Short Cuts: An Interactive English Course, Book 2

Short Cuts is a three-level series for teaching English to young adult and adult students. Each level of the program contains the following components: a student text a teacher's manipulative kit (available in posters) an optional teacher's audio program an optional student audio tape a teacher's manual One of the most unique features of Short Cuts is its use of manipulatives, or cut-ups. The use of these manipulatives: addresses a variety of learning styles: visual, aural, and kinesthetic; provides immediate feedback for both teacher and student; focuses students' attention on accomplishing specific tasks during an extended receptive period; encourages the use of English for the negotiation of meaning through student interaction; provides opportunities for student-centered cooperative learning. Perhaps the best reasons for using manipulatives are that they are fun, they create student interest, and they work! Using them is a little like playing a computer game, and it's a lot more fun to do that than to sit passively and listen to the teacher. A Complete Course At each level, the Short Cuts student text features a balanced presentation of reading, writing, listening, and speaking materials to allow your students to develop all language skills - without having to buy a separate workbook! Each student text provides between 100-130 hours of language instruction. While Short Cuts was designed to correlate to the California Model Standards of Adult Education, the series correlates to most other standards as well. Further information about placement is found in the preface to each student text. Each of the three books in the Short Cuts program is divided into ten thematic chapters. Each student text also includes worksheets (and manipulatives) for each chapter, audio tapescripts, and a complete conjugated list of all verbs found in the book. Other highlights of each student text include: lively chapter themes and situations that encourage classroom communication; clear and colorful illustrations to aid comprehension; self-study review pages for each chapter so students can check their own progress; an innovative visual presentation of grammar, along with practice exercises, and more! Flexible supplements to meet your classroom needs All the supplemental materials included in the Short Cuts program work together to help you provide a truly communicative learning experience for your students. We encourage you to mix and match these supplements to fit your particular teaching style and classroom configurations. Teacher's Manipulative Kit - Poster Version Teacher's Manipulative Kit - Transparency Version These kits correspond directly to the student worksheets found in each text. The poster kit comes with a set of adhesive manipulatives; the transparency version comes in color acetate form. You can use either kit in many different ways - model specific language activities, introduce new vocabulary, create information gaps - the list is endless. Optional Teacher's Audio Cassette Program Optional Student Audio Tape The Teacher's Audio Cassette consists of two separate audio tapes. The first tape contains recorded versions of all the dialogues found in the Listen sections of each lesson of the book. The second tape is the same tape as the Optional Student Audio Tape; it features passages from the self-review sections of the book. Since all tapescripts are printed in the student text, both audio programs are optional - you decide when and how to use them! Teacher's Manual Written by the author, the Teacher's Manual contains a wealth of helpful ideas and suggestions for using all of the materials in the Short Cuts program - including detailed lesson plans for each chapter! Ideal for beginning ESL students.

The TEACHER'S MANIPULATIVE KIT, available in both poster and transparency versions, is cleverly designed to contain all of the materials necessary to use the system in class. The poster version includes poster-sized replicas of the worksheets from the student text as well as cling-sheet manipulatives. A portable easel on which to place the materials is also available. The TEACHER'S MANIPULATIVE KIT also includes audio material for the instructor and more.
The language practice in SHORT CUTS involves all four skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. It is presented through chapters that are clearly organized and easy to follow.
Each chapter of SHORT CUTS: BOOK ONE AND TWO also contains numerous practice activities for students, who will appreciate the convenience and economy of not having to buy a separate workbook.
In addition to the student text, each level has an optional audio tape available for students that contains material for reviewing each chapter, including key vocabulary lists for pronunciation purposes and a culminating listening activity.
The SHORT CUTS student texts are filled with cartoons and images that are both colorful and humorous. The illustrations in SHORT CUTS are designed to remind the reader of those in the "New Yorker," making the test more appropriate for its adult audiences than competing texts, whose art programs tend toward more juvenile illustrations.
The scope and sequence of the grammar coverage in SHORT CUTS: BOOKS ONE AND TWO is designed to correlate with the California Model Standards (Levels 1A and 1B), which also suits most other national and state ESOL requirements.
The Instructor's materials for SHORT CUTS are extensive. In addition to the TEACHER'S CLASSROOM KIT described above, materials include an INSTRUCTOR'S MANUAL with detailed suggestions of various ways to implement the methodology of manipulatives and Classroom Posters illustrating enlarged versions of pages from the student text.
SHORT CUTS is highly interactive program that revolves around the use of classroom "manipulatives." Manipulatives are miniature representations that can be moved around or "manipulated" to illustrate vocabulary and concepts. These miniatures are found in both the students text as well as in the TEACHER'S MANIPULATIVE KIT.