It is such an endlessly tiring task to send pitches to editors. And such a thankless one. I’m sure most freelancers start out in similar situations, but freelance writers must be the most ignored of all workers. Few publications even think it worthwhile to pay for writing, and many offer pennies. It’s enraging to see [...]
Harsh, one would think, for a normally outwardly calm person. But hey, this blog isn’t called Volatyle without a darned good reason. First it was Delhi, where I just shut myself up for the most part, hanging out with a closed group of friends, not venturing anywhere beyond was absolutely necessary. I know it was [...]
There’s so much to do, so much to think, so much to write, but so often I feel oppressed and unable to do whatever it is I want to. I need to start living my life again, on my terms. It’s not gonna be easy but it’ll kill a lot slower than suffocating in this [...]
This is a great ESL classroom game for a first lesson. Basically, it is a GTKY game, or a Getting To Know You game, but also helps SS review question words such as Who, What, Why, Where, When, How etc. It’s really simple too and does not need any resources. I hate using games which [...]
When I started out teaching, I used to spend hours searching for useful ESL websites, practical games, free resources and information on the internet. There are a few lists of useful ESL websites but as time went on, I had my own growing list of sites I referred to almost on a daily basis. There [...]
As I was growing up, and it wasn’t THAT long ago.. As I was growing up in the 90s in India, I always saw the sky studded with stars. I took them for granted. I never thought, then, of an eventuality where the stars would not sparkle any more. In Guwahati, Patna, Ahmednagar, Dehradoon, Pune and [...]
I’ve tried so hard to integrate some sort of online experience into my ESL classes – creating blogs, creating websites, even trying online diaries. Even tried to have my students make websites based on Jurassic Park, a book they all love. But two weekends later, only 3 out of 15 students were actively working on [...]
In the last few days, I’ve been thinking about some of the many amazing meals P and I have managed to whip up since arriving in Saigon. I could just be a navel-gazer and say we had it in us all along, but. I’ve never been a navel-gazer after all, have I.. that title is [...]
I love the Story telling game to revise past tense with my little kids. It’s also a great way to practice speaking. FOR KIDS: Divide your class into small groups of 3-4. The smaller the group, the more speaking practice the kids get. Have the kids sit in a circle. Give each group a line [...]
I’ve never been a fruity person. He he.. Well, in some ways yeah.. but never been an active member of the fruit-lovers’ clique. I turned my nose up at the pitiful squishy oranges that came in the ration, and the blackened bananas. Mangoes were too fibrous, except the bihari malda, apples too tart, pomegranates too seedy [...]
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