The ESL Miscellany: A Treasury of Cultural and Linguistic Information

This is a suggestive reference for English language teachers doing lesson plans, preparing handouts, developing curriculum, and writing materials. The book gives ideas and photocopyable vocabulary lists supporting most of what we do as ESL/EFL teachers today. First, there are 85 pages of linguistic material on the phonology, morphology/lexicon, and grammar of English. Then there are ten situations to be presented in lessons and discussed, such as health and safety, personal and family needs, shopping and services, recreation, and citizenship. There are also 63 topics to teach about - for example, cooking, human relationships, natural resources, math, the body, hotels, banking, law, the media, college, history, and death. There are four lists of communicative functions to be considered at different proficiency levels. There are 42 cultural topics updated - on U.S. and Canadian geography, government, and history; on sports, superstitions, education, and the media. And there are 17 metalinguistic topics including a glossary of grammatical terms, spelling rules, a high-frequency word list, abbreviations, road signs, and an atlas. Lastly, there are paralinguistic topics like photographs of American gestures and their meanings.