KIFL WIT Discussion I - final post

Hello to my 1st and 2nd period discussion students,

Image "Girl Showing Thank You Board" courtesy of Stuart Miles/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

おつかれさまでした！This is a simple message to all of you - thank you for your hard work this term. While I will not be with any of you who are continuing at KIFL in April, good luck with your studies and hope your classes are happy and rewarding ones. 

For those of you who are graduating - good luck to you in what you will be moving on to. 

Please take care! If you're on Facebook - friend me!

KIFL WIT Discussion I (1st & 2nd periods) - notes about 2/27 discussion final

Hello to all my discussion students,

Image "Teenage student discussing" courtesy of Ambro/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Image "Teenage student discussing" courtesy of Ambro/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? Here are some notes about next week's discussion final exam (for 2/27).

When we get together, we will speak on a discussion topic for 10-12 minutes (10 minutes is best, but if you want to go on a little longer it's okay).

For topics, you can:r topics, you can:
1. Do a topic we have already done in the textbook and expand on it, or
2. Bring in your own topic that you can speak about 

We will get together in groups and/or pairs to do this - you can choose your group members or partners in advance, or do so when we get to the classroom.  

What I will look for:
Starting, moving on, and finishing a discussion all within your time. 

Many of you know how to start and even move on within a discussion topic, but finishing a topic sometimes still may be hard. Simply stopping talking is not finishing a topic. So to conclude a topic, here is what you can do:

Give a signal when the time is coming up to conclude the topic. Here are some examples:

Well, I'll finish by saying...
Let's finish/conclude by saying...
Let me finish (what I have to say) by saying...
I'll wrap up by saying...
Let's wrap up. Let's say that...
(Maybe) what we can say (about this) is...

There are other expressions to finish up a discussion, but these are some useful ones. 

So good luck! See you next week!

KIFL WIT Discussion I (1st & 2nd periods) - 2/20 - talking about movies & TV

Hello to all my discussion students,

Image "Girls Watching Tv And Eating Fruit" courtesy of marin/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you today? Today here's a post for both classes about movies and TV. 

What kinds of movies or TV shows do you like? Here are a couple of clips of movies and TV shows I have watched over the years. This first clip is the trailer for a recent movie called Argo, with Ben Affleck. 

Preview uploaded from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video or the motion picture it came from. This is strictly for classroom use.

Preview uploaded from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video or the motion picture it came from. This is strictly for classroom use.

Where does the story take place? What is Ben Affleck's role? Why do you think he goes to the places he goes to - the one in the U.S., then the one in the other country? Why do you think the people in the other country are trapped? What do you think will happen to them if they don't get out? 

This next one is a TV show I watched when I was younger called The Prisoner.  

Preview uploaded from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video or the television series it came from. This is strictly for classroom use.

Preview uploaded from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video or the television series it came from. This is strictly for classroom use.

From the opening sequence, when do you think this show was made? Where does this show take place? Why do you think they are after the main character? Why is he taken to the place they have taken him? What kind of a place is it? 

What are your favorite movies or TV shows? Let's do some textbook work - then let's talk about your favorite movies or TV shows!

Have fun!

KIFL WIT Discussion I (2nd period) - 2/13 - talking about shopping

Hello to all my 2nd period discussion students,

Image "Shop" courtesy of Dino De Luca/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you today? Today we'll talk about shopping. I have a video and activity for you connected with shopping. It's about two Japanese tourists in Frankfurt, Germany, at a flea market. 

Here's an activity for all of you!

First - watch the video with the sound turned off. How many items can you see in the video, and can you name them? In groups or pairs - or even by yourselves - who can name the most number of items you see? Let's try it!

Next - watch the video with the sound turned on. Now - how many items can you remember and say the names of? Have fun!

Uploaded from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video. This is strictly for classroom use.

KIFL WIT Discussion I (1st period) - 2/13 - talking about jobs

Hello to all my 1st period discussion students,

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

How are you? Today, we'll talk about jobs. What kinds of jobs are you interested in and if you have been looking for a job, what kind of luck have you had?

Let's talk about the kinds of jobs you've had, or have now, with a little textbook work. 

Let's also look at the preview below for a movie you might know - Catch Me if You Can. It was a Steven Spielberg movie with Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks and was based on a true story. Have you seen this movie? Let's watch the preview. We'll do an activity about it after! Let's have fun!

Preview uploaded from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video or the motion picture it came from. This is strictly for classroom use. 

KIFL WIT Discussion I (1st period) - 2/6 - some open class short presentation images

Hello to all my 1st period discussion students (and anyone else who reads this!),

How are you? Today we had a period of short open class presentations on topics of
How are you? Yesterday we had a period of short open class presentations on topics of student choice. Above is one of the pictures of Tomoe Haga's talk on alcoholic drinks in various countries and areas. Good job Tomoe!

I am posting these to show what students like yourselves are capable of doing, and as a "thank-you" to all of you for your effort - especially in the terrible weather we had yesterday morning that made coming to KIFL difficult for many students. 
that made coming to KIFL difficult for many students. 

This next shot above is of Mana Inoue's talk on American-style diners. Very good - and it
This next shot above is of Mana Inoue's talk on American-style diners. Very good - and it makes me hungry! Here's another shot:
makes me hungry! Here's another shot:

Below is Shiori Nonaka's poster on Valentine's day customs in various countries and
Below is Shiori Nonaka's poster on Valentine's day customs in various countries and areas. Good job Shiori!
areas. Good job Shiori!

 

Finally - while I wasn't able to get any shots of it as it was Internet-based - thank you to
Finally - while I wasn't able to get any shots of it as it was Internet-based - thank you to Natsuki Sakurai for her talk on Japanese-influenced American animation. It was very entertaining!

Good job to all of you! See you next class! 
Good job to all of you! See you next class!

Cheers!

Cheers!

KIFL WIT Discussion I (2nd period) - 2/6 - talking about jobs

Hello to all my 2nd period discussion students,

Image "Business Coaching Concept" courtesy of David Castillo Dominici/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? Today, we'll talk about jobs. What kinds of jobs are you interested in and what kind of luck have you had in looking for a job?

Let's talk about the kinds of jobs you've had, or have now, with a little textbook work. 

Let's also look at the preview below for a movie you might know - Catch Me if You Can. It was a Steven Spielberg movie with Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks and was based on a true story. Let's watch the preview. Have you seen this movie? We'll do an activity about it after!

Preview uploaded from YouTube. I do not own the rights to this video or the motion picture it came from. This is strictly for classroom use. 

KIFL WIT Discussion 1 - 1/30 open topics preparation (Part 3)

Hello to all my 1st and 2nd period Discussion students,

Good (SPECIAL NOTE: All students whose names appear gave their permission to have their names shown.) 

(SPECIAL NOTE: Any students whose names appear gave their permission to have their names shown.) 

I decided to upload a third post for all of you - showing you some examples of student presentations and the styles they did them in. The shot above is a really good example of a poster presentation from students of mine at a university I taught at this year. Very simple, but well done. 

Here are some more examples: 

Here are some more examples: 

Another example from the same university. The students' theme in this class was the same - they had to research on marriage customs in different countries and cultures. This was a really good presentation - and spoken about very well. 

Here's another: 

Here's another: 

This is an example from KIFL - a final presentation from the Senka program. This student's topic was about the election we had here in December, and he did it in PP. Here are two more of his PP slides:

Here are some more examples of poster presentations. They come from a friend of mine who's a professor at Chuo University, in the law faculty. Take a look at these:



His class theme was immigration (people from other countries moving to Japan or Japanese moving to other countries). 

So as you can see, you have a lot of freedom as to what you can do. You only have 6-8 minutes, but you can be creative and interesting with your time and I would like to see you take some chances with these. 

So start preparing! Email me at washizoraATgmailDOTcom if you have any questions. 

Good luck - and see you next week!

KIFL WIT Discussion 1 - 1/30 open topics preparation (Part 2)

Hello to all my 1st and 2nd period Discussion students,

Image "Conference Room" courtesy of Pixomar/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you doing? I hope you are doing well and will be ready for next week's open class presentations. In this special post, I have some useful expressions that you can use when speaking in your talk. 

Please read this! This will help you in your preparation.

SOME USEFUL EXPRESSIONS

Using these expressions is called signposting - using words and phrases that signal to the audience how you introduce your subject, how you go to the next part of your talk, and so on. 

1. Introducing your subject

Thank you for your time today. I'd like to begin by...

First of all, I'll...

Starting with this point, I'll...

I'll begin with...

2. Ordering points or parts

First(ly)...second(ly)...third(ly)...last(ly)...

First...then...next...after that...finally...

To begin with...later...to finish up...

3. Finishing one point and starting a new point 

We've looked at...(now) let's turn to...

And that's this point...now I'd like to show you...

From here let's look at...

4. Giving examples

For example...

To give you an example...

A good example is...

5. Concluding your talk
I'd like to finish by saying...thank you for listening today.

Let me finish by saying...thank you for your time today.

To sum up...and that's all. Thank you for listening.

You don't have to use every one of these expressions! But for each part of your talk, you should use at least one of these expressions as you go along.

Here is my email address - washizoraATgmailDOTcom. Email me if you need any help or if you have any questions.

Good luck! See you next week!

KIFL WIT Discussion 1 - 1/30 open topics preparation (Part 1)

Hello to all my 1st and 2nd period Discussion students,

Image "Presentation Word" courtesy of Stuart Miles/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? I'm very sorry I had a cold and was not energetic today, but I will be much better next week. 

As I said today, I would write a blog post about guidelines for your open class presentations for next week (1/30). Here are some points for you to think about.

GUIDELINES
1. Choose a pair partner or form a group (no more than 3 members!). 
1st period - you can do individual talks if you like.
2nd period - make pairs or groups.

2. Choose a topic (with your pair partner or group members). 
Make it something you can talk about with energy.
Make sure you are doing a different topic from your classmates!

3. Prepare a 6-8 minute topic that involves pictures and/or video.
You don't have to prepare Power Point - you can make a poster!

Special notes: If you don't want to do PP or a poster but want to use video or pictures from the Internet, you can use the display in the room and run pictures or video from the Internet through your Smartphones through to the display with a cable (you have to bring your own cable!).

Also - I also don't teach PP - so if you want to do PP but don't know how - then do not do it. Do another kind of presentation. 

This is a Part 1 post. I have more information for you in Part 2 - so look for it next! But look at this blog post as many times as you want or need to refresh yourselves!

Tell the students who were absent today about next week - and about this blogpost! 

KIFL WIT Discussion 1 (2nd period) - 1/23 talking about fashion

Hello to my 2nd period discussion students,

How are you? This is a re-post, with a little change, of what I posted last week for the 1st period students - they did this topic already. But this was one they enjoyed. So look at the picture of the suit above. What do you think of it? 

Now look at these different clothes and styles. What do you think of them? Let's talk about these. After you finish looking at these different images, select which one(s) you like the best, and why.

you like the best, and why.

1. 

2. 

3.

4. 

5.

6.

Now - what kinds of fashions have you seen lately are you interested in? What colors or 

What kinds of fashions have you seen lately are you interested in? What colors or materials do you know are "in" right now? Let's do the textbook unit on fashion - then let's talk about some fashion styles!

How are you? Look at the picture of the suit above. What do you think of it?

Clothes photo credits: Top image - "Business Suit" (courtesy of Suat Eman) 1. "Handsome Young Businessman" (courtesy of imagerymajestic) 2. "Beautiful Young Woman" (courtesy of posterize) 3. "Woman In Black Shirt And Jeans Skirt" (courtesy of marin) 4. "Young Handsome Man" (courtesy of marin) 5. "Fashion Model In Spring" (courtesy of posterize) 6. "Enjoy On Sunny Day In Park" (courtesy of Photokanok)

Clothes pictures from FreeDigitalPhotos.net

KIFL WIT Discussion 1 (1st period) - 1/23 talking about culture

Hello to all my 1st period Discussion students,

 

How are you? Today we'll look at culture as our topic. Look at the different greetings from different languages below. 

jó napot     xin chào     مَرْحَبً 
merhaba     guten tag   
merhaba     guten tag
 merhaba     guten tag

hyvää huomenta  dzien'dobry

hyvää huomenta            dzien' dobry

Which countries or languages do you think these greetings come from? Take some guesses! Then we'll look at the unit on culture in our textbook.

KIFL WIT Discussion 1 (2nd period) - 1/16 talking about animals

Hello to my 2nd period discussion students,

Image "Australian Sunset" courtesy of mapichai/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? Below is a video from YouTube about an animal that may be extinct (絶滅種) now, but that a few were still found alive in the 1930s in Tasmania, the island off the southeastern coast of Australia - the thylacine, sometimes called the Tasmanian tiger.

It was not a tiger at all - it looked like a dog. But it was also not a dog - it was a marsupial (有袋動物), related to the kangaroo. Like kangaroos, it carried its babies in pouches under its stomach. The last known thylacine died in 1936, and the video above shows a short film clip of it.

There are some people who believe that it may still be alive now, and in Tasmania, there are people who have reported seeing some examples of thylacines in the wild - but scientists have no proof.

So - what kinds of animals in Japan or elsewhere do you know are endangered (絶滅危惧種) or extinct (絶滅種)? 

Let's work on the textbook unit about animals - then let's talk more about animals - even about endangered or extinct ones! 

KIFL WIT Discussion 1 (1st period) - 1/16 talking about fashion

Hello to my 1st period discussion students,

How are you? Look at the picture of the suit above. What do you think of it? 

Now look at these different clothes and styles. What do you think of them? Let's talk about these. After you finish looking at these different images, select which one(s) you like the best, and why.

you like the best, and why.

1. 

2. 

3.

4. 

5.

6.

Now - what kinds of fashions have you seen lately are you interested in? What colors or 

Now - what kinds of fashions have you seen lately are you interested in? What colors or materials do you know are "in" right now? Let's do the textbook unit on fashion - then let's talk about some fashion styles!

How are you? Look at the picture of the suit above. What do you think of it?

Clothes photo credits: Top image - "Tie And Jacket" (courtesy of Salvatore Vuono) 1. "Handsome Young Businessman" (courtesy of imagerymajestic) 2. "Beautiful Young Woman" (courtesy of posterize) 3. "Woman In Black Shirt And Jeans Skirt" (courtesy of marin) 4. "Young Handsome Man" (courtesy of marin) 5. "Fashion Model In Spring" (courtesy of posterize) 6. "Enjoy On Sunny Day In Park" (courtesy of Photokanok)

Clothes pictures from FreeDigitalPhotos.net

KIFL WIT Discussion I - 1/9 welcome post

Hello to all my Discussion 1 students,
Hello to all Discussion 1 students,

Image "Working Team Shaking Hands" courtesy of Ambro/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Happy New Year! Welcome to the WIT Discussion 1 class! This first post is simply to say hello to all of you. 

This blog is designed for all of you! On it, I will post pictures, videos, and anything else that may be of interest to you, and that connect to what we'll do in this class. I may also post things for individual students to their interests - but anyone is welcome to see them! 

I hope this blog will be useful, interesting and enjoyable for you. I will do my best in it. Thank you for joining this class! 

Thank you for joining this class. I hope our classes can be fun and interesting for us!

See you next week!

See you next week!

KIFL Senka & Dual Hotel course students final thank-you post

Hello to all my KIFL Senka & Dual Hotel course students,

This is a simple post to say what the picture above says - thank you for being such great students this year! You went through a lot and I'm proud of the effort and growth you showed this year. I'm very happy for those of you who have found jobs and am with those of you who are still looking for work. 

I truly hope you will find happiness, further growth, creativity and satisfaction in your life after KIFL. 

You did a great job - and are great people. 

がんばってます！

from sekaijin

(Picture - Girl Showing Thank You Board - courtesy of Stuart Miles/FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

KIFL Business Communications Skills - final interview preparation reminders, points & tips for interviewers

Hello to all my Senka students,

Image "Business Coaching Concept" courtesy of David Castillo Dominici/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How are you? I've made a separate post for the interviewers for our second round of final interviews on Wednesday (12/12) to look at, about the kinds of questions you should ask the interviewees. 

Click on this link here for a reminder about the language, tasks and roles of the interview process; click on this link to review the job postings.

While it's necessary to ask interviewees some easy, straightforward questions, I will ask you to deliberately try to make at least 1-2 questions difficult for the interviewee to easily answer; be a little vague, both for general questions, and even in questions that are focused. 

You want to see how well the interviewee can handle the kind of thinking required to respond to any hard-to-answer questions. Here are some examples of the difference between some easy questions, and hard ones:

Easy or straightforward questions:

• What was your major in university?
• What did you do in your internship?
• How long did you work at ________?

Harder and more vague questions:

• What is your impression of your coursework in your major?
• How do you feel your internship prepared you to enter this company (organization)?
• In what way did your time at ________ give you any insight as to how this business (field) operates?

IMPORTANT NOTE: Try to make your questions like these - open-ended, of a kind that doesn't leave room for yes or no, right-or-wrong answers. 

Asking questions such as these often is the real test of how well interviewees handle the interview process, and how well they present themselves. See you at the interview!

KIFL Business Communications Skills - final interview preparation reminders, points & tips for interviewees

Hello to my Senka students,

I am making a separate post for the interviewees on final interview preparation in the second round of the final interviews for Wednesday (12/12). Above is a shot of the board notes from last week's (12/5) first round of interviews.

Click on this link here for a reminder about the language, tasks and roles of the interview process; click on this link to review the job postings.

There is one point for interviewees to remember going into any interview about the kinds of questions you'll get asked. While interviewers will ask some easy and straightforward questions, they will often ask more hard and vague, difficult-to-answer questions. I chose this point because it might be the most difficult part of any interview. 

You can handle hard and vague general questions by trying to bring a focus to the questions as a way to be clear on what the content is, so you can respond to them.  Here are some examples from another class I have been teaching this year: 

Here, it's okay to admit that even what seems to be a general question is hard - but then focus it in a way that will help you - even force you - to give an extended, thinking response to it. Now take a look at this: 

Sometimes more focused questions can be hard to answer too. You can also admit that this kind of question is hard - but then offer or propose to respond to it in a thinking way, or give an example that illustrates a point or demonstrates a situation that touches on something you believe the question is asking about. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: It's better to give a response that shows thought and depth - even if it may not be the response the interviewer is looking for - rather than hesitating or going silent. 

I hope these points and tips will help you as interviewees in our second round of interviews. See you at the interview!