QUESTION:  I'm not sure what Learning-to-Learn Activities are. Who are they for and how do we use them in the classroom?

ANSWER: Learning-to-Learn (LTL) activities are activities we use to help our learners 'learn HOW to learn' independently,  as well as with the teacher.

There are many LTL activites for learners of all ages. Two of the most important, we would say, are Using the Monolingual Dictionary and Error Detection and Correction.

Project Image: 

Familiarizing learners with works of art is a great idea for a number of foreign language projects! We'd like to share a lesson that you can do with your B2 students, which can be a 'springboard' for a series of projects around Art, Music and Poetry.  

PART 1:  Show your students a print of Vincent Van Gogh's painting “Starry Night”. [Another option for elicitation is to show the interactive animation of this painting  by Petros Vrellis   http://vimeo.com/36466564 ]

ANSWER:  One of the best strategies for learners who may be reluctant or shy to speak is to get learners working in pairs to 'prepare' something to perform for you and the rest of the class. In pairs learners often mutually support each other's performance success.  You may wish to try this activity below with elementary+  learners of all ages.

ACTIVITY:     "Voices:  Inside and Out"  dialogue writing pair work activity.

LEVEL & AGE: All Levels from A2+, ages 10+

Q: My teachers and I are doing the best we can with distance learning.Our entire team is new at conducting online lessons with our learners.Until we master the use of a lot of the wonderful technology at our disposal,we would like some tips on how to make distance learning more inviting and engaging for our learners.