Friday, March 27, 2020
Finding A Chemistry Tutor In Waterloo, Ontario
Finding A Chemistry Tutor In Waterloo, OntarioThe first place to look for a Chemistry Tutor Waterloo Ontario is the school itself. You need to find out whether the course has already been offered or if the teacher needs extra assistance. It's good to talk to the teacher to determine what you can do, as they may have an idea of what you can offer them and how to best use you. If you're not sure where to begin then it's a good idea to first read some reviews on different schools and institutions.Once you've found a school that you think you might like to attend then it's time to start looking around to see what facilities they offer. Is there a community centre nearby? Should you be able to walk or bike to the school?Ask your friends if they know of any local community colleges or junior colleges that they would recommend to you. Alternatively you can look on the internet to see if they have any posts or reviews on their website. A couple of easy ways to find out about a school in the Waterloo area is by phone and by visiting their school website.You may want to check out the university where you intend to study to see if there are any recommendations or requirements. It's also a good idea to get in touch with the regional university and ask them if they offer the necessary facilities or accreditation for the school. Although universities have a responsibility to do this, it's certainly worth asking as it will show you a level of quality that they hold themselves to.Take the time to look at the school you are thinking of going to and find out what they offer, and if there is any competition. Of course you don't want to worry too much about competing but it's always a good idea to know if there is another school within commuting distance. A local search would reveal if there are any online resources such as a website that you can see which schools around the region they are accredited by.When you have looked at the schools and institutions you are considering then it's time to find a chemistry tutor, just like any other teacher. It's important to remember that while the name is important, the person behind the desk is the important part. Find out how experienced they are and what qualifications they have had before being appointed.Once you've done all this research, you should have a tutor that will be able to provide you with the knowledge and assistance you need to get through your course. It's important to remember that a tutor needs to be confident and they also need to be able to discuss each subject matter with you properly and with confidence.
Friday, March 6, 2020
Atoms, Modal Verbs and Phrasal Verbs An English Listening Exercise
Atoms, Modal Verbs and Phrasal Verbs An English Listening Exercise If youve been taking our English classes for any time, you probably already know that modal verbs and phrasal verbs are some of the most difficult things to learn. Weve done a lot of lessons to explain them, including a video series on English modal verbs.Recently I was watching this TED Ed video on the size of atoms and noticed that it had a lot of modal verbs, and a few phrasal verbs as well. Its a really interesting video, with great animation. You can watch the video below, and then try to answer the questions in the exercise. Fill in the gaps with phrasal verbs or modal verbs. You can put your answers in comments, and well let you know if theyre correct.1. You probably already know that everything is ____ __ __ little tiny things called atoms.2. You _____ even know that each atom is made up of even smaller particles called protons, neutrons and electrons.3. Lets ____ __ each of the atoms.4. You _____ remember the old pictures of atoms from your science class.5. If you ______ _ ___ the blueberry and ____ searching for the nucleus, ___ be invisible.6. So, if everyone on the earth _____ their own car, and they dont, and you put all of those cars into your box, that _____ be about the density of a nucleus.Reading questionsHow big would the nucleus be if you made the atom the size of a football stadium?What do you think the gorilla in the background is a reference to? (Hint, it is related to another scientific experiment). Mariz Hi Paul, it is certainly a good exercise! I have a friend whos teaching an ESL course I will refer this to her. The students for sure will like this ?? LOIEnglish Thanks Mariz! Im glad you enjoyed it. How did you do on the the exercise? Anna Pfitzner COULD you publish the tapescript as well?
Tips and Tools for Students with ADHD
Tips and Tools for Students with ADHD Messy backpack and binder. Disorganized desk. A poor or non-existent organizational system. If your child has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), youve likely dealt with one or more of these issues during the school year. It can be incredibly frustrating to see your child operating in such an inefficient, ineffective manner, but there are ways you can help him or her improve those executive functions and develop strategies to stay organized and on task. Here are several tips and tools that will help your ADHD student: Embrace charts and checklists. A daily assignment chart will help your child keep track of homework and ensure you know whats expected at home. Try a simple sheet with subjects across the top and days of the week in the left-hand column. Your child should record any homework at the end of each subject or class and keep this chart in one central place, such as a binder. At night, this chart should become your childs to-do list, which he or she can keep on hand during homework time and check off as tasks are completed. Checklists posted by the door (or wherever your child gets ready for school) with everything needed for the school day are also helpful visual reminders. Use a day planner. A day planner is a good idea for any student, but especially important for ADHD students who struggle with organization. Help your child learn the basics of referencing the planner frequently and during homework time and using it to plan a schedule for any bigger assignments or projects. Many students use day planners successfully to stay on top of their assignments as well. Whether your childs planner is simple and used for high-level recording of extracurricular reminders, due dates and test dates, or detailed with homework assignments, its a useful daily companion. Master prioritization. Often, children with ADHD lack strong time management skills. A consistent routine helps such children become accustomed to staying on task and setting aside time for both have-tos and want-tos. Before sitting down to do homework, have your child rank each subject in order of priority. Due dates that are furthest away should be lower on the list than assignments due the next day. Then, have him or her estimate how long each assignment might take and set time limits for each. A stopwatch or timer is an invaluable device for helping your child avoid veering off on tasks. Create a system. Help your child develop a system for keeping track of handouts, supplies, notebooks and more. Whether thats a color-coded filing system for each subject, inboxes at home used in conjunction with a binder with subject dividers, or a combination of methods, the key is to embrace the everything in its place mantra. Teach your child to always store similar items in the same location and to develop good habits for organizing the backpack and desk at the end of each homework session. Lastly, your support is critical as your child learns to be an effective student. Keep tabs on homework and project deadlines and keep a family calendar and bulletin board in a central location. Make organization a family practice. Most importantly, remind your child that all his or her efforts will pay off in the long run. With reliable procedures in place and continued practice, your child will learn the routines that help him or her the most. If your child has ADHD and is struggling to stay organized and keep up with school work, call Huntington. We work with many ADHD students and use proven instructional strategies to help them stay focused and be successful in school. About Huntington Huntington is the tutoring and test prep leader.Its certified tutors provide individualized instruction in reading, phonics, writing, study skills, elementary and middle school math, Algebra through Calculus, Chemistry, and other sciences. It preps for the SAT and ACT, as well as state and standardized exams. Huntington programs develop the skills, confidence, and motivation to help students succeed and meet the needs of Common Core State Standards. Founded in 1977, Huntingtons mission is to give every student the best education possible. Learn how Huntington can help at www.huntingtonhelps.com. For franchise opportunities please visit www.huntingtonfranchise.com. 2017 Huntington Mark, LLC. Huntington Learning Center, the three-leaf logo, and 1 800 CAN LEARN are registered trademarks of Huntington Mark, LLC. Each franchised Huntington Learning Center is operated under a franchise agreement with Huntington Learning Centers, Inc.
Thursday, March 5, 2020
A Dual-language Book Intro Welcome to Your New Double Life!
A Dual-language Book Intro Welcome to Your New Double Life! A Dual-language Book Intro: Welcome to Your New Double Life! Some language learners are leading double lives.They switch between languages willy-nilly, sometimes with only a quick sideways glance to confirm.Yeah, they play it so cool.And theyre admired and envied by many.Thats because a double life isnt a bad thing when it comes to language learning.After all, you need to work on your new language, but youre probably still a lot more comfortable with your native language.If you want the comfort of your native tongue with the skill-building potential of reading in your target language, theres nothing quite like assuming a dual identity in order to have both.Okay, so your language learning double life might not be as action-packed as your favorite spy movie, but its exciting in a different way.Dual-language books can provide just the momentum you need to propel yourself towards greater fluency.As youre using various reading strategies to develop your target language, all kinds of language learning books can come in handy.Dual-language books, also known as bilingual books, are one such type of language learning book. They throw you in the deep end of reading in your target language, but they also toss you a life preserver so you wont drown.And the great news is, theyre available for a wide variety of languages. Want to try out some bilingual Japanese books? Bilingual German books? No matter what language youre learning, these texts provide you with the practice you need and extra support to ensure you succeed.Considering living a double life with dual-language books? Heres everything you need to complete your mission. A Dual-language Book Intro: Welcome to Your New Double Life!What Dual-language Books Are and Why You Should Use ThemFirst of all, its important to understand what dual-language books are. Dual-language books are a tool for language learners and/or bilingual readers. They offer text in two different languages. Often, this text is side-by-side in each language, but some books will share a short excerpt, such as a chapter, before switching languages.Theyre basically like a pure-text equivalent of the optional bilingual video captions you get on FluentU. FluentU takes real-world videosâ"like commercials, cartoons, vlogs, news and music videosâ"and turns them into personalized language lessons.For language learners, dual-language books are an ideal reading option because theyre less daunting than reading fully in your target language. Reading in a foreign language can be intimidating for even experienced learners. However, if you know you have English translations handy, its much easier to give reading a try without fear of failure.Because they offer additional language support, dual-language books are perfect for beginning and intermediate students. Having the English text handy means that you can easily fill in any vocabulary gaps with just a glance. Starting out with a dual-language text is a good stepping stone to reading in your target language without support.While dual-langu age books are often associated with beginning and intermediate students, theyre popular among all levels of language learner. Thats because they offer a quick way to ensure youve understood the meaning of the text. More advanced learners might read in their target language and then just skim the English translation to ensure they fully comprehended the text. This is a good way to spot-check to ensure you actually understood what you thought you understood.5 Dual-language Book Resources Language Learners LoveDover Dual-LanguageThe Dover Dual-Language series focuses on providing stories in a target language and English. Many of their options include authentic stories that originally appeared in the target language. Reading these is a helpful way to practice your language skills while learning more about important literature.The Dover Dual-Language line includes several volumes of short stories. For language learners, these are low-stress tools for practicing reading in a foreign langu age.French Stories: A Dual-Language Book features selections by popular French authors, including Voltaire and Camus.Best Short Stories: A Dual-Language Book (German) focuses exclusively on stories by Franz Kafka.Italian Stories: A Dual-Language Book features stories by Machiavelli and others.Russian Stories: A Dual-Language Book includes selections from Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Chekhov, Pushkin, Gogol and other big names.Spanish Stories: A Dual-Language Book features stories by Cervantes, Borges and more.Additionally, these books are available in print or Kindle versions. Consider that in the Kindle version, youll have to change the page to refer to the translations. This can be a pro or a con. It requires a little more work to see the translation, but in that extra second, you might figure out the meaning on your own.Another option for readers using a Kindle is to install a dictionary for easy reference while reading. If you like to see both texts at once, you can also use the Kindle Cloud Reader on your laptop and copy the corresponding text into a word processor. If you like to see both texts at once, just keep them open side-by-side!Penguin Parallel TextThe Penguin Parallel Text series focuses on providing contemporary short stories in their original language alongside English translations. This series offers a few more languages than the Dover Dual-Language series.Short Stories in Chinese: New Penguin Parallel Text offers a number of contemporary stories by Chinese authors.Short Stories in French: New Penguin Parallel Text features works by French and Canadian authors.Short Stories in Japanese: New Penguin Parallel Text focuses on contemporary Japanese works.German Short Stories 1: Parallel Text Edition focuses on post-war German short stories.Short Stories in Italian: New Penguin Parallel Text features selections by Calvino and other Italian authors.Short Stories in Russian: New Penguin Parallel Text provides Russian short stories, some of whic h appear for the first time in English.Short Stories in Spanish: New Penguin Parallel Text includes contemporary short stories by both Castilian and Latin American authors, including Allende and GarcÃa Márquez.Like the Dover Dual-Language series, these books are available in print or for Kindle. Again, on your Kindle, youll have to flip a page to see the translation, but you can also use these books on your computer through the Kindle Cloud Reader so you can have the texts open side-by-side. Otherwise, using a dictionary on your Kindle will provide you with a quick reference if you ever need to know what a word means immediately.Language LizardLanguage Lizard provides a wide array of bilingual childrens products. There are options in over 50 languages, so its a rare valuable find for anyone looking to learn less common languages.Just select the language youre learning on the left-hand sidebar and browse to your hearts content.Language Lizard offers languages paired with English f or their dual-language books, with multiple languages across books. So if you find a certain book in Spanish, for example, you might also be able to get the same book in Urdu, Albanian, Bengali, Irish and many more languages.Since the books focus on simple childrens stories with common vocabulary youre likely to need, these books are excellent for both children and beginning adult learners, and great if youre learning multiple languages.BilinguisBilinguis.com is a free online resource offering side-by-side translations of books. The text appears line-by-line, side-by-side, so you can easily glance at the English version whenever youre struggling with a word or phrase.The focus is on popular, public-domain works like Alices Adventures in Wonderland and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Language offerings vary by work but often include Chinese, German, French, Russian and Spanish. Less common offerings include Finnish and Catalan.Bilinguis also offers some audio options. In these versio ns, you can listen to a reading of the text in your target language while looking at the text in your target language and English for easy, supportive listening and reading practice.Project GutenbergProject Gutenberg is known for providing a huge selection of free public domain texts, but it probably isnt the first thing that comes to mind when you think about dual-language texts.However, for the clever language learner (that you obviously are), Project Gutenberg is a treasure trove of dual-language texts.Thats because many texts are available in multiple languages. You can use this as a dual-language resource by opening two browsers side-by-side. To find the right text, you can browse by language to see selections in your target language. Then, look for that same work in English. Another easy trick to find texts in multiple languages is to browse by author. This way, you can see what languages are available for any authors work, regardless of what language it might have been in ori ginally.For instance, you can read Don Quijote in Spanish or the equivalent Don Quixote in English. If youre really into quixotic knights, you might even try the equivalent Lingénieux chevalier Don Quichotte de la Manche in French.Give these dual-language resources a try.Your double life might be the best thing to ever happen to you! And One More ThingDont wait any longer to start your new fully dual-language life with FluentUs bilingual captions. FluentU makes it possible to learn languages from music videos, commercials, news and inspiring talks.With FluentU, you learn real languagesâ"the same way that real people speak them. FluentU has a wide variety of videos, like movie trailers, funny commercials and web series, as you can see here:FluentU App Browse ScreenFluentU has interactive captions that let you tap on any word to see an image, definition, audio and useful examples. Now native language content is within reach with interactive transcripts.Didnt catch something? Go bac k and listen again. Missed a word? Hover over or tap on the subtitles to instantly view definitions.FluentU Interactive TranscriptsYou can learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentUs quiz mode. Swipe left or right to see more examples for the word youâre learning.FluentU Has Quizzes for Every VideoAnd FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that youâre learning. It uses that vocab to give you a 100% personalized experience by recommending videos and examples.
UK Childminders - Tutor Hunt Blog
UK Childminders Precipitous decline in the number of UK childminders Precipitous decline in the number of UK childmindersSchoolsThe problem of childcare is a perennial one for working parents. Who takes care of the children during the day while they are at work? The situation is somewhat attenuated once the children are old enough to attend nursery - but this won`t be an option until they are three or four years old, and even then their classes may end at 3pm in the afternoon (or even earlier), long before a typical working day concludes. There are facilities available to help - daycare centres or `creches` are places where children can be cared for. Many of these centres can be paid for using government childcare vouchers, and are seen by many working parents as the ideal solution to their childcare concerns. With an abundance of parents however living too far from one of these centres, not to mention the traffic problems every morning, these cr ches don`t offer the ideal solution to their childcare problems. Many parents choose to employ childminders: these are qualified, Ofsted registered professionals, who remain in the home with the children while the parents are away at work. ; Normally booked through an agency, they will be DBS registered, and possess the all the relevant childcare qualifications. Recent information published by Ofsted has however revealed a precipitous drop in the number of registered childminders in the UK. Compared to 6 years ago there are now 16,000 fewer childminders - with an astonishing 1300 leaving the sector since December 2017. The Pre-School Learning Alliance - an educational early-years registered charity, and voluntary sector provider of childcare for young children in England - have expressed their concern over this huge decline. Their Chief Executive Neil Leitch recently said: `It is incredibly concerning to see that the number of childminders has continued to decline. To lose 27% of a workforce over less than six years is simply unacceptable, and it beggars belief that the government has still not seen fit to do anything to tackle this ongoing trend.` `Childminders offer parents a vital source of quality, flexible care and education and the services they provide are absolutely crucial to the sector as a whole, especially at a time when the government is trying to expand the childcare offer in this country.` The reasons for so many childminders leaving their profession is unclear, but it may well be to do with the decline in average disposable income for working families since the financial crisis of 2007. Of course it doesn`t help that the UK has the highest childcare costs in the whole world. According to the OECD, UK parents (and guardians) pay far more than any other country for home childcare and nurseries. With two children (aged two and three) being sent to a childcare centre for 40 hours a week, the fees reach an astonishing 55% of the average income for a couple. When it comes to childcares costs the UK isn`t just the most expensive country in the world, it is way out in the lead, being 15% more expensive than New Zealand, the very next most costly country. For 10 years I worked in the NHS as Lab Technician, and many of my colleagues would leave their children at a cr che - a nursery conveniently located on hospital grounds. I recall thinking how nice and convenient it was for my colleagues, not being obliged to drive to a nursery far away, but having a suitable place near their workplace to leave their children. They were able to pop in for a visit during their breaks, and the cr che stayed open all the way through their work shifts. I then discovered just how much this service cost - I believe it was around around 800 per month, a huge portion of their monthly income. Some of my colleagues told me that when they added up the costs of childcare, travel expenses, and the yearly accreditation fee required to work in the lab, it actually cost them money to come to work. The rapid exodus of childminders will of course only increase demand, and thus increase the price for those choosing to remain in this profession. Neil Leith of the Pre-School Learning Alliance said the government must take steps to address this issue: `We urge the government to finally take some action on this issue - and addressing concerns over excessive paperwork, substantially increasing hourly funding rates and, crucially, removing unfair rules preventing childminders from claiming funding for related children would be a good start.` Ofsted researchers said that those childminders who have left the profession during the timeframe of the study (December 2017 to March 2018) had been working in the field for around nine years on average. The recent the `Labour Force Survey,` conducted by the Office for National Statistics, and the annual `Family Resources Survey,` carried out by the Department for Education suggests that the deficient childcare system is preventing 450,000 mothers with children under the age of five either finding work, or increasing their working hours. The two reports suggest that working mothers may be missing out on 3,400 to 11,400 a year. Extrapolated to the whole of the UK this could mean that UK mothers are potentially losing as much as 1.2 billion per year. 20 months ago0Add a Comment
Majority of teachers favour pupils missing school to partake in climate change protests - Tutor Hunt Blog
Majority of teachers favour pupils missing school to partake in climate change protests Majority of teachers favour pupils missing school to partake in climate change protests Majority of teachers favour pupils missing school to partake in climate change protestsSchoolsIt`s unlikely anyone in the UK is unaware about the actions of the `Extinction Rebellion` group, who have brought parts of central London to a standstill over the last few months. In April they mounted huge demonstrations, focusing around Oxford Circus, Marble Arch, and Waterloo Bridge. On the 15th of April many thousands of activitsts gathered round Parliament Square, with the protesters demanding changes to slow down climate change. Even though the protests have been generally peaceful - despite hundreds of demonstrators being arrested - more than 500,000 people have been affected, mainly through disrupted journeys preventing them getting to work. In early October many tube lines were suspended, with protestors climbing onto train roofs - one viral video showed the moment an Extinction Rebellion protestor was roughly pulled from the top of a carriage, only to be engulfed by a braying, chee ring mob of angry commuters. While their primary demand that the government pledges to cut 100% of greenhouse emissions to zero by 2025 has not been met, their demonstrations have certainly had the effect of getting people taking about climate change. More people than ever are getting involved, promising to increase their recycling, reduce their carbon footprint, and even consume less meat. One demographic who have embraced the group`s message are schoolchildren, with thousands becoming politically involved, taking time off school to join in the protests. The Extinction Rebellion group have themselves encouraged children to support their movement, to join in their marches, even if it means missing classes. Jessica Ahmed, a 16 year old student, informed her school by email that she would be attending the demonstration, and explained her reasons for attending the recent protest, which contained an estimated 100,000 people. `If politicians were taking the appropriate action we need - and had been taking this action a long time ago when it was recognised the world was changing in a negative way - then I would not have to be skipping school.` On September 20th more than 150 protests took place throughout the United Kingdom, with thousands of children, of both primary and secondary school age, missing a day`s classes to join in the demonstrations. The pertinent question here is whether it`s ethically right for these children to be missing school, in order to take part in a political campaign. Many have said that the Extinction Rebellion group have dishonestly exploited this young and suggestive demographic, and that the school children are too young to decide whether they should be abstaining themselves from school to join in the marches. Despite the public being divided over the issue of whether it is appropriate for children to miss school and attend political demonstrations, the opinion of school teachers is somewhat clearer. In a survey commissioned by the National Citizen Service (NCS), 61% of teachers advocated pupils being permitted an `explained absence,` so they can attend social activism activities. The head of the NCS, Sean Costello, has himself advocated children being allowed to take part in protests, saying `Young people are passionate about many issues, including the environment, racism and mental health - they have important opinions and we must help them voice their views.` `If we don`t provide a channel for young people to make their voices heard, how can we expect them to sustain that interest into adulthood and play a part in their communities?` In contrast with this view many school leaders have expressed their concern for the pupils, and voiced disapproval over thousands school days being lost. The general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders Geoff Barton, has said `we understand the strength of feeling over the issue of climate change but missing school in order to take part in a protest is not the right approach and we urge pupils against this course of action.` `It is disruptive to lessons and learning, but the greatest concern of school leaders will be for the welfare of pupils who are off site and unsupervised. We would urge pupils to talk to their schools about activities which could take place in school to highlight the climate emergency rather than taking part in a strike.` Many members of the public have asked whether such a considerable number of children would have attended the protests had they taken place over a weekend, cynically suggesting that the demonstrations have been so popular amongst pupils primarily because they sanction a day off from school. A member of public summed up this sentiment in a ballet conducted just after the September marches, saying `If they did their protest on a weekend then very few children would turnout.` 4 months ago0Add a Comment
Not Sure Which Foreign Language to Learn Let Us Help You Decide!
Not Sure Which Foreign Language to Learn Let Us Help You Decide! Which Foreign Language to Learn We all have a different reason to learn a foreign language.Maybe its for love.Perhaps youre moving to a new country.It could be that you just really need to study for that test.If any of these are the case, you probably know which language you want to learn. But what if youre just infected with the bug? You want to learn something, but you dont know what!Here are some ideas to get those linguistic juices flowing. Which Foreign Language to LearnMany of the languages below are available on FluentU, which is great for picky learners as you can easily switch between languages with no fuss (and have your progress saved for each language).FluentU makes it possible to learn languages from music videos, commercials, news, inspiring talks and more.With FluentU, you hear languages in real-world contextsâ"the way that native speakers actually use them. Just a quick look will give you an idea of the variety of FluentU videos on offer:FluentU really takes the grunt work out of learning langua ges, leaving you with nothing but engaging, effective and efficient learning. Itâs already hand-picked the best videos for you and organized them by level and topic. All you have to do is choose any video that strikes your fancy to get started!Each word in the interactive captions comes with a definition, audio, image, example sentences and more.Access a complete interactive transcript of every video under the Dialogue tab, and easily review words and phrases from the video under Vocab.You can use FluentUâs unique adaptive quizzes to learn the vocabulary and phrases from the video through fun questions and exercises. Just swipe left or right to see more examples of the word youre studying.The program even keeps track of what youâre learning and tells you exactly when itâs time for review, giving you a 100% personalized experience.Start using FluentU on the website with your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes store or Google Play store .If you want something easy for English speakers.Okay, this is somewhat flippantâ"we all know that no foreign language is easy to learn. However, it can be extra motivating if you can see quick progress, especially if this is your first time learning a foreign language.The key point is to pick something thats not too dissimilar from your native language. Here are a couple of examples if your native language is English.SpanishThe language of Cervantes is an extremely popular one. If you went to school in the U.S., you probably sat through years of lessons on thisâ"although perhaps you dont remember a word!This popularity is one of the reasons why Spanish is such a great choice for a language which isnt too impossible to pick up. Even if you didnt take Spanish lessons in school, it isnt hard to find someone nearby who speaks the second most spoken tongue on the planet. This will make it a whole lot easier to practice.Aside from access to a huge pool of hispanohablantes (Spanish s peakers), the language itself lends itself to fast learning. Unlike the irregularity of English phonology and orthography, Spanish has a very straightforward pronunciation system. Depending on your accent, English has between 14 and 21 vowel sounds, yet Spanish has only five. Consonants are usually pronounced the same in every word, and when theres a change, theres always a logical rule to help you know how to say it.Stress patterns are consistent, and whenever theyre changed theres a written accent mark to show you the way. This means when you see a word written in Spanishâ"no matter how complexâ"you can always work out how to say it by breaking it down into its constituent parts.Meanwhile, thanks to the Latin roots of Spanish, theres a wealth of vocabulary you already have at your fingertips. Nation = nación, music = música, flower = flor, and so onâ"not to mention the numerous English loan words in Spanish (email, catering, fútbol).Thats not to say that Spanish is withou t its challenges. A lot of the grammar is very different from Englishâ"it took me a long time to get the hang of putting object pronouns before the verb!â"and Spanish learners have to deal with the infamous subjunctive. However, these challenges can be overcome in a very satisfying way, and once youve gotten there, youll be ordering tapas like a pro.If you fancy a language thats related to Spanish, have a go at Italian, Portuguese or French. All are linguistically very similar and have numerous speakers around the world.GermanIf youre looking to move away from the Romance languages, German should be your first stop. Despite having a huge amount of Latin influence, English is actually a Germanic language. The vocabulary is therefore quite similar and there are a number of cognates. Pronunciation is also quite straightforward.Consider these sentences:Das ist gut. Ich kann tanzen.Even if you cant guess straight away, it wont surprise you to learn that these sentences mean That is g ood and I can dance. This is just the beginning.Due to the history of English, which involved Germanic Anglo-Saxons working the land while being mostly separated from the French-speaking aristocrats, lots of simple language has kept its Germanic roots.This includes religious terminology (God = Gott, church = Kirche), language for animals (cow = Kuh, cat = Katze) and words for family members (father, mother, brother and sister are Vater, Mutter, Bruder und Schwester).Again, German also has its challenges. Due to the German way of creating compound words, much of its vocabulary can be intimidating. It also results in some curiosities, such as the triple F in Schifffahrt. (This means boat travel and is a compound of the words Schiff and Fahrtâ"ship and journey.)Another challenge is that German, like Latin, has numerous grammatical cases to get your head around, as well as three genders to learn. Not to mention the fact that many Germans speak fantastic English, and it can be hard to persuade them to let you practice!Similar languages include Dutch and Afrikaans.If you want to travel.One popular reason for learning foreign languages is to enable us to travel. But what if you dont have a specific location in mind?English and Spanish remain the best languages for travel due to their near-ubiquity. Nevertheless, there are a few others we can usefully add to the armory.Mandarin ChineseThe language with the biggest proportion of native speakers in the world, Mandarin Chinese is notorious in the anglophone world for its complexity and difficulty.Dont let that put you off! Mandarin opens up China and the rest of Asia as a travel destination, and is spoken by one in six people in the world. Whats more, its not as difficult as people would have you believe.Okay, the writing system is tough; instead of having an alphabet, there are approximately 50,000 different characters to deal with. But in fact, an educated Chinese person will only know around 8,000, and you p robably only need 2,000 to be able to read well. Moreover, the grammar of Mandarin is pleasingly straightforward.Take this example:???????(Hao canting zà i nali?) â" Where is a good restaurant?Break this down and its fascinating to see how it comes together.? (hao) â" good? (can) â" meal? (ting) â" hall??? (zà i nali) â" where is it?The focal noun of the sentence (in this case, the restaurant or good meal hall) comes first, with the modifiers coming afterwards. Each character has a sound and a different meaning, and they combine beautifully.The phonology is trickyâ"not only do you have to get your head around all the different vowel and consonant sounds, but you also need to get the infamous tones correct. There are four different ones to masterâ"although this is fewer than in Cantonese!Cantonese is similar, however, and uses the same scriptâ"well, sort of. To make things a bit more interesting, there are traditional and simplified characters, and Cantonese is written in traditional characters in Hong Kong, whereas mainland China uses simplified characters.Meanwhile, various Chinese characters found their way into Japanese as kanji, so learning Mandarin is a great jumping-off point for other Asian languages.RussianLearning Russian means another new alphabet to pick up, but its still a very useful tongue. Even if Russia isnt your desired destination, much of ex-Soviet Eastern Europe still teaches Russian as a second language in schools, so mastering the language will open up a new part of the world.Again, the main challenge is obvious: you have to learn the Cyrillic alphabet. The good news is that, unlike Chinese languages, there are only 33 characters to learn rather than thousands. Once youve got them, youve got them.Russian is the most widely spoken of the Slavic language family. Once you master Russian, you have access to Ukrainian, Polish and a variety of other eastern European languages.If you want to workA foreign language or two looks gre at on your resume, and its no wonder that many language learners are seeking to enhance their employment prospects. Employers prize both the hard work and intellect required to learn a language, and value the opportunity to make the most of those skills to further their business.Here are a couple of languages you might want to consider if this is your motivation.FrenchIn both Europe and North America, French is a powerful languageâ"think Quebec and the EUâ"and a staple of language education. And lets not forget all of the Francophone areas in Africa and elsewhere in the world.Its also fair to say that, unlike native speakers of other Romance languages, French speakers are often reluctant to engage in English (or at least they have that reputation, although thats disputed). This makes a mastery of the language of Proust a valuable assetâ"and also means its very easy to find people to practice with!Like Spanish, as mentioned above, French is part of the family that includes a host of other European languages, and those high school Spanish lessons will come in handy when it comes to grammar and vocab! Chances are youve heard French out and about as well, not to mention the loanwords and phrases we have taken (vis-a-vis, déjà vu, voilà ). Enjoy being able to tell all your friends the meanings of all those fancy words on the menu!The biggest challenge, for me, is pronunciation. While French phonology is fairly regular, there are numerous vowel combinations, often involving silent consonants. This can make it very difficult to differentiate between words. Take for example these five homophones:Vers (towards)Vers (verse)Ver (worm)Verre (glass)Vert (green)As an English speaker, its not my place to criticize difficult pronunciation. Nevertheless, this is tough!ArabicGo to Morocco and alongside French you will hear Arabic, this most fascinating of languages. Of course, its not limited to Marrakeshâ"in fact, Arabic is an official language in 27 countries. Wi th the Middle East becoming an increasingly important region due to politics and commerce, a mastery of Arabic will definitely score you points with potential employers.Arabic is certainly not without its challenges, not least its vastly different vocabulary from European languages and its beautiful but alien script which is written from right to left. However, perhaps the biggest challenge is the range of dialects. When a language covers such a huge area, its only to be expected that there will be a huge variation in the way its spoken!There are three main varieties:Levantine Arabic. This is spoken around Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Palestine, and it boasts 20 million speakers worldwide. Although it has no official status, its the national working language in Lebanon and is used at home and among friendsâ"as well as in written communication, the media and government. Levantine Arabic has influence from Hebrew, Greek, French and other foreign languages.Egyptian Arabic. This is, as t he name suggests, the dialect from Egypt and is spoken there by 52.5 million people. This form is understood in many parts of the Arab world due to Egypts cultural influence.Gulf Arabic. Speakers in Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE are the main users of this dialect, which has 10 personal pronouns. Gulf Arabic maintains gender differentiation, whereas others have done away with it.All of these are in addition to Modern Standard Arabic, which is the official language in most of these countries!Which to learn to begin with? London Arabic Tuition recommends learning Levantine Arabic firstâ"the others will be easy to pick up afterwards.If you want to learn a new script.Bored with the Latin alphabet? Many of the languages already mentioned use other scripts, but if you really want to throw yourself into a beautiful, challenging, unique new writing system, why not try one of these?HindiI love, love, love the look of Hindi.The curling characters hang from a bar, each representing a consonant so und.Then, diacriticsâ"the little extra marks that modify characters, like an umlaut (the two dots over the u of Brüder) in German or a cedilla (the wiggle under the c of façade) in Frenchâ"alter the vowel that follows. If theres no diacritic, the vowel is -a.Take as an example one of the best known Hindi wordsâ"namaste, meaning hello. In Hindiâ"or, strictly speaking, in the Devanagari alphabetâ"that is written as ??????.If that looks unintelligible, lets break it down character by character:? (na, no diacritic)? (ma, no diacritic)? (sa, combined with ? [ta] + ? [-e diacritic] = ste)It may look alien to those of us brought up on the Latin alphabet, but once you crack the logic, it makes perfect senseâ"and is stunning on a page.It could be a useful language too: Although India has many tongues, Hindi is the fourth-most-spoken first language in the world.JapaneseJapanese has not just one, not two, but three new alphabets to get your head around.Kanji are Chinese char acters, and therefore the most numerous and complex of the three alphabets. Most words in Japanese use kanji, and there is no ruleâ"they just have to be learned. For example:? (koi) â" love? (neko) â" cat?? (nippon) â" JapanLike the characters needed for Mandarin, there are upwards of 50,000 in total, although approximately only 3,000 are in common use in Japan.The other alphabetsâ"the kana alphabetsâ"are simpler. There are two of these, each with around 50 characters. Each character represents a sound or mora, either a vowel, consonant with vowel or a nasal n sound.Hiragana is used primarily for grammatical purposes, such as adding suffixes to indicate tenseâ"compare ??? (taberu, eat) and ??? (tabeta, ate). It can also be used to spell out complex or obscure kanji phonetically.Katakana is most often seen representing loan words from other languages. For example, I once wrote about a scene in Haruki Murakamis Kafka on the Shore which featured Colonel Sanders, of KFC fame. In the katakana, this was rendered as ???? ·????? (kaneru sandasu). Try saying it out loud, and youll hear how it sounds like a Japanese version of the English name!Japanese is fascinating with a challenging grammar, although a relatively simple phonology. However, its spoken only in Japan and its only relatives are endangered members of the Japonic family, so this might be one you dont get to break out too often if you dont live in Japan or already have regular contact with Japanese speakers.Still, its very interesting and its definitely a good one to consider.If you want to be uniqueThis section might be for the more experienced polyglots among you.Fed up with your everyday languages, perhaps you want to find something to really break out as a party trick.If thats the case, check out these foreign languages, which are sure to mark you as the linguistic hipster you are.NorwegianScandinavians are renowned for their fantastic English, and perhaps this is part of the reason why so few people take the time to learn the languages spoken there.However, theres a hidden bonusâ"learning Norwegian essentially gives you three languages for the price of one! Its extremely similar to Swedish and Danish, and the three are often considered mutually comprehensible. Hit Scandi noir shows like The Bridge, featuring detectives from Denmark and Sweden, make jokes about this with Danish usually the butt of themâ"as does this hilarious video.Why learn Norwegian? The distinctive and wonderful sound of the language is a reason in itself. Whats more, despite its hipster credentials, its not so distinct from English as to be a complete departure. There are numerous cognatesâ"Im sure you wouldnt need me to tell you that gress, katt and vinter mean grass, cat and winter respectivelyâ"and the accent isnt too unusual sounding. Furthermore, Norwegians will love you for having the desire to learn their language!Swedish and Danish could be just as good to learn, but Norwegian i s less commonly taught and therefore that little extra special.QuechuaQuechua is the only minority language on this list, so its fitting that it should be in this section. Quechua is, however, the most popular second language across Peru and Bolivia, where theres an enormous drive to maintain the indigenous tongue. This could be a great one to pick up to deepen your understanding of Spanish, or if youre looking to travel to that part of the world.Whats more, it shouldnt be too hard! It includes benefits such as:No irregular verbs, nouns or adjectivesNo grammatical genderNo articlesRegular casesObviously the vocabulary and grammar are bound to be unlike anything youve ever experienced, but you didnt want this to be too easy, right?No self-respecting language nerd can do without speaking a minority language, so give it a go! Other options along this theme include Irish, Catalan, Khoekhoe or the dialects of Italy.I think thats enough languages to get you started, dont you?Remember to check out FluentUs language learning blogs and resources to help you along the way.Happy learning!
SAT Test Tutoring - What You Need to Know
SAT Test Tutoring - What You Need to KnowSAT Test Tutoring is the ultimate solution for those who are struggling in their SAT study. There are many different methods available to help you prepare for the SAT test. Some will require you to attend a classroom and some will be hands-on, but you have to remember that SAT Tutoring is all about help and support.Traditional tutoring typically consists of one-on-one tutor sessions with the tutor. The tutor can help you refine your concepts by answering questions and giving you examples. This helps the student prepare by getting a feel for what they are studying.There are some who are just too busy and don't have the time to devote to learning the basics of the test. This makes it hard for them to study for the test. In this case, they would find themselves testing late, so the tutor has to be able to answer all their questions, understand their style of thinking and offer the best tips possible. That is the purpose of SAT Test Tutoring.Stude nts who need help with all sorts of subjects would want more than just a little bit of instruction. They want the support of an expert who can help answer all their questions and be able to offer them some extra tips. Having a tutor that can do this is very important.You may think that using a SAT Test Tutor is not enough, however it can be a great way to prepare for the SAT test. If you need a little more help with your study then you should consider the advantages of SAT Test Tutoring and make sure you are serious about going this route.By knowing where you need help, the SAT test taker can assess which tutors will be helpful. When this is done, the student will know which one is going to be able to help them the most. It is important that the student choose a good tutor, because it can help them all the way to the SAT test.When choosing a SAT Test Tutor, make sure that they are qualified to work with students who need help with the SAT test. The SAT tutors will help you find the proper method of study, thus giving you the best chance of passing the test.
Biology EOC Online Degree Program
Biology EOC Online Degree ProgramBiology EOC is an online degree program offered by the University of Michigan in the School of Public Health and the Department of Community Health Sciences. It is part of the University's BIOCHEM degree program. It is a comprehensive course that gives students the opportunity to delve into various aspects of human health and well-being including in terms of environmental factors that shape our health.The course itself is divided into two parts, an organic and an inorganic lab course. These classes take place online. As with most biology courses, you can choose to study either from the nearby campus or online.When you are studying in the lab courses, you will be working on both on-campus and online labs and interacting with your professor. In the organic lab, you will be working with labs that include soil, plants, and animals. During the lab, you will be participating in experiments, tests, and field trials that will include microbiology, physiology, ecology, biology, and molecular biology.There are two courses that you will have to complete during the Organic Lab Course. The first is known as the self-directed learning course and the second is called the research course. Your professor will decide which course you will be taking depending on the requirements for each department.After completing the lab courses, you will also have to complete an internship. This is a hands-on experience that will give you an insight into the different aspects of working in the life sciences. You will have to work with researchers and your mentor during this period. During this, you will be able to learn about the different processes that have to be followed while conducting research, as well as you will be able to gain some knowledge of the ethics surrounding conducting research.Once you are done with the lab, you will have to pass all of the labclass materials. These include lab reports, exam and notes. Students have to successfully complete a ll of the test, exam, and notes in order to be granted the degree.The online college courses do not need to be taken at the University of Michigan campus. Instead, you can take them at any online college or university that offers the required courses. This will make it easier for you to attend school when you have other commitments.
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