EC London English Language School

I would like to thank everyone who came down to the first two meetings of the EC jogging club. The first outing was a wet and windy English day whilst for today’s jog we were blessed with sunny weather. We met outside the school and following a few stretches we were off.

We starting by heading down towards Covent Gardens and Leicester Square making are way through the crowds an onto Piccadilly. Later we passed the Royal Academy of Arts and as we entered Green Park we joined up with several other joggers. On reaching the Wellington Arch we turned back past Buckingham Palace and whilst running in front of the Palace we spotted Mini-me from Austin Powers having his pictures taken with the Beefeaters. We than ran part of the London Marathon course as we reached the Mall and went up towards Trafalgar Square. Today we veered off the Mall and through St. James’s Park and got to have a look at its variety of wildlife. On exiting the park we crossed through the National Horse Guard and on towards Westminster. For the end of the run we circled round in front of Westminster Abbey and behind the Houses of Parliament to pass Big Ben and finish on Westminster Bridge.

I hope to see more faces down there next time as it’s a great way to see London and get fit… Both students and teachers welcome.

Written by Sam

A little while ago, I posted the Top 10 questions asked by our students on their first day at EC London. Here are the answers or the people you will need to speak to for more information. Remember, if you have any questions about your course, you can speak to your teacher or come to the Teachers’ Room to speak to Rich or Dan, the Study Room to speak to Amanda or Reception to speak to Sam. We look forward to welcoming you to the school!

1. What is my timetable?

On your first day you will attend an Academic Induction with the Assistant Director of Studies or the Director of Studies. They will explain when your lessons will take place and you will be given a handout which explains the timetable. In general, if your course is 1-23 weeks, you may have lessons in the mornings and afternoons. However, there are exceptions. One of the academic team will be very happy to explain your timetable personally on your first day. Don’t forget to give us your email address with all your details - we email out the school timetables every Friday and Monday nights.

2. How can I get an oyster card?

Come to Reception and speak to our Customer Services Officer about getting an oyster card (a travel card for London).

3. Where is the British museum?

The British Museum is 5 minutes walk from EC London Stukeley Street. In your handbook, you will have a map with all our teaching centres and we’ll be happy to show you where the museum is - just ask in Reception!

4. Where is my class?

On your first day, our Assistant Director of Studies will answer all your academic questions, including WHERE your lessons will be.  We have several teaching centres, all within close distance to the main school. On your first day you will take part in local tour in teams.

5. How many students are there from my country?

We have a maximum of 20% of any nationality in the school at one time. There are approximately 35 different nationalities in the school at the moment so there are lots of opportunities to meet new people and discover new cultures.

6. What’s in the social programme?

There is a large social programme activity board outside the EC Cafe and you will receive the social programme by email every Friday from Geoff, our Social Activity Co-ordinator. There are free Coffee and Conversation classes, a free Pronunciation class, a Jobclub, a sports club, weekly excursions and MUCH more. Speak to Geoff on Fridays in the EC Cafe if you have some suggestions.

7. Can I borrow DVDs or books?

Definitely! Come to our Study Room on the first floor of Building 1 and you can borrow graded readers, novels, DVDs, videos, dictionaries (all for a deposit). Please speak to Amanda, our Academic Assistant, who can give you recommendations for extra study.

8. Who do I speak to about my accommodation?

If it’s about a Host Family, please speak to Tanya. If it’s about a Student Residence, please speak to Nikki. They both work in Reception.

9. Can I choose my timetable?

Please come and speak to Sam or Rich if you have specific timetable requests.

10. When can I get my test result?

There is a test review EVERY THURSDAY at 2.15 in the Study Room. We can show you your test (or retest) and suggest some areas to work on. We can also give you worksheets, exercises or websites to help you reach your language goals.

So  - those were the answers! Please remember - if you have a question or you are not happy about something in the school, come and talk to us. We have an open-door policy so we will always try to be available to discuss your needs.

The signs of autumn are here now and the summer is coming to an end. Most people begin to feel more inclined to be less active and to spend more time inside rather than getting out and about. However, here at EC we want to help us all to keep fit and in shape so we are starting a Football Club and a Jogging Club. If you would like to participate in either of these clubs, and help yourself to feel healthy and happy, please keep an eye out on the Social Programme for the announcements about the days and times that these activities take place. If you have any suggestions about a new sporting club or any other activates please come find Geoff in the Café on Fridays.

Written by Geoff

The first rule of Reading Club is you talk about the story

The second rule of Reading Club is YOU TALK ABOUT THE STORY!

Okay, so Reading Club may not be quite as cool as Brad Pitt in Fight Club. But it almost is.

So what is EC London’s Reading Club?

Here’s a quick run down:

• It takes place in the first and third week of the four-week elective course cycle
• On Friday, during the elective class (between 12:45 and 2:15), there is a 45-minute student-led discussion about a text
• Reading texts will be given to you by your elective teacher at the beginning of the week
• The texts are chosen based on your level – beginner, low-intermediate, high-intermediate and advanced
• You will also be given one of the following roles:

1. Discussion Leader – this person thinks of general questions to ask and keeps the discussion going
2. Summarizer – this person makes notes about the story and retells it briefly
3. Word Master – this person finds new words or short phrases in the story and explains them to the group
4. Connector – this person tries to find and explain connections between the story and the real world
5. Culture Collector – this person tries to find and explain differences and similarities between their own culture and the culture in the story
6. Passage Person – this person finds at least three interesting passages in the story and asks questions about them

• Your teacher will give you a score for your preparation and participation, and this score will go towards your final grade (AY students)

The next Reading Club is in the first week of the elective course cycle, which starts on 21^st September.

If you can’t wait that long, try going to the Study Room and borrowing one of the graded readers. If there are any short stories that you are interested in, please tell your teacher – it could be used for the next Reading Club!

If you have any questions or comments about Reading Club, just send me an email at danielwoodard@ecenglish.com.

Dan Woodard

Academic Year Coordinator

Wednesday afternoon (9th September) saw a very successful EC London visit for 20 students to one of the most iconic Royal destinations – Windsor Castle. With a history stretching back over 900 years and located by the Thames this is one of the few Royal palaces that has been in continuous occupation since its construction.

The trip got off to a good start as the train journey from Paddington took us through some lovely countryside that looked at its best under a clear blue sky. Our group were all keen to visit the castle but after arriving at Windsor and walking through the town we were easily distracted by the shops and the historic aspects of the town itself. After some distractions we managed to tear ourselves away and walk up to the Castle.

Our first visit was to St George’s Chapel where so many historic events have taken place there that the sense of history is really tangible. We then went on to the Castle itself and were spoilt for choice being able to look at the State Apartments, the Royal Art Collection (with paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens, Canaletto and Gainsborough, an exhibition of Henry V111 (who was buried in the St Georges Chapel) and even the Queen Mary’s Doll House which is reputed to be the most famous in the world!

Looking around the buildings and exhibits was really interesting. We got quite tired as the afternoon pressed on so before leaving we decided to take 30 minutes free time so that people could relax, shop or simply take photographs.

It was a wonderful experience and the journey back into London was filled with laughter and conversation as people shared their experiences.

Written by Geoff

The study room is a great place for you to practise English grammar and revise new vocabulary. There are practice books and worksheets for you to take and do in the study room, or at home. It’s calm and quiet so you can spend time to prepare for your IELTS, Cambridge or TOEFL exam, or if you are not doing an exam preparation course, you can prepare for the reading club, your weekly test and do your homework there, too.

I am also very happy to announce that we now have new books in the study room. They are now sitting on the shelves ready for you to borrow. There are lots of classic stories such as Dracula and Far From the Madding Crowd, and other interesting stories such as Meet me in Istanbul, Bridget Jones’ Diary and many more. Some even have audio CDs so you can practise your listening and reading at the same time!!!

There are also lots more DVDs, which means you’ll be able to practise all different language skills such as listening and reading (subtitles). By using the subtitles you’ll be able to learn new vocabulary and it can also help you with pronunciation, although it may be American pronunciation!

If you are interested in borrowing a book or a DVD, or if you need a little help with your English, then I will be in the study room on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2:30pm to help you as much as I can.

I hope to see you there soon.

Friday 4th September

By Kerry

Today, Terence from France joined me for Coffee and Conversation.  This is a free activity at EC London where students can practice their English with a teacher in a natural way. We had a very lively discussion ranging from his reasons for coming to London to computer science. We began by speaking about cultural differences and how things perceived to be rude in one country can be entirely normal in another, such as pushing people into a tube carriage to make more room (apparently this is normal practice in Japan)! We also discussed whether striking in France was still effective after it being used as a strategy for change for such a long time. The conclusion was that if a strike was organised in the right way, it could definitely help to change the status quo.

Terence’s interest in information technology led us to talk about people’s preference for downloading music for free rather than buying it, and companies that provide free access to music, such as Spotify. We discussed the media, and advertising in particular, which we agreed is excessive in both of our countries, especially on the television.

Terence spoke very fluently and had an excellent level of English, so any corrections I made were for minor errors. We clarified the differences between work experience and internship and Terence learnt the phrase ‘to strike for the sake of striking’. We also looked at the uses of which, that and who. Finally, we cleared up small prepositional mistakes in phrases including listen to the radio and most people.

Overall, I very much enjoyed our conversation and learnt quite a lot myself!

By Mayerly Marquez, Intermediate 1pm

Last Thursday there were three of us (two students from Japan and myself from Venezuela) and we talked about ourselves and our countries and culture and the differences we had noticed between England and its culture and our countries.  For example, here people are more polite than in my country and stop to let people cross on zebra crossings. We also spoke about things that were happening in the News, for example that Michael Jackson’s death could have been homicide.

If you would like to join us for Coffee and Conversation (it’s FREE for EC students), come and sign up outside the Study Room.
Hope to see you soon to practise your speaking skills and meet new people from all over the world!

We set off from EC London on Wednesday 2nd September prepared for rain but we were in luck. The weather stayed bright and warm and our group of 20 students walked through some of the quieter streets down to the Embankment where we caught a Thames Clipper riverboat for the journey to Greenwich.
Seeing London from the river is a rare treat and we enjoyed the rich variety of architecture enhanced by glimpses of St Pauls, a full view of the Tower of London, passing under Tower Bridge and then the houses and flats on the former dockland areas all the way down to the skyscraper centre of Canary Wharf.
The boat dropped us close to where the Cutty Sark is being restored, and we walked through the centre of Greenwich to the National Maritime Museum which is set in the grounds of the old Royal Naval College. The site was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and the buildings are renowned for their architecture and setting.
The museum covers maritime history from the 16th century and kept us busy for a good while. When we finished we walked up the hill in Greenwich Park and for a long time we sat on the grass looking back at the views of Greenwich with record numbers of photos being taken of each other against the backdrop of the Naval College and the skyscrapers of Canary Wharf.
We then walked across to visit the Royal Observatory, the home of the famous Greenwich Meridian where cameras again were very evident!
Time had pressed on so we sauntered back through the centre of Greenwich with some window shopping taking place but still caught our Thames Clipper for the return journey. The sun accompanied us for part of the river trip which made the Thames sparkle even more.
It was a lovely way to enjoy the City and a lot of fun.
Written by Geoff