next long car trip to play. Use this in your ESL classes to help students develop grammatical accuracy, question formation, and critical thinking!
It’s easy and fun, and it requires very little prep time. It only requires an understanding of the rules, which can be found here…
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