Customer Reviews

Lessons from Nothing: Activities for Language Teaching with Limited Time and Resources (Cambridge Handbooks for Language Teachers)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a small compact book that has tons of activities that
you can use with absolutely no resources. In many LDN nations
there will be no resources at all. At times, not even a chalk
board. This book can however, be used anywhere, because it
focuses on Communicative methodology and student-centered activities which allows for better development of L2 acquisition. No matter where you are teaching in the world, if your teaching TEFL/TESOL it should be on your shelf.

I'm an English teacher in China, doing both classroom and private small-group teaching. Language learning definitely requires more than the "chalk and talk" approach that Mr. Marsland warns against, and his book is a great resource for avoiding such a bland style of teaching. Language learning should be engaging, and this book offers good inspiration for making it so.

I have to cope with very unsatisfactory teaching materials oriented towards memorization and drills -- not good for achieving fluency. Also, I'm frequently asked to teach last-minute classes with little or no time to prepare. Resources are frequently limited to little more than a chalkboard, if that. It's easy to become frantic and stuck in a pattern of "Oh God, how do I fill this 90 minutes of class time? What do I do?!"

Many thanks to Mr. Marsland for giving this concise, well-organized and thoughtful book. It's like a splash of cold water in my face when I make my own job more complicated than it has to be. /Lessons From Nothing/ is a nice reminder that you can easily turn "nothing" into "something" if you make it engaging and interactive.

I find this book to be very useful as a resource full of suggestions for "starter" and/or "transitional" activities for the active ESL teacher who is looking for ways to bring variety and action to the ESL classroom. I've found many of the activities easy to implement and very student-
friendly.

I've used a couple of ideas from this book. It is very easy to use. The table of contents is very detailed.

I like how the book is organized. He gives you activities to do with absolutely NO supplies all the way up to using a chalkboard and pen and paper with your students.

Honestly I probably will not end up using MOST of the ideas in the book, but it does get me thinking and helps spark other ideas.

Good price and good book. Would recommend for anyone needing ideas for activities to use with limited supplies. All ages appropriate.

When I first got the book, I was surprised by how thin and small it was. But it is full of activities that you can pull off at a moments notice. Not really appropriate for small children but great for older ones and adults.

This book is awesome, but you must be a creative person and be able to exercise flexibility.

I think that all language schools and colleges with TESOL departments could benefit from this book. I am not suggesting that there is anything ground breaking here - there isn't. The book is very simple, but the that's what makes it nice. You can look through, get an idea, and run with it. I have been teaching in the field (language teaching) for 15 years now and am still not against looking for ideas from others. It would be ludicrous not to do this, I feel. I teach more "academic" English now, but am still able to enjoy looking through the book but admitting that the ideas went a lot further during my time in Japan teaching more communicative English lessons.

For a library in a language school or college with TESOL team a must, but more experienced may not use it as much as someone newer in the field. We cannot say ideas are too hard or too easy - it depends on your scenario, your students' levels, your creativity to manipulate the tasks to match your goals in meaningful ways, and the resources you have.

I don't think that this book is what it claims to be. Too difficult to read and the lessons weren't really that great. I threw it out.