Hey everyone, today we will talk about another list of words: the 3 Rs. This is a list used to describe the basic skills taught in elementary school. It is pretty old, people started to use it back in the 1800s when the idea that all kids should go to elementary school started.
So what are the 3Rs? Can you guess? Some people think they were originally:
Reading
'Riting (writing)
Reckoning (old word for thinking)
But the most widely accepted list is:
Reading
'Riting and
'Rithmetic (arithmetic)
These are the basic skills that were taught when elementary schools were first opened. Arithmetic is basic mathematics skills(+ addition, - subtraction, x multiplication and, / division).
Unlike the 5Ws, the 3 Rs don't all start with the letter R~! But all the words start with a very strong R sound which is why the list was given this name. For more information check out this entry on wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_three_Rs
I hope you enjoyed this, have a nice week~!
Phil
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
The 5 Ws + How
Today we will be talking about something all journalism students learn, the 5Ws+How. These are the question words journalist should use to make sure that they are giving their readers all the necessary information. The 5Ws are:
WHO
WHAT
WHERE
WHEN
WHY
and HOW
Whenever you read an article in the newspaper you should see if the writer answered all the 5Ws
and How. Many times if the information is not known they will say something like:
"An American tourist died yesterday after being hit by a car. The accident occurred at about 5pm near Shijo station, the cause of the accident is not yet known."
So here the:
Who: an American tourist
What: an accident
Where: near Shijo station
When: yesterday at about 5pm
Why: the cause is not yet known
How: he was hit by a car
So you can see the Why information is unknown but the journalist tells us that we don't know why yet. A few days later after an investigation you might get an update on the accident:
"The fatal accident that killed an American tourist last Wednesday, was investigated by police who have now determined that he was crossing the street on a red light when he was struck by a car."
Now we have the,
Why: He was crossing the street on a red light
You are now ready to become reporters or you can use these questions in casual conversation. For example:
A: I went to a party last night.
(When: last night & What: a party)
B: Who did you go with Bob?
A: I went with my girlfriend.
(Who: Bob & his girlfriend)
B: How was the party?
A: It was great, we had a great meal at my friend's house.
(How: great Where: at a friend's house)
This is a natural conversation, as you can see in casual conversation you don't need to answer all 5Ws and How. But if you want the Why you could ask "Why did he(your friend) have a party?" but that is a little TOO direct a more natural question would be "What was the special occasion?" which would answer the reason for the party(why it occurred) indirectly.
That's all for now, have a nice chilly Thursday,
Phil
WHO
WHAT
WHERE
WHEN
WHY
and HOW
Whenever you read an article in the newspaper you should see if the writer answered all the 5Ws
and How. Many times if the information is not known they will say something like:"An American tourist died yesterday after being hit by a car. The accident occurred at about 5pm near Shijo station, the cause of the accident is not yet known."
So here the:
Who: an American tourist
What: an accident
Where: near Shijo station
When: yesterday at about 5pm
Why: the cause is not yet known
How: he was hit by a car
So you can see the Why information is unknown but the journalist tells us that we don't know why yet. A few days later after an investigation you might get an update on the accident:
"The fatal accident that killed an American tourist last Wednesday, was investigated by police who have now determined that he was crossing the street on a red light when he was struck by a car."
Now we have the,
Why: He was crossing the street on a red light
You are now ready to become reporters or you can use these questions in casual conversation. For example:
A: I went to a party last night.
(When: last night & What: a party)
B: Who did you go with Bob?
A: I went with my girlfriend.
(Who: Bob & his girlfriend)
B: How was the party?
A: It was great, we had a great meal at my friend's house.
(How: great Where: at a friend's house)
This is a natural conversation, as you can see in casual conversation you don't need to answer all 5Ws and How. But if you want the Why you could ask "Why did he(your friend) have a party?" but that is a little TOO direct a more natural question would be "What was the special occasion?" which would answer the reason for the party(why it occurred) indirectly.
That's all for now, have a nice chilly Thursday,
Phil
Have a nice fall, see you next trip~!
"Have a nice fall, see you next trip" is something bullies say when they stick out their legs and you hit it and then fall down. Today, we will be talking about a few verbs describing tripping and falling.
to stumble = this is when you miss your step and fall or ALMOST fall down, I think it gives the image of starting to fall but catching yourself before hitting the grown.
A: Did you see the figure skating yesterday?
B: Yeah, the guy finished his spin and stumbled~!
to trip = this is when you are walking and you catch your foot on something which makes you fall or almost fall down. The key thing when using this word is that you hit your foot on something...
A: Ouch~!
B: What happened?
A: I tripped on your shoes~! Don't leave them lying around.
This verb is also used when you put something in front of someone to MAKE THEM fall down, which is not very nice...
A: Heh heh heh
B: What?
A: I tied a rope to the bottom of the door to trip my brother~! he he
B: That's mean~!
to fall down = this is when you are walking, running or standing and then you go down to the ground.
A: How did you hurt yourself?
B: I fell down.
A: Be careful.
Ok that is it for now, have a good weekend,
Phil
to stumble = this is when you miss your step and fall or ALMOST fall down, I think it gives the image of starting to fall but catching yourself before hitting the grown.
A: Did you see the figure skating yesterday?
B: Yeah, the guy finished his spin and stumbled~!
to trip = this is when you are walking and you catch your foot on something which makes you fall or almost fall down. The key thing when using this word is that you hit your foot on something...
A: Ouch~!
B: What happened?
A: I tripped on your shoes~! Don't leave them lying around.
This verb is also used when you put something in front of someone to MAKE THEM fall down, which is not very nice...
A: Heh heh heh
B: What?
A: I tied a rope to the bottom of the door to trip my brother~! he he
B: That's mean~!
to fall down = this is when you are walking, running or standing and then you go down to the ground.
A: How did you hurt yourself?
B: I fell down.
A: Be careful.
Ok that is it for now, have a good weekend,
Phil
Monday, April 20, 2009
Hobbies & free time
Hey everyone, today we will have a quick short lesson about hobbies. The thing is, most people in Canada and the US don't really have any hobbies. For us, it is something you really really love. You take special classes, do almost every day, etc. It is closer to the Japanese word ファン or オタク. So if my hobby is cooking, the I would be a cooking otaku~!
So don't be surprised if you ask the small talk question:
"What's your hobby?"
and the answer is:
"I don't have any hobbies."
This is why I recommend these questions:
"What do you do in your free time?"
or
"What do you like to do in your free time?"
and my favorite:
"What do you do for fun?"
When you ask about free time you might still get an answer like:
"I'm really busy, I don't have any free time"
But when talking about fun, ANY answer is ok and everyone should be able to say something~!
"I like to sleep"
"I like traveling"
"I like watching movies"
As you can see if someone asked:
"What's your hobby?"
and you said:
"I like to sleep."
It would VERY strange~! Like saying I am a sleeping otaku! So try and remember to ask:
"What do you do for fun?"
So don't be surprised if you ask the small talk question:
"What's your hobby?"
and the answer is:
"I don't have any hobbies."
This is why I recommend these questions:
"What do you do in your free time?"
or
"What do you like to do in your free time?"
and my favorite:
"What do you do for fun?"
When you ask about free time you might still get an answer like:
"I'm really busy, I don't have any free time"
But when talking about fun, ANY answer is ok and everyone should be able to say something~!
"I like to sleep"
"I like traveling"
"I like watching movies"
As you can see if someone asked:
"What's your hobby?"
and you said:
"I like to sleep."
It would VERY strange~! Like saying I am a sleeping otaku! So try and remember to ask:
"What do you do for fun?"
Friday, April 17, 2009
Work... where???
Hey everyone, sorry for the delay but it has been a bit busy recently with a new kids classes starting this week. So far they seem like an ok bunch but wish me luck~!
Anyways, today we will talk a bit about three common questions in North America when you meet someone new. A very common small talk topic is someone's job so it is one of the first things we ask about.
1- What do you do?
This is often pronounced in Canada and the US as "WhaddoUdo?" or more casually "Whaddayado?".
The answer to this question is "I'm a _________". Fill in your job title, for example: teacher, banker, police officer, actor, model, office worker, etc.
A: Whaddayado?
B: I'm a secretary.
2- Where do you work?
Many Japanese people answer "I work in Kyoto" BUT this is INCORRECT. The answer western people expect is "I work at/for (company name)". This question is not about location but about your COMPANY. You could say "What company do you work for?" but this is a little formal so not that good for small talk.
A: Where do you work?
B: I work at Omron.
3- Where's your office?
Now we are talking about LOCATION ^_^ So the answer we are looking for is "I work in Kyoto". This question can be used for students "Where's your school?", doctors & nurses "Where's your hospital?", salespeople & store clerks "Where's your store?", etc.
A: Where's your office?
B: It's in Umeda.
Alright~! Let's put these three useful questions together and make a mini-conversation!
A: What do you do? (Whaddayado?)
B: I'm a nurse.
A: Where do you work?
B: I work at Kujo Hospital.
A: Where's your hospital?
B: It's in Kyoto.
And now you are ready to talk about your job ^_- good luck everyone,
Phil
Anyways, today we will talk a bit about three common questions in North America when you meet someone new. A very common small talk topic is someone's job so it is one of the first things we ask about.
1- What do you do?
This is often pronounced in Canada and the US as "WhaddoUdo?" or more casually "Whaddayado?".
The answer to this question is "I'm a _________". Fill in your job title, for example: teacher, banker, police officer, actor, model, office worker, etc.
A: Whaddayado?
B: I'm a secretary.
2- Where do you work?
Many Japanese people answer "I work in Kyoto" BUT this is INCORRECT. The answer western people expect is "I work at/for (company name)". This question is not about location but about your COMPANY. You could say "What company do you work for?" but this is a little formal so not that good for small talk.
A: Where do you work?
B: I work at Omron.
3- Where's your office?
Now we are talking about LOCATION ^_^ So the answer we are looking for is "I work in Kyoto". This question can be used for students "Where's your school?", doctors & nurses "Where's your hospital?", salespeople & store clerks "Where's your store?", etc.
A: Where's your office?
B: It's in Umeda.
Alright~! Let's put these three useful questions together and make a mini-conversation!
A: What do you do? (Whaddayado?)
B: I'm a nurse.
A: Where do you work?
B: I work at Kujo Hospital.
A: Where's your hospital?
B: It's in Kyoto.
And now you are ready to talk about your job ^_- good luck everyone,
Phil
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Weather words...
Today, I will give Mikan-chan what she wants and talk about weather vocabulary. Ready? Here we go~!
weather = 天気
sunny = hare 晴れ
cloudy = kumori 曇り
rainy = ame 雨
snowy = yuki 雪
windy = kaze ga tsuyoi 風が強い
climate = 気候
hot = atsui 暑い
nice/mild = sugoshi-yasui 過ごしやすい
humid(& hot) = mushi-atsui 蒸し暑い
cool = suzushii 涼しい
warm(& nice) = atatakai 暖かい
cold = samui 寒い
There are many words like rainy and snowy which I never really used before I came to Japan but now I find myself teaching them to kids~!
It's raining.
It's snowing.
This seems more natural to me than:
It's rainy.
It's snowy.
But I would say "It's a snowy day" or "It's a rainy night". In the same way:
There's a storm(heavy rain & wind).
but
It was a dark and stormy night.
So I guess sunny, cloudy and windy are often used to say "It's _____" but most of the other -y adjective weather words are usually used to DESCRIBE a day, night or other noun.
When you watch a weather forecast(天気予報) you will hear many words like:
partly cloudy = a little bit cloudy, but usually sunny
partly sunny = a little bit sunny, but usually cloudy
mostly cloudy = lots of cloudy periods but sunny sometimes
mostly sunny = lots of sunny periods but cloudy sometimes
You might also hear things about:
tornado =トルネード
hurricanes =ハリケーン, 台風 in the Atlantic Ocean
typhoons = 台風, in the Pacific Ocean
hail =雹 hyou (over 5mm) 霰 arare (over 5mm)
thunder =雷 kaminari
lightning = 襲雷 shuurai
thunderstorm = 雷雨 raiu
freezing rain = rain that freezes when it reaches the ground, quite dangerous
Well that is it for now, I hope it helped Mikan-chan!
Phil
weather = 天気
sunny = hare 晴れ
cloudy = kumori 曇り
rainy = ame 雨
snowy = yuki 雪
windy = kaze ga tsuyoi 風が強い
climate = 気候
hot = atsui 暑い
nice/mild = sugoshi-yasui 過ごしやすい
humid(& hot) = mushi-atsui 蒸し暑い
cool = suzushii 涼しい
warm(& nice) = atatakai 暖かい
cold = samui 寒い
There are many words like rainy and snowy which I never really used before I came to Japan but now I find myself teaching them to kids~!
It's raining.
It's snowing.
This seems more natural to me than:
It's rainy.
It's snowy.
But I would say "It's a snowy day" or "It's a rainy night". In the same way:
There's a storm(heavy rain & wind).
but
It was a dark and stormy night.
So I guess sunny, cloudy and windy are often used to say "It's _____" but most of the other -y adjective weather words are usually used to DESCRIBE a day, night or other noun.
When you watch a weather forecast(天気予報) you will hear many words like:
partly cloudy = a little bit cloudy, but usually sunny
partly sunny = a little bit sunny, but usually cloudy
mostly cloudy = lots of cloudy periods but sunny sometimes
mostly sunny = lots of sunny periods but cloudy sometimes
You might also hear things about:
tornado =トルネード
hurricanes =ハリケーン, 台風 in the Atlantic Ocean
typhoons = 台風, in the Pacific Ocean
hail =雹 hyou (over 5mm) 霰 arare (over 5mm)
thunder =雷 kaminari
lightning = 襲雷 shuurai
thunderstorm = 雷雨 raiu
freezing rain = rain that freezes when it reaches the ground, quite dangerous
Well that is it for now, I hope it helped Mikan-chan!
Phil
Friday, April 3, 2009
Internet English Part 3
Hi everyone, I hope you are all having a nice April so far. I have been enjoying the cherry blossoms in Kyoto ^_^ Today's lesson is a little easier than earlier ones, I will just go over some useful verbs and expressions when people talk about the internet.
online: anything on the internet
I like shopping online.
offline: the opposite of online, anything off the internet
My life offline is kind of boring, I prefer Second Life.
Second Life: a free virtual world you can join and explore
work on the computer: this is when you are doing school or office work
I hate working on the computer it hurts my eyes~!
updating my webpage: this is putting new information on your mixi or facebook page or on your own private webpage
I'm busy tonight, I'm updating my webpage.
writing/posting on my blog=blogging: this is what I am doing now ^_-
I'm posting a new entry on my blog.
Since I've started blogging I've made many new friends.
posting photos online: this is when you put your photos online so friends can see them
Isn't posting your photos online, great? It's so convenient!
checking emails: this is logging into your email account to see if you have any important or new messages, it can also including, reading emails and writing emails
I check my emails once a week.
surf the net: this is when you just look online for fun, for new information
I surfed the net for 3 hours this morning.
Ok, that is it for this series. I hope you enjoyed it~!
Phil
online: anything on the internet
I like shopping online.
offline: the opposite of online, anything off the internet
My life offline is kind of boring, I prefer Second Life.
Second Life: a free virtual world you can join and explore
work on the computer: this is when you are doing school or office work
I hate working on the computer it hurts my eyes~!
updating my webpage: this is putting new information on your mixi or facebook page or on your own private webpage
I'm busy tonight, I'm updating my webpage.
writing/posting on my blog=blogging: this is what I am doing now ^_-
I'm posting a new entry on my blog.
Since I've started blogging I've made many new friends.
posting photos online: this is when you put your photos online so friends can see them
Isn't posting your photos online, great? It's so convenient!
checking emails: this is logging into your email account to see if you have any important or new messages, it can also including, reading emails and writing emails
I check my emails once a week.
surf the net: this is when you just look online for fun, for new information
I surfed the net for 3 hours this morning.
Ok, that is it for this series. I hope you enjoyed it~!
Phil
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