Wednesday Workshops L2 L3 Mag

In group 4 and 5, I discussed employment, health insurance, taxes and gave an quick overview of the politic parties in the US. We later listened to This American Life episode "What kind of Country?" and read the transcript. I explained how we have three tiers of taxation in the US, with national income tax that pays for social security (the money you receive at 65 after you retire) and the health care and medication for the elderly as well, and other government programs. We additionally have state and local taxes. This can vary from state to state, as well at the sales tax (like the TVA) on purchased items. In group 5, I went a bit further in detail in the upcoming election and the concerns of Americans for the Democratic and Republican parties. I explained that the American campaigns for president cost a lot of money, and are often funded by Political Action Committees (PACs) which are special interest groups often funded by big businesses, who pay for campaigns in order to ensure politicians will vote for laws that benefit the businesses. I explained that Obama's campaign is entirely funded by small time donors, and he doesn't accept money from PACs. I showed a current campaign video called "Obamaville" produced by Republican candidate Rick Santorum as an example of some of the over-the-top campaign tactics we have in the US.

In group 3 - I gave a detailed grammar lesson on frequent mistakes at level 3, as well as the explanation between the words: trip, travel, vacation/holidays, voyages, journeys, & cruises. I explained the past simple, past continuous, and the present perfect. The present perfect most closely resembles the past tense in french, because it uses have, has and had. It's not used as past tense, but only in theses circumstances of

Experience

I have been to France.

He has worked in tourism.

Change Over Time

I have improved my English from my year abroad.

The travel industry has become more interested in eco-friendly tourism.

You have grown more mature from living on your own.

He has become less difficult to work with.

Achievement / Accomplishments

He has hiked in the Alps.

She has learned a lot from working in Africa.

The students have finished exams.

Uncompleted Action You Expect to Happen

James has not finished his homework.

She hasn't mastered Chinese, but she is improving.

They haven't arrived at the airport.

The train has not arrived yet.

Multiple Actions at Different times

I have had four classes already today.

We have had many problems while working on this project.

She has talked to many tourists about the town.

Monday Workshops L2, L3, MAG

Yesterday in class, I had groups 4A, 6, and 3B.

In groups 4a and 6, we listened to an episode "What Kind of Country" from NPR (National Public Radio - US) This American Life, discussing taxation in the United States. I gave a brief overview of the political beliefs of the right, or Republicans/Conservatives in the US as well as the Left/Democrats. I explained the differences between a Full Time (FT) and Part Time (PT) job. Even a Full Time job in the US does not entitle you to healthcare. Of the 55% of Americans who have health care, (which is the equivalent of l'assurance maladie and securité sociale, social security in the US in the money that seniors receive from the government when they are over 65 and retired), most Americans receive health care through their employers. The employer has a group healthcare plan for all their employees, and the employees pay for it through a portion (usually 10% of their salaries). Obama is trying to enact universal healthcare, but has not yet succeeded against the Republicans in our Senate.

In group 3B, I gave a basic grammar review on the difference uses between different past tenses in English. We have 3 basic kinds, which are the past simple, past continuous, and the use of past participle. The use of "to have" does not construct the past tense but the present-perfect, which most resembles the French past tense. The sentence construction, subject + "has" or "have" is NOT used the same as French past tense, causing many ESL French students to use "have" when they don't need to. There is a good explanation of this here. And even more, there is a large amount of verbs in the past tense that are irregular, and it's hard for students to learn and remember each one. We then used this information to tell stories of problems while traveling and corrected the stories together.

Simple Past
There are two principal past tenses used to make general statements about the past: The past simple and the past continuous. The two tenses are quite different. Use the past simple to talk about an event which happened at some point in time in the past.

Tom flew to Chicago last week.
Peter visited his friends in Florida two months ago.

Past Continuous
The past continuous is usually used to refer to events happening at the same time that something important happened in the past.

They were doing their homework when she arrived.
Jack was studying while Dave was cooking dinner..

The past continuous is also used to express what was happening at a precise moment in the past.
I was attending a lecture at 2.30 yesterday afternoon.
Alice was reading a book at six yesterday evening.

Past Simple Structure:
Positive
Subject + Verb + ed OR Irregular Past Form + Objects
I, You, He, She, We, They -> played golf yesterday afternoon.I, You, He, She, We, They -> went lunch at noon.

Negative
Subject + did not (didn't) + Verb + Objects
I, You, He, She, We, They -> didn't go on vacation last summer.
Subject + did not (doesn't) + Verb + Objects

Questions
(Why, What, etc.) + did + Subject + Verb + Objects?
Did -> I, you, we, they -> attend the meeting last week?

Past Continuous Structure:
Positive
Subject + conjugate the helping verb "be" + verb + -ing.
I was, You were, He was, She was, We were, You were, They were -> watching TV when I arrived.
Negative
Subject + conjugate the helping verb "be" + not + verb + -ing.
I wasn't, You weren't, He wasn't, She wasn't, We wasn't, You wasn't, They wasn't -> working when he came into the room.
Questions
Question word + conjugate the helping verb 'be' + subject + verb + -ing
What -> were you, they -> doing at seven o'clock?What -> was I, he, she -> doing at seven o'clock?

Study the Past Simple and Past Continuous in Depth:
Here are detailed guides to the past simple and the past continuous tenses.
Each guide provides situations, common time expressions used with the tense, as well as examples.
These guides were prepared especially for beginners and include dialogues and a short quiz.
Past simple with the verb "to be" for beginnersPast simple with regular and irregular verbs for beginners
It's also important to know your irregular past simple forms which are included in this list of the most important irregular past simple and past participle verb forms

Language Workshops L2 L3 MAG1

Today I met with groups 4b, 3a, and finally group 5. The grammar I discussed with group 3b on Monday the 12th is also listed here below.

In group 4b, I assigned everyone to bring their CVs for next week. We spent the class reviewing the past simple and past continuous verb form. The past simple is not as simple as it seems, because there are many irregular past verbs in English. It helps to review them to commit them to memory. I talked about the past continuous as well. The difference between the two is that past simple is an action that is finished in the past. For example, I went to Paris. The past continuous exlains an action that was taking place over time in the past. I went to Paris, when it was snowing. You can see the past simple has now been connected with the past continous. The continous is formed by using and auxilary verb with the -ing ending on the action verb. I had the students write a 10 sentence story about a problem they had traveling attmpting to use 5 sentences with the past continuous. Everyone read their stories.

In group 3a, I assigned everyone to bring their CVs for next week. Please make sure to read the article here on my blog titled CVs. I also then gave a crash course on some common problems with level 3 students. We talked about the use of "moreover" and "indeed", I explained these words are rarely used in English, and there are many other ways to start off sentences, for example with: furthermore, certainly, and to continue. Another example of this is the direct translation of "To my mind.." students should instead use: In my mind, In my opinion, or According to me. I explained more often that not, when it comes to "during" or "since" students most of the time when confused, should use "for". Example, "I have been studying for four year." You only use during or since with a specific date. "I have been studying since 2009." I also explained the difference between coming and going. These are both irregular verbs in past tense. I come, I came, I have come OR I go, I went, I have gone. You can only come to places you currently are, and you can only go to places you were in the past, or will be in the future. Example, I came to Angers, France in 2009. Second example, I went to Paris in December. Last example, is that it is different when talking about someone else. They can 'come' where you were in the past, or will be in the future. Example: "My best friend came to my house last night," or "My friend will be coming (or you can use going) to Rome visit me in July."

We had the first course of Group 5, in which we used questions to interview our partners and then introduce them to the class. I also assigned CVs for the following week.

Describing People - Niveau 3

Everyone loves people watching from the café. There are many ways to remark on someone’s outward appearance, and to describe someone’s style, ethnicity, and clothing.
• Look! He / She is wearing…
• He / She looks like he / she is …They look like they are…
• They have the appearance …
• Those people are … That person is …

Descriptive Words
• tall – grand(e)
• well-built / shapely (f) – bien foutue
• little / short – petit(e)
• buff (m) – bien baraqué
• a midget – un / une nain(e)
• scrawny – un sac d’os
• hunchback – bossu(e)
• tanned – bronze(e)
• pale – pale, palot
• long-haired – chevulu(e)
• hairy – poilu(e)
• chunky / chubby – grassouillet(te)
• fat – gros/grosse
• skinny – maigre; maigrichon(ne)

Attractive People
• handsome (m) – beau
• beautiful (f) – belle
• cute – mignon(ne)
• pretty (f) – jolie
• stylish – à la mode
• really fashionable – glamour
• hip – branché(e)
• trendy – tendance

Expressions
• a lean face – un visage fin
• a friendly / likeable face – une bonne piffe
• a good “mug” – une bonne gueule
• a round face – la tête arrondie
• a square jaw – un visage carré
• beady eyes – des petits yeux
• good measurements – de bonne mensurations
• a nasty mop of hair – une sale tignasse
• a bad figure – un physique désagréable
• a tiny head – une petit tête
• a big head – une grosse tête
• homely – un / une laideron(ne)
• slimy – un gros porc
• dirty – sale
• a fat sausage – un boudin

Characters
• kids – les enfants
• teens – les ados
• wino – le pochetron ; le poivrot
• bum – le / la clochard(e)
• a thug – un voyou
• spoiled rich kid – un fils / une fille à papa
• ladies’ man – un tombeur
• good ol’ boy – un bon bougre
• redneck – un pequenot
• hick – un plouc
• jock – le sportif / la sportive

Stereotypes
• White trash – les beaufs
• The rich folk – Les costume-cravate
• Bible-Thumpers – les culs bénis
• The commuters – Les métros-boulet-dodo
• Hippies – les babas cools
• The bohemians / yuppies – Les bobos

Activity
Put in Practice You now have a choice of several photos. With a partner, I want you to imagine what type of life the person in the photo has. Describe their physical appearance, but also what you think they might act like. Tell me things you think they are interested in and like to do. Make fun of them a little if you would like.

Niveau 3 Grammar Review

Here is a revision of simple present and present continuous.

Vegetarians are people who don't eat meat.
Look out! My husband is coming.
Some people still think the sun goes round the earth.
I play tennis every weekend.
Who is sitting in my chair?
What happens in golf if you lose the ball?
An alcoholic is a person who drinks too much.
Look! She's wearing the same shoes as me.
What are you looking at?
I am staying with John for a few weeks.
We usually stay with Peg when we are in Chicago.
Can you explain why water always runs downhill?
The refridgerator is running.
What are you doing with my coat?
Not many passenger planes fly faster than sound.
We are flying today.
How long was your flight?

I think he's away.
You know what I mean.
She is always complaining.
We always start at nine.
While the butter is melting, you take three eggs and break them into a bowl.
I am thinking about your father.
Scientists believe the weather is changing.
I don't see what the problem is.
Why are you looking at me like that?
Now I understand what she wants.

Where were your shoes made?
Did you go out last night?
What were you doing at 10:30?
Where was your mother born?
Has Barbara gone home?
What time did she go?
When were these houses built?
Did Jim arrive yet?
Why did you go home early?
How long have they been married?

Joe has lost his passport.
This bridge was built ten years ago.
Have you finished your work yet?
This town is very clean. The streets are cleaned every day.
Where were you born?
Where are you from?
I have just made coffee, would you like some?
Glass is made from sand.
This is a very old photograph. It was taken a long time ago.
Joe has bought a new car.

Past Simple VS Past Continuous

You know Past Simple, here's a look further into Past Continuous, which is harder to grasp.

The Basics - Simple Past
There are two principal past tenses used to make general statements about the past: The past simple and the past continuous. The two tenses are quite different. Use the past simple to talk about an event which happened at some point in time in the past.

------ point in time, one moment something occurred ---- use PAST SIMPLE

Tom flew to Chicago last week. (point in time – last week; thing that occurred - Tom flys)
Peter visited his friends in Florida two months ago. (point in time – two months ago; occurred – Peter visits)

The Basics - Past Continuous
The past continuous is usually used to refer to events happening at the same time that something important happened in the past.

They were doing their homework when she arrived.
Jack was studying while Dave was cooking dinner.

The past continuous is also used to express what was happening at a precise moment in the past.
I was attending a lecture at 2.30 yesterday afternoon.
Alice was reading a book at six yesterday evening.
Past Simple Structure:
Positive
Subject + ( Verb + ed –OR– Irregular Past Form ) + Objects

I, You, He, She, We, They -> played golf yesterday afternoon.
I, You, He, She, We, They -> went lunch at noon.
Negative
Subject + did not (didn't) + Verb + Objects

I, You, He, She, We, They -> didn't go on vacation last summer.

Subject + did not (doesn't) + Verb + Objects
Questions
(Why, What, etc.) + did + Subject + Verb + Objects?

Did -> I, you, we, they -> attend the meeting last week?
Past Continuous Structure:
Positive
Subject + conjugate the helping verb "be" + verb + -ing.

I was, You were, He was, She was, We were, You were, They were -> sleeping when I arrived.
Negative
Subject + conjugate the helping verb "be" + not + verb + -ing.

I wasn't, You weren't, He wasn't, She wasn't, We weren't , They weren't ->
working when he came into the room.

Questions

Question word + conjugate the helping verb 'be' + subject + verb + -ing

What -> were you, they -> doing at seven o'clock?
What -> was I, he, she -> doing at seven o'clock?
Study the Past Simple and Past Continuous in Depth:

Here are detailed guides to the past simple and the past continuous tenses. Each guide provides situations, common time expressions used with the tense, as well as examples.
These guides were prepared beginners and include dialogues and a short quiz. You can use them to review.
Past simple with the verb "to be" for beginners
Past simple with regular and irregular verbs for beginners
It's also important to know your irregular past simple forms which are included in this list of the most important irregular past simple and past participle verb forms

Since, For, All

When something happened
When did you start (working/classes) today?
I started at 8 am.

When did you first start working at Disney?
I started in May of 2009.

When would you like a reservation?
I would like a reservation for 2 weeks, from December 13th to the 30th.

How long something happened or will take place

How long did you have work/classes for today?
I had classes/work for eight hours today.

How long did you work for?
I worked for eight hours.

How long did you work at Disney?
I worked at Disney for one year.

How long have you been learning English?
I have been learning English for 10 years.
I have been learning English since I was 8 years old.


Since and For
((Time in the past, ex 1992))------- continuous action still happening-------- use SINCE

---continuous action that happened in the past OR is still happening (( 4 years )) ----- use FOR

She's been working with us since May. (continuous action – working)
She's been working with us for a year.
I haven't worked at Disney since September. (continuous action – not working at Disney)
I haven't worked at Disney for a month.
I have been a tourism student for five years. (continuous action – being a student)

NOTE:
Since can also be used to replace because.

He cannot come to dinner, since he has karate class.

All
We use neither for or since with all ( all day/all night/all of my life).
It is still a continuous action, all is used with past present and future tense.

----continuous action that happened in the past and consumes a unit of time (( a day of classes))--- ALL

I had classes all day.

I've lived here all my life.
We partied all night.
The event took place all day.

Present Perfect

Experience
You can use the Present Perfect to describe your experience. It is like saying, "I have the experience of..." You can also use this tense to say that you have never had a certain experience. The Present Perfect is NOT used to describe a specific event.
Examples:
• I have been to France.
• I have been to France three times.
• I have never been to France.
• I think I have seen that movie before.
• He has never traveled by train.
• Joan has studied two foreign languages.

Change Over Time
We often use the Present Perfect to talk about change that has happened over a period of time.
Examples:
• You have grown more mature from your year abroad.
• The travel industry has become more interested in eco-friendly tourism.
• Japanese has become one of the most popular courses at the university since the Asian studies program was established.
• My English has really improved since I moved to Australia.

Accomplishments
We often use the Present Perfect to list the accomplishments of individuals and humanity. You cannot mention a specific time.
Examples:
• He has walked the Appalachian Trail.
• Our son has learned a lot from working in Africa.
• The students have finished their week of exams.

An Uncompleted Action You Are Expecting
We often use the Present Perfect to say that an action which we expected has not happened. Using the Present Perfect suggests that we are still waiting for the action to happen.
Examples:
• James has not finished his homework yet.
• Susan hasn't mastered Japanese, but she can communicate.
• Bill has still not arrived at the airport.
• The rain hasn't stopped for a week.

Multiple Actions at Different Times
We also use the Present Perfect to talk about several different actions which have occurred in the past at different times. Present Perfect suggests the process is not complete and more actions are possible.
Examples:
• The army has attacked that city five times.
• I have had four quizzes and five tests so far this semester.
• We have had many major problems while working on this project.
• She has talked to several specialists about her problem, but nobody knows why she is sick.

Quiz Review - Niveau 2

Here are some additional notes from class.

Job Abbreviations -

CEO - Chief Executive Officer
VIP - Very Important Person
HR - Human Resources
PR - Public Relations
PhD - Doctorate of Philosophy
MA - Master's of the Arts
BA - Bachelor's of the Arts
VP - Vice-President
PA - Personal Assistant
EU - European Union

Common Phrases -

Vegetarians are people who don't eat / are not eating meat.

Look out! My husband comes / is coming.

Some people still think the sun goes / is going round the earth.

I play / 'm playing tennis every weekend.

Who sits / is sitting in my chair?

What happens / is happening in golf if you lose the ball?

An alcoholic is a person who drinks / is drinking too much and can't stop.

Look! She wears / She's wearing the same shoes as me.

'What are you looking / do you look at?'

Presentation of Previous Experience

It's often easy to predict what types of questions a prospective employer will ask of you. Here are some examples of typical interview questions.

Where did you work? Name of Company & Location
Was it a paid internship?
How many people were employed there? Were you part of a team?
Have you worked as an intern before?
What were your responsibilities/tasks/goals?
What was the most important/useful thing you learned?
What was your favorite part of the job?
How did you communicate with other members of the team?
I see you worked at a travel agency, how many other people did you work with? How many people were employed there?
What kind of hours did you work? How many hours a week did you work? (Questions can often ask the same thing, and be worded differently)
What makes you a good candidate for this job/position?
Why would you like to work with our company?
Did you enjoy working with Sweet Travel?
What did you learn while working with Hobbit Journeys?
What special skills do you have? What will you bring to the team?

Responsibilities
You should be able to explain your responsibilities, written and oral. A frequent interview question is "What were your responsibilities at Awesome Tours R Us?"
Customer Service: You provide basic help to customer needs. You are there to listen to them, and respond with answers if necessary.
Administrative Duties / Responsibilities : This includes everything in basic office work from answering the phone, photocopying, filing paperwork, and mail.
Account Manager - Client accounts each have a certain amount of money involved, you are in charge of obtaining payments and maintaining the relationship between agency and client.
Product Manager - You create travel plans by contacting various enterprises within the Tourism Industry.
Sales - You are responsible for selling the products to customers or clients.

Frequent Mistakes - These aren't necessarily completely wrong, they just sound strange from a native speaker. Here are the solutions to some of the things you are trying to say:

incorrect : correct:
My mission was.. My goal was
I animated.. I created a project, I made a report, I studied, I searched, I met

Positive Personality Descriptions - Vocabulary
ability to multi-task: to be able to do many things at once
Goal- Oriented: you make goals and look to accomplish them
driven to succeed: you are motivated by being successful, and finishing things
self- motivated: you are energetic and can give yourself tasks in order to be efficient
team-player: you work well with others, you are concerned with helping the team
organized in administration, good file organization skills
detail -oriented: you make sure every last item, large or small is addressed
tasks/goals/projects/ assignments
Others - sociable, dynamic


Letter of Motivation
•Introduce yourself, you current situation, why you are writing
•Give explanation as to why you are suited for the job
•Explain why you would prefer to work with their company or them.

Pointers for writing a letter of motivation/cover letter:
• Try to keep it short and to the point.


When something happened
When did you start (working/classes) today?
I started at 8 am.
When did you first start working at Disney?
I started in May of 2009.

How long something happened
How long did you have work/classes for today?
I had classes/work for eight hours today.
How long did you work for?
I worked for eight hours.
How long did you work at Disney?
I worked at Disney for one year.
How long have you been learning English?

Since and For
She's been working with us since May.
She's been working with us for a year.
I haven't worked at Disney since September.
I haven't worked at Disney for a month.
I have been a tourism student for five years.
Exception to prove the rule : we do not use for with all ( all day/all night/all of my life).
I've lived here all my life.

Extra Vocabulary -

bilan - balance sheet
assemblée - convention (professional)
salon des métiers - trade show
remue-méninges (?) - brain storming
faire d'avant-projet (?) - project planning
Chronologie du projet - project timeline