Words of solace for a crammed semester
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are,” advised President Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt. These words of solace often comfort me when I stress myself out trying to cram too much material into lessons. How can I cover everything that I want in a single semester? It’s just impossible. For every new activity, I must let an old one go. If I add a Youtube homework...
Read MoreSchool boards, education problems, and a new $350 million dollar high school!
Teaching remains an art, and excellence remains rare – especially in a bureaucratic age. The ancient Socratic methods and modern enlightenment ideals have increasingly fallen out of favor in American public schools – from elementary and middle school to high school and adult school. The gap between the desires and needs of our students and the bureaucratic mandates of our local...
Read MoreConversation tip #15: Seek to Understand
Seek to Understand Have you ever seen two emotional people talk past each other? Both talk and neither listen. Both want to tell the other, and don’t want to hear – or understand – what the other person is saying. This happens too often in stressful workplaces. Stephen Covey, author of the international bestseller called “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, advises people “to seek first to...
Read MorePlaying and Watching Sports
Have you been watching the Olympics? What has surprised you the most? Why? Who has inspired you? How? The Olympics reminds us of heroism, sacrifice, excellence, and beauty. It can also spark many conversations. Although I have not had the pleasure of teaching a conversation class recently, talking about sports always sparked many enjoyable exchanges – even among non-sports fans. This...
Read MoreWhat is the electoral college? Why does it matter?
How did George W. Bush actually become President of the United States? After all, he received fewer popular votes for President than Al Gore, didn’t he? How could Al Gore win the popular vote and still lose the 2000 U.S. Presidential election? The short, unpleasant answer is that the popular vote doesn’t count – and the only vote that matters in electing presidents in the United States is...
Read MoreESL Conversation worksheet: Imperatives vs Polite Requests in the Workplace
Workplace Communication Tip 3: Politely Make Suggestions Style matters – especially when we talk with our co-workers, consumers, patients, and supervisors. English language learners, immigrants, and far too many English speaking workers sometimes forget this basic principle of workplace communication. Consider the difference in how these requests sound. Shut off the TV! Please turn off the TV?...
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