Friday, October 6, 2017

Want some great learning theory to help your English? Read to the end!

Hello, Friends.

Have you had a chance to think about what you want to be for Halloween? Do you know where to look for costume ideas? You may be tempted to start at Costco where they have so many premade outfits, but most of the best are created. An online search will give you a really fun result: I typed in Halloween costumes and got a nice list of online shopping. Even better, I got a map that included "local results for Halloween costumes" that included Goodwill, Charming Charlie, Party City, and Spirit Halloween (a pop up store where the Marsh used to be in Grayhound Pass). I would add Walmart, Hobby Lobby and Michael's to that list! 
We have owls in the back yard. I'm sure your children already have some great ideas. Will you let them run with them? Let's talk about that this week.

International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30, Room 100
Do we need to ask God for His help? Does God ever "move"? These were just two of the many questions we talked about as we read Psalm 121 this week. This beautiful Psalm reassures us that God is everywhere and that He watches over us, much like we parents watch over our own children.

We also began the second chapter of Matthew, where we read the story of the Wise Men (Magi) following the star to the place where the Christ Child was. They interpreted the appearance of this wondrous star as proof that a king had been born, and they brought gifts for Him that remind us of Jesus' roles as eternal King (gold), the Holy One of God (incense) who would suffer in our place (myrrh). -Jan Heimann


October 10: We will continue this story in Matthew 2:13-23 as we look at the reaction of Herod the Great to the news that a new King of the Jews had been born. Please join our group as we study God's Word and discuss in English. We will begin with Psalm 34.


International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:30-12:00, Room 100


We met in the parking lot to celebrate the tradition of tailgating. Tailgating is when we meet in the parking lot to celebrate before (and sometimes after) an event. We tasted some new favorites (share your recipe!). And as promised, here's how to make Buffalo chicken wings...

  • grill or bake wings at 350 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes or until cooked.
  • dip in a sauce made with 3 parts melted butter to one part hot sauce of your choice (for example I used three sticks of butter and one 12 ounce bottle of Louisiana Hot Sauce) 
  • return the wings to the grill to crisp and brown or broil them turning until they are crispy
  • dip them back in the sauce

Serve with a side of ranch dressing with or without blue cheese and celery sticks.

October 10: We will learn a couple of dishes that include our delicious fall apples. Debi will share her apple cake recipe. We will plan the rest of October and put it on the calendar!

More October Ideas: The Nickel Plate Art Show to see Debi's art hanging; Spirit Halloween in Grayhound Pass, carve pumpkins into Jack o Lanterns for Halloween

Conversation: Wednesdays, 4:30-6:00, Room 207

John shared a whole list of Homophones used in sentences. It was extremely fun to compare these words in clever sentences. I am happy to share these with any of you. Let me know if you are interested.

October 11: Bring your Current in (Carmel, Westfield, etc.) and any questions you have to talk about. We will get our October Easy English News and see what is new.

English Classes: Thursdays, 9:30-12:00, Upstairs Classrooms

Learning a new language can be a great challenge and a fun pastime. The real question you have to face is why you want to learn the language? The answer is usually so that you can communicate with other people. Everyone is an expert at language learning and practicing: you do it every day...Although not usually in English. You share ideas and concepts as well as commands and questions with the people around you. You ask for clarification and simplification. By the time you get to be an adult, you take language learning for granted until you set out to learn a new language! All of a sudden it is so very hard to remember simple ideas. It is frustrating to start at square one and not be able to say what you want to say without reaching for words (and then selecting the wrong one!). How can this be fun?

First of all, remember that learning a new language is a social project. You have to practice with other people. This is great for your mind and your body. People who interact socially are healthier than people who do not. Stay healthy and enjoy yourself with some good conversation (in English...with me!).

Secondly, you have to put in vocabulary time. This can be really dull and seemingly useless, but when you tie your vocabulary words to something that is meaningful to YOU you learn much faster. Flash cards are the best way to do this. Flash cards you make yourself with hand drawn pictures are the very best way. If you write the matching word, you aren't making as many memory connections.

Third, you have to forget to remember. This is a really weird thing about learning so many things. Every time you forget and then remember, you are building more paths to that word and idea. If you take the time to forget and then refresh your memory, you are building highways!

Fourth, in the beginning of this Update I added a sentence that may not have made sense in the context of the paragraph since it didn't have anything to do with Halloween. Do you remember what it was? What was the subject? Where were they? Did you go back to the beginning when I asked you about this to see the sentence? Do you have a picture in your head for this? What do you imagine? All of these questions are answered every time you learn a new word or idea. Since so much of language is in a "code", you have to make a relation to a concrete concept. Since the sentence didn't fit, you either passed it over as unessential or you said, "Hmmm? I wonder what that was all about?" and that helped it stick in your mind

Fifth: There are some really cool on-line language tools like Memrise and Duolingo that are free and have apps that can be played with anywhere on your smart phone or tablet. Playing is exactly what this is like with these tools. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------turn these into flash cards----
let them run with them: do what they want
reassures: restores confidence
reaction: action in response to some influence, event, etc.
wondrous: amazing
God's Word: the Bible is called God's Word; another name for Jesus (John 1:1)
a side: a dish or food that aren't the primary focus of the meal
put it on the calendar: make a schedule
pastime: a pleasurable activity
take...for granted: don't think about or consider
set out: begin
start at square one: begin at the very beginning of an endeavor
reaching for words: trying to explain something without having a vocabulary to back it up
put in time: work or practice
really weird thing: strange
stick in your mind: make something memorable
really cool: neat, or other out of date expressions meaning rad or awesome or in the most current teen-slang "lit"


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