English Vowel Sounds – Part I. Classification

Hi,

Let’s jump to a serious topic that I’ve had the most difficulties with in my English learning:  the system of the American English vowel sounds. I won't tell you that I haven’t had any problems with consonants, But for now I’d like to concentrate on vowel sounds. This entry will be rather long. Sorry guys, I have to go through it. Hopefully it won’t be as painful as a tooth extraction! First, I must  explain how I will name the American English vowels.  

Interview with Gardeniafly

Hi everyone,

Starting with this post, I'm beginning a new series within my blog. I plan to conduct interviews with some teachers whom I work with or whose materials I use. The first teacher I spoke with is Gardeniafly. You can read her comments at the bottom of each blog post.

Update - please visit my other reports as well. Jamie Miller is an excellent TOEFL teacher. Kate is an excellent American English teacher.

Today’s idiom – Spill the Beans

Hi everyone,

I'm writing today’s entry because a lot of people have asked me to speak about idioms. What is an idiom? An idiom is “a group of words that have a special meaning that is very different from the ordinary meaning of the separate words” (from the Longman Dictionary of American English). Americans (and other native English speakers) use a great number of idioms. It makes the English language beautiful, varied and alive. However, it also makes the language learner’s life difficult. But believe me, it’s a great adventure. In this series within my blog, I’m going to introduce books, websites, and video channels that can help you. An important notice: I never use other people thoughts as mine. I always indicate the source. I can’t show all the idioms, it’s impossible, but I can show you where you can learn idioms from.