特別ポスト - To all my students this year

Hello to all my students this year,

Unattributed image taken from the Internet - all rights reserved. 

No copyright infringement intended. I do not own the rights to this image.

How are all of you? This is a short post to say to all of you - thank you for being my students this year! I was very proud of the hard work all of you did this year. 

I hope you have a great spring holiday, and I hope I can have the chance to have some of you as my students again! 

See you in April!

特別ポスト - ECA (Reading) II (Super A)：ifを使った条件文のレビュー

Hello to all my students,

Image "Water Drops In Rainy Day" courtesy of Toa55/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? Here I have a video for you about the basic type of if-clauses (ifを使った条件文).  

Look at the picture above. Here's an example of a sentence using a basic if-clause:

If it rains, you will see water drip outside your window. 

Watch this video as many times as you want or need. I hope it will help you to understand this grammar point better for the posttest next week on January 27th (1/27). 

Video from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video. It is uploaded strictly for educational purposes. 

See you then!

特別ポスト - ECA (Reading) II (Super A)：表現、現在完了形のレビュー

Hello to all my students,

Image "Classic Porsche 959" courtesy of M-Pics/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? Here I have a video for you about the present perfect tense (表現、現在完了形). 

Look at the picture above. Here's an example of the present perfect tense: 

The driver of this car has driven it over many long distances. 

So watch this video about how to use the present perfect tense as many times as you like or need. It will help you with understanding this verb tense for the posttest next week on January 27th (1/27). 

Video from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video. It is uploaded strictly for educational purposes.

See you then!

特別ポスト- ECA (Cinema) II (All): アバウト・ア・ボーイ期末試験の勉強のこと

Hello to all my students,

Image photographed from DVD cover for purposes of subject illustration. No copyright infringement intended. 

I do not own the rights to this image.

How are you? Today, here are my class notes about what we will do on the final test next week on January 27th (1月27日の期末試験のノート):

Here are some more points, up closer:

Refresh from the book about these parts!



Know these points about these parts of the book!

I will show you some scenes and parts from the movie in the test.

Good luck! I'll see you next week in the test!

特別ポスト- ECA (Reading) II (Super A)：句動詞のレビュー

Hello to all my students,

Image "Painted Metal" courtesy of Supertrooper/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? What would you say about the picture above? I could say that the brown piece of metal was painted over with some blue paint.

This sentence is an example of a phrasal verb (句動詞). Today I have two videos for you about phrasal verbs. Here is the first one:  

Here's another video, with phrasal verbs using the word head:

Both videos from YouTube. I do not own the rights to these videos. They are uploaded strictly for educational purposes.

I hope these help refresh you for the posttest next week (1/27).

See you in the posttest!

特別ポスト- ECA (Reading) II (Super A)：助動詞のレビュー

Hello to all my students,

Image "Businessman Running With Briefcase" courtesy of imagerymajestic/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? Very quickly - can you say what the man in the picture is doing?*

The picture of the man is important, because it shows how to use an auxiliary verb (助動詞). 

Auxiliary verbs help other verbs in showing action. Here I have a quick YouTube video for you about auxiliary verbs. You can watch this as many times as you like to refresh yourselves about auxiliary verbs for the posttest next week (1/27).

    Video uploaded from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video.

It is strictly for educational use only.

See you next week for the posttest! 

*ANSWER: The man is running with a briefcase.

特別ポスト - ECA (Speaking) I & II (D, J & A): 期末テスト(スピーキング)のグループ、スケージュール

Hello to all my speaking students,

How are you? This is a short post about our final speaking test (期末スピーキングテスト) on January 21st (1/21). The picture at the top is a list of the topics you can choose from for the test. 

Here are the groups and times for the Nichibun class on 1/21:

I'm sorry that the pictures are not better! So Nichibun class members - please remember your group member's names and times you come in!

Here are the groups and times for the Kodomo class on 1/21: 

Kodomo class members - please remember your group member's names and times you come in!

For the Obei class - please come in as one group together, at the regular time! 

Thank you all so much! See you on the final speaking test day - 1/21!

Take care!

週14 - ECA (Speaking) I & II (D, J, & A): 将来の予定

Hello all my speaking students,

Image "Angkor Wat Sunrise" courtesy of J Frasse/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? University is almost finished for the year! So what are your plans for the spring - or your near future (将来)? For example - look at the picture on top. Are you going to a warm place like Okinawa or Thailand? 

Activity
What are your plans for this spring holiday - or near future? 

Look at these other pictures. Are you going to do any of these things? If not, what would you like to do? 

Are you going (or would you like) to go back to your hometown?  

Are you going to (or would you like to) go back to your hometown? 
...go sightseeing in another part of Japan? 
Go sightseeing in another part of Japan? 

...go to the U.S - maybe California? 

Go to the U.S - maybe California? 

Maybe New York? 
Or maybe New York? 

Or maybe Australia - for example, Sydney? 
Or maybe Australia - for example, Sydney? 

Are you going (or would you like) to study abroad (in another country)? Are you going (or would 

...or work a part-time job? 

...work a part-time job? 

Talk about these with a partner or group! What are you going to do - or - what would you like to do?

Have fun!
Have fun!

Photo credits: Cherry blossoms - "Sakura" (courtesy of coward_lion)/ Temple - "Kinkakuji Temple, Kyoto, Japan" (courtesy of Worakit Sirijinda)/Sign - "Hollywood Sign" (courtesy of porbital)/Statue - "Statue of Liberty Face" (courtesy of porbital)/Sydney - "Sydney Opera House At Night" (courtesy of Susie B)/People - "Group of Young Students" (courtesy of photostock)/Pizza - "Pizza" (courtesy of federico stevanin)/All photos from FreeDigitalPhotos.net

特別ポスト- ECA (英語基礎表現) II (Super A): 期末作文のプロジェクト

Hello to my Eigokisohyougen students,



Image "Line Sheet With Pen" courtesy of adamr/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net



How are you? Today I will show you some points about our final writing project.

Deadline

This will be due on January 23rd (1/23), so from today you have three weeks to finish it.

Topics

As I had talked about before in class, these are the topics:

1. Write about something you know - for example, a place you have been to, or a hobby, activity, or sport you enjoy doing, or a book you have read or movie or TV drama you have seen.

2. Write about something you don't know, but would like to try, do or see - for example, a place you have never been to but would like to go to, or a hobby, activity or sport you would like to try but haven't done yet, or a book you haven't read but want to read, or a movie or TV drama you haven't seen but want to.

I will collect these into a short, small book of your writing!

Points to write about 

What is the place, hobby, activity, sport, book, movie, or TV drama? (If it's a book, movie or TV show, who wrote it? Who is the director 「監督」 of the movie or TV show, and who are the actors and their characters?)

What is the best thing for you about the place, hobby, sport, etc.? When did you start going there, or do it, or when did you first see the movie or TV show?

How does it make you feel? Why do you enjoy it?

If it's a place, hobby, sport, etc. that you haven't been to or done, what do you know about it? What have you heard about it from your friends, family, on the Internet, etc.?

Why do you want to go there, or why do you want to try the hobby or activity?

(If it's a book you've never read or a movie or TV drama you haven't seen, what's your interest in it?) When and where did you first hear about it?

Format & style

Here's how I would like you to do this:

First, I want you to handwrite this on notebook paper.

Then, I want you to type it up, like this:

This is an example from one of my writing classes at the Shibaura Institute of Technology (芝浦工業大学) when I was there. I would like you to use the same kind of format here too. 

This is very important! I want your name and student number at the top, with a double space after, then for your paragraph, each line with a single space.

After that, you send this to me as a file attachment「添付ファイル」.

This is also very important! I would like you to try for a two-paragraph paper.

Good luck on this! I think you can do well on this.

See you in the next class!

特別ポスト- ECA (英語基礎表現) II (Super A): writing about music (Part 2)

Hello to my Eigokisohyougen students,

How are you? As promised, here's Part 2 to your writing about the music pieces I played for you. 

Here's the third piece of music I played for you - Miles Davis' "Portia": 

Here's what you wrote about it:

I think I can hear bass, piano and drum. Also it is similar with Beijing Opera of China. Both of them are awesome. But this song is not my love style. I think it is pretty noisy. Maybe it fit in a fancy restaurant.

It is a barroom, but there are a few people in here, it is quiet and the music around the barroom. Then, a beautiful and rich woman come into, she sit and order a wine, she listening the music and thinking something.

Some ghosts seems to come out. I feel scary. The place is haunted home. Young people exploration at haunted home.

A woman spy is carrying out a mission. One day, the woman steals into a castle and takes jewelry.

It is just look like some of the mysterious theme from the mist. In that case, something must be uncomfortable coming from the mist. 

Some very different reactions to this! All interesting - ghosts, barrooms, mist, women 

on spy missions, and the Beijing Opera. Great! 

Now here's the fourth piece of music - Frank Zappa's "Little Umbrellas": 

Here are your reactions to it:

I think some people in forest. There have a lot of animals. The people are dancing. They are amazing. Maybe they are celebrate all saints' day.

This song is just like the theme of the dunce guy. For of it, I knew it by the illustration of the CD case!

I don’t like the style which is scared. It is like a ghost!

I think it is in the big department. There must be big game center. In finally, this music made me wonder sense like out of this world kind of music. That was wonder music I think.

Overall, maybe this wasn't your favorite, but some interesting feelings on it anyway!

You tried hard on your writing on these. Good work!

Videos uploaded from YouTube. I do not own the rights to these videos or the compositions. No copyright infringement intended. Uploaded for educational purposes.