Compiled by Marja Juhola

Sorry for the delay in getting this out.  Find a brief summary of interesting summer/autumn posts below.

Pronunciation and Spelling

• Feel like murdering (?) the apostrophe? See here for some convincing arguments in favour of getting rid of it.  If that is not enough and you think spelling lessons are also useless, The Telegraph reports on academic research suggesting that, due to mobile technology, teaching spelling a waste of time.
• Mispronunciations video by Mental Floss – check out how many you get right.
• Macmillan has published a great interactive online phonemic chart based on Adrian Underhill’s system. You can also watch Adrian’s Teaching Pron workshop, full of practical ideas.
• A great video highlighting the difference between American vs. British pronunciation by Vicky Hollett.

Lesson and activity ideas

• Macmillan has some interesting conversation lesson ideas on their Global website.
• Dr Stacia Levy lists useful phrases to teach your students to get them ready for conversation classes.
• Do your students (or you?) love Friends? Check out Michaela Mozolova’s series of video posts. 
• Movie Segments to Assess Grammar Goals: you can find video clips and worksheets to practise grammar structures with your learners.
• Lynda Steyne shared a useful handout on linkers.
• Inspirational quotes to use in the classroom – either as decoration and inspiration or as lesson material.

Technology and Apps

• Are you a Dogme fan? Check out this blog on using smartphones in class.
• A useful translator to use if you receive a text or an email from someone … young(er) and are not sure what they mean! Great to use with teenagers in class.
• A list of 50 Best Education Android Apps, created by Terry Heick.
• Justin Ferriman talks about the benefits of using mobile devices in the classroom.
• Are MOOCs the future? See an article by Laura Pappano in the New York Times on Massive Open Online Courses.
• Activities for your virtual classroom.

Stuff for Teachers Only

• If this is you, see the articles below for inspiration and help!
• Lindsay Clanfield has written a practical article on signs of burnout, giving ideas on how to avoid it.
• Tyson Seburn focuses on work-life balance.
• A summary of a KELT chat on burnout.
• Tips on how to stay optimistic by Heather Wolpert-Gawron.
• Dr Allen Mendler talks about the importance of attitude when dealing with difficult students.

Other bits and pieces

• A fascinating blog post on fairer grading of students’ work by Erika Osvath. Erika is giving a couple of sessions in Slovakia next week.
• News from IATEFL Hungary in October: Vicki Loras’ blog.