BP5_201012_FlickrLessonPlan

image retrieved from www.tcscenter.com/ portal/certifications/esl

The lesson I found for using Flickr in the classroom is targeted at teaching language to English Language Learners. This would be useful for teachers who teach ESL classes and for foreign language courses as well. I think the best thing about this lesson is that it is appropriate for many different age groups. You could use it to teach sight words to Kindergarteners that are learning how to read or high- school students who need to learn advanced content vocabulary.

Students that are in ESL classes or newcomers to the country would especially benefit from this lesson because of the ability to add text to the photo. It is very important for students who are learning a language to be provided with text so that they begin making visual connections with what they read and write. It is suggested that the photographs be accompanied with guiding questions such as "Can you describe what is happening in this photo? or, “How do you think these people are feeling?” or simply list vocabulary words with each photo. It is also suggested that this lesson be used to help students study for quizzes and exams. They also suggest teaching comparing/contrasting with Flickr, which I thought is a great way for students to practice their oral and written language use of comparison/contrasting vocabulary.

As I said earlier, this lesson can be useful to foreign language teachers as well. Flickr is available in many languages so there shouldn’t be any problem with using it in a foreign language class. Students can also create their own photostreams to demonstrate language acquisition understanding.