ESL Teachers: Introducing the ESL Textbook Oxford Picture Dictionary, 2nd Edition

Hello fellow ESL teachers,

In this blog, I will be using the Oxford Picture Dictionary (Monolingual English).
This textbook is perfect for any ESL student and any ESL teacher. It can be used by students of all levels, and contains important English words or vocabulary. We use this book at the school I teach in (Hawaii Literacy's Drop In Center) because it can be used with any level of student who has learned the ABCs and basics of English reading. Our school is free for the local immigrant community of Hawaii, hence student attendance is not consistent. Students are free to come and go and hence it is difficult to have a traditional lesson plan structure. In addition, since the school is mostly run by volunteers, there are often not enough ESL teachers to divide students into different levels.

The Oxford Picture Dictionary offers many advantages for us:
1) relevant vocabulary for all levels of students,
2) students and ESL teachers can begin on any page at any time (so new students will not feel like they are behind the class),
3) pictures can be understood even if the student has a very minimal level of English,
4) All levels of students find the book useful and engaging.
5) The teacher's manual and workbooks are excellent and make teaching and learning much easier
6) It is inexpensive for most students (about $17)

Though the book itself is a very important resource, to really benefit from it students need the guidance of a live and enthusiastic ESL teacher to bring the dictionary to life. This blog will contain lessons of each chapter in the Oxford Picture Dictionary, 2nd Edition. These lessons can be used as homework or in class videos for your students to practice the vocabulary. Allowing your students to see you teach, and then see another ESL teacher teach as well, will give them a variety and allow them to stay interested in the material, long enough to repeat it and finally, learn it!

Thank you for reading this post. I also have an Ezine Article you can send to friends and fellow aspiring ESL teachers!

I would appreciate any comments or feedback that you may have. I also am interested in learning about the software for the Picture Dictionary. Has anyone tried it and want to give a review?

Thanks again,

Meylysa