Happy Halloween!

NYC Guide: 10 ways to not look like a tourist

A CUP OF JO: NYC Guide: 10 ways to not look like a tourist:


'via Blog this'

Some tips from New Yorkers so you won't look too much like a tourist there!

• Don't stare. Even if a woman wearing a tiger costume sits down next to you on the subway (which happened to me once), act like nothing out of the ordinary is happening. Seasoned New Yorkers are always unfazed.
• New Yorkers imagine that there's an invisible line down the middle if the sidewalk, and that to keep the flow going, you keep to the RIGHT. New Yorkers also walk at a brisk pace, and if they stop or even slow down, they step out of the way
• Tourists always get overwhelmed when swiping their metro card. There's a lot of fumbling. Just be cool--get your card out while walking down the stairs, make sure the black strip is facing inward, and swipe it like a credit card. 
• New Yorkers fold their pizza.

Go to A Cup Of Jo to read them all!

Peppermint Patty at School

Don't wanna be a lousy voice through Patty's ears.

One thing educators must keep in mind at all times: students are human beings, who might have other things in mind than the lesson we want to teach them, who live, love, have headaches and feel sleepy (including when you're talking to them!)... Let's try to keep some other points in mind too...

• students are not binary-programmed -- we have brains to think, not USB ports to receive information. And those are not industrially made, each one is unique and functions differently.
• you evaluate them, they evaluate you -- don't think you're the only one in charge of drawing conclusions...
• don't blame them for your mistakes, don't let them blame you for theirs. -- teaching-learning is  teamwork. Both parts need to find a balanced point where they speak the same language, then create productive learning experiences from that.

This is what I can get you tonight. I'll try and add something to this post later on.. if any of you and to help me out with that, just leave a post mentioning other possible topics!


talk soon, folks!

The Alphabet

The Alphabet 2 from n9ve on Vimeo.

YILTS X - day 2

André Lemos on life goods in São Paulo

David Crabbe thinking of his experience in Brazil 

The seminar's mascot

 Oxford's display 

(and display only - if you want to buy anything, look for a sales representative)

 Our beloved host and our beloved mascot

The coffee break

Yilts

X YÁZIGI INTERNEXUS LANGUAGE TEACHING SEMINAR

LEARNING HERE, THERE AND EVERYWHERE

...and then 600 teachers from all parts of Brazil come to the third biggest city in the world for a three-day Seminar on language teaching. Sharing, caring, inspiring. It's so nice to see so many teachers thinking and rethinking our knowledge and practices! Topics presented varied from the use of music and arts in classes to the ideas of authors as Vygotsky, Gardner, Morran, Lévy, etc. 

Here are some pictures of our first day of seminar.

This is me presenting the paper 

"Fun Theory: Pleasure-based learning in a Social Interactionist Approach"

     

Plenary Session

David Crabbe on Learning Opportunities in task-based classes.

Professor David Crabbe

This was the first day only. Check back for more of what's going on at YILTS X!


I really appreciated the presence of those who watched my paper. Thank you for all comments and compliments! Hope it was somewhat helpful and mostly inspiring! I'll be soon uploading the material for those who'd like to read it.


So long!


:)

End of term

Another term's coming to an end and next one is just round the corner (there goes another idiomatic expression for you!)

When something is AROUND (or ROUND - British English) THE CORNER, it is about to happen, it will happen very soon.

Example: You'd better hurry up with that project. Deadline is just around the corner.

                   Rolling Stones reveal: new album round the corner.

Grading students is a hard task, and if you're a teacher, you know what I mean by this comic... 

Now, if you're a student, here are some requests from all teachers in the world: 

remember your test will be read by someone; when you use that desperately tiny handwriting or  lead that seems to be trying to go unnoticed you're only giving us a hard time understanding what was it that you didn't understand from our classes. 

Trust me - it won't go unnoticed... chances are you'll get a tiny question mark (if yours is one of the first tests on the pile, otherwise it'll be huge as to make up for your disuse of space) and less points than if you had made us understand what you meant.

I'll leave other tips on making exams for later. Gotta go back to my pile now ;-)

*Link gently shared by the dearest friend and co-worker Livia. Thanks, sweetie ;D

No, you don't need to tell me... You don't need a flawless life plan right away. 

Just think of something meaningful (no matter if it's a goofy meaning, who cares it it's nonsense) and make it happen, NOW!

Pic from the cutest blog Creature Comforts

Holding back tears

♥ ♥ ♥

The History of English

The History of English in 10 animated minutes (a selection of the best minutes!)

It's about time...

It's about time

It's high time

IT'S ABOUT TIME + SUBJECT + SIMPLE PAST

WORDS THAT DON’T EXIST IN ENGLISH

1.      Waldeinsamkeit (German): the feeling of being alone in the woods

2.      Ilunga (Tshiluba, Congo): a person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first time, to tolerate it a second time, but never a third time

3.      Litost (Czech): a state of torment created by the sudden sight of one’s own misery

4.      Esprit de l’escalier (French): a witty remark that occurs to you too late, literally on the way down the stairs…

5.      Meraki (Greek): doing something with soul, creativity, or love

6.      Yoko meshi (Japanese): literally ‘a meal eaten sideways’, referring to the peculiar stress induced by speaking a foreign language:

7.      Duende (Spanish): a climactic show of spirit in a performance or work of art, which might be fulfilled in flamenco dancing, or bull-fighting, etc.

8.      Guanxi (Mandarin): in traditional Chinese society, you would build up goodguanxi by giving gifts to people, taking them to dinner, or doing them a favor, but you can also use up your gianxi by asking for a favor to be repaid.

9.      Pochemuchka (Russian): a person who asks a lot of questions

10.  Selathirupavar (Tamil): a word used to define a certain type of absence without official leave in face of duty

11.  Gheegle: (Filipino) The urge to pinch or squeeze something that is unbearably cute.

12.  Cualacino: (Italian) The mark left on a table by a cold glass.

13.  Sgriob: (Gaelic) The itchiness that overcomes the upper lip just before taking a sip of whisky

14.  Forelsket: (Norwegian) The euphoria you experience when you are first falling in love.

15.  Pena ajena: (Mexican Spanish) The embarrassment you feel watching someone else’s humiliation.

16.  Arigata-meiwaku: (Japanese) An act someone does for you that you didn’t want to have them do and tried to avoid having them do, but they went ahead anyway, determined to do you a favour, and then things went wrong and caused you a lot of trouble, yet in the end social conventions required you to express gratitude.

17. Saudade: (Portuguese) a deep emotional state of nostalgic longing for something or someone that one was fond of and which is lost.

The Bilingual Advantage - NYTimes.com

The Bilingual Advantage - NYTimes.com

THE BILINGUAL ADVANTAGE

From The New York Times:

A cognitive neuroscientist, Ellen Bialystok has spent almost 40 years learning about how bilingualism sharpens the mind. Her good news: Among other benefits, the regular use of two languages appears to delay the onset of Alzheimer’s disease symptoms. Dr. Bialystok, 62, a distinguished research professor of psychology at York University in Toronto, was awarded a $100,000 Killam Prize last year for her contributions to social science.

Q. So what exactly did you find on this unexpected road?

A. As we did our research, you could see there was a big difference in the way monolingual and bilingual children processed language. We found that if you gave 5- and 6-year-olds language problems to solve, monolingual and bilingual children knew, pretty much, the same amount of language. But on one question, there was a difference. We asked all the children if a certain illogical sentence was grammatically correct: “Apples grow on noses.” The monolingual children couldn’t answer. They’d say, “That’s silly” and they’d stall. But the bilingual children would say, in their own words, “It’s silly, but it’s grammatically correct.” The bilinguals, we found, manifested a cognitive system with the ability to attend to important information and ignore the less important.

Q. How does this work — do you understand it?

A. Yes. There’s a system in your brain, the executive control system. It’s a general manager. Its job is to keep you focused on what is relevant, while ignoring distractions. It’s what makes it possible for you to hold two different things in your mind at one time and switch between them. If you have two languages and you use them regularly, the way the brain’s networks work is that every time you speak, both languages pop up and the executive control system has to sort through everything and attend to what’s relevant in the moment. Therefore the bilinguals use that system more, and it’s that regular use that makes that system more efficient.

More here

Teachers are people

A Walt Disney's cartoon from 1952 about schools, students and teachers

Good Morning

BSS | Breakfast Interrupted from Bruton Stroube Studios on Vimeo.

Vocabulary:

Drinks - juice, milk, coffee

Fruits - blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, grapes

Eggs - white of egg + egg yolk

Bread

Croissant

Pancakes (with butter and syrup, or honey)

Muffins

Bacon

Sausage

Questions:

What do you usually have for breakfast?

Culture Shock:

Have you ever heard of Full English Breakfast?

What's a typical breakfast like in your country?

*check back tomorrow for more information on Culture Shock.*

*Breakfast around the world*
Here're some testimonies from people around the world talking about breakfast in their countries.

"Most Hong Kong people would go out to yum cha (which means 'drink tea') in the dim sum restaurant in the morning, it has all varieties of Cantonese dishes, like steamed dumplings, deep fried/baked snacks, fried noodles, congee, etc. It is a habit that HK people go to yum cha in the mornings, as it is cheap and convenient."      -Ada. March 2010

In Eastern European countries with cold climates such as Russia breakfasts tend to be substantial. Some Russians do choose coffee for breakfast but traditionally hot strong tea is popular. A variety of breads with black rye bread being the most common, blini, sausages or cured meats, eggs and cucumber pickles are typical breakfast items. The cereal Kasha is commonly eaten by children. It is not a specific type of grain and is often served with tvorog (a soft curd cheese similar to Ricotta) or sour cream with sugar.

"I just came back from spending three weeks in Greece. The breakfast food I missed the most is something I found throughout the streets in Thessaloniki called Bougatsa. Bougatsa is a delicious (but probably very fattening) pastry filled with creme in the middle. It is served hot with cinammon and sugar on top. It is yummy."       -Renee. July 2008

                               

"In West Africa the cook used to make us millet porridge for breakfast."   -Grete January 2011.

A full breakfast is a meal that consists of several courses, traditionally a starter (fruit juice, prunes, grapefruit), cereal, a main course, tea with milk,toast and (in England) marmalade. Many variations are possible.


 (I'll talk myself about Brazil)

I usually have black coffee in the morning (which I like bitter, without the tiniest bit of sugar, but don't take that as a whole - that's just my taste!). I like to have cheese for protein, and my favorite one for breakfast is Queijo Minas, a typical cheese from Brazilian state Minas Gerais. Most people go to the nearest Bakery in the morning to buy what we call "French bread" or "savory bread"(name varies from place to place). It has to be consumed fresh, so we usually try to catch them when the baker has just got them out of the oven! They usually go with butter or requeijão, which is an incomparably delicious creamy cheese.
********

mmmmm... So many yummy things made me hungry! It's a shame it's not time for breakfast - I'll have lunch instead, maybe some pastry for dessert ;D

The quotes were taken from www.breakfastandbrunch.com, where you can also find amazing multicultural recipes!


Take care, and eat well ;-)

thenotebookdoodles.com/

Bebês de seis meses vão ao curso de inglês

Can babies learn a foreign language even before they start speaking?

Is it healthy to expose such young infants to a second language? (isn't it gonna mess up their little brains too much, too early??)

The topic may be polemic, but you don't need to take a side right away...

Here's an article published by a Brazilian magazine:

Bebês de seis meses vão ao curso de inglês - Educação - Notícia - VEJA.com

Tongue Twisters

Phonetics and pronunciation are usually a big deal when learning a second language. 
Different languages have different letter-sound correlation... and some sounds simply do not exist in other languages, like french /Ø/ (adieu), to worsen things!
Well, tongue twisters are a great tool to work on that! They can be very helpful getting used to specific sounds and establishing differences between them. As palindromes, they appear in every language as wordgames.
Taking the suggestion of my dearest colleague Evandro, here's a list of some nice tongue twisters:


One-one was a race horse.
Two-two was one too.
One-one won one race.
Two-two won one too.


I saw Susie sitting in a shoe shine shop.
Where she sits she shines, and where she shines she sits.
(to work on the difference between /s/ and /sh/)


Sheena leads, Sheila needs.


Scissors sizzle, thistles sizzle.


She sees cheese.
(to work on the difference between /sh/ and /ch/)

And here are some links to a bunch of them!

http://www.uebersetzung.at/twister/en.htm

http://www.speak-read-write.com/tonguetwister.html

Have fun

and take care!

Palindromes

Was it a rat I saw?

It was January 2nd, 2010, I met Bob and Anna, we had a pop sickle. 

Dennis sinned by leaving the church to come and meet us. As he saw us, he yelled: "go hang a salami, I'm a lasagna hog". And we all went to an Italian restaurant to have some pasta. Bob was eating so fast that he didn't stop to say a word. So I asked him: "say it, don't nod!". On the table next to ours, Lisa Bonet ate no basil, and when we asked for the waiter's name, he said "madam, I'm Adam".

Palindromes are so cool! They are words, sentences, numbers or anything that can be read the same way in either direction. Don't you love'em? Here's a song with some cool ones in English. This clip is a parody of Bob Dylan's Subterranean Homesick Blues. Hope you enjoy it!

If you know any others, maybe in different languages, drop me a line and share them!


So long for now, lovelies!

The switcher

I am teaching a group of little kids (3-year-old, incredibly smart, fun kids!) and learning so much from them, each and every class. 

Today, for example, I learned what it's like for a kid to feel empowered with the luminary decisions in the classroom. And what it was like for him to act so outrageously free from the "rules" that would keep him sitting down just like the other kids, in a proper place, in a proper position, in a proper way that wasn't genuinely his. He'd switch sits, switch moods, switch songs, and then he found... the light switch! It was such a challenge to have him participating on the activities and leaving the lights on so that 1) everybody could see; 2) the puppet would not be scared (he's afraid of the dark); 3) He were a nice boy; 4) we could all play a game and have fun; 5) the teacher wouldn't be upset; etc etc etc.

Well, after a few attempts to convince him, and after a few ons and offs, he joined the group and we could finally do the activity (of course, not without his eventual desiring looks to the switch). Actually, that was only after he realized the game involved big green balloons that he loved to throw, let go, and see it floating in the air...

At the end of the class, we talked about respecting and being respected, we both agreed and he promised to  behave better next class.

Some regrets, no ill will. As for me, what am I to say about him? --he's just luminary!

                                                                                                                                    off for now.

welcome welcome everyone

This blog will describe daily experiences of a teacher

(a bouncy one, who's so excited about sharing some experiences with y'all!)

Hope we can stay in touch.

;D