Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Catching Up...

Yikes, I can see that the Fall and Winter months have really flown by...so here are few apps and activities that I am currently using.

Boggles World ESL:  I love this website for it's variety of resources.  I use it quite a bit to target seasonal vocabulary and other lessons.  Take a look at the unit on Winter Weather.  There are activities for: riddles, associations, vocabulary, cloze reading, early learning/early childhood, etc.
One of my favorite lessons with the Winter Weather worksheets is the "Brain Blizzard".  I use the lesson in two ways: list associations with winter...as many as the students can   OR   list adjectives/adverbs/verbs that go with winter. Once we make a web using our winter vocabulary, we use each target word in a sentence.
I also like the Winter Cloze Reading activites.  We talk about using context clues within sentence to find the missing words.
Boggles World ESL is not just limited to the Winter topic though...spend some time looking around and you'll find tons of resources and lessons.  Following Directions, Similes/Metaphors, Grammar...you name it. I've been using this site for years, it's great!


Lego City Fire Hose Frenzy (FREE app): Another fun app/game by Lego.  This app has multiple levels.  The goal is to put out fires.  You need to adjust the angle of the water hose, go up/down ladders, use a helicopter, etc.  This app is a great reinforcement app.  It has some logic/critical thinking as well...students will need to adjust their strategy but still react quickly. I also have the students explain the purpose of the game, how to play it, what they did step by step, and ask/answer questions as we play.
iPhone Screenshot 3


Bamba Burger (FREE app): similar to Yummy Burger.  The goal is to build a burger, fries, and soft drink.  I use this app as fun reinforcement while working on other goals; however, it also serves a purpose for:  sequencing, describing, explaining HOW the student built the burger, explaining WHY they chose certain toppings, etc. I usually have older students complete a step by step written paragraph using transition words (first, next, then, etc).
iPad Screenshot 1  iPad Screenshot 2  iPad Screenshot 3 iPad Screenshot 5