Monday, November 30, 2009

UK English Phrase - cock a snook

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While doing research on my global security blog, I happened upon a humorous phrase used by a British columnist: Iran is cocking a snook at the world.

Where can one turn to unravel the mystery behind such a phrase?

Try the World Wide Words

WWW struggles to define ''cocking a snook'' but the general impression is the physical gesture when one thumbs his or her nose at someone.

I cannot wait to share this phrase with my students this week.
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If you are in São Paulo and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 6214-1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

If you need English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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What is an acrostic poem?

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Mr English loves literature and is fascinated about the various terms in the lit lexicon.

In an occassional post, we will review some lit terminology that may not be so obvious. Do you like literature, too? What is your favorite genre,author, time period or subject?

An acrostic poem centers upon one subject and the beginning letter of each line spells out that subject.  The lines of each poem describe the said subject.

For example:

Shines in the sky
Up way above the clouds
Nice and hot on my skin I feel it.

S U N - shines, up way above the clouds and it´s hot!

***

 If you are in São Paulo and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 6214 -1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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Sunday, November 29, 2009

6 Most Common English Verb Tenses

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Six Most Common English Verb Tenses
Present (I walk.)
Past Perfect (I had walked.)

Present Perfect (I have walked.)
Future (I will walk.)
Past (I walked.)
Future Perfect (I will have walked.)

***
If you are in São Paulo and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at  6214-1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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Saturday, November 28, 2009

Layman´s Guide to Financial Crisis Vocabulary

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While the BBC reported on Monday that OECD (European countries) limped to a 0.8% rate of economic expansion last quarter, it still may be useful to understand this layman's finance crisis glossary.

How many terms do you know without peeking?

***
If you are in São Paulo and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 6214-1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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Friday, November 27, 2009

Do you know the SQ3R?

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 Do you need an effective reading strategy? Do you want to read and understand texts better?

The SQ3R is a strategy for effective academic reading which has been around for decades. It is all about standing back and looking at the outline of the text you are going to read, preparing for the reading by getting some questions ready, looking for answers as you read, remembering what you read and then reviewing what you’ve read so you don’t forget it.

Read more...
***
If you are in São Paulo and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 6214-1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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Thursday, November 26, 2009

Top 3 iBT TOEFL Tips

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Professor Winn is often asked about tips for the iBT TOEFL.

Here are three top TOEFL tips to hold you in good steed:

1) Increase your vocabulary!

A strong vocabulary cuts across all four sections of the TOEFL - reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Unfairly or not, one is judged by his or her word choice. Remember there is a passive and active vocabulary. The passive is used mainly while reading when you recognize familiar words that may not be used in everyday speech. An active vocabulary is the group of words you do use when communicating in line at the grocery store or swapping stories with friends. The Academic Word List is a good starting point.

2) Target and Improve Your Pronunciation Weaknesses

The speaking section of the iBT TOEFL  is unnerving for some. That is why it is doubly important to identify any weaknesses in your pronunciation BEFORE the exam. One way is to record your voice on a tape recorder. Is your voice steady? Do you hesitate or use ´´um, um?´´ To score high, one must be confident and express this confidence in their voice. Practice with a tape recorder will help!

3) Know thy grammar

Sure, it´s boring. Many times grammar is skimmed over by well-meaning teachers. However, no doubt about it, grammar is at the heart of a language. Without the rules, how can you drive from point A to point B? Grammar brings order and structure to the language and mastering the basics yields a strong foundation to express yourself intelligently in writing and speech. Knowing thy grammar will boost your score, too!

 ***
If you are in São Paulo and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs or TOEFL preparation, please call Professor Winn at 6214-1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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Wednesday, November 25, 2009

5 Common Mistakes Using Business English

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1. Personal vs. Personnel

personal - an adjective meaning something is particular to an individual or private.
Ex: No personal emails are allowed on corporate computers at work.

personnel - a noun for the number of employees working at place of work (factory, office, department store, etc) and a once popular name for what is called ´human resources´ today - the division of a company that hires, fires, and trains employees.

Ex: The latest email from personnel reminds everyone personal emails are not tolerated on corporate computers.

2. Executive vs Execute

executive - adjective or noun referring to the top brass in a company (vice president, president, CEO and the like)
Ex: One day the boss´s secretary wants to network her way into the executive inner circle of the company.

execute - a verb that means among many things - to carry out fully or to put to death legally. Thus, if not careful one could execute the executives with a  mistake!

3. For vs. Since

For - denotes a duration of time
Ex. I have played tennis for three years.

Since - denotes a duration of time from a certain reference point
 Ex. I have played tennis since 2006.

4. What are the plurals of data, information and training?

Plurals - data(*), information, and training - these are treated like a collective noun and no s is needed!

* Datum is the singular for data. However, data is often used with a singular verb - Ex. The data is being downloaded from the server right now.

5. discreet vs discrete 

Discreet - adjective - being prudent or showing good judgment, especially in speech, modest or unnoticeable
Ex. I didn't want anyone to see what I was doing to avoid arousing suspicion so I had to be discreet entering the locked door at the back of the building.


Discrete - adjective - individually distinct or of distinct or unconnected elements
 Ex. Even though she trusted her boyfriend, they kept their money in two discrete accounts.

Bonus: e.g vs i.e

e.g. stands for exempli gratia = for example.
Ex.  : "I like fast cars, e.g. Ferrari and Porche"
In the sentence above you are simply giving an example of the kinds of cars you like - Ferraris and Porches.

i.e. stands for id est = that is (in explanation).
Ex. I like fast cars, i.e. any car that can go over 130mph. 


***
If you are in São Paulo and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 6214-1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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Wordia makes words comes alive!

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Check out this cool website to see your favorite vocab words come to life! For example, see the video for the word ´faith.´



***
 If you are in São Paul and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 6214 1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

Buy your English-language texts today!

Monday, November 23, 2009

MACAU DAILY TIMES - UM improves English through fun

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MACAU DAILY TIMES - UM improves English through fun

The English teachers at UM are spot on!

Just look at this quote:

“To significantly improve in a language you need an immersion experience´´


You can do all of the grammar lessons assigned. You can conjugate all of the verbs correctly standing in front of the mirror while brushing your teeth.

However, it only counts, well mostly, when you can hold a conversation with a native speaker - to understand and to be understood.

The focus on fun is another winning approach. I often use games in my English classes, especially with groups. Fun and learning are not mutually exclusive!

One curious observation in the article regards the popularity of English in the former Portuguese colony now integrated into China. Chinese is still stronger while English takes a backseat, a trend different from the rest of the country.
***
If you are in São Paulo and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 6214-1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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Sunday, November 22, 2009

New Oxford English Dictionary´s Word for 2009

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Ah, from our Web 2.0 world, emerges the 2009 Word of the Year(WOY)...unfriend....

Have you unfriended anyone?

In Facebook or Twitter, perhaps you have deleted a contact? Then you are, perhaps, an unfriender??

There you go! Perhaps I have the word of the year for 2010 already? Hah.

You still have time to vote for your favorite word over at the American dialect.

As a bonus, here is a Word of the Day I came across today...I don´t mean to absquatulate, but I have other posts to prepare.

***
If you are in São Paulo and need English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 6214-1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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Saturday, November 21, 2009

India losing English advantage to China

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India is falling behind.

In a blow to its competition with neighboring China, the British Council reported India losing an English advantage to China because of a shortage of qualified teachers and institutions despite a growing demand for the language.

The study of the English language market in both India and China revealed both the weakness of English education in India and highlighted the economic significance of speaking the world´s lingua franca. English is
a proven path to social mobility for many throughout the world and the neutral language among business partners.

China is adding 20 million English language speakers ever year.

The British Council is wise to invest in market research as Pearson´s bought two chain schools in China just last year.

***
Do you want to learn English or need documents written crisply for any occasion? Do you need documents translated from Portuguese, French or Spanish to English? Please contact Professor Winn at mrenglish101@gmail.com to get started today.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Parlez-vous anglais?

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French President Nicolas Sarkozy hopes to ease his country´s longtime queasiness with English.

Recognizing the reality of globalization and its lingua franca, English, the brash French president launched a new policy to spur English acquisition among students to increase France´s economic competiviteness: France: Sarkozy Pushes Students to Master English Language.

English remains the most spoken foreign language throughout Europe. 

Indeed, French businesses are adopting English as their main language of communication, and to the chagrin of some, dropping French, altogether.

As late as 2005, France ranked only as average in English competency.

As consistently reported in Eurobarometer reports, about the same percentage of EU citizens, as French, claim to speak English - 38%. However, a strong command of the language in the four competencies - reading, writing, speaking, and listening - proves elusive. Businesses require a near-native ability to compete.


Speaking a second language is tightly tied to one´s social and economic level and especially among top managers and executives in business. Besides the economic impetus, the ability to speak a second language provides a window into the culture and thinking of a another society, a key to understanding.


 Sarkozy´s new initiative should inspire more native English speakers to visit France and for the French to answer the question above, ´´Oui, I speak English!´´
***
If you are in São Paulo and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 1160 461 342 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

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Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Executive English Training

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Improve your confidence in communication, writing, expressing yourself at conferences and meetings, negotiations, conducting presentations, as well as dealing with customers! Start Executive Englishi Training today with Professor Winn!

My class enables you to excel in executive English communicative competency and succeed in today's competitive business world.
***
If you are in São Paulo, Brazil,  and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 1160 461 342 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

Buy your English-language texts today!

Monday, November 16, 2009

English for the Workplace

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Are you seeking a job requiring an interview in English? Do you need more confidence writing an email, memo, or even your resume in English?

You need English for the Workplace!

My course is tailored to address the participants' everyday English Language needs based on job - specific language and vocabulary. It offers a practical introduction to the vocabulary, expressions and language of the workplace for business professionals. Participants gain extra skills in the areas of communication and listening comprehension, as well as drafting business letters, resumes and reading on a variety of business topics.
***
If you are in São Paulo, Brazil,  and want English lessons personally designed to fit your needs, please call Professor Winn at 6214-1511 or send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com.

Anyone interested in English-language services or translations (Sp/Fr/Pt>En) may send an email to mrenglish101@gmail.com for a prompt evaluation.

Buy your English-language texts today!

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Ringing Up Rush to English in Bangladesh

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The BBC´s SMS-based ´´Janala´´ program in Bangladesh caused a rush of more than 300,000 subscribers to learn English by cell phone.


The surprising response to the program is another testament to the economic significance of English.

For many, a command of English is a ticket to upward social mobility. The ability to communicate in English plus another professional discipline are often a winning combination in the global economy from Bangladesh to Baltimore.

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Professor Winn has returned after a hiatus of posting to his blog dedicated solely to the English language.