If you will be teaching in a place where a dry erase or chalkboard is unavailable, investigate the possibility of purchasing "Write On Clean Sheets" at any Office Max store ($18.99 for 20 sheets at the time of this writing in the summer of 1998). You may write on these poster-board size sheets with permanent or dry erase markers. They adhere to walls without the use of tacks, staples, or tape-and they are reusable.

If you are going to be working with only a few students, check out the possibility of the "Etch-a-Sketch" or simple little tablet that you can write on then erase by lifting up the page.

Should I correct all the mistakes I hear students make?

No, indeed! Student errors are actually useful! They indicate that a student is trying! They also give you important feedback, letting you know what the weaknesses and misunderstandings are. Take notes on the mistakes you hear, then write a homework exercise (fill in the blank, multiple choice, etc.) for extra practice.

It is helpful to understand the distinction between an error and a mistake. ERRORS are caused by a lack of knowledge about the target language or incorrect hypotheses about it. When a student makes errors, s/he is reaching the wrong conclusions, e.g., he-his-brethren = she-shis-methren and pencils = milks. MISTAKES, on the other hand, are caused by temporary lapses of memory, by confusion, slips of the tongue, etc. If a student can self-correct, it is probably a mistake, not an error, that is the problem.

In the same way that a parked car cannot be moved if it insists upon keeping the gear in "park," a student who never takes risks speaking until he/she is confident of perfection will not achieve fluency in English. The only way students can make true progress is to learn from their mistakes.

Never interrupt students to make corrections when students are involved in communicative activities or in social situations. Once you do make a correction, you instantly turn on their "monitor" and transform the listening / speaking practice into a grammar lesson. It helps to reflect on the way even native speakers make mistakes and interject pauses and repairs. In order to develop fluency, both teacher and student must lay aside visions of perfection.

Correction of errors during focused practice is a different matter altogether, since the "focus" there is on accuracy. When correcting mistakes, it is best to concentrate on a single grammar point rather than pointing out every mistake. Correcting all errors can quickly lead to discouragement!

Other suggestions for correcting errors:

• Correct only global errors, those which hinder communication.
• Respond with an expanded replay that contains the correct answer or form of speech.
• When modeling the correct response, place a slight emphasis on the word or phrase needing correction.

What can I do if a student requests extra help in writing?

There are two useful techniques that are simple to use. One is to ask the student to do SUMMARY WRITING. For example, you could give a homework assignment for the student to write the JESUS Film story segment in his/her own words. You might want to ask for an opinion paper in which the student would not only summarize the story, but tell what s/he thinks about the story.

Another highly effective tool is the Dialogue Journal in which students and teacher literally carry on a conversation in writing. Students write about any topic of their choosing-or in response to an assigned topic.

You may save some class time by channeling any of the questions into journal writing. Students could write about family members, likes and dislikes, travel, etc. Feelings and cross-cultural observations are always popular themes.

In the next class session, you may ask students to read what they have written-either to a partner or in a small group. Make this writing purposeful by reading every journal entry yourself and making comments in the margin - but no corrections. Instead, you validate feelings and invite more written dialogue with such comments as: "This sounds interesting! I would love to hear more about . . ."; "Have you ever considered ; ; ; ?" and "I've felt that way, too!"

In a subtle way you can make corrections by wording your response to contain the corrected form. You may also deal with errors by keeping a list of the kinds of errors you see. Then, at a later date and without singling out any one student, you create sentences in which these errors occur. Provide a copy of the Error Analysis activity for each student to correct. When done, ask students to compare answers with a partner and discuss any differences. Then go over the answers with the whole class and field questions to clear up any misunderstandings.

Another good technique for working on oral and written accuracy is to have four or five sentences on the board when the students arrive for class each day-sentences that include the types of errors you overheard or saw students make in the previous class session. If the class is not too large, everyone can form a semi-circle at the board and discuss what is wrong and how to make needed corrections. This (anonymous) error analysis is an effective tool that allows students to "save face" while correcting grammar weaknesses.

What do I do if everyone is not on the same level in my class?

Try to target the "middle of the road" as you teach, i.e., do not teach to either extreme-the more advanced or the least proficient. Do make every effort, however, to help the slower students keep pace with the rest of the class. One way to do this is to pair the least proficient with a patient and more advanced student who will function as a peer tutor.

How much time do we need for a class?

Whether you establish an "English Language School" with sessions once a week for twelve weeks or conduct a two-week intensive course that meets for daily instruction, the following schedule is recommended for classes that are two-and-a-half hours each:

Life Skills
Warm-up - 				5 minutes 
Presentation 				10 minutes
Focused Practice - 			15 minutes
Communicative Practice - 		30 minutes (50% of time)
	TOTAL				60 minutes


The JESUS Film
Story Presentation - 			3 minutes
Vocabulary Presentation - 		7 minutes
First Look (including viewing) - 		15 minutes
Second Look (including viewing)		15 minutes
Reading the Story - 			10 minutes
Cloze Exercise (homework)
Strip Story - 				10 minutes
Life Application - 				20 minutes
Closure: God's Truths + song - 		10 minutes
	TOTAL				90 minutes