This week on Gav & Em’s How to English TEFL Pod, we take a nostalgic wander through the weird, wonderful, and occasionally chaotic world of TEFL life! ✈️📚 Gav puts Em on the spot with a not-quite-true-or-false quiz that somehow turns into stories about teaching in bathrooms, cupboards, art galleries, and even gas refineries (yes, really). We chat about adorable (and slightly uncooperative) student pets 🐱, mega-long commutes, and the classroom games that got way too competitive… with adults 😅. Then things get a bit more reflective as we dig into our CELTA experiences—what stuck, what annoyed us, and how it’s shaped the teachers we are today. We talk about classroom dynamics, teacher “fingerprints” on students, first impressions (and first-lesson nerves!), and why being human in front of your class might just be your biggest strength.

As always, it’s relaxed, honest, and packed with teaching insights you’ll definitely recognise—whether you’re in the classroom or learning in one.

☕ If you enjoy the show, you can support Gav & Em (and keep the coffee flowing!) at 👉 ko-fi.com/howtoenglishpod

Resources

Quiz music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=proOvlY-WKk

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 – Intro with TEFL nostalgia

03:17 – Gav’s “true or false” quiz begins 😄

03:47 – Weirdest places we’ve taught English

04:40 – Cutest (and strangest) student pets

06:02 – Longest commutes & travel stories

07:09 – Funny things students have called us

08:02 – Essential TEFL survival items ☕

08:32 – When classroom games get too competitive

11:02 – CELTA reflections: love it or hate it?

17:05 – Teaching style, classroom vibe & being approachable

18:22 – Can you spot another teacher’s influence?

23:18 – Bad habits students bring with them

25:24 – First lessons, pressure & first impressions

26:59 – Surviving the “autopilot” lesson blur

31:06 – Being human, making mistakes & wrapping up

Season 7, Episode 8 is packed with spontaneous teaching ideas, lesson lead-ins, online classroom routines, creative listening tasks, and the eternal TEFL struggle of being stuck indoors when the sun is shining. Gav and Em discuss how they start lessons, ways to avoid classroom monotony, using real-world materials in class, and the freedom TEFL teachers have to experiment and improvise. There’s also a brilliant live email-writing activity, an impromptu Jackie Chan listening lesson, favourite teaching websites, and a very important discussion about forks. Support the pod and fuel the tea and coffee fund at ko-fi.com/howtoenglishpod

Resources:

Jackie Chan interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e0IWSyc5AQQ

Wikipedia: https://www.wikipedia.org/

BBC learning: https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/

Google images: https://images.google.com/

https://test-english.com/

Timestamps:

00:00 – Intro and what’s coming up in this episode

02:07 – How Gav and Em start the first five minutes of a lesson

05:39 – Greeting students and avoiding classroom monotony

10:17 – Being stuck inside teaching when the weather is beautiful

14:03 – The creative freedom of TEFL teaching

16:01 – Gav’s spontaneous live email-writing lesson

21:59 – Em’s improvised Jackie Chan listening activity

26:01 – Favourite websites to use during lessons

29:19 – Safe searching, grammar websites, and online teaching tools

32:11 – “Put a fork in me, I’m done” and outro banter

In this episode, Gav and Em dive into the realities of teaching English as a foreign language. Exploring their strengths and weaknesses as teachers, how to handle distracted students, and the feelings of starting again with brand-new learners. They also discuss praise in the classroom, and give a well-deserved shout-out to a loyal listener and follower. Whether you're teaching, learning, or just curious about TEFL life, there’s plenty here to reflect on and laugh about. ☕ Support the pod: https://ko-fi.com/howtoenglishpod

Timestamps

00:00 – Intro & episode overview

01:28 – Strengths and weaknesses as TEFL teachers

09:04 – Exploring teaching weaknesses (and honesty time)

20:21 – How to deal with distracted students

24:27 – Starting from scratch with new students

27:23 – Recognising student progress & using praise

32:10 – Listener shout-out & teaching reflections

33:11 – Outro & support the pod