Category Archives: ESL

Test Results

Posted on January 18, 2020 by

Way back in December, I concluded teaching a group of students who were studying for a proficiency exam.  Some were studying for the FCE and some were studying for the CAE.  Some were a bit shaky and took both exams. … Continue reading →

Posted in class, ESL, passion, perfect moment, students, success, teaching | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Swapping Travel Stories

Posted on January 4, 2020 by

Today’s Perfect Moment is a simple one. One of my coworkers is going to Vietnam and Cambodia in the upcoming months.  He is very excited about it.  He knows that I have visited both of those countries and really enjoyed … Continue reading →

Posted in adventure, advice, airplanes, ESL, Exodus Travels, funny story, G Adventures, perfect moment, teaching, trains, travel, travel tips, travel writing, vacation, Vietnam | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

How My Day Was Like a Sandwich

Posted on December 31, 2019 by

Today’s two Perfect Moments nicely sandwich a particularly ugly part of my day. For you to fully understand, I am going to have to write about all three of them. The first Perfect Moment, or the bottom slice of bread … Continue reading →

Posted in bus, commuting, difficulties, empowerment, ESL, perfect moment, sandwich, students, teaching, Viva, York Region | 3 Comments

Misfits’ Christmas

Posted on December 17, 2019 by

The coworkers that I like and I found ourselves with a few extra moments to gab yesterday. This doesn’t happen much because our schedules are not synched together very well.  Also, since the start of the union drive and subsequent … Continue reading →

Posted in accomplishment, Christmas, co-workers, complaints, compliments, conversation, ESL, networking, perfect moment, teaching, time, work | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On the Way to Work

Posted on December 12, 2019 by

My colleagues and I have passed this store window every day for at least the past year,  Despite working as ESL teachers, not one of us has noticed the irregularity–that was only half-heartedly meant as a pun.  If they had … Continue reading →

Posted in ESL, multiculturalism, perfect moment, teaching | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Kinder Redemption

Posted on November 30, 2019 by

Long time readers to this blog might know that I have a particular disdain for Kinder Surprise eggs. The story is a good one and you should probably read it first before continuing with this blog.  Please click here. So, … Continue reading →

Posted in chocolate, ESL, gifts, perfect moment, presents, students, teaching | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

From Where I am Standing

Posted on November 21, 2019 by

My current classroom has a few drawbacks. It’s size is larger than we need, so some students are too far away.  There also aren’t enough seating spaces for the students.  I suppose this is because the room is too narrow.  … Continue reading →

Posted in adversity, ESL, perfect moment, teaching | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

When You Need a Break

Posted on November 19, 2019 by

It was a day that saw me rise from an uneven sleep that featured a few too many visits from a restless cat to be considered effective. It was a day that saw me eat the heels of the bread … Continue reading →

Posted in chocolate, ESL, kit kat, perfect moment, snacks, teaching | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A Brief Respite from the Noise

Posted on November 7, 2019 by

English as a Second Language (ESL) or English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers can be a noisy lot. We might be blowing off steam about a bad class or bad student, debating grammar points, talking about our other great … Continue reading →

Posted in ESL, perfect moment, quiet, relaxation, teaching | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Going Global

Posted on November 1, 2019 by

For most of my students Halloween isn’t really a thing where they come from. They’ve seen it in movies, but they haven’t really experienced it.  Today, some of my students made an attempt at Halloween.  They cobbled together some kinds … Continue reading →

Posted in ESL, Halloween, multiculturalism, perfect moment, sashimi, students, sushi, teaching | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment