Sixth tutee session with DH and MH, American born of Korean parents. Monday, April 28, 6:30-7:30pm
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street. Mrs. H asked if I could tutor both twins, DH and MH, today. They both have the same homework assignments similar to prior weeks, so I figured that would take the hour. They had different math worksheets, but the same spelling, vocabulary, and a short reading for comprehension. They also had to write a paragraph summary of any new book. When we sat down they already had chosen some books to write about. MH chose a level 3 Star Wars story and DH chose a level 2 Spiderman story. While they read and wrote, I planned the rest of the hour. Knowing that DH was easily distracted, I first searched online for a Spiderman theme learning game I could entice him with. I found an excellent example word game quickly at: http://www.wordgames.com/spiderman-2-web-of-words.html.
The boys both wrote their paragraphs. I prompted them to read to me and self-correct a few spelling and sentence errors in both. I really wanted them both to rewrite the paragraph neatly because they have poor handwriting. They say the teacher does not care, but it is difficult reading. I think they will suffer in higher grades of they do not attempt to write clearer now. But they protested the rewrite, and I let it go to address the other homework.
The reading was about an immigrant woman starting her own business. They read and answered 10 questions independently. When I reviewed the worksheet, they had both missed half the questions. They were able to make corrections working together with a little prompting and discussion. I had previously thought that MH was more attentive to his work, but I think he watches his brother a lot and becomes distracted when they are together. Mom agrees that they need to be separated to learn best, and that is why she requested two tutors.
MH does better with math but I had to review the instructions related to visualizing geometric patterns. They had to draw a picture to understand how to answer the question. Again, if they are more careful they can resolve most mistakes. They seem to have no issues with the concepts, only with the directions and impatient attitude.
Lastly, I made a competitive spelling bee out of the word list. They have all week with these words, so it is more important that they repeat the review each day. So I tried to make it fun by awarding points if one makes a mistake and the other can correct it. They were attentive to this approach. We did not have time to play the Spiderman word game, but I will save that one for later. It is perfect for these two.
Showing posts with label Tutor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tutor. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Carlton TP #14
Tutee session with TZ and YY, Wednesday April 8, 3:00-5:00 pm
We meet at CIES lounge. YY has returned after a couple of weeks in China where she had to take an exam, check in at work, and had the opportunity to visit family. Before she left we had talked about her husband and young daughter coming to visit America and visiting Disney World. I had a guidebook to the theme parks with lots of tips and planning advice and I had brought that to our meeting to give her and use as a topic. I had already marked some key pages for her situation so she would not have to wade through the entire book. We took some time to read and discuss a few. One recommendation is to reserve an on-site hotel room when taking several days and traveling with small children. For a little extra cost, you gain many conveniences that are very valuable for families. Since she was actively planning this trip and it was important, I could see her motivated to use her English to question me in more detail. Since I had experience with my own children when they were small, I could speak directly and did not need to look anything up or regulate my speech much on this subject.
I was very curious about YY's job that would send her to America to learn English. I asked a lot of questions to understand eventually that she is a recruiter of college students who want to attend foreign universities. She represents specific exchange programs for her province (Hubei) in Singapore and Thailand now and has been very successful recruiting top students. Her boss now wants her to prepare to represent programs in America. This shows a lot of confidence in her marketing ability, but she will need to communicate with the colleges in the future and visit them. So the government (or company) is investing in her English training and exposure to American culture. She will counsel and encourage many more Chinese students in the future to prepare to study in America. At least, that is how I understood her with a little translation help from TZ.
This was our most active 3 way conversation in English since starting and both students were very helpful to each other and to my understanding of jobs and student life in China. I think we introduced a lot of travel vocabulary: "jet lag", "time zone", "customs", "vacation", "terminal", "layover", etc. We also reviewed and added to the directions words. YY takes notes on her phone, TZ has a laptop. We visited a few websites related to planning a trip and talked about the process of making reservations and buying bus tickets online. We talked about the kinds of thinks to bring for a young child like where to find a basic stroller (Wal-mart $15). I want YY to try to read the marked pages in the tour guide and talk about her trip planning next time.
We meet at CIES lounge. YY has returned after a couple of weeks in China where she had to take an exam, check in at work, and had the opportunity to visit family. Before she left we had talked about her husband and young daughter coming to visit America and visiting Disney World. I had a guidebook to the theme parks with lots of tips and planning advice and I had brought that to our meeting to give her and use as a topic. I had already marked some key pages for her situation so she would not have to wade through the entire book. We took some time to read and discuss a few. One recommendation is to reserve an on-site hotel room when taking several days and traveling with small children. For a little extra cost, you gain many conveniences that are very valuable for families. Since she was actively planning this trip and it was important, I could see her motivated to use her English to question me in more detail. Since I had experience with my own children when they were small, I could speak directly and did not need to look anything up or regulate my speech much on this subject.
I was very curious about YY's job that would send her to America to learn English. I asked a lot of questions to understand eventually that she is a recruiter of college students who want to attend foreign universities. She represents specific exchange programs for her province (Hubei) in Singapore and Thailand now and has been very successful recruiting top students. Her boss now wants her to prepare to represent programs in America. This shows a lot of confidence in her marketing ability, but she will need to communicate with the colleges in the future and visit them. So the government (or company) is investing in her English training and exposure to American culture. She will counsel and encourage many more Chinese students in the future to prepare to study in America. At least, that is how I understood her with a little translation help from TZ.
This was our most active 3 way conversation in English since starting and both students were very helpful to each other and to my understanding of jobs and student life in China. I think we introduced a lot of travel vocabulary: "jet lag", "time zone", "customs", "vacation", "terminal", "layover", etc. We also reviewed and added to the directions words. YY takes notes on her phone, TZ has a laptop. We visited a few websites related to planning a trip and talked about the process of making reservations and buying bus tickets online. We talked about the kinds of thinks to bring for a young child like where to find a basic stroller (Wal-mart $15). I want YY to try to read the marked pages in the tour guide and talk about her trip planning next time.
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Carlton TP #15
Sixth tutee session with DH, American born of Korean parents. Monday, April 14, 6:30-7:30pm
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street. Mrs. H was concerned over poor grades on his classwork for this new week. I mentioned again that they were preparing for testing FCAT next week and there is probably a disrupted class schedule. DH says they have practice in Math this week.
A few weeks ago when we did the new weekly spelling list, he got 100% correct (on a pretest). But this week, his score from the teacher was only 50%, just for spelling. We did some review and there were only a couple of words that seemed really difficult. Most he could figure out using spelling rules he knew.
His handwriting was also worse than I had seen previously. The task was a short paragraph he had written to paraphrase a story. I asked him to rewrite the summary again and we would improve it for sentence structure and neatness. This was relatively easy, even as we discussed in detail: margins, capitalization, line and word spacing, ligatures, erasing. He compared the two versions and agreed that he could do better writing.
For a diversion that would keep him interested, I had prepared a little information lesson on the continuing theme of pirate ships and treasure. I gave him a little information when we needed a break or to entice him back to his work. This time I used a famous Florida discovery, the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha. There is a lot of internet information about this famous treasure, and I had visited the museum in Key West, so I could speak personally about it. In the past weeks, he has always lit up when we talked about this subject, and I can introduce a little American history instead of trying to relate to cartoon fantasy characters.
Carlton TP #13
Fifth tutee session with third grade twin, DH, American born of Korean parents. Wednesday, April 9, 6:30-7:30pm
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street. Mrs. H had texted me earlier in the week to ask that we work with the boys on FCAT preparation. On Monday, we delayed the session because of heavy rains, and on Wednesday Bianca was sick, so I prepared to tutor both boys this time.
I knew that the schools were spending a lot of time and energy diverting lessons to test preparation because of the high stakes for everyone. Parents are also being made to feel the pressure and it is treated like an educational "sprint" to the finish line. I know that even academically successful kids begin to hate school during these weeks. Such was the case when I told DH and MH that we were going to discuss how they could do their best on the FCAT.
I had printed the only sample test available for 3rd grade Reading from the state website, along with the answer guide. I wanted to use it to reinforce the strategies that the teachers were trying to get students to use. I knew generally what they were being told, but I had to ask them to describe the advice they were given first. It would so no good to confuse them at this point, but I could be encouraging, and try to motivate them to do their best. When I showed them the forms, they both frowned and said "We already did that yesterday! I don't want to practice anymore."
I asked them questions about the content of the first reading. They were clearly bored by the story of baby birds and although they had read it before, neither was interested in the questions. However, M was much more accurate in answering the questions correctly. When we checked the answers together, it was apparent that D knew the story as well, but was misreading the questions a lot. I could see the difference in the boys patience. M also seems to enjoy correcting D's work. He sometimes interrupted in order to demonstrate this. I had to ask him to be quiet, and I tried not to correct D in the same manner, because that was clearly negative reinforcement in his eyes. I tried to affect D's attitude the most, hoping he could focus if I promised the puzzle they liked later, and to let them choose what to study.
We skipped to the last reading about a daredevil, but they clearly did not want to review testing. They both demonstrated for me the strategy the teachers used. But they argued over the steps. I am not sure they understand that saving time is important in this test, much more than in a regular classroom or with homework. Third grade really should not be losing instruction time to test preparation. For first time testers, a more gradual introduction, perhaps with test/retest flexibility for the school, would establish a better baseline level for students destined to take many more standardized tests.
I wish I had more varied materials than what the teacher had already used in class. We talked a bit about the test in general. So I finished the session letting them work together on the puzzle I had (a "scramble square", a deceptively simple set of 9 pieces to match). I spoke to their mom a little about the FCAT hype, and how I thought the best preparation for her was to encourage a positive attitude without too much pressure on kids to "perform".
Sunday, April 6, 2014
Carlton TP #12
Tutee session with TZ only, Friday April 4, 2:00-3:30 pm
We meet at the Duroc Science library. We begin to focus on specific pronunciation targets using the tools I showed him before. The voiced and unvoiced "th" is one. I have discovered a very good pronunciation series on a YouTube channel called EnglishMeeting. The teacher does meticulous breakdowns of specific problems and his demonstrations are very clear. I want to watch more of these myself because I think the modeling he does is great. These can also be watched with a mirror for practice.
After a short time, TZ begins talking about his level one classes and how frustrating it is for him because some students are never prepared and do not seem to care. He says the teacher is having to repeat too much and cannot finish the lesson. I try to divert his attitude to focus on his own work, regardless, and to concentrate on his every chance in class to demonstrate his own efforts. I tell him the teacher is showing him how to form good habits and modeling a process he should try to understand. I know from observations that teachers are also frustrated by some students attitudes, but that they can usually manage around them. There are cultural differences in expectations of behavior that cannot be resolved in one session, either. I try to empathize with him, and I don't think other students are being disruptive, but TG is very serious about his lessons and goals.
At the library there was a scientific computing student exposition and I picked up the booklet of project abstracts. We looked at this together (TG is very interested in Ph.D. statistics study) and I used one to practice a little academic reading and vocabulary meaning clues in the roots of large words like: visualization, stand-alone, application, execution, functionalities, hydro-dynamics, and scenarios. We also used a dictionary to find a few meanings. I encourage him to look for more low-key student events in any department he was interested in because many occur that are open to an audience.
I tell him our communication has improved a great deal (and it has) in the last few weeks. I think he should be practicing his speech and listening more around native speakers, and not only at CIES and just practicing alone at home. He is not feeling very confident about this, so I invite him to a science lecture on campus. Like the visit to TCC, he seems to negotiate listening and speaking better when he is interested and involved. We agree to meet later.
We did attend the lecture and have some conversation about it, but it was very difficult listening. He could follow the presentation slides, but admitted to finding the speaking very hard to understand. I said he should still try to take advantage of the many opportunities that FSU offers for him to listen and speak to more people. I ask him what sport he likes and he says badminton (?) and ping pong. I am not sure about the former, but I assure him there must be some ping pong tables on campus somewhere and I ask him to explore, ask questions, and find them. I think he could have a good opportunity for a pickup game and a chance to practice speaking in a safe and friendly environment. I explain this openness to play games or sports with strangers is very common in America, and I would be happy to play sometime also.
Resource: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ag4qoNzEH4w&list=PL0BCFCF3C52A241C7
We meet at the Duroc Science library. We begin to focus on specific pronunciation targets using the tools I showed him before. The voiced and unvoiced "th" is one. I have discovered a very good pronunciation series on a YouTube channel called EnglishMeeting. The teacher does meticulous breakdowns of specific problems and his demonstrations are very clear. I want to watch more of these myself because I think the modeling he does is great. These can also be watched with a mirror for practice.
After a short time, TZ begins talking about his level one classes and how frustrating it is for him because some students are never prepared and do not seem to care. He says the teacher is having to repeat too much and cannot finish the lesson. I try to divert his attitude to focus on his own work, regardless, and to concentrate on his every chance in class to demonstrate his own efforts. I tell him the teacher is showing him how to form good habits and modeling a process he should try to understand. I know from observations that teachers are also frustrated by some students attitudes, but that they can usually manage around them. There are cultural differences in expectations of behavior that cannot be resolved in one session, either. I try to empathize with him, and I don't think other students are being disruptive, but TG is very serious about his lessons and goals.
At the library there was a scientific computing student exposition and I picked up the booklet of project abstracts. We looked at this together (TG is very interested in Ph.D. statistics study) and I used one to practice a little academic reading and vocabulary meaning clues in the roots of large words like: visualization, stand-alone, application, execution, functionalities, hydro-dynamics, and scenarios. We also used a dictionary to find a few meanings. I encourage him to look for more low-key student events in any department he was interested in because many occur that are open to an audience.
I tell him our communication has improved a great deal (and it has) in the last few weeks. I think he should be practicing his speech and listening more around native speakers, and not only at CIES and just practicing alone at home. He is not feeling very confident about this, so I invite him to a science lecture on campus. Like the visit to TCC, he seems to negotiate listening and speaking better when he is interested and involved. We agree to meet later.
We did attend the lecture and have some conversation about it, but it was very difficult listening. He could follow the presentation slides, but admitted to finding the speaking very hard to understand. I said he should still try to take advantage of the many opportunities that FSU offers for him to listen and speak to more people. I ask him what sport he likes and he says badminton (?) and ping pong. I am not sure about the former, but I assure him there must be some ping pong tables on campus somewhere and I ask him to explore, ask questions, and find them. I think he could have a good opportunity for a pickup game and a chance to practice speaking in a safe and friendly environment. I explain this openness to play games or sports with strangers is very common in America, and I would be happy to play sometime also.
Resource: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ag4qoNzEH4w&list=PL0BCFCF3C52A241C7
Carlton TP #11
Tutee session with TZ only, Wednesday April 2, 3:30-6:00 pm
We meet at CIES lounge. YY is expected to return Saturday. By text TZ had asked that we work on TOEFL Speaking practice. Since we had just covered this in our readings and class, I was glad to comply. I searched online and found some resources I thought were good test practice exercises. When we met we decided to move to the Duroc Science Library where there were quiet rooms and we could focus on real practice. Be forewarned, that reserving a study room is not allowed for CIES credentials or even visiting USF students, so this was a headache until we were given permission to just take a room.
I had read some advice that the best preparation for this test is to simulate the environment as closely as possible for practice, because becoming familiar with the special conditions of the test is important to reduce anxiety and stress. I also realized that TZ was not close to being able to succeed with this test (he is high level 1 now), although he thinks he is much better prepared for Reading and Writing portions (where he is level 3).
My goal is to evaluate how he is approaching his preparation on his own and how the TOEFL mixed level class is working for him. He demonstrates to me his TPO test preparation program. This program has a large database of sample questions, readings, and audio, but is not an authentic simulation, and he has not made a lot of progress working with it. Obviously to me, the material is just too difficult, and all of the free resources I have found do NOT include scaffolding support or much guidance or strategy. That is what you must pay for.
In order to find a workable plan for him, I feel I have to make it clear that he must find ways to build up to this level of practice gradually, and we can use the tools available in ways that will be less frustrating and lead to steadily improved fluency and accuracy. I use the first link below to show him how the test is constructed and how each question differs and what it tests. This page has sample answers so he can see what is expected easily. I explain about the extreme time limits compared to class. We practice constructing a response as fast as possible with quick notes for the free response (1 and 2). He needs much more time but understands the task. Then we review the first integrated task (3) and practice each step with a timer, reading, listening, speaking. The topic is recycling and the dialogue is quite tricky and packed with details, intended to test up to an advanced comprehension and organizational response. He accepts that he cannot be ready to test by June.
This exercise was not as negative as it might sound. We also discussed some resources that are more important and contribute directly to the skills he lacks. I encouraged him to begin recording his voice and listening to his own readings. The second link below allows this easily for a sample of questions. The third link brings together many pages, all with audio and/or video support, to target pronunciation practice by level. I encourage him to use this with a small mirror to compare and work on mouth shaping and mimicry. The last link is another full speaking test simulation source.
One other technical issue I think was holding him back in practice was that his computer audio was terrible. I advised that he get a small pair of speakers or headphones (cheap ear buds vary dynamics too much with movement) to use for listening. This will make a big difference, I am sure.
Resources:
http://www.englishclub.com/esl-exams/ets-toefl-practice-speaking.htm (my main lesson page)
http://www.toeflnetwork.com/toefl-speaking/1/1 (updated site, good scenarios, recording)
http://www.eslamerica.us/Pronunciation.html (excellent pronunciation examples)
https://www.youtube.com/user/ouliogroove (excellent authentic simulated test scenarios)
We meet at CIES lounge. YY is expected to return Saturday. By text TZ had asked that we work on TOEFL Speaking practice. Since we had just covered this in our readings and class, I was glad to comply. I searched online and found some resources I thought were good test practice exercises. When we met we decided to move to the Duroc Science Library where there were quiet rooms and we could focus on real practice. Be forewarned, that reserving a study room is not allowed for CIES credentials or even visiting USF students, so this was a headache until we were given permission to just take a room.
I had read some advice that the best preparation for this test is to simulate the environment as closely as possible for practice, because becoming familiar with the special conditions of the test is important to reduce anxiety and stress. I also realized that TZ was not close to being able to succeed with this test (he is high level 1 now), although he thinks he is much better prepared for Reading and Writing portions (where he is level 3).
My goal is to evaluate how he is approaching his preparation on his own and how the TOEFL mixed level class is working for him. He demonstrates to me his TPO test preparation program. This program has a large database of sample questions, readings, and audio, but is not an authentic simulation, and he has not made a lot of progress working with it. Obviously to me, the material is just too difficult, and all of the free resources I have found do NOT include scaffolding support or much guidance or strategy. That is what you must pay for.
In order to find a workable plan for him, I feel I have to make it clear that he must find ways to build up to this level of practice gradually, and we can use the tools available in ways that will be less frustrating and lead to steadily improved fluency and accuracy. I use the first link below to show him how the test is constructed and how each question differs and what it tests. This page has sample answers so he can see what is expected easily. I explain about the extreme time limits compared to class. We practice constructing a response as fast as possible with quick notes for the free response (1 and 2). He needs much more time but understands the task. Then we review the first integrated task (3) and practice each step with a timer, reading, listening, speaking. The topic is recycling and the dialogue is quite tricky and packed with details, intended to test up to an advanced comprehension and organizational response. He accepts that he cannot be ready to test by June.
This exercise was not as negative as it might sound. We also discussed some resources that are more important and contribute directly to the skills he lacks. I encouraged him to begin recording his voice and listening to his own readings. The second link below allows this easily for a sample of questions. The third link brings together many pages, all with audio and/or video support, to target pronunciation practice by level. I encourage him to use this with a small mirror to compare and work on mouth shaping and mimicry. The last link is another full speaking test simulation source.
One other technical issue I think was holding him back in practice was that his computer audio was terrible. I advised that he get a small pair of speakers or headphones (cheap ear buds vary dynamics too much with movement) to use for listening. This will make a big difference, I am sure.
Resources:
http://www.englishclub.com/esl-exams/ets-toefl-practice-speaking.htm (my main lesson page)
http://www.toeflnetwork.com/toefl-speaking/1/1 (updated site, good scenarios, recording)
http://www.eslamerica.us/Pronunciation.html (excellent pronunciation examples)
https://www.youtube.com/user/ouliogroove (excellent authentic simulated test scenarios)
Thursday, April 3, 2014
Carlton TP #10
Forth tutee session with third grade twin, DH, American born of Korean parents. Monday, March 31, 6:30-7:30pm
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street. Today I looked for some worksheets using the Lego Chima characters but could find nothing but coloring pages. Apparently, the series is too new to be incorporated into many educational materials yet. Too bad, because the Star Wars theme worked out really well last week. I printed the pages anyway, to use as a reward today.
DH first asked me about Blackbeard's ship, the Queen Anne's Revenge. Last week, he asked me if "Jack Sparrow" was a real pirate and I had to explain the difference between movies, especially these modern fantasy CGI ones, and real history. I think this is a real problem with many young children in school, confusing fantasy and reality. It impedes learning if they compare "boring" facts with exciting, fast-paced action. Both are OK, but entertainment is so pervasive, I think this is a bigger problem than in the past. The good thing about this is that DH had looked up the site I showed him last week of the museum that is reconstructing the ship and had obviously spent some time on it. Yeah!
We got back to reviewing his work. I showed him a short video of a wagon train historic reenactment and compared this to a Hollywood version. He was quite interested and noted some details matching his reading (Indians, circling wagons, settlers possessions).
Then we reviewed his current homework that was done. His mother told me he has a teacher that is so dedicated that she stays an hour after school to teach children who can stay material that there is no time to cover because of FCAT preparation. He does some of his homework then. A story I have heard from many teachers. Reviewed his spelling words for this week and he can write all 20 flawlessly correct. Vocabulary is new. The reading is OK, but he admitted to not taking my advice. I had him independently read the questions and check answers and he corrected most errors. The math was geometry and again, he had made silly mistakes he caught independently upon review.
We were joined by Matthew a little early and I directed them both to a little library search challenge. I showed them how to use the catalog search to find specific references. So instead of "Pirate" we searched for "Blackbeard" and "Queen Anne's Revenge" to find a few items. Then we searched the adult stacks for the section on historic wrecks and found a book with maps. Perusing this illustrated book, he found things of further interest, including wrecks off the coast of Korea and in Florida. Matthew found another junior pirate book they decided to check out.
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street. Today I looked for some worksheets using the Lego Chima characters but could find nothing but coloring pages. Apparently, the series is too new to be incorporated into many educational materials yet. Too bad, because the Star Wars theme worked out really well last week. I printed the pages anyway, to use as a reward today.
DH first asked me about Blackbeard's ship, the Queen Anne's Revenge. Last week, he asked me if "Jack Sparrow" was a real pirate and I had to explain the difference between movies, especially these modern fantasy CGI ones, and real history. I think this is a real problem with many young children in school, confusing fantasy and reality. It impedes learning if they compare "boring" facts with exciting, fast-paced action. Both are OK, but entertainment is so pervasive, I think this is a bigger problem than in the past. The good thing about this is that DH had looked up the site I showed him last week of the museum that is reconstructing the ship and had obviously spent some time on it. Yeah!
We got back to reviewing his work. I showed him a short video of a wagon train historic reenactment and compared this to a Hollywood version. He was quite interested and noted some details matching his reading (Indians, circling wagons, settlers possessions).
Then we reviewed his current homework that was done. His mother told me he has a teacher that is so dedicated that she stays an hour after school to teach children who can stay material that there is no time to cover because of FCAT preparation. He does some of his homework then. A story I have heard from many teachers. Reviewed his spelling words for this week and he can write all 20 flawlessly correct. Vocabulary is new. The reading is OK, but he admitted to not taking my advice. I had him independently read the questions and check answers and he corrected most errors. The math was geometry and again, he had made silly mistakes he caught independently upon review.
We were joined by Matthew a little early and I directed them both to a little library search challenge. I showed them how to use the catalog search to find specific references. So instead of "Pirate" we searched for "Blackbeard" and "Queen Anne's Revenge" to find a few items. Then we searched the adult stacks for the section on historic wrecks and found a book with maps. Perusing this illustrated book, he found things of further interest, including wrecks off the coast of Korea and in Florida. Matthew found another junior pirate book they decided to check out.
Monday, March 31, 2014
Carlton TP #8
Third tutee session with third grade twin, DH, American born of Korean parents. Monday, March 24, 6:30-7:30pm
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street. Today I prepared some worksheets I hoped he would like. I found a series of poems by Star Wars fans (this was his favorite characters, I thought). His mother had brought the homework this time, so we began with that. This was a rather long (2 page) American history reading about the "Oregon Trail". It included a general description of the purpose and use of the trail and some facts about the settlers. There was also an included period letter by a young person (primary source). DH found this reading very boring because there was no action described in his terms. This was reflected in his inattention to the comprehension quiz, that was almost entirely wrong.
I told him about my Star Wars worksheet that we could do after we finish the homework for motivation. I then asked if he had seen any American western movies about wagon trains, and he had not. I tried to describe in more "adventurous" terms the danger and challenge of the trail. Then I asked him to reread the article, pausing to explain a bit for each paragraph and correct some pronunciation. Then he checked the quiz over and changed about 50%, mostly correct. Finally, I questioned him about the remaining errors to find the answer in the article. With a little help, he gained a fair understanding and could justify his answers. One or two questions may have still been incorrect, or had unclear distractors.
My advice to him, and I repeated to his mother, is when facing these readings in a test like the FCAT, you should read the questions first, not all the distractors. Then read the article once carefully, keeping in mind what you are looking for. Then check your answers by rereading if you have time at the end of the test. If you are reading without questions, read at least twice. This review was half the hour.
The purpose I intended for the Star Wars poems was to practice pronunciation and writing (his handwriting is terrible). I chose two poems from this page: http://allpoetry.com/poems/about/star-wars . "Death Star" and "Star Wars Spine Poem". The first I had him read, explain the action, and we review vocabulary: "scourge", "gigantic superlaser", "massive empire", "rebels", "orbit". I ask him to add some emotion and reread. I question him to show his SW knowledge and he shows more interest. We discuss a little and reread again with my correcting his speech this time.
The second poem I use as a creative writing exercise. A spine poem is a structure that adds dimension to writing. The vertical lines starting words spell a message "May the Force be with you!" The lines must then tell a related story. DH does not understand this particular poem because it is a little mature, but I can use the form as an example and I ask him to write his own version. He likes puzzles and I am surprised how seriously he tackles the task. I laid out the spine for him, skipping lines on the paper in order for him to have room and direct him to write within the lines. This is a problem with his writing. While he works I try to direct him to focus on writing clearly. We work together until the end of the hour and he has a final draft to show his mother. She is quite impressed with him and his writing effort is much better than the homework was.
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street. Today I prepared some worksheets I hoped he would like. I found a series of poems by Star Wars fans (this was his favorite characters, I thought). His mother had brought the homework this time, so we began with that. This was a rather long (2 page) American history reading about the "Oregon Trail". It included a general description of the purpose and use of the trail and some facts about the settlers. There was also an included period letter by a young person (primary source). DH found this reading very boring because there was no action described in his terms. This was reflected in his inattention to the comprehension quiz, that was almost entirely wrong.
I told him about my Star Wars worksheet that we could do after we finish the homework for motivation. I then asked if he had seen any American western movies about wagon trains, and he had not. I tried to describe in more "adventurous" terms the danger and challenge of the trail. Then I asked him to reread the article, pausing to explain a bit for each paragraph and correct some pronunciation. Then he checked the quiz over and changed about 50%, mostly correct. Finally, I questioned him about the remaining errors to find the answer in the article. With a little help, he gained a fair understanding and could justify his answers. One or two questions may have still been incorrect, or had unclear distractors.
My advice to him, and I repeated to his mother, is when facing these readings in a test like the FCAT, you should read the questions first, not all the distractors. Then read the article once carefully, keeping in mind what you are looking for. Then check your answers by rereading if you have time at the end of the test. If you are reading without questions, read at least twice. This review was half the hour.
The purpose I intended for the Star Wars poems was to practice pronunciation and writing (his handwriting is terrible). I chose two poems from this page: http://allpoetry.com/poems/about/star-wars . "Death Star" and "Star Wars Spine Poem". The first I had him read, explain the action, and we review vocabulary: "scourge", "gigantic superlaser", "massive empire", "rebels", "orbit". I ask him to add some emotion and reread. I question him to show his SW knowledge and he shows more interest. We discuss a little and reread again with my correcting his speech this time.
The second poem I use as a creative writing exercise. A spine poem is a structure that adds dimension to writing. The vertical lines starting words spell a message "May the Force be with you!" The lines must then tell a related story. DH does not understand this particular poem because it is a little mature, but I can use the form as an example and I ask him to write his own version. He likes puzzles and I am surprised how seriously he tackles the task. I laid out the spine for him, skipping lines on the paper in order for him to have room and direct him to write within the lines. This is a problem with his writing. While he works I try to direct him to focus on writing clearly. We work together until the end of the hour and he has a final draft to show his mother. She is quite impressed with him and his writing effort is much better than the homework was.
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Carlton TP #9
Tutee session with TZ only, Wednesday March 26, 3:30-5:00pm
We meet at CIES lounge. YY has had to leave to take exams, but is expected to return next week.
This is our first individual tutoring since our first meeting. We review TG progress, direction, and perception of our lessons. I learn from his comments that tutoring small groups has some disadvantages. Expectations are for personal attention to specific problems, but the other tutee can redirect that attention or the instructor cannot always balance the time. In a classroom, the individual expectation is usually lower and instructor is not as direct a participant in an exercise. With two or three, the instructor must compromise to make sure each tutee gains from the lesson. Today we practiced pronunciation.
TG was at first skeptical of attempting to converse without learning proper grammatical forms first and spoke very slowly and deliberately. After a few weeks of encouraging him to risk speaking, and taking him away from the classroom environment to talk without the translator, he is much more confident. He negotiated the questioning about ESOL classes with strangers very well last week. I had very little to say.
Today he stated that he has changed his mind about his focus on preparing for the TOEFL, and recognizes that he must have more than one learning strategy. By keeping our topics focused on his present needs and current interests, I am reviewing and repeating our conversation topics to reinforce his use of productive new words, rather than constantly adding more.
We meet at CIES lounge. YY has had to leave to take exams, but is expected to return next week.
This is our first individual tutoring since our first meeting. We review TG progress, direction, and perception of our lessons. I learn from his comments that tutoring small groups has some disadvantages. Expectations are for personal attention to specific problems, but the other tutee can redirect that attention or the instructor cannot always balance the time. In a classroom, the individual expectation is usually lower and instructor is not as direct a participant in an exercise. With two or three, the instructor must compromise to make sure each tutee gains from the lesson. Today we practiced pronunciation.
TG was at first skeptical of attempting to converse without learning proper grammatical forms first and spoke very slowly and deliberately. After a few weeks of encouraging him to risk speaking, and taking him away from the classroom environment to talk without the translator, he is much more confident. He negotiated the questioning about ESOL classes with strangers very well last week. I had very little to say.
Today he stated that he has changed his mind about his focus on preparing for the TOEFL, and recognizes that he must have more than one learning strategy. By keeping our topics focused on his present needs and current interests, I am reviewing and repeating our conversation topics to reinforce his use of productive new words, rather than constantly adding more.
Carlton TP #7
Fifth tutee session with TZ and YY, Friday March 21, 3:30-5:00pm
We meet at CIES lounge. I meet YY first and we talk about her plans after CIES. Her hope is that her husband and young daughter will visit and they will have a Florida tour, including a Disney vacation. This was a good topic to build on last weeks subjects, family and maps and directions, even useful phone apps. I also needed to encourage her to use more vocabulary in English and form questions properly. I did this by modeling interview questions as if I was planning the vacation with her, like a tour guide. "How old is the child?", "How long will you stay?", "What is your budget?", "Where would you like to visit?", "I can recommend…". I hope this will help her plan more effectively in the next few months. We will revisit this topic again.
When TZ joins us, we continue to talking about general considerations for traveling with young children. I have kids, but I am surprised TZ is knowledgeable and has some concerns. He mentions not to buy a lot of baby gear (stroller, etc.) in China, but to get them here where it is much cheaper. He thinks her plan to quickly visit five parks in a few days is "crazy", and they will all be very tired. This presents a difference of opinion that leads to YY working hard to find words in English and she resorts to asking him for Chinese translation (I lost my list, "on-site hotel", "car seat", "package discount" etc.). I totally agree with TZ. I ask her to try to find English words, because I understand her problem. We focus on what is good for the child: rest and time out of heat and sun, quality food, easy travel, safety and comfort for family. I have a Disney planning guide that I will bring later to help her. We can use this for reading and speaking practice, I think.
My students were very engaged and although they were using more Chinese together, it was to find and learn English travel related words that they will both use regularly.
We meet at CIES lounge. I meet YY first and we talk about her plans after CIES. Her hope is that her husband and young daughter will visit and they will have a Florida tour, including a Disney vacation. This was a good topic to build on last weeks subjects, family and maps and directions, even useful phone apps. I also needed to encourage her to use more vocabulary in English and form questions properly. I did this by modeling interview questions as if I was planning the vacation with her, like a tour guide. "How old is the child?", "How long will you stay?", "What is your budget?", "Where would you like to visit?", "I can recommend…". I hope this will help her plan more effectively in the next few months. We will revisit this topic again.
When TZ joins us, we continue to talking about general considerations for traveling with young children. I have kids, but I am surprised TZ is knowledgeable and has some concerns. He mentions not to buy a lot of baby gear (stroller, etc.) in China, but to get them here where it is much cheaper. He thinks her plan to quickly visit five parks in a few days is "crazy", and they will all be very tired. This presents a difference of opinion that leads to YY working hard to find words in English and she resorts to asking him for Chinese translation (I lost my list, "on-site hotel", "car seat", "package discount" etc.). I totally agree with TZ. I ask her to try to find English words, because I understand her problem. We focus on what is good for the child: rest and time out of heat and sun, quality food, easy travel, safety and comfort for family. I have a Disney planning guide that I will bring later to help her. We can use this for reading and speaking practice, I think.
My students were very engaged and although they were using more Chinese together, it was to find and learn English travel related words that they will both use regularly.
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Carlton TP #6
Fourth tutee session with YY and TZ, Wednesday, March 19, 3-5pm
We meet at the CIES lounge. YY is first and working on her grammar. We review vocabulary lesson on names of fruits and vegetables. A few of these are difficult pronunciations for her: "bell pepper", "potato", "avocado", etc. We do some repetitions and sentence construction and this leads to a discussion about article use in speaking. I try to explain using "the" for almost all count/noncount, single/plural nouns vs. using a(n) for the single indefinite forms. I cannot explain well when no article is used on plural forms and some proper nouns.
When TG joins us, we discuss plans for CIES spring break. Both students do not drive, and they are not planning travel at that time, but YY explains about her planned family visit later in the year. The conversation repeats some of our family and directional vocabulary from last week, and we expand upon this with words like: "Orlando", "Disney World", "parkway", "boulevard", "tour guide/bus", and some other vacation terms.
TG has done some online research on additional ESL programs in Tallahassee. He wants to go to TCC again for information on ESL open classes. We try to call but do not get an answer. I have my car because of weather, so we drive over and have to visit three offices before getting to the literacy program for international students office. It is interesting because TG shows more confidence asking questions in English to locate the office and to inquire about the requirements. Residency is important and he will need a Florida ID card. Also, he has to be tested and apply as a non-degree student, a lot of steps. I did not interfere with his questioning and the instructor was obviously skilled in helping him understand the issues.
After leaving TCC, we drop YY at home. TG still wants to go to the Library for information on free ESL classes there. It becomes clearer that he may not be able to stay at CIES or at least understands he will need much more practice to reach his goals. At the downtown library, we speak with a literacy volunteer about the program and get some materials. Apparently, some other CIES students use this program, but not many. It is quiet today. They have a nice dedicated room and an ESL library that makes this a good discovery. I also am very interested in this program, as they also need tutors to serve the growing requests. We return to CIES feeling that he will try the library literacy program.
We meet at the CIES lounge. YY is first and working on her grammar. We review vocabulary lesson on names of fruits and vegetables. A few of these are difficult pronunciations for her: "bell pepper", "potato", "avocado", etc. We do some repetitions and sentence construction and this leads to a discussion about article use in speaking. I try to explain using "the" for almost all count/noncount, single/plural nouns vs. using a(n) for the single indefinite forms. I cannot explain well when no article is used on plural forms and some proper nouns.
When TG joins us, we discuss plans for CIES spring break. Both students do not drive, and they are not planning travel at that time, but YY explains about her planned family visit later in the year. The conversation repeats some of our family and directional vocabulary from last week, and we expand upon this with words like: "Orlando", "Disney World", "parkway", "boulevard", "tour guide/bus", and some other vacation terms.
TG has done some online research on additional ESL programs in Tallahassee. He wants to go to TCC again for information on ESL open classes. We try to call but do not get an answer. I have my car because of weather, so we drive over and have to visit three offices before getting to the literacy program for international students office. It is interesting because TG shows more confidence asking questions in English to locate the office and to inquire about the requirements. Residency is important and he will need a Florida ID card. Also, he has to be tested and apply as a non-degree student, a lot of steps. I did not interfere with his questioning and the instructor was obviously skilled in helping him understand the issues.
After leaving TCC, we drop YY at home. TG still wants to go to the Library for information on free ESL classes there. It becomes clearer that he may not be able to stay at CIES or at least understands he will need much more practice to reach his goals. At the downtown library, we speak with a literacy volunteer about the program and get some materials. Apparently, some other CIES students use this program, but not many. It is quiet today. They have a nice dedicated room and an ESL library that makes this a good discovery. I also am very interested in this program, as they also need tutors to serve the growing requests. We return to CIES feeling that he will try the library literacy program.
Carlton TP #5
Third tutee session with YY and TZ, Friday March 14, 2-4pm
We meet at CIES lounge. TG is early because there is no TOEFL class today. First, I review YY speaking class pronunciation. Her vocalizing of "er", "ed", and hard and soft "th" are problems. I need to provide her a lot of opportunity to repeat sounds and correct. But she is not so shy this week, and is anxious to practice. Then we moved to a classroom to work as a group today.
TZ did the pollution worksheet I handed out last week, YY did not, so we did not review this topic. The new topic I had sent via message for them to think about was family pictures. Share and describe. We took turns viewing pictures of spouses and children and commenting on the settings. This is a familiar subject of a beginning CIES lesson and we refined vocabulary and some grammar in use.
The next topic I had already asked for was QQ tips. This is a native Chinese chat program that is only partially translated into an international version. TZ has the Windows version and YY has the Android version. I have the iOS and Mac international version. We compared the user interfaces and TG helped me understand how to download emoji on computer. We realized this was not supported the same on the Mac after some trial and error. This was a good opportunity for them to show and tell me how to navigate software they knew better than I and they were encouraged to try to assist me. Coincidently, some of our conversation, "left", "right", etc. was similar to our last topic.
CIES class lesson today was giving directions. The worksheet map included the area nearby. We reviewed this lesson when TG made a request to go to TCC sometime to inquire about extra ESL classes. I agreed to go today and we could work on authentic direction situation, and I would drop them off at home afterwards. We drive to TCC but it is completely closed for break. On the way back, I stop at the Korean grocery and we compare prices on tofu (half price of Publix), some vegetables, and buy rice. Then I drop YY at home, after she gives directions. Then TZ does the same.
This session was very productive, I think, because we engaged in a lot of conversation that supported the current CIES lessons. The students were much less nervous and maybe moving around a lot helped: changing location, walking and driving.
We meet at CIES lounge. TG is early because there is no TOEFL class today. First, I review YY speaking class pronunciation. Her vocalizing of "er", "ed", and hard and soft "th" are problems. I need to provide her a lot of opportunity to repeat sounds and correct. But she is not so shy this week, and is anxious to practice. Then we moved to a classroom to work as a group today.
TZ did the pollution worksheet I handed out last week, YY did not, so we did not review this topic. The new topic I had sent via message for them to think about was family pictures. Share and describe. We took turns viewing pictures of spouses and children and commenting on the settings. This is a familiar subject of a beginning CIES lesson and we refined vocabulary and some grammar in use.
The next topic I had already asked for was QQ tips. This is a native Chinese chat program that is only partially translated into an international version. TZ has the Windows version and YY has the Android version. I have the iOS and Mac international version. We compared the user interfaces and TG helped me understand how to download emoji on computer. We realized this was not supported the same on the Mac after some trial and error. This was a good opportunity for them to show and tell me how to navigate software they knew better than I and they were encouraged to try to assist me. Coincidently, some of our conversation, "left", "right", etc. was similar to our last topic.
CIES class lesson today was giving directions. The worksheet map included the area nearby. We reviewed this lesson when TG made a request to go to TCC sometime to inquire about extra ESL classes. I agreed to go today and we could work on authentic direction situation, and I would drop them off at home afterwards. We drive to TCC but it is completely closed for break. On the way back, I stop at the Korean grocery and we compare prices on tofu (half price of Publix), some vegetables, and buy rice. Then I drop YY at home, after she gives directions. Then TZ does the same.
This session was very productive, I think, because we engaged in a lot of conversation that supported the current CIES lessons. The students were much less nervous and maybe moving around a lot helped: changing location, walking and driving.
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Carlton TP #4
Second tutee session with third grade twin, DH, American born of Korean parents. Monday, March 17, 6:30-7:30pm
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street. This time his mom brought a composition book and pencils, no homework. She asked to work on reading and writing today.
After introductions, I first asked him about last week. We reviewed the vocabulary words again, and I asked him to write his responses in his BEST handwriting. His writing is sloppy, and barely readable. He ignores lines and left to right organization. He had retained about half of the definitions. We corrected spelling also. He read a passage of his own writing to me also, making mistakes. Writing issues could be a real problem for him in English.
Next, we selected a book to read. He perused a familiar stack of Star Wars series picture books and could not find one he had not already read. He chose a Pokemon story instead. I thought this would not be very good because so much of these are repetitious "battles" and derived from the card game, with little plot content. However, it did hold his interest in reading. It was difficult to focus on pronunciation with this story because it is packed with invented proper names of characters, and silly fighting moves. But, I was surprised that DH did not recognize many of the vocabulary. It was also difficult to read the dialogue format. We focused on finding synonyms for strange words. The first one was "connoisseur", a difficult word for anyone. He guessed it sounded French, like "crochet" was last week, and we defined it as an expert and/or collector. Other, simpler unknown words were: "tuft" (clump of hair), "dodge" (avoid), "countered" (opposed), "hollered" (yelled), and so on. He became bored with the story about half way through and asked me if I had brought the puzzle. I had not.
We stopped reading. I had explored a few travel pages on Seoul and found that there was a new hands-on children's museum opened last year. I showed him the website and he recognized a nearby theme park he will visit. I suggested he could visit this place when he travels this summer. We talked briefly about Korea using a map until the time was up.
Bianca and I agreed that the boys should bring their school assignments each time, even if completed, so our time reinforces the homework and we can focus on English language skill support.
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street. This time his mom brought a composition book and pencils, no homework. She asked to work on reading and writing today.
After introductions, I first asked him about last week. We reviewed the vocabulary words again, and I asked him to write his responses in his BEST handwriting. His writing is sloppy, and barely readable. He ignores lines and left to right organization. He had retained about half of the definitions. We corrected spelling also. He read a passage of his own writing to me also, making mistakes. Writing issues could be a real problem for him in English.
Next, we selected a book to read. He perused a familiar stack of Star Wars series picture books and could not find one he had not already read. He chose a Pokemon story instead. I thought this would not be very good because so much of these are repetitious "battles" and derived from the card game, with little plot content. However, it did hold his interest in reading. It was difficult to focus on pronunciation with this story because it is packed with invented proper names of characters, and silly fighting moves. But, I was surprised that DH did not recognize many of the vocabulary. It was also difficult to read the dialogue format. We focused on finding synonyms for strange words. The first one was "connoisseur", a difficult word for anyone. He guessed it sounded French, like "crochet" was last week, and we defined it as an expert and/or collector. Other, simpler unknown words were: "tuft" (clump of hair), "dodge" (avoid), "countered" (opposed), "hollered" (yelled), and so on. He became bored with the story about half way through and asked me if I had brought the puzzle. I had not.
We stopped reading. I had explored a few travel pages on Seoul and found that there was a new hands-on children's museum opened last year. I showed him the website and he recognized a nearby theme park he will visit. I suggested he could visit this place when he travels this summer. We talked briefly about Korea using a map until the time was up.
Bianca and I agreed that the boys should bring their school assignments each time, even if completed, so our time reinforces the homework and we can focus on English language skill support.
Carlton TP #3
First tutee session with third grade twins, David and Matthew, American born of Korean parents. Monday March 10, 5:30-7pm
I tutor DH and Bianca tutors MH. The mother insists that the two boys must be visually separated in different rooms or they will act out too much.
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street and agree that we will meet a little later (after 6pm) in the future to avoid the new parking fees in the lot. We used the stacks to separate the kids in the youth reading area. There is one private meeting room available sometimes by reservation, but we did not use it since the boys proved to be very well behaved. We chose a comfortable seating area facing each other with a small table for my computer and room to write. He liked the padded chairs better here.
After introductions, I asked DH to talk about a favorite book he read recently. He related the story of a prince fighting a dragon and saving a girl in short sentences and good logical order and I understood what he liked about it, the strategy of defeating the monster. His favorite genre is fantasy and science fiction, especially Star Wars, Pokemon, and some comics. His mother does not like his reading choices, but she provides them portable video gaming devices where these kinds of adventure stories predominate the titles. The boys are energetic and fidget in their seats, but I would hesitate to label them as having any unusual attention issues. He did not require any behavioral corrections during our session.
First, we spoke a bit about his school and family. He told me about his summer plans to go to Seoul and visit relatives and he demonstrated his writing in Korean.
Next, we addressed his homework, a reading for comprehension worksheet on family traditions and memory boxes. I noticed he read fairly well, but often slurred words or sometimes made an unexplained substitution. We encountered a few new vocabulary words, "tiara", "crochet", "fragile"; but he was not proactive in asking about unfamiliar words. I had to inquire directly. I used computer dictionary lookup and Google images to help explain these in a way that held his interest and modeled an easy way to check words. He was familiar with navigating Google searches. He was attracted to the image view collection and I noted this kept him focused on the vocabulary. In completing the worksheet, it became clear he was not very diligent about reading the questions carefully, but he understood them well if he did. I guided him in discovering the corrections for a few questions about the reading by returning to check the text.
We then addressed his math worksheet that was already complete. His only errors were related to the definition of "trapezoid" and we also checked this visually using image examples.
After finishing a few minutes early, I wanted to end the session with a little more fun activity. I had brought some cards and a puzzle to use as interactive tools and we finished the hour with the puzzle (also a clue to his visual learning preference). I thought he was a very attentive student overall and look forward to being able to help him improve study habits and address English speaking proficiency.
I tutor DH and Bianca tutors MH. The mother insists that the two boys must be visually separated in different rooms or they will act out too much.
We all meet at the main Library on Park Street and agree that we will meet a little later (after 6pm) in the future to avoid the new parking fees in the lot. We used the stacks to separate the kids in the youth reading area. There is one private meeting room available sometimes by reservation, but we did not use it since the boys proved to be very well behaved. We chose a comfortable seating area facing each other with a small table for my computer and room to write. He liked the padded chairs better here.
After introductions, I asked DH to talk about a favorite book he read recently. He related the story of a prince fighting a dragon and saving a girl in short sentences and good logical order and I understood what he liked about it, the strategy of defeating the monster. His favorite genre is fantasy and science fiction, especially Star Wars, Pokemon, and some comics. His mother does not like his reading choices, but she provides them portable video gaming devices where these kinds of adventure stories predominate the titles. The boys are energetic and fidget in their seats, but I would hesitate to label them as having any unusual attention issues. He did not require any behavioral corrections during our session.
First, we spoke a bit about his school and family. He told me about his summer plans to go to Seoul and visit relatives and he demonstrated his writing in Korean.
Next, we addressed his homework, a reading for comprehension worksheet on family traditions and memory boxes. I noticed he read fairly well, but often slurred words or sometimes made an unexplained substitution. We encountered a few new vocabulary words, "tiara", "crochet", "fragile"; but he was not proactive in asking about unfamiliar words. I had to inquire directly. I used computer dictionary lookup and Google images to help explain these in a way that held his interest and modeled an easy way to check words. He was familiar with navigating Google searches. He was attracted to the image view collection and I noted this kept him focused on the vocabulary. In completing the worksheet, it became clear he was not very diligent about reading the questions carefully, but he understood them well if he did. I guided him in discovering the corrections for a few questions about the reading by returning to check the text.
We then addressed his math worksheet that was already complete. His only errors were related to the definition of "trapezoid" and we also checked this visually using image examples.
After finishing a few minutes early, I wanted to end the session with a little more fun activity. I had brought some cards and a puzzle to use as interactive tools and we finished the hour with the puzzle (also a clue to his visual learning preference). I thought he was a very attentive student overall and look forward to being able to help him improve study habits and address English speaking proficiency.
Thursday, March 13, 2014
Carlton TP #2
First tutee session with YY, joined by TZ for second meeting, Friday March 7, 2-4pm
I met YY at lunch with TZ earlier and we arranged to try to stack the sessions because TZ has TOEFL class after the normal CIES class schedule. Both students are Chinese and share the same group 1 classes for the skills they are most interested in working on, listening and speaking. TZ is in group 3 for reading and composition, he said. We agreed I would meet YY after classes in a CIES room and TZ would join us when he could. This was my first opportunity to try to evaluate them both myself and see if we could work together as a small group.
I found a topical ESL lesson on International Women's Day, that was coming up on Saturday. While this is not a big American holiday, it originated here, and it often substitutes for Valentines and Mothers day in many countries. The lesson included an informative reading and many worksheets. I met with YY first and she read it while marking any unfamiliar words. There were only a few (celebrated, annual, contribution, throughout, becoming), so I thought the reading level was good. Then I asked her to read it aloud and we marked a few more that were difficult to pronounce (conditions, spread, wives, society, entertainment, politics, inequality). We reviewed all of the vocabulary and she read it again. Then I used a phrase match exercise to check retention and we used a fill in the blank transcription to check her comprehension of my brisk reading of the same passage.
When TZ joined us, YY took the role of facilitator while TG read the article silently and aloud. We discussed the cultural aspects of the holiday and I asked for original comments and corrected sentences a little. I asked TG to do a different comprehension exercise to fill in words (from a list) and we tried some scrambled sentences, but these were too confusing. Then we did some jumbled vocabulary in phrases from the text as a group activity and this was kind of fun. This is an interesting game because you reinforce words in context. By this time, they were quite familiar with the reading, so it was not as difficult as scrambled sentences.
I found that Google is certainly a teachers best friend. The computer helped me find this great lesson, get grammatical support, find pictures to illustrate a few points. I was stumped trying to explain the abbreviation "etc." that was of great interest. We spent some time on this and a few other latin examples. I would recommend the lessons from http://www.eslholidaylessons.com for the worksheets. There a some holidays you may not know like March 9, "Get Over It Day" that is now on my calendar!
I met YY at lunch with TZ earlier and we arranged to try to stack the sessions because TZ has TOEFL class after the normal CIES class schedule. Both students are Chinese and share the same group 1 classes for the skills they are most interested in working on, listening and speaking. TZ is in group 3 for reading and composition, he said. We agreed I would meet YY after classes in a CIES room and TZ would join us when he could. This was my first opportunity to try to evaluate them both myself and see if we could work together as a small group.
I found a topical ESL lesson on International Women's Day, that was coming up on Saturday. While this is not a big American holiday, it originated here, and it often substitutes for Valentines and Mothers day in many countries. The lesson included an informative reading and many worksheets. I met with YY first and she read it while marking any unfamiliar words. There were only a few (celebrated, annual, contribution, throughout, becoming), so I thought the reading level was good. Then I asked her to read it aloud and we marked a few more that were difficult to pronounce (conditions, spread, wives, society, entertainment, politics, inequality). We reviewed all of the vocabulary and she read it again. Then I used a phrase match exercise to check retention and we used a fill in the blank transcription to check her comprehension of my brisk reading of the same passage.
When TZ joined us, YY took the role of facilitator while TG read the article silently and aloud. We discussed the cultural aspects of the holiday and I asked for original comments and corrected sentences a little. I asked TG to do a different comprehension exercise to fill in words (from a list) and we tried some scrambled sentences, but these were too confusing. Then we did some jumbled vocabulary in phrases from the text as a group activity and this was kind of fun. This is an interesting game because you reinforce words in context. By this time, they were quite familiar with the reading, so it was not as difficult as scrambled sentences.
I found that Google is certainly a teachers best friend. The computer helped me find this great lesson, get grammatical support, find pictures to illustrate a few points. I was stumped trying to explain the abbreviation "etc." that was of great interest. We spent some time on this and a few other latin examples. I would recommend the lessons from http://www.eslholidaylessons.com for the worksheets. There a some holidays you may not know like March 9, "Get Over It Day" that is now on my calendar!
Monday, March 3, 2014
Carlton TP #1
First meeting. Tong Zheng, Sunday March 2, 9-12
I met my CIES Tutee, TZ, on Sunday morning at Atomic Cafe near the Hecht house. I arrived early by bicycle to make sure it was open. I had contacted him by exchanging email. He does not have a US phone to use, but luckily we both use QQ for online chats and so we made arrangements through this program which works over smartphones and computers. QQ is a familiar platform to Chinese students and I find it is also very good multimedia chat software in general.
The coffee shop was not the best meeting place because the music was rather distracting. We tried sitting outside, but the traffic was almost as noisy. We need a quieter place to meet in the future. He suggested the Duroc Science library and that will be our next session location. When we parted later I checked the hours for future reference.
After introductions, we found that we had a few interests in common. His desired Ph.D. program is tax accounting, not something you hear everyday, yet this is a field I have worked in for years. Actually, I was trying to escape the tax field when I got my Masters in education, but it is not unusual for me to keep returning. I can use my knowledge of US taxes to help other expats file the foreign tax forms when I am teaching overseas. At least, I hope so.
Another area of common experience is fishing. We both have fond memories of relaxing times fishing simply from the banks of a river. But getting to your goals means fishing a lot less, and studying a lot more. So we can lament this together, or maybe we can do a session later on the water somewhere.
I was surprised to learn TZ had attended Tianjin University, located in the city I hope to teach in upon completion of this course and finding a job. I hope he will share some advice with me on living in a large city in China.
I had some difficulty understanding his speech sometimes, but I did not make any effort to correct him at this meeting. I was trying to make us both comfortable. We were soon laughing and talking about our families and sharing some pictures. I think we will work well together.
We spent far longer than one hour getting to know each other. TZ wants to focus on fluency in conversation and prepare for advanced business English. I will look at some TOEFL preparation aids and try to help him fill gaps. I am looking forward to meeting him soon in a better setting.
I think that covers my first session, so its back to the homework...
I met my CIES Tutee, TZ, on Sunday morning at Atomic Cafe near the Hecht house. I arrived early by bicycle to make sure it was open. I had contacted him by exchanging email. He does not have a US phone to use, but luckily we both use QQ for online chats and so we made arrangements through this program which works over smartphones and computers. QQ is a familiar platform to Chinese students and I find it is also very good multimedia chat software in general.
The coffee shop was not the best meeting place because the music was rather distracting. We tried sitting outside, but the traffic was almost as noisy. We need a quieter place to meet in the future. He suggested the Duroc Science library and that will be our next session location. When we parted later I checked the hours for future reference.
After introductions, we found that we had a few interests in common. His desired Ph.D. program is tax accounting, not something you hear everyday, yet this is a field I have worked in for years. Actually, I was trying to escape the tax field when I got my Masters in education, but it is not unusual for me to keep returning. I can use my knowledge of US taxes to help other expats file the foreign tax forms when I am teaching overseas. At least, I hope so.
Another area of common experience is fishing. We both have fond memories of relaxing times fishing simply from the banks of a river. But getting to your goals means fishing a lot less, and studying a lot more. So we can lament this together, or maybe we can do a session later on the water somewhere.
I was surprised to learn TZ had attended Tianjin University, located in the city I hope to teach in upon completion of this course and finding a job. I hope he will share some advice with me on living in a large city in China.
I had some difficulty understanding his speech sometimes, but I did not make any effort to correct him at this meeting. I was trying to make us both comfortable. We were soon laughing and talking about our families and sharing some pictures. I think we will work well together.
We spent far longer than one hour getting to know each other. TZ wants to focus on fluency in conversation and prepare for advanced business English. I will look at some TOEFL preparation aids and try to help him fill gaps. I am looking forward to meeting him soon in a better setting.
I think that covers my first session, so its back to the homework...
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