Saturday, December 20

All classes were given an article to read and answer questions for homework. If you were absent from class, please email Robert directly and he will send it to you.

We hope that you have a great holiday season with your friends and family. Wishing you all of the best in 2015!

Level 1 - We completed all of Page 76 and did a lot of speaking with this activity. 

Level 2 - Akiko and Harumi did a great job in class and their presentations were really interesting. We talked a lot about their families. We had extra time so we talked about Christmas and then played a Game called AGO - Christmas version. 

Level 3 -  We thoroughly discussed the readings on beauty/cosmetic surgery/extreme makeovers. 

Level 4 - We finished Unit 12. Had a good  talk about inspiration and who or what inspired them. Then we finished with the Criticial Thinking Question. 

Saturday, December 13

Level 100

We finished Page 75A the question writing activity. 

Homework: Please finish Page 75 B. We will start with Page 75B and C activity next lesson. Also, please review Page 76 Communicate on inviting a partner to various events. Look at the example. Then decide when you are going on each activity.  This will make it easier to begin the speaking activity next class.

Level 200

Three students did their presentation on Books. They were very interesting.

Homework:  Please prepare your speech on Family for next class. Try to tell us interesting things about your family also.

Level 300

After some time spent catching up on my crazy life and mad escapades of moving, we started with the Preview section of the Beauty chapter. We had a pretty good talk about cosmetic surgeries and people we know who have had cosmetic surgery. 

Homework:  If you didn't do it last week, please complete Readings 1-3 on pp. 92-94 in the "Beauty" chapter, as well as the "Check the Facts" questions on pp. 95-96. Also, please think about or write your answer to this question: (1) If you could change something about yourself with cosmetic surgery, what would you want to change and why?  This will be our warm up discussion topic.

Level 400

We finished the first half of Lesson 12. We finished watching the DVD and checking the vocabulary and comprehension questions. 

Homework: Please do the reading and questions in Lesson 12. Also complete the Critical Thinking question for discussion next time.

Saturday, December 6

Level 100

After a fun warm-up discussion activity, we reviewed their homework and moved into the book and completed the Conversation section on p. 74. 

Homework: Please do the "Question Writing" exercises on p. 75 (Part A & B, "Asking for Information" questions.)

Level 200

Attendance was much better this week, but none of the students who hadn't done their speech yet were prepared to give it. I told them next week was the deadline for their "Books" speech. So, after an opening discussion exercise, we reviewed the Crossword homework, and then dove into the "Family" chapter. We completed the first two pages (30-31) of that chapter.

Homework: Yuriko, Aya, Ayako and Narimi still need to do their "Books" presentations, so I asked them to be ready to do it next week. I also asked the students to start thinking about their scraps for their next speech on "Family," which I scheduled for 12/20.

Level 300

We quickly went through the "Psychics" unit.  We had a lengthy conversation activity at the beginning of class, and then spent a lot of time going over the 3 readings on "Psychics" and going over the vocabulary. 

Homework: Please do Readings 1-3 on pp. 92-94 in the "Beauty" chapter, as well as the "Check the Facts" questions on pp. 95-96, in preparation for discussion next week. 

Level 400

We did a lengthy opening discussion activity on Television, and then went through the rest of Chapter 11 (I spent a little time talking about Homeschooling in America. We finished up with a typically spirited discussion on the questions they were asked to prepare and bring from last week. 

Homework: Please do the Key Word Study on p. 67 in Lesson 12, and be prepared to explain each word in simple English. 

Saturday, November 29

We did a warm-up using hypotheticals in every class.

Level 1 – We finished the unit on “The Perfect Gift” and completed page 73 of the “Party Planner” unit.

For homework, write 5 sentences to talk about one of the events on page 73 in more detail. For example: “When I was 30, I went to a wedding in the Dominican Republic. I will never forget it! Even though it took me about 53 hours to get there and another 50 plus hours to get back to Japan, it was one of the best times of my life. It was my best friend from high school’s wedding and all of my close friends from high school were there...”

Level 2- Only 2 students (Akiko and Yuriko) attended the class!! We had a wonderful time discussing books and Akiko and Yuriko did excellent presentations on music and books.

For homework, please finish the crossword on page 29 and then we will move on to the unit on “Family.”

Level 3 – We completed the unit on “Anger.” Everyone did a wonderful job with the homework as usual!

For homework, please read “Readings 1,2 and 3” on pages 80 - 82 about "Psychics" and make 2 original questions about the readings. We will use these questions for discussion next lesson. After discussing this unit briefly, we can move on to the unit about “Beauty” like scheduled in our course outline.

Level 4 – We finished parts 1-4 of the unit on the “Homeschooling.”

For homework, please read “Reading 2” on pages 64-65 and make 2 or 3 discussion questions about the unit.

Saturday, November 22

Level 100

We started off with a "Pets" warm-up discussion activity, wrapped up most of the "A Perfect Gift" unit except for the last bit on p. 72, which I assigned as homework.

Homework: Please do the brief crossword (Part A) and the "Level Up" Conversation Ex. on p. 72.

Level 200

After a brief "Food" warm-up discussion activity, we reviewed the crossword homework from the week before, reviewed the vocabulary on p. 24 and I gave them some pointers, speech techniques and advice for their next presentation on "Books."

Homework: Prepare and practice your "Books" presentations and be ready to give your presentation in next week's class.

Level 300

No warm-up, just jumped right into the book. We polished off the end of the  "Online Dating" chapter and then went over the Readings 1-3 and various discussion questions about them in the beginning of the "Anger" chapter.

Homework: Please do Parts 1 & 2 in the "Guess Meaning from Related Words" section, on pp. 73-74. Also, please do the "Reading" in Part II on pp. 75-76.

Level 400

They had a good time doing a Conversation Game warm-up activity. We then finished up the 2nd half of chapter 10, including a final group discussion of the Critical Thinking question, plus their own questions I had asked them to prepare ahead of time. 

Homework: Please do the "Key Word Vocabulary" section in Chapter 11 (Homeschooling), and be prepared to define the terms using simple English next week.

Saturday, November 15

Level 100

Please do parts B and C on pp. 70-71 (Write several sentences about a "dream" gift you'd like to give someone special.)

Level 200

Please finish the Crossword on p. 21. Also, start preparing for your "Books" presentation, thinking about what books you'd like to talk about, photos for your scraps, etc. We'll spend part of the next lesson preparing further.

Level 300

Please do the Readings 1, 2 and 3 about "Anger," on pp. 69-71, and complete the survey that's part of Reading 1, to be ready for discussion in next week's class.

Level 400

Please do the Reading on p. 58 and complete the "Vocabulary" and "Comprehension" sections following on p. 59. Also, please prepare at least one additional discussion question to discuss in groups next week, to go along with the main discussion question on p. 60.

Saturday, November 1

Here is the homework for the level 1, 2, 3 and 4 classes.

Level 1 – After a speaking warm-up and taking up the homework, we finished the first 2 pages of the unit, “A perfect gift.”

For homework, please write 3-5 sentences like the examples at the top of page 67. I’d like to ___what?___ because ___why?___.

Level 2 – After a speaking warm-up, we finished up until page 20 of unit 2.

For homework, read page 20 and answer the comprehension questions # 1-4 and the discussion questions #1-2.

Level 3 – We did Reading 1 and 2 of the unit on “Internet Dating” and answered the comprehension questions.

For homework, please write the headings for Reading 2 on page 59. Also, write example sentences for the “Understanding Two- and Three-Word Verbs” on page 62.

Level 4 – We finished the unit on Sports and Values and had a wonderful discussion with the discussion questions you made.

For homework, choose 5-7 words from pages 55, 49 and 53 and write a definition and an example sentence for each word you choose. You will take turns reading your definitions and example sentences in small groups and guessing what the word is.   

Saturday, October 25

Level 1 – We finished the Bargain Shopper unit. Try to complete the unit review crossword I handed out in class for our next lesson.  

For homework, write about a time that you gave or received a gift that made you feel really happy. Try to write 5 or more sentences. Also complete section A on page 65.

Level 2 – We completed Unit 1 and started Unit 2. Remember that you can listen to all of the listening sections online at this website: http://www.perceptiapress.com/books/scraps/audio/index.html

For homework, Chose 4 or 5 scraps and describe them. Make sure that you use the “Presentation” Language on page 74. Also, finish Listening B #1-5 on page 14.

Level 3 – We completed most of unit 5 and we will start the next unit on Internet Dating next week.

For homework, please finish “Idea Exchange” on page 55. Also, read “Reading 1&2” in unit 6.

Level 4 – We were able to finish most of unit 8.

For homework, read “Reading 2” on p.52 and look up any new words. After doing the reading, answer “#1 Vocabulary Check” on page 53. Make sure that you also make 3 discussion about the unit. You will use your questions to lead a discussion next lesson.     

Saturday, October 11

Level 100:

We went over and practiced the homework activities on pp. 57-58. Please start with the listening activity on p. 59 next time.

Homework: Please do Ex. A and B on p. 62 for next time.

Level 200:

Five of the 8 students attended and each gave their "Hometown" presentations. Everyone did a great job for their first presentation! We reviewed some presentation skills and a few ice breakers to reduce their nerves. 

Homework: Please read the 2 articles ("Rural vs. Urban") and look up any unfamiliar vocabulary words. Also, if possible, do the crossword on the last page of Unit 1. 

Level 300:

 After the Family warm-up discussion activity, we went over all 3 readings and answered the Comprehension questions for them. 

Homework: Please do the exercises on pp. 50-51, all if possible, but at least, please be sure to do the "Guess Meaning from Content" #1 on p. 50, and "Guess Meaning from Related Words" #1 on p. 51.

Level 400:

We finished up the rest of Chapter 8. 

Homework: Please do the "Key Word study" vocab exercise on p. 59.

Saturday, October 4

Level 1 – We completed the first two pages of Bargain Shopper Unit 6 including the listening activities on Page 56.

Homework, please complete the writing activities on Page 57 and Page 58A in your textbook. We will start with these pair work activities next time.

Level 2 - We did some brainstorming for hometown related vocabulary and completed the Listening Questions on Page 6. Then we practiced the Interview on Page 7. Students did a great job completing the Your Turn activity about their hometown.  You did a great job interviewing your classmates.

Homework: Please choose 4-6 pictures showing various scenes, places, famous food and so on about your hometown, and complete your Hometown Presentation. Try to write 2 or more sentences for each picture. You will do the presentation in class.

Level 3 - Everyone did a good job on the Washoku discussion and seemed to enjoy it.

Homework:  please complete Readings 1, 2 and 3 and answer the questions for each reading. Try to write complete sentences. Also: Write about 5 sentences about what would be your ideal job or jobs based on the kind of person you are.  For example, if you like working with your hands or if you are very organized, what would be the ideal job for you.

Level 4 - We finished the first half of Unit 8. Then we talked a bit about current events.

Homework: Please do the reading on Page 46 and the vocabulary check and comprehension questions. Complete the Critical Thinking Question and please make one question of your own on this topic to use for discussion.

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Saturday,September 27

Level 1 – We did some icebreaker activities, a reading activity and an interview about summer vacation.

For homework, please write 5-10 sentences about shopping or something that you have purchased recently. We will use this as a warm-up for unit 6.

Level 2 - We did some icebreaker activities, a reading activity and an interview about summer vacation.

For homework, please read the listening script for unit 1 on p. 75 and answer B. Listening #1-6 on p.6. Also think about the word “Hometown” and write as many words as you can in Brainstorm 1 box on p. 6.

Level 3 - We did some icebreaker activities and read an article about “Washoku.”

For homework, answer #2, 3 and 4 from the “Washoku” article. We will use these discussion questions as a quick warm-up. If you would like to complete the vocabulary questions as well, please give them to Susette and I will check them and give them back to you the following week. Also, please read Readings 1, 2 and 3 to prepare for unit 5.

Level 4 - We did some icebreaker activities and read an article about “Washoku.”

For homework, if you would like to prepare for unit 8, please watch the DVD. Also, if you would like to complete the vocabulary questions from the “Washoku” article as well, please give them to Susette and I will check them and give them back to you the following week.

Saturday, July 19

Level 1: We did a warm up cloze listening with the song "Let it Go". Fun. Homework activity went well. We Finished page 49. No homework.

Level 3: "Let it Go" song cloze listening. After their group work, we shared some of the discussion questions as a class. No homework.

Level 4: We just did a current news warm up discussion about the double Malaysian airline disasters and other current news events. Then group discussions of their homework questions and finished Unit 7. No homework.

Saturday, July 12

Level 1: We started with a 15-minute warm-up activity. The students work in pairs to find out what their partner has been up to recently and then reported their findings to the rest of the class. Everyone did a great job using rejoinders and asking follow-up questions. We finished pages 44-46 and then completed the first page of the next unit. 

For homework, please answer the following 3 questions about a special place from your childhood:
1. Why was it special for you?
2. How often did you go there?
3. What did you do there? I used to...

Level 3: We played a warm-up game where in pairs you had to write 7 answers for each of the 7 different categories written on the board. We completed the 3 readings about fashion and then answered the T/F questions on pages 35-39.

For homework, please make 2 discussion questions about fashion and/or uniforms to discuss in next week's class.

Level 4: We also played a warm-up game where in pairs you had to write 7 answers for each of the 7 different categories written on the board. We watched the video for lesson 7 and answered all of the questions related to it.

For homework, read page 40 and answer 1 and 2 on page 41. Remember to also make 1 or 2 discussion questions about lesson 7.

Saturday, July 5

Level 100 

Started off with a Topic Talk discussion activity about "Beliefs." Finished the exercises on p. 42 and 43. Didn't have time to get to the Truth/ Lie game on p. 44, but students are prepared and ready to go for that next week. 

Homework: Please do Activity B on p. 46 (True or False).

Level 300

Also did the Topic Talk "Beliefs" warm-up, then pretty much spent the rest of the class on p. 33, talking about brands. Susette was right - it was a very good activity for them and they seemed to enjoy it. 

Homework:

No new homework.

(As Susette had already given a large amount of homework before, I told the students there was no new homework for next week...just be prepared to go over the 3 readings on p. 35-39 and the T/F questions about the readings. I asked them to be sure and highlight any new or strange vocabulary words they wanted to asked you about next week.

Level 400

We started off with a fun "What if...?" discussion topic, then finished off Lesson 6. 

Homework: 

Please do the Vocabulary section for Lesson 7 on p. 37, and be prepared to explain the answers in simple English next week.

Saturday, June 28

Level 1: We spent a lot of time in pairs and then as a class doing the activity on page 41. They all had good stories. We practiced using rejoinders a lot and the students all did a great job. We finished Activity A on page 42 and the listening on page 43. 

Level 1 homework: Please make 4 questions for Activity B on page 42. Also, complete Activity C on page 43. Use your imagination. Please also complete Challenge Activity A on page 44 to play the Truth Lie Game.

Level 3- We finished up the Advertising unit. The students seemed to understand the content well and asked a lot of questions.

Level 3 homework: Complete page 33 questions 1-3. I think this is a really good writing/speaking activity for them. About their favorite 3 brands and why they love it, their loyalty to it, etc. I gave them 2 examples of my own for the activity and I reviewed it with them to make sure they understand what to do.

Homework #2 - Please think about the Review questions on page 34 for the new unit. Also, please try to do the 3 readings on pages 35-39 and do the True/False questions about the readings - do as much as you can.

Level 4 - Everyone made some great questions which we discussed in groups as a warm up activity. Some were funny, deep, interesting and it made us all think a bit more about things and helped us learn more about one another. 

Level 4 Homework:  Please complete the reading on page 34 and do the vocabulary and comprehension activities on page 35. Also, think about prepare the Critical Thinking Question on page 36 and please make your own discussion questions about the unit.

Saturday, June 21

Level 1 - You all did an excellent job with the speaking activity about a trip/a movie/concert/play. Students used a lot of  rejoinders and follow up questions and all seemed to enjoy talking a lot with one another. Great Job.

Homework:  Page 41. Please think of two more interesting  stories about an event/a trip/a festival/concert or other activity. Complete #1 &2 on Page 41. We will start with this activity next class.

Level 3 - We had fun with the Conversation Cube/Dice  game asking a variety of interesting and fun questions in groups. All of you seemed to enjoy this and learned some new things about your classmates. 

Homework: Please complete both activities on Page 29. For the discussion questions about advertising, please write as much as you can and give examples if possible. Please complete the next reading on Page 30-31.

Level 4: We also enjoyed the Conversation Cube/Dice game and learned some new things about our classmates.  We completed the Unit and ended class with group discussion.

Homework: Please complete the pre-listening Vocabulary activity on Page 31. Also, additional homework is to make 3 interesting questions about any topic. We will collect everyone's questions and use them for a warm up group activity similar to the Conversation Cube game we did in class on Saturday. Try to make the questions a bit interesting and challenging, even funny. Some examples: If you were a car,  what car would you be? Tell us about your happiest moment? your most treasured possession. What is one accomplishment you are most proud of? 

Saturday, June 14

Level 100: You did a great job using rejoinders, giving more information and asking follow-up questions in last Saturday's class. Keep up the great work!

For homework, please write 5 sentences about:

1. a trip you took,
2. a movie you saw or book you read and
3. a concert, play or movie you went to.

This activity can be found on page 39 in your textbook.

Level 200: We read an article about a job hunter who put his CV on a billboard as a warm-up and then continued talking about advertising by discussing the first 2 readings in unit 3.

For homework, please answer the True and False questions about Reading 3 found on page 26. Also, answer questions 1 and 2 in the "Analyze" section on page 26.

Level 300: We did a speaking warm-up using "Have you ever...? questions. We watched the video a few times and answered the questions on pages 25 - 27.

For homework, please read the article on pages 28 - 29 and answer the questions on page 29. Remember to make 1 or 2 discussion questions about the unit that you can use to discuss in small groups next week.

Saturday, June 7

Note: All classes spent part of the time doing a warm-up discussion activity about "The Best of..." various things in their local city.

Level 100

We reviewed p. 31, "Future Goals", did pair work for both A and B sections.

Homework: Complete Part B, p. 32 - Take the 5 goals you wrote on p. 31 and write reasons for each.

Level 300 

We finished off the "Violence in Sports" chapter.

Homework: Please skim/outline only (no need for deep reading yet) the 3 readings on pp. 22-24, and do Predict Questions on p. 22. 

Level 400

We finished the rest of Chapter 4.

Homework: For next week, please do the Vocab Check on p. 25, and be prepared to explain the definitions in English as well. 

Saturday, May 31

It was great seeing everyone again last Saturday.

Here is your homework for next Saturday.

Level 1- Please answer the question "What is something that you'd like to do in the future?" by writing 3 of your own future plans like the example on page 30.

Level 3- Please do the reading on pages 18-19 and then answer the 2 questions in the 'Read It' section at the top of page 18. Make sure to include your own opinions and ideas. Also, please answer question 1 in the 'Idea Exchange' section at the bottom of page 19.

Level 4- Please watch the video for unit 4 and finish pages 20 and 21. Make sure that you make 1 or 2 discussion questions for each unit.

Saturday, May 24

Level 100: Finished p. 23-25. The homework is Writing B on pg. 25.

Level 300: Finished p. 10-14. The homework is Reading 1, 2, and 3 (T/F question) on p. 15-16.

Level 400: Finished p. 13-16 (through the summary on the top of p. 16--did not begin Reading #2). On p. 18 we had a lively discussion about the Grammar check points, and gave examples in class, but did not translate into Japanese. The homework is for each student to find an example of an invasive species (from any time or place), and to share their example with the class.