TESTIMONIALS
"This resource is a trove of riches for the teacher!
Detailed lesson plans and lots and lots of worksheets ensure that you and your students will always have something to do, but it’s the story, songs and audio production quality of Rags to Riches that really make it shine. I wish I’d had something like this when I was teaching at the beginning of my career."
Lindsay Clandfield
ELT author and teacher trainer
www.lindsayclandfield.com
"Rags to Riches is a great set of materials to complement any course book or to use as a course in its own right. The content and approach are really fresh and original and the focus on contemporary, relevant topics and language through the context of a fun radio play and cool songs, make it genuinely appealing. There's an abundance of material to help the teacher thoroughly exploit each episode. The different formats makes the materials flexible and easy to use. The lesson plans and resources are very clearly presented and simple to access and the fact that worksheets are provided for three different levels is a real bonus. This is a fun and lively course for both students and teachers."
Nicole Taylor and Michael Watts
Authors of ELT course books, readers and teachers' resources.
​
“Rags to Riches is a highly-relevant and engaging teaching resource which uses quality podcasts and catchy songs to draw teenage and young adult learners into its real-English, music-focused world. Packed full of motivating student materials, the course also comes complete with a full set of teacher’s notes and pre-prepared teaching resources, designed to make choosing and using the resource easy, flexible and user-friendly.
So, why not follow the story of the young pop band as they work their way towards fame and fortune? Whether you choose to use the resource as a stand-alone, or as a complement to your existing teaching programme, I’m confident you won’t regret it!”
​
​
​
Gail Butler
​
Experienced teacher, teacher trainer & current ELT materials writer.
"Rags to Riches is a great way for teens and young adults to improve their English. Following a story via podcasts is an engaging way for them to develop their listening skills – they’ll want to listen to find out what happens to the characters. A song is also available with each episode. Most students are motivated by songs and activities based on them, and music helps to create a classroom environment in which students feel relaxed and more positive about learning – and English. The songs are specially written for learners of English and as such there are no worries for teachers (or parents) about the content or language used. They’re catchy and easy to learn – or sing along to – but most importantly they feel like ‘real’ songs played and sung by professionals.
The podcast and song in each episode are accompanied by a range of resources which can help students to develop all areas of English, including all skills plus grammar and vocabulary. Each podcast script and the lyrics of each song are available to download as PDF files, and each episode has teachers’ notes, PowerPoint slides to use in lessons, and worksheets for students. It is evident that the writers are experienced teachers: the teachers’ notes are comprehensive and very clear; many worksheets are available at three levels; some worksheets have tasks for early finishers. These details make the materials very flexible – the same podcasts and songs can be used with classes of different levels, and with mixed-level classes. All the materials are user-friendly too: the website is easy to navigate, all content is easy to download and use.
One really nice touch is that there are clear descriptions of the content of each episode in each season. An activity menu has an overview of the activities contained in each worksheet, and there is also a grammar summary for each season. Teachers can use these to plan how Rags to Riches can supplement the coursebook. Alternatively, teachers can choose worksheets according to the needs and interests of their students: some worksheets are designed to develop specific language skills, for example speaking, integrated skills, or everyday language; some activities are designed to develop wider skills such as communication and forming and giving opinions; and activities to make learning fun.
There is such a wealth of content – teachers should be able to find something for everyone.
Kim Ashmore
​
​
ELT writer and consultant who has worked in the field of ELT for more than 30 years. She has taught students of all ages and levels, and has 20 years’ experience of writing content for learners and teachers of English
