Teaching English Toolbox - OPEN ACCESS SANDBOX

Assistant Teachership

Created with DALL E (travel and teaching world surreal)

The assistant teachership (spending three weeks in a school where English is the medium of instruction) is organized by the university and has its own office. This page simply offers some additional ideas for your stay abroad.

  • The book "Practical Classroom English" by Hughes is a good booster for those not yet confident with teacher talk in English. You can also access additional materials that support this book on the Oxford University Press website.
  • If you are looking for info on the Swiss education system in general, try the EDK pages or the PHZH's International Office pages for a powerpoint.
  • If you google "school bulletin boards", you will find many interesting images which show some huge differences in systems!There are many children's books (Schellen Ursli, Gian and Giachen, and more) that have been translated into English (see the PHZH library or local bookstore).
  • The Explorers coursebooks from the Lehrmittelverlag Kanton Zurich offers a unit on the Swiss Piccard brothers (Explorers 6. Lehrmittelverlag Kanton Zurich. p. 120) and their inventions (hot air balloons, Solar Impulse, etc.).
  • There are many games, e.g. "The Happy Families" game that are commonly played in Swiss classrooms that might be fun to share during your exchange.
  • Consider teaching a little Swiss German or Italian or French or Romansh! 
Here are some materials you might consider bringing or adapting for use!

Ideas for presents for families / your host school:

  • Books in English about Switzerland: coffee table picture books; Swiss cook books; Margaret Oertig's books (Bergli Books; Schellen-Ursi and other children's books in English.
  • Grocery stores sell individually wrapped chocolates with pictures of Swiss sights on them - useful for the classroom, too!
  • Swiss army knife or the Swisscard.
  • Chocolates with schnappes in them.
  • A peeler - Swiss invention and not standard everywhere.
  • A Sigg bottle.
  • A coffee capsule necklace or piece of funky art.
  • In the US, they don't often get Ovalmaltine (ovaltine) products.
  • A coffee-table book of your region - can be used for some nice discussions.
  • Regional products (e.g. elderflower syrup or Rafzer pickled asparagus).
Adobe Stock picture: Hot air balloons in the Swiss alps
  • By going abroad, you can critically view your own school system - what might Swiss teachers think about or reconsider after having seen another system?
  • Many people go abroad and come back appreciating their own school system - did this happen to you? Why? 
  • What English did you learn during your stay abroad? Can you now manage a class in English?