1. The first of two attractive online events chronologically this Thursday, 24^th June is an Eaquals webinar with David Coniam from LanguageCert at 14:00 UK time on The fit between English language exams and ‘real’ English: How have things changed over the years – presumably towards more real than less! More info and registration here https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_tHXBfXI1RAulWRhg7TICsQ

2. The second is New Ways of Teaching: Skills and CPD for Teachers, at 18:00 UK time on Thursday, a little later in the UK day than usual, which brings together Wendy Arnold, Harry Kuchah Kuchah, Shelagh Rixon, Alicia Artusi and Graham Stanley to discuss the findings of recent British Council research into the different skills needed by English teachers to support student learning remotely or via a combination of face-to-face and online. More info and registration here https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/new-ways-teaching-skills-cpd-teachers

3. Here’s the latest sparkly podcast from my colleagues in Portugal, a special International Children’s Day themed episode of The Sunshiny Day which includes news of a real-life courtroom drama starring six courageous Portuguese children and teens who are taking on the might of the European Union, Greta Thunberg-style, in a potentially history-making case on climate change policies – and “lots of funny stories, moving music and side-splitting jokes” as well! Scroll down the page to Episode 5. https://spark.adobe.com/page/8xM4IHdgPtfZa/ (It seems that there are two International Children’s Days, just in case you were wondering – one on 1^st June and one on 20^th November.)

4. And, finally, a real treasure trove of a site that brings together all the Poems on the (London) Underground since 1986: https://poemsontheunderground.org/this-months-poems I have especially clear memories of the first six poems from 1986 because we received scores of copies of each in Munich where I was working at the time, and we covered schools all over Bavaria with them. Those were the (better-funded and less-focussed) days!