Part of becoming
fluent in English is to be able to pronounce the names of places as the
natives do in English speaking countries. For instance, if you were
planning a trip to Chicago for a job interview in the United States, and
you mentioned to your prospective employer that you would be arriving
in Chi-cago (with a strong "ch" sound instead of the "sh") "Illi-noise"
early the next morning, it would be clear to them that, although you're
speaking English, you are not from the United States.
Test
your confidence in pronouncing the names of the states* and their
capitals** in the list to the right. Then watch the music video below
and see how well you did:
Now
let's make things more difficult. These are places in the UK that
most Americans can't even pronounce! Take the place name challenge and
try your hand at pronouncing them:
1.Aberystwyth
2.Bicester
3.Cirencester
4.Derby
5.Dumfries
6.Ely
7.Frome
8.Gloucester
9.Hartlepool
10.Llanelli
11.Leicester
12.Leominster
13.Loughborough
14.Marlborough
15.Marylebone
16.Mousehole
17.Reading
18.Powys
19.Slough
20.Tottenham
21.Fowey
22.Islay
23.Gwynedd
24.Ruislip
25.Pontypridd
26.Durham
27.Woking
28.Worcester
How well do you think you did? Check your answers by
watching this entertaining video where a woman from the UK challenges an
American to take the UK place name challenge!
Try
finding these places on a map of the UK. It's also fun to use Google Street View to "walk" around these places and get a virtual feel for
them!
For the last few weeks of the school year, we'll be working on how to
how to organize a public speech and stand in front of an audience an
give a presentation. The focus will be impromptu speaking. According to
the Free Dictionary, impromptu is something "spoken, performed,
done, or composed with little or no preparation; extemporaneous."
Impromptu speaking is also known as "extemporaneous speaking." An
impromptu speech can't be prepared in advance, so the student must learn
the skills to quickly organize the topic, and then present that topic
with ease and confidence.
For our purposes, each student will be given a card with a topic written on it. They will then have a few minutes to prepare a speech about that topic. Here are some topic examples
·My three favorite animals.
·What you would find in my closet. Make something up.
It is important to know how a speech is organized before you begin. The picture to the right is a helpful way to think about your speech.
After you have your topic:
First: Make a mental list of
three things you want to say about it, and reasons or examples for each. These three things will make up the body of your speech. Once you have these, the remaining elements of your speech, the introduction and conclusion will be easy!
Here's how you speech will look:
Introduction:
“Hello, my name is_______and
today I’d like to talk to you about________.
Body: (your three things)
·“The first reason/thing …..because……”
·“The second reason/thing” or “secondly” “….because….”
·“The final reason/thing” or “finally…..because”
Conclusion
“To
conclude” or “in conclusion…these are the reasons/things….”
Use this "map" for every speech, and you will be on the road to giving a successful presentation every time!
The Fluency students have created so many great comics (see last post), we've added a few more on this special "Comic Page." So just sit back, relax, and get ready to be entertained! --The first one is a special creation by a student who created his comic by hand, and then did a special animation for it. You'll love it, I promise!!
Go Comics All your favorites including Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield, Ziggy and tons more.
King Feature Comics Includes Blondie, Popeye, Denise the Menace and numerous others.
If reading comics is good for language skills, creating your own is even better! For this lesson, we made sure we all knew "comic" vocabulary, for example, comic book, comic strip, speech bubble, story board, etc., and then practiced making our own on comic templates. (For lesson plan and blank comic templates, see here).
The next step was to try our hand at creating our own using tools available free online. Some of the sites the students enjoyed using include:
The fluency students came up with some very clever dialogues and characters, and then got to work creating. Below you will find just a sample of the many--Enjoy!
When was the last time you really laughed? I mean, you laughed so hard your sides started aching? We interviewed our classmates to find out what they find funny. Most admit that they laugh when someone is clumsy (think of how we laugh when we see the old slip-on-a-banana-peel gag!). Some of us laugh when other people are laughing, or when someone is being silly. Some people laugh when they are nervous, or don't know what to say. Tickling makes most of us laugh too. Almost everyone agreed that jokes make us laugh--even if the joke is corny (meaning very silly!).
But, what is it that makes a joke funny?
In a famous study, Professor Richard Wiseman, in cooperation with The British Association for the Advancement
of Science, set out to discover the funniest joke in the world. You can read more about it here on his LaughLab website (and download lots of funny jokes!). Here is the joke which they rated as the funniest one of all:
Two hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn't
seem to be breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy takes out
his phone and calls the emergency services.
He gasps: "My friend is dead! What can I do?" The operator says: "Calm
down, I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead." There is a silence,
then a gunshot is heard. Back on the phone, the guy says: "OK, now
what?"
Did that make you laugh, or at least chuckle? What is it about this joke that makes people find funny? Most likely it is the surprise ending!
Now watch this video about a guy who is trying to find the best joke ever. You will be aware of a series of puns, clichés, double meanings, and play on words.
Quite clever isn't it? Many of these jokes are visual. Did you catch them all? How often did you laugh?
There are actually formulas for creating good jokes, and every joke should have at least one of these elements:
They make use of words that have double meanings (puns, play on words, homonyms)
The answer is something you weren't expecting.
They create a funny picture in your head.
Using the criteria above, look at this video and determine what element (or elements) each joke has.
Now, read each joke below (it's better if you have friend to tell them to!), and use these criteria to categorize them. Some could fit more than one element. (For those of you who did these in class, I've added a few new jokes!)
D= Double meaning
U= Unexpected (ending)
P= (creates a funny Picture in your head)
_________1.
Why did the chicken cross the road?
To get to the other side
_________2.
Why is the sky so high?
So the birds don't bump their heads
_________3.
What did one traffic light say to the other traffic light?
Don't look at me, I'm changing
_________4. Why don’t you ever see hippopotamus hiding in trees?
Because they’re really good at it.
_________5.
What do you call a dog without legs?
Anything you like. It won't run after you
_________6.
Patient: doctor, doctor, I feel like a bridge.
Doctor: what came over you?
Patient: two cars and a bus
__________7.
What do you get if you cross a sheep with a kangaroo?
A woolly jumper
__________8.
Why do cows have bells?
Because their horns don't work
__________9. Why do golfers wear two pairs of pants?
In case they get a hole in one.
_________10.
A man walked into a hospital and said: "Doctor, doctor, I've grown
curtains." The doctor said: "Calm down man and pull yourself
together."
_________11.
Why can't a car play football?
Because it has only got one boot (in UK English, cars have "boots" not "trunks")
_________12.
Why wasn't Cinderella allowed to be in the soccer team?
Because she runs away from the ball
_________13.
Why did the boy take the pen and paper to bed?
So that he could draw the curtain
________14.
What does the secretary do to old nails?
File them
________15.
Why don't aliens starve in space?
Because they can find mars, a milky way, and a galaxy.
_______16. Two fish are in a tank. One turns to the other and asks “How do you drive this thing?” ______17. Why can’t a bike stand on its own? It’s two tired. ______18. When you get a bladder infection, urine trouble. ______19. You want to hear a pizza joke? Never mind, it’s pretty cheesy. ______20. What time is it when you have to go to the dentist? Tooth-hurtie. Answers: 1-U, 2-UP, 3-D, 4-UP, 5-UP, 6-DP, 7-D, 8-D, 9-D, 10-D, 11-D, 12-DP, 13-D, 14-D, 15-D, 16-DP, 17-D, 18-D, 19-D, 20-D
And now for something completely different... it's time for US to tell a few jokes!
In our last post, we talked about our personalities traits and how we might be perceived by others.
Now, think about your best friend. What is it about their personality that you really like? Are there things you wish they would change? Answer the survey questions below about your best friend, then use the list of adjectives to come up with a good description of them:
_____ Is your friend usually in a good mood?
_____ Is it important for your friend to be
successful in whatever he/she does?
_____ Does your friend notice your feelings?
_____ Does you friend often give presents, or pay
for a snack or drink?
_____ Does your friend work hard?
_____ Does your friend become angry or annoyed if
he/she has to wait for something or someone?
_____ Can you trust your friend with a secret?
_____ Does your friend listen well when you are
speaking?
_____ Does your friend keep his/her feelings to
him/herself?
_____ Is your friend usually not worried by things,
no matter what happens?
_____ Does your friend think the future will be
good?
_____ Does your friend often change their opinion
about things?
_____ Does your friend often postpone things he/she
has to do?
_____ Is your friend happy one moment and then sad
the next?
_____Does your friend like to be with people?
Which of these adjectives describes the quality asked about in each of the
survey questions?
Another way to think about personality is by simply using the first two letters of the alphabet, "A" and "B." What is and A Type personality, and how does it differ from Type B? Here's a video that will give you a good example of each type, in a humorous kind of way :)
What did you discover about these two types? Which category would you put yourself into? Your friend? Take a look at the chart below to see words that accurately describe these two types of individuals. Do you think it's easier to be friends with A or B types?
Well, no matter if you see your friend as an A or B type, remember, as the video above says, "We need BOTH types" So you A Types out there, RELAX!! And you B Types, take care of those Type "A"s!
