MARCH ’18 ISSUE 02 EASTER VOCAB, NEWS, AUSSIE ......teaching phonics. Phonics is about learning the different sounds in English and how these sounds can be spelt. This makes reading

myClass news MARCH ’18ISSUE 02

NEWS, AUSSIE ENGLISH,

STUDENT AND STAFF INTERVIEWS,

...AND WHY SO MANY OF US ARE BALD.

EASTER VOCAB,

myClass news

Editing, Design, Photography and

Illustration

Joe Bardon

Contributing WritersMinori Chikamatsu

Tomoe Watanabe

Chika Takahashi

Joanna Chang

Martyn White

Alex Caughey

David Cruse

Special thanks to

Caroline Sanderson

CONTENTS1 A Message From Alex

Our Academic Manager of Adult Courses tells us what to expect in this

issue of the magazine

2 Teaching Centre NewsAll the latest news from the Teaching

Centre

3-4 What Made Us Excited So Far In 2018

We look back at the all the fun things that happened since the last edition

5-6 Meet The TeachersThis month we talk to Joanna and

Martyn to get to know a little bit more about them.

7-8 Easter VocabularyDavid Cruse gives you all the idioms

you need for this Easter time.

9-10 The Aussie CouncilCraig takes us on a tour of the land down under, explaining some of the

language that differs from British english.

11 Student StoriesWe talk to our former student,

Momoko about her new life in the UK.

12 Questions From YouJoe, the student adviser, answers

some of the questions that you have asked.

13 In The British CouncilWe look at what’s been happening

around the British Council in the last three months

14 MagazineHelp

Use these resources to help learn language from this magazine

1

myClass news From level A1

Dear Students,

Welcome to the second issue of myClass news.

As I write this at the end of March, it is snowing

lightly outside and winter has returned for

one last blast. It may not feel like it today, but

spring is on its way and bringing with it the

new academic year and new opportunities.

I would

like to

thank you

for studying

with us and hope we

can continue to support your English learning in 2018-

19. We have lots of exciting things planned, including

new myClass lessons, short courses and student events.

In the UK, the main springtime celebration is Easter and you can read more about it in this issue,

as well as reading the latest news from the Teaching Centre and around the British Council.

There are also articles on Australian English, on one alumni life in UK, and frequently asked

questions. We hope you will learn a lot by reading it.

Best wishes,

Alex

A MESSAGE FROM ALEX

“Spring is on its way and bringing with it the new academic year and new opportunities”

OUR ACADEMIC MANAGER OF ADULT COURSES TELLS US WHAT TO EXPECT IN THIS EDITION OF THE MAGAZINE.

2


TEACHING CENTRE NEWSALL THE LATEST NEWS FROM THE TEACHING CENTRE.

NEW TIMES FOR COUNSELLING

To make it easier for students to take counselling,

we have added two extra times for counselling on weekdays

(Tuesday to Friday). The new times are 13:30 and

20:30 as well as the usual 17:00, 17:45 and

19:45 timeslots, so there are now even

more chances to get feedback

on your speaking.

PREMIUM CARDAll students who took a sea-sonal course in the winter term should have received their pre-mium cards. This card gives you a discount to courses, a chance to participate in special events and discounts to a range of shops around Tokyo .

ELEMENTARY

MYCLASS

myClass Elementary will

start in April. Elementary

students can now take

seventy two brand new

classes. All myClass lessons

help students speak and use

language in real life situations.

We are really happy to welcome

Elementary students to the

myClass family. NEW

TEACHERS You may have

noticed a few new teachers already. Keep

your eyes peeled for even more new teachers arriving in April. Feel free

to say hi, they are all very

friendly.

SPRING

IS COMINGThe cherry

blossoms have

already bloomed

and you can feel

spring in the air. We

hope everyone has a

great start to the new

academic year and

look forward to

seeing all of

you soon.

ACADEMIC SUPPORT

This is a new service for seasonal course students. If you miss a class, you have the opportunity for a 30 minute consultation with a teacher to ask any questions about the work from the lesson that you miss. GOLDEN

WEEKPlease

remember that the school will

be closed during Golden Week. We hope you have a good week off.

3


WHAT MADE US EXCITED SO FAR IN 2018WE LOOK BACK AT THE ALL THE FUN THINGS THAT HAPPENED SINCE THE LAST EDITION.

BRITISH GAMESHOW WORKSHOPIn the beginning of March we held a workshop

all about British gameshows. Our teachers

Samantha, Luke and Mike introduced 3 of

Britains most loved games shows and gave

students an opportunity to participate in

them. It was great to see students from all

different levels partipating together and

having fun with English while learning about

British culture.

CHRISTMAS PARTYThe Christmas party was excellent and if you

came we are sure you had a great time! We

had food, drink, games and even some carol

singing. Some staff and students commented

that it was one of the best parties they had

ever been to, so thank you very much for

your feedback. We really enjoy throwing

parties so if you have any ideas for events

you would like us to hold, please let us know.

4


INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAYSome of you might have seen the display for

International Women’s Day at the front of the

school. International Women’s Day is a United

Nations movement that highlights progress

made by woman, and celebrates women

internationally. Joanna did an excellent job

getting both women and men interested

and involved in the day. If you would like

any information about this or other diversity

related topics, please speak to Joe or Joanna.

ELEMENTARY SOCIALSJoanna and Alex’s Elementary class have

been holding their own socials. The classes

organised coffee and dinner socials by

themselves, inviting their teacher and the

student adviser, Joe. This meant that they

were able to practice the language they have

learnt in class in a really relaxed environment.

Feel free to organise your own socials and if

you want to, you can even ask your teacher

or Joe as well.

PHONICS WORKSHOPThis year, we have held some workshops

especially for parents. In these workshops

our young learner specialists have been

teaching phonics. Phonics is about learning

the different sounds in English and how these

sounds can be spelt. This makes reading and

spelling words easier because you don’t

need to know the whole word to read it. The

parents who came to the workshop found it

really useful.

UNIVERSITY STAFFIn February and March, you might have

noticed some teachers that you haven’t

seen in a while. That’s because some of our

teachers who mainly work at universities

have been back in the Teaching Centre

while universities are on holiday. We work at

some of the best universities in Japan and

are proud that our staff are skilled enough to

work at these universities as well as here at

the Teaching Centre.

5

myClass news

JOANNA CHANGWhat is the best thing about your job? I like meeting different people, being able to

help those people and learning new things

while I am doing it.

Tell us about your experience in teaching.I spent eight years in Akita, teaching junior

high school students and young learners,

then 4 years in Toyama teaching elementary

school students and adults. I have a

Cambridge CELTA and a Masters in

TESOL.

Tell us about your experience in Japan.Ichigo-ichie!

What do you miss about Australia? I miss how laidback life is over

there. I also really miss the café

culture, especially being able to get

a good latte easily. Long summers,

being close to a nice beach and the

diversity of society are other things that

make me miss Australia.

What is your favourite thing about Japan?Twenty-four hour convenience stores,

reliable public transport (in major cities) and

friendly ‘oba-chan’ in the rural towns.

What is your favourite film?

I have too many! Though I’m not a fan of

horror movies!

What is your favourite band?It’s hard to name only one but recently,

I’ve been listening to a lot of music by

The Weekend, U2, Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga,

Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield, and Orange

Pekoe (Japanese band).

What is your favourite food? Cheese, soups, Peking

Duck, lasagna, espresso,

Maltesers and Cheezles

From level A2

MEET THE STAFF

“I also really miss the café culture, especially being able to get a good latte”

THIS MONTH WE TALK TO JOANNA AND MARTYN TO GET TO KNOW A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THEM.

6


MARTYN WHITE

What is the best thing about your job?

Being able to make my lessons enjoyable and

useful for my students. It’s

nice to teach something

new and let the students

have some fun with the new

language.

Tell us about your

experience in teaching.

I taught in Austria for a

few years, working on a

teaching program in schools in Vienna, which

is now being used in the whole of Austria. After

Vienna I moved to Japan and

have been teaching here for

almost 9 years now, first in a

conversation school before

joining the British Council in

2012

What is your favourite

thing about the

UK?

Coming to Japan was

a real culture shock

for me, compared to

Scotland and even

Vienna, there are just

so many people. I’ve

got used to it now

and have enjoyed

travelling around

the country.

What do you miss

about Scotland?

Actually it’s the

wilderness, when I go

home I love going to

the remote islands with

almost no one living

on them, camping or staying in a little B&B and

hiking, fishing or just finding little country pubs

and sitting next to the fire with a pint.

What is your favourite

thing about Japan?

I like that you can go from

tropical climates in Okinawa

to the cool Northern climate

of Hokkaido in one country.

I prefer the tropics and love

to go down to the Yaeyama

islands to fish and unwind.

What is your favourite film?

Eastern Promise or Watership Down.

Two really

different but

quite grim

films.

What is your

favourite

band?

I don’t know really,

it depends on my

mood.

What is your favourite food?

Seafood. One of the things I miss most about

home is the seafood, I know there’s a lot of it in

Japan but the fresh seafood we have in Scotland

is really special. Razor clams are my absolute

favourite and I eat as many as I can when I’m

back home.

“When I go home I love going to the remote islands with almost no one living on them”

7

myClass news From level B1

Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Well, the answer at

Easter is definitely the egg; many families stuff their fac-

es with chocolate eggs for breakfast before sitting

down to a huge roast chicken dinner at lunchtime!

Eggs and chicks, symbols of the new life of

spring after a cold winter, are everywhere in

British Easter celebrations. But as well as be-

ing seasonal treats and decorations, ‘eggs’ and

‘chickens’ can be found in many ‘eggcellent’ Eng-

lish idioms. Do you know the seven idioms below?

Choose the correct meaning (a or b) for each.

Questions

1. To walk on eggshells

a) To tiptoe quickly across your floor because it’s cold (e.g. on winter mornings)

b) To be very careful not to offend someone (e.g. because they are short-tempered)

2. To have egg on your face

a) To be extremely hungry and looking forward to a meal

b) To be embarrassed because you have failed or made a silly mistake

3. A nest egg

a) Money you have saved to use in the future

b) A treasured memory from one’s childhood

4. To egg someone on

a) To bribe someone

b) To encourage someone to do something (often foolish or unwise)

EASTER VOCABULARYDAVID CRUSE GIVES YOU ALL THE IDIOMS YOU NEED FOR THIS EASTER TIME.

8

myClass news

5. To chicken out of doing something

a) Not do something because you’re too scared.

b) Not be able to do something because you’re ill.

6. ‘Don’t count your chickens before they hatch’

a) Don’t make plans before you know the outcome

b) Don’t waste your time counting. Just eat the eggs you

have.

7. ‘Don’t put all your eggs in one basket’

a) Don’t keep your money in the bank - keep it at home

instead

b) Don’t base your plans for success on a single person or

action – you could lose everything

Example sentences

To walk on eggshells: My boss has been really mad since we lost the contract. We’re all walk-

ing on eggshells at the moment.

To have egg on your face: I lied to my boss that I was fluent in Russian. When I was intro-

duced to the new clients from Moscow, I had egg on my face.

A nest egg: I’m pleased to say I’ve built up quite a large nest egg for my retirement.

To egg someone on: My son’s usually such a good boy, unless his friends egg him on – then

I’m afraid he’d do anything!

To chicken out of doing something: I was about to conquer my fear of heights and try a

bungee jump, but chickened out at the last minute!

Don’t count your chickens before they hatch: She wanted to buy a new car before she had

got her bonus, but I told her not to count her chickens before they hatched.

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket:I spent years specialising as an English teacher, only

to be replaced by a robot! I should have learnt some other skills and not put all my eggs in

one basket.

Here are the answers. How did you do?

“Eggs and chicks, symbols

of the new life of spring after a cold winter,

are everywhere in British Easter

celebrations.”

From level B1

1. b

2. b

3. a

4. b

5. a

6. a

7. b

9

myClass news

Hi, my name’s

Craig, and I‘m a

teacher at the

British Council,

in Tokyo. Howev-

er, I’m not British.

In fact, people are often

surprised when I tell them that I have never

even been to the UK! Actually, I come from a

land “down under”, a place that some people

from my country call “Straya” (streijə) – That’s

right, Australia Au stra l ia.

In my

years

as an

Eng-

lish

lan-

guage

teacher, I have been asked many times about

Australian English. So, just in case you’re

interested, I‘ll tell you a little bit about it.

How different is Australian English from Brit-

ish and American English? The short answer

is, not very different at all. We can all under-

stand each other easily, almost all the time.

Did you notice that I said almost? Let me tell

you about a time when I got a little confused.

Ok, so a time I got confused was when I was

working for my old company, years ago, in

Gunma. My boss was American and he told

all the teachers to come to a teacher-train-

ing day wearing “trainers”. A trainer, in Amer-

ican English, is a loose, long-sleeved pullo-

ver, usually made of cotton. It keeps your

body warm. British people call it a “sweat-

shirt”. However, in British English, “trainers”

are running shoes. I went to the training day

wearing a business shirt and running shoes.

My colleagues all wore black business shoes

and sweatshirts. I felt a bit embarrassed!

I was confused because in Australia, we don’t

use these words. We call a trainer/sweatshirt

a “sloppy joe” and trainers “sandshoes” or

From level A2

“I have been asked many times about Australian English.”

THE AUSSIE COUNCILCRAIG TAKES US ON A TOUR OF THE LAND DOWN UNDER, EXPLAINING SOME OF THE LANGUAGE THAT DIFFERS FROM BRITISH ENGLISH.

“sneakers”. I have no idea why!

That was a time when differences between

everyday words made me confused. But as I

said, this doesn’t happen very often. The big-

gest differences between Australian English

and other kinds of English are found in slang.

Australians (Aussies) use a LOT of slang (as

do British and American people.) If you want

to travel, study, or live in Australia, you should

learn some if it!

A short list of Aussie (Australian) slang.

• this arvo – this afternoon

• a barbie – a barbecue

• bathers / togs / swimmers - a swimsuit

• beaut – very good

(it comes from beautiful)

• bloody – very

For example, It’s bloody hot today!

• a chook – a chicken

• Chrissie – Christmas

• a cold one / a coldie - a beer

• G’day – hello

• Maccas – McDonalds

• mate – a friend,

For example, G’day mate!

• a mozzie – a mosquito

• to pash – to kiss

• a Pom / a Pommy – a British person

• a snag – a sausage

• stoked – very happy

• Straya – Australia

• sunnies – sunglasses

• thongs – beach sandals

(British people say “flip-flops”)

• a tinny – a can of beer

• tucker – food

So let’s try using some Aussie slang! Try to

“translate” the following Aussie slang sentenc-

es into Pommy (British) English –

Let’s go to the beach - bring your thongs,

togs and sunnies!

___________________________________

___________________________________I

Didn’t want to cook a chook this Chrissie, so I

just went to Maccas and had a burger.

___________________________________

___________________________________

I’m having a barbie this weekend. Do you

want to come and eat a few snags and drink a

couple of coldies?

___________________________________

___________________________________

Ask me or any other Aussie teachers if you

would like us to check your answers.

11


STUDENTSTORIES

Why did you study at the British Council?I really love

films and saw

that the UK had

some excellent

Masters

programs that

would help

improve my career prospects. The problem

was, I needed to get an IELTS score to go

there. I thought my speaking needed the

most improvement so I thought myClass

would help while I took an IELTS class at the

same time.

How did studying at the British Council help you?It was very helpful in improving my IELTS

score. I managed to get the score I needed

in order to come to the UK. If I hadn’t

studied at the British Council, I wouldn’t be

living here in the UK now and I wouldn’t have

been able to study my MA.

What are you doing now?I’m currently an MA student in UK. I moved

here last year after getting the the IELTS

score I needed. I recently moved to London

which is great because I can go to see a

lot of movies and I there are a lot of film

premieres here so i sometimes get the

chance to see some movie stars.

What’s next?I am looking for

an internship

in the UK but I

know it is going

to be difficult.

As well as that

I will keep on

studying for

my Masters

and then, who

knows?

Do you have any tips about studying to achieve what you want to in English? Keep studying English every day and find

something interesting related to English like

film, TV, books or something like that.

“If I hadn’t studied at the British Council, I wouldn’t be living here in the UK now”

WE TALK TO OUR FORMER STUDENT, MOMOKO ABOUT HER NEW LIFE IN THE UK.

Momoko with Tomb Raiders a Aicia Vikander at a premier in London

12


QUESTIONS FROM YOU

Thanks for your questions over the last three

months. If you have a question, feel free to

ask me either when you see me around, in

counselling or by using this form:

bit.ly/2GbzzRT

In this sentence; “Well the next thing I know is he’s standing in front of me telling me that I had to give him his seat”. Why is it HAD to give him a seat?A lot of people find this a little bit tricky. This

is something known as reported speech;

saying what somebody else said. When

we use reported speech the verb and the

pronouns change:

“ You have to give me a seat”

> I had to give him a seat

You can find more information here:

https://bit.ly/2p9hBar

I am a bit confused about the difference between approximately, nearly, about and around?Good question. Nearly is not the full amount

so nearly a hundred people could mean, for

example, ninety seven people but not one

hundred and two people.

Approximately, about and around are

very similar and can mean a little more

or less than the amount. For example,

approximately, about or around a hundred

could mean ninety seven or one hundred

and two. However, how we use these words

is a bit different.

“Approximately” sounds most formal and can

be used in writing and formal speaking.

“Around” is less formal but can still be used

in writing or speaking.

“About” sounds informal and is normally

used for speaking

Why are so many British men bald?That is a very good question. I am not a

biologist so I asked some friends of mine

that were. They said that baldness is linked

to testosterone. A friend of mine suggested

it could be because Japan has a high soy

diet and soy contains oestrogen, keeping

the levels of testosterone down. There

are all sorts of theories on the internet for

example, baldness being caused by the

water we drink in the UK or a reaction to the

amount of rain in the UK. However, the most

probable theory is that being bald is more

acceptable in UK so rather than having a

comb over or hair implants, men in UK just

shave it all off. I love being bald, it makes life

easier!

JOE, THE STUDENT ADVISER, ANSWERS SOME OF THE QUESTIONS THAT YOU HAVE ASKED.

13

myClass news

EXAMS Need help preparing for the IELTS Listening section? Download our new IELTS Prep

App and get a lot of material to help you! https://bit.ly/2HDr0jb. You might also be

interested in our scholarship scheme (https://bit.ly/2GliRnr) which is aimed at help-

ing students living in Japan achieve their personal goals, as well as promoting connection

between international higher education sectors. Eligible applicants must have an IELTS test

score. Open the doors to your future with IELTS!

DIVERSITY We take diversity seriously so every two years we have a special

test to see how diverse we are. This month we got the result of the

test which was nine out of ten - that is our best score ever! In March

we also celebrated International Women’s Day and we hope to celebrate

even more International Days. If you want to get involved, please let us

know!

Art In March we helped representatives from the UK arts organisations

Drake Music, Dulwich Picture Gallery, Royal Academy of Music,

Royal Exchange Theatre, Scottish Ballet and Arts Council England,

(known for their work in promoting diversity and accessibility in the UK arts

sector) on their visits to Japan to share their experiences and to discuss with

other organisations in Japan. Our conversations on ensuring diversity/acces-

sibility in the arts will continue in the coming years leading up to 2020.

EDUCATION We have recently published the “UNIVERSITY SHORT-TERM STUDY GUIDEBOOK

2018/19” which lists (in Japanese) short-term courses and summer programmes

being offered at 19 universities in the UK. You can pick up a copy at the lounge area of

the Teaching Centre while stocks last or view/download online versions at:

Online version on ISSUU: https://bit.ly/2FlOfS0

PDF version: https://bit.ly/2HfrMT8

The latest information on studying in the UK, visit: https://www.britishcouncil.jp/studyuk

From level B2

IN THE BRITISH COUNCILWE LOOK AT WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING AROUND THE BRITISH COUNCIL IN THE LAST THREE MONTHS

14

myClass news

MAGAZINEHELPejje.weblio.jpAn excellent English to Japanese dictionary

with lots of useful examples.

ldoceonline.comThis website has both an English dictionary

as well as English to Japanese translation.

snappywords.comFind synonyms and collocations using this

great visual dictionary.

ozdic.comA very useful collocation dictionary to see

which words go together.

readlang.com An app that helps you read different

languages on your computer by providing

instant translation when you need help.

ankiweb.net/ ankidroid (app)Make your own flashcards which organise

themselves. This way you can memorise new

vocabulary efficiently.

quizlet (app)Another flashcard maker but with this one,

you can play games to actively memorise

vocabulary.

meetup.comA website to organise and find English

speaking events in your city. There are

all sorts of events like yoga, football and

language exchanges so why not try and use

some of the language you have learnt in this

magazine in a real life situation.

hello talk (app)/ tandem (app)Make friends globally who are learning your

language and who speak the language

you are learning. Have fun chatting and

improving your writing.

conversationexchange.comUse this website to set up a language

exchange so you can practise using

language you learn in this magazine.

USE THESE RESOURCES TO HELP LEARN LANGUAGE FROM THIS MAGAZINE

Documents

MARCH ’18 ISSUE 02 EASTER VOCAB, NEWS, AUSSIE ......teaching phonics. Phonics is about learning the different sounds in English and how these sounds can be spelt. This makes reading