Category: Improve your English

Songs about New York

Category: Culture and Communication, Improve your English

Empire State of Mind New York City has occupied a central role in film, television, literature and art.  The City That Never Sleeps has also inspired some of the most memorable music ever recorded and continues to feature in hit songs today.  So, whether you are about to visit the city or you find yourself wandering around its incredible streets or reminiscing about priceless memories made here, be sure to have the following NYC-themed songs on repeat.  Did you know that music is also a great way to practice listening skills and expand your vocabulary and knowledge of idiomatic and slang expressions?  These songs will also provide an awesome soundtrack for improving your English while you study English in New York. Here are some famous songs about New York City: New York, New York – Frank Sinatra One of the most iconic songs about New York City is most often associated with “old blue eyes”, Frank Sinatra.  However, the song was first performed by Liza Minelli in the 1977 film, New York, New York.  The song features the classic lines, “If I can make it there, I’ll make it anywhere”. Welcome to New York – Taylor Swift You don’t have to be a TSwift fan to appreciate this modern NYC anthem, which appeared on her highly successful album, 1989.  The song offers a positive “welcome to New York” for anyone who is open to the opportunities that the city has to offer: “It’s a new soundtrack I could dance to this beat / The lights are so bright but they never blind me”. Empire State of Mind – Jay-Z featuring Alicia Keys It’s easy to see why The Times called this song a “loveletter to New York City”.  The hit song describes NYC as a “concrete jungle where dreams are made” , an inspiring city where you can do and be anything.  No … Read more

NYC activity- Indoor Rock Climbing

Category: activity, Improve your English, Uncategorized

When you study English in New York you have so many choices when it comes to activities.  Activities are a great way to practice your English conversation skills and make new friends!   Let us introduce you to a sport’s activity we found just for you! What is it? The Cliffs location offer the best indoor climbing experience for every level from the beginner to the expert. You can choose your way to challenge yourself physically and mentally on multiple climbing walls.  It’s also an experience where you can forge friendships with local or school people. Whatever the weather is, you can choose this activity to share a good moment and in the same time have a fun workout. What do you need to bring? If you don’t have any climbing equipment, you can also rent the entire Gear (climbing shoes, harness + chalk bag) on the spot. The only thing you have to wear is some comfortable or sport clothes. What will happen when you arrive at the location? First you have to watch a short video that explains every particularity regarding the activity and the rules you have to respect there. After that, you will be able to sign the waiver asking by the staff. They will introduce you how to use the equipment and how to choose the difficult in line with level.  The facility is open every day from 6am-12am during the week and 6am-2am during the weekend. The location is 11-11 44th Dr, Long Island City, NY 11101. You can take subway lines E, M, 7, G subway lines to Court Square-23rd St.  For a day pass without equipment the cost is $32.  If you need to rent equipment the price goes up to $44.  If you show your student ID then you can get a discount. You must be 16 … Read more

Fun Upcoming NYC event: Oktoberfest

Category: activity, Culture and Communication, Improve your English

New York is home to many people from around the globe, so New Yorkers love cultural celebrations.  Now through the end of October, New Yorkers will be celebrating Oktoberfest.  Even though the festival originated in Germany, everyone likes to celebrate it. This festival started over 200 years ago in Munich and included a horse race.  The first celebration was when Bavaria’s Crown Prince Ludwig married Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen on Oct. 12, 1810. The biggest Oktoberfest events take place in Central Park in Rumsey Playfield and Waterfront-Watermark Bar on Pier 15. You can find Oktoberfest events in all five boroughs of New York City in many different public places.  There are various festivities and most of them are family friendly.  Festivities include wearing traditional German clothing, drinking beer, and eating traditional food (such as bratwurst and sauerkraut) and snacks, like pretzels.  There are also a lot of contests like stein holding.  Just remember that in the U.S. you must be at least 21 years old to enter a bar or biergarten.  Do you know what a biergarten is?  It’s an outdoor area where people enjoy drinking beer or other alcoholic beverages. When you study English in New York there are so many exciting activities to participate in.  When you go to these events you can not only have an enjoyable experience, but you can also meet other people and practice using English.  It’s important to challenge yourself to meet others while you are studying abroad so that you make friends from all over the world and also use English as much as possible while you’re here. Whether you attend Oktoberfest or not, make sure to find ways to practice your English every day! Other ways to practice your English speaking in NYC or any city are to attend language exchange groups in the city, … Read more

Student Ambassadors

Category: activity, Culture and Communication, Improve your English, Student

Last week, we kicked off our Student Ambassador Program at EC New York. Student Ambassadors are students selected by teachers and staff members for their exemplary leadership, reliability, and team spirit. Many of these students are regularly nominated for Student of the Week at ECNY.  Students are nominated for Student of the Week when they have a high attendance rate, eagerly participate in class, and help other students when needed. As Ambassadors, students are expected to continue to contribute to the international team spirit, write blog posts, plan and lead activities, assist students from their countries, and help staff during school events. Sometimes new students come to EC and because they aren’t used to talking to native English speakers, they might be scared to talk directly to staff when they have questions.  Student Ambassadors can answer the new students’ questions and help them feel more comfortable when adjusting to their new environment. In exchange for their help, Student Ambassadors get access to free activities, experience working in English, published English writing, and a signed letter of recommendation from the Center Director to be used for school or job applications. Student Ambassadors receive extra opportunities to improve their English because they talk to native speakers (staff and teachers) and meet new students on orientation day. The recommendation letters they earn show potential employers and university admissions officers that they are willing to go above and beyond and they have the enthusiasm to help others. Our new Student Ambassadors are Momo Kirimichi from Japan, Steve Stoppa from Switzerland, Selim Mizouni from France, Laura Valentina Guacaneme Gallo from Colombia, and Minjung Ko from Korea. During our first meeting, we talked about next month’s activity calendar and started planning some school events. If you’re a current student and would like to become a Student … Read more

Homestay Living Enhances the Language Learning Experience

Category: Improve your English, Testimonial

  When you choose to study English in New York, an important consideration is where you will live. EC New York offers residence, apartment, and homestay accommodation options for its students. Homestay accommodation offers students a unique opportunity to practice their English outside of a classroom setting in daily activities and truly gives students a true New York experience. When you live in one of our host family’s homes, you are able to share meals with them, have daily conversations, and really immerse yourself in the culture and lifestyle of a true New Yorker. This truly rounds out the language learning experience and can help you in meeting your English goals. Nassera, a student from France shared, “I’ve made a good progress, because of the courses combined with my life in host family in particular. I was lucky to be welcomed by Arelis, everything was perfect: the welcome, the room, the good advice, and her good cooked dishes.”   Many of the hosts used by EC New York have been hosting for several years. They really enjoy the cultural exchange and enjoy showing parts of New York to their international students. One of EC New York’s hosts, Evelyn, enjoys taking her EC New York 30+ students, who stay in her home, to her favorite restaurants and local shops. One of our students, Frederic from France praised his host mother, “I had a great stay in New York and Evelyn, with her kindness, her dynamism and the many conversations we had, greatly contributed to my success here.”   So if you’re considering studying English in New York City, make sure that your living conditions also support your English goals. By choosing to living in a homestay or residence offered by EC New York, you will not only have an unforgettable experience … Read more

English in Action Student: Matay Barhe Background : Brooklyn Bridge

The “English in Action”Program – a practical way to improve your English!

Category: Improve your English, Student

  In this blog, we’ll describe and explain our program “English in Action” based on a participant, Matay, from Germany. Matay, 19 years old, is a High School graduate who decided to take a gap year after his graduation. However, Matay, who has great ambition and life-energy, didn’t just want to sit the whole year at home and do nothing. Instead,he desired to get new and important life experience combined with doing something good and something necessary for his future. After doing a little research, he found our very nice and well- located school (literally in the center of New York), which offered the perfect match of a program for his interests – English in Action! Our English in Action program gives its participants the opportunity to first improve their English by attending English classes, and then practice these new skills in the real business and working world of New York by doing an internship in a chosen field of work. Here’s Matay’s experience as a program participant: “The moment I stepped into the classroom, I got directly welcomed with a nice and warm greeting from my teacher. We began our first school day with an introduction round of the teacher and my new classmates. After that, the whole thing felt even more exciting because of the thought to study English with people from all over the world and even in a different country! Most of the students were very open and interested, so we really got to know each other very fast. After our regular class, we often got together to do something in New York. This was a great benefit for me (I personally hate being a lonely tourist). Furthermore, besides classes and free time, I also had to stay in consistent contact with my coordinator from the school, who helped … Read more

EC New York 30+ Student, Khotchaporn Kitcharoen gives helpful advice for studying English

Category: Improve your English, Student, Uncategorized

Khotchaporn “Kate” Kitcharoen has been at EC New York since February 2018. After nearly twelve weeks of studying English, she leaves some helpful advice for students who are wishing to study the language.   When your purpose to come to NY is studying English, one thing you should keep in mind is “don’t be afraid f making mistakes because you are in an unfamiliar country.”   Learning English isn’t easy, but it isn’t hard to succeed. If you are a beginner, you should learn English in a sentence form. That is to say, you should listen a lot and try to copy sentences a native speaker says. The more you listen and imitate, the more fluently you will speak. Listening is the key to learning English. Before you can speak like, or almost like English native speakers, you will automatically learn how to pronounce and make intonation from listening. It is a natural way as you have acquired your mother tongue language. First you listen, next you speak, and after that, more complicated skills like reading and writing will come after.   For the first step, forget all the grammar rules. I’m not telling you that the English grammar is not important, but if you are worried about this too much while you are trying to speak, it will obstruct you from accomplishing your goal. Personally, I have a direct experience of these problems in speaking English. I’ve learned English as a second language since I was in grade one. However, I’ve studied the grammar rules a lot and hardly practiced speaking and listening. Wen I spoke with native speakers for the first time, I could not speak out because I was worried that I would speak incorrectly, not in grammatical patterns. No doubt! The conversation ended quickly and it … Read more

Sunday Walking Tours Help Students Learn about New York and Each Other

Category: activity, Improve your English, Orange Carpet Experience, Student

When you register for ESL Courses at EC New York, you will be welcomed to take part in a walking tour. The walking tour is held every Sunday at 14:30 in front of the school. This is a great opportunity for you to get to know the sights and attractions surrounding our school. Some of the landmarks you are going to see on your walking tour include Times Square, Rockefeller Center, and St. Patrick’s Cathedral. However, beyond learning about some great places in New York, the walking tour also helps students to learn some very practical things. You will learn where the nearest subway station is as well as how to determine which direction you are walking (i.e. North, South, East, or West).   The walking tour is also a great opportunity to meet other new students who will be starting their course on the same day as you. This is a great opportunity to build your connection with other students before you start. It can also help shy students to break out of their shells and practice English in a comfortable setting. All walking tours are guided by our activity leader, who is always there to help you navigate through New York and through the English language. So what are you waiting for? Why not sign up for an English class today!    

Over 30? Why You Should Study English at EC New York 30+

Category: Improve your English, Student, Uncategorized

We understand. There’s lots of reasons why you might be scared to study English if you’re over thirty years old. Perhaps you don’t have enough time because you’re busy working. Or it’s been several years since you’ve been in a classroom, and you’re afraid of how it might be to study again. Maybe, you have experienced all that life has to offer, and you don’t want to share the classroom with teenagers. Whatever your reason, EC New York 30+ is your answer! Lots of our students in our 30+ school have jobs and they aren’t able to study for very long. This isn’t a problem. We offer week-long courses for those who are time sensitive as well as courses designed specifically for those students who have work or professional needs. Plus, most of our students are professionals in their own countries. it’s great to study alongside others who have the same backgrounds as you – they’ll not only share the same challenges and fears, but also the same aspirations and goals. it truly makes for a better classroom experience.According to Erika from Brazil, “EC has given me one of the most uplifting experiences I’ve ever had in my life.” Don’t worry if you haven’t been in a classroom for a long time! Our teachers are sensitive to our students’ needs and are able to ensure that you make the progress you need! Plus our classrooms are fun and dynamic. You won’t be worried about your mistakes when you’re having fun learning English! With our 30+ program, you’ll be learning alongside other students with rich life experiences.You’ll be able to learn topics in depth and will be able to discuss topics important to you. According to Marta from Italy, “The quality of the students here are exceptional! They are so professional!” … Read more

“Studying at EC New York was the best decision of my life” – Jan’s Testimonial

Category: Improve your English / Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Jan studied in our General English course at EC in 2013. Here is his #ecexperience: Studying at EC New York was probably the best decision of my life. While enjoying my time in one of the most amazing, thrilling, multi-cultural and beautiful citys in the world,  I’ve been able to work on my English skills as well. I came to New York with the goal to pass the Certificate of Advanced English. My English was on an upper-intermediate level as I arrived, but within just two weeks, I really felt that my English had improved a lot and about half a year after my language stay, I really achieved my goal and passed the CAE! But EC is not just about learning English, it’s also about becoming friends with students from all around the world. While having fun with people from different cultures and exploring the city that never sleeps, you also have the possibility to use your English in real life situations. I really had an unbelievable great time in New York and I’d recommend EC New York to really everyone who wants to improve their English while enjoying the American way of life and becoming friends with a bunch of international students. This will definitely be a time you’ll never forget.