& Effective Professional Development
Practical and powerful world language professional development for all world language educators.
Professional development that can easily and immediately be implemented into any curriculum and world language classroom.
Professional development can also be tailored to focus on different areas. And, there are different time formats available - half-day, full-day, and workshops. There are also opportunities to train in CI/ADI and TPRS.
Popular Sessions:
- From Input to Output: Practical Writing Strategies for any Classroom
- Let's Chat: Connecting your Class in the Target Language
- Get Creative with Reading: Keep Readings and Stories Fresh & Engaging
- Q-D-P: Using Questioning, Details & Personalization to Complement Stories and Readings
- Engaging Students through Reading
- CI and Circling: Staying in the target language
- Entry Points into Culture: Using Texts and Readings to Incorporate Culture
- Expanding and Varying “The Special Person” Interview
- Excellent Analog Activities in a Digital World
Strategies and activities that can be readily applied to all language instruction, no matter what language you teach - and no matter what curriculum you use!
These strategies effectively support all modes of communication - presentational, interpretive, and interpersonal!
No new materials or curriculum is necessary. No "starting over" or excessively creating and re-writing lesson plans! You use the strategies and activities how and when you see fit.
We grow best when we share and learn from each other!
Do you have a presentation or idea that you would like to share with others?
There are opportunities for you to present and share with your colleagues during the professional development - and beyond.
Find out more how Eric can help with your world language professional development needs:
Testimonials
Available at Teacher's Discovery: Grafted Writing
Grafted Writing is a method that uses comprehensible input to create student output. It employs various activities centered on authentic texts or texts in the target language to improve students' writing skills while promoting reading comprehension, speaking skills, and self-expression.
Available both as download or print book.
Available at TPRSBooks.com: The “New” Series
- neue Schule, neue Freunde
- neue Konversationen, neue Komplikationen
- neue Reise, neue Abenteuer
Series also available in French and Spanish through TPRSBooks.com
Spanish version available: here
- audio book and teacher guide available: here
French versions available: here
The series can be effectively implemented with various teaching styles, including traditional, communicative, thematic, TPRS, CI/ADI, etc. It is also designed to help facilitate read-alouds, sustained silent readings, student acting, personalization, interaction, and more.
There are also two sections at the end of each book:
- One section is general comprehension questions over the chapters.
- The other section is individualized questions designed to give students more practice (with the structures and vocabulary) by allowing the student to engage and respond in a personalized manner. This section is easily expandable and lends itself well for PQA sessions, class discussions, and personalization in the classroom.
Available on Amazon: nicht alltägliche Geschichten
Eating at a restaurant. Playing on your phone. Going to school. Worrying about grades. Being bored. Day dreaming. Trying to forget a bad week. And a little lie here and there. Sounds rather typical – but then again, the everyday can take unexpected turns.
In this collection of short stories things are not always as they seem. Going to school has a different perspective. Events of today may not be as different as events of the past. A winter storm is more than a winter storm. A house in the countryside is not as idyllic as once thought. A legend is more than folklore. The exciting becomes the upsetting. And more!
nicht alltägliche Geschichten is a collection of short stories. They can be read for enjoyment or be utilized in the classroom. In the classroom, these stories can be used not only as of the focus of a lesson but also to complement and expand existing readings, FVR/SSR libraries, and a variety of additional activities. These stories are flexible and adaptable and can be implemented at various levels of instruction. The stories are also written to help elicit reactions and responses. In addition, individual stories and/or the setting of some stories incorporate historical and cultural elements.
Level 1-4
Unique Words: 900
Total Words: 7,150
Tense(s): present, past
Glossary: Yes
NOTES:
Audio Files: You can find free audio files of each of the stories read aloud in German by Cathleen Weigelt-Ferguson. They are available for free here:
nicht alltägliche Geschichten - Free Audio Files
Teacher’s Guide & Activities available for this title: Examples are predominately in English, and the activities can be used for other texts and languages.
No purchase necessary; all language teachers may request a copy.
Please contact me to request this guide. Thank you!
Available on Amazon: Die Suche nach ...
“The flashlight flickers. Eva hits the flashlight with her hand. The flashlight flickers once more. She hits the flashlight again with her hand. Nothing. The flashlight is out. Eva hits the flashlight one more time. Again nothing. Only absolute darkness.”
Join Eva and Peter as they travel across Eastern Europe searching for .... With unexpected twists and turns and a chance meeting with a stranger, Eva and Peter quickly find out that there is more to their adventure than they initially thought.
Die Suche nach ... is an engaging story based on real historical events. It can be read for personal enjoyment or be utilized in the classroom for more advanced language learners. This book can be used not only as the focus of a lesson but also to complement and expand further lessons, discussions, activities, and FVR/SSR libraries.
Level 3/4
Unique Words: 600
Total Words: 8,500
Tense(s): present, past
Glossary: Yes
NOTE: Teacher’s Guide & Activities available for this title: The guide is specific for this German title.
No purchase necessary; all language teachers may request a copy.
Please contact me to request this guide. Thank you!
Available on Amazon: Die Wahrheit über ...
Young Wilhelm always enjoyed walking home on the idyllic path next to the lake in his little, quiet Bavarian town of Berg. However, one day, on his way home, he saw something no one was supposed to witness; the murder of King Ludwig II. As he witnesses the men, the chaos, and the shots fired, he is spotted. The king's assassins pursue him. No one can know the truth. Wilhelm must be found and dealt with. Join Wilhelm in this historical thriller of political cover-ups and lies as he struggles to avoid being caught and how he attempts to set the record straight. The truth must be told.
This book can be read for personal enjoyment or be utilized in the classroom for more advanced language learners.
Level 3/4
Unique Words: 600
Total Words: 6,300
Tense(s): present, past
Glossary: Yes
NOTE: Teacher’s Guide & Activities available for this title: This guide is specific for this German title.
No purchase necessary; all language teachers may request a copy.
Please contact me to request this guide. Thank you!
Both the German and Spanish versions are available at Voces Unplugged:
Henri meets his cousin, Karla, at a café. After she leaves, Henri finds a flash drive on the floor under the table. Thinking it belongs to Karla, he takes it and returns it to her. Karla soon discovers that the flash drive does not belong to her. She also discovers an encrypted document on the flash drive. After hacking the document, Karla knows that she and Henri have a problem. What she doesn’t know is there is a man following them - a man who is determined to get that flash drive back.
Level 1
Total Words: 2,700
Unique Words: 100
Glossary: Yes
Comprehension Questions: Yes
Illustrations: Yes
Color: Yes
Both the German and Spanish versions are available at Voces Unplugged:
Das nächste Dokument / El documento siguiente
Viktor runs into the café. He sees Henri and rushes over to him. He asks Henri if he has seen Karla. Henri tells Viktor that she is at work, but Viktor tells him that Karla never made it. They attempt to contact her, but receive no answer. Worried, Viktor explains to Henri that Karla could be in danger. As they set out to find her, they receive a cryptic email from Karla and a threatening text from her phone. However, they soon find out that someone has Karla’s phone and is following her. Viktor and Henri also know they must find Karla - before it is too late.
(This book recycles the 100 unique words used in the first book - Das Dokument)
Edutopia - George Lucas Educational Foundation
Exploring Before Explaining in World Languages: Allowing students to notice patterns and draw on their experiences prior to introducing new concepts can boost their learning.
https://www.edutopia.org/article/using-patterns-teach-world-languages
Patrick Brown, Eric Richards
August 9, 2023
This article introduces the concept of “explore-before-explain” teaching in world language classrooms, aiming to redefine the roles of teachers and students, enhance student agency, and address the complex standards set by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). The method focuses on engaging students in a process of meaningful exploration and understanding.
Education Week
'Sense Making'
Patrick Brown, Eric Richards
April 26th, 2023
In this article, we explain why a sense making approach to instruction is so beneficial for students. All students come to school as knowers even before being taught anything and come to our classes with unique assets such as their everyday experiences interacting with the natural world, curiosities, interests, cultures, and abilities. We can leverage these assets to understand their incoming ideas better and use them to create everyday classroom that engage students.
The Language Educator - ACTFL
Fostering the Brilliance of World Language Students Through Explore-Before-Explain
https://www.actfl.org/publications/the-language-educator
Eric Richards, Patrick Brown
April 2024
We highlight our approach, explore-before-explain teaching. It is designed to empower educators in tackling the challenges of preparing students for the 21st century head-on. By honing in on the essential components of learning, we strive to cultivate an educational experience that is not only equitable and robust but also truly unforgettable. We are also poised to innovate and iterate, crafting lessons that resonate deeply with our students. Through this instructional design journey, we're fostering the skills necessary to create culturally rich and inclusive classroom environments, accessible to each and every learner.
Voces Community Blog
What is Comprehensible Input? By: Eric Richards
https://www.vocesdigital.com/blog.php?id=34
In this blog post, I help answer questions pertaining to Comprehensible Input (CI) and help clarify conceptions of what CI is. I address the following questions:
- What is Comprehensible Input?
- What are the key principles of CI?
- How is CI effective in language acquisition? (What are the benefits?)
- How do you incorporate CI into language acquisition?
