2-Day ECML Experiential Workshop in Larissa: A Transformative Journey of Innovation, Collaboration, and Connection!

Posted on October 10, 2026October 11, 2026 by Vivi Hamilou

Exploring the ECML ICT-REV Inventory and Creating Together!

Returning home from Larissa about a week ago, I feel inspired, energized and truly grateful for having been part of an amazing professional development experience! The two-day experiential training workshop “Use of ICT in support of language teaching and learning (ICT-REV)”, organized by the European Centre for Modern Languages (ECML/CELV) of the Council of Europe in collaboration with Greek educational authorities, was a wonderful opportunity to learn, reflect, exchange ideas and, above all, connect with colleagues who share the same passion for teaching and learning! The workshop took place on 1–2 October 2026 in Larissa and brought together educators from Thessaly, Central Greece and Epirus. It was a rich experience that combined theoretical input, practical exploration of digital resources, collaborative task design and meaningful professional dialogue. And, as is often the case with the best learning experiences, I returned home with so many new ideas, a long list of things to explore and the desire to share everything with my colleagues!

Before we met in Larissa: Getting to know the ECML and one another

Our learning journey started before we even arrived at the workshop venue! Through an asynchronous Moodle learning environment, we had the opportunity to become familiar with the work of the European Centre for Modern Languages and the main themes of the ICT-REV initiative. This preparatory phase was much more than an introduction to the workshop content. We introduced ourselves, shared our professional backgrounds and expectations, and started getting to know one another. It was lovely to build a learning community online before meeting face-to-face! We arrived in Larissa already having taken the first steps towards collaboration!

Day 1: Discovering the ECML ICT-REV Inventory

The first day began in a warm and welcoming atmosphere. The workshop was officially opened by Dr. Aikaterini Karagiorgou, Director of Primary Education of Larissa and head organizer of the event, whose contribution to the organization of this important professional development opportunity deserves special recognition. Online greetings were also extended by representatives of the Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports, including Panagiotis Passas, Head of the General Directorate of Human Resources, and Aikaterini Mpompetsi, from the Directorate of European and International Affairs. Local representatives Vassilios Simos, from the Region of Thessaly, and Christos Agoritsas, from the Municipality of Larissa, also welcomed the initiative.

We were then introduced to the work of the ECML and the ICT-REV initiative, which promotes the pedagogically sound use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and open educational resources in language teaching and learning. And this is where things got really interesting! Our main focus was the ECML Inventory of ICT tools, a valuable resource designed to help language educators discover digital tools and consider how they can be used meaningfully in their teaching.

Of course, most of us were already familiar with a considerable number of digital tools. We have been exploring and using technology in our classrooms for years, experimenting with different platforms, applications and resources to make our lessons more engaging and effective. However, exploring the ECML inventory opened up a whole new world of possibilities! There were so many interesting tools to discover, including resources that we had not encountered before and others that could be used in ways we had not previously considered. The inventory offered us a curated starting point for exploring digital tools in relation to our pedagogical needs and learning objectives.

And this is what I particularly appreciated: the focus was not simply on technology, but on the ways technology can support language learning! A tool is not valuable just because it is digital or innovative! What really matters is what our learners can do with it, how it supports interaction and communication, and how it contributes to achieving our learning objectives. If you are a language teacher looking for fresh ideas, I strongly encourage you to explore the inventory here: ECML ICT-REV Inventory of ICT tools. You may already know and use many of the tools included there, but I am quite sure you will discover some new ones, too!

Day 2: From exploring tools to creating learning activities

If Day 1 was about exploring possibilities, Day 2 was about putting ideas into practice! Working collaboratively in teams, we focused on organizing tasks, designing learning activities and reflecting on our teaching practices. We explored how digital tools can support meaningful language learning in face-to-face, online and blended learning environments. For me, this was one of the most rewarding aspects of the workshop. Rather than simply discussing tools and their features, we had the opportunity to think about actual classroom situations and design activities that could be used with our learners.We exchanged ideas, discussed different approaches, considered the needs of our students and worked together to develop learning activities for the ECML learning activities platform.

The process involved much more than choosing a tool and deciding how to use it. We had to think about the learning objectives, the learners, the sequence of tasks, the kind of interaction we wanted to encourage and the learning outcomes we hoped to achieve. We also reflected on the challenges that language teachers face today, including the growing role of Artificial Intelligence in education and the need to make informed pedagogical decisions when integrating digital technologies into our practice.

I particularly enjoyed the opportunity to step back from our everyday teaching routines and look at our practice through a more reflective lens. Sometimes, collaborating with colleagues who bring different experiences and perspectives helps us reconsider familiar practices and see new possibilities where we had not noticed them before. And that is the beauty of collaborative professional learning: we do not simply collect ideas; we build on one another’s ideas and turn them into something new!

Why not contribute your own learning activity?

One of the most exciting outcomes of the workshop was discovering that the ECML platform is not just a place to find digital tools. It also provides a space for sharing learning activities designed around those tools. The ECML ICT learning activities platform is an excellent starting point for educators who would like to explore examples of classroom practice and contribute their own ideas. Imagine taking an activity you have successfully tried in your classroom, refining it, discussing it with a colleague and sharing it with other teachers across Europe and beyond! You do not need to invent something entirely new or use the most sophisticated digital tool available. A simple, well-designed activity that encourages learners to communicate, collaborate, create, reflect or give one another feedback can be extremely valuable. And, believe me, designing learning activities collaboratively can be a creative and rewarding process in itself!

Here are a few suggestions if you would like to get started:

Explore: Browse the ICT tools inventory and identify a tool that could serve a specific learning objective.
Reflect: Consider your learners’ needs, their language level and the skills you would like them to develop.
Collaborate: Invite a colleague to brainstorm ideas and co-design an activity. Different perspectives can make a real difference!
Create: Develop clear instructions, define the stages of the activity and decide how learners will interact and demonstrate their learning.
Share: Visit the ECML ICT learning activities platform and consult its submission guidance to find out how you can contribute your work.

Your activity does not have to be perfect or groundbreaking! What matters is that it has a clear pedagogical purpose and that sharing it can help another teacher discover a new possibility for their classroom. Let’s make our ideas visible, exchange our experiences and contribute to a community of educators who learn from one another!

The people who made this experience so special

A professional development workshop is much more than its programme, materials and activities. It is also about the people who bring it to life, the atmosphere they create and the opportunities they offer participants to learn, experiment and collaborate. I would like to express my warmest congratulations and sincere thanks to our wonderful trainers: Pauline Ernest, Dr. Ursula Stickler and Dr. Sarah Heiser from The Open University, UK, who facilitated this workshop in collaboration with the ECML! They were knowledgeable, approachable, encouraging and incredibly supportive throughout the two days! They created a positive learning environment in which we felt comfortable sharing ideas, asking questions, experimenting and being creative. Their guidance helped us move from exploring resources to thinking critically about their pedagogical potential and developing our own learning activities. Thank you for your enthusiasm, your encouragement and the wonderful atmosphere you created! It was a pleasure learning with and from you.

My heartfelt congratulations and thanks also go to the Directorate of Primary Education of Larissa and its Director, Dr. Aikaterini Karagiorgou, for taking the initiative and ensuring the successful organization of this event. Warm thanks are also due to the Directorate of European and International Affairs, International Relations Department, of the Greek Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports, and to the European Centre for Modern Languages (ECML/CELV) of the Council of Europe for their collaboration and commitment to supporting language education and teacher professional development. The excellent organization, the carefully designed programme and the supportive learning environment made these two days truly meaningful.

Congratulations to everyone involved, and thank you for giving us the opportunity to be part of such a valuable experience!

Beyond the workshop: The power of connecting with colleagues

There is one more aspect of the experience that I cannot leave unmentioned: the people! The workshop brought together 35 selected education professionals, including Education Consultants, Quality Supervisors, foreign language teachers, philologists and primary school teachers from Thessaly, Central Greece and Epirus. We came from different educational contexts and had different experiences, responsibilities and perspectives. Yet, we shared a common interest in improving our teaching practices and exploring new ways to support our learners!

We exchanged experiences, inspired one another, discussed challenges, worked together and discovered how much we can learn from colleagues who approach familiar questions from different perspectives. On a more personal note, one of the highlights for me was finally meeting face-to-face colleagues whom I had known for years only through social media and our online professional networks! It is always wonderful when digital connections turn into real conversations, shared laughter and the beginnings of new friendships and professional collaborations. These encounters reminded me once again that, while technology can bring us together, it is the human connection that makes professional learning truly memorable!

I returned home feeling grateful not only for everything I had learned, but also for all the wonderful people I had the chance to meet.

Final thoughts: Let’s explore, create and share!

Looking back on these two days in Larissa, I realize that the most valuable professional development experiences are those that combine new knowledge with reflection, experimentation and collaboration. The ICT-REV workshop gave us the opportunity to explore a valuable European resource, discover new digital tools, reconsider familiar teaching practices, design collaborative learning activities and connect with colleagues who are equally eager to learn and grow. It also reminded me that we do not have to do everything on our own. We can learn from one another, co-design activities, exchange ideas and share the resources we create. Something that begins as a small classroom experiment can become an inspiring idea for another teacher somewhere else in Europe!

So, if you are a language teacher, I encourage you to take a look at the ECML resources. Explore the ICT tools inventory, discover tools you may not have used before, reflect on how they could enrich your teaching and, why not, contribute a learning activity of your own! Start with a tool that interests you. Think of a learning objective. Invite a colleague to work with you. Experiment, discuss, improve and share. You may discover that the process is just as rewarding as the final result!

I am leaving this experience with new ideas, renewed enthusiasm and a strong desire to put what I have learned into practice and share it with my educational community. Because professional learning becomes even more meaningful when we share what we learn. And because, together, we can create learning experiences that inspire both teachers and learners! Thank you, Larissa, for an unforgettable experience! And thank you to everyone who made these two days so special. I hope this is the beginning of many more opportunities to learn, create and collaborate together!

Useful links

Ideas, Thoughts, Concerns

A fresh start

Posted on October 6, 2026October 6, 2026 by Vivi Hamilou

After 16 years of sharing ideas, classroom experiences, projects, resources, thoughts and little pieces of my teaching journey through ELT in Greek Primary Schools, I am starting again! Some of you may remember the Facebook page that used to be connected to my blog. Unfortunately, about two weeks ago I lost access to my previous Facebook profile and, consequently, to the page and to many of the connections I had built there over the years.

It was, and still is I have to admit, a rather sad experience, because behind a blog post, a shared resource or a classroom idea there are people, colleagues, friends I ‘ve made … People who took the time to read, comment, encourage, share, suggest, collaborate … People I may never have met in person, but who, somehow, became part of my professional journey. And I really miss that! Not only because my Facebook page disappeared. I have realized that I miss the conversations, triggered through posting! I miss discovering what other teachers are trying in their classrooms! I miss that feeling that, even when we teach behind the closed doors of our own classrooms, we are not really alone!

But perhaps every now and then we need to start again. So here I am! ELT in Greek Primary Schools is starting a new chapter on Facebook. The blog is still here, after all these years, continuing to collect ideas, experiences, resources, projects and reflections from my journey as an English teacher. And now, once again, I would love to have a place where we can meet, exchange ideas and learn from one another. I am taking the loss of the old page as a challenge rather than an ending. And I am accepting it as a challenge to keep writing, to keep sharing, to keep learning and to reconnect.

If you have been following my Facebook page before, welcome back! If we have never met before, my name is Vivi Hamilou and I welcome you to my ELT world in Facebook! I hope we will get to know each other! And if you are an English teacher, a primary teacher, a teacher who loves technology, projects, creativity, collaboration or simply someone who believes that sharing makes teaching richer, I would be delighted to have you here! Let’s see where this new beginning takes us! You can find the Facebook page here: ELT in Greek Primary Schools

Thank you for being part of this journey! And here’s to new connections, new ideas and new classroom stories!

#ELT #EnglishTeachers #PrimaryEducation #GreekPrimarySchools #ELTCommunity #TeachingEnglish #EdTech #TeacherSharing #ELTinGreekPrimarySchools

Ideas, Thoughts, Concerns, Public Education

A Silver Step Ahead: Building a Sustainable Model for Teacher Development

Posted on July 8, 2025July 8, 2025 by Vivi Hamilou

When I first came across the Education Leaders Awards, I hesitated. I paused, looking at my screen with awe. I was thinking that these are the kind of awards where prestigious institutions, dynamic – mostly private – schools and inspiring educators from across the country showcase their work. And there I was – just a public primary school headteacher, trying to organize something meaningful for my colleagues, for my school. Could we really compete? Would anyone even notice?

But then I thought: what if they did? What if the everyday efforts of teachers in public schools, the small but consistent steps, the quiet innovation happening behind classroom doors, deserved a platform? What if organizing something to meet actual needs was worthy of recognition?

So, we applied. And we made it! The 4th Primary School of Almyros received the Silver Award at the 10th Education Leaders Awards 2025, for organizing asynchronous, distance professional development tailored to the needs of our teachers!

The innovation behind this effort lies in the fact that this wasn’t just any training. It started with a simple but powerful question: “What do you actually need to feel more confident and supported in your work?” We asked our teachers through a needs-assessment questionnaire and they responded anonymously. Their answers shaped the content of the training – from digital tools to European programs, inclusive education, differentiated instruction, and more.

The most challenging – though not surprising – part came from the consensus among participants: asynchronous online training was clearly the most convenient and preferable form of in-school professional development. Coordinating synchronous sessions after a full teaching day has always been an organizational puzzle — not to mention mentally exhausting! Therefore, as the headteacher being responsible to cater for my colleagues’ needs, I initially felt overwhelmed. “There’s no way I can actually meet this need,” I thought.

Frustration gave way to determination, though. Within half an hour, I found myself exploring the e-learningnew.sch.gr platform offered by the Panhellenic School Network — a resource I hadn’t even realized existed. That moment marked the first real step towards transforming a practical challenge into an opportunity. Working in the public sector, it is widely acknowledged that choosing asynchronous online training through the Panhellenic School Network platform ensures easy access, flexibility, and safety for everyone involved. Teachers could participate at their own pace, from any device, with continuous support through the messages supported by the platform, emails, a Viber group and in-person meetings.

The training paths were followed with a clear goal in mind: to make professional development a tool for empowerment, not a burden! What truly made this experience so rewarding was the response of the participants themselves! All of the teachers who took part completed the training module they had chosen successfully – a testament not only to their commitment but also to the practical structure and clarity of the content. Their final evaluations were overwhelmingly positive, praising the relevance and quality of the training. What’s more, many of them shared how much more confident they felt afterwards, ready to apply what they had learned in their classrooms. Throughout the process, they knew they could reach out – and they did – engaging in meaningful, solution-focused collaboration. Perhaps the most encouraging part was their spontaneous expression of interest in continuing with similar training initiatives in the future. That, to me, is the clearest sign that this wasn’t just a one-off project, but the beginning of something sustainable and genuinely needed.

That’s why we didn’t stop there! We opened participation to neighboring schools, helping fellow school leaders meet their training requirements. What started as a school initiative became a local support network! And the best part? These modules can be reused and enriched every year, adapting to the ever-changing needs of our teams!

This Silver Award is not just a trophy. It’s a recognition of public school effort. It’s a celebration of collaboration. It’s a reminder that innovation doesn’t need fancy titles – it needs people who care and dare! This Silver Award means an assortment of things to different people! For our teachers and me, it’s motivation! For our students, it’s a sign that their school grows alongside them! For our school, it’s a moment of pride and possibility! For our community, it’s proof that public education matters and leads.

The ceremony itself, in a hall full of inspiring educators and in the presence of the Minister of Education, was humbling. It showed that behind every nomination is a story of dedication, and that the public sector truly has a place among excellence. We didn’t set out to win an award. We simply tried to do what was right for our teachers. But this recognition gave us something equally valuable – a reason to keep going, to expand, to share, and to keep believing that good things happen when we act together with purpose!

I know I have said it before, but, right now, I need to give a big shout-out to all my colleagues in public schools: Your work is valid! Your effort is seen! And sometimes, the first step is just to believe it deserves to be shared!

3rd Grade, Public Education

Alphabet Puzzle for the Pre-Unit of Magic Book 2

Posted on November 19, 2023November 19, 2023 by Vivi Hamilou

Reaching the end of the pre-unit of Magic Book 2, revising the letters is going to be pursued in a different way this year! In an attempt to combine learning with playing at the same time, we are going to introduce the Alphabet Puzzle Cards that have been designed to be used in different ways: as a puzzle that can be completed individually at school or at home, as a game to be played in pairs or groups with a time challenge – if applicable, or as a competition among individual learners, pairs or groups!

Having designed the alphabet puzzle cards on a document, the steps to be followed are very easy! First, we print the cards on plain paper or cardboard:

Then, we place each card on the transparent sticker sheet that is usually used for book cover protection and we cut:

After that, we cut each card on the lines:

Time to play, learn, revise and assess through a brain-teasing activity and, as each third-grader is meant to get his/her own set in a small box or bag this week, there’s more cutting ahead!

Ideas, Thoughts, Concerns, Public Education

Joining the Christmas fun at school!

Posted on December 7, 2021December 7, 2021 by Vivi Hamilou

263573476 650452776201289 8027226384137909852 n — Santa’s workshop – Primary School of Efxeinoupoli, Greece

Not having an English classroom does not necessarily mean that you miss the chance to enjoy Christmas decorations at school! Find a tree and Christmas decorations that nobody uses at school or the ones you do not use anymore but haven’t thrown away (like I have done), get Santa’s clothes from friends/relatives or even the school itself, find toys from home or the kids at school, choose a part of the entrance or the corridors that is suitable for the task and …. ta daaaaa: Santa’s workshop is now at the entrance of the Primary School of Efxeinoupoli, Greece!

Apart from the joy and excitement it generates, Santa’s workshop can be exploited as the setting of a role play, or the presentation/consolidation of Christmas vocabulary! Looking forward to enjoying it in any way possible!

5th Grade

Food posters – 5th grade

Posted on November 24, 2021 by Vivi Hamilou

Food Posters – Primary School of Efxeinoupoli, Greece

I don’t know about your teaching context, but posters seem to be our favourite project in my school, especially if learners are urged to work collaboratively on them! Every time we get to the 2nd unit of our 5th grade Pupil’s Book, my learners are very excited to create food posters! They use magazines, leaflets, markers and crayons, they add a lot of imagination and give it all they’ve got with colourful cardboard backgrounds, stickers and glitter! The moment their posters are on the school noticeboard they attract everybody’s attention and positive comments and our corridors gain a more personal and familiar touch! I am so proud of their work and contribution to this beautiful, educational and inspiring result!

Public Education

It’s spooky, it’s creepy … It’s Halloween!

Posted on November 1, 2021November 24, 2021 by Vivi Hamilou

This week in our school continues to move in the rhythm of Halloween that is celebrated every year on October 31. We are interested in familiarizing ourselves with this experience that is a cultural element of the English Language that we learn in our school! Last week, the youngest children of the school watched a presentation of the Halloween tradition, sang, danced, while the fourth grade students played a Halloween Escape Room game in groups, using a video projector, in their classroom!

Today, welcoming the children at school included an introduction to the corner with the witch’s workshop! Magic filters and strange ingredients caught the attention of our learners who had fun stirring with the ladle and checking out the ingredients for the witch’s strange and secret recipes! Happy Halloween, everyone!

It's Halloween at the Primary School of Efxeinoupoli, Greece from viv_h

Computer-Assisted Language Learning, EFL Teacher Resources, Public Education

Who has done homework in eclass?

Posted on March 26, 2021March 26, 2021 by Vivi Hamilou

Asynchronous learning platforms have given teachers the opportunity to upload and exploit a great deal of interactive tasks they have either created themselves or found on the internet. Greek public school teachers have been encouraged to use either E-class or E-me, in order to provide asynchronous education to their learners. Although all of us, ESL teachers, upload a number of tasks almost on a daily basis for all of the learners of one or even two schools, we actually fail to have easy access to significant statistics of each task, such as how many learners have seen it and who has actually completed it – especially in E-class.

Although there is a variety of web tools at our disposal, only few of them can actually help to this end in their free of charge versions. We have the opportunity to create quizzes and online horse-riding games, memory cards and hangman tasks, crossword puzzles and wheels of fortune, but how do we know how many and which learners have actually dealt with anything we have uploaded in E-class? The two web tools I have been using because they are free, allow me to check homework providing instant feedback and are highly appealing to my learners for their ease to use and variety of activities are LiveWorksheets and LearningApps. If you are looking for fun ways to integrate and check spelling and vocabulary development in asynchronous learning, these are the tools that you will probably select once you familiarize yourselves with them!

Liveworksheets is an exquisite web tool that allows us to transform any pdf file into an interactive worksheet. Once we upload the pdf file, there are very short and clear instructions on how to create a number of activities here and all we have to do is share the link with our learners. If you use E-class, like me, you can upload the links there, give clear instructions to your learners on what to do after they click on “Finish” and receive the corrected version of their worksheet in your app inbox. What is more, your learners get the graded version of their work as soon as they send it to you, so you do not need extra time for feedback, unless you feel you need to further guide your learner!

Although LearningApps is the second tool I am going to present, it comes first in my heart and preference, as it is very easy to use and it can be embedded in eclass in a way that allows us to check our learners’ progress within the eclass, without switching platforms! I am very grateful to the colleagues I met in B2 level ICT training in spring 2020, as they shared with us their justifiable enthusiasm for the potentials of this tool, and Ms. Despoina Mavrovounioti, Education Coordinator for English Language Teachers in Sterea Ellada, for giving me the opportunity to present how I have been using it to my colleagues in December 2020.

Fun ways to check spelling in long-distance education from viv_h

The actual presentation of this day can also be accessed here, but there is also a video I have recently made to help anyone interested in embedding LearningApps activities in eclass in a way that allows us to check our learners’ participation! The video is in Greek and it includes step-by-step instructions. Should you need further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me for more details!

Here is a small sample of activities that I have created in either LiveWorksheets or LearningApps and embedded in eclass for spelling and vocabulary development:

4th Grade – Unit 6 – Animal Sounds

4th Grade – Unit 6 – Animals

4th Grade – Unit 5 – Lesson 2 – British Customs

Magic Book 2 – Unit 3 – Lesson 2

6th Grade – Unit 4 – Part of the airplane

5th Grade – A Day in my Life – Useful Guidelines

5th Grade – Unit 2 – Adverbs of Frequency

2nd Grade – Family members – Memory Game

2nd Grade – Family members – Tag

4th Grade, 5th Grade, 6th Grade, Computer-Assisted Language Learning, My Schools' English Newspapers, Projects, Public Education

We’ve got news for you!

Posted on March 16, 2021March 20, 2021 by Vivi Hamilou

EfxeiNewsPoli, Issue 1, Primary School of Efxeinoupoli, Greece

“We’ve got news for you” is the title of the eTwinning project we are involved in this year with the 4th, 5th and 6th learners of the Primary School of Efxeinoupoli, Greece. This project aspires to involve many European learners in the exchange of English school newspapers and the creation of a common newspaper as the end-product of this creative collaboration! Participant learners are invited to write and read English with a real-life purpose and they also have the opportunity to interact via Twinspace, improving thus their communication and ICT along with their writing and reading skills! Practising skills simulates real-life communication in a fun-filled project that helps everyone realize the emergence of English as an international language and expand their horizons. Learners also have the opportunity to feel like citizens of the world, members of a vast community, outside the barriers of their local surroundings. Using English as the vehicle, this project has been designed to provide useful insight on their peers’ daily routine, interests, customs and mentality, allowing everyone thus to become more tolerant with diversity.

The first issue of our newspaper has been completed and posted on the school blog and we are currently in the process of completing the second issue! For each issue we have tried to exploit the written assignments suggested by our coursebooks, in an attempt to make writing more meaningful and address our readers with topics of their interest. Greek learners have submitted their articles asynchronously, via eclass, and the teacher has corrected and edited the issue. Here is our first issue:

Primary School of Efxeinoupoli, Greece

Φόρτωση PDF…

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Λήψη αρχείου pdf.

Learners participating in this project have done an exceptional job in their first issues and Greek learners are very excited to be involved in this exchange! Please, take some time to read their articles and feel free to share them with your learners! Here are their impressive issues in random order:

Laboratório de Línguas, Portugal

CEIP Bec de L’Àguila, Sant Vicent del Raspeig, Spain

Kasaba Şehit Yusuf Polat Yatılı Bölge Ortaokulu, Turkey

Scoala Gimnaziala “Sfantul Andrei”, Romania

ОШ “Стеван Немања”, Serbia:

Our second issues are on the way and they’re full of surprises! If you liked our first attempt, do not miss the following post with the upcoming European English school newspapers!

1st Grade, 2nd Grade, Computer-Assisted Language Learning, Public Education

First online session with my 1st and 2nd graders – The first part of a teaching scenario

Posted on November 22, 2020November 23, 2020 by Vivi Hamilou

Here we are again, dear colleagues, in front of our computer screens for hours, trying to do our best to cope with technology issues, as well as provide the optimum learning benefits in 30-minute synchronous online sessions with our learners. Although most of us have been through the same procedure last spring and are familiar with a variety of webtools and lots of theories regarding distance teaching and learning, most of us seem to feel drained after having racked our brains on how to be creative, present engaging tasks and accomplish our teaching goals in different classes for 15-24 sessions per week.

Networking with colleagues that experience the same situation has been uplifting and encouraging last spring and it proves to be valuable this time, too! Thanks to some online groups, sharing work and experiences has been led to levels that have been unfamiliar to our department – or at least how I experienced it back then! Being a warm supporter of sharing, here is part of a teaching scenario for the 1^st and/or 2^nd graders that has been applied and supported with positive feedback from learners, parents and myself who actually enjoyed it very much!

Subject:

English as a Second Language with a cross-curricular approach by means of ICT.

Connection with the curriculum:

Topic C4/C5 for the 1^st grade / Topic B1 for the 2^nd grade

Teaching context:

This scenario has been designed for synchronous online teaching to a class of 24 learners (1^st grade) and a class of 24 learners (2^nd grade) who are 6-7 years old and attend a rural Greek Primary School that has been shut down due to COVID-19 restrictions. Most of the learners are of Greek origin, come from mixed socio-economic backgrounds and there are no learners with diagnosed learning difficulties. None of the learners has any previous experience with online learning and parents have been advised to assist.

Level of Competence:

A1- level, according to the six-point scale of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

Duration:

30 minutes of online learning and extra practice through asynchronous learning via e-class.

Transition:

This part of a teaching scenario has been designed for synchronous online learning by means of the webex platform. The particular learners have been taught in class the words “mummy” and “daddy” during the previous lesson and the activities of this part of the scenario have been designed for their first online session. All learners have no previous experience with webex online meetings; however, they have had sessions with their teacher the previous day. All learners have signed in the e-class of the Panhellenic School Network and have been using it since the beginning of the school year. They are not familiar with the web tools employed for this scenario (Thinglink, LearningApps, Video.link), but they are going to be guided into learning how to use them. Learners are supposed to own the necessary technological equipment for the session (internet connection, device, camera, microphone, speakers) and are invited to work as a group in order to complete the tasks.

Anticipated learning outcomes:

Learners are expected to achieve the following (based on the analytical indicators of communication competence):

A) Regarding English Language Competence

Listening skills:

To answer simple questions in the foreign language (or more complex questions in Greek) concerning the content of a short speech, such as e.g. questions and answers (“Who’s this?” “Mummy”, etc.). (A1/22)
To be able to understand very basic and standard expressions used in everyday interpersonal communication (eg greetings, such as “Hello, mummy!”, etc.). (A1/23)
To be able to understand specific information (personal data of the speaker or information related to their immediate family environment), formulated with simple vocabulary and standard sentence structures. (A1/24)

Speaking skills:

To be able to follow written or oral instructions in Greek to answer simple questions in the foreign language using standard expressions and simple vocabulary. (A1/39)

B) Regarding the use of technology

To develop information and digital literacy through the process of locating, analyzing and, finally, utilizing information found in digital environments.
To become familiar with the use of modules within the Electronic Classroom (e-class).
To become familiar with new digital environments.
To develop a responsible digital behavior through online collaboration with their peers (waiting for their turn, turning on and off their microphone when necessary, etc.).

C) Regarding the learning process and knowledge about the world

To achieve linguistic literacy while receiving and producing in the target language.
To develop visual literacy through digital visual stimuli.
To encourage digital literacy through the navigation in the modules of the Electronic Classroom (e-class) and further familiarization with the use of particular web tools.

Detailed description:

1^st activity: Introduction to the topic

Type of activity: Listening comprehension, speaking by means of singing and moving

Duration: 5’

Classroom organization: Working online as a group through webex platform.

Teachers’ role: Supportive, encouraging and coordinating.

Learners’ role (according to the Four Resources Model that was originally developed in 1990 by Peter Freebody and Allan Luke): The learner is invited to work as a text decoder, deciphering the code in written and visual stimuli, and as a text participant, in the sense that s/he attempts to comprehend the input and relate it to his/her previous knowledge.

Teacher’s actions: The teacher welcomes the learners to the new digital environment and introduces a picture in Thinglink, saying that it is going to help them revise what they had done during the previous lesson. The teacher clicks on the first red button at the bottom and starts with a video, in an attempt to link what has been taught with everything that is going to be introduced throughout the session. The learners watch part of a video with the heroes of Disney that refers to “mummy” and “daddy”. Learners are encouraged to sing along and move their hands and body in the way that has been introduced in class (they dance, wave hello at “hello” and shape a heart with their fingers at “I love you”).

Learners’ actions: Learners are welcomed in the new digital environment, watch the video, revise the words “Mummy”, “Daddy”, “I love you” and sing along, while moving their hands and body to the rhythm.

Digital educational content, web tools, resources:

Thinglink

Video.Link (16:27 – 18:38)

Δείτε στο thinglink.com

2^nd activity: Vocabulary development

Type of activity: Listening and repeating

Duration: 5’

Classroom organization: Working online as a group through webex platform.

Teachers’ role: Supportive, encouraging and coordinating.

Learners’ role (according to the Four Resources Model that was originally developed in 1990 by Peter Freebody and Allan Luke): The learner is invited to work as a text decoder, deciphering the code in audio and visual stimuli, and as a text participant, in the sense that s/he attempts to comprehend the input and relate it to his/her previous knowledge.

Teacher’s actions: The teacher introduces the main picture of Thinglink and explains the use of the plus buttons (they have to click on the plus buttons and listen to how we say in English the members of the family). The teacher clicks on the plus buttons and encourages learners to listen and repeat.

Learners’ actions: Learners watch the picture and understand the content. They are introduced to a new web tool and they try to comprehend how it works. In the meantime, they listen and repeat, developing thus their vocabulary.

Digital educational content, web tools, resources:

Thinglink

Δείτε στο thinglink.com

3^rd activity: Vocabulary Consolidation

Type of activity: Listening and choosing the correct word

Duration: 6’

Classroom organization: Working online as a group through webex platform.

Teachers’ role: Supportive, encouraging and coordinating.

Learners’ role (according to the Four Resources Model that was originally developed in 1990 by Peter Freebody and Allan Luke): The learner is invited to work as a text decoder, deciphering the code in audio and visual stimuli, as a text participant, in the sense that s/he attempts to comprehend the input and relate it to his/her previous knowledge and as a text user, as s/he uses it to complete the task.

Teacher’s actions: The teacher introduces the main picture of Thinglink again and explains the use of the red buttons at the bottom. Clicking on the second button, the teacher explains that, in order to complete the activity, learners have to listen to the words and choose the correct one for each pin on the family members’ faces. Learners are informed that they are going to do the task in turns and are encouraged to repeat the words as they listen.

Learners’ actions: Learners watch the picture with the pins and understand the procedure and target of the activity. They are introduced to a new web tool and they try to understand how it works. In the meantime, they listen and repeat, developing thus their vocabulary.

Digital educational content, web tools, resources:

Thinglink

LearningApps

Δείτε στο LearningApps.org

4^th activity: Vocabulary Consolidation

Type of activity: Matching the sound with the correct picture

Duration: 6’

Classroom organization: Working online as a group through webex platform.

Teachers’ role: Supportive, encouraging and coordinating.

Learners’ role (according to the Four Resources Model that was originally developed in 1990 by Peter Freebody and Allan Luke): The learner is invited to work as a text decoder, deciphering the code in audio and visual stimuli, as a text participant, in the sense that s/he attempts to comprehend the input and relate it to his/her previous knowledge and as a text user, as s/he uses it to complete the task.

Teacher’s actions: The teacher introduces the main picture of Thinglink again and explains the use of the red buttons at the bottom. Clicking on the third button, the teacher explains that, in order to complete the activity, learners have to match the sounds with the correct picture (memory card game). Learners are informed that they are going to do the task in turns and are encouraged to repeat the words as they listen. The teacher uses the annotation in order to number the cards and make it easier for the learners to choose a card (numbers can be introduced in English).

Learners’ actions: Learners watch the game with the memory cards and comprehend the procedure and the aim of the activity. They are introduced to a new web tool and they try to understand how it works. In the meantime, they have fun while trying to remember the images, the sounds and while listening and repeating, developing thus their vocabulary.

Digital educational content, web tools, resources:

Thinglink

LearningApps

Δείτε στο LearningApps.org

5^th activity: Vocabulary Consolidation

Type of activity: Singing and doing

Duration: 8’

Classroom organization: Working online as a group through webex platform.

Teachers’ role: Supportive, encouraging and coordinating.

Learners’ role (according to the Four Resources Model that was originally developed in 1990 by Peter Freebody and Allan Luke): The learner is invited to work as a text decoder, deciphering the code in audio and visual stimuli, as a text participant, in the sense that s/he attempts to comprehend the input and relate it to his/her previous knowledge and as a text user, as s/he uses it to complete the task.

Teacher’s actions: The teacher introduces the main picture of Thinglink again and reminds the use of the red buttons at the bottom. Clicking on the fourth button, the teacher explains that it is time to sing and dance. The teacher introduces the shark family and the movements they do with their mouth. Learners are invited to watch the video, sing and imitate the movements. The teacher plays the video at least twice and reminds the learners that everything they have worked with will be uploaded to their e-class for further practice.

Learners’ actions: Learners learn about the shark family and rehearse the movements sharks do with their mouth. They eventually watch the video, sing and imitate the movements presented. Throughout this activity they have fun while trying to remember the sounds and moving their hands and body.

Digital educational content, web tools, resources:

Thinglink

Video.Link

Normally, scenarios are described in a way that presents all anticipated outcomes of each activity and the presentation of the activities is followed by the evaluation of the scenario and its impact. However, at this point, I wouldn’t like to tire you with the norm and would prefer to share with you my thoughts and feelings, as a teacher!

Prior to evaluating my role throughout the activities, I wish I could share with you the enthusiasm of everyone involved throughout the lesson, the level of participation and the excitement, especially with the song that was presented in the end! We had our lesson on Friday (16:50-17:20) with A class and we actually said our goodbyes and wishes for the weekend at 17:35, as we played the song again and again! As for me, the teacher, all I had to do during the session was to sound encouraging, pay attention to the way I deliver instructions and make sure that microphones were on and off at the right times! It was a lesson I tried with both A and B classes and enjoyed very much and receiving emails and messages through social media from content and satisfied parents was the unexpected feedback that literally made my day!

We, teachers, spend a lot of time designing, creating and delivering in front of a computer screen these days and having a great session with our learners makes it all so worth it! Sharing this part of my teaching scenario with you, I want to contribute to this energetic community of admirable colleagues out there that burn the midnight oil with me these days and express my gratitude for all the support I get from groups of people that share the same experiences with me! I hope this teaching suggestion will be as useful as your contributions and sharing have been to me! Keep it up, dear colleagues and friends, and remember that teaching is our superpower and sharing is our secret weapon!

2nd Grade, 3rd Grade, 4th Grade, 5th Grade, 6th Grade, Computer-Assisted Language Learning, Public Education

Easter fun for Greek English-Language learners

Posted on April 13, 2020April 13, 2020 by Vivi Hamilou

Physical distancing and long distance teaching have brought forward the best of Greek teachers who seem to have become Web Tool experts in just a few days and struggle to do their best for their learners! In an attempt to create presentable, interactive, educational and entertaining Easter collections for all my classes this year, Thinglink was the web tool that came first to my mind, as it gives teachers the opportunity to integrate links of useful videos and tasks, as well as interactive activities they have probably created themselves using other Web Tools (like LearningApps in my case)! In this post you will find all my Easter Fun collections in one place and you are free to use them in you feel that they meet your learners’ needs!

Easter Fun for Greek 2nd Grade learners

Easter Fun for Greek 3rd Grade learners

Easter fun for Greek 4th Grade learners

Easter fun for Greek 5th Grade learners

Easter fun for Greek 6th Grade learners

6th Grade, Public Education

Easter Fun for Greek 6th Graders!

Posted on April 13, 2020 by Vivi Hamilou

Easter games, activities, information, quizzes, cooking and crafting, all in one place! If this is what you’ve been looking for for your learners, feel free to use it!

5th Grade, Public Education

Easter Fun for Greek 5th Graders!

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Vivi Hamilou

Another Thinglink interactive image, for my 5th Graders this time! If your 5th Graders are anything like mine, I think they will love it! Feel free to use it!

4th Grade, Public Education

Easter Fun for Greek 4th Graders!

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Vivi Hamilou

My 4th Graders are a bouquet of many different beautiful flowers! This Thinglink collection is quite rich in activities and it has been created for them, but it can be used by any colleague who feels that his/her learners will appreciate it!

3rd Grade, Public Education

Easter Fun for Greek 3rd Graders!

Posted on April 11, 2020 by Vivi Hamilou

Another Easter adventure for my 3rd Graders this time! Activities, games, cooking and crafts, all in one place! You can find it here!

2nd Grade, Public Education

Easter Fun for Greek 2nd Graders!

Posted on April 11, 2020April 11, 2020 by Vivi Hamilou

Ideas, Thoughts, Concerns, Public Education

TEACHING ENGLISH IN DIFFERENT CLASSROOMS

Posted on March 3, 2020March 3, 2020 by Vivi Hamilou

Most public-school English Language teachers in Greece come from the private sector prior to being substitute or appointed teachers, just like me. When I go back to these first days of change, the inevitable comparison between where I had been and where I eventually found myself in is still so vivid in my mind! By the first week, the mental list of pros and cons between the two sectors had been formed just to help me realize the restrictions to be considered and the adaptations to be employed in my new teaching context. Would you like to know about the drawback that was on top of the list of negative aspects, the one that kept flashing in my head like an old-fashioned neon sign? Well, you’ve probably guessed right: it was the sad fact that I did not have my own classroom anymore!

What does it really mean not to have your own English classroom in a Greek public primary school? That’s a question with a long answer actually, an answer sadly familiar to most of my Greek colleagues to a question that is normally never (even thought of being) asked to a European or American one.

First of all, if you work for a school that does not have a separate English classroom, carrying stuff becomes your … trademark! For an ordinary lesson that does not require a lot of teaching aids, you normally carry a CD player and a CD or a laptop with speakers for the necessary audio files (as this equipment is not always present in every classroom in most schools), the learners’ notebooks and/or worksheets, as well as your course book and activity book copies that you never leave in any classroom, because you need them to prepare the lesson and you do not want to tempt your learners with materials that contain all the answers to all the tasks, conveniently ‘served’ on a bookcase shelf! If you are the kind of teacher that uses a variety of instructional materials, however, you may find yourself needing extra hands (and extra strength!) for the flashcards, the projector, the class mascot, a ball, a big cardboard dice and the photocopied worksheets that you intend to use during the lesson. Your extra hands are normally very willing to help, are more than the ones you need and actually belong to your learners who are not supposed to be spending their break helping you carry the necessary materials for the lesson and are kindly asked to help as soon as the bell rings – which usually occurs right after you have devoted your break to collect everything in one place at the teachers’ office! And that is, of course, only if you, the teacher, are not busy treating a wound, mediating a conflict, going to the bathroom, having something to eat, arranging a cross-curricular approach with a colleague, photocopying handouts or supervising the learners during the break! Because, if you are busy with any of these or other tasks, you inevitably limit your teaching to the main aids mentioned earlier, wrongfully feeling inadequate and guilty for not being able to offer your learners the best you can or would like to have offered.

Aside from being the teacher who always carries stuff, you often find yourself in a classroom where the learners’ seating arrangement is by no means convenient to the collaborative, communicative approach you mean to employ and exploit in your lessons. Most all-subject teachers in Greek public schools are usually fond of the Π-shaped seating arrangement, or the more traditional one, with the learners sitting in pairs in two or three rows of desks. So, what do you do in this case?

Do you move everything wasting some valuable teaching and learning time, making a lot of noise and arousing conflicts as to who is going to be with whom in the same group?

Yes, you do (at least I do), you rarely do, with a lot of preparation during the break, in cases you want to rock the boat, or when you really have to exploit the benefits of group work!

Do you settle for the pre-determined seating arrangement and adjust your teaching accordingly?

Yes, you do (at least I do), on an almost daily basis, in most of the classrooms you teach in, trying to compromise with pre-determined and sometimes inconvenient level-wise pairs of learners.

Having discussed this issue with many colleagues, the pre-determined by the all-subjects teacher seating arrangement is a considerable challenge for all of the foreign language teachers who subscribe to the benefits of group work, as group-seating arrangement appears to be the least preferred one in most schools. Based on these discussions, rearranging the furniture and moving it all back at the end of the lesson seems to rarely occur mainly in the ground-floor classrooms of Greek public schools.

One of the most daunting drawbacks of moving around the school rooms every teaching hour is the fact that, most of the times, language teachers appear to feel more like a guest, rather than a classroom-mate in each room. Being allowed to use supplies (the stapler, paper clips, whiteboard markers, etc.), a part of the notice board or the wall, a part of a bookcase shelf or even the teacher’s desk (!) are unfortunately not taken for granted in all teaching contexts! We have all heard of (or even experienced) instances where the teacher’s desk is uninvitingly full of coursebooks, students’ notebooks and photocopies, the drawers are occupied and so are the classroom notice boards and the sharing of supplies that are actually bought by the school triggers arguments and ice-cold smiles between colleagues. Although fortunately this is not always the case in the majority of the classrooms, public-school English-Language teachers in Greece normally carry the most sizeable, yet elegant (!) handbags or backpacks in an attempt to be prepared for any case! For years, my colleagues and I have carried or been carrying a pencil case full of pens, pencils, erasers and sharpeners, a pencil case full of whiteboard markers, a stapler, a double-hole puncher, paper and scotch tape, paper tissues, wet wipes and stickers – among other non-school related items!

Bearing all these and maybe some extra, more trivial challenges in mind, not having your own classroom is quite demanding, especially if you are required to do this in more than one schools, as is normally the case with most Greek EFL teachers in public schools. This year I am one of the lucky ones to be able to use an English classroom, but, after many years of personal experience and exchanges of opinions with colleagues, it seems that working conditions can improve considerably with good communication with the colleagues, willingness from all sides to compromise and lots of planning! Challenges help us grow, make us strong and trigger creativity and motivation, therefore, not having our own classroom is just another hard challenge out there that keeps us on our toes!

3rd Grade, Public Education

Magic Book 2 – 1st Term Revision Test

Posted on December 8, 2019December 8, 2019 by Vivi Hamilou

It has been a long while since I’ve posted anything on my blog or facebook page, but I’ve been busy sharing my time among family, work and my personal needs (not sharing it equally, unfortunately, but still doing my best in all areas!). To be honest, I have really missed this communicative, social and creative aspect of my job!

So, have you finished with the 1st term tests at school, or are you taking advantage of the last days of the term, like I am? Last night I finished working on the 1st term test for my 3rd graders and, as it took me a while to organise and edit, I thought it would be nice to share it with all of you that are also burning the midnight oil preparing and correcting handouts and tests these days! We have currently finished Lessons 1 and 2 from Unit 1 in Magic Book 2, so, if you want to save this document and use it either as a test, or as a revision handout, please, leave a comment with your email address under the following blog post and I’ll send it to you as soon as possible!

Apart from the revision test, I have also prepared a task for early-finishers, as I have always had learners who complete the tests almost as soon as they get their copy! Therefore, you will aslo get a copy of that worksheet which can also be attached to the main test as an extra/bonus task – it is up to you, your learners’ competence level and the time you wish to spend on test writing!

I really hope you will find this useful and time-saving!

6th Grade, Computer-Assisted Language Learning, Projects, Public Education

Superstitions Around Europe – eTwinning project – 6th Grade

Posted on May 29, 2019July 23, 2019 by Vivi Hamilou

This school year 6th graders at the Primary School of Efxeinoupoli have been working on an eTwinning project that focuses on sharing their national and local superstitions with their European peers and learning all about theirs. The teachers involved in this project have the opportunity to raise their learners’ awareness of their own and others’ customs and traditions by means of superstitions, to develop their global understanding as citizens of the world, to help them realize the emergence of English as an international language, and to assist them to learn how to work cooperatively while improving their ICT skills. The secondary objectives of the project aim at developring the learners’ reading and writing skills in English, promoting collaborative learning in the classroom as well as through WEB tools, introducing the use of technology in learning (video, email, search engine, word processor, PowerPoint presentation, etc) and providing room for the learners’ artistic expression.

Prior to working on the actual project, our learners have worked on a collaborative presentation in an attempt to present to their European peers their school and their classroom! Here is the completed schools presentation so far:

We have separated the superstitions into categories so as to be able to present them and compare and contrast them! The first category is related to animal superstitions. All European learners have been invited to present this category on a padlet wall, using text, drawings, pictures and/or videos. You can access their completed work here!

The next category invited learners to present the New Year Eve and Day superstitions in the form of a video. The learners have prepared their scripts in English and are the shining starts in the following video:

The following category presents the superstitions related to weddings and funerals. In order to be able to gather the necessary information to present the topic to their European peers, our 6th grade learners have invited father George Giannios from the local church to help them. Father George was kind enough to present the superstitions, explain the role that superstitions should have in our lives and discuss what the Greek Orthodox church believes about superstitions.

Superstitions related to weddings and funerals – eTwinning – Primary School of Efxeinoupoli, Greece from viv_h

After that, our learners went to school computer lab and worked in groups in order to present the superstitions in English. All European learners have typed their national and local superstitions in a collaborative word processing document in order to create a book! This is what their book looks like so far!

European superstitions related to wedding and funeral ceremonies from viv_h

6th Grade, Computer-Assisted Language Learning, Projects, Public Education

PRESENTATION OF EUROPEAN SCHOOLS – ETWINNING PROJECT, 2018-2019

Posted on May 28, 2019May 29, 2019 by Vivi Hamilou

So many teachers and so many pupils working on the eTwinning project that is related to “Superstitions Around Europe”! We have met each other through our Twinspace, but what do our schools look like? Learners have worked collaboratively on an online PowerPoint presentation with an eye to showing everyone their second home, their school! Here is the presentation they have created in the form of a video!