David Crystal: Keep your English up to date

David Crystal has a lovely series of short and amusing talks about words that are popular but not yet in the dictionary, such as “hoodie” and “get a life” and “in your dreams” and “wired” and “gobsmacked” and “clueless” and “wannabe” and “blog”… so all of my favorite words, actually. Includes audio, pdf lesson plan, […]

Germany vs. USA: Phones

Alex (from Germany) and Jim (from the USA) have a nice vodcast called “Germany vs. USA” where they talk about cultural differences and similarities between the two countries. Here they compare etiquette on the phone. I’m having trouble with phones, skype and co. Can’t find my cellphone, which has stopped bleeping for a recharge, which […]

My generation of dummies

I’m an early Generation Xer, born 1961. Like Obama. Neil Howe compares us very unfavorably to the Millennials (those born in the 1980s and 1990s). He calls us “The Dumbest Generation: The Kids are Alright. But Their Parents….” According to Howe, we “have performed the worst on standardized exams, acquired the fewest educational degrees and […]

Nick Peachey on video

One of my favorite educators in the blogosphere has posted a series about online video and what it has to offer teachers and learners: Find out about free video editing software YouTube for IWBs with PicLens Free Educational TV Channels Open source video animation News Videos for EFL ESL Materials Design Things You Can Do […]

Robert Frost: Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

http://annehodgson.de/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/frost.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadWhose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village though; He will not see me stopping here To watch his woods fill up with snow. My little horse must think it queer To stop without a farmhouse near Between the woods and frozen lake […]

Tori Amos: Winter

Sweet but edgy, emotional but fearless, and so personal: Tori Amos performing her masterpiece “Winter” at Montreux in 1991, before “Little Earthquakes” was released. This song about how the bond between a father and a daughter changes as she grows up moves me to tears. Her early concerts were released in September on CD: Live […]