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Hi everyone, We had our final lesson for this semester! For the first part of our lesson, I collected and checked your journals. After, you completed the course evaluations. Before the break, we have our last group of discussions. After the break, we started with our last speed discussions and then moved on to a review of opinion giving structure. A few of you still have a little trouble with structuring your opinion. Remember that you need to give a reason for your opinion, and support it with examples. Final Grade: I returned your book reports and the last discussion worksheets. We also reviewed the grading criteria for our course. I'll have your grades completed next week by July 22. If you would like to know your grade, please email me or send me a private message on Line. Discussions (3) 30% Book Reports (2) 30% Presentation 20% Blog Comments 10% Journal 10% We then ended our lesson with an activity about your summer plans. Have a fun summer vacation!   
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Hi everyone, Just one more round of discussions and one more journal entry, and we'll be finished our time in IE3 Core. The time sure has passed too quickly! Texting in English: In today's lesson, we learned a variety of texting abbreviations in English. When you text in English, you can use emoji, emoticons, and abbreviations. When you use abbreviations, it is very common to omit vowels. When you use emoticons in English, the focus on on the mouth (e.g. :-) and :-( ) In Japanese, the focus is on the eyes (e.g.^_^) Some common abbreviations include: a. LOL = laughing out loud b. CUl8t = See you later c. CWOT = complete waste of time d. BFF = best friend forever e. v = verb f. zzz = tired, bored or sleepy You then got a chance to practice texting on your own phones and translating your partner's messages. Discussions: All group leaders did an excellent job in today's discussions. Your discussions were 30 minutes! This is because all groups have very strong conversational style. Interactions among members were excellent in all groups today. I'm very glad to see group members making such an effort to interact more! Homework: 1. Upload Book Reports #1 & #2 to the database!
3. Journal Topic #10: IE3 Core experience
We're finished with blog comments! 
Hi everyone,
We're heading into the home stretch (the "home stretch" is the area between third base and home plate in baseball". This idiom means that you are almost finished something. In this case, we are almost finished out course. American Slang: Since we've finished all of our course requirements, we had a lesson on American slang today. When you use slang, makes sure you are using it in the appropriate context (e.g. who you're speaking with and the type of situation). We learned these verbs: 1. ditch: I'm going ditch class today. 2. hit up: I'll hit you up after class. 3. bomb: I totally bombed my exam. 4. bounce: This party is boring. I'm gonna bounce. 5. hang out: I'm gonna hang out with friends tomorrow. We learned these adjectives: 1. shady: The man in front of the station is really shady. 2. ballin': She's wearing Prada heels. She must be ballin'. 3. down: I'm down with that. 4. lame: That's so lame. / He's so lame. 5. tight: That idol grop is so tight. Discussions: All group leaders did an excellent job in today's discussions. They were over 20 minutes each! This is because all groups have very strong conversational style. I was very happy to see more member to member interactions in the discussions. Great work! Homework: 1. Blog Comment #11 2. Discussion Preparation 3. Journal Topic #9: festival experiences Blog Question #11: Tell me three plans you have for your summer vacation.
Hi everyone,
After next week, we will have completed all the requirements for the IE3 Core course, so we'll be able to have a few different types of lessons. Book Report Review After speed discussion, we complete three activities to help you improve writing a book report. For our first activity, we reviewed MLA referencing and then you complete the referencing for your own book report. Next, we analyzed the structure of a sample book report answer. Remember that the most important point about writing a good essay answer is to have logical structure with reasons and examples to support your opinions. Finally, we looked at some expressions you can use for writing about your literary terms. You then had a chance to discuss the literary terms in your own book with your partners. Discussions: All group leaders did an excellent job in today's discussions. They were over 20 minutes each! This is because all groups have very strong conversational style. I was very happy to see more member to member interactions in the discussions. Great work! Homework: 1. Blog Comment #10 2. Discussion Preparation 3. Book Report #2
Blog Question #10: Compared to IE Core 2, do you think your discussion skills have improved? Why or why not? Which skills have been the most useful that you've learned this semester?
Hi everyone,
We have just five more weeks left of our course after today's lesson, which means the last major assignment will be your book report! From July, our classes will be a little less busy. Presentations: Overall, I was very impressed with all of your presentations. You made a great effort to include graphs in your presentations, and effectively explained them to the audience. I also liked how your slides were clear and used pictures and animation effectively. Two points I noticed deal with body language.
Homework:
Blog Question #9: Give your opinion on the presentation that you liked the best. Give two reasons why you liked it, and give support for each reason (e.g. explanation, example, etc.)
Hi everyone,
Just one more week, and you'll be giving your presentations. Types of Support for your Opinions At the beginning of today's lesson, we reviewed opinion giving structure and the types of support you can use to support your reasons for your opinion. Types of Support: a. personal example b. explanation (e.g. facts) c. statistics d. expert opinion Example: Opinion: In my opinion dogs are better than cats. Reason: This is because dogs are friendlier. Example: When I was a child, I had three dogs and they always wanted to play with me, but my cats usually wanted to be alone. Remember that we can also call support details -- just like the details you had to give in your presentation outline. Discussions: For your discussions, you've all made a lot of improvement. Today's discussions lasted 25 minutes each!! When we first started our course, your discussions were only 12 minutes! This shows that your conversational style is getting better. Great work! Body Language: To help you deliver your presentations next week, we learned about gestures and voice inflection. Non-verbal language (body language) is just as important (or even more important) than the spoken word. To demonstrate this, I gave a short explanation in French. When I gave my explanation without gestures, NOBODY understood what I said. However, when I supported it with gestures, all of you could understand the main idea of my explaination. There are four types of gestures: a. number / sequence b. illustration / location c. emphasis / focus d. comparison Voice Inflection: We also learned about voice inflection. We use inflection to emphasize important words/phrases in our presentation, and also to keep the interest of the audience. There are four types of inflection: a. stress b. stretch c. pause In your presentations next week, you'll need to use gestures and voice inflection. Homework: 1. Presentation Preparation 2. Read graded reader (10-15 pages) Hi everyone,
We are officially half way through our course. We'll be quite busy in June with our presentations and Book Report #2, but July will not be as busy. Work hard for the next few weeks, and you can have a bit of a break in July. Vocabulary Building: After speed discussion, we had a short activity on vocabulary collocation (=learning vocabulary in groups). Instead of making lists of words, it's better to make a group of words that are connected to the same topic. In this way, you can remember vocabulary more easily. For example, you can have this group of words connected to the word "smoking": smoking --> causes cancer smoker / non-smoker --> first-hand smoke/second-hand smoke Make sure you note down the vocabulary from speed discussion and from your discussions each week. Discussions: For next week's discussions, remember these points:
Presentations: After the break, we continued with learning about presentations. In today's lesson, we learned how to use visuals. There are a variety of visuals that you can use for your presentation:
We also learned how to explain graphs and maps. When you explain a graph, use the following steps:
All of our presentation handouts from class today can be found in the Presentation section of the website. Cell Phones in Class: I am very disappointed that I still have to keep telling students not to use their cell phones during our lesson. When you do this, it shows that you are not interested in learning and shows that you don't care about your partner and/or group. Please be aware that I note down your name every time you use your cell phone in class, and I will decrease your final grade by -1% each time you use your phone in class. Homework: 1. Blog Post #8 2. Discussion Preparation 3. Read Graded Reader (15 pages) 4. Journal Topic #7: your future goals 5. Presentation outline
Blog Question #8: In today's lesson, I returned your Book Report #1 with my comments and your grade. Read through the feedback. What three things do you have to improve for your next book report?
Hi everyone,
Can you believe that we're almost half way through our course? I hope you're making progress with your English communication skills. Asking for and Giving Examples: Before our discussions, we had a short activity on how to ask for and give examples. It's important to give detailed information when you give an opinion, so you can give examples to support it. To ask for examples, you can use these questions:
Discussions: For next week's discussions, remember these points:
Presentations: After the break, you received the guidelines for your group presentations that you'll present near the end of June. We also learned about the different parts of a presentation and expressions for each part. All of our presentation materials and today's slide presentation are in the Presentation section of the website. Also, you can find the Presentation Outline template in that section. Homework: 1. Blog Post #7 2. Discussion Preparation 3. Read Graded Reader (15 pages) 4. Journal Topic #6: a Japanese social issue 5. Presentation outline
Blog Question #7: We have finished our first round of discussions. You have received a lot of feedback in our lessons and on your worksheets. Which three points do you think you have to focus on to improve your next discussion?
Hi everyone,
What a beautiful day today! I hope you can enjoy the sunshine during your breaks. The Secret Garden After speed discussion, we completed listening and discussion activities about two of the songs you'll hear in the Secret Garden musical this evening (or tomorrow evening). In these activities, we looked at idiomatic expressions, character relationships and themes. Make sure to meet me in front of the theater at 6:40pm and I'll give you your ticket. We'll be sitting in a group in the theater. Please don't forget the map from class, or you can check the map on your phones - justclick on this link for the map: IE Field Trip map Showing Interest: We had a short activity on how to show interest during a discussion. We need to show interest to let the speaker know that we are listening to him/her. You can use these expressions:
Discussion Leader Absences: In today's class, THREE of the four discussion leaders were absent, so we could not have our discussions. It would have been very unfair to today's leader to lead a discussion with the entire class! In the future, you can only reschedule your discussion if you have a serious illness and you must do the following:
For those students who do not following these steps (which are explained in the course syllabus), you will automatically receive 0% for your discussion. Homework: 1. Discussion Preparation 2. Blog Post #6 3. Journal Topic #5:
Blog Question #6: What did you think about our field trip to see the musical The Secret Garden (interesting and/or suprising observations)?
Hi everyone,
I hope everyone had a great Golden Week vacation, and you're well-rested for a busy May. In-text Citation: At the start of class, we learned to put direct quotes from your novels into your book reports. This is called in-text citation, and we use it to show when we are using ideas from other sources (e.g. like the characters in your novels, or from the author). Also, we need to use in-text citation to avoid plagiarism (= copy somebody’s idea and claim it as your own). If you use another person’s idea, you must tell the reader where you got that information. 1. Direct Quote When you use a direct quote, you are quoting the information directly from your novel. For example: By the end of his adventure, Santiago realizes that "the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself" (Coelho 73). This tells us that "the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself" is a sentence from the novel by the author Coelho, and this information is on page 73. MLA Referencing: We also learned how to write down the source information from your graded readers. This is called MLA Referencing. For most of your references, you need to use this format. Author. Title. City of Publication: Publisher, year. Checking Understanding: Before our discussions, we reviewed expressions that you can use to check your group's understanding. You can use these expressions; a. Are you following me? b. Are there any questions? c. Do you understand? Also, when you don't understand during a discussion, you can ask these questions: a. Can you explain that again? b. What was that again? c. What does ... mean? (when you don't know a word) Homework: 1. Discussion Preparation 2. Blog Post #5 3. Complete Book Report #1
Blog Question #5: Write down the two quotes that you are going to use in your book report. Make sure to use in-text citation for each quote. a. Who says them? b. Why are you using each quote?
Hi everyone,
Can you believe that it's already been one month since we first started our course? Time flies! Literary Terms: During the first part of our lesson, we continues with literary terms. Remember that your book reports are due in two more weeks, so I hope you're almost finished reading your graded readers. Symbols: We continued with learning about literary terms. In today's lesson, we looked at symbols in literature. There is additional information about symbols in the "Reading-Literary Terms" section on the website. The file is called Symbols in Literature. Remember these points when analyzing symbols: a. a symbol usually occurs throughout your book b. a symbol can have one or many meanings Irony: We also learned about situational irony. This type of irony occurs when the outcome of an event or situation is the opposite of what is expected. The result can range from the humorous to the tragic. Theme: The theme of a novel is the message from the author. This is what he/she wants you to learn or the main character to learn. You can ask yourself these questions when thinking about the theme:
Discussions: Before our discussions, we reviewed Conversational Style. As you know, English conversational style is very different from the Japanese one. During a discussion, you can "jump in" at any time to ask a question or to make a comment. You don't have to wait to be invited to speak during a discussion. For next week's discussions, remember these points:
Homework: 1. Discussion Preparation 2. Blog Post #4 3. Journal Topic #4: best friend experience 4. Finish reading your graded reader 5. Secret Garden literary terms (symbols, irony, theme) Blog Question #4: What are your plans for the Golden Week vacation?
Hi everyone,
I can't believe how quickly three hours passed this afternoon. I sure wish we had more time! Discussions: We reviewed expression for asking for and giving and opinion, as well as for agreeing and disagreeing. We also had a short practice activity before our group discussions. Today, we focused on how to check for your group's understanding. You can use these expressions: a) Are you following me? b) Are we on the same page? c) Any questions, so far? If you're having trouble understanding your group leader, you can ask: a) Can you explain that again? b) What was that again? Literary Analysis: After the break, we continued with literary terms. In today's lesson, we review the terms protagonist, antagonist and setting through pair discussions about your graded reader. We also looked at climax and plot development. For your story's plot, there are different types of actions:
We also took a look at conflict, which is the tension in the novel. This is often caused by disagreement between two characters or a group of characters. There is usually more than one conflict in a novel: a. person against him/herself b. person against person c. group against group d. person / group against nature e. person / group against supernatural Homework:
Blog Question #3: Answer the following question about your graded reader: 1. Who is the protagonist? 2. Who is the antagonist? 3. What is the point of view? 4. What is the setting? 5. What are two conflicts in your story? * Write 8-10 sentences. * Use capitalization, punctuation & spelling correctly. * Submit by Wednesday, April 29 by 6:00pm. Hi everyone,
It's only our second lesson, but it was just as busy as our first one. Just one more day, and you can all say TGIF! Do you remember that expression from class today? The Secret Garden and Literary Terms: After speed discussion, we had a quiz on chapters1-8 of The Secret Garden. Remember to finished read the rest of th story for next week. We will be using it in class for all of April. We also had a short activity that introduced literary terms. You will have to analyze each of these terms for your book reports. In today's class, we learned about (1) the protagonist; (2) the antagonist; (3) point of view; and (4) setting. Discussion Leading: Before we started our discussions, we went through the procedure for leading a discussion. We also looked at the criteria that I will use to evaluate your discussions each week. Group Discussions: You did a good job at giving your opinions and asking for the opinions of your other group members. However, remember these points to improve your discussions next week:
Journal: You exchanged journals with your writing partner. You will keep your partner's journal this week and write 3 pages in your partner's journal: a. one page of comments on your partner's writing b. two pages on this week's new topic Homework: 1. Discussion preparation (see schedule) 2. Journal entry #2: langauge learning experiences 3. Read Graded Reader (15+ pages) 4. The Secret Garden (ch. 8-15)
Blog Question #2: Choose one of the topics below. Give your opinion on the topic. Use an opinion giving expression, and give a reason and an example to support your opinion. Remember to start your opinion with an opinion expressions (e.g. In my opinion, ... / As I see it, ...) * the most annoying thing (In my opinion, the most annoying thing is ...) * the best Japanese food (As I see it, the best Japanese food is...) * learning languages (If you ask me, learning languages is ...) * living in Tokyo (I think living in Tokyo is...) * smart phones (In my opHi Yusa and Nobuko, I completely forgot about making the reservation at our Italian place, so when I tried ot make it today, the place was fully booked. I'm so sorry. I was wondering if you would like to try Spanish food. There's a place near Aogaku (either Shibuya or Omotesando station) that is really good. Ryoji and I go there every month. If that's ok, let me know. If not, I'll find another Italian place. So sorry again.inion, smart phones are...) * Write 8-10 sentences. * Use capitalization, punctuation & spelling correctly. * Submit by Wednesday, April 22 by 6:00pm. FIELD TRIP: Please make sure to bring 2500円 next week for your ticket for our theater field trip. Hi everyone,
It was really great to meet all of you today. You are a talkative group! I'm really looking forward to our lessons this semester. Syllabus and Schedule: We had a short introduction activity and you got to get to know each other. We then went looked at the syllabus and our course schedule. We have a lot of assignments to do this semester, so if you have any difficulties, make sure you let me know so that I can help you. Opinion Giving: We had a short activity to help you learn some expressions for asking for and giving your opinion. Make sure to support your opinion with a reason and/or example. We also learned expressions for agreeing and disagreeing with opinions. The expression "Tell me about it!" is a slang expression, and it is used to show strong agreement. Discussion Worksheet: We learned how to complete a discussion worksheet. You will have to download the worksheet and complete it before your discussion. In the Discussion Skills section, you can find the slide presentation from our lesson "How to Complete your Worksheet". There are also links to different English language newspaper sites in the Useful Links section. Field Trip: We'll be going on a theater field trip to see the musical production of The Secret Garden. Some of you will go on Thursday, May 15 and other on Friday, May 15. I will reserve the tickets for us, so make sure to bring 2500 for your ticket to next week's class. I'll collect the money and pay for the tickets. Homework:
Enjoy your weekend! Blog Question #1: Tell me about your spring break. * Write 8-10 sentences. * Use capital letters, punctuation and spelling correctly. * Submit by Wednesday, April 15 by 6:00pm. |
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