Shakespeare’s birth and death are both celebrated on 23 April, St George’s Day (the English national day). And this year is a special celebration, 400 years after his death in 1616. There are lots of Shakespeare events on all year and lots of online resources, such as an online exhibition at the British Library, an … Continue reading “Shakespeare Online Resources”
The Beat Generation exhibition at the Paris Pompidou Centre looks at the legacy of these anti-conformist writers from the 1940s-1960s. It fits well into a lycée theme on Mythes et héros or L’idée de progrès. Or in LELE, the themes Voyage, parcours initiatique, exil or L’écrivain dans son siècle. See our article about the exhibition. … Continue reading “The Beat Generation on the Web”
21 September is Peace One Day, a U.N. day of ceasefire and non-violence around the world. A day to bring peace into your classroom! On the Peace One Day website, you can find teaching packs in English (and also Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish if your colleagues would like to join in!) They include … Continue reading “Peace One Day Webpicks”
National symbols are a wonderful way into discussing a country’s culture — and encouraging pupils to think about their own country’s symbols, which we all tend to take for granted. The current debate in the U.S.A. about honouring a woman on a banknote is and excellent and realistic example. This topic is great for classwork … Continue reading “Women on Banknotes Webpicks”
As part of the celebrations of the centenary of Roald Dahl’s birth, Steven Spielberg has helmed an adaptation of his book The BFG. Pupils generally recognise Dahl’s work from books or films, so it is a rich subject for class work. Don’t miss our articles on the The BFG film and Dream Jar Trail (see … Continue reading “The BFG Webpicks”
The film Race tells the story of Jesse Owens’ victories at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Read more about the film in our article. Jesse Owens’ extraordinary achievements are a great topic both in collège and lycée, where it fits well into a Mythes et héros theme. Biographies This video from the film’s website mixes real … Continue reading “Jesse Owens Webpicks”
Muhammad Ali, world boxing champion and civil-rights activist, died in June 2016. This is a nice summary of Ali’s life and career from the BBC children’s news site. The video covers much the same information as the article, and could be tackled from A2, or used just for images along with selected facts for lower … Continue reading “Muhammad Ali On the Web”
Roald Dahl’s books are popular with young readers and adults alike. In this his centenary year, why not put some Dahl magic into your teaching? Most pupils know at least some of his works, whether from books or the popular film adaptations. You can exploit this prior knowledge, drawing on their memories for all sorts … Continue reading “Teaching with Roald Dahl”
At the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, a refugee team competed for the first time in Olympic history. These videos can bring this inspiring story to life in your classroom. From A1+ This video is a good introduction since the only mention of the team being refugees is the first screen – if you start … Continue reading “Olympic Refugee Team Teaching Tools”
Queen Elizabeth II is now officially Britain’s longest reigning monarch. On 9 September, 2015, she overtook Queen Victoria, who reigned for 63 years, seven months and two days, from 1837 to 1901. The BBC site has a summary article about the Queen’s reign. It’s B2 level, but elements such as the comparison between Elizabeth and … Continue reading “Queen Elizabeth II Teaching Tools”