Speaker Services
Speaker for your organization’s monthly meeting, lunch & learn workshops at your workplace, and professional development training for English teachers.
Here are some sample workshops. Most workshops are 60-120 minutes, and some can be expanded to fit longer time frames, including multiple days. All of the following are virtual workshops. Please inquire for live onsite workshops.
Workshops for Second-Language English Speakers:
Developing your English Expression: Improving Expression &Fluency, Elevating Vocabulary Usage
It can be difficult to find the words to express everything you would like to say in a second language. You may find you are not as eloquent in English as you are in your first language. You may find you are missing the words to accurately communicate all your thoughts. In this workshop, you will become familiar with resources and methods for achieving greater fluency, increased vocabulary and more sophisticated expression in English.
Tips & Techniques for Giving an Effective Presentation
Giving a great presentation is more than just having good content. In this workshop, you will learn about engaging ways to open your talk, powerful ways to close, and everything you need to do in between to best reach your audience and leave a lasting impression.
Navigating Virtual Meetings with Americans
Improve your English communication skills to sound more intelligent and understandable in virtual meetings. In this webinar, you will learn how to:
- Interact socially with others in meetings before business begins
- Introduce yourself in an effective way
- Politely speak up and share your ideas during a meeting
- Express differing opinions in a neutral, non-threatening way
Talking to Americans: Making Small Talk
Being able to comfortably talk to Americans and other foreigners is an important skill to master. The ability to make conversation with those around you can open many doors for you in both your professional and personal life. In this workshop, you will learn techniques and topics for engaging in conversation with anyone.
Understanding Spoken English
If you have studied English for years, but are still having trouble understanding spoken English, this workshop is for you. We will discuss the correspondence between written and spoken English and you will learn how native speakers reduce, contract and link words in groups and where missing sounds are common. We will also touch on some of the fun aspects of language, such as common slang, idioms and new additions to the language.
Speaking with an American Accent
Learn which elements of English speech make the American accent unique. Participants will work on mastering important sounds and patterns important in American speech, as well as word choice and grammatical elements that are specific to this English dialect.
How to Improve your English Pronunciation?
Learn how to speak English more clearly and understandably. In this interactive workshop, we will discuss which pronunciation areas to focus on for more intelligible speech and fun activities to practice them. We will also explore how to create your own accent reduction self study program. Participants will be taught ways to practice on their own, and will be given resources for free and inexpensive practice materials.
Common Errors of Chinese English Speakers (also available for other native languages)
Learning a new language is not easy. We all make mistakes in the process. The key is to learn from these mistakes and improve ourselves as a result. In this workshop, we will discuss errors that Chinese often make in English. We will cover typical pronunciation, grammar and word choice errors, so that you can avoid them and speak like a native.
English Dialects
Ever wonder how different American, British, Australian and Canadian English are? And how can you choose which accent to use when you speak? This fun workshop will explore the main differences you can expect to hear in countries where English is the native language. We will discuss pronunciation, grammar, word choice, spelling, and a bit of culture too.
Workshops for English Teachers:
Teaching Pronunciation: What to Teach & How to Make it Effective & Engaging
Pronunciation instruction has often been neglected in the language classroom. Instructors often do not have the training or knowledge to teach pronunciation. By ignoring pronunciation, we do a disservice to our students. Although they may read and write English well enough, they often cannot make themselves understood outside the classroom. This presentation seeks to address these issues, giving teachers information on what to teach and illustrating classroom activities that are fun and engaging.
Stress-Free Pronunciation Activities that Get Results
Use pop-culture to captivate your audience and add bits of pronunciation practice into other classes. Presenters illustrate activities that engage, motivate, and provide lots of authentic language in a lively atmosphere. We focus on mimicry activities including singing, reenacting movie scenes and speeches, reader’s theater, jokes, poetry and tongue twisters. (Presented at the 2018 TESOL International Conference in Chicago.)
Teaching Pronunciation with the Color Vowel® System
Learn this revolutionary method to dramatically improve your students’ spoken English. Using the color vowel system teaches students to distinguish and pronounce all the vowel sounds of American English, and to recognize and apply word correct stress within words and phrases.
Using Phonics to Teach Reading & Pronunciation
Phonics is the method for teaching native English-speaking children to read and write. Think English spelling is random and not well connected to its pronunciation? They are actually more related than you have been led to believe. Learn the real truth. Phonics is a powerful and indispensable tool that anyone can use to improve their English spelling and pronunciation.