ESL Kanachan

Movie Review!

sudamucho — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:16:05 +0000

Introduction: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zu0S3nz5w5g

Saving Face (Nina) : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPnB9-rMBDE

Fireproof (Sophia): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ocx7LILqI4c

Black Hawk Down (David): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-9sKtSUcp8

Pride & Prejudice (Heejeong): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZ2wjyAdYag

The Ugly Truth (Daniela): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfXz1TeGnEE

Wow! You all did a wonderful job! Thank you very much again, everyone, for sharing your movie review. I am confident that many ESL students will enjoy your movie reviews and our videos will inspire our friends who are leaning English here at LSC and all around the world!!

My special thanks go to Alerie who kindly shared her material with me and to MaryAnn who encouraged me to be creative in planning ESL 211!

Homework Due 11-17

sudamucho — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 06:51:35 +0000

Hi everyone! Wow, I cannot believe that we have only two more classes to go! It’s been wonderful to be a part of this group!

Well, as usual, here is the list of vocabulary we covered today (11-10) from ”Father of the Bride”:

to mellow out
http://www.foro3d.com/f230/to-rig-a-boat-s-rigging-77375.html
to be in the cards
to rip off somebody
a bunch of trusting nitwits
to pipe down
low point
to flip out over something
to bail someone out
to pull oneself together
to act one’s age
to lower the boom

If you’d like to watch the section of the movie we watched today again at home, refer to the following links:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J43KoNxF4Yk (start at 4:00)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNy5Zp-Su6I

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIKJuHuyiSE (stop at 1:15)

Homework due next week

Please prepare a short oral movie review based on the movie review worksheet you have already completed. The review should be about 3 minutes, and make sure to include all the information about the movie you are reviewing, including what you like/dislike about the movie and why you would recommend it to other students. Practice your speech a few times at home and be ready to present in class next week. Remember to speak slowly and clearly, and try not to read your worksheet. I will be recording your reviews in class.

If you’d like to get an idea about how you might plan your oral review, check the following link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwOeRaY7hfk

Have a wonderful week & weekend!

Kanako

Homework Due 11-10

sudamucho — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:08:33 +0000

New vocabulary/expressions from “Father of the Bride” we covered today (10-03):

red-blooded American dad
to dread something/doing something
What’s the damage?
to be history
to roll/to get the ball rolling
to go with the flow

* Lucy, here is the link where you can watch the section of the movie you missed today:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J43KoNxF4Yk&feature=PlayList&p=102BEE20B5D6C630 (stop at 3:57)

Homework due next week

1. Watch and enjoy Foreign Accent Syndrome Gives Sufferers an International Sound – ABC News. Try to find the answers to the following questions while watching the video.

What kind of medical condition makes Cindylou speak the way she does now?
How does she feel about her new accent, compared with her old accent?
What exactly happened to her in order for her to have this “rare and bizarre” medical condition?
What type of doctor deals with this type of syndrome?
Besides her new accent, what are the symptoms of her condition?

2. Decide on the movie you’d like to review for our final movie review project and fill out the following form.

http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0ATCLQ2kzsZllZGR4cjlwamJfNDJrNnE2NzhnaA&hl=en

Have a great weekend!

A link to “Inside CDC”

sudamucho — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 03:15:20 +0000

If you could not find “Inside CDC” on The Doctor’s main page, try the link below:

http://thedoctorstv.com/main/procedure_list/678

Homework Due 11-03

sudamucho — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 11:00:12 +0000

Hi everyone! Today (10-27), we discussed new vocabulary from “Father of the Bride,” shared our interview experiences, and listened to a dialog “Halloween Songs” from Englishbaby.com. To listen to the dialog again, go to: http://www.englishbaby.com/lessons/5033/music/halloween_songs. You can also read the transcript of the dialog and take a short listening comprehension quiz.

Englishbaby.com is a great website for you to practice your English, especially your listening skill. If you are interested in checking more lessons on this website, go to www.englishbaby.com and click on the “Learn English” tab.

At the end of the class, we listened to “One-Eyed, One-Horned, Flying Purple People Eater,” a Halloween classic. Below is the website where you can read the lyrics while listening to the song. Try singing along – it is a good way to practice pronunciation and mouth movement.

http://www.brownielocks.com/purplepeopleeater.html

Quick notes on vocabulary

Hunch – Encarta defines it as “an intuitive feeling about something.” According to Longman, “if you have a hunch that something is true or is going to happen, you feel that it is true or going to happen.” So, “to have a hunch” is similar to “to feel something in your bones” in a way. For example, you may say, “I had a hunch that something like this would happen! I could feel it in my bones!” Thank you, Lucy, for pointing it out!
Splinter – a splinter is a small sharp piece of wood or glass that has broken off a larger piece (Longman). David mentioned that in Spanish, this word is used to express “Like father, like son.” According to http://www.inspiring-quotes-and-stories.com/spanish-proverbs.html, the Spanish proverb can be translated into English as “From such stick (wood), such splinter.” Um, interesting!

Homework Due Next Week

Please start thinking about which movie you may want to review for our final movie review project. You will review only one movie for this project. Any movie that you would recommend to other ESL students is fine.
Watch “Inside the CDC” from a TV series called “The Doctors.” You can go to http://www.thedoctorstv.com, click on “FEATURED VIDEOS,” and from the list on the left side of the screen, choose “Inside the CDC.” Watch the video first to see how much you can understand. When you watch the clip for the second or third time, pay attention to the following vocabulary and listening questions.

Vocabulary:

CDC

on the front line

misconceptions and myths

set the record straight

infectious and chronic diseases

disease outbreak

keep everyone on the same page

come (be) on board

pandemic

play out

Questions:

What kind of doctor is the doctor visiting the CDC?

According to Thomas Frieden, MD, why is H1N1 influenza a “real challenge”?

What kind of place is the Emergency Operations Center?

What is the role of Anne Schuchat, MD?

Why is it important to get vaccinated?

What does the Vaccine Task Force do?

I hope you enjoy the clip, and please let me know if you have trouble finding the clip. Be ready to discuss next week!!!

Homework Due 10-27

sudamucho — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 23:55:49 +0000

Today(10-20), we discussed President Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize win. You can find the transcript of his entire speech at Transcript of Obama’s Remarks on Nobel Peace Prize — Politics Daily. If you are curious about the two specific international figures that the president made a reference to during his speech, here are their names:

- Neda Agha-Soltan (Iran)

- Aung San Suu Kyi (Myanmar)

Aung San Suu Kyi is a Nobel laureate — I found out that she has already received Novel Peace Prize in the past! She actually received it in 1991, quite a while ago. So, this makes the definition of “laureate” slightly different from the definition I explained to you today. A Nobel laureate is someone who has already received the award; for instance, Aung San Suu Kyi and Jimmy Carter are Nobel laureates. Surprisingly, Gandhi never received Novel Peace Prize. According to Nobelprize.org, he was nominated many times, but never actually received the award. The article about Gandhi on Nobelprize. org is called “Mahatma Gandhi, the Missing Laureate.” It seems that the word “laureate” is related to a specific type of tree, laurel.

Homework Due Next Week

Homework #1 : Please watch the part of “Father of the Bride” we watched today again at home.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0A_2d0OIXZA (Start at 2:39)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PN7aa-TYyg (Stop at 6:38)

While watching, pay close attention to the following vocabulary/expressions. We will discuss them in class next week.

Nina, Annie is much too spirited for this kid.
I’m telling you, I feel it in my bones.
It [his laugh] was such a giveaway. It was so phony with his…
It [his speech] was right out of a book — How to grease your future mother-in-law.
He could be a professional con artist…
Now, we’re related to pretentious snobs.
…I tossed and turned over this one…
…they might just wanna…pitch in and help with the cost of wedding.

Homework #2: In addition to the discussion on the second part of the movie, we will start talking about our final movie review project. To begin with, why don’t we interview someone to get an idea about which movie might be good for this project? This will be your second homework for next week. Find someone who does not speak your language and interview him/her about his/her favorite movie. The interview must be conducted in English; it could be a face-to-face interview or a phone interview. If it is hard for you to find an interviewee, it might be a good idea to sign up for a tutoring session. Just make sure to obtain the following information:

Title
Genre
Main actors
Setting/Background
Plot/story
Why he/she likes it

Be ready to share your interview experience in class next week!

Homework Due 10-20

sudamucho — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 23:09:57 +0000

Today (10-13), we discussed “Celebrity Blackmail” and watched the first 20 min of “Father of the Bride.” Here are the words we went over:

I’m told that one day I’ll look back on all this [wedding]…with great affection and nostalgia. I hope so.
I’ve always been a concerned parent. I’m big on car seats, seat belts, bedtimes, curfews…
I’m not wild about her being in the air.
And since I’m not a guy who‘s big on change, this town fits me like a glove.
Annie was just in grammar school.
You look all lit up inside.
George, please, will you stop acting like a lunatic father…
I just wanna say that I’m an upstanding citizen.
Annie, it’s a little nippy out.
brown-nose (v.) (= butter up)

If you missed class today or would like to check the movie again, you can find it on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvWT1dK-KRc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlZj8K-Gs2A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0A_2d0OIXZA

Next week, we will watch the second 20 min of the movie.

Homework due next week

Watch and enjoy ”Obama: Nobel Win Is a ‘Call to Action’” on abcnews.go.com. Here is the link:

http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerIndex?id=8791710

To understand the president’s speech better, look up the words below, and think about the questions that follow:

- Key vocabulary words-

to keep things in perspective
humbled
pursuit
founding documents
momentum
sowing conflict and famine
unwavering commitment
dignity
ruthless adversary
to look to

- Questions -

How does President Obama feel about (his) receiving the Nobel Peace Prize?
What does he mean by accepting the prise “as a call to action”?
According to the president, what kind of world are we all seeking? What are all the nations in the world responsible for? (List at least 3 points.)
Who does the president think he should share the prize with?

What do YOU think about the president’s Nobel Prize win? Are you surprised by the news or you think it is well-deserved? Check the following site to find out what other people in the U.S. think of this news. You will find an audio clip and its transcript. (Try not to read the transcript first.)

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=113677736

We will discuss the vocabulary and the questions shown above and share our opinions about the news in class next week!

Have a good one!

Homework Due 10-13

sudamucho — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 01:31:48 +0000

Watch “Celebrity Blackmail” on CNN.com. You can go to CNN.com and search “Celebrity Blackmail” or click on the following link:

http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/showbiz/2009/10/03/
ac.celebrity.blackmail.cnn

Before watching the video, answer the following questions to help yourself understand its content better.

- What is black mailing?

- What do you think the video will talk about?

While watching the video, think about the following questions:

- What is extortion? Who was extorted?

- What would a lawyer do in order to stop someone from extorting someone else?

- What are the experts’ opinions about what to do if you are extorted?

Please do not worry about catching every single word in the video. I understand they speak very fast, but remember, people slow down when they want to emphasize important points. You will be looking for those important points in this video. The following are some of the keywords in the video:

extortion/to extort something from somebody
a pipe dream
felony
a bottomless pit
collateral damage

We will discuss the above questions and the new vocabulary in class. You don’t have to write the answers down; just be prepared to talk about them!!!

Hello ESL 211 Fall 2009!

sudamucho — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 00:09:26 +0000

Welcome to ESL 211 Fall 2009! Today, we watched Manny’s movie review of “Fame.” You can find the same video right here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H09vzg26yUA

Some of the vocabulary we studied are:

squeaky clean
top-notch

Here are some more new words:

movie buff
trail blazer
off-key

Spread the new vocab to your ESL friends!!