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ESL forum >
Message board > penfriends for my pupils...
penfriends for my pupils...
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jamiejules
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penfriends for my pupils...
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Hi there I�m new to the site... Actually I have been visiting for some
time and never dared join thinking my material may not be up to scratch
but I have now taken the plunge!
I was wondering if anyone may be remotely interested in setting up some kind of friendship between my school and theirs?
I teach in a secondary modern school in France and ideally I would like
my pupils to have penfriends in countries where English is not the
official language: so then there would be a real need to communicate
for both kids in a foreign language.
If you are interested could you reply to this message please,then we could take it further maybe.
thanks for reading this
Jamie
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30 Jan 2009
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MarionG
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hI, i HAVE HAD THE REQUEST BY MY STUDENTS TO SET UP SOMETHING LIKE THAT. i AM JUST A BIT WORRIED AS TO HOW FEASIBLE IT IS FOR ME SINCE MOST OF THEM WILL NEED VERY INTENSIVE GUIDANCE IN WRITING LETTERS...
hOW OLD ARE YOUR STUDENTS, WHAT IS THEIR LEVEL OF ENGLISH?, hOW MANY STUDENTS DO YOU HAVE IN YOUR CLASS?
i tEACH 6TH GRADE (11 YEAR OLDS) IN jERUSALEM, iSRAEL AND i HAVE 23 KIDS IN CLASS.... |
30 Jan 2009
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Pinky Makus
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Perhaps it would be helpful for some pen-pals if there were some prepared questions or semi-prepared letter templates the children could use (for the younger or lower level students) for letters or postcards.
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31 Jan 2009
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kotya
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Hi �jamiejules,
I like this idea very much, my students want to communicate with students from different countries. It would be very good to com. with your students.
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31 Jan 2009
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sevcan3545
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hi, jamiejules. I am sure all my students will be happy when i tell them about this idea. I would be happy if you reply my massege.
what are your students level, and how old are they? because these are important. could you inform them please ? i hope to see you again. bye |
31 Jan 2009
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Ivona
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There are a lot of us interested in that, it seems. It is a brilliant idea, but there are some issues that should be considered first: the age/level of the SS, the typing, the time zones, etc.
For smaller kids, skype or any other web cam chat would do. I tried it with a friend of mine from Ireland but the drawback was that 15 of my students wanted to be seen on the (single) screen, so they pushed each other trying to squeeze in. (The moral is, there should be more than one webcam in the classroom!) Also, the line was bad and the call dropped more often than not, so that the chat boiled down to �can you hear us?� But the kids loved it anyway.
What i would suggest is emailing first. To �connect� the students. The T and the SS wouldn�t be bound to be online at a certain time (re time zones). The younger students could write sth on a piece of paper, if they cannot type, and then it can be scanned and sent as an attachment.
Also, short video clips can be exchanged.
By writing emails (either from school or home), the ss will practise not only their English, but the typing technique, and will gradually prepare themselves for instant messaging. If you just asked them to IM right away, there would be huge delays between texts, which would make the SS on both sides get impatient and eventually bored with it.
I�d like to hear your opinions and suggestions.
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31 Jan 2009
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Ivona
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By the way, there are other teachers here with the same wish they expressed months ago. Just search for �pen pals� and there you�ll find them. I did and have already sent private messages. Maybe they�re already doing it and can give us their opinion of it.
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31 Jan 2009
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Ritanilo
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Hi Jamie!
I am ready to start this project with my classes: I have 7 different levels: I have students since 3rd grade till 9th grade. Their ages are from 8 to 14 years old. About 20 students from each class.
My plan is working using e-mail only under my supervision. It�s going to be a lot of work, I know, but it�ll worth in the end - that counts!
Well, hope hear from you soon.
Rita - Brazil
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10 Feb 2009
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