Just Under the Wire!

Gentlemen, good evening. Here are two worksheets that I want you to study tonight in preparation for tomorrow's class. They should help you with forming plural nouns as well as knowing when to use the definite and indefinite articles with these nouns. There are two exercises in your student and workbooks that deal with these two grammar points. Page 33 of your student book has an exercise #2 that asks you to use any one of the articles, a, an or the or nothing at all. Page 25 of the workbook deals with plural nouns and we will go over them in class. Please refer to the explanations here to help you understand those exercises. If there are any questions, please ask during class.

Plural Noun rules

When and how to use the articles

This Week's Plan

Gentlemen, this week will be shortened because of the United Arab Emirates' National Day celebration on Thursday, December 2. Therefore we will do a National Day project in class, where you will have one period each day to design your project. You will work in groups to design a multimedia presentation, but each member of the group will have to write a 75 word essay on 'What National Day in the UAE means to me' and turn that into me before 3pm on Wednesday. Some of this work will require you do it at home. Stay tuned for more details in class. Also, don't forget there will be a brief English quiz on Wednesday on unit 4 for all grade 10 students.

See you in class!

Your Astonishing Brain

Your Astonishing Brain
Your brain can keep learning from birth till the end of life:
Understanding the basics of your brain and your "intelligences" can literally change your life. It will change:
Your attitude to learning
Your learning results
Your creative output
Your problem-solving ability, and
Your SUCCESS in any aspect of life that involves learning.

10.11, 10.9 and 10.8.
Welcome back after a fun filled and relaxing break. These holidays must have given you a great start for LC2. The first day with all of you was really interesting. I am glad to know that you spend your break with exciting activities. I received your first draft about the 'Eid Holidays' today. For all those who haven't submitted the writing must turn in their story before Thursday. I'll return your first draft which must then be revised and edited by you for a final evaluation.

New Vocabulary

A new list of vocab words appears below. Some of these words we've used in everyday language, like revise and attendance, and some others we've come across during our normal current/authentic reading exercises, like initiative, evade and consideration. Tomorrow, I will upload an exercise for you to use with these words but first I want to give a brief sketch using them in class. The new vocabulary words are

riot evade harangue lend persistent

revision acquit attendance initiative

consideration ensue

Homework!

Yup, we have homework already! Sorry but it's a simple task and it's due first thing Monday morning. On page 19 of your student workbook, you must type on your laptops in MS Word, exercise 9, Choosing the correct form. G10-04 your work is due 1st period on Monday, and G10-09 the third period. I don't want you to merely circle the choice in your book; I want you to type the complete sentence with the correct choice to submit it to me in my drop box Monday morning. Not too much to ask is it? Again, this is due MONDAY!

Welcome Back

Welcome back to all G10 students here at IAT-DXB and a special shout out to G10-04 & G10-09. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday period with friends and family and I look forward to the coming days when we'll get back into speaking, writing and reading in English.

When we ended LC 1 G10 students had just received their brand new laptops but we never really got into our classroom routine with them so I want to take this time to establish the rules about using the laptops in English class. At no time are games or music allowed to be played on your laptops in class. You are to have your web browsers connected to those links that I give you to work on during class; no surfing or browsing on links that have nothing to do with English. In fact gentlemen, I do not want you connected to the school's internet access points at all. When you come to class your laptops should be closed, tops down, until I direct you to the site I want you to work on. We will usually start off connecting to a network I create in order to give you your class assignments for the day or to return your homework, but I will tell you what is the name of that network when you enter class.

The laptops are a great educational tool and they can be entertaining as well. We will use them for both but under the supervision of your teacher. If anyone is found using his laptop in class visiting websites he is not authorized to log onto I will ask him to surrender his laptop and he will have to get it from G10's counselor, Ayman Serry.

Another practice we will continue during this learning cycle is going to our school's library. A few times last learning cycle the noise level and behavior of some of the students was not appropriate for the library. When you are there you are to speak in a low voice, raise your hand to be recognized by the librarian, Ms. Margaret Smallpeice and choose books to read if she doesn't have an activity for you to do. Please respect the rules of the library and the people who work there. The same rules that apply in our classroom apply in the library too. Therefore do not take water bottles into the library, don't write on the tables and don't leave paper on the tables, chairs or floor. I took this picture of one of the students who was really reading a book he chose. He didn't know I was taking his picture and I didn't ask him to pose for it. He is a good example of how you should behave while in the library.

One last item. Don't forget,it is your responsibility to check out the G10 blog everyday for assignments and notes about class activity. Usually such items will be posted by 6pm and before 8pm and clear instructions about when the assignment is due will be included with the posts. Now that is all out of the way....let's get busy. God willing, see you in class!

Respect and a shout out to....

the students of G10-04 and G10-09 for very good discussions on the meaning of the past continuous verb tense. A special shout out of respect to Omar Salim and Abdulla Qassim who used that verb tense and or explained it in ways even better than I! My hats off to all of you. Now the exercise below will be the final call for dealing with this very unusual verb tense. It is a homework assignment and due on Thursday, the last day of class for a few days. Telling you about it now should give you plenty of time to do it. God willing, by the time you read this you will have received your laptops so please have this done on your laptop and I will tell you in class how to give it to me on Thursday morning. This assignment is for both 10-04 & 10-09. See you in class

Unscramble these sentences that are based on the past continuous verb tense. Pay close attention to periods and commas when rewriting these sentences.

1- . cat cooking dinner I my threw up was when

2- . cleaning I mess rang telephone the the up was when

3- , . I Leslie on phone talking the TV was was watching while

4- . accident he Ken saw store the the to walking was when

5- , . 911 ambulance arrived calling Ken the was when

6- . because didn’t hear I I Ken’s sleeping story was

7- . breakfast I Leslie making me story the told was while

Principles of Study Skills:

1. Preparation is the most important skill for any person.
"Your mind is like a parachute – it only works when it’s open"……Anonymous.
Preparing your study environment, your attitude and your focus will have an amazingly positive impact on the effectiveness of your learning activity.
2. Being Organized: Getting yourself organized by having a plan for every action, writing the plan and reviewing it constantly helps.
3. Being Disciplined: There is no substitute for self-control and discipline. The best study techniques, tricks and hints are useless if you have no will power to put them into practice.
4. Being persistent: Persistence is more important than talent, genius or luck so , it can really keep you moving on.

5. Being Successful: “Nothing succeeds like success”----Alexandre Dumas. So, don't be content with “good enough”. The thing always happens that you believe in; and the belief in a thing makes it happen. So........................."Make things happen.”

LET'S GO SHOPPING

As the recession takes hold, consumers who used to shop impulsively are seeking ways to rein in their spending, and many are finding that sticking to a list can help them navigate through stores and limit their purchases.The old-fashioned list is getting a boost from new technology. While plenty of people still scratch lists on envelopes, napkins and wrappings from the morning's doughnut, a growing abundance of online shopping-list services is changing the way shoppers plan their outings.The online lists, launched in recent years by grocery chains and independent companies, can be accessed through all types of media, including messaging services and smart phones. The features include links to online coupons and auto-suggest features based on items listed in the past.



But students from class 10.10 , have come up with their longest list to go shopping this weekend, as part of their class activity on Unit 4- NHPSB.
Students please follow the link provided to prepare your shopping lists, in the future!!
http://www.grocerywiz.com/Dairy.aspx

Shout out to G10-04 & G10-09

The IAT Dubai Podcast Network: The DXBCast - Show #1 - October 31, 2010: "Hosted by Ahmed Hamza & Ahmed Hussain Topics 1) LC 1 - Exam Schedule 2) Exam Class Timings 3) The NEW Bubble Sheet

This is the kind of creativity you have at your fingertips here at IAT-DXB. If you want to hear the podcasts while at home you can find them at this link and if any of you are interested in having a place to vocally express yourselves in English, please see either the students mentioned above or their advisor teacher James O'Hearn. Maybe one day soon we'll hear your voice over the air here at IAT-Dubai!

How to Prepare For Exams

LC1 Exams are here and its a buys time for all for you. Here a few tips that should help you through the next two weeks. Aside from good preparation, make sure you all get a good night's sleep before each exam!!

1. Essay Exams
* Ask your teacher/professor for a few practice questions
* Time yourself and write a sample essay or two a couple days ahead of time
* Look over old essay questions (if available)
2. Multiple Choice
* Practice practice practice
* Go over several old exams to get used to the format
* Memorize facts using flashcards or group questionnaires
* Do not cram (for you will inevitably forget information)
3. Matching
* Memorize facts using flashcards
* Group question-answer studying
* Try your own matching tests, test yourself
4. Fill in the Blanks
* Test yourself with self-made tests
* Ask your teacher for old tests and practice on those
* Study with flashcards of facts
* Test friends in a study group
5. Oral Exams
* First outline all you plan to say on paper
* Practice it aloud to yourself
* Practice in front of a mirror (to see body language, hand gestures)
* Practice aloud to an audience (of family or friends)