English teaching resources
I used to be an English teacher. During that time, I made a number of texts, tasks, questions, oral assignments, essay tasks and so forth about different topics within the competence aims of the subject. I thought it might be useful to share these so other English teachers can save some time by reusing them. I have divided the resources into topics to make it easier to find relevant materials. I am in the process of preparing the files, creating the links to the files and creating the links for relevant kahoots and quizlets. For now, only the section about the USA is finished, but I will fill in the rest over time.
I share these teaching materials in Open Document Format (.odt) since an open standard ensures that these will always be possible to open and use. MS Word and Google Docs can open and save in Open Document Format. I use the Liberation fonts since they are freely licensed fonts with the same metrics as some of Microsoft's fonts. (The Microsoft Fonts come with draconian license terms, so I cannot use those.) If you use Windows and don't have the Liberation fonts, you can get them by installing LibreOffice. LibreOffice always renders ODF well, but Word sometimes struggles, so if the documents look strange, use LibreOffice.
As everything on this blog that isn't code, I share these resources under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike-license. That means you can freely use, modify and distribute your modifications as long as I am attributed and you share under the same license. The point of the ShareAlike part of these terms is to force people that use works shared under a free culture license that give people the right to freely use, modify and distribute those works to not incorporate those works into their own works without also sharing on the same terms with others. This is called a copyleft license.
Language and grammar
Links to files with a short description:
A_and_an.odt
Grammar task about a and an.Adjectives_and_adverbs.pdf
- Explanations of how to use adjectives and adverbs.Alias_template.odt
- A template to make "cards" to play alias from. A game of alias can be a fun way to work with vocabulary for a text before reading it. Divide the class into groups. Place the cards with words face down. The oldest player has the first turn. During a turn, the player chooses a card and flips it. If they can explain what the word means in English in a way that is understandable to the other players, they get the card. If not, they have to place it face down again at the same place. Then the next player has their turn. When all the cards are gone, the players count their cards and the one with the most cards is the winner.The American Dream grammar.odt
A grammar task related to a simple text about the American Dream.The American Government to be.odt
A hard task where one should decide whether to use am is or are. What makes this hard is sometimes that the real subject of the rather formal sentences might be hard to spot and sometimes that you could debate whether the subject is plural or singular since it could be thought of as either one issue or a number of separate issues. I used this for students that finished the easier concord tasks fast to give them something a bit harder to think about.Capitalisation_and_puctuation_exercise.odt
Some questions where the answers are checked with capitalisation and punctuation in mind. I used this with a group preparing for upper secondary school that struggled to use capitalisation and punctuation correctly.Capitalisation and punctuation.pdf
In reality, different schools and universities promote different uses of punctuation and capitalisation, and unlike Norwegian where there are official rules from the Norwegian language council, there are no official rules in English. To make it easier for students to write with decent punctuation and capitalisation, I codified the rules I use for my own punctuation and capitalisation which is based on common practices in British English.Checklist_essays.odt
A checklist to work through after writing an essay to avoid mistakes and improve the text before handing it in. The first page is for people aiming for a decent grade and the last page is for people aiming at a higher grade. Some students thought the full list was too long and hard, so I divided it.Checklist_oral_presentations.odt
A checklist to make certain a presentation is well prepared.Common_mistakes_in_essays.pdf
A presentation where I go through some common mistakes. I made this for a group aiming for a passing grade and explained each slide slowly. In hindsight, I would have divided this up further and worked with one topic at at a time, but this was early in my teaching carreer, so don't judge this too harshly.Common_mistakes_in_essays_task.odt
A task with a text with some of the common mistakes from the presentaiton above in it that the students should work on correcting. There is also a correct version of the text on the next page. This is quite nice as a group task.Concord.odt
This is the document I use as a template when explaining concord. I show the first page on a screen and ask the students to help me fill in the form on the first page one column at the time by telling me what to write. They suggest the two last verbs. Then I ask if they can see any pattern. After they have spotted the pattern, or if not, I reveal the next page and then the last one. In the end, I save the document with their verbs and upload it to the learning platform so they can review later.Conjugation_of_nouns_explanation_and_exercise.odt
Explanation of conjugation of nouns and tasks to work with.Conjugations_of_nouns_translation.odt
Some senteces for students to translate from Norwegian into English to work on conjugations of nouns. The sentences are of low quality with some stupid ones which we usually have a laught at, but the point is the conjugations. I usually show this document on a screen and the students write the English translations in a document and hand it in.Dictionary_exercise.odt
Tasks on using dictionaries. If you use a dictionary program like Ordnett Plus or IntoWords (CD-ORD), then maybe the first part doesn't fit very well since there are more than one dictionary within the program.Film_review.odt
Describes how to write a film review in an easy and straight-forward way.Formal_vs_informal_language.odt
A comparison of informal and formal language. Also a bit about the passive voice in the end.Linking_words.odt
The two first pages give examples of use of linking words. I would show this on the screen while explaining what they mean and how to use them from the top down. Then I would have the students work on tasks about linking words from the book (not certain if these tasks match Skills 2020, Tracks 2013 or Target 2020) and afterwards go through the tasks in plenum with the students giving their solutions. Then I would reveal my solutions on the last page, read through them and make certain to tell the students that there are always many correct ways to use linking words.UK_and_US_English.odt
A simplified and shortened version of a text about American and British English.
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
Vocational English
Fits more than one study line
Advertisement_for_student's_firms.odt
Task to make an advertisment for student firms. I used this on the construction study line after the students had made student firms and come up with the products they wante to produce, but the task is general enough to fit any study line where they work with student firms.documentation-task.odt
A task that fits any technically inclined study line that use manuals in English in their work.Future_life_presentation.odt
An oral presentation task about the student's future plans and dreams for their work and life. I made this for use with a group that had second year students from the interior decorator and industrial production classes, so there are some words in the vocabulary table related to those study lines.
The health care study line (Helse)
Links to files with a short description:
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
The construction study line (Bygg)
Links to files with a short description:
Carpentry_tools.odt
A list of tool names in Norwegian and English with pictures.Vocational_essay_task_BA.odt
Essay tasks for the construction study line.FYR_BA.odt
Vocational presentation tasks incorporating both the English subject and vocational study line subjects. (FYR)
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
The technology and industrial production study line (TIP)
Links to files with a short description:
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
The haridresser, flower decorator, interior decorator and photography study line (FBIE)
Links to files with a short description:
Easily_confused_words.odt
A list of some words that are easily confused including some words used especially often on the FBIE study line like dyed and hair.
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
The electrical and computer technology study line (Elektro)
Links to files with a short description:
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
The information technology and media production study line (IM)
Links to files with a short description:
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
The English-speaking world
In general or about English speaking countries except the USA and the UK
Links to files with a short description:
English_speaking_countries_written_task.odt
Three tasks with different levels of difficulty about the English speaking countries. I made this for a class of students preparing to go on upper secondary school. (Kombiklasse)Essay_task_NZ_and_the_Maori.odt
Three essay tasks about New Zealand, the Maori and the Whale Rider film I made for a class of students preparing for upper secondary school (Kombiklasse).From_Empire_to_Commonwealth.odt
A simplified version of the text From British Empire to Commonwealth with vocabulary on the next page that I made for use with a class prepering for upper secondary school. (Kombiklasse)Sports in English speaking countries.odt
I made this for students at the athletic study line.Group task on native peoples.odt
Four groups work on the Aboriginals of Australia, the Maori in New Zealand, The Native Americans and the Zulus in South Africa and make a presentation for the class. This task is hard and I would use this in stronger classes after having a look at some basic facts about the different countries, before going deeper into one or two indigenous peoples and their countries. (There was a competence aim related to indigenous peoples in the past. Now, there is one about the culture of English-speaking countries around the world where Native Peoples would fit.)
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
The United Kingdom of Great Britian and Northern Ireland
Links to files with a short description:
UK_news.odt
An easy task I used with a group of students in a preparation class for upper secondary school about news from the UK.British_Government_simplified.odt
A simplified and shortened version of a text about the British government with a vocabulary list and some simple questions. I made this for my adult students since the original text was too difficult.
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
The United States of America
Here are links to files with a short description:
12 years a slave and slavery.pdf
Some information about slavery in the USA and some questions about the film 12 years a slave.The American Dream and poetry.odt
Tasks related to the American Dream, with poems by Langston Hughes and Emily Dickinson as well as references to a poem by Ralp Waldo Emerson in the Tracks book. (You can easily edit this part out if you use another book or copy the relevant pages.)The American Government to be.odt
A hard task where one should decide whether to use am is or are. What makes this hard is sometimes that the real subject of the rather formal sentences might be hard to spot and sometimes that you could debate whether the subject is plural or singular since it could be thought of as either one issue or a number of separate issues. I used this for students that finished the easier concord tasks fast to give them something a bit harder to think about.The American Government short version Targets 2015.odt
This is a shorter and somewhat simplified version of the long and hard text from Targets 2015.American Lista tasks.odt
These are tasks related to American immigration from Lista and how American culture influenced Lista after many of the immigrants returned. Lista is part of Farsund and many teachers and students at my school are from Lista. Lista is known as the place in Norway where American culture has had the most influence and people from Lista are often in the national news in Norway debating political events in the USA. A lot of people have relatives and friends in the USA and many people here have dual citizenship.Arnold Schwarzenegger and the American Dream simplified.odt
This is my simplified version of a text where Arnold Schwarzenegger shares his dream growing up about achieving success as a body builder and moving to America.Black Friday.odt
This is an easy text about Black Friday with vocabulary.Essay task USA 1KOA.odt
Essay tasks related to texts and a film (Bury my heart at wounded knee) we had worked with about Native Americans, the gun culture in the USA and a harder task about comparing and contrasting the USA and the UK.Facts about the USA translation task.odt
This task is about singular and plural nouns and concord at the same time as it is about facts about the USA. Words are included to make this easier for students with a limited vocabulary.Group task on native peoples.odt
Four groups work on the Aboriginals of Australia, the Maori in New Zealand, The Native Americans and the Zulus in South Africa and make a presentation for the class. This task is hard and I would use this in stronger classes after having a look at some basic facts about the different countries, before going deeper into one or two indigenous peoples and their countries. (There was a competence aim related to indigenous peoples in the past. Now, there is one about the culture of English-speaking countries around the world where Native Peoples would fit.)Halloween
An easy text with vocabulary on the last page about the American Halloween traditions.Langston Hughes I too.odt
The poem with a short introductory text and some questions to work with. I found a video on youtube where Hughes reads the poem that is referenced in the introductory text.Oral assignment a state in the USA.odt
The students would present in front of the class and listening to all the presentations would give the students a better understanding about how large, geographically and culturally diverse and interesting the USA is.Oral assignment a state in the USA simplified.odt
A simpler version of the task above.Oral presentation US company.odt
The USA has many famous companies and brands and this task is about those.Oral presentation indigenous people.odt
I gave the students different Native American tribes, Canadian First Nations as well as some other Indigenous Peoples from English-speaking countries when I used this task. It is often easy to generalise about Native Americans and Canadian First Nations and not realise that the many different peoples have very different cultures, but this task highlights those differences.Oral presentation about the USA.odt
These tasks were for grown-up students. We had worked a lot with American politics and the tasks reflect that there had just been an election, so I think these were from 2020 or possibly 2016.Poster state in the USA.odt
I handed out large A2 posters and the students planned what to write based on the questions in the task and then made posters that we hung in the classroom.Presentation American news.odt
A presentation task based on a current American news story I made for the immigrant class. I picked a few credible sources of journalism to avoid getting fake news and conspiracy theories from alt-right outlets.Presidential election group task.odt
A task I made before the 2020 election where the students would work in groups and cover one policy area for each group and find out what the candidates wanted to do within that area, make a table and present their findings to the rest of the class afterwards.Questions for Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.odt
It is a good idea to read through the questions before watching the film to know to look for these things and then work on answering these questions in writing afterwards.Questions for Crash.odt
Same as above.Questions for Fargo.odt
A small group of students that needed some extra help to pass did not want to watch a typical school film about the USA, so we watched Fargo instead. These questions were a basis for further investigations more than questions the students should already be able to answer.Repetition questions for chapter2 North America.odt
These questions relate to the book Tracks 2013.Repetition questions about the USA.odt
These are central questions relating to the USA, but you may want to edit out the question about who will enter the White House in January 2017…Repetition questions about the USA.odt
I made this for students at the health care study line.Sports in English speacking countries.odt
I made this for students at the athletic study line.Tasks about Henry Ford.odt
When I taught the technical and inustrial production study line, we worked with the industrial revolution in the UK and on industrial production in the USA and this was part of the latter. I think I found a text on a Henry Ford Museum or maybe from the Ford company that these questions and tasks were related to.Thanksgiving.odt
The American Dream grammar.odt
A grammar task related to a simple text about the American Dream.The Hate U Give Discussion.odt
Some questions for discussion after watching the film The Hate U Give.The Pursuit of Happyness questions.odt
Questions with vocabulary for the film The Pursuit of Happiness which we used as part of working with the American Dream.There is no frigate like a book task.odt
Some words to look up before or after reading with the Poem by Emily Dickinson.US Settlement and Immigration simplified.odt
My simplified version of a text in the book Stunt with questions and vocabulary.Alias Detroit and Silicon Valley.odt
This is a vocabulary for the text in Tracks 2013 in the form of squares to use to play Alias with.
Kahoots:
Quizlets:
Other
Short_presentation_of_yourself.odt
An oral presentation task about yourself. I used this with an adult class so everyone got to know each other a little and to assess the level of the students early in the year to adjust my plans according to their skills.Bad_and_good_presentations.pdf
A short presentation that hightlights the differences between a bad and a good presentation. I used this as a reminder later in the year. We ususally worked more on making good presentations before the first presentation.English_day_Billy_Elliot.odt
Tasks for an English day (fagdag) where we watched the film Billy Elliot first and then the students chose between two tasks. We used this on the HO study line, but it could probably be used on any study line.Extra_essay_tasks.odt
Extra tasks I made for a student that could not participate on the original essay writing session. One task is about New Zealand and the Maori and another task is about the student's dreams for the future. The second task is a bit on the easy side.