Beyond Words

  Are they any good? Can you really become fluent using just an app? What are the best features of these apps? These apps are very easy to use, most of them offer a free service, and they all have courses for complete beginners. The exercises are easy to understand and they are all based on a simple formula to help you memorise words. Some are supported by visuals, which make understanding easier; some instead, are supported by translation in English. Do they offer a sense of achievement? Most of them have cute ways to celebrate completion of activities or levels: for example a growing plant in a pot or a little character celebrating your new level. Do these gimmicks work? Actually, they do! Being celebrated for completing a level is very nice and it energises you, you feel you want to do more. Positive reinforcement is very powerful.   What are their common pitfalls? The most common pitfalls, in the free versions, are linked to gaps in grammar clarificat...

  8 classroom activities to teach your students how to approach challenge and pressure with positivity In this article I will explain how these 8 simple activities, if included in your lessons, can help your students develop long-term strategies to cope with challenge and pressure. Let’s see how we can develop positivity and a proactive approach to pressure in our students.   The past 2 years forced educators to look further afield for different tools to engage and support students. I took inspiration from Terry Orlick’s work “In Pursuit of Excellence”: Terry Orlick is an internationally acclaimed sport psychologist, who helped hundreds of Olympic and professional athletes maximise their performances and achieve their goals. Why is mindset for learning important? Mental skills help students when facing challenges like learning new things or performing under pressure during an exam. All students are required to learn a set of knowledge during their studies; including ...