Dear readers,

For all of you who are looking forward to spring, here it is, right round the corner. If you have been looking forward to the new issue of the Newsletter, here it is, right in front of you. Those who could not wait to see their own, their colleagues’ or students’ articles published, here they are. Those who wish to bring some novelties in their teaching practice and curriculum will undoubtedly find something here. It really seems that March is packed with surprises and delights for each and every of us.

Many thanks to all colleagues who contributed to this issue and who were a part of making the Newsletter happen. It is such a joy to learn about all those different methods and activities for teaching English colleagues employ. We were absolutely showered with contributions for this issue and it was a sheer delight to work on it.

The first destination on our journey through different English-speaking countries is the UK – home to many well-known people, monuments, events, traditions, cities, … To get the real taste of the country, we decided to look for some first-hand experiences. We asked YETIs to share their impressions of this amazing country with their colleagues. They talk about its different aspects and present to us some of the people they met there. On the other hand, we asked some British people who live in Serbia what their impressions of our homeland and Belgrade are. As always, we have collected and prepared a lot of materials and ready-made lessons plans for teaching about the UK: you can test your knowledge of the UK, learn what dos and don’ts are there, find out what impression the UK has made on some students who visited it, have fun reading about British music and humour, etc. Needless to say it is impossible to tackle all issues when presenting a country, but we sincerely hope the things we did deal with here will be interesting and useful enough for you and your students.

Enjoy reading the Newsletter as much as we enjoyed creating it.

Tatjana Glušac
On behalf of the Editorial Team

We would hereby like to thank all the contributors and encourage them, and all of you, to continue making our newsletter and magazine fantastic as it is!

You can take part, as well, and share your thoughts with us! Send us your comments and suggestions – here are some guidelines to help you:

1.What are your favourite sections of Newsletter / MELT and why?

2.What do you think about this issue?

3.Any further comments or ideas regarding Newsletter / MELT?

The editors are happy to receive all your suggestions and articles at melt@elta.org.yu

Read the guidelines and fill in the form.

Do you know who is who in ELTA?

A Word from the Editors
Why am I an editor?

Costume Party Interactive Game
By Ivana Kokar and Nada Purtić
’Žarko Zrenjanin’ Primary School, Novi Sad
The Costume Party interactive game is part of a larger whole: a cross-cultural project called Life through History made up of three lessons. The whole project was awarded third prize in last year’s Creative School competition, organised by the Ministry of Education and Microsoft. Read the whole article (MS Word 26KB)

XENOPHOBIC SKETCH FOR TALENT NIGHT
By Mirjana Marušić, YETI 2007
While I was in Oxford, I was lucky enough to be elected for school’s “Talent Show” I got a part of an Italian girl in a multi-national class. The play actually tells, in a humorous way, how native-English teachers see different nations in their classroom. I hope you’ll enjoy as much as I did while preparing the sketch.
Read the whole sketch (MS Word 1.2MB)

April 5th 2008, Hungary
Teach Canada Workshop
Members of the Culture and Literature Special Interest Group of  IATEFL Hungary are planning to organise a one day methodology workshop for about 50 teachers of English from Hungary and its neighbouring countries (e.g. Serbia, Romania, Croatia, Slovakia). The event will focus on ways of teaching English through Canadian cultural content and will provide participants with teaching material based on aspects of Canadian cultures. If you are interested in taking part, please contact office@iatefl.hu or Mark Andrews mark.andrews@chello.hu and Csilla Hős csillahos@yahoo.co.uk

7th-11th April 2008, Exeter
42nd Annual International IATEFL Conference & Exhibition
IATEFL’s conference in Exeter next year promises to be every bit as exciting as previous conferences. Plenary Speakers are Rosa Shim, Zoltan Dörnyei, Alastair Pennycook and Radmila Popovic. We plan to provide you with a Devon flavour and a very memorable experience. We should also mention that Exeter Online will be available including an 'Exeter Blog' - http://iatefl.britishcouncil.org/exeter2008blog. Please check the IATEFL website for any further information: http://www.iatefl.org/content/conferences/2008/index.php

24th-27th April 2008, Sibenik, Croatia
16th Annual HUPE IATEFL / TESOL Conference
Plenary Speakers are: Agnes Enyedi, Glynn Kirkham, Michael McCarthy and Visnja Pavicic Takac. Further information, registration and speaker proposal forms are available on HUPE’s website www.hupe.hr

10th – 11th May 2008, Sofia
17TH  National  BETA-IATEFL Conference
Sofia University, Department of Information and In-Service Training of Teachers
A broad range of topics will be covered including Teacher Training, Teacher Development, Mentoring, Teaching Young Learners, ESP, Testing, Teaching Literature, English Across Curriculum, Cultural Studies and many others.
Conference fees, application and speaker proposal forms as well as information about accommodation facilities will be available by mid February on the following address: www.beta-iatefl.org. For further information about the conference please contact us at: Beta.iateflbg@gmail.com

30th May- 1st June, Belgrade
6th IATEFL ELTA Conference
The Classroom That Beats the Odds
The Conference will provide English language teachers from various countries with another opportunity to share how they cope with everyday challenges when teaching English.As always, the Conference will be a great opportunity to hear many wide-known methodologists and book authors.

Further information, registration and speaker proposal forms are available on ELTA’s website www.elta.org.yu

For more details contact: office@elta.org.yu or ConferenceManager@elta.org.yu

Bits of the Brits
By Marija Kovač, Grammar and Economics School, Kovin
Bits and pieces of British humour we (could) have seen on Serbian TV.
Read the whole article (MS Word 600KB)

POWERPOINT PRESENTATIONS IN EFL CLASSROOM – “POWERPOINTITIS” OR A CHALLENGE?
By Ljiljana Radanov
If you have never tried using PowerPoint presentations in EFL classroom and if you think you aren’t able to start using them right now, I hope that after this article you will think about the possibility of putting this technique into practice, or consider its usefulness. Read the whole article (MS Word 35KB)

Haiku contest in Užicka gimnazija
By Brankica Skorković
December ’07 and January ’08 were all about HAIKU in Užicka gimnazija! English teachers came to an idea of making a school contest in writing Haiku poetry in English. Read the whole article (MS Word 262KB)

The Principal Does It His Way!
By Gordana Čanak
When I first met Andy Townsend, the principal of the King’s School in Beckenham, London, he seemed exactly as a typical one, serious, very polite, but official.
Read the whole article (MS Word 202KB)

What is it like to be a teacher in Britain?
By Anica Đokić
We often tend to compare educational systems in different countries hoping to find some better models than ours. Here is an exclusive report by Adam Zivanic on how it is to teach British children in Britain. Read the whole article (MS Word 38KB)

ALL YOU NEED IS ... POP
By Desislava Zareva , New Bulgarian University
The following activities were initially designed as a part of self – study courseware  accompanying  a teacher training course ‘Studying Culture’ delivered in four Bulgarian universities...Read the whole article (MS Word 60KB)

TESOL Macedonia-Thrace / Giannitsa Event / February 24, 2001
By Jay Schwartz
Lost control? Get motivated !Overcoming behavioral problems (adolescents) in the EFL classroom through motivation and creativity.
Read the whole article (MS Word 87KB)

Types of academic degrees at british universities
By Vladimir Široki, Kosta Trifković Primary School, Novi Sad
The aim of this article is to show the major tendencies in assigning academic degrees at universities in Britain with special attention to the two most prestigious universities: Oxford and Cambridge. Read the whole article (MS Word 50KB)

British Cultural Alphabet – a brief overview of the British culture in 26 letters
By Hajnalka Vereš
Read the whole article (MS Word 50KB)

The British Royal Family
By Tatjana Glušac
For young learners, the following family tree (Taken from Haines, S. and Stewart B., New First Certificate Masterclass, OUP, 1996) can be used to practise the Saxon genitive (e.g. Prince Charles is Queen Elizabeth’s son.), expand vocabulary regarding family members (e.g. cousin, nephew, niece, etc.) or research individually, in pairs or groups the members of the British Royal Family.
Read the whole article (MS Word 95KB)

The great Great Britain quiz
By Anica Đokić
Take the quiz (MS Word 41KB)

Costume Party Interactive Game
By Ivana Kokar and Nada Purtić
’Žarko Zrenjanin’ Primary School, Novi Sad
The Costume Party interactive game is part of a larger whole: a cross-cultural project called Life through History made up of three lessons. The whole project was awarded third prize in last year’s Creative School competition, organised by the Ministry of Education and Microsoft. Read the whole article (MS Word 26KB)

‘I say, the best of stories make people laugh, but think, as well…’
By Brankica Skorković
A 16-year-old Aleksandar Savić from Užice, a two-time winner of MacMillan’s writing contest gave us the exclusive interview, talking about what English means to him, winning Mac Millan’s contest twice in a roll and other interests in a life of a gifted teenager. This is his story! Read the whole article (MS Word 95KB)

A Day in the Life of Melrose Fernandes, a senior teacher at King's school in Oxford
By Danijela Đorđević
Read the whole article (MS Word 95KB)

THE TEACHER DELIVERS
A Day in Life of Jeremy Goes
By Gordana Čanak
One of the GREAT King’s School teachers whom I have been more than lucky to meet and work with during my  stay in Beckenham, London as one of the YETI programme participants for the summer 2007. Read the whole article (MS Word 95KB)

Two Sides of the King’s School Medal
By Gordana Čanak
Seeing both sides of the medal is another advantage of being a YETI. You are something between a teacher and a student while there, or should I say both.
Read the whole article (MS Word 204KB)

SCONES
By Ms Sweet Tooth
However you pronounce them, /skon/ or /skoan/, scones are irreplaceable when it comes to serving the traditional cream team. Read the whole article (MS Word 71KB)

The United Kingdom: 100 Questions Answered
Published by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office London
By Maja Šimrak - Grbić
There are things about Great Britain we still remember from our early school days, names and places and facts that are typically British like cricket, driving on the left or tea at five. Read the whole article (MS Word 78KB)

Britain’s finest music babies
By Andrea Senci
During the mysterious 1960s, the era of sexual experimentation, heavy use of psychedelic substances and bright hippie slogans like “Make love not war”, Britain gave birth to many nationally recognized and praised artists in the field of music. Read the whole article (MS Word 389KB)

DID YOU KNOW...
By Tatjana Glušac
Read the whole article (MS Word 51KB)

USEFUL LINKS FOR TEACHING ABOUT COUNTRIES
By Tatjana Glušac
Read the whole article (MS Word 51KB)

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE OF THE UK
By Tatjana Glušac
Read the whole article (MS Word 51KB)

Differences between British and American English
By Tatjana Glušac
British and American English differ with respect to: pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. Read the whole article (MS Word 64KB)

Helping your students write
By Tatjana Glušac
Imagine you were a student and a teacher assigned the topic “Describe your favourite place” to you to write in English. Read the whole article (MS Word 29KB)

Interesting ways of Practicing Describing People
By Jelena Raković
Read the whole article (MS Word 69KB)

Saint Patrick’s Day
From www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish-central-magazine-st-patrick.htm
The aim of this lesson is to give students practice in reading and article about St. Patrick for specific information. Read the lesson plan (PDF 81KB)

POEMS
By James Sutherland-Smith

DOS AND DON'TS IN THE UK
By Tatjana Glušac
See how well you would conform to the British etiquette rules by stating whether the following statements are true or false...Read the whole article (MS Word 166KB)

An Englishman in Belgrade
By DJ Hatch
Usually the greatest source of difficulties when living abroad is the ‘language barrier’. But, luckily, this is not such a great problem for an English speaker in Belgrade.
Read the whole article (MS Word 27KB)

The United Kingdom: Identity Card
By Maja Hadžić
Lots of people know lots about the United Kingdom. But, there is always something else to be found out! Read the whole article (MS Word 387KB)

Notting Hill Carnival
By Irena Miladin
There are many ethnic minorities living in the UK.However, foreign language teaching course books often show only a stereotypical image of a country.
Therefore, teachers should be encouraged to find some time to include a different cultural content. Here is our suggestion…(MS Word  240KB)

St. Patrick’s Day
From www.teachenglish.org.uk
St. Patrick is the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland. He was born in the fourth century and is famous for bringing Christianity into Ireland. St.Patrick’s Day is a very well known Irish national holiday, which is celebrated not only in Ireland but all around the world. It falls on the 17th of March.
Read the whole article (MS Word 70KB)

Jovan Ristovski, Happyland, Zemun

Poems
By Teodora Milošević and Luka Stojanović

Summer in Oxford
By Marko Dangubić, El. school Sonja Marinković, Novi Sad, 7th grade
Hello! I am Marko Dangubić from Novi Sad. I go to the Elementary school Sonja Marinković and I’m in the 7th grade. I’ll tell you about my visit to the UK.
Read the whole article (MS Word 389KB)

Reminiscing England
By Sonja Srdanović, Happyland School, Zemun, Serbia
When I have first been to England, a couple of years back, I was left breathless. Each town, each city was so different, so diverse from one another.
Read the whole article (MS Word 21KB)

Exams
Preparing students for a wide range of international exams can be real fun regardless of their age or background knowledge. Motivate them, engage them, make them laugh, knowledge-thirsty and impatiently wait for the exam.

What English Means to Me
By Gordana Čanak, a YETI 07
I think it was love at first SOUND, but it had begun much before I started learning English at school at the age of eleven. I had grown fond of it through my cousin’s music favourites, songs of Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey and Celine Dion, as well as through the first episodes of “Beverly Hills” and “‘Allo, ‘Allo” (how typical ).
Read the whole article (MS Word 25KB)

What English Means to Me
By Anica Đokic, Elementary School Sonja Marinković, Novi Sad
When you start dreaming in English it means something strange is going on. And not only strange, but also important – predicting your future fully interwoven with everything that is English. Read the whole article (MS Word 22KB)

What English Means to Me
By Danijela Đorđević
Quite a lot…a possibility to have another, different point of view, a large number of opportunities and one of them is  being a Yeti, which is a great pleasure and honour. Read the whole article (MS Word 24KB)

WHAT ENGLISH MEANS TO ME
By Hajnalka Vereš
According to my family and my fading memories I was around four when I started saying that I wanted to go to England. I suppose it was the only place name I was able to memorize at that time; however it predestinated my future.
Read the whole article (MS Word 22KB)

What English means to me
By Jelena Raković
For me, having English in my life has always meant having people in my life. It is not about the language itself, it is about the people that the language connects.
Read the whole article (MS Word 22KB)

What English Means to Me
By Jelena Maslovarić, Gimnazija Kraljevo
For me English is not just a language to communicate, it is a way of life. It has been the case for many years now. Read the whole article (MS Word 22KB)

WHAT ENGLISH MEANS TO ME
By Mirjana Marušić, YETI 2007
It would be too hard for me to explain what English means to me. I have this inexplicable affection towards anything created in English, I had it even before I started learning English. I was attracted to music. Movies, cartoons in English, and it urged me to learn to understand what they were talking about.
Read the whole article (MS Word 45KB)