A language school in Trabzon, Turkey has purchased many of my resources for its language school curriculum. They are on a mission to teach English by focusing on stage-based performance, real-life simulations, and high-energy drama activities where students “live” the language rather than just memorize it. This enlightened program will teach in workshop-style classes that move away from standard desks and textbooks. Oh, those lucky students!
To give you the full context: They started their school in October. “Our first period (14 weeks) was a success using AI-generated materials, with families and students very happy. We are now in our second period (16 weeks), meeting for 2 sessions per week, 2 hours each. Uniquely, we have two trainers in every class.”
Their current groups are:
- Ages 5-6 (4 students, a new group to start 2 days later)
- Ages 7-9 (10 students, most of them continuing from the first period)
- Ages 10-13 (3 students, continuing from the first period)
The school is strictly for spoken communication, role-plays, games, movement, interaction, and drama. Their motto is “Future Skills: Stage | Communication | Confidence.” Since students already receive “classic” English instruction at school (reading/writing/testing), we avoid that entirely. We want to bring the language to life. We cover grammar and subjects only briefly to refresh their memory, then immediately move to scenarios and dialogues for experiencing the language.
They purchased my materials to contribute to their language school curriculum, that is systematic and organized regarding themes, structures, and vocabulary, while maintaining their unique, game-based, and production-oriented approach. It’s going to be perfect, my resources were made for schools like that!
FLOW OF WORK
One needs to roll over new learning with revision in every lesson, moving forward despite the fact that there are gaps and slow learners. One should not stagnate on the same material (story, skit) as it will become stale. Break up the lessons into sections – intense language games, role play, song, skit, worksheet, etc. Here is how to divide up a long day of English into parts. You can take these ideas and transfer them to an hour of English with young children. So each “session” mentioned might be a ten-minute slot in an hour’s class. Therefore, lessons are varied as you work on themes over time rather than flogging one thing until it’s perfect.
SPECIFIC LANGUAGE CURRICULUM GUIDELINES
Ages 5-6: Start with story one and follow the stories as your curriculum; use the songs. If students are complete beginners with NO English, just do games, stories, songs, and role-play the stories for the whole first term. How far you get depends on how many lessons per week you have and whether the kids have any English to start with. Cover AT LEAST three stories & songs in a term if you see them once a week, but more if you have more frequent lessons. In the second term, introduce a skit alongside the story syllabus.
Ages 7-9: Use the SKITS as your curriculum and intersperse the Special Days stories as they come up in the term. You may be able to do two or three skits per term and two or three stories, or more if ability and time permit.
Ages 10-13: Use the SKITS and Special Days if they do not know them, but move much more quickly through them. These students could definitely use the ABOUT ME and DAILY LIFE stories once you have worked through the skits and Special Days. Also, at that point, after working through all the above, you could start on the Skits for TEENS (B1 level; the skits cover everything for A2 level going up to B1).
TEEN CURRICULUM
When the 10-13 group becomes more advanced (after a year), and you get more teens at the school, you’ll need my teen books. Here is an example game, which you can use right away and adapt for any vocabulary theme: Adverb games for adverbs of manner. You will like it as it involves acting, getting up, and moving.
SCHOOL TO PARENT COMMUNICATION
Be sure to have a performance at the end of each term where you invite the parents and all groups perform in front of parents and each other. If you don’t have a room large enough, do the best you can. Groups must anyway go into eachother’s classrooms and perform.
Keep a note of these links for getting a show together: Prepare for a school show and End of term show ideas.
PREPARATION
Have all school teachers read the introductory parts of the games books for top tips, including classroom management.
Create your library of vocabulary flashcards. Print out all the flashcards and laminate them with soft plastic. Laminating pouches are heavy, have sharp edges, and are expensive, so I recommend rolls of sticky-back plastic instead.
If all teachers work together with the preparation it will make them feel like a real team. That can make such a difference…
CREATING A GREAT ATMOSPHERE AT THE LANGUAGE SCHOOL
Encourage a sharing and cooperative atmosphere amoung teachers, not competition. Ego can be a super-annoying thing where teachers don’t want to share their recipes for success, so they can be the best, most fun, most popular… A bit like someone not sharing the secret of their grandmother’s apple pie. However, if you can get around that and have it so teachers work together, then you’ll be flying, and their lives will be easier, with less prep time and better lessons.
Here are some ideas from grok AI on the topic of creating a sharing culture in your language school:
Peer showcases Teachers voluntarily host quick 20–30 min sessions sharing one favourite activity, tip or resource. Others join to learn (not judge). End with “What I’ll try” thanks. Rotate hosts. Frame as: “We all improve together.”
Team planning + group rewards Schedule regular group planning time (by level or skill). Co-create lessons, materials or solutions. Reward/celebrate the team when resources get used widely or student results improve together — e.g. “Great job team on those role-plays!”
Relationship rituals + shared vision Run monthly spotlights (quick personal/professional shares), random coffee pairs, or fun staff events. Co-write a vision like “We grow stronger by supporting each other.” Shout out help publicly. Builds trust so helping feels natural.
THE LANGUAGE SCHOOL CURRICULUM
This language school will use stories, skits, songs and games as part of their curriculum:
Stories 1 to 10, with lesson plans, worksheets, songs, and flashcards with Preschool language games.
More stories (11 to 20), with lesson plans, worksheets, songs, and flashcards
Special Days stories, with lesson plans, worksheets, songs, and flashcards with Primary school language games
Plays and skits for children
Follow-on resources may be About Me and Daily Life, Skits for Teens and games for teens.