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ESL forum >
Teaching material > English for refugees
English for refugees
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Roclam
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English for refugees
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Dear colleagues, I�ve recently retired and I have decided to devote some of my time to volunteer work. I have been asked by a charity organization to help them train volunteers who will teach English to young adult refugees, mostly males. The volunteers are enthousiastic young university students with no or little teaching experience. I will have to prepare some ELT video tutorials and create a few activities they will be able to use once they are with their students. There are a number of constraints: due to lack of funds photocopies are impossible, there is no PC nor overhead projector nor loudspeakers. However, the refugees have a notebook and a pen, and there is a blackboard in the room. There are a few coursebooks in the refugee centre, but not enough copies for everyone. That�s all they can use, unfortunately. Can you suggest a number of suitable activities I could download and adapt to this teaching situation ( Level A1, A2, B1)? Since I have always been able to use worksheets and technology in my own classroom, this is completely new challenge for me. Thank you for any help you will be able to give me. |
29 Oct 2021
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anaya78
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Roclam,
I am currently teaching in Somaliland and understand working under constraints. The first thing that comes to mind is to have students make their own resources. For example, you could have them each write a quiz question from something they have learned (grammar /vocabulary; gap fill, multiple choice, short answer) and cover it by folding the paper. The next person then writes a question, and so on, until the page is full. Then, have the person in possession of that paper answer the questions.
Many of the things you do on a worksheet you could have them do as a class on the board.
Before you go, you could print out game boards, maps, and cards of common verbs, phrasal verbs, nouns, etc. These can be adapted to many speaking, listening, and writing assignments.
I also recommend bringing dice and playing cards because they can be used for multiple learning activities.
There are a lot of websites that have suggestions for classroom activities that don�t require any technology. I recommend gathering a list of these activities before you go.
Good luck!
Gigi |
29 Oct 2021
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karagozian
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You will also use the good old teaching methods.
Remember that motivated learners will make headway whatever method you use.
I wish you the best as well as to your students.
A fantastic experience !!!! My admiration. |
29 Oct 2021
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MarieFleur
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Hi!How generous of you to invest time and energy for the needy!I have an idea that maybe could be appropriate. It�s an interactive game for learning vocabulary. On the board you write a letter, number, word or whatever it is you want to teach and the first one who says it correctly wins a point or goes to the board to write the next one (you can give him a note if he doesn�t know). Good luck to you ! |
29 Oct 2021
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cunliffe
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Well done, you! I love this sheet (below), it gave me many ideas. I used it for teaching the past simple tense. It is basically dictation. You can tell any story, draw it on the blackboard and have your students copy the images - stick people will do! Then use questioning to practise and recount the story. I also love Splat, with words or images drawn on the board, Charades can be used for all sorts - verbs, jobs, etc. For past simple get one volunteer and give instructions - walk to the window, water my plant, open your book etc and then ask the others: what did he do? First he..., second he.... Then put them in pairs and maybe provide some cards with prompts... Anyway, have a look at this sheet. I used this as my guide and adapted it for all sorts. And you can bring realia to the classroom - a little box with various objects and ask: size/shape/colour/ what�s it made of/what�s it for/where do you see it, who has got one? etc. I once brought in a potato and a packet of crisps and that was my lesson. Where did the potato come from and how did it end up as crisps. You can draw all the stages and discuss... You can do this with a picture of a tree and a piece of paper. And trees! Where do you see trees? What lives in them? Picture dictation for prepositions is a good one. Draw the room and tell them where to put the table etc. Then compare their pictures, say what is where and talk about the differences in their drawings. Categories: draw 6 columns - fruit/veg/jobs/places/animals/clothes, whatever and the students have to list as many objects as they can, taking turns, or in teams as a competition. . You can complicate this by using the alphabet - so going along - apple/bean/cashier etc.. Good for finding out how much they know.
Best of luck!
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30 Oct 2021
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cunliffe
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I have started compiling a list of no-internet, no-text book activities, but it is all very �bitty�, beginning to look like openers and ice-breakers. Depending on how long this course is for these refugees, what will be needed is a scheme of work. Some structure. I have just retired too and keep meaning to volunteer as we have plenty refugees where I live. I have to do something about it! So far, nobody has knocked at my door and asked me;-)) |
30 Oct 2021
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karagozian
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I am now
retired but would like to share in a few words my experience, at least of the
last 10 years of my career as an English teacher.
My students
were of course not refugees. The problem is not the same. However, I had to
deal with difficult classes, in terms of level, behavior, mixed levels etc.. and
degree of interest. I was not supported by the management. No financial aid
whatsoever because English was not considered a priority subject. Not even a
textbook for myself I remember. Just a classroom which is a lot !!!! I transformed it into a real English class
with grammar, vocabulary and all sorts of posters related to the language or
the English speaking world made by myself.
What REALLY
saved my life eventually was the
configuration "laptop - overhead projector - white board -
loudspeaker" + ESL. Nothing better
to motivate difficult classes with various activities. Indeed, there is
everything in that computer. You can easily swap from a grammar to vocabulary
pb. You can motivate disruptive classes with motivating material. Colours,
pictures, ppt�s, videos etc…. You have
it all on ESL
Of course,
there is the investment. But it is for years. And you won�t have anymore to buy
loads of textbooks or others.
1. 1. Who doesn�t have a laptop today?
2. 2. My overhead projector is 15 years
old and still works. It didn�t cost me a fortune. You don�t need a professional
engine. There are some very affordable ones.
3. 3. White board or white wall (except
that you cannot write on it). I bought a second hand.
4. 4. A tiny weenie little loudspeaker
that you plug on your laptop (mine goes into my pocket) and that costs next to
nothing.
5. 5. A multiple socket.
6. 6. A suitcase to carry it all.
7. 7. Being in class 10 minutes ahead in
order to be ready for the fight !! Lol !
This changed
my life as well as my students�.
Dear friend
I wish I could help you. You have also to deal with untrained teachers. And
that is even more complex. I don�t really know how to help you. If you need wss
and don�t have points enough I can download them for you.
I wish you
the very best
Crazy French Woman |
31 Oct 2021
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Roclam
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Thank you all for your ideas and kind words.
I know, it�s a challenge, as dealing with refugees also means dealing with physical and psychological trauma.
You have given me some ideas...now it�s up to me to transform them into activities that might work in a difficult situation.
Thank you again, let�s hope this challenge turns out into something meaningful and useful :-) |
1 Nov 2021
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karagozian
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I forgot to mention that an overhead projector is more than useful, especially with students with learning disabilities. Then it is excessively difficult to decipher the writing on the blackboard for students who do not master the language, or worse the alphabet. This is especially the case for refugees or migrants. Every language teacher should make the effort to learn a foreign language with a totally different alphabet in order to become aware of the difficulties faced by his foreign students. |
2 Nov 2021
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