Check out Yuto's awesome 'after reading' Glog

I was scratching my head a bit about how to make Captain Cook's discovery of Australia come to life
for young Yuto. I mean, getting your head around a three-year sailing voyage from 250-odd years ago when you are only 9 is a biggy! We really enjoyed reading about Captain Cook's three Pacific Voyages, and finding places on Google Earth that he had been to along the way.

We talked about what Cook knew before he bumped into Australia...and what we know now. Then we made a hit list of things we'd like to know, about modern Australia. Yuto came back to next class with several sheets of A4 with notes about the weather, sports, famous people and just how many kangaroos!

Please follow the link to experience all of his research presented as a multimedia tour-de-force, as a Glog. This did take us a couple of lessons to cobble together - but we learned a lot in the process, valuable tricks & skills that sadly Japanese kids rarely get shown in schools. Yuto made all the editing decisions, produced all the content and chose the video! Think you'll agree it's an outstanding bit of work - we'd love to hear your comments!

http://lunajim.edu.glogster.com/yutos-voyage-of-discovery-australia/

And please come back, as we have a plan for the Third Pacific Voyage in the New Year!

After reading a graded reader; multimedia project & presentation.

Nanako recently read a really interesting book about another young girl called Heidi, who grew up in the Swiss Alps. She really liked the book, and we had a lot to talk about - living in the country or the city, overcoming homesickness & disability, being able to read...

We also talked about mountains & in the back of the book did a bit of a project on Mount Fuji - being Japanese this was a bit easy :) So we had a think about another mountain from a list that we knew nothing about & which would be interesting to research. She chose Mount Ararat, and this is what she achieved using Glogster.

http://lunajim.edu.glogster.com/mount-ararat-with-nanako/

Unfortunately, I can't find a way to embed this great creation into the blog (if anyone can tell me how to do that I'd be supremely grateful!), so please pop over to Glog country and check out her excellent research & creativity. Please feel free to leave your comments as well (hint!)

Daisuke recently joined us - here's his self-intro

February review - in pictures

Fotobabbling along a Luna!

Check out our top of the pops this week!



Above, very early progress in Everybody Up (Starter) with 4 & 5 year olds.

Below, a curtain call for two students quitting to go to a juku - they have to 'learn' a different kind of English to be 'successful' in school tests. I have ranted and raved about this insanity before, but it still makes my toes curl. Both these lads started on the carpet at Luna in pre-literacy classes and are now on the cusp...over which I doubt they will clamber with katakana-isation, translation, death by grammar, insensible reading tracts etc. Goat? Has been got. So, one for the archive very soon, from English Time 4.

The sweetest voices singing a thank you tune!

I absolutely love the singing in this little photo! I am very biased, but it's a heart-melter :) Can't think of a better way to finish off the week!

Can you cha-cha-cha in English?!

Great way to start the New Year with our first class showing off tonight!

I haven't taught these guys for a couple of years, and very nice to catch up with them again and see how much progress they are making...why don't you prove it, by the way, and do really well in YLE Starters this year? Think you'd do very well...



What is your favourite song/chant with YLEs? This is from English Time 2 (OUP), by the way...

Strange story lines #2: Takuro's shake

Can you follow Takuro's path through the team-created story generator? Do you like the ending? Add your own favourite ending as a comment!

Strange storylines #1: Kanro's roll of the dice

Check out Kanro's end-product from the team story building class last week. Like?
We really enjoy using Fotobabble for these 'hurry up & tell your story' jobs!

Pronunciation race: using Fotobabble to speed things up!

My savvy YLs know that if the recording app is on, they don't have much time to do whatever it is they're going to do next! How's that for a motivational tool?

We'd already had a go at this in another format, but I was not so happy with the way they were 'stretching' sounds out (that internal 'kana metronome' I think kids pick up in Japan...and one that is reinforced in schools with rote repititions & class chants.) 



Alright, so the pronunciation might have suffered a bit, but they got all the words out quickly, in the right order, and got their answers in as well! (And, by the way, solved a problem one learner was having in adding an "a" before the colour word).

Like it? I really recommend giving #Fotobabble a go!
Check out our gallery at http://www.fotobabble.com/l/LunaJim

Slideshow on the fly - Animoto via iPhone

My class needed some extra practice with the dreaded drilling; they really do not produce any 'extended' language unless I use a taser. No, we don't have one, but...

When we used a teacher's book resource lately we had an absentee, so I joined and made one myself (OK! I like a quick colouring in as well!). This week the retrieval system the children use = half a dozen knackered, ripped, squashed, battered and lost artifacts. Hmm.

Have already made the flashcards available on Quizlet (click here)for the unit we are doing (but I don't think the mums bother, which is a pity - especially as they ask vaguely "how come there does not appear to be a great deal of progress being made"). So, in between classes I quickly photographed the surviving artwork on my iPhone, and then opened up the (new) Animoto app. Imported the pictures, changed the muzak, added a title & left it to cook. Whole process took less than 5 minutes (the colouring took longer!) & I had a nice 'job done' email by the end of my next lesson.




Now the free version of Animoto only gives you 30 seconds, and a limited choice of music. For more flexibility I like Stupeflix, and am happy with the paid up version as good value for money. For this,very much on the fly, a free 30 second cobble-job better than a poke in the eye I say.

What are your experiences with making slideshows in a hurry?

A tool I found during the weekend and can even do on my iPhone (I think - haven't tried yet).

 What do you think of it so far? Worth $5 a month?

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Comments please!

I wanna hold your hand

Maria's mis-spelt holiday

Carla Crocodile goes to see the King - read along with Jim

I made this in class!

Good job Yuu!