Here are some significant September 2015 changes to ROA. For those currently using ROA, the main changes involve Steps 6 through 8. I used Robert’s term dialogic reading to describe the elegant Step 6 and

This is from Eric: Hey Ben – I originally posted this to moreTPRS, to criticize BVP’s lackluster commentary on textbooks in episode 3 of his radio show. https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/moretprs/conversations/messages/149461 I think you’ll enjoy the analogy: A

Here’s another one, to follow roughly the plan outlined in the “Simon’s Cat MT – 1” article: Reading: MT Simon’s Cat 2 – Let Me In!

Here is something for those who like me may be a little skittish with MT (I’m afraid of going too wide on the kids with it): Reading in French: MT Simon’s Cat 1 – The Box

I was just thinking how we should get into a more positive mindset re: all the fighting of the past 20 years with traditional teachers. We have certainly done some major growth in that area

Here is a lovely article by Laurie on how the idea of embedded readings got its start in her classroom, in the need to reach a child who lacked confidence: http://embeddedreading.com/category/justins-story-the-origin-of-embedded-reading/

Jeremy had asked about embedded readings and we went right to the source – Laurie Clarcq – who here answers Jeremy’s question: Hello everyone! I’m going to outline some information here…pick and choose what might

Michele shares: Hey Ben: Students have been well trained to expect a certain kind of teaching. Even though it doesn’t do anyone any good, they are comfortable with what they know and expect and train

There is an Embedded Readings category here so lots to read, but I got this specific question that would be good to get the group’s response on as well: Hi Ben, I teach English at

There are ripple effects happening from Bob Patrick teaching a class on TPRS at the University of Georgia, starting about three years ago and still going strong. This post provides us with some Chinese instruction

I believe that this is a metaphor for what is happening now in our schools: http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-south-carolina-school-employee-tosses-student-in-classroom-20151026-story.html Therefore, any small spark of humanness that we can bring to our schools, however we do it, through CI

It’s not like we’re on a world cruise with our students, although Robert has approximated it: https://benslavic.com/blog/report-from-the-field-virtual-vienna/ The truth is that we are in a box with our students. Not a lot to talk about

This is a note to myself re: planning through to Xmas break and I post it here for anyone else who might like me be getting wigged out by too many things to do in the

Lance Piantaggini below makes a very strong argument on the topic of specifically how to respond to attackers. He elucidates reasons for attackers’ motives, describes their mindsets and finishes by suggesting three talking points – designed

This question is from Ros Stannard in Australia. I gave here Betsy Paskvan’s email address in Alaska, and Martha Nojima’s in Japan, but if anyone else has any insights I’m sure they would be welcome.

“Whenever the desire for communication precedes the selection of structures, the lesson goes great. Whenever the structures precede the desire for communication, the lesson falls flat.” John Bracey

Some may have missed this post about a month ago. https://benslavic.com/blog/check-this-out-2/ Also, Angie asked me to add this video to our video collection on the hard link above. As I rewatched it, I had the sound

We have Bryce’s Dual Entry Form for when we send kids to a colleague. Diane shares a few slightly different forms, but it’s the same idea: Alternative plan – word list Alternative plan Somehow during

From Steven: Hi Ben, I’ve noticed in a story you wrote that you use “inversion” to ask questions.  My experience, which is narrow, is that not very many people use inversion when speaking.  Is this

This is from Eric. It ties together stories and interviews: …after the TPRS 3 steps, do the “Special Person” (aka personal interview) of the character(s) from the story….

When interviewing kids we now have six options. I’m posting them here for ease of reference, with a new category for this increasingly popular way of doing CI in our classrooms: Special Chair (Jody) https://benslavic.com/blog/?s=special+chair Persona Especial 

Robert adds another interview topic to our list of interview activities. This time it’s pets. Of course, this may be an activity we all do, but it needs to be categorized for reference. So thank

Lance has given this update with some changes by Sabrina on Star of the Week. I like how simple it is: There are notable changes Sabrina has made that everyone should be aware of before adapting

This site can be confusing for newer people. To address that, I suggest the following: I assume that you already accept the TPRS/CI methodology so the numerous articles here on that topic are not what

A cool thing happened today when I was asking how an actor (in the tent story) felt in reaction to being scared by a ghost, and how the ghost felt. All the kids’ eyes shot

Angie has come up with something timely. It fits in with the big shift into really compelling personalized input in the form of focused interviews with students that started over ten years ago with the

Annette Sechrist has recreated a few or our rigor posters in a nicer format: Expectations for student success Students Success Chart

Jim just launched his new website so now you can easily get either a hard copy ($25) or ecopy ($15) of his stories. Here is the link: www.trippsscripts.com For those new to using story scripts

Actually this message is also to Angie Dodd and John Piazza and certainly to myself as a younger TPRS teacher many years ago. It is to anyone who has been hurt, cut or jabbed in their buildings by

Eric said in a comment today: …[we cannot] align TCI/TPRS with the traditional teaching model. I want to align TCI/TPRS with SLA and with CLT. In this time of transition from one teaching model to

It is such a fine thing to hear from group members. Send us your report from the field as well! Representing the great state of Arkansas on our PLC, our Tim Bennett reports:  Hi Ben,

Just one of many points made this week by the Vintner: Think about the concept of a “language parent.” http://www.ijflt.org/images/ijflt/articles-june-2012/krashen.pdf The teacher is the language parent. All you want to do is communicate with the

  hears something takes runs to Bobby goes camping in Arizona. He sleeps in a tent. He hears something. He looks out of the tent and sees a janitor. The janitor is whistling Dixie. Bobby

Robert updates us on the Vienna project: Hi Ben, Earlier this year I mentioned what I wanted to do this year in my German 3-4-AP class with the virtual move project and that, if it

Some of us are projecting up the work of the artist during class, as per Claire here about a week ago: My class artist … [is] super fast at drawing and very skilled. Students give

Hi Ben, Thanks so much for the support.  I have been getting my butt kicked this year.  I had finally subdued my other enemies at the end of last year, but then I was betrayed

Below are the 63 jobs kids can do in our classrooms. The list is always changing. If you notice and inaccurate statements or crediting issues, please let me know and I will fix it. Understand

I thought our Eastern Knight was over the worst, but apparently not. Yesterday our Western Knight John Piazza (not to be confused with the Chevalier de l’Ouest Robert Harrell) alerted me to the fact that

Angie suggested a story about Little Stephen. This one needs work but here is a preliminary test script: smelled smoke Help! caught Little Stephen‘s mom was cooking dinner in the kitchen. Suddenly she smelled smoke.

We have a number of story ideas, etc. around Halloween. Here is the link to that category: Blog

I just got this from jen. Maybe someone can identify the people. I see Mary Beth in green, Eric in blue and Laurie in blue and black in the middle and to her left skip

I received some cool questions about chanting: Is the chant a part of the script? Where does it originate – with a student or the teacher? What is its purpose – to reinforce a grammatical

The interface between ESL and TPRS is found in the word “compelling”. Stories bring the highest levels of compelling instruction. Therefore, all the ESL folks need to do with their students is some stories while dropping

What is the point of interface between ESL and TPRS? It is the point where students are allowed to express themselves in human ways about human things. The point of interface is compelling personalization. The

Stephen Cook and I were having lunch a few months ago in the Staff Canteen of the American Embassy School here in New Delhi. We were just settling into our new jobs and feeling pretty

Claire wrote: “My class artist draws on my Surface and it projects for the whole class (this would work with ipad – but I think my pen works better). She’s super fast at drawing and

(Warning – long post with rant qualities in it, although not a full on rant.) Lance wrote: …is One Word Image under a “TPRS umbrella” if we create a compelling scene, and then leave it without developing

One of Anne’s best is also the story that has not been cracked into by English in my classes all week, not once. The fact that I am experiencing no blurting this week for the first time

We were pretty cavalier in the old days around 2000-2001 when this stuff was starting to get some attention. Teachers would tell students to act like lions under a tree, for example, and there would

We live in our own CI worlds. We can only report back to the group what we go through ourselves as individual teaching artists. Sometimes it’s really bad, like what jen has been, is going,