Brazil in the World Cup Finals in 1994

The activity below was designed as a final project for a course I took in 2009 called "WEBTOOLS FOR EDUCATORS" and conducted by Carla Arena. The goal was to make an advanced group of students interested and prepared to talk about the topic, which was soccer. In order to make that happen, they were presented vocabulary related to soccer and a video with drawings I had made. The ultimate task was to write about a soccer game they had watched, using the vocabulary learned.

My Super Duper School

The images below are supposed to be used to practice describing one's school. Students can practice CAN for permission, CAN'T for prohibition, HAVE TO for obligation and DON'T HAVE TO for not necessary. They can also practice saying which their favorite subject is and when they have it and which their least favorite subject is.To wrap things up, students may be asked to write a short paragraph about their school.

Super Duper studies in the morning. He goes to school in Brasília, Brazil. Look what it's like:
Images - Downloadable

Landscapes

My little ones learned vocabulary related to an island and how to describe it by using the verb THERE TO  BE. They drew a landscape and described it.

Family Members - Option 2

After practicing the family members and how to introduce them, students are given sheets of paper and instructed to fold them and draw the members of their family. Some students have very big families, so instruct them to draw just the ones that live with them. Afterwards, they write about them using the structure learned.

Step 1: FOLD

The number of folded parts will depend on the number of people in the student's family. (Sometimes, it is very difficult for them to fold the sheet, so you can do it for them. Ask them how many people they have in their family and fold it accordingly.)

Step 2: DRAW

It is only necessary to draw one on the first rectangle. (Point out that the ends of the arms and legs have to touch the edges of the sheet. )

Step 3: CUT OUT 

Students cut it out. (This step may be even more difficult than folding, so you might need to cut a few in order for them not to wreck it.)

Step 4: DRAW AND COLOR THE DETAILS

Students draw and color the details of each member in their family 

In the end, give each student a colored sheet of paper. Students paste their family and write about them. Collect and display them on the walls. You can also digitize their work, so their parents can see it.

Adjectives

With very simple lines you can draw adjectives that describe people. The images below can be used to practice pronunciation. (For instance, they pronounce the word sad in a sad way, the word happy in a happy way, etc...) It's fun, they love it! Students could also write a story using the  pictures at any order. The simple past would be appropriate in this case.

EMBARRASSED

 SURPRISED

 ANGRY

 NERVOUS

 BORED

 HAPPY

 SUSPICIOUS

 JEALOUS

 SAD

PLEASED

Daily Routine

To introduce the lesson, which is about daily routine, I arranged students in pairs and showed them the images below. They discussed for awhile and after that I elicited the activities that the images represented.

GET UP

HAVE BREAKFAST

 GO TO SCHOOL

HAVE LUNCH 

GO HOME

 DO HOMEWORK

GO TO BED

OPTION 2: Instead of showing students the images, divide them in two teams and name one member of each team to draw the activities on the board. Have the names of the activities on small slips of paper and put them in a can. Then, the student in team A draws three slips from the can. He draws the activities and the team has to guess. The same thing with team B. The student draws the remaining slips from the can. He draws the activities and the team guesses what they are. Time the two teams during the task. The winner is the team that guessed the activities in a shorter period of time. In the end, elicit what the activities have in common. (They are daily activities).In the end, elicit what students do every day.

Wacky Race - Option 2

This activity is suitable for children after they practice describing wild animals (abilities and physical characteristics). Students are given a sheet of paper in blank. Each student draws, colors and cuts out a different animal of their preference. After all students finish cutting out their animals , take them to a large place (in case the classroom is not big enough) and use duct tape to make a start and a finish line on the floor. Students sit behind the start line and wait for the teacher's command ('This animal has beautiful feathers', 'This animal can run fast', 'This animal has a long trunk', etc...). The students whose animals' characteristics match the commands blow their animal on the floor so it moves forward (Yes, they can´t use their hands). Tell students that they can only blow the animal once for each command, otherwise they are disqualified. The winner is the student whose animal reaches the finish line first.

Idioms 1

Carla Arena asked me to draw some idioms for a project of hers, so for my first drawing I took advantage of the moment and drew about something that has been bothering me recently. Words such as PLEASE, EXCUSE ME and THANK YOU are dying little by little!

When do you feel angry?

I love Thursday nights

Don't you just love Thursdays?

Super Duper enjoys Thursday nights because the next day is Friday and he has physical education in school. It´s his favorite subject. He plays basketball and has a lot of fun. How about you? What's your favorite day of the week?

Wacky Race

Material needed: A die, sheets in blank, duct tape and colored pencils/markers. 

I do this activity with all levels. I give each team a sheet in blank so they can draw, color and cut out a car. I draw a race track on the board and tape the cars to it. I also draw a couple of bombs on the way. Then, I ask students questions about the lesson learned or show them sentences to be completed or questions about vocabulary. In other words, any task related to the content. Students take turns performing the task proposed. If the team is right, they roll a die and move their car. If they stop at the bomb, they go back to the starting point. The winner is the car that reaches the finish line first. Once the game is over, I collect the cars but I do not throw them away. I tape them to the wall, so I can use them again in the future.

Once the game is over, I collect the cars but I do not throw them away. I tape them to the wall, so I can use them again in a future activity.

Vocabulary

Today, my adult students during a reading activity: "Teacher, what's a witch?" I went to the board and...

Family Members

Young Learners: MEMBERS OF THE FAMILY

We practiced the structure below for some time (about three classes) and after that, I used the slides and elicited the missing words. Students learned the possible ways to talk about their family:

This is my mom. Her name is Anna.

Anna is my mom.

My mom's name is Anna.
This is Anna. She's my mom. 

To wrap it up, students drew the members of their family. Point out that they are supposed to draw only the people that live with them. After drawing them, students wrote about them. (You can take a photo of their drawings and project them using the data show equipment. Students then introduce their families to peers.)

Images - Downloadable

Teens: SUPERLATIVES

The same drawings have been used in order to practice the Superlatives. After practicing  the forms of the superlatives with different adjectives, students were to write about their family members.

How's the weather today?

Dani Lyra needed illustrations for a reading activity with her little ones, so she asked me to draw pictures of different kinds of weather. Here they are.

Images - Downloadable

Ice Breaker for Day 1 - Option 2

Here is another ice breaker to be used on day 1. Have a picture alphabet photocopied and displayed on the walls. Check comprehension, pronunciation and spelling. Afterwards, demonstrate the task by drawing the letters of your own name on a sheet in blank. After you check students understand what they are supposed to do, hand out sheets in blank and markers/colored pencils. Students draw their names and show them to their peers, who will guess them. 

Although it looks childish, I wouldn't have problems using this ice breaker with any level. They have a lot of fun trying to draw their names.

Picture Alphabet - Downloadable

My Super Duper Pets

I used this activity to practice describing pets, their names and colors. After that, students drew their own pet and wrote about them. Super Duper loves animals and so do his friends. Here they are.

Activity proposed for these images

John Lennon - A Short Biography

Dani Lyra asked me to draw a set of drawings about John Lennon´s biography in order to use it as a teaser.The teaching point here is the past form of the verbs. The teacher prints the images and displays them randomly. Students guess the sequence of events and come up with the story. Afterwards, teacher plays the video, so students can check the correct order. The other way around is also possible, that is, show students the video first and then, check whether they remember the sequence. In the end, students research information about late famous people and write a short biography each. Here are a few questions to guide them:

1) When and where was he/she born?
2) What did he/she do?
3) When and how did he/she die?  

Video

Downloadable Material

My Super Duper Weekend

The activities proposed for these illustrations are similar to the ones proposed for "My Super Duper Routine". The ultimate purpose is to have students write about themselves.

Super Duper has a lot of fun on the weekend. Check him out!

Suggestions for Activities - Downloadable

My Super Duper Routine

The activities suggested below have been designed to practice the third person of the Simple Present, action verbs, time phrases, and sequence words. As a wrap up, students may be asked to write about their daily routine as well.

Super Duper has a very busy daily routine. Here's what he does on weekdays.

On school days, I get up at 6:30.

First, I take a hot shower.

Then, I get dressed.

After that, I brush my teeth.

At seven o'clock, I eat breakfast.

I go to school at 7:30.

In school, I have Math, Portuguese, Science, Physical Education, Music and Computer classes.

At twelve o'clock, I go home for lunch.

I eat lunch at 12:30.

In the afternoon, I have English classes on Mondays and Wednesdays.

And I have swimming classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

I go home at 6 o'clock.

When I get home, I take a shower.

Then, I eat dinner.

And after dinner, I watch TV and relax.

At 8:30, I do my homework.

And finally I go to bed at ten o'clock.

Suggested Activities - Downloadable

Super Duper

This is Super Duper, a character I created to illustrate this blog. The idea behind the blog is to combine something I love doing, which is drawing, and my students' work in the EFL classroom. I usually use drawing in class, especially with my younger learners, because I think it adds a fun element to the classroom environment. I´d like to thank  Carla Arena, a workmate and digital expert, who suggested that I create the character and have it all over the blog. Without further ado...Super Duper.