ネイティブが教える英会話のジェムスクール☆Teachers☆

Sometimes I draw things for my students. They usually enjoy my drawings because they're helpful or funny. I make sure they enjoy them so they can remember them easily, it's easier to recall something we enjoy. In this case I drew a Tyrannosaurus Rex. My student enjoyed the picture and tried hard to replicate my dinosaur. He didn't quite get it right but I rather enjoyed the result. We both got a good laugh from it.

  

This is Seth, he just turned 2 years old. So first I'd like to say Happy Birthday!

He's a very gifted young boy and at 2 years old he can already call me "Teacher!". But that's not all he can say, or do. When you read him a book he'll help you by acting out and saying the words you would read! Majority of the time he'll look at the books and pick out books he'd want me to read to him rather than play toys! weird huh?! So 3 cheers for Seth! hip, hip, hooray!

- James Barbosa  

The generosity of Japanese people continues to astound me. I was recently trying to air the tire of my bike while at my apartment and my sister and I simply could not figure it out. One of the other tenants, a young woman, came home and saw us struggling. She peered over at us and I smiled at her and she quickly walked over and saw our mistake. She quickly showed us how to air it properly and then she went on her way. She was so sweet! I noted which apartment she is in and I plan to get her a gift soon!
  

So far, we've covered playing with sand and playing in the water as things to do at the beach. This next topic may come as a bit of a surprise. Did you know that some people go to the beach just to get a tan? That is, to make their skin darker? I know many people in Japan (particularly the ladies) prefer to be as pale as possible, going so far as to carry around umbrellas to keep out of the sun. Not so in other places in the world! Heck, some people go to tanning salons just to get a tan.

In tanning salons, they put you in this little tube with special lights that imitate the effects of the sun, which will cause you to get a tan. But...please don't tan at a salon. Or spend too much time tanning in the sun. It can have very negative effects. One example would be that you would look like a human carrot - many people who tan, especially at salons, tend to get orange skin, kind of like this:



The person on the left is an Oompa Loompa, who is wearing orange makeup. The person on the right does not have orange makeup. Looks very close in color, right?
Another bad side effect of tanning too much is getting rough, leathery skin. I don't have an image for that, but if you own a brown leather couch, you will look pretty much like that.

I'm not saying tanning is bad, just that if you over do it, it can be bad for you. I personally enjoy being under the sun for a few hours. I like it when my skin darkens a little. But no way would I want to be cooking in the sun for a whole day. Just 2-3 hours while enjoying the view at the beach is good enough for me!   

What are your plans for summer vacation? I used to go on trips with my family back home. One of the big trips we went on was rafting in West Virginia. I loved it. It was fun and exciting and you could cool off in a hot day. This summer I am going to go rafting in Tokushima with my friends. I can wait to experience it again. What are your plans? Remember to stay cool this summer and drinks lots.


  

So I usually write about fun things on the blog but today is a warning about being careful this summer. The summer should be a fun time for everyone but it can also be very dangerous. In English we call one problem dehydration, where your body loses to much water. Most of the time you don't know it until it is too late. My solution to this problem is to always have a drink close by orange juice, water, or pocari sweat. Make sure you keep your body hydrated this summer.

Secondly be careful when you are swimming. Saijo has had two students drown in the river in the last 2 weeks. They weren't children either. The were high school students at the age of 16 and 17. Please be careful when you are swimming. Listen and more importantly look for signals that someone might be in trouble. Movies and TV have given a false sense of what is to be drowning. 90% of drownings occur silently no one screaming for help or splashing around. Look around you and you might save someone's life.

Remember to have a HAPPY and SAFE time this summer.



  

On the weekend I went to a pizza party. It wasn't an ordinary pizza party, it was on some farmland in the mountains. The pizza was made outdoors in a clay oven; it was delicious! There were also a lot of animals at the party. I saw dogs, chickens, a duck, a cat, and goats. The male goat was the most interesting animal. Sometimes he wanted to be pet, and sometimes he jumped wildly into the air trying to scare people away. I had a really good time, how was your weekend?  

I love finding costumes in japan! And dressing up! In my hometown, San Diego, women as well as men dress up in their favorite comic book super hero costume. Most people dress up like the classics Spider-Man, superman Etc! I miss going to these comic conventions! They are a lot of fun! They have costumes, games, concerts and shows! It's really a lot of fun!  続きを読む

Meet my little Indian friend, Utkars, from Khajuraho, in Madhya Pradesh, India. He's a very bright, sociable child, 6 years old, who loves chatting playing, and having a good time, but is also a good student. He's enrolled in the so called English medium school there, that means English is the language of instruction, so he learns most subjects like math and science in English, though he also has to learn Hindi, which is the usual language spoken in this part of India. Most parts of India have their own languages or dialects. Some of them are somewhat similar to Hindi, which is an Indo-European language like English, but in most of southern India they speak Dravidian languages, very old pre-Arian languages, with a fine ancient culture. Anyway, Utkars, is learning English, which is the language you need to really get ahead in India, as it is elsewhere, but especially in India. It's the language of the ruling classes, the door to the professions, and to a career. I talk to Utkars and his father on the phone occasionally and I miss him and all my dear friends in India. I wish them well.   

I recently got to teach some students I haven't taught in a while in Marugame. I was sure they forgot about me but seeing their smiles on their face when they saw me was priceless. It really shows how much of an impact we have on them. I look foward to seeing them again soon.

- James Barbosa  

This is Good Bye Takamatsu, Japan! It has been a wonderful six years. I have learned a lot living and working here. Though I am naturally excited to return to my home, there are many things to which I am remorse to say goodbye. The people, the food, the peaceful living have all worked their way into my heart. Fortunately, I am blessed that the friendships I have made here will continue on long after my time here is gone. They will serve as a constant reminder of my amazing time here. Thank you.  

Summer has never been my favorite season. In Texas, summer (the hot season ranging between 39 - 45~ degrees C) can last anywhere from 3 to 6 months ~ depending on the year. Though it is not so humid, it is very hot and is not comfortable outside. I do enjoy summer for swimming and other summer sports, but it is too hot for much of anything. Another problem is the sun. Since my skin is sensitive, I can't be in the sun so much or I can get a bad sun burn. Out of the four seasons, I love Winter the most. Since I am from Texas, I was never able to experience a lot of snow fall or cold temperatures for long periods of time, so I really love the winter because it is a pleasant break from he stifling Texas heat. I love snow and the cold. The photo above makes me feel cool in this very hot summer.

I hope you are all staying cool!

Thanks for reading!
Leigh   

Hello everyone,

Hope every one has had a wonderful week! Sad to say I will be leaving Gem school on the 31st. It has been an amazing year working for GEM school and i have loved it. It has been both a joy and honor teaching all the children and working for Gem school. All the students, all the teachers and all the staff have been really amazing and you all have a place in my heart. I will deeply miss you all. Here is a collection of all the work the wonderful students of GEM school have made during my year teaching them. Please enjoy

















It has been an honor




  

I have talked about Malaysia much in the past. But there was one thing I wanted to mention was the street food. Malaysia is famous for its culture of Malay, Chinese, and Indian street food. The food is absolutely delicious and many different choices of foods you can have too for a cheap price.  

I was driving recently and I saw a man in a strange helmet. The man in the green helmet has a normal helmet but the white helmet has an odd shape. It's very polygonal. I know that the job of the helmet is, of course, to protect the head. I also know that one of the functions of the helmet is to deflect an impact in such a way to reduce the force of the impact. The polygonal helmet seems that it would absorb more force than its more rounded counterpart. I thought it very strange.

  

Previously I was talking talking about what you can do at the beach. Well, the most obvious answer: swim! Especially on a nice hot day, when all you will do is sweat, it's best to jump right into the water.
Now, the image that always comes to my mind when people say they "swim at the beach" is the following picture:



Now, as often as I go to the beach (which, to be fair, isn't all that often), I don't think I really ever see anyone do this. I have tried, and with little success. I am not a very good swimmer. And while it may be fun for some, I think a majority of people don't see it that way; rather, they probably consider it exercise (and who wants to exercise at the beach!?)
Instead, I am sure most people would have more fun just jumping into the water and letting the waves crash into them, kind of like in this picture:



Now these people are having fun! And with especially good waves, you can go "body surfing", though be careful not to get all scratched up when you are violently tossed down on to the sand!
  

Life is too short to think of negative things all the time. I think about all of the positive things that have happened in my life. I believe that it is best to think about the positive because it will ultimately give you a positive outlook on life. This outlook will effect your overall personality and will make you happier. I believe that everyone should be happy with the smallest of things. In the photo, I am spending time with my younger brother who visited Japan for a few months this year. I had a very fun time going on adventures with my younger brother and can't wait to do it again. We are quite the adventurous duo. SMILE!

Sue   

The summer heat is finally here and with that heat comes fun ways to cool off. I went to a festival at Marine Park in Nihamma and had a blast eating all kinds of Japanese food and watching some military exercises. But it was so hot and I needed to cool off so I went with my friend on a giant water slide. We had so much fun that we went down it three times. How do you cool of in the summer?



  

Sunday was my birthday! I had a lot of fun. In the morning I opened a present from my family. In the afternoon I went to the river with my friends and we had a barbecue. It was really hot, but the river water was very cool. We grilled hamburgers and went swimming. In the evening we went to a movie, Transcendence. It was very interesting. It was a very busy day and I was tired at the end, but I had a great birthday :)  

Japan has a special holiday in which you celebrate the 7th day of the 7th month for the new year. I got to make a wish and tie it to a Japanese tree. I love this tradition. It's like starting the new year again! Maybe this time I can keep my New Years resolution!

Which I doubt! My resolutions are:

1. Being healthy
2. Travel more
3. Become a better teacher
4. Visit my family more often

What are your New Years resolutions?