The National Online Forum for EAL/ESL Professionals

• Call for Proposals for REALIZE 2015 is now open. Visit English Online website to submit your presentation idea. All presentation proposals relevant to ESL&Settlement field are welcome.

• English Online team is happy to announce REALIZE 2015 Forum Keynotes, Paul Holmes and Nikos Theodosakis. Click here to find out more about Keynote Messages and their work.

New school year is around the corner and many of us are dusting off our school curriculum guidelines, teacher materials and classroom activities to kick off another year of learning. At the same time, there are small but important things to remember when approaching the classroom in a new school year.

• Gear yourself up with useful school supplies - not only students have their school supplies list, teachers need to enjoy this part too! Experienced teachers recommend a magic supply-kit they found handy over the years of teaching.

• Prepare yourself - "Approaching a first class with a new group" might be a challenge even for experienced teachers. The best strategies are to break the ice, establish positive atmosphere and do language and needs analysis of your students.

• Decor your classroom - posters with positive messages and highlights of certain aspects of the language (Pronunciation corner, Idiom of the Week, Word of the Day, etc) will create an environment that triggers learning. Pinterest ideas on this topic are vast, so you can choose the ones to your taste.

• Remember your students' names - calling students by their names is one way to show respect and establish good communication. However, it is quite challenging to remember new names, especially if they come from different culture than yours. This post suggests fun and effective ways to learn students names.

• Write your rules down - clarify classroom rules with your students and write them down, so that you always can refer to them. Remember, adult learners need age-relevant ways to enforce studying.