Learn English with the British Council
You know how it is always said that you should save the best for last? Maybe this will not be my last post, but as one of the final posts it will deal with a great website. I am talking about http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/ . It is made available by the British council. Before I start to talk about it I would like to show you what the Prime minister has to say about the establishment of this website:
So what can you do? One way to improve your English is to practice it through different themes. You can choose from various topics such as sport, culture or science. When you have decided for one you simply click on it and you will be led to another page. There you find exercises for practising various skills. You will find articles or blogs you can read, you can listen to podcasts or you can do games or listen to songs about the topic.
In addition, you can test your level as an English learner to be able to find activities that are appropriate for you. If you are interested in practicing certain skills you find activities for grammar or vocabulary as well as for writing, reading and listening . I especially recommend the podcasts. They are great. Again you can find different topics as well as different levels. What is really useful is that you can download them as well and listen to them on the bus or while you are eating, so you do not necessarily need an internet access. As future teachers we can simply download them and use them in class, which is really useful as they are always up-to-date (in contrast to listening exercises you often find in English books). Connected to the podcasts are exercises you can do online or simply print out.
Unfortunately I cannot insert mp3′s without purchasing video press, so instead I simply wanted to insert a vodpod video. But as this is not working on my computer as well, I will give you the link instead:
http://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish-podcasts-elementary.htm
You should also see my vodpod videos on the right, maybe it is working on your computer. 
If you just want to do some English for fun or you need a game or a cartoon for your class, you get different material on this website as well. There are songs, many cartoons and games, just to name an interactive “I spy with my little eye…” as one example. The British council provides activities for adult learners as well as for children. If you are looking for information especially for teachers, you should definitely check out http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/. There you can get new ideas or simply talk to other teachers of English from all over the world. So whatever you decide for will give you inspiration for your own English lesson.
As you can see, I could go on and on talking about this website and that is because I am totally enthusiastic about it! Probably it is because I have lived in England for a while, but I think it is amazing what the British council has created. You can get so many ideas as well as material on all kinds of topics and the best thing is that you do not have to worry about the reliability of the material. Additionally, you can improve your English by listening to podcasts or doing games, you can send in your writings or exchange ideas and all this is made available for free!!
I have to repeat myself, but I strongly recommend to use this website in class. In my opinion, it is one of the best you can find on the internet (of course I do not know every website on FLE). Even if you do not want to use it, it can give you many new ideas about what is possible in the English classroom concerning new media!
LEARN AND TEACH ENGLISH WITH THE BRITISH COUNCIL!!!
