[ELTeCS_PERU] CHRISTMAS WISHES from PERU-ELTNETWORKS

Dear friends,


May this Merry Christmas Wishes be so special

that you never ever feel lonely and be surrounded by loved ones always

in your families and in our inspirational world of English Language Teaching!

All the very best for this coming year, 2011

PERU-ELTNETWORKS

NASA: The biggest lied ever told!!!

What are the natural colors of the Moon? , do you think you know? , if you are uncertain about it, please watch this interesting documentary: MOON RISING http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ3wh2cjekE
and give your opinion as well as for CHARIOTS OF GODS http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9N6Drxzst6I .

Thank you!!



Regards
Prof. Giovanni Gonzales

Mario Vargas Llosa delivers the Nobel Speech

Yesterday the Nobel Prize winner's 19-page speech first brought himself to tears, then the rest of the audience. "this is the speech," said a friend. "I have heard him talk about politics, literature, but I have never heard him give such a perfect piece

Something to say about: Idioms

Apart from sayings and proverbs, the English language is full of interesting expressions we call idioms, or idiomatic expressions. As we know, these idioms can be quite hard to get, since many of them can´t be interpreted literally. Take for instance: He was pulling my leg. Do you mean that somebody had actually grabbed your leg and started pulling it, as if to rip it off your body? Of course not. And How about: I have to hit the road. Hit the road?, with a hammer?


The thing is, English is such a colourful and varied language that, if we don´t pull up our socks and learn some of these idiomatic expressions, we can find ourselves between a rock and a hard place.

If you want a piece of the action, visit the following link  http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/ (not the only one, of course) and browse the lists of idiomatic expressions, I´m sure it´ll make your day.

Now, the ball is in your court.




http://cesarklauersteflblog.blogspot.com/2010/12/something-to-say-about-idioms.html

[ELTeCS_PERU] Something to say about...

Sayings and proverbs are an important part of language. Do you know some of them?

http://www.voanews.com/learningenglish/home/a-23-2009-02-28-voa2-83140522.html

One thousand pedestrians fined on first day of Peru's new transit code

More than 1,000 pedestrians fined

Some pedestrians were surprised. Others unexpectedly laughed or, in the worst cases, became terribly annoyed.


http://www.livinginperu.com/news-13557-law-order-one-thousand-pedestrians-fined-first-day-perus-new-transit-code

Think 21st Century Skills

We keep on providing you with more definitions regarding the 21st Century movement.


The new millennium was ushered in by a dramatic technological revolution.

We now live in an increasingly diverse, globalized, and complex, media-saturated society. According to Dr. Douglas Kellner at UCLA this technological revolution will have a greater impact on society than the transition from an oral to a print culture.

Today's kindergarteners will be retiring in the year 2067. We have no idea of what the world will look in five years, much less 60 years, yet we are charged with preparing our students for life in that world. Our students are facing many emerging issues such as global warming, famine, poverty, health issues, a global population explosion and other environmental and social issues.
 
http://library.constantcontact.com/doc200/1102667938533/doc/bOWk7C3uwK0NIiBX.pdf

[ELTeCS_PERU] Bilingualism

Dear ELTeCS PERU Members


Our Friend and colleague Carmen Cáceda has sent us an interesting article on bilingualism.

The link HERE http://incultureparent.com/2010/10/multilingual-families-monolingual-children/

 will take you to the article web site.

Thanks to Carmen, and good reading to us all:

Cesar Klauer

cesar.klauer.hidalgo@gmail.com
cesar.klauer@udep.pe
http://www.cesarklauersteflblog.blogspot.com/
http://www.generaccion.com/usuarios/
http://cesarklauerblog.blogspot.com/

[ELTeCS_PERU] Something to say about: Reduced forms

Dear ELTeCS PERU Members


To continue with our review of features of the English language we teach, this time we talk about reduced forms.

Read blog post HERE

As always, comments are more than welcome.
http://www.yek.me.uk/reduced.html

Cesar Klauer
cesar.klauer.hidalgo@gmail.com
cesar.klauer@udep.pe
http://www.cesarklauersteflblog.blogspot.com/
http://www.generaccion.com/usuarios/
http://cesarklauerblog.blogspot.com/

[ELTeCS_PERU] Dirty language in my class?????

Something to say about: Dirty language


I was a student back on those days, but I still remember a friend of mine who once, after the lesson had finished, approached the teacher and asked: “What´s fakinaso, teacher?
 
http://oupeltglobalblog.com/2010/10/06/dirty-words-in-the-language-classroom/

[ELTeCS_PERU] ELTeCS PERU Updates

Dear ELTeCS PERU Members

Just a short note to remind you of the latest news about ELTeCS PERU.

To begin with, you have been getting links to my personal TEFL  blog http://cesarklauersteflblog.blogspot.com/ where I have been dealing with some interesting issues realted to our professional activity (and have tried to combine them with some funny tips). I´ll keep on the same track, so I hope this will appeal to you. If you have any suggestions on topics or comments, don´t hesitate to use the "comments" facility on the blog or send me an email.

Then, I have to remind you that ELTeCS is on Facebook also. Just look for our profile and become a follower. This may become a very good way of building up our community more efficiently.

Finally, I ask for your cooperation once again in trying to reach more teachers who are out there somewhere and don´t get the news on ELTeCS like yourselves. Please, invite them to be part of our group. They only have to send a blank emai to ELTeCS_PERU-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Thanks

Cesar Klauer
cesar.klauer.hidalgo@gmail.com
cesar.klauer@udep.pe
http://www.cesarklauersteflblog.blogspot.com/
http://www.generaccion.com/usuarios/
http://cesarklauerblog.blogspot.com/

Noam Chomsky and language acquisition revisited

Dear ELTeCS PERU members


You sure remember Noam Chomsky, don´t you?. This post is related to his theories and directs you to a funny interview with him on a comedy show called Da Ali G Show.

Enjoy.

http://cesarklauersteflblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/noam-chomsky-and-language-acquisition.html
Cesar Klauer

[ELTeCS_PERU] English accents

Dear ELTeCS PERU Member

Our post of 24th October was a light-hearted look at American - British English differences. This time, the post looks at spoken language and the difficult topic of accents.We include links to audio samples of many varied accents from around the English speaking world.
 
http://cesarklauersteflblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/spoken-english-accents.html
 
 

[ELTeCS_PERU] American VS British English

Whenever I meet somebody and they know I am a teacher of English, they ask me if I teach American or British. I try to explain that those two are variations of basically the same language, but they looke at me with an expert air to which anybody can hardly find a good answer, I mean... people will believe whatever they want, won´t they?

http://cesarklauersteflblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/american-vs-british-english.html

[ELTeCS_PERU] Something to say about: The FCE exam

Dear ELTeCS PERU Members
The season for Cambridge international exams is at our doorstep. As you know, there are several authorized centres for Cambridge exams: The ACPB, SENATI, some schools that examine their own students, and the Universidad de Piura, both in Piura and in Lima. This post will concentrate on FCE and some tips for the teachers who are preparing students for this exam.

 

http://cesarklauersteflblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/something-to-say-about-fce-exam.html

 

Mario Vargas Llosa wins the Nobel Prize for Literature

On Oct. 7, quite early in the morning, the call from the Swedish Academy surprised him in his New York apartment. He thought it was a joke. After so many years with his name on the bets, the Peruvian writer did not even remember that it was in early October that the greatest literary prize is announced. And this time it was his turn. At 74 years old, the author of “The Green House” receives an acknowledgement that all Latin Americans were demanding for him for the last three decades. In Peru, every journalist dreamt of writing this headline: “Mario Vargas Llosa obtains the Literature Nobel Prize.” Finally.

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1713-art-culture-lifestyle-day-perus-first-nobel-prize

INTERVIEWS: One of these two women will be mayor of Lima

This Sunday, Oct. 3, Lima residents will choose their new mayor. The race is led decisively by two candidates, Susana Villarán for Fuerza Social and Lourdes Flores for Partido Popular Cristiano, PPC. It is likely that for only the second time, Lima will be governed by a woman.


Over the past month, the campaign has turned rough. Lourdes Flores, a lawyer and two-time presidential candidate, has been questioned about a former client who is being investigated for links to narcotrafficking and was recently wiretapped. Villarán, a leftist, has been labeled a radical by opponents.

In the following interviews, meet the two candidates.

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1694-politics-interviews-one-these-two-women-will-be-mayor-lima

Thousands celebrate Peru’s cuisine at Mistura

President Alan Garcia and Gaston Acurio were both present for the opening day of this year’s Mistura 2010. Through Sunday at Lima's Parque de la Exposicion, the food fair is bigger and bigger than ever.

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1663-cuisine-celebrating-perus-cuisine-thousands-attend-mistura-food-fest-lima

How to volunteer in Peru: Rebuilding Pisco

The city of Pisco is still recovering from the shattering 2007 earthquake. Here is an volunteer organization that does with rebuilding projects and more.

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1647-general-how-volunteer-peru-rebuilding-pisco

Journalism: English for the 21st Century

‘The two main drives in teenagers’ lives are for independence and acceptance; our approach to journalism supports these drives through favoring freedom of expression and showcasing student work on a variety of public platforms.’

By Esther Wojcicki

http://www.nieman.harvard.edu/reportsitem.aspx?id=102407

[ELTeCS_PERU] Language and thought: Does your language shape what you think?

Seventy years ago, in 1940, a popular science magazine published a short article that set in motion one of the trendiest intellectual fads of the 20th century. At first glance, there seemed little about the article to augur its subsequent celebrity. Neither the title, “Science and Linguistics,” nor the magazine, M.I.T.’s Technology Review, was most people’s idea of glamour. And the author, a chemical engineer who worked for an insurance company and moonlighted as an anthropology lecturer at Yale University, was an unlikely candidate for international superstardom. And yet Benjamin Lee Whorf let loose an alluring idea about language’s power over the mind, and his stirring prose seduced a whole generation into believing that our mother tongue restricts what we are able to think.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/29/magazine/29language-t.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all

Investing in Peru: Interview with KPMG

The auditing and professional services firm KPMG began operating in Peru in 1972. In this interview, Tim Treharne, Managing Director of KPMG's Latin America operations, talks about infrastructure projects and the investment climate in Peru.

By Silvia Mendoza Martínez, El Comercio

Adapted from Spanish by Diana Schwalb


http://www.livinginperu.com/business-1606-general-investing-perus-infrastructure-an-interview-with-kpmg

Foreigners Living in Peru: A young Texan who embraces Spanglish

Allison Garrett first discovered a love for the Spanish language when studying abroad in Costa Rica. After another stint in Bolivia, she knew Latin America was the place for her, and came to Peru in 2008 as a Rotary scholar. Originally from Texas, she now lives in Lima full time and runs a communications business. Not bad for only 26 years old.


Allison took the time to answer questions about Peru, speaking Spanglish and being a foreign woman in Lima.

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1589-expat-life-foreigners-

[ELTeCS_PERU] Happy Teacher´s Day

Dear Colleagues

Back in 1953, President Manuel Odría, established the 6th of July as the official Teacher´s Day. It was created to honour and pay tribute to the teachers of our country. The date was chosen because, on the same day in 1822, Gral. Jose de San Martín founded the first Teachers´ College in Peru.Today, once more, it is time to feel proud of our profesion and, also, to reflect about it.

The link below will take you to a very interesting article appeared in Revista Generaccion, written by a teacher.

Enjoy it and feel happy you have the chance, many don´t ever have, to do something for the good of others and the country.

Happy Teacher´s Day to us.

Cesar Klauer
http://www.generaccion.com/magazine/articulos/?id=1245

SAFE INTERNET FOR KIDS

Good evening:
I got a question for you: What is the importance of keeping children aware about the "ON LINE DANGERS"? , does this sound familiar to you?; in case it is not, please takea look at this video and give me your comments.

See you in class!!
Regards.

Prof. Giovanni Gonzales

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuaJcjxBK3U&feature=related

CONSUMING KIDS

Hello my dear students and colleagues:

Don`t you think that our children are consuming so much nowadays?, why is that so? ; if you have not realized yet about this matter, allow me to show you this video regarding this issue and please be so kind to write your comment about it.

I hope you enjoy it.
Regards

Prof. Giovanni Gonzales

How much does Peru pay for corruption?

Peru has lost 3 to 4 percent of GDP annually because of graft and corrupt — since 1820 — according to a recent book. Does it have to be this way? Columnist Leon Trahtemberg weighs in..

http://www.livinginperu.com/blogs/features/1415

Dophins in Peru: A biologist sees tourism as the way to conservation

While killing dolphins for their meat was made illegal in Peru in 1996, you can still find dolphin meat for as cheap as four soles per kilo in the black market. “Now, fishermen don’t touch the bottlenose dolphin, they hunt the darker dolphins instead,” says the German biologist Stefan Austermühle. “Once offshore, they cut out the meat in the ship’s hold and throw the bodies back in the sea to get rid of the evidence.” Austermühle has identified more than 1,500 dolphins off Peru's coast between Chorrillos and Paracas. (He also takes the amazing photos, shown above.) With an NGO formed with his Peruvian wife, they hope to start dolphin watching as a option for tourists and a strategy for dolphin conservation.

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1382-environment-dophins-peru-local-ngo-sees-tourism-as-way-conservation

Motivating Teenagers

Many teenagers will have had several years of contact with learning English before they start high school. These experiences may not always have been successful or enjoyable. Consequently, students may bring to the classroom preconceived ideas about whether learning English is fun or not, and whether they are "good" at languages or not. If their experience of learning English has not been positive, their level of interest and motivation may be low.


On the other hand, their previous experience of learning English may have been a positive one, in which case their level of motivation when they join the class may be quite high.

In either case, it is essential that their new English course contains topics which are interesting to them, and exercises which are intellectually challenging and which have "real-world" value in their eyes.

When you design your classes, include topics and tasks which interest, challenge and motivate students.

Here are some other ideas:

Use authentic photographs, magazine articles, website articles and emails

Try to bring in stories with characters students can identify themselves with

Focus on situations, topics and emotional issues which students will recognize and respond to

Present authentic functional language and everyday expressions which young British and American people use in conversations

Include topics which expand students' knowledge of the world

Contributed by Fuscoe, Kilbey, Freebairn, Bygrave & Copage, coauthors of the series for teenagers Upbeat

Getting health care in Peru

You may have moved to Peru and life is great. But what happened to your health care plan? This week Rodney Dodig, pictured here, tells us about his experience getting a yearly health plan at Clinica Good Hope for $285. Since then, Rodney has visited the clinic and has been impressed with the service — in English — and the up-to-date equipment. Read more about this health care option in Lima. (Note: This is not an endorsement for Clinica Good Hope, but rather one person's experience.)


Are you trying to quit smoking? Back in February Carsten Korch's father was visiting Lima and decided to give laser therapy a try. Freedom Terapias Láser is a U.S. franchise with a branch in Lima. After four sessions of treatment, Mr. Korch Sr. is back in Denmark and still abstaining from smoking (although still suffering from withdrawal). Read more about this new procedure to quit smoking.

http://www.livinginperu.com/blogs/features/1318

Trying to find a job in Peru, finding long hours and secret salaries

This week Victoria Lugovskaya writes about her job search difficulties as a new expat in Peru. It's quite different from the ways things are done back in Moscow. Lugovskaya writes about curious CV submission conventions, little transparency for salary offers and even some confusion by managers about the numbers of hour in a work week. “Listen, the official work time is 48 hours a week,” explained the director. “Maximum?” “Minimum. It’s according to Peruvian law.” Readers, both Peruvians and foreigners, will surely empathize with some of what Victoria says. But she also leaves on a positive note about the Peruvian work ethic: “What I like about Peruvians’ attitude to work is their sense of commitment and global understanding that work is important – to earn a living and to help each other.”

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1308-art-culture-lifestyle-long-hours-secret-salaries-peru-jobs-from-an-expat-perspective

Wanted: Who stole my laptop at Starbucks yesterday morning?

Yesterday, in the span of 45 seconds, a thief swiped my laptop in a Lima Starbucks. After some investigative work, I have a video here (please watch it) identifying a potential witness to the robbery. Most unfortunately, the establishment itself does not have a surveillance camera inside or outside to record these thieves in action, but it is my hope that Starbucks will consider to install these cameras to prevent others from loosing valuable effects while enjoying a cup of coffee in a nice environment among friends and family. Be aware that robberies like this one happen every day, and not only in Lima, so take good care of your personal belongings and do not trust anyone to look after your things. There are distractions every minute, and some which are planned specifically to rob you.

http://www.livinginperu.com/blogs/features/1245

A foreign face: Looking different in Peru

Victoria Lugovskaya came to Peru three months ago. She is Russian, blond and tall, and she doesn't live in the touristy districts of Lima. She, as you can imagined, is noticed. "Whenever I go out, all eyes are on me," Lugovskaya writes. But, she's not just complaining. "And once you get accustomed to the intense interest people show in your unusual looks, you may want to enjoy the benefits of being a foreigner in this country," she writes. "You’ll be welcome here. I learned it from a lot of little experiences when being very nice to me was of no benefit for the people who did it."

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1203-society-foreign-face-looking-different-peru

Climate Change: Taking an active role in Peru to preserve the planet

Since 1990, the planet has seen its highest average temperatures ever. Peru is one of the most vulnerable countries to this because of the great amount of glaciers the territory has. And, as a response to that, various organizations are taking active roles of prevention. International groups have created numerous approaches to counteract the effects of climate change. But to guarantee a positive result, they need to get people involved in this global matter. So the question remains: Why isn’t everyone involved yet? In this analysis, Roxana Ormeño talks to environmentalists about what campaigns are being done in Peru, and what ordinary citizens can do to live environmentally sound.
http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1195-environment-climate-change-taking-an-active-role-peru-preserve-planet

[ELTeCS_PERU] CAMELOT'S new division "Standards Peru"

CAMELOT Teacher Training Centre launches its new Division named STANDARDS PERU “Quality English for Everyone”, a division that seeks to guarantee and certify the educational quality offered by educational institutions and ELT Professionals.


This Division is a response to the need of the educational population to acquire a second language (English), based on International Quality Standards. Therefore an evaluation process will be set in order to obtain the ELT QUALITY CERTIFICATE issued by Camelot Teacher Training Center and valid nationwide.

With this new division CAMELOT wants to become the first Peruvian educational institution honestly concerned about helping teachers of English by identifying their strengths and weaknesses and giving them the chance to overcome those limitations, having as support its 18 years of experience and more than 2,000 teachers officially certified as English Instructors by Camelot and the Ministry of Education.

Time has come for the private sector to get involved in this project that will benefit all the youth of our nation.

Soon, for more information, please visit our website: http://www.camelot-lang.org/

CAMELOT Teacher Training Centre

Arturo Field
Manager

[ELTeCS_PERU] REMINDER: Invitation to the Web chat on Reciprocal Teaching!

Cesar Klauer to ELTeCS_PERU

Dear Colleagues,

The Regional English Language Office and the Information Resource Center from the US Embassy in Lima are very pleased to invite you to Part II of the Web chat on Reciprocal Teaching.

This Web chat on Reciprocal Teaching: Supporting Text Comprehension, Part II, will be presented by Sandy Anderson, Senior English Language Fellow.

It will be held on Wednesday, February 10 from 4:00 to 4:45 p.m., and it will be repeated on Friday, February 12 from 8:30 to 9:15 a.m.

Please join us by clicking on the following link: https://statedept.connectsolutions.com/peru; choose “Enter as a Guest”. Use your name and your city as your user name, for example Marcela Lima or Marcela RELO Lima.

We are looking forward to seeing you there, and your feedback will be deeply appreciated.

Sincerely,

Marcela Raffo
RELO Assistant
Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela
US Embassy, Lima-Peru
marcelaraffo@gmail.com

Being an expat: Do you miss "it," home?

"Don’t ya miss it?”


My friend recently asked me this question. Then he waited, looking at me expectantly as I pondered the answer.

I, of course, realized that he was referring to my previous life in California and how it compares to living in Lima as an expatriate.

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1116-general-being-an-expat-do-you-miss-it-home-

The Second Tongue: Communicating in a bilingual relationship

                                          

I haven’t a clue what you are saying.

Que me dijiste?

What did you say?

No te entiendo. Que dices?

I don’t understand. Please repeat.

That’s not what I meant at all.

These are parts of dialogues from couples suffering from “The Second Tongue.”

http://www.livinginperu.com/features-1105-art-culture-lifestyle-second-tongue-communicating-bilingual-relationship