This article, “ELTpics: A Digital Picture File for English Language Teachers” was written by Joe McVeigh who has been in the field of teaching English for over 25 years. This post discusses the use of pictures when working with ESL students. It begins by mentioning that as educators, we typically try to find ways to incorporate photos into our classroom to make lessons more engaging for students. However, this can lead to problems of copyright restrictions and finding just the right photo. TESOL teachers are even more likely to use photos with their students in order to make learning more meaningful. He stated that back when he first began teaching, teachers actually used to flip through magazines and clip their “just right” photos and file them away into some sort of system. However, now we have the Internet to help us with our search.
McVeigh goes on to discuss how a group of teachers created ELTpics- a massive online picture file website for English language teachers. The idea all started with a group of ESL teachers on Twitter. They decided to create ELTpics by using their own photographs and not have any royalty fees. Teachers are able to access ELTpics through the website or via Flickr and are encouraged to post their own photos related to the different themes listed. There are hundreds of different categories including animals, adjectives, body, colors, and others that would be beneficial to ESL learners.
Reading this article led me to the ELTpics website. It said that every two weeks, teachers and others in ELT are invited to take and share photos related to a given theme which is publicized on Facebook and Twitter. It’s amazing how much social media can help with something like this! I think this website would be a very quick and easy way to find pictures to share with ESL students and not have to worry about copyright. I also think that my students could access photos from here for projects without worrying about copyright. I’m glad I stumbled upon this article in my Google Alerts so I know about the ELTpics site!
Kate,
ReplyDeleteI explored the ELTpics Flickr site and agree that this is a great resource! I love that these pictures are updated and current. Often when I search for photos to use in my lessons, they are poor quality and outdated. The fact that photos are added every two weeks is also a plus. I know that my students will be much more engaged with these images than with the clip-art images I typically use. I often teach my grammar skills during writing, and will teach a mini language lesson before giving my students time to write. The collections on this site, such as the adjectives and abstract nouns collections, will be super helpful and useful in those mini lessons.
Thank you for sharing!
Jordan