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Funny and Weird

Hilarious dogs in the New York City subway

Dally and Spanky – the happiest horse and the happiest dog

Forget give the dog a bone*. This canine’s happiest with his pony sidekick* in tow*.

Dally, a six-year-old Jack Russell Terrier from Washington State, and his pal* Spanky, a seven-year-old miniature horse, were rescued by horse trainer Francesca Carson and have worked together since.

The dynamic duo appear* to be inseparable*, despite* their difference in size.

bone [bəun] кость
sidekick [‘saɪdkɪk] закадычный друг
sidekick in tow – (Phrase) If you have someone in tow, they are following you closely because you are looking after them or you are leading them somewhere. [INFORMAL]
pal [pæl] приятель
appear [ə’pɪə] появляться; казаться
inseparable [ɪn’sep(ə)rəbl] неотделимый
despite [dɪ’spaɪt] несмотря на, вопреки чему-л. (e.g. despite all odds)

At their Hunter’s Washington ranch equine traders [1] Francesca Carson and Steve Rother tend to [2] their horses. Their Jack Russell Terrier Dally has her own personal favourite in the herd [3]. A miniature horse named Spanky.

Francesca:“Dally and Spanky I think a lot like brother and sister.”

Before this unlikely friendship started, Spanky was a very different horse, his previous owner [4] noticed he was aggressive.

Francesca: “He didn’t really like other animals he’s running around biting [5] kicking [6]  very aggressive to other horses.”

Francesca and Steve adopted the combative [7]  horse and started training him. Francesca: “I started to teach him a couple of things he needed to have a purpose.”

Then the couple checked out [8] a litter [9] of Jack Russell puppies [10]. They were drawn to the runt [11] and named her Dally. The puppy watched Francesca trained the feisty [12] horse.

When Dally was 6 months old, she was done being a spectator [13].

Francesca: “She just pumped on his back which really surprised me. Spanky seemed to enjoy the fact that Dally had hopped up [14] onto his bag. Dally setup they’re all proud from then on she just always wanted to be on him.”

…Francesca started training the two together.

Francesca: “She was so excited she was higher up she just enjoyed writing Spanky she felt important and it was her pony.”

Dally wouldn’t leave Spanky side, even when the mini horse performed in front of the crowds.

Steve: “I remember the first time I ever went out for a show Dally was just a year old that dog lit up that night and little Spanky he was excited to have somebody with him out there on stage finally is a good team.”

Four years late Spanky’s bad behaviour is gone thanks to his a likely best friend. Francesca: “Dally has had a calming effect [15]on Spanky. We used to put spank [16] him with some other horses and he’d immediately become aggressive and he no longer does that.”

Steve:“Dogs can have a therapeutic and calming effect on people what’s surprising in this case is that Dally also has a calming effect on the horse it shows how emotionally intelligent dogs can be.”

Dally is right by her buddy side when they Joe off their custom-made [17] feeding bar [18]. During Spanky’s grooming [19] Dally spends time in her favourite spot.

Francesca: “Dally loves to hang out [20] on Spanky especially when I’m grooming him she’s really really cosy [21] up there and he doesn’t seem to mine at all, in fact, I think he quite likes him.”

This horseback-riding [22] Poochie even gets a special saddle.

Francesca:“We clip the rest of Spanky because he has a lot of hair he doesn’t shed out [23] and it’s very hot here in the summer but leave a patch of hair on him and it makes it real cosy for Dally and then she can kind of grip and ride them much better.”

Another part of this miniature horse is maintenance our long rides for exercise. Even then Dally is right there

Steve: “He Dally doesn’t want to let him out of his sight [24] and she loves the exercise.”

Francesca: “Spanky has a tendency to put on weight quite easily so a way to keep him healthy and exercising is to bring him up here. Dally hates to be apart from him so of course she always wants to come.”

Miniature horses are more prone to obesity than their larger cousins to do their small size, so it’s really great that Dally gets regular exercise and has a best friend to work out with. After exercising the pair quenches [25] their thirst at a nearby creek [26]. Spanky gulps down [27] more water than Dally miniature horses drink around 5 gallons of water, a day dally only needs 1 to 2 cups. Then it’s time for this duo to rehearse [28] their act.

Francesca: “Work has really strengthened their bond the fact they do shows they have to depend on each other when Spanky goes over a jump Dally has to trust him.”

Spanky’s not a one-trick pony he’ll try anything as long as Daly’s along for the ride.

Francesca: “They love it. It’s a lot of fun, they really enjoy it.”

These are likely animal friends are an NSYNC team. Will they be able to pull off a completely new stunt [29].

Dally a Jack Russell and Spanky miniature horse are a performing daredevil [30] duo. These unlikely friends are always up for a new challenge.

Francesca: “So I’m about to try a new trick it’s a double jump it’s gonna take a lot of focus on both their parts. Spanky loved to do the tricks they know but I think they like the excitement of a new trick. Ready? This trick is much harder than doing one hurdle because they have to stay focused for two they have to stay straight it’s much more difficult. I’m really excited they did awesome both of them and they think so too. We’ve seen dogs on surfboards and skateboards before but it shows true athleticism that Dally is able to ride Spanky this way not only that there has to be a great amount of trust between these two animals for them to be able to perform these stunts.”

The duo finishes their training session with an exercise that builds patience.

Francesca: I’ve taught him to lay down which really helped his personality lies. Obeying and staying calm like this is something Spanky would never have done before his training and friendship with Dally.

Francesca: “And now he’s come to love laying down.”

Every spring these unusual friends take their act on the road.

Francesca: “The secret to their success in the shows is that they enjoy each other and they have a good relationship, their friendship is really the catalyst for the shows. I never wanted a dog and pony show but that’s exactly what I got.” Audiences across the country are amazed and touched by the friendship between these unlikely animal friends.

Francesca: “I love to see the joy they bring to people old people young people. I mean it’s just amazing to see that looks on their faces and that just the delight when those two are up to their antics [31].”

Even when they’re not working this horse and pooch can’t get enough of each other.

Francesca: “Spanky Dahlia oh really close and I think each year that goes by they just get closer and closer.”

Dally and Spanky are proof that life is better when a good friend has got your back.

Francesca: “They’ve got a great and special bond I don’t know if I’ll ever see anything like that again.”

Glossary:

equine [‘ekwaɪn] traders [‘treɪdəz] торговцы лошадьми
tend to [tend] ухаживать за кем-либо
herd [hɜːd] стая
previous [‘priːvɪəs] owner – предыдущий владелец
biting [‘baɪtɪŋ] кусаясь
kicking |ˈkɪkɪŋ| лягаясь
combative [‘kɔmbətɪv] агрессивный
checked out – отметила (здесь как: взяла себе)
litter [‘lɪtə] приплод, помет
Jack Russell puppy [‘pʌpɪ] щенок породы Джек Рассел
runt [rʌnt] самое маленькое животное (в помете)
feisty [‘faɪstɪ] вздорный
spectator [spek’teɪtə] наблюдатель
hopped up – вскочил
calming [‘kɑːmɪŋ] effect успокаивающий эффект
to put spank [spæŋk] шлепать
custom-made [‘kʌstəm] сделанная на заказ
feeding [‘fiːdɪŋ] bar [bɑː] падающая балка
grooming [ˈɡruːmɪŋ] чистка (лошади)
hang [hæŋ] out находиться, проводить время
cosy [‘kəuzɪ] уютный
horseback [‘hɔːsbæk] – riding [‘raɪdɪŋ] верховая езда
shed [ʃed] out сбрасывать
doesn’t want to let him out of his sight – не хочет упускать его из виду
quench [kwenʧ] – утолять (жажду)
creek [kriːk] ручей
gulp [gʌlp] down глотать
rehearse [rɪ’hɜːs] репетировать
stunt [stʌnt] трюк
daredevil [‘deəˌdev(ə)l] рисковый
antic [‘æntɪk] шалость

Interview with the young promising film director, David Danielyan

David Danielyan, director of feature films, gave an interview and announced his new work “To Other Worlds”

Interviewed by  Karina Darbinyan

– Что повлияло на выбор профессии? 

+Я ее не выбирал, она как-то просто была. Все началось само собой с просмотра мультфильма “Король Лев”.  Я плакал и не хотел мириться с несправедливой смертью. Решил внести исправления прямо на пленке, написав «его папа не умер», конечно после кассета  сломалась, и переписать сценарий у меня не получилось… Пример одного из моментов, когда чувствуешь потребность изменить ход событий, по сути – задатки    профессии режиссера.

В детстве мне казалось, что в моих глазах сидят какие-то человечки, открывался занавес и начиналось представление. Чем взрослее становился, тем больше хотелось   показать людям свой мир. Я в Пятигорске родился, окончил 30-ю школу, там постоянно меня просили снять видеоролики. Участвовал в форуме Машук – 2012 и выиграл грант.

В 2013 поступил  в Московский институт телевидения и радиовещания Останкино МИТРО.

– What influenced the choice of your profession?

+ I did not choose it, it was somehow just by itself. It all started by itself with watching the cartoon “The Lion King”. I cried and did not want to put up with an unjust death. I decided to make corrections right on the tape, writing “his dad did not die”. Of course, later the cassette broke down, and I couldn’t rewrite the script… That is an example of one of the moments when you feel the need to change the course of events. In fact, the making of the film director.

In childhood, it seemed to me that in my eyes some people were sitting, the curtain was opening and the performance began. The more mature I became, the more I wanted to show people my world. I was born in Pyatigorsk, graduated from the 30th school. At school, they constantly asked me to shoot videos. Participated in the forum Mashuk – 2012 and won a grant.

In 2013 I entered the Moscow Institute of Television and Radio Broadcasting Ostankino (MITRO).

– Твой успешный дебют в кино? Расскажи о фильме с которым участвовал в фестивале кино на Кавказских Минеральных Водах.

+Первый короткометражный фильм « Я так не думаю» . Мы его отсняли за 2 месяца.

Любил его, когда делал, без этого невозможно. Позже стал видеть, что хотел бы сделать лучше. Но  не смотря на это продолжаю показывать. Потому что, например, когда я показывал его в Белоруссии,  зритель немножко по-иному оценил картину, нежели российский, потому что у них тема национальных различий не настолько выражена.

– Your successful movie debut? Tell me about the film with which you participated in the film festival in the Caucasian Mineral Waters.

+ First short film “I don’t think so.” We shot it for 2 months.

I loved it when I was making it, it is impossible to do it without love. Later I began to see what I would like to do better in the movie. But despite this, I continue to show it. Because, for example, when I showed it in Belarus, the viewers appreciated the picture a bit differently than the Russian ones, because their theme of national differences is not so expressed.

Фильм о семнадцатилетнем Сереге, парень с детства воспитывавшемся  старшей сестрой Варварой. Скрывал то, что состоит в националистической группировке. Он никак не ожидал, что его сестра приведет домой представителя другой, столь не любимой Серегой национальности. Когда в группировке узнают о женихе Варвары — Мурате, Сереге поручают «проучить» жениха Варвары. У Серёги будет выбор — семья или группировка.

The film is about the seventeen-year-old Sergey, a guy from childhood raised by his older sister Varvara. He hid that he was in the nationalist group. He did not expect that his sister would bring home a representative of another nationality, not so beloved by Sergey. When the group finds out about Varvara’s bridegroom – Murat, Sergey is instructed to “teach a lesson” to Varvara’s bridegroom. Seryoga will have a choice – a family or a group.

– О качестве кино ты прежде всего судишь по каким критериям?

+ Драматургия и киногенетика, чувство монтажа и передача информации. Каждый фильм должен давать надежду. И в первую очередь он должен быть честным. Важно что-то глубокое, человечное.

By what criteria do you judge the quality of the movie?

+ Dramaturgy and “movie genetics” (movie editing), the feeling of editing and conveying the information. Every film should give hope. And first of all, he must be honest. Something deep and human.

– Тебе больше нравятся  драматические истории?

+ Пока да, мой язык – это драма.

Do you like dramatic stories more?

+ So far, yes, my language is a drama.

– Тебе больше нравятся  драматические истории?

+ Пока да, мой язык – это драма.

“ В иные миры”  – короткая предыстория полнометражного фильма.  Ребенок, которого оставили родители в детстве. У него свой внутренний мир, большой талант и воображение,  с детства увлекается астрономией и космосом. Режиссер знакомит нас с миром в котором рождается и взрослеет герой.

Do you like dramatic stories more?

+ So far, yes, my language is a drama.

“To Other Worlds”, a short prehistory of a feature (full-length) film. The film is about a child whose parents left him in childhood. He has his own inner world, great talent and imagination. Since childhood, he has been fond of astronomy and space. The director introduces us to the world where the hero is born and grows up.

– Что вдохновило на создание фильма ? Взят ли сюжет из твоей жизни?

+ У меня есть сценарий к моему полнометражному фильму, называется «Это все я». Это жесткая трагедия. В ней плохие отношения сына и матери,  потому что она его бросила. Возвратившись домой он не воспринимает ее как мать. А она постепенно понимает, что с сыном что-то не так. Слишком он странный человек, даже опасный… Поэтому заканчивается очень страшно.

В этом фильме я передаю  характер брошенного ребенка. Мать даже не знает, кого она бросила. Потому что вырос абсолютно талантливый  ребенок, с богатым внутренним миром.

Эта история никак не связана, ни со мной, ни с моим детством.

Но я наслышан про такие судьбы. Захотелось затронуть эту тему.

Главный герой увлекается фотографией и с помощью своих фото создает мир, отличный от реального  в котором ему было одиноко.

Но чтобы  снять полный метр нужно большое финансирование. И конечно больший опыт в постановке.

– What inspired the creation of the film? Is the plot taken from your life?

+ I have a script for my full-length film called “It’s All Me.” This is a hard tragedy. There is a bad relationship between son and his mother, because she left him. Coming back home, he does not perceive her as a mother. And she gradually realizes that something is wrong with her son. He is too strange, even dangerous … Therefore, it ends very scary.

In this film, I convey the character of an abandoned child. Mother does not even know whom she left – an absolutely talented child grew up with a rich inner world.

This story is in no way connected neither with me, nor with my childhood.

But I have heard about such fates. I wanted to touch on this topic.

The main character is fond of photography and with the help of his photos, he creates a world different from the real one in which he was lonely.

But to take a full-length movie you need a lot of funding. And of course more experience in staging.

– Значит ты хочешь набраться опыта?

+ Пока я хочу снять еще один короткий метр, где тот же главный герой, сниму с ним другую историю. Историю про надежду, не страшную. Тем самым я познакомлю зрителей с героем, набью руку, чтобы в дальнейшем снять полный метр.

– So you want to gain experience?

 + While I want to shoot another short meter, with the same character, I’ll shoot a different story with him. A story about hope, not so scary. Thus, I will introduce the audience to the hero, I will fill my hand in order to shoot a feature movie in the future.

– То есть ты  создаешь мир, в котором твой герой уже потихоньку начинает существовать…

+ Да. Только в полном метре он совершает страшные вещи, а  там нет. Там герою 17 лет, а там 7 (в короткометражке). То есть по сути немножко описания совпадают.

 Но в этой истории есть надежда. Я считаю, что полная чернуха и безнадега не есть искусство.

– That is, you are creating a world in which your hero is already slowly beginning to exist…

+ Yes. Only in full-length movie he does do terrible things, but not there. There the hero is 17 years old, and there (short movie) – 7.. That is, in fact, a little bit of a description is the same.

 But there is hope in this story. I believe that complete “chernukha” (showing everything in dark sides) and hopelessness is not the art.

– Расскажи о ходе работы. Что готово и какие есть потребности на данном этапе?

+ ”Нам любви уже не достаточно” – таков настрой команды. Наше сердце бьется за то, чтобы  сделать кино – доброе, красивое, честное. Чтобы добиться большего хочется больше любви. Мы сейчас все работаем вдохновенно, сценарист каждый день что-то правит, композитор пишет музыку с хором, оркестром небольшим. Анастасия Журавлева создает мультфильм, отражающий идеальный мир главного героя. Чтобы творить, нужно какое-то ощущение любви к людям и своему делу.

Сейчас готов сценарий, проводим кастинг, идет поиск финансов. Нужен человек – инвестор, которому  интересно иметь свое кино. У нас есть замечательный продюсер Елена Саар, мне импонирует ее честность и трудолюбие.

– Tell me about the progress. What is ready and what are the needs at this stage?

+ “Love is no longer enough for us” – this is the mood of the team. Our heart beats to make a movie – kind, beautiful, honest. To achieve more, I want more love. We all work with inspiration now, the scriptwriter rules something every day, the composer writes music with a choir, a small orchestra. Anastasia Zhuravleva creates a cartoon that reflects the ideal world of the character. To create, you need some kind of feeling of love for people and your work.

Now the script is ready, we are casting, we are looking for finance. I need a person – an investor who is interested in having his own movie. We have a wonderful producer Elena Saar, I am impressed by her honesty and hard work.

Съемка запланирована на октябрь-ноябрь.

Наша команда
Автор сценария – Алексей Шагурин
Продюсер – Елена Саар
Режиссер анимации – Анастасия Журавлева
Оператор-постановщик – Кирилл Довгалевский
Звукорежиссер – Саба Капанадзе
Художник по костюму – Максим Резницкий
Режиссер монтажа – Руслан Исаев
Дизайн – Олег Стратиевский
Второй Режиссер – Игорь Пилипович
Режиссер – Давид Даниелян

The shooting is scheduled for October-November.

Our team
Script writer – Alexey Shagurin
Producer – Elena Saar
Animation Director – Anastasia Zhuravleva
Director of photography – Kirill Dovgalevsky
Sound producer – Saba Kapanadze
Costume Designer – Maxim Reznitsky
Edited by Ruslan Isaev
Design – Oleg Stratievsky
Second Director – Igor Pilipovich
Director – David Danielyan

– А есть ли предыстория создания этого фильма?

+ Да, скорее роковое стечение обстоятельств, так случилось, что когда  работа над картиной уже шла , в семье близкого человека произошла трагедия, умерла жена, маленький ребенок остался с отцом.  И как ему объяснить , что его мамы не стало? Выручил мультик “Тайна Коко”, в котором мама наблюдает все время за сыном из другого мира. И когда я услышал  это объяснение, решил взять его в одну из сцен фильма.

И еще важный момент, часть денег от показа “В иные  миры” пойдет на благотворительность. Хотим направить в детский дом, брошенным детям.

– Is there a background to the creation of this film?

+ Yes, rather a fateful set of circumstances, it happened so when work on the picture was already underway, a tragedy occurred in the family of a close friend, his wife died, a small child remained with his father. And how can he explain that his mother was gone? Rescued the cartoon “Coco”, in which mom watches all the time for her son from another world. And when I heard this explanation, I decided to take it to one of the scenes of the film.

And another important point, part of the money from the future earnings of the film “To Other Worlds” will go to charity. We want to send money to the abandoned children in the orphanage.

– Спасибо. Ждем премьеры. 

Жанр: Драма

Автор сценария: Алексей Шагурин

После смерти родителей братья должны привыкнуть к новой семье. Но для маленького Миши, непонимающего что такое смерть, привычный ранее поход в магазин теперь становится переломным моментом в стремлении вернуть свой прежний мир.

Фильм о десятилетнем Мише, который мечтает стать великим космонавтом и однажды открыть для человечества новую звезду на которой его будут ждать родители. Но чтобы эта цель жизни воплотилась, ему придется пережить массу трагических ситуаций, в которых ребенку приходят осознания, что вместе с бедами появляются куда более страшные последствия.

– Thank you. We will be waiting for the premiere.

Genre: Drama

Script writer: Alexey Shagurin

After the death of the parents, the brothers must get used to the new family. But for little Misha, who does not understand what death is, the previous familiar trip to the store now becomes a turning point in the desire to return to his former world.

The film is about the ten-year-old Misha, who dreams of becoming a great astronaut and one day to open a new star for mankind where his parents will wait for him. But for this purpose of life to come true, he will have to endure a lot of tragic situations where the child comes to the realization that along with troubles there are much more terrible consequences.

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10-minute morning fitness exercises

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What are these exercises for?
• In order to be alert and focused in the morning and during the day!
• Exercises improve blood circulation, and as a
result – your brain receives more oxygen and begins to work at full strength.
Moreover, you get increased attention, concentration and memory.
• Only 10 minutes of exercises improve cognitive abilities by 14%.
• In order to maintain a good figure!
• Nowadays, when most people lead a sedentary lifestyle, problems with the back and beautiful posture are more relevant than ever.
• To cheer you up!
• Workouts improve your well-being and help
overcoming stressful situations.

Scrabble

Dive into the world of new adventures and discoveries!
Summer is a great time to relax, and at the same time, find out many new things!

find out how to play scrabbles
– that’s easy:)

In Scrabble, players earn points by constructing words with letter tiles and placing them on a grid. Each letter has a different point value, there are 100 letter tiles, and only one letter tile can fit in a grid space.

Step 1: Draw seven letter tiles 
Have each player remove one tile out of the tile bag. The player that gets the letter closest to the letter “A” goes first. Each player then draws seven tiles from the tile bag.

Tip
The first player begins the game by placing a word on the star square at the center of the board, either horizontally or vertically. This star acts as a double-word score.

Step 2: Score each word 
Tally each word score by adding point values for each letter in the word. Point values range from 0 points for a blank tile to 10 points for the letters “Q” and “Z.” Use a paper and a pen to keep track of the word scores for each player.

Tip
Some squares on the board allow you to multiply the tile’s value by two or three.

Step 3: Continue play 
Continue playing in a counterclockwise direction around the board. During each turn, a player can decide to place a word on the board, exchange tiles, or pass.

Tip
If a player decides to exchange tiles, replace them with an equivalent number from the tile bag. If they choose this option, they cannot do anything else on that turn.

Step 4: Choose new tiles 
After placing a word on the board, draw an equal number of new tiles from the tile bag so that each player always has seven tiles.

Step 5: Continue until game ends 
Continue playing. All letters played must touch at least one letter that is already on the board to form at least one complete word. When one player has used all of their tiles or no one can make any more words, the game ends.

Tip
If a player uses all seven of their tiles in one turn, they add a 50-point bonus to their word score.

Step 6: Challenge words 
Consult a dictionary only if you’re challenging another player’s word. If the word isn’t in the dictionary, the player loses their turn. If the word is allowed, the challenger loses their turn.

Step 7: Calculate the scores 
Calculate each player’s final score by adding up the points from all of their word scores. Then, subtract the sum of their unplayed letters. If one player has used up all of their letters, add the sum of everyone else’s unplayed letters to their score. The player with the highest score wins.

Did You Know?
Invented in the 1930s, Scrabble did not achieve widespread popularity until the early 1950s when, according to legend, the president of Macy’s played the game on vacation, and then ordered it for his store.

Bloomsbury

One of the foreign participants of TravelWorks Expo was
Bloomsbury school – English language school with big history
and situated just in the historic downtown of London. There was
an opportunity to speak with the official administrative, Adam
Bartosik, although he has a high level of administrative skills, he
is still very friendly, sociable and open-hearted – everyone who
spoke with him was really excited and inspired to see such a real
“Englishman in Voronezh”. And He was not absolutely an alien
as alien as Sting sings in his well-known song “An Englishman
in New York” :)
Adam kindly answered some of the questions about Bloomsbury
school, English students, special discounts and London in general.

SkyTeach 2018 и как это было

Самое масштабное событие для учителей английского — Фестиваль Skyteach прошел 31 марта и 1 апреля.

Наш партнер в организации события — самый первый педагогический вуз России — МПГУ. МПГУ предоставил возможность повышения квалификации для участников, а также площадки для проведения. Кроме того, фестиваль поддержали Macmillan, Академия Росатом, Pearson, Cambridge Assessment English. По всей России в организации участвовало более 50 партнеров и более 150 волонтеров: фотографы, операторы, музыканты, ивент-команда!

Первый день: трансляция и интерактив

Впервые в рамках одного события прошла трансляция в 5 часовых поясах и 11 регионах докладов спикеров из Cambridge Assessment English, Pearson, МГУ и Macmillan.
Мероприятие прошло в 3 этапа: конференция началась с коучинг-сессии, где ведущие и модераторы совместно с участниками составляли карту мероприятия, формировали ожидания — какую пользу от события планируют получить участники.

После составления карты перешли к докладам: так как мероприятие шло одновременно в 5 часовых поясах, в Новосибирске и Екатеринбурге доклады региональных спикеров прошли до трансляции, а в Санкт-Петербурге и других городах — после.

Спикеры говорили о своем опыте и проблемах, которые сейчас волнуют всех учителей. Как внедрить новые технологии в уроки? Как заставить подростков заниматься? Как не выгореть и не сойти с ума от перегрузки? Как работать с малышами? Что делать с ЕГЭ и как помочь ученикам подготовиться? О международных экзаменах — IELTS и т.д…Стоит ли заканчивать курсы для учителей и получать сертификаты?

Затем началась трансляция по всем городам: Наталья Галанина (Макмиллан), Екатерина Редькина (МГУ), Клер Барнс (Кембридж Ассессмент Инглиш) говорили о языковом барьере, о методиках и о том, что учителя сами боятся пробовать новое и доводить до конца, об интерактиве на занятиях. Трансляцию смотрели изо всех уголков мира, организаторы видели подключения из СНГ, США, Европы и даже Южной Америки

Затем в регионы транслировали доклад эксперта интерактивного учебника Vimbox Марины Павлуненко из Skyeng о преподавании онлайн.

После трансляции участники перешли к квесту. Квест — 10 методических, психологических и эмоциональных и практических заданий для учителей. Нужно было разделиться на группы и выполнять эти задания. Цель заданий — выйти из зоны комфорта, освоить новые навыки и методики, которые потом можно в классе повторить со своими учениками.

На площадках после квеста никто долго не хотел расходиться, общались, обменивались опытом, делали фото… На одной площадке даже отмечали день рождения участника фестиваля!

Второй день: 7 часов онлайн-конференции, которую модерировал видеоблогер прямо из Канады (9 часов разницы!)

Второй день конференции прошел в виде 7-часовой онлайн трансляции! Участники получили ссылки рано утром и подключились.
Затем подряд прошло 11 докладов о практике и теории онлайн-преподавания: как снимать видео для уроков, какие сложности возникают во время онлайн-урока, как готовиться к уроку, как использовать коммуникативные методики…

Поднимали также важные бизнес-темы: как заработать на жизнь в онлайне, как развить личный бренд и многое другое. Участники задавали вопросы в чате, а выбирал вопросы и вел трансляцию Джастин Хаммонд, преподаватель и видео-блогер из Канады, ведущий канала “Россия глазами иностранца”. Джастин выбирал самые интересные и каверзные вопросы и задавал их спикерам.

Авторы самых интересных вопросов, а также самые активные комментаторы получили подарки — сертификаты на игры от издательского дома Фабула, а также электронные сертификаты Академии Просвещение и билеты на Route66 от Александра Хитча.

После такого насыщенного и яркого уик-енда участникам нужно успеть “переварить” всю полученную информацию, а организаторам — подготовить все необходимое для пост-работы.

Для участников, которые купили пакет London, программа заканчивается только 15 апреля: им нужно получить задания от методистов МПГУ и пройти небольшой тест.
Остальные участники ждут записи докладов и сертификаты: об участии в Skyteach и о присвоении часов повышения квалификации по стандарту ФГОС.

МПГУ и Skyteach после фестиваля планируют запустить платформу непрерывного повышения квалификации для учителей английского на базе skyteach.ru. А осенью, как говорят организаторы, планируется провести еще одно, 4-е федеральное событие от Skyteach!

Подробнее: http://conference.skyteach.ru

Не переключайтесь и следите за новостями на сайте skyteach.ru!

Выступления и события со SkyTeach Conference 2018 в Воронеже, 31 марта 2018.

It was a great two-day conference for English teachers and for those who are interested in improving English and highering proficiency level – all you need is communication and everything was presented at this conference!

It was impossible to see everything in such short time and we also need to watch other local conferences from different cities! Meanwhile, check Voronezh talks at

#SkyTeach2018

Speech topic: “Learn and teach through reading English magazines (on the example of “EnglishMag”)

It was an honor to present and introduce EnglishMag magazine project to the wide audience at the SkyTeach Conference on 31 March 2018! Find out more about this 2 day offline and online festival here!

Creating a new teacher community is just great!

Thank you a lot to all who participated in this event!

Тимитро Милохин, Виктор Алтунин, Максим Богдан, Ольга Дегтярева, Таня Васюченок, Алиса Джегерис, Vlad Tishchenko

and:

Светлана Захарова, the speaker of the event and talked about a very timely problem “how to earn money teaching English”

Татьяна Клишина presented SkyEng platform and the ease of the platform both for teachers and students! So stay motivated and check all the opportunities with [www.skyteach.ru|SkyTeach.ru]

Саед Бакез, English native speaker from Jordan and now the Russian resident was a real open-mic breakthrough – he was really enthusiastic, open-hearted, cheerful and was able to make the whole crowd smile and cheer :)

Анастасия Родина, was a really perfect participant of the festival:) SkyEng teacher and University graduate student, she asked very important questions and was able to make speakers give full answers and motivate others to work together on different topics in focus groups.

Larisa Suslova, the moderator of the SkyTeach conference, cheerful and really helpful person of the festival

And we want to say special thanks to people who made this event possible!

Наташа Позднякова (the general coordinator)
Mariia Patrikevna (moderator)
Виктория Жильцова (moderator)
Вячеслав Бабочкин (event-manager)

See the whole reportage from the event in VK group:

You may see the video from SkyTeach conference here:
SkyTeach conference 2018 Learn and Teach English through reading English magazines (e.g. EnglishMag)

SkyTeach Festival 2019 Review

Skyteach Festival is an event of federal importance for English teachers. The festival is organized by Skyeng online school of English with the support of the Cambridge Assessment English (Department of English Examinations). In 2019, more than 5,000 English teachers from all over the world took part in the Skyteach conference.

Skyteach Festival – мероприятие федерального значения для преподавателей английского языка. Фестиваль организован онлайн-школой английского Skyeng при поддержке Представительства Департамента Экзаменов по английскому языку Кембриджского Университета. В 2019 году, в конференции SkyTeach приняло участие, в общей сложности, более 5 000 преподавателей английского языка со всего мира.

Read the interview with the founder of SkyEng, Georgy Solovyev

Tips for preparing learners for Russian State Exam and free promo codes for Macmillan platform

arrow en ru

As all of you probably know Russian State exam  is a rigorous and thorough test which covers all four language skills – reading, writing, listening and speaking. It tests learners abilities to use these skills. 

One strategy might be to identify the type of skills you face the most problems with and try to devote the best of your time to master them. Macmillan education https://macmillan.ru/tests/  provides  you with free  access to online test in exam format. Your test  is  automatically marked so you can easily see the field for improvement.
Use only reliable sources and coursebooks for preparation. Macmillan Exam Skills for Russia series has  proved to be one for more than 13 years of best practices

Good News!
Macmillan выделяет подписчикам журнала EnglishMag демо-доступ к платформе заданий на 1 месяц!
Также Вы сможете пройти IELTS и Business English (BCE)

Here are some tips for you to get better results in the Listening part of the exam.
Before you listen, you will have a pause, read through all the statements.
Look for the most important key words in each sentence, and underline them.
As you listen, remember to listen for information connected to the ideas  in the statements rather than specific words and phrases
Do not worry if you are not sure of the answer the first time.You will hear the recording twice.

Reading Tips:
Remember that you don’t have to know all the words to cope with the Reading part.  Make a guess. If you are not  sure of an answer, go on to the next one. When you get to the end , go back and think about any you have skipped.

While tackling the Use of English tasks remember to read through quickly from start to finish to a general understanding of what it is about. Ignore the gaps , and any unknown words, at this stage. Then look at the first gap, and the key word in capitals. Carefully read the words before and after the gap. To check that you have not made any mistakes, read the whole text again. Mind any spelling mistakes.

In the Writing part of the exam, it is essential to read the question carefully. Make sure you understand the information, and what you have to do. Spend five or ten minutes making notes. Do not write full sentences in the draft. Make sure you keep to the word limit. When you have finished writing, check your spelling, punctuation and grammar very carefully.

Use  Macmillan online speaking simulator while preparing for the Speaking part of the exam. It enables you to get accustomed to the computer test types. You can record yourselves, listen back and send the audio file to your teacher for marking. Access code to 20 variants of speaking tests is in the back cover of the Macmillan Exam skills: Practice test.

I wish you all the luck at the exam.

Macmillan Teacher Trainer
Natalia Galanina

https://www.instagram.com/n_galanina/

The latest from the world of words…

The latest from the world of words…

This week take a philological trip into the world of pies, discover the new words added to the OED, and test your knowledge of commonly confusable words.

What’s in a name?
Everything you need to know about pie

We take our food very seriously,
enjoy this slice of our blog!

Can you tell these confusing words apart?

Quiz yourself on some difficult and yet amusing English words. How many can you guess?

How many words are there in the English language?

How many words are there in the English language?

There is no single sensible answer to this question. It’s impossible to count the number of words in a language, because it’s so hard to decide what actually counts as a word. Is dog one word, or two (a noun meaning ‘a kind of animal’, and a verb meaning ‘to follow persistently’)? If we count it as two, then do we count inflections separately too (e.g. dogs = plural noun, dogs= present tense of the verb). Is dog-tired a word, or just two other words joined together? Is hot dog really two words, since it might also be written as hot-dog or even hotdog?

It’s also difficult to decide what counts as ‘English’. What about medical and scientific terms? Latin words used in law, French words used in cooking, German words used in academic writing, Japanese words used in martial arts? Do you count Scots dialect? Teenage slang? Abbreviations?

The Second Edition of the 20-volume Oxford English Dictionary contains full entries for 171,476 words in current use, and 47,156 obsolete words. To this may be added around 9,500 derivative words included as subentries. Over half of these words are nouns, about a quarter adjectives, and about a seventh verbs; the rest is made up of exclamations, conjunctions, prepositions, suffixes, etc. And these figures don’t take account of entries with senses for different word classes (such as noun and adjective).

This suggests that there are, at the very least, a quarter of a million distinct English words, excluding inflections, and words from technical and regional vocabulary not covered by the OED, or words not yet added to the published dictionary, of which perhaps 20 per cent are no longer in current use. If distinct senses were counted, the total would probably approach three quarters of a million.

See other FAQs about language.
See also: Is it true that English has the most words of any language?