What do your days look like? I’ve been reading Daily Rituals: How Artists Work, a book describing the days of famous artists, writers, composers, and thinkers. Apparently the psychologist B.F. Skinner ate cornflakes every morning at the same time. The novelist Toni Morrison squeezed i
This is the third year of Language Partners BC, a volunteer run language organization in Vancouver. The project started with an the influx of Syrian refugees in the winter of 2015-2016 and the idea that a partner-based language program might offer connections and solidarity between pe
Staying on the Turkish road “What’s the best method for learning a language?” people have asked me. My answer: whatever keeps you learning – whatever keeps you on the road. I say this because no matter what methods you choose, the road will be long. In fact, there is no destination. A
My go-to online resources for writing in my second language Whether it’s a lengthy essay or a simple text message, writing in another language can be quite overwhelming. And while Google Translate is getting better every day, it will never be able to get it all right for you. When stu
How Materials Development is Different for Endangered Languages Over the last few weeks, I participated in a course at the University of British Columbia called “Materials Development for Indigenous Language Learning and Teaching” taught by Dr. Candace Kaleimamoowahinekapu
Helping EAL Students Develop a Diverse Vocabulary How do you help English learners identify and understand new vocabulary and then use it? I’ve put together some English as an Additional Language (EAL) vocabulary resources I’ve been using to support new word usage, and to
Online Resources for the Progressive Spanish Teacher At Esperanza Education, we are always looking for ways to share and promote resources that bring together language learning and social justice education. For the busy teacher, finding age- and level- appropriate resources for the la
Films and languages from around the world The Vancouver International Film Festival is here! From September 25th to October 10th, the festival invites us into lives and worlds beyond our city in the rainforest. Many of these lives and worlds come in other languages, giving us the perf
Multilingual Literacy through Stories I have written before about the importance of educating children in their first language. In Peru, I worked with schools that promote Intercultural Bilingual Education for indigenous children, teaching them literacy skills in their first language
Podcasts are Great… Especially for Language Learners A guest post by fellow language educator, Adam Samuel. Podcasts are audio files, mainly consisting of spoken word content on numerous topics that can be downloaded directly onto a computer or transportable media device, such as an i
