In the Denver Public Schools what we do is work backwards from novels. We make a list of the verbs that are necessary to read a certain novel, teach those verbs using the the various comprehensible input skills that we have, and then read the novel, which because of all the work spent teaching the

The order in which the verbs are taught doesn’t matter, since we know from Krashen that we can’t know or predict the order in which language is absorbed by the human brain anyway. When the wall-posted master list is completed at the end of the year, the students will know those verbs. This doesn’t happen

I mentioned in the last post that I only stop working with a verb when it feels “saturated”. Here are some more thoughts on that important topic: I only add a verb to the list on the upper walls when I feel that roughly 90% of the students in each of my classes “is familiar”

Since many of us are in or about to begin lots of meetings in our buildings that connect to SBGR, etc. I suggest that we all at least read and become familiar with the vocabulary Lance P. uses here. This is good stuff right here: A New Grading System: The last one you’ll ever need

We may be working from a list of verbs provided for us by our district WL leadership. Or not. It doesn’t matter. Another point, and one bound to irritate some people: in my view the order of teaching the verbs to our students doesn’t matter. If a verb is high frequency it will occur a

From Nathaniel: Hi Ben, I just found this. Interesting. http://www.sdkrashen.com/content/articles/2015_notes_on_tprs-_contributions,_controversies,_problems,_and_new___frontiers.pdf

Jen just sent me two photos of her new classroom: It struck me that the space is so inviting and expressive of the time now of starting again, of the possibilities. But then I realized that desks would soon be in there, changing the space completely. I am thinking that as nice as the space

I received an email from a PLC member who really sees the big picture about what we do: I’m looking forward to my new gig and also was sobered a bit by some stats I learned in a mental health first aid course I just took at my new school. Off the chart levels of

This question is from Joe Eye: Hi Ben – I hope all is well. I have a scenario/question for the PLC and you. Scenario: New school has a Spanish program that they want taught exclusively with TPRS. However; the students coming in are at many different proficiency levels. They are even at various proficiency levels

So, having tried to stress the importance of teaching verbs, verbs and verbs in our CI classes, let’s get started with our suggested sequence, our train tracks, for getting through our first class with our students in a safe and happy and pleasant and engaging way, by focusing only on two verbs: “looks for” and

A second metaphor, a heavier one, that illustrates the importance of verbs in our work can be found in the image of dump trucks. Each truck is a verb that is loaded up with all the other parts of speech that make up the anguage. The truck goes to the job site, gets loaded up

All the other words that comprise the rest of the language besides the verbs need reps, of course, but we get them on the backs of verbs. It is the verbs that should sparkle and jump into the minds of the students even if the rest of the sentence doesn’t. The verbs are the princess