Blog Homework 3: Your Role Model

Hi guys. It was good to chat today after the long winter holiday break, and I also enjoyed the souvenirs – yummy! Okay, in today’s homework – which is our last blog homework – I’d like you to write about someone you admire... someone you look up to... your role model.

Especially since reading his first book “Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance” I have really come to admire Barack Obama. I think that his journey, from a young man unsure of his own identity to a man so passionate and committed to changing society for the better is just amazing. I really respect him for being so open about his life and experiences so far, and I think his down-to-earth attitude will make him a true “people’s president”. And I really admire the fact that he seems to genuinely care about the situation of people in hardship and of small communities, and that he is not self-centered and just in the game for the money and power. He seems to have a lot of ideas for enacting change and uniting divided sections of the community, and I’m really looking forward to his next four years (hopefully eight) as president.

Okay, so now it’s your turn. Who do you admire, and why? I’m looking forward to reading your responses.

See you in next week’s class – our last class!!

Kris

Blog Homework 2: Confessions...

Hi everyone,

I hope you are keeping well, and managing to cope with the colder weather.

Okay… in this week’s blog, I’d like you to confess to your own personal obsessions or addictions. You can start your blog entry by using phrases like “Okay, I confess, I…” or “Okay, I admit it, I…” if you like. Don’t write anything too personal though!! Here’s mine:

Actually, to be honest, I don’t think I have any major obsessions or addictions. I like chocolate but I wouldn’t call myself a chocoholic. I enjoy working, but I don’t think I’m a workaholic. I like to eat healthily, but I wouldn’t call myself a health nut. The one “addiction” I guess I sometimes have is that I get hooked on certain foods, and won’t eat anything but them for maybe 2 weeks, and then I’ll suddenly stop eating them, and maybe never eat them again!! For example, when I was in university I suddenly became addicted to “tomato sauce”. I ate it with everything for nearly 3 weeks, and then suddenly stopped eating it. About 2 years ago I got hooked on adding plain yogurt to all of my meals. I ate it with salad, with cold noodles, with muesli. This lasted for about a month, and then I got sick of it… although I do sometime use yogurt instead of salad dressing when I eat salad even now. You really should try it… it’s actually quite delicious!

Okay, so it’s not quite an “obsession” per se… but this is my little “addiction”.

Anyway, enough from me. I’d like to hear about your “obsessions”! Looking forward to hearing from you.

Kris

Blog Homework 1: Making Complaints

Hi everyone,

I hope you enjoyed today’s class. Well, this week I want us to discuss Bonus Speaking Question 2: “If someone is annoying you, is it better to complain or to keep quiet? Why?”

What do you think about this question? Personally, I think I complain sometimes and keep quiet other times… but I’m probably more likely to keep quiet. If the source of my annoyance is my family or my boyfriend, I’ll probably say something. If it is a friend, I’ll probably keep quiet. When it comes to things that happen in public, like on a train or at the movies, if it’s something that annoys not just me but other people around me, I might say something. But, I think I’d be less likely to say something these days because we often see cases on the news of people being randomly attacked in public. I remember, when I was a university student, I saw a high school boy being bullied on the train, and I yelled at the boys who were bullying him to stop. Now, I’m not sure if I would say something or not, because I wouldn’t know how they would react… they might become more violent.

Anyway, I think there are many opinions regarding this question… so let’s hear yours!! Please leave your comment by Midnight Tuesday… but of course, the earlier the better!!

Have a good week,
Kris

Welcome back!!

Hi everyone, and welcome back from the summer holiday! Can you believe that the holidays are over already??!! Didn't they go by so fast?? While I'm really happy to be back studying English with you... I'd really like another 1 or 2 weeks off!! Wouldn't you??!! Anyway... no rest for the wicked... as they say : ) So, the second semester begins today, and we will continue on with the work we were doing in the first semester, so please bring along the class handouts I gave you last semester.

Let's have a fun semester together!
Kris

Your Short Films

Hi again.

I've put all of your short films on the class blog. Please check out all of the films, and leave some comments to the other groups. By the way, I included some extra images in your films, I hope you don't mind.

Happy watching!
Kris

Group 3: No More Buts!

Hi everyone. Here's Midori, Tomoe and Yuki's short film. Please check it out and give them some comments.

Group 2: The Annoying Customer

Hi everyone! Here is Fumiko, Ryuji and Yui's short film. Please check it out and give them some comments. (Warning: Rude Language!)