We had traditional textbooks and memorized all. the. lists. So no surprise when I began my student teaching and my supervising teacher taught the same way. Fast forward to having my own classroom and I also started teaching in this very traditional and explicit way. My students were amazing (and still are!) and we had so much fun, but reflecting back on that time, not many of my students could engage meaningfully with the language.

Several years ago I decided it was time for a change. After reading and doing some research on acquisition driven teaching, I ditched the textbook and never looked back! I dove right in with all things CI (Comprehensible Input) and switched to an implicit teaching model. Seeing what my students could do with the language once I began teaching for acquisition was the proof I needed that this truly is how language should be taught. However, if I’m being completely transparent, the journey has not been an easy one. There are many new techniques to learn and classroom management strategies to consider, but I encourage anyone on the verge of ditching their textbook …. GO FOR IT! You won’t regret it.