What should you do during the first 5 minutes of class? It may be more crucial than you realize! Those first five minutes can really set your ESL class culture and set the expectations of the students. Steve gives some great tips from his years of experience! And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/ ... Yummy Recipe Game: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/ ... ESL UNO Master Packs: https://halandstev...
Jan 30, 2020•29 min•Ep. 28
In this episode, we get a little personal and candid and take a look at our new years resolutions and our subsequent successes and failures. Happy Lunar New Year!!!! Will Steve tackle his mountains? It remains to be seen. And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/ ... Yummy Recipe Game: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/ ... ESL UNO Master Packs: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/ ... ESL Human Bing...
Jan 22, 2020•56 min•Ep. 27
In this episode, Hal & Steve take a look at the hardest parts of teaching ESL - in this case South Korea. For instance, how is the concept of teaching different from the U.S. in South Korea? You'd be suprised how incredibly different it is! We also try to follow up identifying the problem by offering up some different solutions. Happy New Year!!!! And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/ ... Yummy R...
Jan 01, 2020•31 min•Ep. 26
In this episode, Hal & Steve draw from there experience to talk about the best ways to have an excellent ESL Christmas classes or events. They also take a closer look at the cultural aspects you may encounter, and the importance of bieng aware to those. Here are some of the links mentioned in the podcast as excellent resources :) Learn to draw with ABCs... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYc4qbBIDBo&list=PLakKIIiLniCCJalOrYg5wE02ncux7ml4U Learn to draw with supersimplesongs.... https://s...
Dec 23, 2019•52 min•Ep. 25
Summary In this episode, Hal & Steve explore games in the classroom and gamifcation with Dustin Staats. Why or how should we use games in the classroom? Let's talk with an expert and follow his journey of developing his craft of gamification in the classroom. And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/ ... Yummy Recipe Game: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/ ... ESL UNO Master Packs: https://haland...
Dec 15, 2019•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 24
In this episode Hal & Steve take a look at kindy market and how it gets mixed up into the elementary hakwon market. Where did it all go wrong and why? What should we do about it? Steve and I take a closer look at these questions and more. And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/ ... Yummy Recipe Game: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/ ... ESL UNO Master Packs: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blog...
Dec 03, 2019•41 min•Ep. 23
In this episode Hal & Steve take a look at the hardest part of running an English Academy (a hagwon as it's known in South Korea) with a promise to return on the following episode to offer solutions on the problems they've dissected. And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/ ... Yummy Recipe Game: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/ ... ESL UNO Master Packs: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/ .....
Nov 28, 2019•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 22
Running an English Academy (a hagwon as it's known in South Korea) is super stressful. You're a foreigner, in a foreign land, with a government that probably doesn't have the most scrupulous legal track record, and you've gotta somehow convince the locals that you teach English really well. Not only that, you've got to convince them that you can teach English better than the locals, even though they've been trained to be distrustful of everyone from outside their community. Yeah.... it's pretty ...
Nov 18, 2019•52 min•Season 1Ep. 21
How did you know you wanted to teach abroad? We talked about that and more with an awesome and experienced ESL teacher and writer, Jennifer Helfand. She has had a myriad of teaching experiences around the world, and now travels freely around the world teaching online classes and focusing on her work as a writer. She also had some absolutely incredible experiences to share on her volunteer work in refugee camps. Check it out, as well as some of her work: https://www.englishtoinspireyou.com/ Onlin...
Nov 10, 2019•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 20
What's better? Teaching ESL in South Korea or in America? We talked to an awesome ESL teacher with experience in both. Megan Kelly spent a few years teaching in a competitive English Kinergarten Academy in South Korea and also at an International School in the heart of Seoul. She left all of that behind to get her wings as an ESL teacher in the United States. She tells us the pros and cons of both! Check it out. And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher ...
Nov 03, 2019•1 hr 36 min•Season 1Ep. 19
We had a great time chatting with Jennifer Waddell. She's currently an online ESL teacher with Palfish, but spent years abroad in Thailand and China teaching English. Check out her unique story and pay attention to her great advice on handling cultural differences. You can get in touch with Jennifer at her new blog: https://innerseagull.wordpress.com/ And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/ ... Yummy R...
Oct 27, 2019•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 18
Keith Tacey is an American living in Vietnam as the owner and operator of a 200+ student English academy. He runs the facility with his wife and a team of great teachers. In this episode of our podcast, he tells us about his time in Vietnam, his journey into ex-pat ESL entrepreneurship, and the start of his new career as a Jolly Phonics Certified Teacher Trainer. Take a listen! And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveeng...
Oct 19, 2019•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 17
Welcome back to the Hal and Steve English podcast. We got a chance to talk to Madeleine Grace, an ESL teacher from Washington D.C. She was a teacher in the United States who decided to take the trip abroad, and instruct in South Korea. She has an awesome story, and like our friend Kat Sten who we interviewed last time, she tells us about her adventures in Mokpo, South Korea! Take a listen! And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://ha...
Oct 06, 2019•46 min•Season 1Ep. 16
Welcome back to the Hal and Steve English podcast. Kat Sten. She's a really awesome Hagwon/Academy owner in Mokpo, South Korea. Before her journey into the expat ESL teacher life, she was a member of Target's corporate staff. Why she quit that job, how she ended up living in East Asia, and where did this idea of opening an English academy come from? Well... she answers those questions while sharing a ton of golden wisdom nuggets. Take a listen! And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands o...
Sep 29, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 15
Welcome back to the Hal and Steve English podcast. This week we talked to Aaron R. He's been an eSL teacher in South Korea since 2008 and he's taken a really unique journey. He was first brought here as a debate teacher, but after his hagwon suddenly closed, he sought out work as an English teacher. He worked in Seoul and the Southern cities of Korea until opening up his own academy. Take a listen! And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: h...
Sep 22, 2019•59 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Welcome back to another episode of Hal And Steve English. This week we talked to Shawn Smith. He's been an ESL teacher for over 10 years in South Korea and has worked at nearly every type of school you can think of. Last year he started his very own academy at his apartment, and he talks to us about the awesome and not so awesome parts. Take a listen! And for our Hal And Steve content, get your hands on some goodies below.... Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/ ... Yummy R...
Sep 16, 2019•45 min•Season 1Ep. 13
The world can feel a bit limited when you're an ESL teacher. As an employee, your income ranges from 'Barely Able To Payoff Student Debt' to 'Barely Able to Payoff Student Debt and Go Out Once A Week". Since most of us are foreigners in the countries we currently call home, the ladder to success can feel like it's got a few rungs missing. But, that's not exactly true. You've just gotta pay attention to the teachers who came before you, and see how they navigated success. Find out how on this wee...
Sep 08, 2019•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 12
What do you do when an ESL student is too shy to speak in class? What can you do to break them out of their shell? We dive into that topic, and more, in this episode of the Hal And Steve English podcast. We also come to terms with the different concepts of peer criticism and what that does to students' self-esteem, especially in countries like South Korea where what others' think is the most important part of your life. #ESLTeacher #ESLteacherKorea #ESL And for our Hal And Steve content, get you...
Aug 25, 2019•50 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Welcome back to another awesome episode of our podcast. This week, we're talking about Class Killers. You know, the kids who are so bad in class, either through breaking classroom rules or not participating, that they destroy your ESL class. We've got some awesome tips on how to handle these kids, mostly based on our kids in South Korea (Yeoncheon, Dongducheon, Yangju, Uijeongbu, and Seoul), but this applies to all! #ESLTeacher #ESLteacherKorea #ESL And for our Hal And Steve content, get your ha...
Aug 18, 2019•57 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Welcome back to the podcast. We decided to take it easy this week and just chat. It's the tail end of summer and the weather's heating up, the kids are out of school, and the busy 'sool roads', aka the bar part of town, are busy with university kids returning home. It's a pretty great time to get out and about, and a good chance to chat about some of the more casual aspects of teaching as an expat in Korea. #ESLTeacher #ESLteacherKorea #SummerSouthKorea And for our Hal And Steve content, get you...
Aug 11, 2019•39 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Welcome back to the podcast. This week, we're continuing our journey of interviewing ESL teachers and Expats. Chris Hintsala, a teacher who first started working in Mokpo, South Korea, joins us this week. He's been teaching for nearly ten years, and during that time, has published his own children's books and is the man behind Listen and Learn English, a great Youtube channel for English Language Learners. On this podcast, we'll be listening to his stories of teaching in Hagwons, taking a swing ...
Jul 21, 2019•58 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Welcome back to Hal And Steve English. This week we've got Jack Glowacki, an ESL teacher expat who's been around the world while teaching. He tells us about how he started teaching ESL in the early 2000's in Canada, and how he entered the ESL scene in Japan, then wound up in Ulsan South Korea. He's gone on to create a ton of awesome stuff. I'll place all the links down here... Youtube Channel:Liv'in' Korea : https://www.youtube.com/user/daemonic1975 Living Korea Facebook page: https://www.facebo...
Jul 15, 2019•48 min•Season 1Ep. 7
This week we interview our own Hal Thomason Wiley to find out how the dapper gentleman found himself in South Korea as an ESL teacher. We talk about his arrival at Incheon Airport, his first few days in the countryside right outside the DMZ, and how his life changed in Korea. Check it out!. Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/esl-speaking-activities-membership ESL UNO Master Packs: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/english-conversation-lesson-esl-efl/esl-uno-master-pack ...
Jul 07, 2019•43 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Today we talked to Rhett Burton, who's been an ESL teacher in South Korea since 2002. He's got a great story to tell, great advice, and some pretty awesome insight into ESL in Korea. Also, thanks for putting up with my iffy mic quality. We didn't realize till it was all over! Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/esl-speaking-activities-membership ESL UNO Master Packs: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/english-conversation-lesson-esl-efl/esl-uno-master-pack ESL Human Bingo...
Jun 30, 2019•53 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Adult ESL students are tricky. Their needs range from practicing English as a hobby, to studying ESL for university entrance exams, all the way to ESL for business. Basically, adult English students have a ton of different goals. And they're a really diverse type. But you've got to be careful. Unlike children ESL students, adult ESL students aren't forced to study in your class. If you're a public school or academy teacher, kids are mandated by the government (or their mothers) to attend your cl...
Jun 16, 2019•30 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Steve regrets his first year teaching ESL in the Korean countryside. He had the perfect ESL life but he didn't even know it! Small classes, beautiful school, awesome co-workers, a communal garden, and enough free time to write all the lessons his little heart could ever want. But... he was too hung up on culture shock and what he expected to appreciate it. Check it out! #ESLKorea #ESLAbroad #TeachingESLinKorea Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/esl-speaking-activities-memb...
Jun 16, 2019•38 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Nothing can ruin your day like hearing complaints from your students. But can I let you in on a little secret.... Don't listen to them! When it comes to adult esl students, you're dealing with a lot of complex baggage that gets dragged into the classroom. Don't let it drag you down! #TeachingESL #OnlineESLTeachers #TeachingAdultESL Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/esl-speaking-activities-membership ESL UNO Master Packs: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/english-conver...
Jun 16, 2019•36 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Find out how we ended up as ESL teachers in South Korea. I'll give you a hint, it's probably the same exact reason you and your friends ended up as ESL teachers. Click play for more! Teacher Memberships: https://halandsteveenglish.com/pages/esl-speaking-activities-membership ESL UNO Master Packs: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/english-conversation-lesson-esl-efl/esl-uno-master-pack ESL Human Bingo: https://halandsteveenglish.com/blogs/english-conversation-lesson-esl-efl/bingo-with-some-twi...
Jun 16, 2019•34 min•Season 1Ep. 4
