Middle of Winter

Long time no post,

Happy New Year !!!

Summer came and went; autumn stuck around a while before winter crept in and took a firm foothold in the Northernmost Island of Japan.  Shoveling the classroom out from the encroaching frozen whiteness has become a serious task requiring the strategic planning of a general leading troops against an all too powerful enemy.  As I write this the snow continues to come down and the yardstick dips out of sight when I try to measure the accumulation on the top of my garage.  My true love is not to shovel or scrape the frozen precipitation to less obtrusive areas but to seek it out at it's deepest and steepest points, strap on the board, and race down over the surface while hooting pleasurably.

This year has been another year of heavy snow.  Both shoveling it and driving in it has proven challenging.  I complained about the snow to my mother on her birthday the day before yesterday and she seemed to misunderstand me and consoled me about becoming disillusioned with my job.

Allow me to climb upon the soap box.

I love my job.  I love sharing the learning experience with everyone at English Island. I love the challenge.  Learning English or becoming able to speak and use English (or any foreign language) is an extremely difficult concept.  It's hard and sometimes even painful.  Often times, in order to succeed, the learner must change his view of the world.  After twenty years of experience in teaching I don't believe in the "簡単に身につく" or "聞き流す" The companies who make these claims would like you to believe that it is possible to learn English painlessly.  At English Island we'd like you to learn how to understand and use English effectively, but first I want the people who attend lessons here to love learning and to love breaking down personal barriers and exploring new horizons.  Learning English is not only difficult, it is fun and rewarding as well.

Hope to see you soon.

Philosophically,

Pat

St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day might be a little late here today as it is the 18th.  But it IS St. Patrick's Day in the U.S. I asked many of the kids and some of the adult student's if they knew what St. Patrick's Day was and they all answered negative.  I gave them all a pinch anyway for not wearing green and I had a few too many beers last night just to prove I'm Irish.  

But I did drink Japanese beer.  I love that AOONI!!!

The Middle of Winter

I finally forced myself to look at the blog that I have been ignoring with a vengeance.  I haven't had time to write, I lost my password, and my fingers... yes arthritis has set in.  Alright then!  I don't really have an excuse except for the busy one and that's pretty lame.  Classes have been running at full steam and we have more enrollment than ever.  Coming up with appropriate material on a daily basis is my daily business.  BUT...  The net is also my business or at least where my business is being displayed.  I noticed Google doesn't rank my site on the top page anymore even though we are the most honest Eikaiwa in the world.  Anyway, I have been having a lot of fun in the classroom and I'm going to talk about it shortly.  For now, the blog is back and current and I'll be updating soon.

Mid-summer

OK. It was a zebra head. 

   Our school in Shinkotoni is really bustling at the moment.  We've never had so many students and taking care of day to day lessons is pretty much all we can do at the moment.  This BLOG has been on the back burner and I apologize in the fortunate event that someone is reading it.  At Shinkotoni we have studied the countries, the family, and now we are practicing talking about daily life.

   I no longer post the handouts on the HP so please look for them in the handouts section of the HP which is here:   --->  HANDOUTS.  There are now over 80 color handouts.  Each handout has twelve, sixteen, or twenty-four words with pictures.  That's about 1600 words!! I'd love to get it bound and published properly, but the concept of having the kids collect them and make their own picture dictionary has even greater appeal.  Also it not making it bound gives me the freedom to edit and adjust to the needs of our students.

  I'm not looking forward to the sweaty summer very much, but I can't help to get excited about the lessons.  Next month, we'll look at school language and shopping for school supplies.  It's always been a favorite of the kids and a great way for them to become familiar with talking about prices connected to items in their immediate environment.

Daily,

Pat

Gloomy Golden Week and Habitats

We can only hope the weather turns around.  It is freezing. It's raining and I haven't seen the sun for days.  I am wrapping up work early today and going home for a nap.  I don't know if it's the weather, my mood, or I really do have a cold.  But as there are no lessons today, I'm going to rest up a little.

I did go and see Kai walk the runway at the Sapporo Collection Saturday night.  It's not my habitat at all, but that's not the point.  He wore three different outfits and since it is still the animal topic this month here is the question.

What animal hat did he wear?
hint: It is black and white, looks like a small horse, and lives in Africa. It's habitat is the Savanna.



The answer next time...

Habitatily,

Pat

Spring

Spring has rolled around finally.  The new school year has seen many changes to the classes that were together last year.  I'm hoping the classes will gel quickly and we can start learning at an optimal pace as soon as possible.

Golden Week is coming up! I hope the weather holds and we are able to enjoy some cherry blossom viewing.  I will be going to Hakodate.  Whatever the weather, I'll post some pictures of Goryokaku Park.  I'll also be going to the Sapporo Collection Fashion Show.  I can't say that I am looking forward to it.  I am far too nervous watching my son walk to enjoy anything.  I keep thinking he is going to trip and fall.  It's funny, but that expression was my 8:00 lesson 'target structure' last night.

I was too __________ to do something.

I was too tired to brush my teeth.  Or...  I was too angry to be polite.

Nervously,

Pat

Happy New Year

Lessons start up after Coming of Age Day on the 15th.  I am really looking forward to getting things rolling this year.  Anyone with Eiken aspirations, Good Luck at the end of the month.  I hope you all do well.  If you need an extra lesson or some advice, tell me and I will make a Saturday lesson.  Friday might be OK too.

Let's have a wonderful 2013!

宜しくお願いします