Children's English, Advanced: A Sample Class Recap

Older children can read a long story on their own. What they need now is the English to think with: to give an opinion, explain why, agree and disagree politely, and write it down. So we read real stories with real questions in them, and after class the family gets a recap in English and in their own language, plus a practice page made for their child.

Here is a full example, for an eleven-year-old. Everything on this page works: tap the 🔊 buttons, listen to the story, build sentences, move the slider and do the quiz.

1The class recap: what Kevin's parents receive

A few minutes after class, Kevin's parents get this by email: what we read and discussed, what Kevin did well, the new words and phrases with sound, his writing task, and what comes next.

Class recap · 課後小結

Kevin's English lesson 凱文的英文課

Lesson 25 · Friday 30 October · 60 minutes on Zoom第25課 · 10月30日（星期五）· Zoom 線上60分鐘

Dear Kevin's mum and dad,凱文的爸爸媽媽好：

We finished Part One of The Fox Wizard today, and Kevin had a lot to say! This story asks a grown-up question: how can you tell a real friend from someone who only seems friendly? Here is what we did.今天我們讀完了《The Fox Wizard》的第一部分，凱文有很多想法！這個故事問了一個很成熟的問題：你要怎麼分辨真正的朋友，和只是「看起來」友善的人？以下是今天的上課內容。

Today we… · 今天我們…

• 🦊Read Part One of The Fox Wizard. Kevin read the Fox's lines and I read the Beaver's.讀了《The Fox Wizard》第一部分。凱文唸狐狸的台詞，我唸河狸的台詞。
• 📖Learned ten words to know: honest, promise, gather, disappear, chill, coincidence, character, journey, belong, kindness.學了十個重要單字：honest、promise、gather、disappear、chill、coincidence、character、journey、belong、kindness。
• 🎭Talked about seems and is: "The Fox seems kind, but is he?"討論 seems（看起來）和 is（真的是）的差別：「狐狸看起來很善良，但他真的是嗎？」
• 💬Gave opinions with reasons: I think… because…, I agree / I disagree, because…用理由表達意見：I think… because…、I agree / I disagree, because…
• ✍️Planned a short paragraph: What makes a real friend?規劃一段短文：「怎樣才算是真正的朋友？」

Kevin's star moment · 凱文的亮點

⭐ Kevin said: "I disagree with the animals. The Fox seems nice, but a real friend doesn't feel happy when you fall down." A clear opinion, a reason, and a great new word: seems.⭐ 凱文說：「我不同意那些動物的看法。狐狸看起來很好，但真正的朋友不會在你跌倒時感到開心。」有清楚的意見、有理由，還用上了新單字 seems。

New words and phrases · 新單字和句型 (tap to listen · 點一下聽發音)

🤝 honest誠實的 🤙 a promise承諾 💨 disappear消失 🎲 a coincidence巧合 💎 character品格 🏡 belong歸屬 🎭 He seems friendly.他看起來很友善。 🙋 I disagree, because…我不同意，因為…

Practise this week · 本週練習 (20 minutes a day · 每天20分鐘)

1. Listen to me read Part Two of the story (below) and decide: did the Beaver win?聽我朗讀故事的第二部分（在下方），然後想一想：河狸贏了嗎？
2. Write 5 to 8 sentences: What makes a real friend? Use I think… because… and one word from the list.寫5到8個句子：「怎樣才算是真正的朋友？」要用到 I think… because… 和一個新單字。
3. Ask someone at home: "Have you ever had a friend who only seemed nice?" Listen to the answer.問問家人：「你有沒有遇過只是看起來很好的朋友？」聽聽他們的回答。

Ross's note · 老師的話

Kevin, you don't just read a story, you question it. That's exactly what good readers do. I can't wait to read your paragraph. ✍️凱文，你不只是讀故事，你還會質疑它，這正是好讀者會做的事。我很期待讀你的短文。✍️

📅 Next class: Friday 6 November, 5:00 p.m. Taiwan time, on Zoom. Bring your paragraph!下一堂課：11月6日（星期五）下午5點（台灣時間），Zoom 線上。記得帶你的短文！

The recap goes to the parents by email and lives on the child's own page, so nothing gets lost.

2Story time: a story with a question inside

The Fox Wizard is a gentle two-part story for older children about kindness, false friends and starting over. A charming Fox in starry robes knocks on a hardworking Beaver's door. Is he a real friend? Children love arguing about it, and that's the point: a story worth arguing about gives them something real to say in English.

The Fox WizardKindness, false friends, and the truth that home is wherever kindness is built.Read the story → Part Two: The River Beyond the MountainsThe Beaver starts again, one log at a time.Read Part Two →

3Kevin's practice page: try it

Every child also gets a practice page of their own, built from their lessons. Here is a small version of Kevin's. Try it.

Real practice pages grow every week, and older children's pages include their own writing with my corrections.

4Watch at home

Short videos from my YouTube channel. Even strong readers benefit from a quick vowel check: clear vowels are what make long words easy to understand.

5For parents

• Ask what they think, not only what happened. "Was the Fox a real friend?" gets far more English than "What colour were his robes?"
• Disagree with them, kindly. Children this age love a friendly argument. It's the best speaking practice there is.
• Read their writing for ideas first. I correct the grammar in class. At home, tell them what you liked.
• Talk about the story's question together. Good stories open real conversations about friendship and fairness, in any language.

Why I teach this way: The Quiet Genius of Mister Rogers, the teacher who shaped how I speak to children.

6Six levels, one teacher

Every student gets a recap and a practice page at their own level. See what the others look like:

How to start

Book a free 30-minute "virtual handshake" on Zoom. Bring your child, say hello, and we'll find the right level together. There is no cost and no pressure.

Book a virtual handshakeClasses for children

Ross Cline 柯受恩
Canadian English teacher. Founder of iLearn.tw, the licensed English school I ran in Taiwan for fifteen years. Now teaching online from Phnom Penh. rosscline.com