Bridging the North

Saturday 30th September 2023

9:00 – 10:00
Registration & Publishers’ Exhibition

10:05 – 10:55
Room 1 Room 2 Room 4 Room 5 Room 6 Room 7 Room 10
Robin Walker Neil Ainsworth Simone Bleda Adriana Coto Fran Seftel & Amanda Esther Vázquez
Intelligi …. Sorry, Global skills: Peer feedback in the Fernández Yvonne Scherphof McLoughlin The ABCs of
what did you say? empowering ELT classroom Low-cost ideas: Hands, mind and Drawing is putting a successful teaching
E language learners BC using things around heart through early line around an idea and learning
E Express Publishing me years CLIL BC E
Oxford University E A
Press
11:05 – 11:55
Room 1 Room 2 Room 4 Room 5 Room 6 Room 7 Room 10
Adriana Bocu Julie Eckroth Andrea Menéndez Kevin Alexander Ana Demitroff Elsa Pérez-Espinosa Caroline Chapman
Accents: getting Relax, Relate, Learning through Salvage Hands, mind and Teacher survival kit: Helping students
students to speak Rewind and Repeat: words: incorporating How to really use heart through what I learnt from understand that the
great English engaging our my writing into songs in the English primary Science, my students chairs aren't magic!
EF youngest learners language teaching language classroom maths and art E E
A E CD B

11:55 – 12:50
Coffee Break kindly sponsored by ETS Global
Publishers’ Exhibition

12.50 – 13.40
Room 1 Room 2 Room 4 Room 5 Room 6 Room 7 Room 10
Amber Qureshi Chris Richards Marcus Siconolfi Florencia Giudici Anabel Reis Damian Szerszen Joe Del Rio
Is it mission A Sense of Designing engaging How to create 10- Engaging hearts, Games unchained! Motivating students
impossible to start a achievement group activities minute activities inspiring minds - (Uncut) in exam preparation
conversation in a E based on TOEFL iBT based on music teaching with the art EF classes
classroom? listening passages videos of drawing EG
CD D CD BC Trinity College
ETS Global London

13:50 – 14:40
Room 1 Room 2 Room 4 Room 5 Room 6 Room 7 Room 10
Alexandra Purcell Emma Heyderman David James Ruth Williams Anna Pires Shawn Severson Nathan Whittle
Oracy: empowering Can a language The Framework of Storytelling - a "I've got sunshine on The “Give me 5” of Motivating students
the student Voice teacher save the Student Motivation practical workshop a cloudy day" - using videos in the through culture
BC world? EG on the art of music in the ESL classroom BC
Cambridge CD storytelling classroom CD Richmond ELT
University Press and AB E
Assessment
14:45 – 15:00
Raffle Draw

Key: A – Early Years/Young Learners; B – Primary; C – Secondary; D – Adults;

E – All; F – Business; G - Exams

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ABSTRACTS AND SPEAKER BIODATA
10:05 – 10:55
Room 1: Robin Walker Retired
Intelligi …. Sorry, what did you say?
The 2018 CEFR update has completely new descriptors for the area of
phonological control. The goal of native-speakerness has been rejected
in favour of intelligibility. But what exactly does it mean to say that
somebody is intelligible? And what are the consequences of a goal of intelligibility for
pronunciation teaching in ELT in the 21st century?
Robin has been in ELT since 1981 as a teacher, trainer, materials writer, and consultant.
A former editor of the journal of the IATEFL Pronunciation Special Interest Group, more
recently, he was part of the Oxford University Press Expert Panel for the teaching of
pronunciation to the 21st-century learner. Robin regularly collaborates with Oxford
University Press and is the author of Teaching the Pronunciation of English as a Lingua
Franca, and of the OUP position paper English pronunciation for a Global World. He is
currently finishing off the pronunciation title for the series Into the Classroom, together
with Gemma Archer.
www.englishglobalcom.com

Room 2: Neil Ainsworth OUP

Global skills: empowering language learners
We live in a complicated and ever-changing world, companies across the
globe are looking for employees who not only have a high level of English
proficiency, but who are adaptable, creative, and have strong
communicative and intercultural competence. Thankfully, these Global
skills go hand-in-hand with communicative language teaching, and an increased
knowledge of how to integrate them into our language classes can help our students
develop the abilities and know-how that will help them meet the challenges of our global
world. In this session, we’ll look at what global skills are, why they are important for our
students’ futures, and how we can incorporate them into our English classes
Neil has been involved in ELT for 20 years working as a teacher, teacher trainer, and
director of studies in Australia, Ireland and Spain. He now works in the Professional
Development team at OUP where he is especially interested in Bilingual Education,
Mediation, and Global Skills. Neil creates and delivers material on a wide range of PD
topics both in Spain, where he is based, and internationally. He also writes for the Oxford
Teachers’ Academy.
neil.ainsworth@oup.com

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Room 4: Simone Bleda ELT Consultant Express Publishing / edebé
Peer feedback in the ELT classroom
In a student-centred education system it is very important to monitor
students´ learning processes and to give them direct feedback. Such
feedback can help students learn more efficiently and motivate them to
learn. Giving feedback is largely used by the teacher for error correction. In this talk, the
focus is on the importance of teaching students how to give and receive feedback (peer
feedback). Giving and receiving feedback does not only help students understand their
own learning processes better, but it’s also a useful, interactive and practical tool to
produce language in real-life situations, easy to incorporate in classroom activities and
adaptable to different ages and level.
Simone Bleda studied Sociology and Leisure Sciences at the Universities of Breda and
Tilburg (The Netherlands). Interested in the role of sport in society, she worked for
different (international) sport organisations setting up and implementing social sports
projects. She started her teaching career at the University of Breda, teaching subjects as
communication skills, project and event management and sport marketing in national
and international study programmes. After her move to Spain in 2008 she qualified as
an English teacher and started teaching English. She now works as an ELT Consultant for
Edebe-Express Publishing and is specifically interested in project based and student-
centred learning. She loves travelling, reading, crossfit and cycling.
sbleda@edebe.net

Room 5: Adriana Coto Fernández Planet Idiomas Gijón, Asturias

Low-cost ideas: using things around me
In a world where students spend most of their time glued to their
screens and with more and more distractions (TikTok, BeReal…), keeping
their attention can sometimes look like an ordeal. Finding games and
activities to catch their eye cannot only be hard but sometimes it can also hurt your
pocket. However, there are many low-cost things we can use if we just look around us.
I’ll share some ideas with you and feel free to share yours too. All hands on deck
welcome in this practical workshop :)

With a degree in English Philology from the University of Oviedo, Adriana has 20 years
of experience in the field of education, working as a teacher (ages 5 to 75), camp leader
(ages 2 to 12) and group leader abroad (ages 11 to 17). She works as a teacher and media
content creator and manager for Planet Idiomas, for whom she's also the group leader
and representative in the USA and the UK. She is also an examiner and the Area
Coordinator for TESOL-SPAIN in Asturias. She is very enthusiastic and always has a
friendly smile on her face. @adrianacotowow

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Room 6: Fran Seftel & Yvonne Scherphof Colégio do Ave, Guimarães and IH Braga,
Portugal / Such Fun, Netherlands
Hands, mind and heart through early years CLIL and STE(A)M
Is it age appropriate? Is it child centred? What competences are being developed? How
do we support language? These are some of the questions we’ll be exploring as we share
some of our favourite activities from our inspiring international STE(A)M project. In this
workshop, there’ll be lots of practical ideas that encourage hands-on learning about the
world around us and making connections through Arts and other areas. This session
echoes those presented by our colleagues Anita Demitroff and Anabel Reis, showing that
a whole child approach is relevant at all ages. Hands, mind and heart through early years
CLIL
Fran Seftel is an EFL / CLIL teacher at Colégio do Ave in Guimaraes
and International House Braga. She is also affiliated with You First
Education based in Galicia. She has over 25 years of experience at all
levels but her special interest is teaching kindergarten and early
primary school children through a more holistic approach,
integrating English in a range of interconnected areas like social and
natural sciences, maths, art, music, drama, PE, IT and play routines.
She is the Portuguese coordinator of three Erasmus+ projects in
collaboration with other European countries.

Yvonne Scherphof is an EFL teacher and founder of Such Fun in the

Netherlands, an award-winning programme which arranges for
international teacher trainees to co-teach English as a Foreign
Language to 4–12-year-old pupils, with the class teachers, in 10
schools in Den Bosch. Yvonne is also a teacher trainer and an EFL and
CLIL materials developer and has created many songs for this purpose.
She has set up different successful Erasmus+ projects for very young
learners about STEAM and learning English through stories and free
play, as well as projects for young learners about sustainability.

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Room 7: Amanda McLoughlin Freelance
Drawing is putting a line around an idea
In this talk we will be reflecting on why drawing and art are
important to learning. One powerful way of building and
establishing neural connections as learners learn new things is by
incorporating art and drawing into the process of learning. We'll look at several ideas
for the ELT teacher to help see how this can be done in the classroom.
Amanda Mcloughlin is an experienced teacher, teacher trainer and materials writer. She
has written CLIL textbooks for many different teaching contexts and has written CLIL and
EFL teacher training courses for primary and secondary teachers. In addition, she has
made many conference presentations at national and international ELT conferences.
mcloughlinaj@gmail.com

Room 10: Esther Vázquez Evenio Educational Consultancy

The ABCs of successful teaching and learning
Human beings have a natural inclination to learn. We are learning
beings and highly teachable ones. Yet, these universal truths may not
seem, at times, so easily applicable in formal educational contexts,
due to a variety of reasons. In this session presenter and attendees
will discuss and revise some key components that should be present in every teaching
and learning interaction so that learning becomes achievable and pleasurable for every
single learner.
Esther Vázquez Oubiña is an experienced teacher and teacher trainer and has taught
English extensively at different levels and backgrounds. She is a Cambridge Speaking
Examiner and an Academic Consultant for National Geographic Learning and has
delivered presentations in South and Central America, in Spain, India and in the USA.
Esther holds a BA in Educational Management and a master’s degree in Neurosciences
for Educators. She is founder and CEO of EVenio Educational Consultancy and
accompanies educational institutions as an advisor in the pedagogic and academic fields.
https://evenioconsultora.com/

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11:05 – 11:55
Room 1: Adriana Bocu English Connection, Sevilla
Accents: getting students to speak great English
Have you ever listened to someone speaking, fallen in love with
their pronunciation and tried to discover their nationality? Why
are accents necessary? Accents are essential to our identity and
give clues about who we are and the community we belong to or
wish to belong to. Learning more about unique accents and how to pronounce the words
will raise awareness of their use and strengthen your speaking and listening skills. This
session will provide a more accessible approach to spotting and deciphering different
English accents.
Adriana Bocu is a passionate and professional English teacher and teacher trainer
specialising in teaching pronunciation. She has taught in Romania, Spain, Malta, and the
UK, working with different age ranges and levels, teaching EAP, CLIL, and General and
Exam English. She started as a national and national-international conference speaker.
She holds a BA in French and Romanian Literature and a MA in Applied linguistics and is
a Trinity DipTESOL-qualified teacher and trainer.
adrianabocu2001@gmail.com

Room 2: Julie Eckroth CEIP El Tejar, Majadahonda

Relax, Relate, Rewind and Repeat: engaging our youngest learners
In this workshop, I would like to share some techniques that I use
with my preschool English language learners to help increase their
motivation, participation and confidence.
Julie holds a master’s degree in Second Languages and Cultures
Education from the University of Minnesota. She has taught students of all ages for more
than 30 years.
julie_eckroth@yahoo.es

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Room 4: Andrea Menéndez Matilla Private tutor/Student
Learning through words: incorporating my writing into language
teaching
This presentation focuses on how I apply my passion for writing novels
to language teaching, and how I discovered my call for teaching while
studying literature. As an author and a teacher, I try to connect with
students through storytelling, teaching them about plot structure and literature and
enabling them to learn about human nature, popular culture and, sometimes,
themselves… All while bettering their English!
Andrea graduated from the University of Oviedo with a bachelor’s degree in English
Studies and has been privately tutoring English students for over four years. In 2024, she
will graduate with a master’s degree in Teacher Training. She is interested in teaching
English to high school students and adults. On top of this, Andrea is a soon-to-be-
published author and writes fantasy, science fiction, and dystopian novels. She likes to
incorporate storytelling into her English classes, and shares book reviews and video vlogs
about her writing online, under her pen name Andrea Serra.
@andreaserrabooks

Room 5: Kevin Alexander Salvage EOI Santander

How to really use songs in the English language classroom
Every year that passes neuroscience increasingly underlines the
power of music. This talk will explore how we can choose and use
songs (focussing on some recent ones! Miley Cyrus, Lana del Rey, Ed
Sheeran, Taylor Swift..) in the secondary and adult bilingual and
English language classroom going beyond the typical use of songs as
an end of class fun activity with a bit of grammar and gap fill. We’ll look at songs linked
to different themes and as a cross-curricular resource now explicitly demanded under
the new LOMLOE law. We’ll consider (and experience) how song foments emotional
intelligence and offers a tremendous learning experience. There will be acoustic
performances of songs and... hopefully some audience participation!
Kevin has been teaching for over 30 years. In the U.K. he trained as a secondary school
Geography teacher but holds a post as English teacher at E.O.I Santander. He has
worked as a Geography/History teacher on the MEC/British Council bilingual project and
as a teacher trainer consultant at the CEP in Santander. He is currently developing a
musical education project (Man of Canterbury didactic concerts) for learners of English
from primary to adults and has been offering training related to how to use songs in the
English classroom.
http://www.manofcanterbury.com
@man_of_canterbury - Instagram/Tik Tok/Youtube

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Room 6: Ana Demitroff You First Language Centre
Hands, mind and heart through primary science, maths and art
Our learners go through many changes from one year to the next in
Primary. How can we help them develop their competences and
grow as language learners and in general? This very practical
workshop showcases engaging soft CLIL activities: taken from
Maths, Science and Art, but easy to use in the English classroom. Moreover, the degree
of cognitive and linguistic challenge can be adjusted in each. The session is a bridge
between the ones done by my colleagues, Fran Seftel and Anabel Reis, in an effort to
show how this approach is valid from Pre-school to Secondary.
A language school owner (You First in Galicia), Ana has been teaching for over 36 years
and training for 26. She holds the RSA Diploma and a master’s from the Institute of
Education (University of London). However, she continues to learn from her colleagues
and the students she encounters in the Pre- to Higher Education classrooms she works
in. Her passion is in reaching all kinds of learners through CLIL, soft and hard, and
meaningful, engaging content.
https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057168292054

Room 7: Elsa Pérez-Espinosa Freelance / Ready, set, go English

School. Gijón (Asturias)
Teacher survival kit: what I learnt from my students
Presentation with tips to use on kids and adults. Games. Sharing
experiences. Useful practical webs and resources. Online and face to
face. What it works and doesn´t work in the classroom based on my
experience. Timing, warmers, coolers. Use of first language.
I have been teaching for twelve years now. At the moment I work in an academy plus
having my own clients. I got CELTA, a bachelor’s degree in social work and an SVQII in
Health and Social Services. I worked in London and Scotland for five years.
Linkedln

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Room 10: Caroline Chapman San Sebastián
Helping Students Understand That the Chairs Aren't Magic!
Sometimes it can feel like we are working harder and care more than
our students. That can’t be right! This session will look at how we can
redress the balance and provide practical ideas to enable students to
engage with their own learning.
Caroline is a Delta qualified teacher who has worked in ELT for over 20 years. She is a
teacher, trainer and materials writer and she works mainly with YLs and teens. Her main
areas of interest are in helping teachers understand how learning happens and
encouraging learner autonomy to avoid teacher burnout.
chapmancma@gmail.com

12.50 – 13.40
Room 1: Amber Qureshi Manchester, United Kingdom
Is it mission impossible to start a conversation in a classroom?
It will be a very useful workshop for new and experienced teachers.
The workshop will increase productivity, the audience will be
encouraged to participate in suggested activities and will be able to
learn effective techniques and strategies, which they can implement
in their own classrooms to assess their learner’s speaking outcomes, the spectators will
be engaged and it will ignite their curiosity. By applying straightforward methods how
can any lesson turn into a speaking lesson?
I have almost 16 years of teaching experience and am currently Head of ESOL at All In
One Learning Centre Manchester U.K. I’m interested in teaching English to the speakers
of other languages (ESOL), English Functional Skills (EFS), English for Academic Purposes
(EAP) aged 16+. I started teaching in 2001 while residing in Dubai. After completing my
Bachelor of Education from the University of Hertfordshire U.K. in 2008, I started my
professional teaching journey by teaching ESOL learners in Manchester in 2010 and
continue to do so. I have achieved an M.S. in Education (Teacher Leadership) from
Walden University U.S. I had been selected as a Cambridge University Speaking Examiner
for KET/PET in 2014-16 while working in Saudi Arabia. I was recognised by the Ministry
of Higher Education in the Sultanate of Oman during my work between 2016-17 and
then 2018-2020. From 2021-present I am working as an ESOL Lecturer in Manchester
U.K.
LinkedIn

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Room 2: Chris Richards English Teacher at the British Council School,
Somosaguas
A Sense of Achievement
We know that achievement can be motivating, but how does
motivation affect our sense of achievement? This session explores
how understanding different types of motivation can help teachers
ensure their students feel achievement. Participants will be asked
to reflect on their experiences and discuss them with other delegates and will go away
from the session equipped with activities they can use in lessons immediately.
Chris has a PGCE in secondary English and a Master’s degree in Education and has been
working in education since 2010. Between 2015 and 2023 he worked in ELT, most
recently as the Director of Studies at BRAYS English in Getafe, where he worked on
teacher development and curriculum design. Since September 2023, he’s been working
at the British Council School in Madrid. He’s particularly interested in inclusive
pedagogies and teacher/action research.
Twitter @chris_elt

Room 4: Marcus Siconolfi ETS Global – Spain

Designing engaging group activities based on TOEFL iBT
listening passages
Some researchers argue that listening comprehension is a
prerequisite to mastering other language skills and stress the
relationship between this skill and language learning in general
(Devine, 1982; Wolvin & Coakley, 1988). In this practical session,
participants will get ideas for designing and carrying out pair/group activities to develop
listening skills based on a so-called service encounter listening passage from the TOEFL
iBT Test. Students' challenges with L2 listening will be discussed and how they could be
overcome. We will also use the pre-listening, while-listening, and post-listening
framework to enable participants to develop students' listening skills (basic
comprehension, pragmatic understanding and inference) successfully.
Marcus is ETS Global’s English Language Training Coordinator for Spain and Portugal.
Originally from New York, Marcus is currently based in Madrid, where he has taught
English to students of all ages and levels, focusing primarily on Business English and
English for Academic/Specific Purposes in the field of higher education, in addition to
his extensive experience in the area of teacher training and development. In addition to
his TEFL and DELTA certifications, Marcus holds a bachelor’s degree in Music and
Psychology from New York University, as well as a Master’s in Music Therapy.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcus-giovanni-siconolfi-4b0161126/
toeflteacherresources@etsglobal.org

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Room 5: Florencia Giudici El Centro Britanico IH Santiago de
Compostela
How to create 10-minute activities based on music videos
It is no news that teaching with music and songs is a way of
increasing engagement in the EFL classroom. Yet, what about
using music videos to enhance teens and adults’ learning and
motivation? In this workshop, participants will have the
opportunity to learn how to select a music video and to create a
short activity based on it.
Florencia is a CELTA certified teacher and teacher trainer from Buenos Aires. She
graduated as a TEFL teacher from Instituto Superior del Profesorado “Dr. Joaquín V.
González” and she has been teaching English to all ages for over twenty years, mostly in
Argentina but also in New Zealand and the UK. She specializes in materials design and
she is the co-founder of Flying Colours Learning Resources. Nowadays Florencia is taking
a post graduate course in methodology at Universidad CAECE and she is working as an
EFL teacher and exams trainer at El Centro Britanico International House in Santiago de
Compostela

Room 6: Anabel Reis Centro Britâncio do Alto Minho - Viana do

Castelo / Portugal
Engaging hearts, inspiring minds - teaching with the art of
drawing
How can incorporating art raise student achievement while
improving engagement and inclusion? What competences does
it develop in learners? How is language learning improved?
These are some of the questions we'll be exploring as I share practical ideas on how the
power of art, through hands-on activities, reaches the heart and promotes deeper
learning while evoking language.
With more than 25 years of experience, an M.A. in Applied Linguistics, Anabel has been
the DoS of a language school in northern Portugal for over 12 years. She is a teacher
trainer, with experience in Portugal, Spain, Mexico as well as Tunisia (primary teachers).
She is a course-book co-author and material writer, her main teaching focus for EFL and
CLIL lay in hands-on activities including gamification to foster motivation, using
technology in and out of the classroom to promote digital literacy and project-based
learning to encourage collaboration, critical thinking, authentic communication,
creativity along with other 21st century skills.

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Room 7: Damian Szerszen Oxford House Barcelona
Games Unchained! (Uncut)
Workshop Focus - Gamifying parts of your lessons to encourage
deeper learning and distract learners from the “in class” context.
This can help to lessen learner anxiety while creating an
interactive, fun, motivating and engaging environment. In this
workshop, I plan to introduce games adapted from tv shows and
board games that I have incorporated into my teaching repertoire. These games mainly
practice lexis, grammar, and speaking while encouraging the development of other
macro skills. I will demonstrate different games as tools that ensure effective learning
takes place in the classroom.
I started my TEFL career 8 years ago in Bogotá, Colombia and have subsequently taught
in the Netherlands, the U.K., and Spain. I have been working in Oxford House, Barcelona
for the past 4 years and am currently in the final stages of the Trinity DipTESOL. Since
starting my DipTESOL, I have further honed my interest and expertise, particularly in
Cambridge Exam Preparation, Pronunciation, and Gamification. I also work as a tutor
and teacher trainer providing YL/Teens workshops for CELTA course trainees, in addition
to designing and leading the Specialised Workshop in Teaching Cambridge exam classes
at Oxford House, Barcelona.
LinkedIn

Room 10: Joe Del Rio Trinity College London

Motivating students in exam preparation classes
Presentation Discover where to find free exam preparation
resources.
Born in Hamilton (Canada), I became a language teacher in 1992
and have taught ages 3 and up. I am aware of the importance of
offering students motivating classes and love sharing my
experience with other teachers. In 2010 I became a part of the Trinity College London
operations team. When I´m not working I enjoy running and doing magic tricks.
https://twitter.com/tclspain
https://www.facebook.com/TCLSpainPortugal/
https://elblogdetrinity.com

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13:50 – 14:40
Room 1: Alexandra Purcell Cambridge University Press and
Assessment
Oracy: empowering the student voice
What is Oracy and why is it so important? How can we empower all
students to find their voice, in the classroom and beyond? in this
workshop we will delve into tasks that can help our learners become
more active and effective speakers and listeners, to better engage with each other and
to gain confidence through talk. We will also look at how we can measure student
progress to inform our next steps on the Oracy journey.
Alex has been working in English Language Teaching since 2005. Since moving to Spain
in 2009 she has taught classes of all ages and levels and delivered teacher training
courses on a variety of topics and methodologies. She holds a DELTA and enjoys helping
teachers prepare their students for success in terms of language, content and life skills.
She has given talks for numerous countries and is a Professional Learning and
Development Trainer for Cambridge University Press and Assessment.
alexandra.purcell@cambridge.org

Room 2: Emma Heyderman Freelance

Can a language teacher save the world?
Have you ever dreamed of saving the world? I certainly have! And
of course, there are several ELT professionals who are doing just
that. For the rest of us, there are lots of small, easy things we can
do to make a difference, empower learners with a voice and some
choice, and cultivate global citizens who care. Through participation
in activities, discussion and sharing of ideas, I hope that participants will leave this
workshop with some inspiration and a bag full of activities, tips, and strategies for their
language classroom.
Emma Heyderman has been in ELT since 1989, working for several schools, including
Lacunza – International House, San Sebastian, the Bell School, Regents Park and the
University of the Arts in Westminster. An experienced ELT writer, Emma’s titles include
Interface and Get Involved for Macmillan and Complete Preliminary for Cambridge. She
runs workshops for local teachers, she is a teacher trainer for NILE (Norwich Institute for
Language Education) and is a regular speaker at national and international events. She
also works as an ELT consultant for language institutions.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmaheyderman-eltwriter-trainer-consultant/

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Room 4: David James British Council
The Framework of Student Motivation
Aptis is the British Council’s global English assessment tool offering
a flexible approach for governments, institutions and organisations
looking for a quality four-skills testing solution. In this session, we will demonstrate how
frameworks such as the CEFR, provides participants with the opportunity to write
competency-focused lesson aims and plan task-based lesson sequences which develop
a broader range of skills and abilities. Aligning teaching and learning to frameworks in
this way will be of direct relevance to those teaching exam preparation classes. We will
also explore how such multi-level proficiency tests can increase learner inclusivity and
reduce student stress.
David is Learning and Assessment Consultant for the British Council in Portugal and
Spain. He has over 20 years’ experience in the Spanish education sector and has worked
as a teacher, teacher trainer and in teaching management in Valencia, Bilbao and
Madrid. He holds a Master’s in Education and Applied Linguistics and also the Trinity
TESOL Diploma. He has a passion for improving learner motivation and autonomy and
is also a self-confessed pronunciation geek.

Room 5: Ruth Williams Suances, Cantabria

Storytelling - a practical workshop on the art of storytelling
My proposed workshop would cover the following topics: -The
importance of storytelling in education and how to tell stories
effectively -How to choose a book for optimal language learning. -How
to connect it to a theme and outside events for emotional connection
-Story extensions through play and music, and how this can enhance language
engagement. -Examples and lesson plans for storytelling sessions I have done for three
different age groups. -A practical group activity for planning a storytelling session.
I have been teaching English in private language schools in Cantabria for over 15 years.
I am passionate about using stories and believe we can create a real connection to
language through them. Holding a BSC in Psychology, CELTA certification and a recent
qualification as Neurolanguage coach®. I have partnered with a fellow Neurolanguage
Coach to create a new project to support bilingual families. Our project assists parents,
both native and non-native speakers, in successfully navigating the road to using two (or
more!) languages at home.
Instagram: @bilingual_gurus

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Room 6: Anna Pires International House Braga
"I've got sunshine on a cloudy day" - music in the classroom
Songs and music videos are an inseparable part of teenagers’ lives. In
this very practical session, we will be looking at activities that involve
songs, visuals and narratives in music videos, and how they can be used
to work on skills, vocabulary, culture and projects that will engage
learners. Not only will they help brighten up your lessons, but they will also develop
students’ language skills, improve their mood, openness to learning and empathy. Come
prepared to tap your feet, sing a song or shed a tear.
Anna Pires is originally from the beautiful city of Toronto but is currently living in the
north of Portugal. She is a DELTA-qualified teacher and has been working at
International House for 25 years. She is co-coordinator of the Mindul ELF SIG for the
Portuguese English Teachers Association (APPI). Anna is also a materials writer and
author of several coursebooks and supplementary books for Portuguese state schools.
She enjoys the challenges of working with teenagers and is passionate about using music
in the classroom. annapires68@gmail.com
Room 7: Shawn Severson International House Porto
The “Give me 5” of using videos in the ESL classroom
You know the feeling you get when you are ready to give a “high
5”? Watching videos may not exactly emulate those victory
moments, yet they indeed provide a peak in emotional and
cognitive engagement in the classroom. In fact, there are at least
5 good reasons for using videos to promote learning and
interaction, besides the fact that they’re taking students a bit out of the book. In this
session, we’ll look at 5 different video clips that your students will enjoy, along with
materials and tech tips for adapting them to various levels.
Always looking for new ways to promote student interaction, Shawn is constantly
looking to develop materials with rich learning content, whatever the level. As a teacher
trainer and materials writer, he strives to help teachers unlock their creative potential
and to share ideas for a dynamic classroom, bringing the outside world (and language)
into the classroom. While his main focus is on teaching adults, training in companies and
also teaching other languages, he also enjoys crafting activities for classrooms for exam
preparation and young learners.
@shawnseverson

www.britishcouncil.es www.tesol-spain.org
Room 10: Nathan Whittle Richmond ELT
Motivating Students Through Culture
This presentation will explore how as teachers we can bring various
aspects of culture into our classrooms to increase engagement
with students as they work through course materials. From the
links in students’ books between cultural videos and functional
language in real world situations to bringing yourself and your own
interests into the classroom, the presentation will explore how we can use culture to
help students critically look at the world they live in.
Nathan is an English teacher with fifteen years of experience teaching in language
academies. During this time he has taught all ages and all levels, guiding students
through a language learning process with great success both in terms of students' exam
results and, importantly, their interest in English. For the last eight years, he has run his
own language academy in Santander, working with primary and secondary-age
students, adult learners, businesses, and local councils.
@richmondeltspain

www.britishcouncil.es www.tesol-spain.org