March is finally here and spring breaks are almost upon us. The great migrations of college students begin this month. Snow birds who left around Christmas generally return in March. With the current event of the COVID 19 virus, we chatted quite a bit about how to protect yourself when you travel locally or around the United States or even the world. This isn't the only disease around! People share variations from one region to another. There are colds and flus, whooping cough, strep, and so much more:
- Clean hands save lives! The CDC had great policies and procedures for helping you to stay healthy at all times. Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds before rinsing off the suds (sing the happy birthday song twice). Use a clean towel to dry your hands. Use a paper towel or your sleeve or shirt to open the door when leaving a public bathroom.
- Don't touch your face. Wash your face.
- Use tissues and throw them away.
- Use alcohol or bleach based wipes to clean surfaces like seat buckles, tray tables, etc. on the plane. Wipe your steering wheel, seat belt and door handles of your car, too!
- When you don't have access to wash your hand, use hand sanitizers. Allow hand sanitizers to dry on your hands.
- Drink fluids especially plenty of water, eat health foods, get plenty of rest and sleep.
- Get the flu shot if you haven't already done so. The flu season isn't over.
International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:30-10:30, room 100
In Mark 6:45-56 we read that after Jesus fed the 5000+ people, he directed his disciples to get into a boat and cross over to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. He himself withdrew to a quiet place on the mountainside to pray. Later that night, as the disciples were struggling to row against a strong wind, Jesus came to them, walking on the water. They were terrified, thinking He was a ghost. But then He spoke to them and said, “Take courage. It is I. Don’t be afraid.” Our group had an interesting discussion about how God always gives us what we need, when we need it (and a little more!). Jesus had been teaching the people about the Kingdom of God and healing the sick. He had become so popular that everywhere He went the people flocked to Him. Yet there were those who opposed Him. They should have known better! Jesus had come to restore our relationship with God the Father. Because of what Jesus has done for us, we can be in good standing with the Father.
March 3: Please join us at 9:30 when we will begin the seventh chapter of Mark.
International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:30-11:30, room 100
We played mahjong! What a great game. Mind you, we didn't bet (which is a big part of this game, so they say). The game can become a very complicated strategy game, but it is easy enough for beginners to get the hang of. While this game is reminiscent of the card game gin. There is a very satisfying tactile sense to this game because of the tiles.
March 3: Join us as we meet to play dominos.
Conversation: Wednesdays, 4:30-6:00, room 123/Brides Room
Instead of the weather turning snowy during class, the whole day was snowy. We had low turn out. Talk turned to current events including the corona virus that has been renamed COVID 19 and the announcements of the incidents recounted it news on Monday. Since the South Korean outbreak originated in a cult church, we talked about the spread of the sickness/virus emulated how this cult has grown in numbers by infecting and claiming Christian churches in South Korea.
March 4: Join us for conversation. This time I will need to leave early to attend a meeting.
English Classes: Thursdays, 9:30-11:30, upstairs classrooms.
It has been fun to substitute in the various classes the past few weeks. Getting quality time with you has been a great opportunity for me to brush up my skills in specific areas of language development as well as break out my teaching styles to best meet the classroom needs: leader, listener, documenter, participator.*
Thank you for getting me your resumes. I am looking forward to reading and commenting on them. I will have them back to you on Thursday!
Featured Class: American Accent Training
I was delighted to substitute for Kathy in American Accent Training. We enjoyed so many great conversational topics and instead of Bill's Tip we have Macho Man! A Macho Man is a manly man, but in some parts of the world a Macho Man is a controlling and has an attitude of superiority over women. In the U.S. we think of the Village People Disco Song! Randy Savage is a pro wrestler and his stage name is Macho Man!
Is COVID 19 (the new official name for the Corona Virus) is something to avoid travel? General consensus: people will get sick, this is a flu-like virus.
We kicked around pronouncing the aw sound (take a look at pages 11 and 12 in Mastering the American Accent): paw, saw, draw, caw. This can be spelled any number of ways. Cautious was one word that gave us pause. Have you ever seen a caution sign when driving? Generally, we didn't have trouble with this sound until we heard it in a word that was unfamiliar. We also talked about regional pronunciation (accent) differences in the United States where words with the aw sound are pronounced like a short a!
Great strategies for adult learners demonstrated in class today by the students:
- When a word gets stuck behind your home language (that is, you can't think of the word in English but you can in your home language) speak out loud the word or phrase that is getting in the way (you want to say green, but you can only think of verde). That allows your brain to move forward and go off your usual stopping place for that word and let the translation happen.
- Perfection or Correction: as a person who is continually growing are you looking for perfection the first time you learn something or correction as a teaching and/or personal practice. What does this mean when you are in a conversation? Do you want immediate correction for pronunciation or grammar or do you want to finish your thought and then have correction?
- When wondering how to pronounce something, listen to the pronunciation on your phone. Find other examples or sing the nonsense rhyming song to cement the sound in your mind
- To remember a word or phrase, avoid direct translation. A word is a "code" for something and is abstract. Try to visualize, draw a picture and come up with more examples. For example, you want to remember "green" so you name as many things that you can that are that color (in English if possible); point to things that are green around you and say "green".
- Critical listening is important: listen for the details of pronunciation rather than just the content of the conversation.
English for Children: Thursdays, 9:30-11:30, Brides Room.
We finally wrapped up February classes with a study of cold and arctic. This will become one of my favorite lessons!
Our theme for the month is fairy tales. These tales are an important vehicle for teaching and preparing children for events in life that may be threatening or they teach cultural norms. One aspect of these tales is repetition. Repetition not only helps with learning and remembering, it gives the opportunity for everyone to participate by speaking or singing along.
We are working on counting and sequencing this month. Counting includes being able to recognize the numbers. Sequencing is the order in which events happen. Have your children tell you the stories using their take home props. We will also give you links to on-line reading (in perfect broadcaster English for read alongs).
CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
tips: hints, advice
mind you:
so they say: as rumored
get the hang of: get used to; able to perform a task
reminiscent: reminder; memorable
embedded: included inside of something; not obvious
secure: fix or attach so something doesn't get lost
flock: to gather or go in a crowd
good standing: good rank or status, especially with respect to social, economic, or personal position, reputation, etc.
talk: conversations
turned to: to be directed; changed
emulated: imitated
quality time: valuable time spent with someone
kicked around: discussed; shared ideas
vehicle: method
threatening: endanger, bully
cultural norms: actions expected by a culture
along: join in
*-er, -or: words may end in either of these to show that someone is actively participating in the role of that noun; some say that the origin of the root word is significant in whether the word end in an -er or -or; others say that the role of the actor as a instigator or leader could have bearing on how the word ends: is the action directed toward one's self or others
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