Saturday 27 June 2009

Chibi's ワン-Point English: "Boss~around."


Hi guys,

Alan's at the gym right now, so I'll use this time to drink one of his beers and give you some more advice.

If you want to boss someone around (もし誰かに偉そうに命令したいなら), try using the imperative form (命令形) of verbs (動詞). Please say "Hey Alan, get me another cup of coffee!"「おいアランちゃん、コーヒーもう一杯くれ!」OR "Turn on the A.C.!" 「エアコンをつけなさい!」. It's easy to use because the verb forms are just like the dictionary forms. So feel free to boss Alan around from time to time. Remember, it's good to be the King.

Of course, if you want to be polite, please use "Please" before the verb, as in the following: "Please turn on the A.C."

Next time, I'll teach you more about verbs and how to mow the lawn.

Peace out,

Chibi

P.S. STUDY!

Friday 26 June 2009

Nicknames

Hello. My name is R.T.. Many people ask me about my name. R.T. did stand for Roger Todd. I went to court and legally changed my name to R.T. The name on my passport and my driver's license is now R.T.. Please call me R.T..

But, do you have a nickname? When I was growing up, many people called me Rowdy. Rowdy was my character. If you don't know what the word "rowdy" means, please look it up in a dictionary. One of my teachers in elementary school called me that a couple times as a joke. Then, some of my friends started calling me Rowdy.

There are 50 states in the US. Did you know that every state in the US has a nickname? It's true. We were talking about this last week in one of my classes at E-style.

There are a couple of famous examples that you may know about.

Have you ever heard of the Empire State Building in New York City?

Well, New York's nickname is "The Empire State." So, the Empire State Building is named after The Empire State.

What about the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California?

If you look at this photo carefully, you will notice that the bridge is not gold. It has never been gold. California's nickname is the "Golden State." The Golden Gate Bridge stands at the entrance to San Francisco Bay. The bridge is at the mouth of the bay, next to the Pacific Ocean. As you come out of the Pacific Ocean by ship, you must sail under The Golden Gate Bridge to enter the Bay Area of San Francisco. So, The Golden Gate Bridge is like the gateway to California State.

America declared itself an independent country on July 4, 1776. The country will be 233 years old next week. Since that time, some states have had a few different nicknames. This site lists the "official" state nickname in bold letters, some "old" state nicknames, and some "unofficial" state nicknames. It is very interesting. I hope you like it.

>>>>Click here<<<<

Sunday 21 June 2009

上級クラス復習(6月19日)

Last week in my advanced class we looked at an article about Iran called:
Iran: Rap, blogs and the political mix.
It is about how young people are fighting against the oppressive religious regime (圧政的な宗教体制)through fashion, music and the internet etc.
You can see the article here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8088042.stm

Here is a list of vocabulary that you may find useful:
  • make overtures -
    ~に提案する、~に対して有利な申し入れをする
  • savvy - 実際的知識、手腕、機転、常識
  • push the limits - 限界を押し広げる、現状を打破する
  • lurking - 潜んでいる
  • religious decree - 宗教令
  • keep a tight lid on -
    ~を厳重に取り締まる、~をひた隠しにしておく
  • decadent - 退廃的な、衰退期
  • stoning - 投石による死刑
  • bear fruit - 実を結ぶ、成果をもたらす

Thursday 18 June 2009

Chibi's ワン-Point English: "I'm good at~."



Hi everybody,

I'm still a little sleepy because Alan just woke me up from my afternoon nap to ask me this question:

"Hey Chibi," he said, "How do you say 「得意なものは何ですか。」 in English?"
I was angry that he woke me, but told him the answer anyway:
"What are you good at?"

This is a good question to ask your classmates. You can also be more specific (具体的)by asking "What ~ are you good at?" Examples include "What sports are you good at?" and (過去形の場合) "What subjects were you good at in school?"

As for me, I'm good at sleeping.

Goodnight,

Chibi

Tuesday 16 June 2009

Basic Grammar Words


I have been teaching in Japan for a few years now, but I still have trouble remembering some basic grammatical terms (文法用語).
Therefore I have decided to introduce a few useful words here to help you (and me!) in class:
  • Noun - 名詞
  • Verb - 動詞
  • Adjective - 形容詞
  • Adverb - 副詞
  • Preposition - 前置詞
  • Subject - 主語
  • Object - 目的語
  • Sentence - 文
  • Paragraph - 段落
Next time I will introduce some basic words connected with verbs (動詞)and tenses (時制).

Wednesday 10 June 2009

Chibi's ワン-Point English: "It's not my fault!"


Hi everyone,

I'm Alan's dog, Chibi. I was born and raised in Kagawa. My hobbies are going for walks, watching TV, and having my belly rubbed.

While my master is busy teaching, I'd like to explain a very useful phrase to you:
"It's not my fault!" means 「僕のせいじゃないよ!」 in Japanese.

I use this whenever Alan is angry at me for barking at strangers or when I have an accident in the house. Feel free to use it in class or whenever you have an accident of your own.

See you on the Streets of Takamatsu,

Chibi

上級クラス復習(6月5日)


Last week we looked at 2 news articles in my advanced class both connected to the internet. The first article is about how President Obama is planning to deal with cyber terrorist threats to the USA (サイバー・テロへの対策). The second article is about how millions of people in the UK regularly download illegal files using file-sharing networks (違法ファイル交換ネットワーク).

Here are the links to the articles with a list of useful vocabulary below:
"US launches cyber security plan"
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8073654.stm
"Seven million 'use illegal files' "
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8073068.stm
  • Digital infrastructure - 情報社会基盤
  • Cyber - サイバースペースの、コンピュータ・ネットワークの
  • Tsar/Czar - 権威、大家、第一人者、専門家
  • Malicious - 意地の悪い、悪意のある
  • Air traffic control - 航空(交通)管制
  • Power grid - 電力網、電力供給網、配電網、分電網
  • Espionage -
    スパイ行為、偵察、スパイ、諜報
  • File sharing network -
    ファイル交換ネットワーク
  • Intellectual property -
    知的財産、知的所有権
  • All you can eat -
    バイキング形式、食べ放題
  • Illicit - 不法な、違法の、不義の、無免許の

Monday 1 June 2009

上級クラス復習(5月29日)

Every Friday I have an advanced class in which my students and I discuss 1 or 2 recent news articles, usually taken from the BBC news website.

It is a very high level discussion, but from now on I would like to review the article here on the blog and add a list of key vocabulary to help those who want to have a go.


Last week's article was entitled "Long before the rod was spared" and can be found here:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8047541.stm

It is an article about child cruelty (児童虐待) and the history of the U.K.'s biggest child protection charity, the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC、国家児童虐待防止協会), which was formed 125 years ago.

Here are some key words and phrases from the article to help with your reading:
  • "Spare the rod and spoil the child" -
    《諺》かわいい子には旅をさせよ。/むちを惜しめば子供を駄目にする。
  • sobering -
    酔いを覚ます、酔いも覚めるような、人をまじめにさせる、ありのままの、冷静な
  • bleak - 暗い、希望のない
  • deprivation - 貧困
  • rife - はびこって、流行する
  • humane -
    人間味のある、人道的な、思いやりのある、人情のある、慈悲深い、心の優しい
  • repercussions - 反響、影響、余波、波紋
  • watershed -
    出来事の流れを変えるもの、重要な分岐点、転換点、重大な時期{じき}、重要なヤマ場
  • philanthropy -
    慈善、慈善活動、社会奉仕事業