Who’s responsible for teaching your child to read?

Remembering that I was able to read pretty competently before I was five (I have a clear memory of having to do a reading test, aged 4 and a half, in order to attend the local Catholic School when my parents moved towns) I figured that when my son turned 4 a couple of months ago it was time to start introducing him to the joy of reading for himself. As a child who has always loved books and reading stories as an integral part of his bedtime routine, I imagined he would be eager to learn. Coupled with the fact that he is now beginning to learn his letters at school and is constantly asking how to write certain words, it seemed like the right time to start. As we live in Barcelona his language at school is Catalan so I figured it was up to me and my partner to take on the responsibility of teaching him to read in English.

Posted on March 01 2009 by Jenny Bedwell in Education | Read More | Comments [1]

Dear Dawn French

I have just finished reading your autobiography Dear Fatty and would like to say what a truly pleasurable and heartfelt read it was.

Posted on February 28 2009 by Jenny Bedwell in Literature | Read More | Comments [2]

A Reason to Read

Some classroom activities for primary EFL teachers to initiate motivation!

Posted on February 25 2009 by Nigel Haines in English Language | Read More | Comments [1]

Learning English: the smart thing to do during the recession

The recession is here and we are all likely to be victims, like it or not. How it affects us depends on many factors, but times are tough and we have to make difficult decisions that may have big consequences for the future.

Posted on February 22 2009 by Nigel Haines in English Language | Read More | Comments [2]

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Time for our latest film review. Next up "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button". Check it out!

Posted on February 18 2009 by Jenny Bedwell in Film | Read More | Comments [2]

Revolutionary Road

Posted on February 15 2009 by Jenny Bedwell in Film | Read More | Comments [3]

Making a bee line!

A couple of new sites that have got us buzzing!

Posted on February 15 2009 by Nigel Haines in English Language | Read More | Comments [4]

Lost for words?

It was recently announced that certain words have been dropped from a leading dictionary for children. Dictionaries, where would we be without them? They are the source of our knowledge of words, and without words we would have no language. So, why are we losing words?

Posted on February 11 2009 by Nigel Haines in English Language | Read More | Comments [36]

Best Left To The Family Album?

Having watched Rude Tube’s Top 50 countdown of the most popular YouTube video clips on Channel 4 last Friday (2 Jan 2009) I was quite shocked when they revealed the winner to be ‘Charlie Bit My Finger’ – a clip of a toddler called Charlie biting the finger of his 3 year old brother Harry.

Posted on February 08 2009 by Jenny Bedwell in Hot Topics | Read More | Comments [1]

The Dividing Factor

Saturday night arrives and another evening of sitting at home watching the very best of reality TV entertainment awaits. A heavenly prospect for me – a hellish proposition for my partner who can be heard screaming ‘I’m not a celebrity – get me out of here!’ Never mind going down the pub to watch football, he would rather accompany my grandmother to bingo or babysit for the psycho twins at no.24, anything in fact rather than have to suffer the simultaneous anguish and rapture of the X factor contestants as they stand side-by-side to their mentors each week, waiting to discover whether the good old voting public has finally put a dead end to their road to riches – their ultimate journey to stardom. Just hearing the word ‘journey’ uttered from one of their starry-eyed speeches describing their heart-wrenching experience so far is enough to set him spitting and writhing in protest. And that’s without even mentioning the judges!

Posted on February 06 2009 by Jenny Bedwell in Hot Topics | Read More | Comments [4]

IELTS v TOEFL

With 37 IELTS test centres now currently available in the USA - the latest located in Honolulu at the Hawaii Pacific University - and plans to increase this number to 50 by the end of 2009, the question is now being asked whether IELTS could not only rival but outstrip TOEFL as the leader in pre-university English proficiency testing. Over 2,000 universities and colleges in the US now accept IELTS test scores, the latest additions being Dartmouth College undergraduate admissions and California State University graduate school system. Dartmouth College, in Hanover, New Hampshire joins a list of other prestigious Ivy League schools that already accept the test including Cornell, Harvard, Princeton and Yale.

Posted on January 27 2009 by Jenny Bedwell in Education | Read More | Comments [12]

To put or not to put – what to include in a CV?

The other day in class, I was discussing with my small group of Spanish business students about the type of things which they considered relevant information for a Curriculum Vitae. I gave them two typical British CVs to compare, one written by a male university graduate, the other by a female Marketing Assistant with 10 years work experience. The comments from my students and the justifications for their remarks gave an interesting insight into some of the cultural differences that exist between Britain and Spain in relation to the working environment.

Posted on January 05 2009 by Jenny Bedwell in Society | Read More | Comments [3]

iPass Press Release

Posted on November 05 2008 by Jenny Bedwell in iPass News | Read More | Comments [0]