2020 Reading List

(Year End Book Awards)

1. The Golden Fleece by Robert Graves, January 28, 2020
2. Designing Language Courses: A Guide for Teachers by Kathleen Graves , April 2, 2020
3. Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny , April 11, 2020
4. Learning One-to-One by Ingrid Wisniewska, June 3, 2020
5. Being Wagner: The Triumph of the Will by Simon Callow June 26, 2020
6. The Guns of Avalon (The Chronicles of Amber #2) by Roger Zelazny, July 19, 2020
7. Age of Myth by Michael J. Sullivan August 17, 2020

8. Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman September 18, 2020
9. Tales of Troy and Greece by Andrew Lang November 8, 2020
10. Frozen (Heart of Dread #1) by Melissa de la Cruz and Michael Johnston December 1, 2020
11. Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien December 12, 2020

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH is a re-read, but I've decided to now count re-reads in my end of year wrap up.  
I also finished Chomsky's Universal Grammar: An Introduction by V.J. Cook and Mark Newson on December 15, but haven't yet written a review for it, and I've always sorted out my end of year reading list by the date of the published review.  (I'm planning on re-reading much of Chomsky's Universal Grammar anyway before I attempt to write up a review.)

So, 11 books this year.  Not great, but it's not even my worst year.  (In 2019 and 2016 I only knocked out 6 books).  

In 2014, I knocked out 41 books, but now that parenthood is here, I fear those days are long gone.

2020 has been an interesting year.  We spent a few weeks on lock down here in Vietnam, during which I had a lot of time at home, but didn't have a lot of time to myself. We had a toddler running around the apartment which required constant attention.  (I occasional would fantasize about how much reading I would have gotten done if that lockdown had happened before I was a parent.  But then again, it's not by any means assured that I would have used that time productively.  It might well have been sucked up by my television/Youtube addiction.)

But from August, I started a new job (while staying on part time at the old job) and then was juggling working overtime with taking care of the toddler at home.  I've never been so busy in my life as I've been these past few months, and it was hard to find time to read.
Not only to find the time to read, but also to find the time to write up the reviews!  The last four reviews on this year's list ( Norse Mythology, Tales of Troy and Greece, Frozen (Heart of Dread #1) and Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH ) were all reviews that I sacrificed some sleep in order to write, since I didn't have any time to myself until after the toddler went to bed.  And the video reviews filmed for Tales of Troy and Greece and Frozen were both videos that I filmed when I was very sleepy, and I fear that this probably showed in the videos--especially for Frozen.  
I suppose if I had any sense, I would have stopped these reviews a long time ago.  But it's something that I value, and so I'm going to keep soldiering on. (I've decided to cut out all the other frivolous blogging I do, but I want to keep the reviews going.)

So, those are my excuses.  
That being said, this year once again I wasted tons of time on Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter.  I could possibly get a few more books knocked off if I stopped wasting so much time on the Internet.  That's my goal for this year.

I've changed the title of this post to "2020 Reading List" whether than "2020 Book Awards"--which it had been every previous year.  Making a big deal of awarding the best and worst books of the year made a lot more sense when I was reading 41 books in a year (and it was something I had stolen from Peter Bratt anyway.)

But, even though I've decided to no longer headline this post with the word "awards", I'll still go through the motions anyway.

Best Fiction
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman 

It's fiction in the obvious sense that none of this stuff ever happened.  But it's partly non-fiction in the sociological sense--the sense you get throughout the book that you are not just enjoying some stories, but that you are also learning about a culture's mythology and belief system.  And I think that sense probably helped to increase my enjoyment.  "I'm not just reading a bunch of silly stories, I'm learning stuff! Isn't this cool!"  But regardless, this was the book I enjoyed the most this year by far.

Worst Fiction
Frozen (Heart of Dread #1) by Melissa de la Cruz and Michael Johnston December 

I don't want to criticize this book too much, because it's largely my fault for reading it.  (What was I thinking picking this off the shelves?)  But, yeah, when it comes to a worst book, this is the worst book.

Best Non-Fiction

Being Wagner: The Triumph of the Will by Simon Callow 

So, this one wins by default.  It's the only non-fiction I read all year.  (Not counting books I read for professional development, which I categorize separately).  But it was a fun little read, so it may have won out regardless.  It wasn't an overly serious or academic book, but just perfect for someone who likes to just dabble in history--a.k.a. me.

Best Book For Professional Development

Designing Language Courses: A Guide for Teachers by Kathleen Graves

I don't know if I'd go as far as to say that I enjoyed this book (it was for professional development after all), but I certainly found it very readable, and I appreciated the way the book illustrated it's informational content by integrating everything into the personal stories of teachers.  It helped me a lot to absorb the information.

Video Version of this list HERE and embedded below:

For all the video reviews of 2020, see HERE: 

Abandoned Books 2020
[Note: Usually a book has to sit unread on my shelves for quite some time before I admit to myself that I've abandoned it.  Such is the case with all of these.  I didn't actually read any of these books in 2020--they're all books that I stopped reading the previous year (or previous years).  But this is the year that I finally got around to admitting I abandoned them.]

Assessing Young Language Learners by Penny McKay ,
Children Learning English by Jayne Moon ,
Giết Con Chim Nhại bởi Harper Lee (HUỲNH KIM OANH & PHẠM VIÊM PHƯƠNG dịch) ,

Learning Teaching by Jim Scrivener (Re-reading) , [Note: I did actually read and finish this book back in 2013, so I'm only abandoning my re-reading of it.]
Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics by Jack C. Richards and Richard Schmidt (Third Edition) ,

Practical English Usage by Michael Swan (Third Edition) ,
The Complete Stories of Oz by L. Frank Baum, [Note: I still actually plan to read all these stories one day, but I'm going to try to read and review them individually in the future instead of reading the whole book all at once.  So I'm not abandoning these stories, just abandoning the idea of reviewing them as a complete whole.]
Vietnamese Stories for Language Learners by Tri C. Tran and Tram Le,
Wheelock's Latin by Frederic M. Wheelock,

Captain Sir Richard Francis Burton by Edward Rice: Book Review (Scripted)

Video version of an old post (as I explained about HERE)
For the original post, see:
http://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2009/11/captain-sir-richard-francis-burton-by.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_the_Triple_Alliance

Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris: Book Review (Scripted)

Video version of an old post (as I explained about HERE)
For the original post, see:
http://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2010/01/me-talk-pretty-one-day-by-david-sedaris.html

Q: Skills for Success: Listening and Speaking 5: Vocabulary Dice Review Units 1-5

(Supplementary Materials for Specific Textbooks--Q: Skills for Success: Listening and Speaking 5)

Slideshow: slides, pub--Play using the rules for Vocabulary Dice

Religulous: Movie Review (Scripted)

Video version of an old post (as I explained about HERE)
For the original post, see:
http://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2009/12/religulous.html

Vocabulary Dice

(TESOL Ideas--Any Vocabulary Set)

This is an idea I recently picked up from my new job.  The students are given a vocabulary word and then someone rolls the dice.  (For the purposes of this game, assume that "dice" is both the singular and the plural form.  I know only one "die" is actually rolled, but the game is called vocabulary "dice".)
The students must then write down the correct answer, but the answer will depend on what number comes up on the dice.  The game works best as a competition among teams--e.g. the first team to write the answer gets the point.

1 - definition, 

2 - write a sentence, 

3 - synonym, 

4 - antonym, 

5 - different word form, 

6 - collocation

Example of this game is here:

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince: Movie Review (Scripted)

Video version of an old post (as I explained about HERE)
For the original post, see:
http://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2009/12/harry-potter-and-half-blood-prince.html

Paying Attention During Feedback: Good and Bad Examples

(TESOL Worksheets--Classroom Management)
Google: slides, pub
I made this slideshow for a class of students who were habitually not paying attention during feedback.  We look at the slides together, and then we talk about why Classroom 1 is better than Classroom 2.

Star Trek (2009): Movie Review (Scripted)

Video version of an old post (as I explained about HERE)
For the original post, see:
http://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2009/11/star-trek-2009.html

Frost / Nixon: Movie Review (Scripted)

Video version of an old post (as I explained about HERE)
For the original post, see:
http://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2009/11/frost-nixon.html

W.: Movie Review (Scripted)

Video version of an old post (as I explained about HERE)
For the original post, see:
http://joelswagman.blogspot.com/2009/09/w.html

Impact 3 Unit 2 p.26-28 Reading and New Vocabulary

(Supplementary Materials for Specific Textbooks--Impact 3)

Google Drive Folder HERE
Slideshow: slides, pub
Worksheet: docs, pub

Crossword: drive, Crossword Answers: drive--Made with Crossword Puzzle Maker

Half a Crossword: drive--Made with Half a Crossword

1. What is a common misconception about snakes?

2.How does a snake’s skin feel?

3. What do cockroaches do to themselves constantly?

4. What do humans force cockroaches to do?

5. What do most wasp species not do?

6. Should we care about these misunderstood animals?

1. What is a common misconception about snakes?

2.How does a snake’s skin feel?

3. What do cockroaches do to themselves constantly?

4. What do humans force cockroaches to do?

5. What do most wasp species not do?

6. Should we care about these misunderstood animals?

1. What is a common misconception about snakes?

2.How does a snake’s skin feel?

3. What do cockroaches do to themselves constantly?

4. What do humans force cockroaches to do?

5. What do most wasp species not do?

6. Should we care about these misunderstood animals?

Match the words to the blanks:

aggressive, beneficial, control, crucial, decay, destroy, disgusting, ecosystem, filthy, germs, misconception, misunderstood, pest, poison, poisonous, slimy, sting, unpopular, untrue

Why are some animals popular while others are so (1)______________? In the natural world, every animal has its place and purpose. Nature doesn’t judge these animals--people do.  For example, it’s a common (2)______________ that snakes are (3)______________ and (4)______________to touch.  Not true! A snake’s skin is smooth and dry.  Another misconception is that snakes are (5)______________ and will attack humans for no reason.  Also (6)______________! Almost all snakes, even (7)______________ ones, prefer to escape or hide unless they’re surprised or attacked first. Snakes are very (8)______________ animals.

Snakes aren’t the only animals that are misunderstood.  People think that cockroaches are dirty pests that like to hide in dark, (9)______________ places.  They hate the idea that cockroaches eat garbage and dead animals as they (10)______________.  People also believe cockroaches are covered in (11)______________.

In fact, cockroaches clean themselves constantly, as much as cats do.  They prefer to live in clean places. It’s humans who, by trying to trap or (12)______________ cockroaches, force them to hide wherever they can in order to survive. Luckily for them, cockroaches are very hard to (13)______________.  They were here on the planet before humans appeared, and they’ll probably be here after we’re gone!

Wasps also have a bad reputation. Many people hate wasps because they believe that wasps (14)______________humans at a moment’s notice. Actually, most wasp species don’t sting at all.  Those that do sting are generally protecting their young, or responding to humans who yell or swing their hands at the wasp.  Some wasp species do sting caterpillars, spiders and other insects.  When stinging, the wasps inject their eggs into their living prey. The wasp larvae live inside and, when they’re ready to leave, they eat their way out!

Should we care about these misunderstood species? Yes, we should! Every animal species plays a (15)______________ role in the (16)______________. Some help (17)______________ other (18)______________ populations. Some help pollinate flowers.  Some eat mildew and mold and others protect food crops.  Some help contribute to medical research. Even misunderstood animals are necessary, and in many ways they’re (19)______________ to humans.

Answers:

Why are some animals popular while others are so (1)unpopular? In the natural world, every animal has its place and purpose. Nature doesn’t judge these animals--people do.  For example, it’s a common (2)misconception that snakes are (3)slimy and (4)disgusting to touch.  Not true! A snake’s skin is smooth and dry.  Another misconception is that snakes are (5)aggressive and will attack humans for no reason.  Also (6)untrue! Almost all snakes, even (7)poisonous ones, prefer to escape or hide unless they’re surprised or attacked first. Snakes are very (8)misunderstood animals.

Snakes aren’t the only animals that are misunderstood.  People think that cockroaches are dirty pests that like to hide in dark, (9)filthy places.  They hate the idea that cockroaches eat garbage and dead animals as they (10)decay.  People also believe cockroaches are covered in (11)germs.

In fact, cockroaches clean themselves constantly, as much as cats do.  They prefer to live in clean places. It’s humans who, by trying to trap or (12)poison cockroaches, force them to hide wherever they can in order to survive. Luckily for them, cockroaches are very hard to (13)destroy.  They were here on the planet before humans appeared, and they’ll probably be here after we’re gone!

Wasps also have a bad reputation. Many people hate wasps because they believe that wasps (14)sting humans at a moment’s notice. Actually, most wasp species don’t sting at all.  Those that do sting are generally protecting their young, or responding to humans who yell or swing their hands at the wasp.  Some wasp species do sting caterpillars, spiders and other insects.  When stinging, the wasps inject their eggs into their living prey. The wasp larvae live inside and, when they’re ready to leave, they eat their way out!

Should we care about these misunderstood species? Yes, we should! Every animal species plays a (15)crucial role in the (16)ecosystem. Some help (17)control other (18)pest populations. Some help pollinate flowers.  Some eat mildew and mold and others protect food crops.  Some help contribute to medical research. Even misunderstood animals are necessary, and in many ways they’re (19)beneficial to humans.

Match the words to the definitions:

aggressive, beneficial, control, crucial, decay, destroy, disgusting, ecosystem, filthy, germ, misconception, misunderstood, pest, poison, poisonous, slimy, sting, unpopular, untrue

1. disliked by most people:  ________________

2. extremely unpleasant:  ________________

3. covered in slime:  ________________

4. behaving in an angry and violent way towards another person:  ________________

5. a substance that can make you sick or kill you if you eat or drink it:  ________________

6. an understanding of something that is wrong:  ________________

7. If an insect, plant, etc ________________s you, it causes pain by putting poison into your skin

8. extremely important or necessary:  ________________

9. false:  ________________

10. a very small living thing that causes disease:  ________________

11. an animal that causes damage to plants, food, etc:  ________________

12. If someone is ________________, other people do not understand that they have good qualities.

13. all the living things in an area and the way they affect each other and the environment:________________

14. to damage something so badly that it does not exist or cannot be used: ________________

15. being dealt with successfully: ________________

16. helpful or useful: ________________

17. extremely dirty: ________________

18. A ________________ animal uses poison in order to defend itself

19. to gradually become bad or weak or be destroyed, often because of natural causes like bacteria or age: ________________

aggressive	beneficial
control	crucial
decay	destroy
disgusting	ecosystem
filthy	germs
misconception	misunderstood
pests	poison
poisonous	slimy
sting	unpopular
untrue

Q: Skills for Success: Listening and Speaking 5: Half a Crossword Review Units 1-5

(Supplementary Materials for Specific Textbooks--Q: Skills for Success: Listening and Speaking 5)

Drive--created using Half a Crossword
Second Version: drive

Bang! (A Vocabulary Game)

(TESOL Ideas--Any Vocabulary Set)

This game is also known as Bang! Bang! in some circles.

It's been popular at a couple of schools I've worked at.  A teacher explained it to me once, and I thought to myself, "Nah, I'm not going to do that.  I would take way too much work to explain all that to my English language learners."

But, then I was away for 2 months, and the cover teacher did this game a lot with my students and they absolutely loved it.  So when I came back, the students asked to keep doing the game, and I integrated it into my repertoire of vocabulary review games.  It's a bit difficult to explain to the students at first, but once the game takes off, the students have a lot of fun.

The rules:
The students make a circle.  The teacher puts his hands together to make a finger gun.

The teacher then describes a vocabulary word that the students have already studied.  (e.g. "This is a sport where you have to kick the ball.)
The teacher then whirls around and shoots and unsuspecting student.  "Bang!" you yell out.  That student drops to the floor as if dead.  The dead student, however, is not the one who is playing.  Rather, it is now the two students standing on either side of the dead student (the one to his right, and the one to his left) who are now in a duel.  They must say the vocabulary word, point their finger gun at the other student, and yell "Bang!"  (e.g. "Soccer! Bang!").  The fastest student wins, and the slower student is out and has to go back to their desk and sit down.

The dead student now stands up and goes to the middle.  They will now take over the teacher's role, say the next definition, and select the next student to shoot.

This game works well when reviewing a vocabulary set that the students have already studied.

Q: Skills for Success: Listening and Speaking 5: Unit 5 Listening 2: What Your Stuff Says About You p.127-130

(Supplementary Materials for Specific Textbooks--Q: Skills for Success: Listening and Speaking 5)

Google drive HERE
90 Second Listening: docs, pub Slideshow: slides, pub
Vocabulary Discussion Questions: docs, pub
Say What You Think Discussion Questions: docs, pub

1. What is special about the New York Times Crossword puzzle that Neal Conan keeps on his desk?

2. Is the baseball signed by anyone famous?

3. Where are the toys located?

4. What three things are on the corkboard?

5. According to Sam Gosling, what are three areas where we can find information about people?

6. Besides knowing what the personal items are, how else can these items give us information?

7. In order to get information about a person based on their personal items, it is crucial to combine which two factors?

Neal Conan, Host: This is Talk of the Nation. I’m Neal Conan in Washington. The framed items on the wall of my office include my FCC third-class radio telephone operator’s license from 1973 and the New York Times crossword puzzle from the day my name was used as a clue. There’s a baseball on my desk, not signed or anything, just a baseball. Some toys sit on top of the speaker: a beach chair with a life preserver, a double-decker London bus, and a cork board has family pictures, John F. Kennedy behind the wheel of a PT-109, and a postcard of Giants Stadium in New Jersey. Sam Gosling, are those few things enough to tell you anything about what kind of person I am? 

Sam Gosling: Yeah, they certainly could tell us a lot. There’s a lot of information, a lot of it not so obvious, but there’s a lot of information in places like people’s personal spaces, their offices or their living spaces. 

Conan: Mhm. And not just what they are, but the way they’re arranged. For example, if the family pictures look out to the guest in the office or, um, or inward to, uh, to the person who occupies it. 

Gosling: Yeah. It’s really crucial to combine not only what they are, but how they’ve been placed

Match the words to the blank.  You may have to change the form. Some words will be used more than once.

clarify, clue, crucial, domain, extrovert, framework, introvert, modify, profile, propose, tentatively, trait

1. What are your personality _____________?  What are the personality _____________of the people in your group?

2. Are you an _____________or an _____________?  What about the other people in your group?

3. Can you think of any famous characters who are in the public _____________?

4. Is there any place that you consider your _____________?

5. Make a brief _____________of someone in your group.  Ask them if they agree with it.

6. When was the last time you had to _____________your plans?

7. How did you _____________ your last assignment?

8. Think of something you’ve had _____________for you on this course.  What was it?

9. What was a _____________decision that you have made?

10. Think of a tangible object in this classroom.  Don’t say the name.  Give _____________ to your classmates until they can guess it.

11. If you forget your student ID card, what is the _____________for resolving the situation?

12. What changes would you like to _____________for the university?

13. Think of something that you did _____________.  What was it? 

1. What are your personality traits?  What are the personality traits of the people in your group?

2. Are you an introvert or an extrovert?  What about the other people in your group?

3. Can you think of any famous characters who are in the public domain?

4. Is there any place that you consider your domain?

5. Make a brief profile of someone in your group.  Ask them if they agree with it?

6. When was the last time you had to modify your plans?

7. How did you modify your last assignment?

8. Think of something you’ve had clarified for you on this course.  What was it?

9. What was a crucial decision that you have made?

10. Think of a tangible object in this classroom.  Don’t say the name.  Give clues to your classmates until they can guess it.

11. If you forget your student ID card, what is the framework for resolving the situation?

12. What changes would you like to propose for the university?

13. Think of something that you did tentatively.  What was it?  

Discussion Questions for Listening 2

1. Do you agree with Dr. Gosling that we are all natural-born snoops? Why or why not?  Use examples from your own life to support your opinion.

2. Look around your classroom.  What conclusions might Dr. Gosling draw from what he could see there?

3. Think about your space at home. What things do you have around them? What does this stuff say about you?

4. What about your virtual space (e.g. social media profile).  What things do you have on your social media profiles?  What can these things tell other people about you?

5. When talking about pictures of family and loved ones, Dr. Gosling says: “ it’s what you might call a social snack, something we can snack on to make ourselves feel better over the day.”  What are some of your social snacks?

6.  Look at the stuff of the person next to you (e.g. bags, phone, pencil case, et cetera).  What kind of things do you think this tells you about that person?  Make some guesses, and then ask them if these guesses are correct.

7.  Do you believe that you can learn a lot about someone from their handshake?  Shake hands with the person next to you, and then tell them what you have learned about them from their handshake.

8. What is something that you own that has sentimental value to you?

Discussion Questions for Listening 1, 2 and the Unit Video

9. What different answers might Dr. Gosling and Dr. Craig (from Listening 1) have to this question that was sent in to Talk of the Nation: “What would you say about people who do not include personal items in their offices or cars?”

10. What do you think Dr. Gosling would have to say about Gehry’s buildings?

11. In what fields might the findings of psychologists about personal space, privacy, possessions, and personalities be of interest?