Privet! (this is how you say Hi! in Russian)




My name is Yanna and I come from St.Petersburg, the city in the North-West of Russia. When I moved to Vancouver last summer I couldn't help comparing the two cities. It struck me how different they were, but at the same time both could be easily described as 'amazingly beautiful'..though again in different ways.





Just as in Vancouver, water is a significant part of St.Petersburg's look. The whole city is weaved into the web of rivers, canals and streams. It is even known as 'Venice of the North' due to the amount of water. However, only in Vancouver you can get this feeling of untouched natural beauty that has nothing to do with humans inventions.





When I lived in St.Pete I had to take a bus every morning to get to my University. I had to do exactly the same when I moved to Vancouver and started attending ESL school. My favourite part of the both trips was crossing the bridge (first, Palace bridge in Petersburg and Granville in Van). Suddenly a shadowy busy morning street ends with an open space filled with light and air as you step on the bridge and you can do nothing but turn your head from side to side thinking: "What a beauty!" or "What a lucky person I am!" or "Wonder if other people notice all this?". The only difference is that in St.Pete I was amazed by the great architects who created all those grandiose cathedrals and palaces that produced such colourful reflections in the water, whereas in Vancouver the main architect is nature itself, the ocean and the mountains that make you hold your breath.





What is more precious? I can't say...

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Learning English by Movies

I've heard that watching movies is one of efficient ways to learn English.


So, I started watching movie with captions.


Actually, it wasn't movie, it was "Friends" american drama.


First time I watched it, I had no idia why people laughed, and what was going on.


Only things I was alble to laugh and understand were funny actions.


I kept watching it eventhough I couldn't understand, and started listening to MP3 of it.


I was always listening to it when I was traveling.


Surprisingly, I started laughing while I was listening.


I started understanding it little by little.


After that, I started watching other dramas with captions.


I think I was able to understand 7/10 about the stories.


Recently, I felt an other improvement of my English.


I was watching "Heroes". It was so addictive drama,


so I couldn't stop watching it. I watched 4~5 episodes a day.


At the last seen of the last episode, I noticed I was watching it without captions!.


I had fogotten opening the caption file. I was so surprised that I was able to watch it without captions.


It doesn't mean I'm able to understand all of it, but I think I'm able to understand 60~70%.


I've still got a long way to go.




By Rio.

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What are the main qualities of a good teacher?

People all over the world are educated by teachers while they are attending schools. Teachers should have important qualities to be good at their job. I believe that the three most important qualities of a good teacher are to have effective teaching skills, to have flexible lesson skills, and to consider the character of students.

First of all, teaching skills are the primary tools of a teacher's work, and these are very important to students. Good teachers should explain a lecture to students clearly and must know it deeply. Hence, students can understand the lesson as thoroughly as possible. This would motivate students to work harder and harder. To be illustrative, students who do not understand a lesson such as mathematics or science may avoid studying because it is difficult and frustrating for them. When I was a high school student, many classmates gave up trying to understand mathematics due to the fact that it was difficult to understand. In fact, as the teacher did not know how to explain the lecture to students easily, she was not able to make students understand correctly. The teacher should have had teaching skills.

In addition, good teachers should be able to have flexible lesson skills. They should organize their lesson and prepare their material and lecture well, but they should be flexible when students are bored during the class. They should try to attract students to the lesson using a variety of activities and humor. This would encourage students to concentrate on the class. In my middle school, one teacher was very creative. When students were bored during the class, he made an interesting exercise using a children’s song for students to help them memorize their studies. It was incredibly boring matters to memorize and took a long time to remember; however, every student could remember the studies exactly at the end.

Finally, good teachers should try to get to know the character of their students. They should try to know their students’ feeling and thoughts. To give to the students the same opportunities to study the lecture would be easier if the teachers understood their students' condition than if they do not. Some students are very active, positive, and easy going. However, some of the students are passive, shy, and picky. When teachers recognize these conditions well, the teachers would be confident enough to treat everyone fairly. Although students, who may be very shy, know the answer to questions, they may not raise their hands to answer. In this case, if teachers do not have an understanding of their students' characters, it would be difficult to involve these students in the class.

In conclusion, I believe that good teachers should have good teaching skills, flexible lesson skills, and a good understanding of the characters of their students. Also, I believe that teachers who have these qualities can motivate students to study hard and create a positive learning atmosphere. All teachers would benefit from these qualities.

by Shin Jin

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April Fool's trick (an italian tradition)

April first...in Italy we call this day pesce d'Aprile (April Fool's trick) Frankly i don't know exatectly why... but in this day people do jokes and pranks. The reason is ancient and probably ambiguous.

The traditional pesce d'Aprile in Italy consists of attaching a piece of paper with a drawning of a small fish to the rear shoulders of a school companion. Then everyone jokingly questions: L'hai visto?—Chi?—Il pesce d'Aprile! (Have you seen?—Who?—the April Fool!) and makes derisive remarks about the victim.

There are also more sophisticated adult pranks like a false communique about Martians attacking or rumors that money is being given out in the main square of the city. Every year there are new pranks. The day after, the media reports the bests jokes!

I've always tought this day was stupid and infantil but from here (far away from home) I understand that traditions are so important to remember, also the stupid traditions!

.....so that the generation yet to come will be able to say: "oh...such a stupid tradition!"

(I'm very proud when i'm able to be sarcastic using my new language!)

ciao
Fabrizio

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