English News

Sources of English news

Japan Times

Daily Yomiuri

BBC – British Broadcasting Corporation


CBC – Canadian Broadcasting Corporation


ABC – Australian Broadcasting Corporation



Learning English – web sites
BBC Learning English

World's Top 100 Cities (according to Businessweek)

Mercer a global HR recruiting company ranks world cities by their livability. A good topic for discussion. Does your city rank? Me? I'm from Vancouver (#3 in the world). Tokyo is #35. How do you think the rankings are done. How many of these cities have you travelled to? Which ones would you most like to visit? How do you think Mercer arrived at these rankings?

Here are the top 10 cities
2007
1 ZURICH Switzerland 108.1
2 GENEVA Switzerland 108.0
3 VANCOUVER Canada 107.7
3 VIENNA Austria 107.7
5 AUCKLAND New Zealand 107.3
5 DUSSELDORF Germany 107.3
7 FRANKFURT Germany 107.1
8 MUNICH Germany 106.9
9 BERN Switzerland 106.5
9 SYDNEY Australia 106.5

http://bwnt.businessweek.com/interactive_reports/livable_cities_worldwide/

10 Famous Movie Quotes

How many of these quotes do you know? Do you know the film that it came from? Have you seen any of these classic American films?

1 Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.
GONE WITH THE WIND 1939

2 I'm going to make him an offer he can't refuse.
GODFATHER, THE 1972

3 You don't understand! I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I could've been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am.
ON THE WATERFRONT 1954

4 Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore.
WIZARD OF OZ, THE 1939

5 Here's looking at you, kid.
CASABLANCA 1942

6 Go ahead, make my day.
SUDDEN IMPACT 1983

7 All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my closeup.
SUNSET BLVD. 1950

8 May the Force be with you.
STAR WARS 1977

9 Fasten your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy night.
ALL ABOUT EVE 1950

10 You talking to me?
TAXI DRIVER 1976

Valentine's Day

Do you want the real story of Valentine's Day or the jaded commercial story?
The jaded commercial story is that modern valentine's day was created by Hallmark- yup, the card company - to sell cards. They did a nice job of it.

For the real story of St. Valentine's Day through out the ages and around the world, visit the Wikipedia entry.

Idioms - Working

Working idioms
work, work, work

1 all in a day's work
2 all work and no play (makes Jack a dull boy)
3 a nasty piece of work
4 do someone's dirty work
5 do the dirty work
6 give someone the works
7 run/work like clockwork
8 grunt work
9 have your work cut out (for you)
10 in the works
11 make hard work of something
12 make short work of something
13 Nice work if you can get it!
14 work miracles
15 throw a spanner in the works
16 work your fingers to the bone
17 work against the clock
18 work your arse/backside off
19 work both ways
20 work hand in glove with someone/something
21 work your magic
22 work like a charm
23 work like a dog
24 work like magic
25 work out
26 work something out
27 work your socks off
28 work (yourself) up
29 work up a sweat
30 work wonders
31 the (whole) works

Idioms - The English Language in colour

How well do you know English idioms? There are thousands of idioms in the English language. Learning some can help you to understand how we speak and communicate and to better communicate with others. Idioms are colourful ways to explain a situation, to describe a feeling or to solidify a point. Idioms are used very often in daily English conversation. When you hear English spoken by native speakers chance are that their sentences will be riddled with idioms and slang. The language we speak is not "textbook" English.

I have introduced idioms in class and to private students. Students are always keenly interested in learning idioms and "real" English.

How to teach Idioms? Keep them guessing. Rather send them guessing. Have students individually or in pairs guess the meaning of a set of idioms. It gets them thinking. It gets them talking.

Like Sumo?

If you've never watched or talked about it, it a topic worthy of discussion - rich in history and an enduring symbol of Japan. I was fortunate to attend the opening day of the 2008 Winter Basho in Tokyo. I'm not a huge fan but I enjoy and respect the tradition and spectacle of it all. It was a great experience.

Like it or not, it is a worthy topic of discussion. The world knows about Sumo and it is a strong image of Japan. So there is interest as you travel and meet people in your travels outside Japan. People are likely to ask you about it so it's helpful to talk about it in class or conversation to work out your views, experience and opinions.

For a great English website on Sumo, visit the GOO Grand Sumo Home Page.

Quotations -- Mohandas Gandhi

Quotes are a very good way to engage discussion. The language may be simple yet the meaning may be deep and worthy of exploration, understanding discussion. Quotations are good focal points to discuss the life and work of the speaker, the meaning and importance of the statement and the impact of the statement on the culture. Often I would begin a class discussion with a quotation and often they are challenging to students. That's fine. Help them to understand the meaning and importance.

Quotes are readily available. Watch for a vast collection to be made available here. Let's begin with the very prolific Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi.

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."

"Those who know how to think need no teachers."

"We must become the change we want to see in the world."

"A man is but the product of his thoughts what he thinks, he becomes."

Mohandas Gandhi

English Tutoring Availability - January 17, 2008

A few adjustments to my tutoring availability...For rates and to reserve time, please contact me directly.

A man walks into a bar...

A man walks into a bar and asks for a drink. The bartender pulls out a gun and points it at him. The man says, "Thank you," and walks out.

This is a good one, and a tricky one. My students got it after a couple of clues... Need a hint?

10 Facts about Australia

1. Australia is a the 6th largest country by land mass (about the size of the continental US) but has a very small population.
2. The highest point is Mt Kosciusko, in New South Wales, which is only 2228 metres above sea level.
3. Australia is the driest continent.
4. Australia became an independent country on January 1, 1901.
5. Former Prime Minister of Australia Bob Hawke was listed in the Guinness Book of Records for drinking 2.5 pints of beer in 11 seconds in 1954.
6. The 1828 census found that half the population of the Australian state of New South Wales were convicted criminals, and that former convicts made up nearly half of the free population.
7. There are around 120 million sheep in Australia and around 20 million people.
8. Cricket is the most popular sport in Australia.
9. "Australia was founded by Convicts. Its homicide rate is 1.8 per 100,000 population. The United States was founded by religious zealots. It's homicide rate is 6.3 per 100,000. Almost 400% greater than Australia."http://www.convictcreations.com/
10. The animals of Australia consists of a huge variety of unique animals; some 83% of mammals, 89% of reptiles, 90% of fish and insects and 93% of amphibians that are found only in Australia.

Lateral Logic Puzzle - The Murdered Husband

A woman has absolute proof in court that her husband was murdered by her sister. The judge declares, "This is the strangest case I've ever seen. Though it's a cut-and-dried case, this woman cannot be punished."