I’m supposedly getting hired at Heart and my supposed start date is only one month from now, assuming the COE and visa come on time. I’ve read the stories but will attempt to ride out one year of working for them. Anyway, they have very specific requirements for things like which fonts to use on flashcards or what to put in powerpoint presentations and it’s taking way too much time to try and prepare it all by myself as I also work a day job and prepare to move countries.
Does anyone know of any ready-made flashcards, powerpoints, lesson plans etc I could use that match Heart’s requirements so I don’t have to reinvent the wheel and make them all from scratch? I’d be really grateful!
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RIP because Heart is the worst company out there. I remember reading the horror stories back when I was in HS during the mid 00s.
Anyway there are shitton of resources available if you just Google for ESOL lesson plans and worksheets. I don’t know why Heart is not providing this for you. Rhetorically speaking.
Lesson planning takes a shitton of time so you just need to better allocate your schedule to fit lesson planning in between your job and move to Japan. Can’t imagine how this is taking up that much time without knowing your schools and teachers — outside of your self introduction there is no “lesson planning” as an ALT, just supplementing your JTE’s lesson.
What? They’re having you make flashcards before you start? That’s nuts, focus on your job first.
Most schools have had ALTs in them for years so they probably have at least enough flashcards and other materials to get started.
If you’re teaching ES, the digital textbooks have a flashcard maker with the MEXT approved font (the government agency that is in change of teaching). It’s a simple as typing in what you want and finding a jpg.
For fonts, my school has a mext approved one. Though, if I don’t have access to that, I use comic sans (I know, but it is useful for learning writing) for younger learners and Ariel for older ones. You do have to substitute some letters though as they are slightly different from what we are meant to teach. That really only comes into play for stuff that’s teaching the students to write though.
Hope that helps
You haven’t even started the job yet and they are already micromanaging you. It sounds like it’s time to start looking for alternatives so you can jump ship as soon as you get to Japan.
Run for the hills…. run for your life….
They make you create your own lesson materials before you’ve even begun working? And you aren’t being paid?
They don’t even have a set curriculum with their own ready-made materials or a commercial textbook? They make the teachers do all that work, even before they start the job? And knowing that Heart doesn’t require quals or experience, these are people who don’t have any background in curriculum design or materials creation?
I thought I had heard it all, but it just keeps getting worse and worse.
i think you should check out esllibrary (ellii.com)! they have great lessons and you can pick the age group and subject! my tesol professor used it for her EL classes
>_I’m supposedly getting hired at Heart._
So are you or aren’t you?
This shit doesn’t make sense, OP. If you haven’t even started yet, how do you know that your placement at any school will be T1 or T2?
I know you say you have done ALT work before, but it sounds like you’re trying to figure it out before you’ve even started. Also why would you ask here? If there are some strict rules with font/formatting, why not contact your supervisor or head office?
>I’m supposedly getting hired at Heart and my supposed start date is only one month from now, assuming the COE and visa come on time. I’ve read the stories but will attempt to ride out one year of working for them.
I know this doesn’t really answer the question, but I just wanted to say this. Heart has you working, unpaid, before you’ve even started? Are you supposed to submit material before you even arrive? Call me cynical, but how do you know they’re not just looking for some free labor and in a month they’ll say the job position isn’t available anymore? After all, you’re only “supposedly” getting hired.
I don’t want to sound rude here, but this is something new teachers do that I hate. Please, stop taking jobs at shitty companies, or at least, at companies where you know beforehand it’s going to be shitty. You heard the stories, but still want to work for them? Why? Do you think it’s going to be different for you? It’s not. This is how these companies get away with treating their teachers so badly; there’s always someone who thinks things will be different or who will do anything to get a Japanese visa.
And are you just doing this so you can live in Japan? If so, I’d recommend saving up some money and just coming on vacation for a month when the travel restrictions loosen. That’s about the length of the “honeymoon period,” after which reality sets in, and that won’t be so fun if you’re not interested in teaching. Are you serious about teaching? Then you should should choose a serious company/school where you know you can give your best effort.
Unpaid work, unsure if hired, no idea about placement. That’s a no from me dawg.