A Wonderful Thing

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Click here for the PDF file of a colorful children's book. I think you will enjoy following along with the song and looking at the pictures.


Mission

To bring the people of the world closer together through Harmonized Energy and Right Thinking, and to prepare students for real-world discussions in English about critical issues of our time.


Topics

A variety of topics will be discussed including science, spirituality, environment, economics, service, tolerance, love, peace, creativity, and compassion.


Methods

A range of methods will be used to help students acquire English, including reading, writing, doing art, having discussions, sharing, and participating in field trips. Grammar will be learned as students write papers, poems, and stories. Pronunciation will be addressed as students prepare to give presentations and/or speeches.


Format

There will be weekly face-to-face meetings and online discussions.

Time: Tuesdays, 7:30 pm - 9:00 pm
Location: Kawaguchi (and online via Skype)

3-2-1 Self-Assessment

Every topic is written at 3 levels: BEGINNER, INTERMEDIATE, and ADVANCED. Students will first read the advanced level and do a self-assessment on how much of the reading they understand. Next, they will assess themselves at the intermediate level. Finally, they will assess themselves at the beginner level.



Goal Setting

Students will set a goal based on their self-assessments. The goal may be to understand level 1 at 100%, or it may be to understand level 2 at 100%, or, if they completely understand levels 1 and 2, then the goal would be to understand level 3.



Formal Exams

Students will be encouraged to take the Eiken or TOEIC test before or at the beginning of the lessons and at 6-month intervals as lessons progress. There will also be short quizzes both online and during face-to-face sessions.




Community

There will be an online community on Facebook where there will be discussions about the current topic and previous topics.


Announcements

  • Additional Resources There is now a page called "Additional Resources" where you can find further articles and videos regarding the class topics. So far, there are three links to the topic "Dark Matter" and two links to articles about politics.
    Posted May 24, 2012, 8:15 AM by Vincent Marx
  • Course Guidelines Course GuidelinesLesson Format• Each lesson is written at 3 levels (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced). READ THEM ALL.• Each lesson has four sections (a short reading, a key word section, a conversation section,and useful phrases section),• Each unit will address all forms of communication (reading, listening, writing, andspeaking).Readings• Advanced students can learn level 3 by understanding the context from levels 1 and 2.• Intermediate students can learn level 2 by understanding the context from level 1, and theycan challenge themselves to learn more complex English sentences by reading level 3.• Beginners can learn level 1 by reading the “Key Word” section, and they can challengethemselves to learn more complex English sentences by reading levels 2 and ...
    Posted May 24, 2012, 8:18 AM by Vincent Marx
Showing posts 1 - 2 of 3. View more »

Grammar

  • Unit 1 Language Pattern What do you think _____ (we, government, businesses) should do about _____ (war, prejudice, dirty air)?
    Posted Apr 17, 2012, 10:08 PM by Vincent Marx
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Readings and Dialogues

  • Believe! Unit 3So, how can we believe that peace is possible when there are so many reports of violence in the news? That may be the most difficult question of ...
    Posted Jun 11, 2012, 5:42 PM by Vincent Marx
  • Unit 2 Materials for Unit 2, Levels 1, 2, and 3
    Posted Apr 23, 2012, 9:38 PM by Vincent Marx
  • Unit 1 Materials for Unit 1, Levels 1, 2, and 3
    Posted Apr 10, 2012, 1:08 AM by Vincent Marx
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