ESL Conversation Clubs @ Your Library

Conversation starters.

2010-08-02T10:53:00.000-07:00

A great set of conversation starters: http://www.esl-tutor.com/2009/08/10-conversation-starters-for-esl .html

Great resource from another library....

2010-07-21T13:13:00.001-07:00

I found a somewhat older resource that outlines exactly what you need to get an ESL Conversation Club going. I think the budget's very generous - you can definitely start one with less! Download the Word document...

Short game to get students to organize themselves.

2010-06-21T16:38:00.000-07:00

In this short game, students get into lines based on certain criteria. For example:

number of US states visited
age
month of birth
number of siblings
alphabetical order by name or last name

Icebreakers.

2010-06-01T18:43:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my favorite ice breakers. I think it's important to rotate through icebreakers so the group doesn't get bored... Participants first say their name, of course.

What are you wearing today?
How did you get to the library today?
What movie have you seen recently?
What book have you read recently?
What did you eat for breakfast? What will you eat for dinner tonight?
What are your plans for the weekend?
Where in the world would you like to visit?
What confuses you about English?
Did you encounter any confusing words or phrases in English this week?
What was the most fun show you saw on TV this week?
Tell us about your favorite TV show.

The Health Remedies game.

2010-06-01T18:38:00.000-07:00

This is similar to the advice game, but for health problems. You can print out images of health problems, or describe specific health problems on index cards, and have everyone provide remedies. Finding out home remedies from other cultures is always fascinating. Examples you can use: headache, ear ache, fever, bug bites, stomach ache, rash.

Play Hangman with idioms.

2010-06-01T11:29:00.000-07:00

Here's another game that was a hit - hangman, but using idioms. Be sure to create a list of the idioms you'll use to hand out later; otherwise students will be preoccupied writing them down. I found the idioms online here; this list includes definitions also: http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/

A fun conversation-stimulating game: Odd One Out

2010-05-10T17:20:00.001-07:00

From Boggle's World ESL resources, "Odd One out" is an excellent game for mixed level groups. Students had a hard time with some of the groupings, but had enthusiastic conversations. Here is the link to the worksheet: http://bogglesworldesl.com/files/TheOddOneOutGame.doc

We played the game a little differently - each group taking turns for each grouping, and discussing the reasons as we went along.

Play charades!

2010-04-15T15:26:00.000-07:00

We played charades the other day, using simple phrases and terms. Each student had to act out one of the phrases written on a card, and the rest of the group had to guess the action. Be sure to keep the actions simple! You can try things like: swimming, reading, driving, cooking on a stove, etc.

Great tips...

2010-04-13T17:14:00.000-07:00

I'm reading through "Compelling Conversations: Questions and Quotations on Timeless Topics" by Eric H. Roth and Toni W. Aberson (ISBN 414965828X). It includes excellent conversation starters on a variety of topics, and general tips to keep conversations flowing; a recommended resource for any Conversation Club facilitator.

A few general tips from the book:

Be encouraging, be kind, be open, be supportive
Be yourself, skip awkward questions, add natural questions
Be curious, be open, be tolerant, be sympathetic, be honest
Have fun, explore, take risks

Bananagrams!

2010-02-12T16:15:00.000-08:00

If you'd like to play a fun game where each student spells out words, try Bananagrams. It's a lot like Scrabble, but with very few rules, and a lot more flexibility. You don't have to track points, just the person who won each round. It's a lot of fun, and a learning opportunity.

Holiday party!

2009-12-15T16:33:00.000-08:00

We had a holiday party for the Club this past week. We studied chit chat / small talk the week prior, so students were ready to party on! I felt that having the extra structure of the small talk lesson helps keep the party in focus - it's not just about having fun, although that's important too. I based my lesson these resources: http://esl.about.com/od/conversationlessonplans/a/lesson_smtalk.htm

Drawing game – this builds narrative skills.

2009-10-30T12:18:00.000-07:00

To prepare, clip out images from magazines. Photos of people doing activities are great; I use outdoor and sports magazines often. Here's how it works:

Ask for a volunteer to draw the image.
The rest of the group describes the image to the artist.
Keep the group talking until the image resembles the original image.
Change artists per image, and keep talking!

Easy game idea using wordless books.

2009-10-19T11:28:00.000-07:00

This is a great game when you don't have much time to prepare a longer activity, and builds narrative skills and improves vocabulary.

Grab a few wordless picture books and assign one to each student.
Spend a few minutes quietly looking through the book.
Have each student present the book, telling the story.

Be careful to choose books with somewhat adult graphics - avoid anything that's too simple and cute-sy. Anything by Mistumasa Anno will work well.

To find them in your library catalog, do a subject search for "stories without words".

Other good titles:

Rainstorm by Lehman: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/70831107
Wilson's Magpie Magic: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/37518963
Wiesner's Flotsam: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/71000114

Potential problems and solutions...

2009-09-13T14:00:00.000-07:00

Problem: One person talks too much.
Solution: Use a timing device and get other students to help 'police' the garrulous one.

Problem: Different langauge levels.
Solution: Group work! Split up those advanced speakers amongst different teams.

Problem: Everyone speaks Spanish so they just chat in Spanish to each other.
Solution: Make a rule that you have to use English only, even if it's difficult.

Problem: Parents come, accompanied by loud children.
Solution: Have some coloring sheets or quiet toys ready, or set them up on a computer and have them play educational games.

ESL Bingo - the bingo grid.

2009-08-24T16:33:00.001-07:00

Here's a link to the bingo grid I use for ESL Bingo: http://docs.google.com/View?id=dct34n59_28dt7j48dw

Great icebreaker - the M&M game.

2009-08-24T16:22:00.000-07:00

This is a fast and fun ice-breaker that may already be familiar to you.

Have a bowl of M&M chocolates and invite students to pick their favorites. Based on the color, students should say the following tidbits about themselves:

RED - Where are you from?

BLUE - What do you like to do for fun?

YELLOW - Tell us about your family.

BROWN - What is your favorite food?

ORANGE - How did you get here today?

GREEN - What color is your car? House?

Study the various parts of a computer with your ESL students.

2009-08-24T16:08:00.001-07:00

This was a great activity - we filled out the worksheet together, while talking about each component. Here's the handout: http://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0B1NkZlvm2QTSOTI4MzU5NzgtMTFlNy00Y2VjLTgyMWQtMzA2MzUyOTkwZjgx&hl=en

A bingo story about Kuwait and its recent elections.

2009-08-11T11:32:00.000-07:00

Here's the link: http://docs.google.com/View?id=dct34n59_33dnh8pb94

Another bingo story about dads-to-be...

2009-08-11T11:28:00.000-07:00

Here's the link: http://docs.google.com/View?id=dct34n59_32c8nd6vcb

New bingo story - about the upcoming census.

2009-08-11T11:26:00.000-07:00

Here's the link: http://docs.google.com/View?id=dct34n59_31hsnbrzd4

New bingo story - Michael Jackson's bio.

2009-07-21T17:35:00.001-07:00

Here's the link: http://docs.google.com/View?id=dct34n59_30d2srzgfm
The article is taken from the Wikipedia entry. I also added some discussion questions from http://breakingnewsenglish.com/0906/090627-michael_jackson.html

ESL Book Club book choices update

2009-07-18T16:50:00.000-07:00

These are a few of the most well-received titles that we have done in ESL Book Club recently. All of these spurred on great discussions, and were universally agreed upon to be page-turners. Fannie Flagg's book was the most popular.
A Redbird Christmas--Fannie Flagg
Hush--Jacqueline Woodson
Tuesdays with Morrie--Mitch Albom

If you think you would like to test out some of your conversation club participants to see if they might enjoy reading for pleasure in English, here is a very short ghost story by Jean Rhys called I Used to Live Here Once http://personal.bgsu.edu/~rshultz/Rhys.htm. The writing is very rich, and the meaning quite subtle, so explanation by the club facilitator will likely be required. Let them read it through once, go over vocabulary with them (there is a lot in this story), and then read it for them with feeling. Afterwards, let them try it again, and have fun getting everyone to guess at the meaning. This was very successful discussion, and the whole thing didn't take more than 20 minutes at the most.

Apples to Apples

2009-06-30T15:44:00.000-07:00

If you have a relatively advanced group, Apples to Apples is a good game to play. The basic idea is that you have an adjective, and all players have nouns. You try to match up the "best" noun to the adjective, which of course, comes with a lot of humor and liberal licensing of choices. The dealer (who rotates) gets to vote on the best answer. This is only recommended for more advanced ESL learners, and to make sure that the competition doesn't get too fierce, and move the purpose from Conversation Club, you should make each person offer their choice up in a sentence.

Fun new states/capitals game.

2009-06-12T12:45:00.000-07:00

This game was a hit with students this past week. You'll need a set of "Rand McNally Schoolhouse U.S. States & Capitals Flashcards And Games (Cards)", easily found at most educational resources shops, or on Amazon. Students had to choose a region and collect state cards for that region. You can also ask about each state, and learn capitals and nicknames as you go along. Or, you can have each student introduce a state. Fun!

A bingo story and lesson plan for the song, "Imagine".

2009-05-12T17:02:00.001-07:00

Here's the original story: http://breakingnewsenglish.com/0905/090510-john_lennon.html

Here's my version: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dct34n59_29d3nvzc6z

Document links fixed!

2009-05-11T18:29:00.001-07:00

Sorry about the lack of access for the various documents I've been posting. Everything should be working now but please let me know if there are still broken links by emailing me at eslconversationclubs@gmail.com.

New bingo stories...

2009-04-20T13:04:00.000-07:00

Both stories are adapted from http://breakingnewsenglish.com/

About the connection between fast food and strokes: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dct34n59_257nth5sdj
About the recent birth of octuplets: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dct34n59_26cxh4fpgh
About the recent spike in bedbugs: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dct34n59_27f7dbgdrc

Asking open-ended questions.

2009-02-06T12:15:00.001-08:00

Deploy open-ended questions when your class is reading a story to encourage and extend conversations. Here are a few ideas:

What would happen if ... ?
Tell me about your ...
Where could we do that?
What do you think will happen next?
How do you know?
How are you going to do that?

This week's story for ESL Bingo.

2009-01-20T14:02:00.001-08:00

All about the perils of noise pollution. Here's a link for the original article:
http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/0812/081205-noise_pollution.html
And here's my version:
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dct34n59_13f3fd22dd

Break in December for the Holidays?

2009-01-13T11:32:00.001-08:00

So, the ESLCC at MPOW was very slow in December. Particularly when we took a break from story time during the last two weeks, the parents stopped coming entirely. I think next year, we might take a break for the holidays. Otherwise, I think I should plan a large event like a party so that students stay engaged. What did you do for the holidays?

This week's story for ESL Bingo.

2009-01-13T11:24:00.000-08:00

I adapated this story: http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/0812/081208-oprah_winfrey.html - made the vocabulary a tad simpler, and added defintions. Here's a link to my version: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dct34n59_13f3fd22dd

Alta now a publisher only....

2008-12-22T13:08:00.001-08:00

Alta Book Center used to sell a great collection of ESL materials, but starting Dec. 1, they'll resell their own publications only. Their own publications are great, though - check them out at http://www.altaesl.com. I highly suggest purchasing "Cathy's Cards" for a no-prep conversation club.

I took this chance to add a few new ESL pubishers on the right...

This week's story for ESL Bingo.

2008-12-18T11:35:00.000-08:00

I adapted this story: http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/0811/081117-hair_colour.html
It's a fun story that talks about the potential development of a shampoo that gets rid of greys! Anyway I adapted it with simpler vocabulary, and added definitons. Here's my version: http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dct34n59_14hpndg6f7

Thank you for coming to our presenation!

2008-11-18T12:48:00.000-08:00

Thank you again for coming at such an early hour to our program. We had a great time meeting and talking to all of you and hope you'll be able to start a ESLCC at your own libraries.

Here's our presentation:
http://docs.google.com/Presentation?id=dct34n59_5gjfv8qss

Here are the handouts:
http://docs.google.com/fileview?id=F.f197553e-5481-4a7d-8334-3b375587ff98&hl=en

How to play Alphabet Go-Fish!

2008-11-13T17:24:00.000-08:00

Shuffle a deck of alphabet cards. Deal each player a set number of cards (5, 7, 10) The first player asks any other player if they have one of the letters that they have in their hand If the person has the card they hand it over, if not they say " go fish" and the person who requested the card picks one of the remaining cards from the deck. Play then moves to the next person in the circle.
When a player makes a pair, they put the cards on the table and say a complete sentence that uses the word on the card The game ends when one player runs out of cards (or you can give that player more cards to make the game last longer) The person with the most pairs at the end of the game wins. I reward each pair with a candy.

Play some RPGs!

2008-11-08T17:06:00.000-08:00

Role playing is an excellent way to get students talking about real-life scenarios. You'll need to prepare cards with scenarios written on them - for example, buying a car at a Toyota dealer, looking for an apt, shopping at Valley fair, ordering food, ordering coffee at Starbucks. Then, the group can act out the situation together.

If you have a mixed level group, you can have the advanced students do more of the talking - for example, they can be a store clerk and the others can be customers.

How to play the "Statements of Opinion" game.

2008-11-08T17:01:00.001-08:00

1. Write various statements of opinion on small strips of paper. For example: Dogs are better than cats. The rich should pay more taxes.
2. Have one participant read the statement and respond to it.
3. Have a discussion with pros/cons - or even a debate.

For more statements of opinion, check out this list at our Google Docs account.

How to play the "What If??" game.

2008-11-08T16:39:00.000-08:00

This game requires some work and preparation but it can be a lot of fun and generate some heated discussions.

1. Participants pick out “what if” questions from a question jar. I print my questions and cut them into strips and curl them up in the jar. For example:
What would you do if you won the lottery? What would you do if you found a $100 bill in a library book you borrowed?
2. Each participant can also add their thoughts.
3. After answering the questions, participants can come up with their own “what if” questions and ask other participants.

For more "what if" questions check out this list; you'll need to edit out questions that won't work for your group.

How to play Liar! Liar!

2008-11-08T16:36:00.000-08:00

This is a simple game but is best with participants that know each other fairly well; it's not as successful as as an ice-breaker.

1. Participants say three things about themselves; one of these statements should be a lie.
2. The others guess which one the lie is.
3. The participant that guesses correctly wins the game.

Site to get information and resources on fiction

2008-10-23T16:56:00.001-07:00

Choosing books for your ESL Book Club can be challenging. Using high school level reading materials is a good choice for intermediate ESL learners, because the content is more mature, but the vocabulary will be more accessible. Web English Teacher (http://www.webenglishteacher.com/ya.html) has supporting material for a wide variety of young adult level books.

A neat game using a deck of cards.

2008-09-27T12:06:00.000-07:00

Here's a neat conversation starter using a deck of cards; basically people pick cards and get assigned questions based on what they picked. Here's the link: http://iteslj.org/Lessons/Brown-TalkingCards.html

How to play the Alibi Game.

2008-09-19T12:50:00.000-07:00

Think of situations where alibis may be required. Participants choose a scenario and then make up alibis for each. Remember to keep it fun! You can either have everyone make up alibis for the same scenario and give a prize to the best alibi, or just go around and respond to each scenario.

Here are some example scenarios:

Yesterday, Friday, at 5:35 pm, someone robbed the Bank of the West on South First Street. The police suspect you of being the robber. What is your alibi?
There was a hit-and-run accident Wednesday 9:43 pm near your house. Witnesses said that the car resembled yours. What is your alibi?
Sunday at 12:00 noon someone shoplifted diamonds from the jewelry store at the mall. The video camera shows someone that looks a lot like you. What is your alibi?
Thursday morning at 7:30 am someone stole a newspaper from in front of your neighbor’s house. Your neighbor says it was you. What is your alibi?
A couple was walking their Chihuahua this morning at 10:25 am. They said that their dog was attacked by a pit bull being walked by someone who lives close to your house. What is your alibi?
Last night at 2:00 am someone set off fireworks on your street. A neighbor called the police, who knocked on your door. What is your alibi?

How to play ESL Scattegories.

2008-09-18T12:27:00.000-07:00

This quick game is a great way to wrap up the class if you have a few extra minutes left over. It is an easy version of the ‘real’ board game.The objective is to score points by uniquely naming objects within a set of categories. So, you first say the category, and then everyone goes around in a circle naming things in that category. If someone can’t think of one, have them pass and keep going until the topic is stale. Have students talk about each thing they name. Some good categories:

States - what do you know about the state, have you been there
Colors - your favorite color, what is a good color for a car or a house.
Emotions - when you felt that way, how does it feel, opposite feeling.
Stores - what do you like about it, what kind of a store is it
Animals - favorite animal, where have you seen this before, zoo vs. wild

What is the best part about conducting an ESLCC?

2008-09-17T13:37:00.000-07:00

Wondering if an ESLCC is worth the effort? I asked my colleauges what they enjoyed best about facilitating a ESLCC and for most of us, it's a lot of fun while being a highly rewarding, enriching experience. Read on...

"The attendees always are happy to be in a safe, comfortable environment where they can practice their English. It’s very difficult to live in a “monolingual” society even though our population doesn’t reflect it at all! It’s just always a positive experience." - AM

"The inter-connecting with students" - TC

"Seeing adults step out of their comfort zone and attempt a challenging task like pronunciation and succeed." - ND

"Hearing everyone's opinion about the article topic and how it is different or non-existent in their country. Lots of timse they don't respond to the topic like I expected. I find that interesting from a sociological point of view." - CW

"Incredibly rewarding - it is fascinating on the level of language and how linguistic structures can inform our thinking about other cultures, perspectives, norms, in the way that we advance in understanding. I love learning about people, their motivations, and helping people navigate the world of English more successfully." - CR

"Look for creative ways to make the discussion fun and energetic. I like our customers to leave the class full of energy and motivation." - MA

"I love meeting new people, learning something about them and their homes. We have a lot of fun discussing 'American-isms' or challenging words such as 'indigenous'." - LJ

"I enjoy giving ESL learners the opportunity to practice their verbal skills. I simply enjoy talking and listening to them try out their new-found skills." - CT

"I love learning about the cultures and lives of the members of the group. Some of the group members become great friends." - JW

"The personal relationships, and the pride in group members increasing their confidence and skills, or reaching their personal goals." - HK

"A great opportunity to enrich lives and promote literacy" - MD

"The students are so much fun. I learn a lot from them." - RK

"Participants are lively, have good questions, are eager to learn, and have a sense of humor - it's my favorite time of the week!" - PE

"I have become friends with a lot of these people and they are freinds with each other. We all laugh a lot. I can see how they improve every week." - KM

"I love meeting the people, hearing their stories, and having fun with them by playing games and more!" - ST

How to play ESL Bingo.

2008-09-15T12:16:00.000-07:00

This is a great game to play with your ESLCC. As long as you change the story, you can use the same game every time. Learners like taking home a vocabularly list, and the competitive element makes it fun and engaging. Another librarian from MPOE says: "Since we’ve been playing games, the participants seem to converse more freely and look forward to learning and having fun."

To prepare, print out a story and highlight 16 vocabulary words within the story. Make sure the story is at the appropriate reading level - even if you find something online, you'll have to edit some of the words. I usually adapt a story from http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com.

You'll need to bring the following materials:

Copies of the story
Paper with grids (4 squares x 4 squares) or have students make their own grids
Pens or pencils
Strips of papers with a word and its definition
Some prize - sugar-free and regular candy, stationery

Then, follow these steps.

Pass out the story and grids. Read and discuss the story. Review the vocabulary words.
Instruct students to randomly fill in the squares with each of the words.
Explain that you can win with four across, down, or diagonally in case this is a new game for them.
I like the drama of pulling the strips out of a bowl but you can also just pick a word from a list. Read the definition of the word and wait for guesses. Provide hints if the guessing starts to slow down.
Continue until you have a winner.

You can expand the grid to 5x5 but it takes them a while to fill in the blanks and the game can get rather lengthy.

more insights for new facilitators...

2008-09-13T17:13:00.001-07:00

Prepare

The most important thing for managing the group is structure. Many of the immigrants treat the Conversation Club like a class with fewer responsibilities. They come to learn, and if they feel they aren’t learning something they leave.

Have back-up activities prepared, or at least in mind. Food, weather, colors are usually good topics.

Prepare, prepare, prepare

Have an agenda.

Pick interesting topics - ask attendees for future topics.

Pick a conversational scenario.

Have fun with it!

Be prepared with conversation starters.

Have a method to review things that come up.

Be flexible.

It’s impossible to over prepare - what you don’t use one week can be saved for the future.

Be prepared to talk to fill the silence - listening is part of conversation.

Encourage group work, and don’t get too forced into assuming a teacher role. Have them change partners often - it keeps the talking going so that no one runs out of things to say.

Mix it up!

Be flexible with the needs of your group. I went in very structured but adjusted to what my group wanted. It’s difficult when you have a variety of needs; I try to mix it up.

Make it interesting with games, prizes, field trips, videos, pot lucks, etc.

Ask Questions

Persist in being available, make the suggestion to customers you encounter in the library who seem like they might benefit. I haven’t had a problem keeping the group talking but may ask them by name to read or answer a question.

You can’t have a silent group. Sometimes, when you ask someone to talk, you need to be ready with another question in case they can’t answer the previous question. You also need to move on to the next topic if it gets out of hand.

Keep them talking by asking questions and give them time to compose a response. Be casual, patient, and interested!

Questions that cannot be answered by a simple yes or no keep people talking. Hourglass shaped timers get them to stop and gives everyone a chance to talk.

Keep them talking by asking questions and give them time to compose a response. Be casual, patient, and interested!

It helps to have some understanding of group dynamics and facilitation. It’s important to know how to involve everyone, when it’s time to switch topics, what topics to steer clear of,. Pick topics everyone will have something to say about and bring the quiet ones into the discussion.

Positive attitude!

What has worked for me is to be open, interested, friendly, and patient. Whenever we encounter a barrier to understanding, we work on the confusing item until everyone understands, no matter how long it takes. It is important to think broadly, to be able to describe any single thing in 5-10 different ways, to be able to make connections and comparisons, to be uninhibited and able to act things out.

If they seem to wander, I ask them a question on the topic, I try to make sure everyone gets a chance to talk. So I ask a question to the shy or more reluctant speaker. Lots of times the group gets involved and they speak to each other - especially people from the same country. One topic can lead to another. As interesting aspects come up I’ll get the group going or elaborate on that aspect. So the main topic of the article might lead us to other topics, and I just go there. If the tangent runs dry,. I ask another question or relate an experience from my life and we move on. The original topic is just a starting point and the conversation can move far afield - just depending on their interests or what comes up in the conversation.

What are some general questions that promote discussion?

2008-09-13T13:16:00.001-07:00

1. What did you think when you read the headline?
2. How does [article topic] relate to the country you're from?
3. How is it different from your home country compared to the U.S.?

Tips from a colleauge: Remember, the main topic of the article might lead you to another topics and you can just take it from there - if the tangent runs dry, just ask another question or relate an experience from your own life to stimulate more discussion. The original topic is just a starting point and the conversation can move far from that - it all depends on the interests of your participants or what comes up in the conversation.

What about childcare?

2008-09-12T16:51:00.000-07:00

Our ESLCC is limited to adults 18 years and older. Just like any other library program, this most definitely limits participation. In my experience, children, especially those that speak English fluently, are often a distraction for the rest of the attendees. Here are some tactics I've used....

Consider offering your ESLCC during a story time so that children can wait for their parents outside of your meeting.
You can have children wait in the same room but ask them to grab a book to read while they wait quietly; provide some educational games that may keep children occupied.
Have children help you out as volunteers and help run games or other activities.
If you have enough interest, consider starting a separate ESLCC for teens or for children.

How to play the Advice Game.

2008-09-11T12:30:00.000-07:00

I got this game idea from http://www.afn.org/~afn49566/page3.htm. It's best played with a group with intermediate to advanced ESL conversational skills.

Write down real life situations that require some advice on index cards. For example, "I am very depressed. No matter what I try, nothing seems to make me happy."
Put these cards on the table and ask a participatn to choose one. The participant reads the problem aloud.
The others offer advice.
The reader then chooses the best advice and gives the card to that participant.
At the end of the hour, the person with the most cards wins.

What is a typical agenda for a ESLCC meeting?

2008-09-10T14:55:00.000-07:00

Often, you may need to change your activities around depending on the level of your attendees. Remember, stay flexible! If you don't use an activity that day, you can always use it in a later session.

At MPOE, most ESLCCs follow this general structure:

10 minutes - greeting, icebreakers, introductions
40 minutes - activity
10 minutes - wrap up, library promotion, announcements

Here are two ESLCC meeting outlines I use most often for my weekly meetings.

Beginner Level

15 minutes - introductions, icebreaker activity
30 minutes - scattegories game
15 minutes - play vocabulary bingo

Intermediate to Advanced Level

5 minutes - introductions, icebreaker activity
30 minutes - read a news story together, review vocabulary
10 minutes - discussion
15 minutes - play vocabulary bingo

You get the idea - typically, it's one main activity that you need to plan, but otherwise, you can repeat the same activities - just like with a story time! Here are three other agenda outlines from colleagues at MPOE:

Introductions – 5-10 minutes
Programs in the library – 5 minutes
Topic of the day – 30-40 minutes
Wrap up (questions, ideas for next meeting, etc.) – 10 minutes

2 minutes - meet and greet
15 minutes - read article aout loud
15-30 minutes - discuss article, and other tangents it leads to
15-30 minutes - branch out on other prepared activities

5 minutes - passing out materials
10 minutes - taking turns reading the article out loud
5 minutes - explain sidebars or pictures
40 minutes - discuss the article

Check out these ESLCC tips from other librarians.

2008-09-08T16:39:00.000-07:00

Two great ESLCC resources from WebJunction...

An excellent list of best practices for running ESL Conversation Clubs, from Jean Kaleda, (note: link is to a Word document) posted to WebJunction Illinois.
A great webinar entitled Conversation Clubs/Talk Time - Beyond the ESL Class! (note: link is to a .wmv) by Jackie Alectoridis and Carolina Fernandez-McManus.

What is an ESL Conversation Club?

2008-09-06T11:04:00.000-07:00

ESL Conversation Clubs (ESLCC) provide a casual, relaxed environment for language learners to use English and practice conversation skills. ESL students often appreciate additional opportunities to use English outside of classes.

A typical ESLCC:

meets once a week,
for an hour or an hour and a half,
and has anywhere from 2 to 15 attendants.

Welcome to this blog.

2008-09-01T11:20:00.000-07:00

Since I started working as a public librarian in 2006, I've had the pleasure of working with English language learners - just by listening to them talk, in a weekly ESL Conversation Club. Although various ESL resources abound online, I wanted to add my own activities that I've developed, and also share insights and resources that other librarians at MPOE have kindly shared with me.
Also, I will be presenting such insights at the upcoming CLA Conference in November, at a workshop entitled "ESL Conversation Clubs @ Your Library". To prepare, I conducted a survey of librarians at MPOW and will post select responses on this blog. Note that the workshop takes place on Monday morning at 8 AM, though, so if you can't make it - which is completely understandable - I mean, even for morning-people it's early - you can just read this blog.