A Message and Some Final Presentation Tips!

Dear Students,

I'm really excited to see your presentations this week! I was really impressed by your work last week! I felt really proud that I was your teacher this semester! Thank you all so much for working hard with each other to create great things! I hope that you have learned something useful this semester and that it hasn't been too hard for you! I was really happy to be your teacher.

Thanks for your hard work this semester! You've made me a really happy teacher! 

I have also learned a lot from your essays and your presentations (the parts I saw so far). That's pretty cool! I want you to remember that you have the power to use English in your life and your future! Remember that being perfect isn't the most important thing - being understood is enough and telling people useful information. I hope you will feel confident to keep doing that in your futures! If you ever need any help from me, too, please feel free to come see me in Office 1! I want to finish up by giving you some reminders on how to do your best in your presentation!

FINAL TIPS!

Before the Presentation:

1. During your preparation time, make sure to: Check your videos, check the volume on the computer, double-check who will change the slides for each student, make sure you have your note cards ready.

2. Open your presentations in Google Chrome, not Internet Explorer (many school computers have old versions of Explorer, which may not open your slides or play your videos).

3. Make sure your notecards have SHORT notes not paragraphs!

4. Practice your advertisement with your group to make sure everyone knows when to speak!

During the Presentation:

1. Breathe deeply. Take a deep breath before starting each section. Pause and take a deep breath if you start to feel nervous or speak quickly. It helps! Trust me! I often do this in class!

2. Remember to speak LOUDLY. Clarity and intonation will also improve when you speak loudly enough. Imagine that you must speak to the people at the back of the classroom.

My friend Peter Starr Northrop with some good advice for parties or presentations! :) 

3. Remember to speak slowly enough. A good rule is to speak a little more slowly than you think you should. Pause after making an important or main point. People will pay more attention to you if you pause sometimes. People will understand you better if you speak slowly.

4. To have good intonation, imagine you are speaking to a friend and giving advice about traveling to your city. When you speak to a friend, you will naturally have more feeling about the facts and information you talk about. You may also decide to change some sentences to be more simple or less formal. That's fine!

5. Remember that EVERY STUDENT IS NERVOUS. Everyone. Everyone will probably make some mistakes, too. That's okay. Even professional presenters make mistakes. To succeed, all you need to do is to keep going!

6. Remember that everyone did a great job this past week. I was really impressed. You're going to be okay! You've achieved a lot this semester. Now, take a breath, slow down and share your great information with me and the class! I'm looking forward to it!

Korean Students Writing About Places!

I was on Facebook when I came across this website where students and other people are writing about Korea in English to help visitors enjoy Korean cities. Here is a section that someone prepared about Busan at night! There are many different themes you can look at!

http://www.trazy.com/theme/busan_night
http://www.trazy.com/theme/category

If you notice, you can see that the writers are using many of the things we have learned in class, such as command verbs and superlatives. They are telling about interesting things to do in the city, as you will do in your presentation!

After class is finished, you won't have a required English class anymore. However, if writing, travel or English are interests of yours, consider joining a site like this and sharing what you know about Korea or the world! You have the skills now to increase visitors' knowledge of your country and to share what is great about Korea!

Trip Advisor is another great site for learning about attractions, restaurants and hotels around the world, and you can also join and write a review of Korean attractions or of attractions and facilities around the world which you have visited! By giving your advice, you can help other people to have a great vacation!

How about you? Do you know of any interesting websites where you can share travel information? Have you ever written a review on-line? When you take a trip, how do you usually learn about the best attractions, hotels and restaurants in town?

Advertisement Examples

This week you should prepare a script for your advertisement with your presentation partner(s). The advertisement should use superlative and comparative adjectives and command verbs. It should tell about the most fun, exciting and beautiful things the city you are presenting on has to offer! You may or may not use a theme. Here are some example ads I've written about Gyeongju to help you out! Each one uses a different slogan/theme. Later you will add pictures during your presentation, so keep that in mind too!

Gyeongju: A Great Date City!

Come to Gyeongju for a romantic weekend! Enjoy a quiet stroll through the peaceful tomb parks. Sip coffee together at one of downtown's unique cafes. Ride a tandem bike to Baru and enjoy the healthiest meal in town! Bomun Lake is even better for couples! Steer a swan boat together in one of Korea's prettiest resort areas. Walk around the lake holding hands. Take pictures together in front of the cherry trees. Enjoy a romantic meal by the lake! At night, return downtown for the night views. Don't miss the lights of Anapji! Marvel at Cheomseongdae, the oldest standing observatory in East Asia. Then, spend the night in one of Gyeongju's convenient hotels, or return home on a convenient KTX train from Singyeongju!

Gyeongju: Fun for the Whole Family

Gyeongju is a fun city for people of all ages! Enjoy active family fun at Bomun Lake! Enjoy the most exciting ride in town on an ATV! Take a bike ride around the lake! Go to Gyeongju World for exciting rollercoasters or fun-filled children's rides. View Bomun from above from Gyeongju World's ferris wheel. For a quieter time, have fun at the Teddy Bear Museum or experience Korea's history at Silla Millenium Park. Sit down with the whole family for a relaxing meal in one of Bomun's many restaurants. Downtown has even more exciting Silla Dynasty sites. Learn about history in Gyeongu's National Museum. Experience the life of royalty, strolling around Anapji. Check out Cheomseongdae - the oldest surviving observatory in East Asia. Then fly kites together in the nearby fields. After a long day, relax and have a snack in Gyeongju's modern downtown.

Beautiful, Natural Gyeongju:

Full of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Gyeongju is one of the most beautiful cities in Korea. Spend an early morning at Bulguksa and Seokguram Grotto. Experience the peace of nature in a pristine forested landscape. Hike Namsan and hear the birds sing in the trees! Visit the Dongguk University campus to see beautiful nesting water birds in their natural habitat! Some of the best natural views are right downtown! Stroll through the historic Gyerim Forest! Enjoy a restful time at the tomb parks! Experience the most gorgeous night views at Anapji and the nearby lotus ponds. Before leaving town, don't miss the beautiful, traditional performances at the Silla Millenium Park and the view of the sunset at Bomun Lake! Gyeongju truly is "Beautiful Gyeongju."

Website and Search Tips for Adding a Little More Information

When rewriting or preparing a presentation, it's always a good idea to keep searching for more helpful information and details about your topic. Just this week I noticed that many students needed help finding better websites. Many students had only looked at Wikipedia or other difficult-to-read websites. Here are some ideas on expanding your search to find better and easier-to-read information!

1. Check the homepage for your city or attraction! 

Most cities have a tourism homepage and so do most attractions. Do a Google search for your attraction and look for the attraction's name in the web address or the term "official website" or "homepage." It will usually be one of the top websites on a Google Search. Check out this cool video that you can find on the Tokyo Tower homepage! http://www.tokyotower.co.jp/eng/secret/ You could find almost all the information for a paragraph on the Tokyo Tower just by watching this video and taking notes! It's also much more interesting and easy to understand than the Wikipedia page. How about your attraction? Have you visited its homepage? Check it out!

Here's a link to Paris, France's official website. It has tons of information that is up-to-date, along with many pictures! http://en.parisinfo.com/  Have you checked your city's official website? Take a look!

2, For easy-to-read information, do a Google search using the word "facts." 

For example, you can search for "Rome facts" or "the colosseum facts." By doing this search I found some really interesting and easier to read websites. Here was the top result: http://www.eatingitalyfoodtours.com/blog/ancient-rome-for-kids/  It included a cool picture of a statue which represents the legend of the founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus:

There was also a really interesting article about the Colosseum, which was MUCH EASIER TO READ than the Wikipedia page. http://www.localnomad.com/en/blog/2013/10/01/10-interesting-facts-about-the-colosseum-in-rome/ This article has tons of interesting facts and great pictures!

Have you tried doing a Google search for your city or attraction using the word "facts"? Give it a try! You might find some great extra information for your essay or presentation!

3. Search Youtube! 

You never know what you will find - some videos will not be useful, but it's no big deal - click on another one! Here's an interesting video about the Berlin Wall where you can see different sites along the wall!

4. Try some other search words in Google. 

For example: "Wellington travel advice", "Seattle travel tips", "Beijing tour." To find good information it takes what we call in America "Google-fu" (this word combines "Google" and "kung-fu.")

5. Finally, try searching with the specific question you need to answer:

 "What is the climate in London?", "How old is The Eiffel Tower?" "What can you buy at the Floating Market in Bangkok?", etc. This is often the fastest way to find the information you need. However, be careful. Do not trust a site like Yahoo Answers or Ask.com, unless the person answering gives a website to a more reliable article you can trust! Check that article!

Alright, I hope these tips can help you with your last pieces of research! If you want any help finding information, please also feel free to visit me or to ask the people at the lounge!

What are your tips for finding good information? Have you found any really excellent websites or videos? Do you have any other questions about searching? Let me know in the comments!

Presentation Recommended Sites from Other Students!

Hey, everyone!

Sorry it's been a while since I posted last! Today I just want to quickly share a few videos and sites with you that other students recommended on my last post on presentations! Thanks, everyone, for adding your useful websites in the comments!

First, a video I have also watched and enjoyed on presenting like Steve Jobs, recommended by Kim Sang Jo. (Thank you!)

Next, a speech by Barack Obama submitted by Lee Seung Hwan, who recommends speaking in a strong and clear voice. (I agree!)

Last of all, a presentation tips checklist submitted by Wang So Min - Thanks for the helpful site!

http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newCS_96.htm

If you have any more useful websites or videos, please do submit them! Thanks for your hard work and enthusiasm everyone!

Presentations: What makes a good presentation?

In the next 6-7 weeks we will spend a lot of time working on your presentations, which will be your final exam! Presentations are used to share knowledge and ideas with other people.

Presentations are really composed of two parts: 1. Preparation and 2. Performance. A good presentation should have both of these.

Preparation includes research and understanding your topic well. It also includes organizing your ideas and your slides. Good preparation makes your presentation informative and interesting and it really helps your performance. When you know your topic well, it's easier to speak clearly and have confidence.

Performance is also important. We talked about some tips for good performance in class this week, including speaking loudly and clearly, looking at the audience, smiling and using hand gestures. We will take some time in class to work on performance over the following weeks. Below is the video we watched in class this week, in case you would like to watch it again!

What do you think are the most important tips for making a good presentation? Have you ever seen a great presentation? What was the topic? If you have seen a great presentation or speech online, please share a link in the comments!

See everyone soon!

"The Secret Garden" Yorkshire Dialect

In "The Secret Garden" several characters speak the Yorkshire dialect, a special variety of English. If you're curious what this dialect sounds like, here's a video!

What do you think about this dialect? Can you understand it? In Korea, are there different dialects and accents? What variety of Korean do you speak?