News
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Learning English in a 1:1 book club course
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Since I have been offering a 1:1 book club course I have been pleasantly busy with the number of people who have requested a course with me. People have a variety of different reasons for taking an individual book club course, and it's also interesting what books they want to read 1:1 in English. -
Supporting the education of children on Tasso Island, Freetown, Sierra Leone, Africa
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In November 2023 I went to Sierra Leone on the west coast of Africa to visit my daughter who is working as a pharmacist in the Freetown hospitals, training pharmacists in anti-bacterial resistance as a part of a project run by Kings University Hospital Global Health Partnerships. While there, I visited Tasso Island outside Freetown, in which 5000 people live. In this community there is just one secondary school, which has no paid teachers - only local volunteers from the community. -
How to Learn English with Jane Austen
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Did you know that it is possible to learn English with Jane Austen? Some of my students have made fantastic progress in their English language skills by reading the books of perhaps Britain's greatest ever author. -
How to improve your English Language Speaking Skills
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What English language practice activities really help you to improve? Since I've been running book club school I have noticed that the activity of writing a summary is incredibly useful to recycle the language from the reading, and to identify and eradicate common errors - improving your English language speaking skills in the process. -
A week in the life of Book Club School
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Geoff Hardy-Gould describes a week in Book Club School from behind the scenes. He describes the courses he is teaching and what the students are doing to prepare for the lessons. And the reading and preparation that he is doing to provide challenging and interesting conversation practice. -
Considerations in choosing authentic novels for learning English
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Reading a book in the original language can be highly motivating and stimulating. However, it can also be a frustrating and de-motivating experience because of the language difficulty. This article looks at the issues to do with selecting authentic novels to read, and how, at Book Club School, we go about this. -
What type of reader are you?
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Why do you usually read? Do you read enough of what you like? Or do you find you are reading to get information and achieve a task? Let us know at Book Club School! We love stories, and hunt for good ones…. -
How joining a reading programme improves student achievement and attainment outcomes
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Students in the study made noticeable improvements in their reading ability and level of English.
