EC Malta English Language School

Over 2, 000 years ago, the Celts celebrated a holiday they called Samhain (pronounced “Sa-wan”). Samhain was the name of the God of Death who supposedly allowed the souls of the dead to visit the homes they once lived in on the last day of October, when the harvest season had ended and the days were getting colder and shorter. This was a scary night for the Celts, and on that night they would leave their homes and gather together in a field where they would build a huge bonfire to scare away all the evil spirits, ghost, or any other demons that may be roaming around in the night. Today Halloween has become more commercial and commonly includes activities such as trick-or-treating, attending costume parties, carving jack-o’-lanterns, bonfires, apple bobbing, visiting haunted attractions, playing pranks, telling scary stories, and watching horror films.

Join us for our EC Annual Halloween Events:
31.10.11 Afternoon Horror Movie & Halloween Party at Footloose

29/10/2011

Described as a chocoholic’s delight, this annual festival turns the use of chocolate onto an art form. New recipes are prepared, a wide variety of chocolate products can be bought and an interesting array of chocolate sculptures can be viewed during this tantalising event. Various forms of entertainment are also presented during the event.

22/10/2011 to 29/10/2011

The Rolex Middle Sea Race is a highly rated offshore classic, often mentioned in the same breath as the Rolex Fastnet, The Rolex Sydney – Hobart and Newport-Bermuda as a “must do” race. The start of the Rolex Middle Sea Race on the 22nd October is from the Grand Harbour in the waters opposite the Saluting Battery in Valletta and Fort St Angelo in Birgu as thousands of people gather on either side of this imposing harbour to enjoy this spectacle of sail. The final prize giving is on 29th October 2011. For more information contact The Royal Malta Yacht Club or visit www.rolexmiddlesearace.com

07/10/2011 to 09/10/2011

This event taking place in Birgu, which is one of Malta’s oldest and most historic cities, has now become an annual national event. From the start the aim was to highlight Birgu’s historic and architectural beauty and the Birgu by Candlelight, now incorporated in Birgufest, was set up to highlight this in a romantic manner. The streets are lit up with a gentle glow by thousands of candles of all kinds. However, Birgufest has developed into a larger event with a wider scope, offering numerous activities throughout the festival. The historic re-enactments, extended and cheaper museum entrances, and the opening up to the public of other venues of interest including churches, highlight the immense historic value of this city. In addition, food stalls offering both Maltese and other food, various musical concerts – ranging from classical to modern, and various exhibitions, make this event truly an outing with something to suit all tastes and ages. For further information, visit: http://birgu.gov.mt

Speaker’s main points by student Hitomi Kato, Japan

“It’s not what you say, but how you say it”

¨ Pronunciation, word stress, body language are very important

¨ Don’t try to sound like a native speaker – speak clearly and concisely, don’t speak quickly

¨ Avoid using slang and idioms unless you understand them totally and are able to explain them

¨ Short sentences are just as good, if not better than long explanations

¨ KISS: Keep it short and simple – Don’t complicate the language

¨ Don’t fear mistakes – they’re a good opportunity to learn

¨ Be patient and don’t get frustrated with yourself

¨ Read short stories out loud

¨ Record yourself and play it back later

¨ Use MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk, Skype, Facebook Chat, etc.

¨ Go shopping in tourist areas where shop assistants speak good English

¨ Travel to English speaking countries

¨ Put your ‘English speaking hat on’ – Translation is not good

¨ Remember ‘Practice makes Perfect’

Student Essay by Kim Hyae Jun from Korea

Have you ever thought about how you can be blissfully happy? Nowadays, being happy in a harsh society is becoming difficult even for students, not only for adults. I would like to give you some advice as well as my support to cheer you guys up. First of all, I would like you to do some school activities in order to enjoy your school life. In my opinion, joining clubs or doing sports with friends are incredibly important to make friends and get on well with them. If you join them regularly, you will be getting to know people and feeling great. The other advice is being more sociable. It would be awesome to know a lot of friends at school. It can be hard for some people to be sociable. However, if you get to know them, your school life will be more blissful. For example, by doing homework together, and hearing about new and wonderful experiences that even you have not done. By doing these things it will help you develop relationships with people and could be very rewarding. I think if you consider these deeply, it can indeed be a blessing.