This post is the first in a series about language learning goals. Stay tuned for a Learner Edition, a Latin Edition, and maybe a Super-Practical Edition. My goals as a language teacher are simple–at least to state: Help each student grow in proficiency as much as is reasonable, given total time and frequency of interaction. Inspire […]
A new, gentle intro to “non-targeted CI”
Responding to requests from Stephen Krashen and others, I wrote a report last fall on my students’ and my experiences with what he calls “non-targeted comprehensible input,” which I sometimes call “interest-targeting input.” The article, “Non-Targeted Comprehensible Input: How it Works for My Students and Me,” appeared in the latest issue of The International Journal of […]
Neurodiversity in Your Classroom
In reflections published every Monday, colleagues and I at The Inclusive Latin Classroom are exploring ways of ensuring that our classes serve as many students as possible, as well as possible. Though some of our reflections refer to Latin classes in particular, most apply to courses in any language. This is the case for my contribution from […]
Language Quirks and Perks
What are some unique or quirky things about learning or teaching the language you learn or teach? I’m not talking so much about things like “the language has seven conjugations” or “there’s no past tense”–though those things are fun, too–as about extra-linguistic things like “I can’t find many other people learning the language” or “For some reason, […]
“The Disciplined Pursuit of Less”
My father likes to give people self-improvement books, and he’s discerning enough that they tend to be worth reading. The latest is Greg McKeown’s Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less. It’s about not just simplifying and de-cluttering, but developing both the skill and the constant habit of identifying and pursuing what is important, which, McKeown says, […]
Top Five Posts of 2016
I’ve enjoyed seeing other bloggers catalogue their top posts of the year. Here are the five posts on indwellinglanguage.com that generated the most engagement in 2016. There’s lots of variety–activities, reflections, theory, and practice. I hope you (re)find something useful! Quirky Scripts–an Easy Way to Teach “Hard” Language A low-prep activity that keeps on giving […]
1 Trip, 3 Tips (aka Lessons from Holland)
No, I haven’t been in Holland ever since my last post almost three months ago–the longest break, by far, in the youngish life of this blog. But my return from a week in the Netherlands gives me a good way to halt the hiatus. (If you’re curious about actual reasons why this blog has been so […]
The Focused Filler, a Simple Language Learning Habit
This is a simple refinement of my Tricks and Triggers for Opportunistic Language Learning. Those are great, but even they call for some advance planning to be of optimal use. As the academic year has begun and projects have been rolling in, I’ve needed to make my opportunistic language learning even simpler and more automatic. […]
Riding the White Elephant toward Proficiency Palace
In December 2005 I came the closest I’ve ever come to owning a jewel-encrusted dagger. This happened during a game of White Elephant, convincing me forever of that game’s potential for good. More recently, I’ve become convinced of the game’s power for a specific type of good: the acquisition of a language. I like it all the more […]
What I Learned from My Worst Evaluation Ever
I was sitting at the Detroit Tigers’ second August home game and had just taken this picture when I did something I’m learning not to do in the evening or at baseball games: I checked my email. In it I found the anonymous evaluations from a recent set of presentations. Among these was a first for me: a […]