LOOK OUT! It's October.

Hello Friends,

October has some weird and wild dates that are observed and obscure (Check out this article from USA Today to add some fun and fest to the month). Plan to meet with us in-person for some fun:

October 31: Happy Halloween: Pumpkin Carving and Tailgate in the Cornerstone parking lot 9-11:00 AM

Weathering the Weather

Fall brings changing weather conditions. Indiana is land locked, but we still feel the effects of hurricanes, which is surprising since we are land locked. This past weekend we could smell the Gulf air while we picked up sticks, leaves and other debris from our yards. 

The rain didn't dampen the fun at Cornerstone's Oktoberfest or at the Carmel International Art's Festival. I hope that you got out and enjoyed the weekend.

Meanwhile, being prepared for bad weather is important. Makes sure you are prepared because fall brings quick changes. Here is a page in our Quick Start with advice.

Fall Book Sale at the Carmel Clay Main Library

Discover great bargains on used books (and more) during these special sale dates. Just $10 for a bag of books. Presented by the CCPL Foundation Friends.

Friday, October 4, 9am–5pm
Saturday, October 5, 9am–4pm
Main Library Community Room

Glimpses: Best Practices in the Heartland Conference

Free three day conference hosted at Cornerstone Lutheran Church October. Click here to register. Click on "Get the App" and then click the cover to see the events and break out sessions. The "context" of the conference is Lutheran Christian and will communicate with that language set and feeling. There are many topics that are relevant to all people, not just church workers and Christians.

International Friends is having a breakout session and hosting an informational table. We are also Zooming from the conference so other communities can learn more about what we do and see us in action. 

Register and participate (for American English and Culture grade points)

• Improve your conversation skills and help communicate what we do: help host the information table.
• Come to our breakout session and talk to interested people and contribute to the presentation.
• Attend interesting breakout sessions and learn more about the American Christian culture.
• Eat with other people and practice your conversation skills. Meals are

American English

Have you ever....

The question phrase, "Have you ever ...?" Trips people up (and not just people new to English). This 5 Minute English Lesson gives an explanations, exercises, and examples. Don't miss the common questions at the end.

Something that always causes confusion for listeners is the question is phrased as a negative: 

"You haven't been to the Mexican restaurant on Main Street, have you?"

Many people new to English answer "Yes." or "Yes, I haven't." The correct way to answer is to answer "No." or "No, I haven't." The simple question is "Have you ever..."

Meeting and Class Notes

Register and join us in our classes!

International Bible Study: Monday, 8-9:00 PM. Zoom

We started with Psalm 19. This beautiful song  

We then read and discussed Genesis 15-17. God seals the deal with Abram who is renamed Abraham following a practice that seems odd to us in this modern day, but was common in the early days. The article What was a blood covenant? explains verses 9-21 in chapter 15. The stories in these chapters were sometimes difficult to read because of the topic and content. We find that God does not play favorites, but cares for everyone in a way that is unique to their situation and to their special needs.

September 30: Psalm 121 and Genesis 18 and 19 the famous story of Sodom and Gomorrah

American English and Culture: Thursday, 9-11:00 AM, Zoom

Our conversation revolved around social events and about gaining vocabulary. Vocabulary is not limited to words, it also includes phrases. 

We talked about how adult brains love the comfortable paths and that information that is not regularly accessed will "grow over" and fill in as other information takes precedence. The more you "play" with information, the more

October 3:  Pick a word or phrase from your lists and set your mind free and follow the connections. Freely write, sketch, use colors…..

American English and Culture: Beginning October 17 Thursday, 7-8:00 PM, Cornerstone Lutheran Church, Room 102

In person meetings begin Thursday, October 17 in room 102. Enter door 6. Register today. If you have already registered for our classes. Join us if you have already registered for classes, but not this one.

October 17: First meeting. 

American English For Kids: Friday, 5:30-6:00 PM, Private Zoom Link

What do you love to do? Tennis is a sport enjoyed by many. Tennis has a special language of its very own. It also has its own counting system. Talking about how to play can be complicated. Diagrams and practical examples are necessary.

October 4: Come prepared to talk about the big school event for the week.

Words and Phrases

The Gulf: The Gulf of Mexico; sometimes we shorten a name of a common reference. Sometimes we add "the" as to refer to a specific thing or place the Meijer on Meridian. Sometimes we add "the" as an honorific: "We love the Goodwill for bargains."

land locked: surrounded by land (not sea)

play favorites: 

revolved around: discussion or topic covering multiple facets

seal the deal: an official act to confirm an agreement or sale of a major purchase. "We shook hands to seal the deal."

Welcome Fall: September 22, 2024

Hello, Friends.

Fall is a special time of year in the Midwest. Football is in full swing but that's not all. Back to school means many interesting topics to explore and learn.

Learning, Participating, and Fun

Woods Lectures at Butler University:  Check out this grab bag of science and social science lectures. One might grab your interest.

Glimpses at Cornerstone Lutheran Church in Carmel is hosting the Best Practices in the Heartland Conference. International Friends is participating both at the tabling event as well as an informational session to help other people to learn about our school to help their communities with learning as well as teaching. If you are local, consider coming to learn about American culture and how people in the church serve each other and in the community. October 9-11. The event is free.

Things to do in Indiana offers all the fun and interesting opportunities here in our home state. Get out there and enjoy the fall!

Bump Into

Bring your family and friends for fun and food. Look for familiar friendly faces and say hi.

Oktoberfest at Cornerstone Lutheran Church, September 27, 4-10:00 PM. A family evening of fellowship with friends and neighbors! Entry to the event is free! Buy tickets for food and drinks. A discount is offered on tickets purchased before September 22. 

Carmel International Arts Festival, September 28-29. Check out the website to see the artists and opportunities. This is an excellent event

American Culture

National Constitution Day was September 17. The Constitution is this document is 

Constitution Annotated is a .gov site providing a no nonsense approach to the "supreme law" of the United States. Find the Constitution as well as links to court cases and rulings that inform decisions.

American English and Pronunciation

What is it? BMV. BMW. One is a government entity and the other is a fancy car. Do you misunderstand someone or does someone not get what you are saying? Maybe you are confusing /V/ and /W/. There are many English word pairs that if they are mispronounced with a V for a W or vice versa can be quite odd, frustrating or confusing. Minimal Pair initial /v/ and /w/ gives a lists of words for comparison with audio clips to tune your earn and your tongue. 149: Practicing the /w/ and the /v/  provides listening and the transcript to read along.

Meetings and Class Notes

Register and join us in our classes.

International Bible Study: Monday, 8-9:00 PM Zoom

Genesis 13 and 14 offer stories about Abram and Lot. They separate because their "families" are arguing. We love the idea that Abram and God chat (v. 14) after Lot and his crew take off for what appears to be the better part of the land, God promises that He will bless Abram.

September 23: Read and journal (write your thoughts in notes) for Genesis 15-17 and  Psalm 19. Next week!

American English and Culture, Thursday, 9-11:00 AM, Zoom

We had a new mix of people join us today. Building our relationships in the early weeks of classes is important to becoming confident with talking to others. Practice. Practice. Practice. But having good discussions, conversations and telling and hearing stories are all a part of language learning.

September 26: Bring stories about friends. What is on your social word list?

Words and Phrases

.gov site: any website ending in ".gov" is from the U.S. government.

grab [interest, attention]: gain or get [interest, attention]

grab bag: a mix of things included together
no nonsense: direct

take off: leave

Back To School All The Way Around!

Hello, Friends.

Fall is here. The leaves are beginning to change color and pumpkin spiced everything can be found on menus and in fall candles. Carmel apple is another flavor and scent of fall. Indiana weather is shifting: cool, warm, hot. Homecoming celebrations at high schools and colleges mean special football games and formal dances. Find out what we have been doing at International Friends this week.

Yellow Jackets

Fall also means panicking yellow jackets. These wasps hover around trash cans and outdoor dining tables (they are attracted to rotting food, meat, and insects around the trash). They can bite to hang on and sting multiple times (unlike honeybees who disembowel themselves leaving their stingers and venom behind). Yellow jackets live the large paper homes. None but the queen survive the winter. 

Ward them away from your picnic with cucumber slices on an aluminum plate. 

Learn more Yellow Jackets Vs. Honey Bees – Comparison Guide

Clay Middle School Open House

Friends and staff visited Clay Middle School. We have a very list of people interested in joining us to study American English and Culture in person. We are looking at adding a weekday evening meeting or a Saturday morning meeting. We also added two new staff members! We are so happy to welcome everyone International Friends! Watch for more about additional meetings as we finalize plans. Meanwhile, join our Thursday morning Zoom to get started.

Register for our classes and meetings.

Bump Into

Bring your family and friends for fun and food. Look for familiar friendly faces and say hi.

Carmel Porchfest, September 15, 12-6:00 PM

Carmel PorchFest is a free, family-friendly community event where a variety of musical acts perform live on neighborhood porches in the Arts & Design District. Plenty of food and beverage vendors will be available. We host close to 60 bands on approximately 23 porches.

Oktoberfest at Cornerstone Lutheran Church, September 27, 4-10:00 PM

A family evening of fellowship with friends & neighbors! Entry to the event is free! Buy tickets for food and drinks. A discount is offered on tickets purchased before September 22.

American English

As we build our stories, we talk about things that have happened in the past. You may hear someone saying "We would go to the beach in the summer" instead of "We went to the beach in the summer." In this case, the person is talking about something the happened often, not just one time. Here is a video to (by a Canadian) explain more:

Presidential Debate

Many if not all of our Friends watched the presidential debate. We ran out of time to debrief this highly publicized event. One of our Friends found this YouTube to help us grow your political vocabulary.

Meeting and Class Notes

International Bible Study: Monday, 8-9:00 PM, Zoom

It was great to get together for the first time in so long. We picked up where we left off in the spring with Genesis 12. Abram is given a promise and a blessing. Tells Abram to leave his country and go to a land that God  would show him. Abram packed up his family, possessions and the "people they had acquired" and hit the road. Here is a Map of the Journeys of Abram and a summary of the stops along the way 

The conundrum that Abram lied to Pharoah and said his beautiful wife Sarai was his sister with Pharoah then taking her into his house as a wife. Because of this, the Egyptian household is inflicted with disease. Pharoah reprimands Abram for not telling him Sarai was his wife and sends him and all his people and goods on their way. The sin of the lie of Abram caused Pharoah to sin unknowingly with consequences.

Our observations:

• God is faithful to His promise to Abram to protect and bless him in spite of Abram's shortcomings.
• No person is perfect, and Abram shows how God loves and cares for us, even when we fail to trust Him.
• Age does not impart wisdom.
• We wondered about Abram's fear of the Pharoah.
• We observed that cultures and human nature remain the same.

Psalm 9 mirrors the story in Genesis 12 in supplication, thanks, and praise.

September 16: Our readings Genesis 13 and 14 and Psalm 19

American English and Culture: Thursday, 9-11:00 AM, Zoom

Hearing about what summer was like for our Friends when they were young was very interesting and heartwarming. It was interesting to hear what people did for fun as well as what summer felt like for them. Whether the memory was impromptu, thought out, or written down and read, each Friend conveyed the sense of joy that only a child can experience. Read people's stories here. Email Carolyn your story to share with our Friends.

Small groups talked about the words and phrases they use with family in their homes. We found there is a mix of English as well as other languages (some families speak more than one language other than English in their homes). 

September 19: Talking about work and careers. This week tell us a story about your career or work life. Collect a list of words and phrases used in your career.

American English For Kids: Friday, 5:30-6:00 PM, Private Zoom Link

We caught up with each other after a long break. Our kids are growing up so fast! This year we are going to work on our storytelling. That is telling the story of our life. This is an important skill when introducing ourselves and our ideas.

September 20: Thinking about the phrase "I am from [details about your past]", be prepared to tell about your family and family experiences. 

Words and Phrases

conundrum: riddle or thorny question

debrief: talk about

hit the road: travel

if not all: probably everyone or everything

send someone on their way: tell someone to leave

supplication: to ask for help from God or a higher power

picked up where we left off: continue

ward them away: repel someone

Welcome. We are so glad to see you!

Hello Friends,

Our meetings and classes are back in session. It was good to see everyone at American English and Culture on Zoom. We began catching up with each other as well as setting our course for the upcoming year. If you have attended in the past, old Zoom links will not work. Register to get the new link.

This year we are concentrating on telling and listening to our stories. Being able to capture and hold attention is an important part of communicating in all languages and cultures. This skill is important for getting work done on your car, talking to your children's teachers, talking to your doctor, interviewing for a job, socializing with friends and family, etc. Preparing and telling our story helps us to narrow our focus from the whole world of a language to the specific words and patterns necessary to ask questions, gain information, and get work done! And...stories are interesting and fun. 

Bump Into Each Other Events

Artomobilia, September 7 in Downtown Carmel: Look for Friends at these fun events

Carmel Porchfest, September 15, Noon-6:00 PM

September Community Outreach Event

International Friends has an informational table at Clay Middle School Tuesday, September 10, 6:00-8:00 PM. Join us as we share more about our program and invite others to join us. Email Carolyn for more information at indyintlfriends@gmail.com

American English and Culture: Thursday, 9:00-11:00 AM (UTC-4), Zoom

In our first meeting we got acquainted with each other (a little bit).

September 12: We are beginning to tell our stories and build our American English "toolbox".

Yes, we have homework this year (by popular request). Have fun with it!

Think about your summer as a child. What was it like? What stands out? We will share these in small groups completing the statement "I am from..." or "I come from..." Remember the Maya Angelou statement and our discussion about how we get more out of our communications with others when we use our stories.

Collect and make a list of the words and phrases you use regularly around your home (in all languages).

Think about the contexts you need to learn to talk in English. Adults are efficient learners, and our brains are great at deciding what is most important to remember. Practical connections narrow our focus to make us efficient and makes learning interesting.

American English Conversation for Kids: Friday, 4:30-5:00 PM (UTC-4), Zoom

Welcome back on September 13! Register to get the new Zoom link.

Extra Credit

Watch the Presidential Debate, 9:00 PM ET on Tuesday, September 10. 

We recommend these stations because they broadcast without commercials and rarely interrupt with spin. The back and forth between the candidates about critical American issues are great for informing American culture hot topics.

CSPAN

PBS

Resource Notes

Maya Angelou's Powerful Communication Secret: This article by John Millen 

Words and Phrases

spin: give (a news story or other information) a particular interpretation or slant