When the 11th-grade classes were set to learn gerunds and infinitives, ETA Emilie Tomas and counterpart Rohana Gultom wanted to find a fun way to get their students engaged and showcase their creativity. Together, they scoured the internet and ended up with an envelope full of fun pictures; including aliens, treasure chests, and tornados.

After learning about the language structure (thanks in part to Bruno Mars’ “The Lazy Song”), students were partnered up and asked to use gerunds and infinitives to combine three photos into a story. It was a blast to see the 11th graders start out stumped, then work together to come up with imaginative stories of mermaids winning dancing contests and Albert Einstein opening a successful restaurant chain in the woods. When they were finished writing, students shared their creations with their enthusiastic classmates then posted the stories for all to read. Emilie was so impressed by their creativity and is excited to continue exploring fun ways to learn!

Emilie Tomas is currently teaching at SMA Unggul Del in Laguboti, North Sumatra.