What is your way to learn English?

Sometimes we catch ourselves thinking on the best way possible to learn English. Finding it out is not very easy, especially when we are tied up in our work or day-by-day activities.

What we suggest today is to find something in which you are really interested. Do it, but do it in English. That is a very nice experience because you will be naturally inducted to practice.

It doesn't matter what it is... it can be talking to a friend, watching a movie, writing a list for your shopping at the supermarket, sending an e-mail, playing a game, singing...

By the way, we listened to a song (OneRepublic, 'All this time') and had previously searched for its lyrics on the Internet. Then, we printed them and cut each verse out. We mixed the pieces of paper up and, while we were listening to the song, we put them on a table in the correct order.

By picking up a song, we can learn many things from its lyrics: we can improve our vocabulary, study grammar, figure the rhymes out and much more...

When you find something that you like to do and you do it in English, it can be as good and interesting as you wish!

What would you suggest?

How to think in English?

It can be really difficult to think in a foreign language automatically. That ability demands lots of time to get used to the new vocabulary and expressions and to the different grammar structure.

In our classes at the English Lab, our new challenge is to develop some techniques to improve our way to read, to write, to listen and to speak, always doing it directly in English and avoiding translations from Portuguese.

Literal translations usually create strange texts or conversations, as they make us use foreign words in the grammar structure of our mother tongue.

Last Saturday, the English Lab proposed a new task for the students: to write English words, verbs and expressions down on pieces of paper, as a brainstorm, using the idea of "how to think in English?". Any words could be used and the aim was to write a short text about the subject.

The text was written on the board, considering the pieces of paper and as long as ideas came to the students' minds, with the help of the teacher. Three parts (paragraphs) were considered: the introduction, the development of ideas and arguments and the conclusion.

The result was quite interesting and here it follows:

Brainstorm of words, expressions and verbs.

Final text.

"Learning English in Brazil can be difficult because not all people have good English classes in basic school. When we get older, it is even harder as we naturally start to forget things. One of the worst problems we face is to think in English when we are used to Portuguese.

When we try to get in contact with English, it is important to not be shy and to learn it step by step. It can also be useful to find someone that speaks English with you. Reading books, watching TV and movies, listening to an online radio, saving some time in your day to look for something interesting and pleasant to do, but in English - everything that you love to do may open your mind to English.

Find your way to think in English, just like we have done here!"

And you? What is your way to think in English? Do you have any tips? Leave us a comment! :)

Water and energy

In the first moments of 2015, the students read an article from BBC News about the drought in Southeast Brazil (click here).

After reading that, they were supposed to write a short opinion text about the following idea:

Why is it important to save water and energy? What do you do in order to save those resources?

Here are some of the best ideas we got from this activity. Enjoy!

One

'Saving water and energy is important for the planet to survive.

Most of the energy in Brazil comes from hydroelectric power plants. Without water, humankind would not survive because we need water to drink and to produce food and energy.

Alternative sources of energy are very important.

I reduced the time I took on bathing and dropped the water temperature down in my shower. Lights are only on when they are needed. Clothes are ironed when we have a large amount of them. Tableware and clothes are carefully washed.

There are many ways to save water and energy, but those are the ways that I'm choosing.'

Vilma

Two

'Water is the most important resource our planet has. Water is life, water is energy. We can't live without water. People should think about that before using it carelessly.

In Brazil, energy is almost totally dependant on water, so if we don't have water, soon we will not have energy too.

I believe everyone should save as much as they can. I have myself turned off many things that used to be on before the crisis: clocks, radio and blu-ray players. In addition, I wash my clothes only twice a week. By doing little things like those, people would save not only resources, but also their money!'

Virginia

Three

'Men need to be aware that, from now on, we must save water.

Wash the dishes inside a basin; the amount of water that is wasted is larger than what we used to have before. When using the washing machine, we can reuse the water by collecting it in bottles or gallons to wash the backyard. We must water the plants with a pot and never with the hose.

Switch off the lights when leaving the room. Pile clothes up and wash them once a week. Iron the clothes also once a week.

Water is precious because we need it to survive!'

Maria Cecília

Four

'We all know that we can't live without water and, consequently, without energy! Water is essencial for plants, animals and mankind! Men haven't understood the importance of preserving yet. There isn't life without water.

The human being can live without food for several days, but can't go on for three days with no water.

Energy is also essential for life in our planet. Everything depends on it.

To save water, we only need simple measures in our day-by-day life. For example, having a shower in five minutes, turning the tap off while brushing your teeth. I usually have a shower with a bowl under in the shower. I reuse this water to flush the toilet. We can save about six litres of water a day with that.

We can also collect rainwater and use it to wash sidewalks, yards, laundry areas etc.

To save electricity, we can switch the shower to the 'summer' position. At home, I turn all the electrical appliances that have the 'stand-by' light off, only keeping the refrigerator on. We must pile the clothes up and iron them all at once.

With those small actions, we can be sure that we can play our part on saving the planet!'

Dilana

What about you? Are you completely aware of this issue? We hope you get some inspiration from our ideas!

St. Patrick's Day 2015 - The Party

Here are some pictures of our St. Patrick's Day celebration! We had a good time!

The students could learn a bit more from the Irish culture and the history of St. Patrick in a very cheerful ambience.

Irish Culture corner - the students could find some more details about St. Patrick and the celebration symbols. 

Our gang!

Each student received a small paper card where a popular quote was written - some of them were clearly Irish humour jokes. They were told to write some good wishes on the back side of the card and give it to a classmate as a gift, just as some people do on St. Patrick's Day.

After that, we played a mimics game based on the famous one called 'Pictionary'. It was fun!

Some people wore green and it made the vibe special!

Time to celebrate!

Cheers! - or 'Sláinte', as the Irish say -, with some coke.

('Sláinte' is pronounced 'Slawn-tcha').

Everyone these days takes a 'selfie', so why can't we? :)

St. Patrick's Day 2015 - Preparation

On 17th March, the world celebrates St. Patrick's Day - specially the countries where English is spoken.

St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland and he lived from the year 385 to 461. He was born in Britain but, when he was a young man, he was captured by raiders from Ireland and became a slave. He managed to get back to his hometown and studied to be a bishop. Some years later, he returned to Ireland and taught the Christian Catholic faith to Irish people.

The Irish people in that time did not have a specific religion, but they believed in natural elements: the sun, the soil, water... St. Patrick tried to adapt their culture to the Christian faith. The most remarkable example is the shamrock - a three-leaf clover -, which symbolises the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. They are three persons (three leaves) united in one, just as God is.

The shamrock today is one of the famous symbols for St. Patrick's Day and green is the party's oficial colour.

In order to make our own celebration, we organised some special snacks and candies, as well as games! Take a look at the following tips!

St. Patrick's Day cookies

Want to try a delicious and easy-to-make cookie? Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

• 100g of sugar;
• 200g of butter (it can be margarine);
• 300g of wheat flour;
• 1/2 tablespoon of lime zest (remember: 'lime' in Brazil is the green small one);
• Green granulated sugar.

Mix the sugar, the butter, the flour and the lime zest. Mash them together and roll the dough over a flat surface. Cut the dough roll in pieces and press a fork over them. Sprinkle the green sugar over the cookies and bake them using medium temperature for 30 minutes (or until they are golden). Let them cool down and ENJOY!

Shamrock Lime Jelly

A beautiful and different candy can be made in minutes! Just buy some small plastic cups and attach a shamrock made of rubber. Fill them in with green lime jelly. That's an easy idea for your celebration!

The Party Take-Away Gift

What if we created a small take-away gift for all the students who came to celebrate St. Patrick's Day? A green cardboard shamrock with a chocolate coin (did the Leprechaun bring it?) and an Irish blessing message seemed the perfect way to make this day special!

Irish blessings found inside the gift:

"May you always have work for your hands to do.
May your pockets always hold a coin or two.
May the sun shine bright on your windowpane.
May the rainbow be certain to follow each rain.
May the hand of a friend always be near you,
And may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you."

"May the road rise to meet you
May the wind be always at your back,
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
The rains fall soft upon your fields, and,
Until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand."

Campaign on courtesy and respect

Last year, the students were invited to create, in groups, an advertising poster for a fictitious campaign on courtesy and respect - a nice way to practice the Imperative.

Take a look at the fancy ads we've got!

Why English Harbour?

Por que "English Harbour"?

Apesar de ter me formado engenheiro e trabalhar na área, sempre tive um "pezinho" nas Áreas Humanas, desde muito novo. Um dos meus grandes prazeres é aprender um idioma, em especial o Inglês, e usá-lo o máximo que conseguir para ler, escrever e conversar com pessoas de outros países.

Claro que não tenho a capacidade e o preparo de um pedagogo ou professor de línguas, mas posso dizer que "dou meus pulos". Sempre corri atrás para saber mais e mais e, desde os 12 anos de idade, não paro de aprender Inglês. Dia após dia. E é essa vontade de aprender intensamente, de forma prática, que tento passar aos meus alunos do Projeto Dom Bosco, em que sou professor voluntário. Cá entre nós: costumo dizer, humildemente, que aprendo mais com os alunos do que eles comigo!

Estamos criando, a partir de 2015, o "Laboratório de Língua Inglesa". É uma forma de reforçar o inglês que todos já sabem - tanto para alunos que já participavam do Projeto quanto para novos alunos com noções básicas da língua - por meio de atividades dinâmicas, leitura, criação de textos, conversação, música e jogos.

Surgiu a ideia de criar um blog para a turma, em que podem ser divulgados materiais produzidos pelos próprios alunos como forma de incentivo para eles e para quem lê e quer aprender mais.

Para criar o nome deste blog, em termos de estudo do Inglês, pensei em uma palavra que pudesse expressar tanto as sensações de "segurança" e "referência" quanto as possibilidades de abrir novos horizontes, de descobrir novos amigos e contatos, de conhecer outras culturas por meio do idioma, de enxergar um novo mundo.

Nenhuma palavra me pareceu mais adequada do que "PORTO".

Ao invés de utilizar a palavra mais comum "Port", em inglês - que, na verdade, pode significar outras coisas -, optei por utilizar a palavra "Harbour", grafada com "U", como no inglês britânico (os americanos preferem "Harbor").

Meu desejo com este blog é criar um "porto seguro" para todos os estudantes e amantes do Inglês, por meio de novas ideias que facilitem o aprendizado, tornando-o mais prazeroso e menos forçado.

Que "My English Harbour" seja um incentivo tanto aos meus queridos alunos quanto aos leitores que navegam por aqui.

Que o aprendizado de Inglês seja mais que uma obrigação dos dias de hoje, mais que um conteúdo de currículo!

Que o estudo da Língua Inglesa seja uma forma legal e divertida de conhecer mais sobre outros povos, que seja um meio de nos desenvolver, de soltar o verbo, de entender e respeitar o próximo, de fazer amizades, de conhecer ideias novas! Que seja, enfim, uma ferramenta pra melhorar o que está à nossa volta!

Topa vir com a gente? Hora de zarpar!

Abraços,

Renato.