American English Language School

  This week, our students at American English Language School will be reviewing their previous units in preparation for finals week! They will be doing a variety of activities in order to do their best, but studying at home is a huge part of doing well on that final test. Here are some tips to study for any language exam!   1.     Study A Little Every Day            We know that a lot of students like to “cram,” all their studying at the very last minute, but according to a lot of different studies, this doesn’t always work. Sometimes cramming can lead to exhaustion which can lead students to not be at their best during the test. In order to stay more alert, students should pick at time each day and study a little and not try to put it all in one day.   2.     Use your Vocabulary in Conversations with People Outside.            Ano...

  Previously, we had talked about idioms that you might hear in the workplace. Now that you know some ways to communicate with the other employees, another thing that you will need to know is what kind of employees businesses are looking for. Some of the desired traits that employers look for are innate. However, it is possible to learn and develop others. Here’s a list of the top 10 characteristics that employers look for when hiring employees. 1.       Ambitious: Employers want workers who are ambitious. If you are not ambitious, then you will likely not help the company grow. Employers want workers that will keep trying, even if they fail. 2.       Intelligent: Intelligent is a desired trait because employers want to be able to trust their employees. They do not want to waste time worrying that you are doing your work correctly. 3.       Autonomous: Along with being intelligent, employers want som...

  At American English Language School, we want our students to have as many opportunities as possible to practice their English inside and outside the classroom. This idea is why we have a small group ratio in our classroom, encourage our teachers to talk less to allow students to dominate conversation, and assign projects to do in class and at home. Doing work at home as well as in school allows our students to practice their English and get more experience.   Our portfolio projects include a listening, writing, and presentation. The listening assignment is done in class where the students have to listen to a recording based on subjects they are learning in their unit that week. While they listen, the students will fill in a worksheet that has a script with missing words. This encourages more listening practice and allows students to hear their vocabulary in everyday conversation. The writing project is a weekly assignment students do in class. Each week, the students w...

  Every year on March 17 th , according to tradition, the grass does seem to grow greener in Ireland and for those of Irish descent. Aaah…the luck of the Irish! But it isn’t just the rolling hills of Ireland that seem to grow greener. Oh no, it is so much more. Alas, there is so much to celebrate on this special day. St. Patrick’s day is none other than a day of celebration for Irish culture and religion that commemorated the arrival of Christianity in 5 th century Ireland by the patron saint himself….St. Patrick.   He was a slave that was kidnapped and taken to Ireland but later escaped to Britain only to return to Ireland for the love of the Irish. He is known for driving out the snakes from Ireland as well as explaining the trinity through the shamrock clover.   In remembrance of his life and death, he is honored with global celebrations all around the world in places like Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, and even Japan. The global celebration feasting has becom...

  This past week, students focused on different careers, tips for interviews, and the types of employees that employers are looking for. You will definitely hear office idioms around the workplace from your coworkers and employers. To help you understand and communicate better with the other employees, here are a few idioms you’re bound to hear in the workplace.   1.       Cutting corners:   skipping certain steps that are   usually required in order complete something the easiest or quickest way   2.       Nothing ventured, nothing gained: If you do not try, you will never win or succeed   3.       To get the ball rolling: to get something started   4.       Back to the drawing board: to have to go back to the beginning after a plan or idea was not successful   5.       To get the boot: to be fired ...