
Welcome to Ih riga-satva!
IH Riga is one of the oldest language schools in Latvia and has been affiliated with International House since 2003.
The school is somewhat of a family, with many members of staff having been part of the team since the early days of the school and parents who reminisce about their own lessons here when they bring their children along to classes. IH Riga Satva has an excellent reputation in Riga, which has been built by years of expertise in teaching and management, respect for communicative language teaching and most importantly a genuine care for the wellbeing of our students and all of the Satva team.

Online Course for Teachers of Primary and Secondary English
IH Riga-Satva, a member of the International House World Organization, is proud to present and share our practical YL course to Latvian teachers.
Benefits:
- A wealth of useful teaching method and materials for your role
- Workshop-based programme: IH Course in Teaching Young Learners and Teenagers
- IH certificate of professional development (26 ak.h.)
- Opportunity to work for IH Riga-Satva
Session Time: October-November 2024, on Saturdays from 10:00 to 13:15
Cost: 190 Eur for 6 sessions (26 ak.h.), 50 Eur for 1 session
PROGRAM
Sat 6 Sept: Planning for YLs - FREE session!
By the end of the session participants should be more aware of the principles behind planning, and how to approach constructing a well-balanced and cohesive lesson plan.
Sat 12 Oct: Classroom Management & Classroom Instructions
Classroom Management - Classroom Management with younger learners is a very wide subject, and its issues and problems differ with different age groups. Concerns with younger learners aged 4-8 are very different from those expressed by teachers of teenagers, for example. This session focuses on ‘critical moments’ in the lesson where teachers are encouraged to identify stages of the lesson when we need to establish firm routines and patterns of behaviour.
Classroom Instructions - The session will provide participants with some practical hands-on experience of receiving and understanding instructions. The focus of the session is to provide practical examples of how classroom instructions can be formulated and used as part of the lesson to provide learners with more language exposure. The second objective is for participants to be able to heighten learners’ awareness that understanding and communication come from more than just the words that are spoken.
Sat 19 Oct: Clarification of New Language & Practising Language
Clarification of New Language - After defining what ‘to understand’ really means participants will be presented with a variety of techniques to help gauge the level of YL comprehension. These techniques are easily transferable to the classroom and participants should find all very useful. The three different age groups will then be considered as to which technique is more suitable.
Practising Language - In this session, participants will look at the area of practising language with young learners and consider the features which make a practice activity effective. By the end of the session, participants should have an understanding of the various factors that need to be considered when selecting, preparing and using practice activities in Young Learner classes as well as how to evaluate the suitability of such activities for a particular situation. The session includes a number of practical demonstrations of activity types which can be used for practising language with Young Learners. These are followed by reflection and evaluation of the suitability of such activities and possible adaptations.
Sat 26 Oct: Materials for YLs & Speaking
Materials for YLs - This session explores the different materials available to EFL teachers and examines the characteristics of good materials. There will be a focus on how materials can support language production goals and materials will be analysed according to 7 criteria. The session also explores the idea that materials can helps improve classroom management skills. The session also provides "Do’s and Don’ts" for participants when handling /presenting /distributing materials.
Speaking - At the young age groups speaking is often regurgitated ‘chunks’ of language, which is an important strategy to help YLs gain confidence. This session looks at how YLs communicate in their first language and analyses how this could be of use to the EFL classroom. There are often missed opportunities in the YL and Teenagers classroom to maximise speaking which are considered here along with how to help older learners to prepare for speaking exams.
Sat 2 Nov: Listening & Reading
Listening - This session, whilst recognising that for YLs (and perhaps more so for VYL) speaking and listening skills are acquired holistically, provides participants with the opportunity to discuss and analyse the key implications of Specific characteristics on developing listening skills and competence.
Reading - To raise awareness of a number of issues specific to teaching reading to YLs and highlight the importance of reading for language development in a broader sense. By the end of the session, participants should be aware of some factors that influence what a YL may or may not bring with them in connection to learning reading in English, including how well they can read in L1 and their attitudes and habits of reading in L1
Sat 9 Nov: Developing Writing Skills & Games
Developing Writing Skills - This session aims to present tasks and activities which will encourage learners to write and which will also consolidate their language skills. By the end of the session participants will have a heightened awareness that having an audience to read what has been written is key when encouraging YLs to develop this skill
Games in the YL Classroom - In this session, participants will investigate what constitutes a ‘game’ (compared to an activity) and why games can be an effective medium for presenting, practising or consolidating language, as well as promoting useful skills development. The age and/or stage of development of YLs is a significant factor when selecting games in order for them to be positive, enjoyable and motivating language learning. By the end of the session, participants should have an understanding of the various factors that need to be considered when selecting, preparing and using games with children’s classes, as well as a repertoire of different types of games that could be adapted to suit the needs of the lesson.
Sat 23 Nov: Teaching Adolescents
The session will create an opportunity for the participants to identify adolescent characteristics and look at how this translates into classroom behaviour. They will look at some problems from a teen’s point of view and explore what makes lessons more or less appealing to this age group. (What they can/can’t do, what they like, what they need and what they want-some ideas taken from the previous ‘Teaching Adolescents’ and ‘Child Development’ sessions). Gaining and keeping good rapport will be covered, while making it clear that most teens do not want to be friends with their teachers, but instead, need a well-prepared guide.
Language courses for children
Most of our students are young learners aged from 3 – 18, who study General English twice a week in order to supplement their state school education, prepare for school exams and enter international universities.
Please note that we are unable to offer student visas and accommodation services for individuals residing outside the EU.
Many of our young learners have achieved a high level of English, so our international teachers are likely to be teaching B2, C1 and C2 groups. Our intensive Academic IELTS course is popular and we have some adult General English and Business courses.
The academic year at IH Riga runs from September until the start of June and we also have a separate summer programme offering CLIL, craft and soft skills courses.
Following the pandemic we have been experimenting with offering a blend of online and offline classes, so teachers and students get the best of both worlds in terms of up to date digital resources and face to face interaction.
Our students tend to be enthusiastic, hard working and motivated to learn, communicate and have fun and the teachers tend to fall in love with their groups!
Not only do we teach English, we also teach Latvian.


Professional Development
The IH Riga academic management team consists of a DoS, ADoS and a Senior teacher who are here to provide training and support to all our teachers.
We run weekly input sessions, there is individual mentoring and support for specific needs and teachers are observed regularly. Teachers have the benefit of colleagues with rich and varied experience, in addition to a large, well-resourced teachers’ room and library. Being part of the IH Network means that our teachers also can make the most of the high quality online teaching courses offered by IH World.
Work with us
We employ a highly qualified and motivated team of teachers.
We are interested in both local and Native English Teachers who have either the CELTA (or equivalent) or a degree in English from a Latvian University.
Teachers recruited from outside of Riga are provided with low cost, comfortable and modern accommodation within walking distance of the school, central Riga and the Old Town.
To find out if there are any current vacancies, please check out the IHWO jobs site at www.ihteachenglish.com or contact us at ihdos@ihriga.lv for more information


Life in Riga
Riga is a small, compact city which offers something for everyone.
Architecture lovers will be dazzled by the stunning Art Nouveau buildings and the medieval Old Town, areas of the city which are packed with welcoming bars, restaurants and boutiques. Culture vultures will be impressed by affordable opera, numerous museums and artistic spaces and there are sports facilities, department stores and several markets selling fresh and local produce and crafts. For peaceful afternoons, there are several lush parks, riverside walks, vegan cafes and coffee roasteries on almost every corner in central Riga.
Perhaps the most attractive aspect of Riga and Latvia is the abundance of nature. Primordial forests, white sandy beaches, crystal clear lakes and swamp lands are easily accessible from Riga and beautiful all year round.
Find out more about Riga and Latvia: https://www.latvia.travel/en
Student stories
Our teachers share their thoughts

IH Riga-Satva is a very friendly environment for teachers and students. All of us working here are a big welcoming family, who always support each other professionally and with some useful advice. There is always a possibility to grow up in teaching and develop your skills and knowledge.

Latvian students are really a pleasure to teach, which makes me happy. I love how the the classes are a mixture of hard, serious work with fun and creativity.

IH Riga-Satva has always been a place where I feel at home: wonderful atmosphere, friendly and curious students, reliable and helpful colleagues, a place where we can be creative and get pleasure from teaching. We also love parties, where we become closer to each other, workshops where we learn so many intersting and useful things for our teaching. Satva takes a very special place in my heart and soul.










