Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Grammar Games: Developing learner independence and excellence

   The first moments were very memorable. We preferred to have an early morning walk to the Convention center. The first day, we went to the registration office, got our badges and the book program. The book is a real treasure. Flipping through the book gave me a sense of responsibility I am not used to. We were attending lectures that are preset.Personally, I felt overwhelmed, because all titles of the sessions seemed so interesting and  appealing. What to do?
  This was in fact, the first lesson I got at the TESOL! "Be self-responsible and pick the workshops, lectures and presentations that most appeal to you!" " What do I need to know more? What interests me more? What do I need to add to my professional development?
What shall I attend?
What a wonderful occasion! It is high time I started thinking about my own needs and my interests. We do not feel the importance of such reflective moments unless we are put to the test.
    The challenge was that many interesting sessions were conducted at the same time. My first pick was a wondrous workshop conducted by Irene McKay and Tina Intini, two lively instructors at the George Brown College in Toronto and the title of the workshop is : Developing learner independence and excellence via Grammar Games.
    This was the first workshop I attended. It was conducted in a a very engaging way that I still remember the activities we took part in, the competitive spirit we were involved in so joyfully. I was part of the TESOL 2013 team, a good omen, I think. Lucky us!
 We were at the Philadelphia TESOL and the instructor divided us in two teams, the Philadelphia 2012 team and the Dallas 2013 team. We enjoyed so much the cozy, friendly and amiable ambience. So much fun, so much engagement that we sensed we were, ourselves, pupils actively participating, chatting, but most importantly revising Grammar in such a lovely, enjoyable manner.
 Below are some links that the instructors shared with us: They do sum up most of the amazing tips and ideas.Thank you Irene and Tina.
www.yourdictionary.com/esl/ESL-Games-and-Linguistic-Outcomes.html
www.esldepot.com/page.php?xPage=free-esl-why-games.html
www.esl-games.net/articles/using-games.html
 http://english.daejin.ac.kr/~rtyson/cv/games.html