Home vs. House: What does this mean?
“No matter under what circumstances you leave it, home does not cease to be home. No matter how you lived there – well or poorly.” ~Joseph Brodsky (1940-1996), Russian-American poet & Nobel Prize winner What’s the difference between a house and a home? English speakers clearly distinguish the two words. A house is simply the building where people live. It’s...
Read More‘Verbal Energy’ column quirky, insightful, fun
Christian Science Monitor’s Ruth Walker spotlights English as a fascinating language Photo Source: Christian Science Monitor”There is no such thing as “the Queen’s English.’ The property has gone into the hands of a joint stock company, and we own the bulk of the stock.” Mark Twain (1835-1910), American writer and humorist Facing a language that chooses...
Read MoreAsk Why Your Students Want to Learn English
“Well begun is half done.” Ancient Greek proverb Sometimes we forget the most basic questions. What brings the students in your English class into the room? Are they fulfilling school requirements, pursuing academic achievements, or creating new possibilities? How do you motivate your ESL and EFL students to do their best from day one? Asking students for their motives, needs, and...
Read MorePerfection and grammar: not essential for ESL students, or even native speakers
Certain grammar rules unnecessary for comprehension, everyday conversation Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons “Have no fear of perfection – you’ll never reach it.” -Salvador Dalí (1904-1989) Spanish surrealist painter Is it always essential to have perfect grammar? Must we always avoid split infinitives, dangling modifiers and grocery shopping lines labeled “Ten Items or Less,” since the sign...
Read More‘Teaching History With Film’ encourages use of film through examples, lesson plans
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons. Gone with the Wind and Birth of a Nation remain prominent examples of how films can capture an era–for better, or for worse. How and when to use film in classrooms, and why “The difference between life and the movies is that a script has to make sense, and life doesn’t.” -Joseph L. Mankiewicz (1909-1993) American screenwriter Film remains a powerful, if...
Read MoreBetween life and death: Zombie nouns privilege pretentious vocabulary at the expense of simple clarity
The nominalization of nouns creates abstract, dry and often misleading language “Simplicity is the glory of expression.” -Walt Whitman (1819-1892) American poet Sometimes, it’s fun to play with the English language and transform its adjectives, adverbs and nouns into more complex-sounding words. Playing with word forms can both emphasize a key concept and add an academic tone. Like many other...
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