09 December 2011 / by Radmila Gurkova

Experience the magic of the Polar Express

httpv://youtu.be/UGejMmr5G6c

The Polar Express comes to life when the train DEPARTS for a JOURNEY through the dark and quiet WILDERNESS for a special visit to the "North Pole."

This is the story of a young hero boy on Christmas Eve who boards on a powerful magical train that's headed to the North Pole and Santa Claus's home. What UNFOLDS is an adventure which follows a DOUBTING boy, who takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole; during this ride, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery which shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe.

Now children in Arizona, USA have the opportunity to ride the Polar Express for real - on Christmas Eve this holiday season!!

DEBATE

  • Do you think this wonderful idea would work in other countries?

  • Would you be as excited to ride the Polar Express and see Santa as much
    as your children?

  • What is your favourite Christmas tradition?










































































Word
Definition Example Listen
 Board To get on a means of transportation like a ship, train, etc We must board the airplane at 4 p.m. Listen
 Depart To go away; leave The train departed at 7p.m. Listen
 Doubt To be uncertain about The sun is out so I doubt that it will rain. Listen
 Hand To deliver or pass with or as if with the hand Please hand me the phone. Listen
 Journey To travel from place to place The journey was long. Listen
 Reindeer The animal which drives the Sleigh of Santa Clause Santa Clause has lots of reindeer. Listen
 Unfold To be revealed gradually, or to develop. Watching the horrorunfold from the other side of the world, still we here in Australia were touched by it Listen
 Wilderness A wild unpopulated area: Mountains, Deserts I visit the wilderness when I don't want to see anybody  Listen

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE




 

06

March 2015
Tiers for fears & choosing words to teach
by Vincent Chieppa
Any conscientious teacher knows that choosing words to teach is not as easy as it seems.  Sure you can deal out words left, right & center.  However, would your students understand, grow & be empowered?  Fortunately, there is a nifty little 3 tier model that helps teachers enable their students to broaden their language capacity. &...

03

March 2015
Dealing with disruptive or difficult students
by Elena Riches
Whatever kind of teacher you are, be it a maths teacher, an art teacher or a teacher of karate, there will come a time when you will have problems managing your class/group of students and if you cannot find a way to do it effectively your students can become uninterested, unmotivated or quiet, and will seldom reach your desired goal...

27

February 2015
How to... use emails for ESL teaching
by Vincent Chieppa
In this day & age paperless teaching is the future.   Seeing that this is the case it should be no surprise that the next step should be using emails for ESL teaching.  How emails are incorporated in the out-of-class learning experience depends of course on the nature...

24

February 2015
Teacher student interaction: teachers are learners too!
by Elena Riches
So, you've completed your TEFL course, gained your certificate and procured a job. The next part is, how do you do it vs how do you do it well. I personally don't think there is a wrong and right way of teaching as everyone has their own way and each way works for them; providing the students are learning what they've set out to learn then...

20

February 2015
Teaching new vocabulary: 7 fail-safe strategies
by Vincent Chieppa
If teaching grammar forms the frame for language acquisition, teaching new vocabulary provides students with the building blocks. It is therefore the teacher's responsibility to bring home the value of these building blocks by presenting them in perspective - that is, in a way that is relevant and useful for the students. In order to do th...

18

February 2015
The trials and tribulations of being a TEFL teacher
by Elena Riches
If you're thinking of becoming a TEFL teacher you might want some information of what you get out of it from someone who has firsthand experience of being one. ...

13

February 2015
ESL error correction techniques for the classroom
by Vincent Chieppa
As any experienced ESL teacher knows, the type of language errors students make are as diverse as the students themselves & their attitude toward learning.  This in turn will dictate which of th...

10

February 2015
TEFL teacher: What does it take to become one?
by Elena Riches
For those already familiar with the term 'TEFL' (an explanation of the various terms can be found here) you will know that it means teaching English as a foreign language but, what do...

10

February 2015
ESL teaching through the eyes of Cynthia Amuneke from Nigeria
by Radmila Gurkova
My name is ...

06

February 2015
Setting effective boundaries in the classroom
by Vincent Chieppa
ESL teachers could face disruptive behaviour from their students on a daily basis and this can lead to distress, tension and/or anxiety.  For this reason it is important for teachers to take charge to ensure that they are setting effective boundaries because by sim...