British Council Greece Talking English Newsletter December 2012-January 2013

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December 2012-January 2013

Welcome to the British Council Greece's latest edition of Talking English - our bi-monthly newsletter for English language teachers.

Our aim is to help you keep up to date with global ELT news and local events organised by the British Council. Find links to useful websites and articles, online teaching resources, and details of events and training opportunities in Greece.

If you have a friend or colleague you think would be interested in receiving Talking English, forward this edition to them and they can register online.

FESTIVE FUN

Lots of fun Christmas activities on LearnEnglish Kids and LearnEnglish Central to share with your students - games, songs, stories and much more. Don't miss the tips on using resources about Christmas and Christmas presents.

Using songs in the classroom

This short video will give you lots of ideas of how to use songs in your lessons. You can watch the great way in which Seema uses songs with her primary classes and then take a look at more suggestions left by other TeachingEnglish users - and maybe leave your own too!

Macmillan to phase out printed dictionaries

Macmillan Dictionaries will no longer appear as physical books. From next year, Macmillan Dictionary will be available only online. Since its launch in 2009, Macmillan Dictionary Online has seen explosive growth and will now fully replace the print version in a transition that, according to Editor-in-Chief Michael Rundell, can only be a positive one.

Great

Question: What do the Countryside, Knowledge, Shopping and Music have in common? Answer: they're all Great! There are lesson plans on all these topics and more in the "Great" resources section on TeachingEnglish. Start download...

Peer Observation

All academic institutions have to demonstrate their commitment to providing effective teaching. Peer observation has an important part to play. This article looks at the basic principles underlying peer observation.

Upcoming webinar

This session will look at ideas for establishing ground rules and a rapport with young learners from the very first lesson as well as ways to keep the momentum going throughout the school year. Drawing on his own experiences, Dave Dodgson will demonstrate the importance of a student-centred approach to help create a positive learning environment.

QUICK LINKS

All schools will be able to access their students' Cambridge ESOL exam results and Statement of Results directly on the Cambridge ESOL website from the December 2012 session onwards. Cambridge ESOL will send schools an e-mail with their login details and another when the results release begins.

Are you a primary school teacher of English? Do you want to upgrade your teaching skills in the comfort of your own home? Enrol on Primary Essentials, our online primary English teacher training course. Next course: 7 January-5 April 2013. Deadline for applications: 14 December 2012.

Are you just starting out on your career as a teacher of English? Steps to Success is a self-access online course designed to helps teachers make the transition from newly qualified teacher to developing teacher, and is suitable for teachers working in the primary, secondary, tertiary or private ELT sectors. Next course: 28 January-5 April 2013. Deadline for applications: 14 January 2013.

Find out how you can make effective and engaging use of Learning Technologies in the English language classroom by taking this introductory online course. Next course: 28 January-19 April 2013. Deadline for applications: 14 January 2013.

Thinking of teaching English? Our Introductory Methods Course in TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) is an effective way to begin your career and prepare for Cambridge ESOL's Teaching Knowledge Test (TKT). Next course: 28 January-15 June 2013 (Athens). Registration from 21 January 2013 onwards.

Subscribe to our bi-monthly newsletter British Council Greece Enews and keep up to date with our lively programme of events, designed to bring you the very best of contemporary UK culture.

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If you are reading this newsletter on our website and would like to subscribe to Talking English, visit the following page for details of how to sign up:
www.britishcouncil.org/greece-english-talking-english-newsletter

Please let us know what you think of this newsletter and how we can improve it. Send your comments to Julia.Baracco@britishcouncil.gr.

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