An innovative handbook for teaching English speaking.
The English is Crazy method is currently making a difference for students learning to speak English in more than 60 countries.
Keep scrolling. Classroom materials for the English is Crazy system are available below.
When you get to the FREE Handouts it’s the end.
It isn’t enough to cross our arms and criticize.
For education to move forward, we have to learn new things and support progressive ideas.
Download English is Crazy Book (PDF)
NOTE: Originally published in 2009 as English is Stupid. If you own a copy of English is Stupid, Students are Not, you don’t need English is Crazy.
If this book will help you and your students but you are unable to pay for it, you are welcome to download the PDF for FREE.
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ContributeContributeContributeAdditional English is Crazy Resources
Purchase supplementary book-PDFs and Download Free Posters, Flashcards, Handouts
| # | Type | Name | Cost | Quantity |
| 1 | Workbook | English Phonetic Alphabet for Chapter One of English is Crazy | Paid | 1 |
| 2 | Course Curriculum | Speaking Made Simple | Paid | 1 |
| 3 | Dictionary | How Do You Say? Dictionary of Expressions by Sound not Spelling | Paid | 1 |
| 4 | Wall Posters 24″x36″ | • The Roadmap to Fluency • Thompson Vowel Chart • The History of English • Vennglish – where written and spoken English meet • The Elements of Conversation and Fluency • EPA Periodic Table of English Sounds | Free | 7 |
| 5 | Flashcards | • 3rd Person Singular Verbs ‘s’ (26 cards) • Regular Plural Nouns ‘s’ (26 cards) • Regular Past Tense ‘ed’ (24 cards) • Corporate Past Tense ‘ed’ (30 cards) • Thompson Vowel Chart ( 16 Code Words) | Free | 5 |
| 6 | Handouts | Make-Your-Own Flashcards Word lists • Basic Color Vowel Word list • Intermediate Color Vowel Word list • Corporate Color Vowel Word list EPA/IPA Comparison Charts • EPA/IPA Color Vowel Comparison • EPA/IPA Vowel Comparison • EPA/IPA Consonant Comparison Saving the Best for Last • TLC Telephone Alphabet • Blank Color Vowel Chart Exercise • 10 Minute Accent Assessment Tool | Free | 9 |
Purchase Supplementary Books – PDFs
English Phonetic Alphabet Workbook
• General American Pronunciation
• Companion to CHAPTER ONE of English is Crazy
• 150+ exercise pages for each of the 40 sounds in English
• 280 page printable PDF
English Phonetic Alphabet Workbook
$10.00
Speaking Made Simple Course Curriculum
• Sheridan College Speaking Canadian English course manual
• Accelerated listening and speaking program generated for foreign trained professionals
• Information, context, Hot Tips, anecdotes, exercises and activities
• 375 page printable PDF
Speaking Made Simple Course Curriculum
$100.00
Dictionary of Expressions
• 2000 most common English words
• Ordered by main sound for easy accessibility
• Each entry includes: spelling, meaning, pronunciation and how the word is used
• Expressions are a critical indicator of fluency
• A penny for your thoughts – find expressions via their main word
• 284 page printable PDF
Dictionary of Expressions
$10.00
Free Download 24″ x 36″ Wall Poster PDFs
Additional English is Crazy Resources
THE ROADMAP TO FLUENCY
• It’s the 6 chapters of English is Crazy and their importance.
• Like an image on a puzzle box the Roadmap shows the number of pieces and how they connect to produce successful communication
• From individual sounds to Expressions and Non-Verbal Communication speaking English boils down to these 6 patterns – no exceptions
• Learners love to plot their progress on the Roadmap to Fluency
THOMPSON VOWEL CHART
• The snag with English is the alphabet (26 letters) doesn’t make sense
• Until now, there was no logical bridge from writing to pronunciation (40+ sounds)
• 16 regular color names feature the 16 vowel sounds of English and provide a framework for confident pronunciation
THE HISTORY OF ENGLISH
• How did English get to be such a mess?
• One man on one day ruined it for everyone and education has been copying a mess ever since
• Context is everything. Students love to know it’s not their fault They study reading and writing but speaking doesn’t follow – because they are unrelated
VENN DIAGRAMS COMPARE SETS
• The blue set is the 26 letters of the alphabet
• The pink set is the 40 sounds of General American (GA) English
• They intersect in the middle – 18 consonant letters represent the sounds one expects
• c q x are unnecessary
• a e i o u make 16 different sounds
• Focus of study needs to be in the big, pink, part-moon on the right
THE ELEMENTS OF FLUENCY
• It isn’t, not in speaking
• Communication is given by Context
• Listening is under taught in English class, yet it’s critical
• Word stress is the cornerstone of intelligibility
• Gestures support meaning
• Focus on grammar inhibits learners and impedes conversation
NO ONE LIKES THIS ONE BUT IT’S MY PARTY
• Vowels A, E, I, O, U are light blue
• 18 Consonants are light purple
• c, q, x have no purpose, their sounds are made by other letters
• The 16 vowel sounds are pink
• The 6 consonant sounds that have no fixed letters are dark purple
18 + 16 + 6 = 40 sounds of English
Brilliant!
VENNS ARE MAGIC
• I just wanted you to see the only place writing and speaking intersect is Expressions
• ESL is taught exclusively in the blue Reading/Writing crescent on the left
• There is virtually no crossover to Listening/Speaking and that is why learners can study English for years and never speak it confidently
EPA ENGLISH PHONETIC ALPHABET
Free Download FLASHCARD PDFs
Additional English is Crazy Resources
Tricky ‘s’ on the Third Person Singular Verbs
• Third person singular ‘s’ makes three sounds
/s/ in sleeps
/z/ in gives
/iz/ in teaches
• 26 colorful flashcard PDFs with plenty of examples for each of the third person singular s sounds
Tricky ‘s’ on Regular Plural Nouns
• ‘s’ on regular plural nouns makes three sounds
/s/ in books
/z/ in eggs
/iz/ in dishes
• 26 colorful flashcard PDFs with plenty of examples of each of the regular plural s sounds
Regular Past Tense ‘ed’
• Regular Past Tense ‘ed’ makes three different sounds
/d/ stopped
/t/ walked
/id/ added 24 colorful flashcard PDFs with plenty of examples of each of the regular past tense ed sounds
Corporate Past Tense ‘ed’
• Regular Past Tense ‘ed’ makes three different sounds
/d/ agreed
/t/ purchased
/id/ added
• 30 colorful flashcard PDFs using corporate vocabulary and images
Thompson Vowel Chart Sounds
• basic vocabulary and images that feature the 16 vowel sounds of English
• suitable for every level of learner
• double example word to reinforce featured vowel sound
• 16 colorful flashcards
Free Download Handout PDFs
The Work is Done For You
TLC TELEPHONE ALPHABET
- Phones only transmit 60% of sound, everyone struggles in phone conversations sometimes
- Native English speakers use code words to represent letters to spell out important information when they need to be clear.
- This list of basic code words is a useful tool for English learners when necessary
- Even if they never use this strategy, learners love to have a Plan B
BLANK THOMPSON VOWEL CHART
#1 Most Downloaded chart by English Teachers
• With a good set of colored pencils (Staples brand) and a class set of this document, students create their own TLC Vowel Chart and the pronunciation of every word in English goes home with them
10 MINUTE ACCENT ASSESSMENT TOOL
#1 Most Downloaded chart by Language Coaches
• The sounds of English are in the center, go through each sound with the client
• If the sound is in their language, leave its symbol in the center, if not move it to the pink crescent on the left The sounds the client needs to focus on are isolated in 10 min
Thompson Language Center 
