Archives for PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES
IntenSIG at SPEAQ 2024
Teaching With Heart This year at SPEAQ, IntenSIG embraced the convention theme, For the Love of Learning. We selected our most cherished and motivating classroom activities to share with participants,…
IntenSIG Spring Gig 2024: For the Love of Learning
Intensig did it again! This dynamic team of teachers put together a day that participants described as: Amazing! Great day! Awesome! Much appreciated! Well done! Great ideas! Participants came from…
Are You Ready to Take a Risk? Prêt.e à prendre un risque?
Julie Paré and Elizabeh Alloul | April 13, 2023 (Updated November 23, 2023) Les autrices ont pris le risque d’écrire le présent article dans leur langue seconde. We’ve decided to…
A Morning in the Life of a Teacher
Curious about what ESL teachers do after retirement? Well, Jesse Hionis has found a delightful pastime in writing stories. Here's one that captures a slice of a teacher's day, guaranteed…
chalk.n.coffee: An ESL Podcast for the Times
We have recently been witness to an unprecedented generosity within our ESL community. Everyone is sharing ideas and offering help in a plethora of ways. Hello! My name is Jacqueline…
Include IncluSIG in Your Inclusive Classroom
(Try saying that 3 times fast!) An Interview with Michelle Paquette, chair of IncluSIG, SPEAQ’s Special Interest Group to support Inclusive Education. Michelle Paquette, IncluSIG chair and more… Michelle Paquette…
Introducing the ESL-FSL Tandem Canada Platform: Partnering Up!
by Susan Parks, Professor at Laval University, Québec * * * * * Would you like your…
Icebreakers for the Online Classroom
Spring is here, the snow is melting, and ice is breaking everywhere! Inspired by nature, we want to share some engaging icebreakers that we have been using in our online…
Archived Web Event: Best Practices in the ESL Multi-Level Classroom
The number of multi-level groups is a growing trend in Quebec schools, it is an organization that is not always easy to manage, especially if two different cycles are targeted.…
Montreal Canadiens at School
Recently, an ESL teacher shared a great resource with us : an educational site for hockey-loving students (If ever you have a resource you'd like to share with the community, don't hesitate…
Summer Reading Picks
Summer is here so let’s celebrate with a book, or a few! Here are the books on our summer reading list, books we’ve already read and recommend, and books we…
My Experience at Edcamp
I was so excited to finally attend an Edcamp. I’d heard so many friends saying how resourceful and stimulating these were. My biggest surprise was to find out that there…
Do You PWIM?
Do You PWIM? I first heard of PWIM in a workshop for ELA teachers. It was mentioned in passing, within the context of writing, with…
The 40-week ESL Challenge
;ab_channel=The40-weekESLChallenge Two very active ESL teachers, Isabelle Giroux and Tanja Vaillancourt, have created The 40-week ESL Challenge and are inviting you to be part of the movement. The dynamic duo…
Opening the Walls of a Classroom
Isolation is a common side effect of becoming a teacher, especially in ESL. ESL specialists are often the only one of their kind in a school and will sometimes teach…
We Need a New Mantra: What Will Yours Be?
We Need a New Mantra: What Will Yours Be? Mantras are one way to practice mindfulness because we focus on a word or phrase as a way to calm and…
Making Friends with Failure
Way back when I was in second grade I had an amazing homeroom teacher, Mrs. Finley, who taught me how to knit using two wooden pencils and some yarn. I…
Makerspaces: Building English Language Skills
Have you heard of Makerspaces (or different types of makerspaces such as ArtHives, Genious )? In a nutshell, a makerspace any physical location (in a school or within…