Sentences and Pictures for CVC -ug words

(TESOL Materials-- -ug word family)

Google: slides, pub

I used Google Gemini Storybook to create these images, and then I copied them over to the slideshow.  (Because I was using my work Google account when I created these images, I can't share the original chat.)

So, what's with all these kids zooming around on electric scooters?  Do their legs not work?  What's going on here?

File this rant under: reverse culture shock.

And probably also file it under: old man yells at cloud, but...

I first began to notice these electric scooters when I was in Vietnam.  Young people would use them to zoom from their apartment building to the gate to pick up delivery items.  I used to make sarcastic comments to my wife, like, "What's the matter with him?  Do his legs not work?"

At the time I just wrote it off as a Vietnamese thing, but since I've returned home to America, I've noticed lots of able-bodied young people zooming around on park trials on electric bikes or electric scooters.  And I can't really understand it.

I guess I can understand it from the kid's perspective.  Kids love zooming on stuff, and they don't care about things like exercise or carbon footprints.

But what are the parents thinking?  (I'm assuming in most cases the parents are the ones who paid for these things.)  Did the parents see these things in the store and think, "Oh, great!  Now my kids can get even less exercise while increasing their carbon footprint at the same time!"

I mean, we are facing an obesity crisis and an environmental crisis at the same time.  Why did we humans think it was a good idea to make it so young people can bike and scooter while using up electricity and not moving at all?

I should note I also see a fair amount of people in their 20s on electric bikes or electric scooters, and I think by the time you're in your 20s, you should really know better.  You know about carbon footprints.  You know about the value of exercise.  Use your own legs!

Addendum: I have no issue with anyone who actually has a mobility issue and uses these.  I'm just talking here about the mass adaptation of these things as a kind of general use for everyone.

Wizards of Mickey, Volume 4: Book Review

 (Book Review--Comic Books)

Started: April 10, 2026

Wizards of Mickey, Volume 4: Book Review

Related Playlists: 

Disney Comics Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x4Zvf8xylGaWgKN-gBAd2ti&si=EU1kj1Zw1BwmytOt

Graphic Novel Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x6NMoYW6CBw6Qj_cqK8DIeb

Books I Read in 2026: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7YYl7seud9ov0n6dtdHzvj&si=iMERlWtiF0Rq2-uy

Book Review Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7dao6py7ODX_PkUvrAEch7&si=EJ7CG8iO9IouNaYY

Wild Mammals Vocabulary

(TESOL Materials--Animals)

* Arlo’s Big Mammal Walk--created from this chat here (Made using Google Gemini Storybook)

* Malia’s Animal Walk--created from this chat here

* Kahoot: wild mammals

* Slideshow: slides, pub (I used this slideshow to present the vocabulary, and also to do a board race.  I also print them out and use them as materials for quiz quiz trade.  The last 4 slides are for a sorting activity.)

* Lesson plan for describing animals: docs, pub

* Describing Mammals slideshow: slides, pub

* Describing mammal cards: docs, pub (for quiz quiz trade.)

* grab the card: docs, pub

* quizlet: Describing Animals

[Note: This vocabulary is based on the vocabulary from pages 128 and 129 of Oxford Picture Dictionary for the Content Areas.  But I believe this material could also be used independently for any lesson on animal vocabulary, so I'm posting it here.]

Lesson Aims:

Content Objectives: Students will be able to identify the names of common mammals, and use vocabulary to describe the characteristics of these mammals with support

Language Objectives: Students will be able to describe mammal characteristics in a written form from a scaffolded device.

Students will be able to orally describe mammals using a scaffold

Students will have the opportunity to listen to descriptions and evaluate their understanding of the description by attempting to name the mammal described.

Stage Name	Stage Aim	Description	timing
Warm-up/review	To re-activate knowledge learned in prior knowledge	Set-up: Teacher puts students into pairs.  Teacher holds up worksheet:  “With your partner, write the names under the animal.”  Teacher passes out worksheet. Task: Students work in pairs to write the names under the animals.  Teacher monitors and gives guidance as needed. Feedback: Students open up the textbook to page 128 to check answers	5 min
Model Text	For students to process the model text for meaning	Set up: Teacher passes out whiteboard and markers.  “This is a game.  Read the words, and guess the animals.”  Students stay with the same partner as previously. Task: Teacher shows descriptions of animals on the slides, and reads the description with the students.  Students write the name of the animal on the whiteboards. Feedback: Feedback on correct answers is given after each question.	5 min
Noticing Useful Language:	For students to notice the useful language in the model text	Set-up: Teacher shows the slide with some of the useful language blanked out.  “Talk to a partner.  What words are missing?” Task: Students talk with a partner to try to identify the key words. Feedback: Teacher calls on students individually to give answers.  Answers are confirmed on the slideshow.	5 min
Controlled Practice	For students to practice the target language in a controlled form.	Set-up: Teacher “Look at the slides.  What words can go into the blanks?”  Teacher gives out worksheets to students. Task: Students discuss with a partner and decide what missing words can go in the blanks. Feedback: Teacher nominates individual students.  Answers are confirmed on the slideshow.	5 min
Semi-Controlled Practice	For students to practice using the target language in a longer utterance a less-controlled form	Stage 1: Set-up: Teacher holds up an example of a worksheet.  “Look at the animal.  Write the information in the blanks.  Work alone.” Task: Students write in the information about the animal. Feedback: Teacher monitors task,and gives individual feedback as needed. Stage 2: Set-up: “We’re going to play quiz-quiz trade.  Can someone help me demonstrate?”  (Demonstrate with a student.  Students are already familiar with this game, so this is a reminder.) Instruction Checking Questions: Do you say the name of the animal?  What do you say?  If your partner needs help, what can you do?” Task: Students play quiz quiz trade.  Teacher monitors and assists as needed. Feedback: Teacher does on the spot error correction as needed.  Any persistent or complex errors are dealt with in all class feedback after the task.	15 min
Freer Practice (time allowing)	For students to practice the target language in a longer utterance in a freer form	Set-up: Students are already familiar with this game.  Get out the cards, and elicit from students how to play the game.  Assist students in explaining if necessary.  Put students in groups of 3. Task: Students describe cards.  Other students grab the card. Feedback: Time allowing, delayed feedback on error correction	15 min

Knapp Valley Forest, Grand Rapids Township (Early Spring)

(Travelogues--West Michigan)

Knapp Valley Forest, Grand Rapids Township (Early Spring)

Address: 4255 Knapp Valley Dr NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49525

Related Playlists:

Travelogues Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x71JnPJ1gs_uaswSALX-7V9

West Michigan Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x4D-0HPmovcbB6cCqlVVGEL&si=IEFmZ3UMgJxI0F4F

Kent County Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x5EOMa9ZWDBtdpQFwtlk_ev&si=t8952PnDfrJQTvBY

Grand Rapids Township Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x79Aox17VLCjtSAHVSSncgF&si=9rmTlmtg1kEeaqO3

People and Places at School 2

(TESOL Materials--School Vocabulary)

* Lesson plan: docs, pub

* Slideshow: slides, pub  (This slideshow was created using Gemini Storybook, but because I was having issues with my personal Gemini account at the time I created this, I created this off of my school account.  I can't share the link to the Gemini storybook on my school account, but I copied and pasted the storybook onto this slideshow.)

* 2nd Storybook--created from this chat here

* Coloring sheet: docs, pub

* 2nd Coloring sheet: docs, pub

* word search: drive--answers

[Note: These are all materials that I used to supplement the lesson p.36-37 The School from Oxford Picture Dictionary Content Areas for Kids, and the specific choice of vocabulary in the storybook and other materials is influenced by that lesson.   But I believe this material could also be used independently for any lesson on school vocabulary, so I'm posting it here.]

Lead-in: Show students a picture of the school on slideshow.  Ask them what people at the school they know.

Model text: Read story on slideshow

Vocabulary: drill words on slideshow

p.36-37: look at vocabulary

Workbook p.36

Time allowing: coloring sheet

If-- by Rudyard Kipling: Poem

(TESOL Worksheets--Poems ESL Listening)

Transcript: docs, pub
Video: HERE

If-- by Rudyard Kipling: poem

Video: https://youtu.be/LuLF4QlA3Po

If you can keep your head when all about you

    Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

    But make allowance for their doubting too:

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

    Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or being hated don't give way to hating,

    And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;

    If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim,

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

    And treat those two impostors just the same:

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken

    Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,

    And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

    And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

    ⁠And never breathe a word about your loss:

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

    To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

    ⁠Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

    Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

    If all men count with you, but none too much:

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

    With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

    ⁠And—which is more—you'll be a Man, my son!

Related Playlists: Poems ESL Listening Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7ReDXIOlVgC1Ci0mGdDWqd ESL Listening Exercises Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7xq-zLjulU2DRTjg2TNmAx Rudyard Kipling Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x7cFPBSbyoFDZF_J5rOX4p6&si=d2Xk1ahKTBYKTlm_ https://sites.google.com/view/reading-and-listening-practice

Cascade Peace Park, Cascade Township (Early Spring)

(Travelogues--West Michigan)

Cascade Peace Park, Cascade Township (Early Spring)

Address: 8900 Grand River Dr SE, Ada, MI 49301

Related Playlists:

Travelogues Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x71JnPJ1gs_uaswSALX-7V9

West Michigan Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x4D-0HPmovcbB6cCqlVVGEL&si=IEFmZ3UMgJxI0F4F

Kent County Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x5EOMa9ZWDBtdpQFwtlk_ev&si=t8952PnDfrJQTvBY

Cascade Township Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOY-0V_l_9x4WoaXKD7r7tquq2KUQuBjn&si=Hy0GBuPXCEuoZCJE

Using Coloring Sheets for Young Learners: Vocabulary

(TESOL Ideas--Any Vocabulary Set)

If you follow this blog regularly, you have probably noticed that recently I've been including a lot of coloring sheets with my lessons.  (See, for example, my lessons for Oxford Picture Dictionary Content Areas for Kids.)  So I thought I should make a post outlining my thinking about using coloring sheets in class.

In one of the schools I taught at in Vietnam, it was normal for teachers teaching young children to spend about 20 minutes out of a 2 hour lesson on coloring activities.  However, even though this practice was widespread, it was also controversial.  Many of the managers disapproved of it, and it was tolerated more than it was encouraged.

The reason that this practice was disapproved of was because it didn't actually practice language, and was thought to not be helpful in language acquisition.

The reason that it was so widespread was (I assume) because it was a good activity to calm the children down.  It was also thought that 2 hours was too long to do language drills with very young children, and that the act of coloring added in a nice change of pace.  The practice of coloring, especially learning to color within the lines, was thought to add with the children's cognitive development and motor skills, even if it did not relate to language learning directly.

But back in those days (2015-2020), it was before AI, so the coloring sheets were just random coloring sheets that could be found in the teacher's resource room or off of the Internet.  Now, with AI, it is possible to create coloring sheets that are tailored exactly to vocabulary words that the students are learning.

I've been using Google Gemini myself for this, and have generally had good luck with it--once I learned to modify the prompt appropriately.  I've discovered that sometimes if you just ask Google Gemini to make a coloring sheet, it will produce something with very intricate and small designs that aren't suitable for kindergarteners coloring with big crayons.  So I've learned to add in the following instructions in my prompt:

Because Kindergartners are still learning how to color, the coloring sheet should not have any small objects, but big pictures of everything

I've also learned that Google Gemini will occasionally try to include words or captions in the coloring sheet.  I'm not opposed to text per se, but the problem is that AI seems to have a problem with accurate spelling when it's generating images.  (AI is able to produce accurate spelling when it's generating texts, but not generating images.  I assume this is a glitch that will eventually be worked out in future generations of AI, but for now this is the way it works.  So I will often add in this additional instruction:

Do not include any words or names on the coloring sheet. 

 The standard prompt that I use for Google Gemini then is this:

Make a coloring sheet for kindergartners for ________. It should include these images: _______________. Do not include any words or names on the coloring sheet. Because Kindergartners are still learning how to color, the coloring sheet should not have any small objects, but big pictures of everything.

For an example of a recent time when I used this prompt, see this chat here.

I generally have good luck with this prompt, although it's obviously not 100% effective.  (Using AI is always somewhat touch and go).  

As to why and how I use coloring sheets in my lesson, here are my uses so far:

* In cases where I'm unsure about the timing of the lesson, I will sometimes print out coloring sheets just as an optional final activity, just to give myself that additional safety cushion.  (As all teachers know, there's nothing worse than running out of activities with 10 minutes in the lesson left to go.)

* When working with young children in small groups, I will discuss the coloring sheet with them as they color.   (e.g. "What color do you want to color the tomato?" or "I see that you're coloring the dog green.")

* There are some young children who are less disruptive during the lesson if they have something to do with their hands.  I find that coloring helps to keep them occupied while I practice the vocabulary with them.  (Although the obvious disadvantage of this is that it means I only have half of their attention when I'm presenting the vocabulary to them.)

* One of my mentors recently suggested to me that the coloring activity could easily be made more language focused if I made it into an activity in which the young learners listened to my instructions, and colored accordingly.  (E.g. "Look at this.  What is this?" (It's an apple.)  "Let's color the apple red.  Can you find your red crayon?" etc.)

Started: The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald read by Tamaryn Payne. Audiobook

This is an audiobook.  It is also a reread.  I originally reviewed this book on March 9, 2006.  

[I don't know if anyone cares about this but me, but this breaks the rules I set out for myself in this post, which is two audiobooks for every podcast.  This is now my 3rd consecutive audiobook, but I wanted to revisit this book sooner rather than later, because I am in the process of revising some of my chapters on goblins in my story, and I wanted to go back and refresh my mind on the traditional literary portrayal of goblins.]