Newsletter January 2015 Issue 6
Contents
3…….Welcome
4…….The term in pictures
6…….Exam results
7…….Interview with Matthew
8…… Term Timeline
10…...ARTICLE: The Greatest Invention Ever
11…...Quizzes and Games
12…...This term
Welcome to the Excel College January newsletter.
Happy New Year! And welcome to a new term at Excel College! Last term was busy, especially
at the end of the year, when the College moved from Cedar House to a new building on Oxford
Street. Classes in the new building started on 6th January. We’re enjoying being in a more
modern building with better facilities and a great city centre location.
Last term we also welcomed two new members of staff, Jill and Matthew. Jill is teaching
IELTS Advanced class at the College and Medical English at the Royal Manchester Infirmary.
Matthew is our new Academic Manager. You can read an interview with him on page 9.
There were lots of wintery events to enjoy last term at the College. Manchester celebrated
Halloween, Bonfire Night and, of course, Christmas and New Year. Throughout the term we went
on trips to see fireworks at Platt Fields Park, to go ice skating at Manchester’s winter ice rink and
to visit the Christmas Markets. We also continued our Conversation Club which now takes place
at a different café every week. This is so students can discover new areas of the city and practise
their English at the same time! Take a look at the Term in Pictures to see more of what we’ve
been up to this term.
As always, if you’d like to practise your writing skills by writing a review, a recipe, a letter or an
article for the next newsletter, send an email to [email protected] or send a message to
the Excel College Facebook page. We’d love to see your photos and videos too!
Anna Bartholomew
Admissions and Student Services
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If you’re looking to meet new people in Manchester, join Meet Up! You can
find lots of different groups in the city who host regular activities, with
something for every interest: hiking, reading, international exchange,
dancing and cycling to name a few!
You can also keep up-to-date with Excel College social activities by joining
our Meet Up group.
Th
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in
pic
ture
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Exam Results and Letters We love hearing about students’ exam results and their experiences at Excel College.
You can send your results or letters to [email protected]
Student: Mohamed Country: Libya IELTS: 5.0 Course: IELTS Advanced Preparation
Listening Reading
5.0 4.5
Writing Speaking
5.0 6.0
Congratulations to Dayana, Mohamed and Salem on their results and good luck to
students taking exams next term!
Student: Salem Country: Qatar IELTS: 5.0 Course: IELTS Foundation Preparation
Listening Reading Writing Speaking
4.5 4.0 4.5 6.5
Student: Dayana Country: Colombia IELTS: 6.0 Course: IELTS Advanced Preparation
Listening Reading
5.5 5.5
Writing Speaking
6.0 70
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An Interview with Matthew Last term Matthew joined the Excel College team. He is our new Academic Manager so he
is always around to help students with any questions they have about their classes. Here
you can find out a little bit more about him...
Name: Matthew
Job Title:
Academic Manager
Favourite food:
Steak and chips
Favourite drink:
Real ale
Favourite place: The Alps in winter
Special skills: Cooking—people say I’m a
good cook and I love hosting dinner parties.
Why did you become a TEFL teacher?
I love travelling and for me TEFL is a way of
“travelling without moving”.
Tell us about your first ever teaching job.
This was at a school in London called Avalon.
I had great fun there. It had a reputation for
being a bit of a “party” school.
In what countries have you taught?
UK (London and Manchester) and Italy.
What is your best teaching memory?
Teaching kids on a skiing camp in Italy—we
were skiing all morning and teaching for a
couple of hours in the afternoon. It was like a
paid holiday.
What is your worst teaching memory?
Well, to be honest, those kids on the skiing
camp weren’t interested in learning English,
so it was hard work in the lessons!
Where’s your favourite place in the UK and
why?
Snowdonia, North Wales. I love the outdoors
and this place also brings back happy
childhood memories.
Can you think of another question to ask
yourself?
“Do you support Manchester City or
Manchester United?” Neither—I support
Bolton Wanderers, the best team in Greater
Manchester!
Term Timeline What happened at the College, in Manchester and in the UK last term?
Have a look at our timeline to find out.
8
Classical Music Concert
Trip
29th September
At the start of the term, we
went to a free lunchtime
concert at the Royal College
of Music.
Manchester Christmas
Lights
7th November
Every year in the city, there is
a big party to celebrate the
night when the Christmas
lights are switched on. This
year there was music,
comedy and fireworks in
Albert Square.
Bonfire Night Trip
5th November
On Bonfire Night we went on
a trip to Platt Fields Park
where there were fireworks
and a funfair.
Manchester Literature Festival
6th - 19th October
Writers from the north of England
and around the world came to
Manchester to talk about
reading, writing in events around
the city.
Halloween
31st October
The College
was decorated
with spooky
cobwebs and spiders. In
Manchester, there were lots of
parties where people wore
fancy dress.
Manchester Science Festival
23rd October - 2nd November
The city’s annual science
festival returned in October.
Scientists from around the
world came to talk about their
discoveries and there were
lots of interactive exhibitions.
College Christmas Party
12th December
Our annual Christmas party was
lots of fun. We all tried some new
food from around the world, played
some games and said some sad
goodbyes to the students who left
us at the end of the term.
Moving Day
29th December
Excel College moved from
Cedar House to its new
address on Oxford Street.
We’re enjoying the new
term in our new building!
9
Ice Skating Trip
19th November
We went ice skating at
Manchester’s winter ice rink.
Manchester Christmas
Markets
14th November
Manchester’s famous
Christmas markets opened in
November. This year there
were more markets than ever
with stalls selling food, drink
and gifts from around the
world.
Class trip to MOSI
14th November
The Beginner,
Elementary and Pre
Intermediate
classes had an
exciting lesson at
the Museum of
Science and
Industry!
of All Time
The Greatest Invention
Last term, Manchester Science Festival came to the city. In honour of the
festival, our writing competition was science based; we asked our students
to write about the greatest invention of all time.
Here is the winning entry from Fatimah At Qattani.
10
Congratulations to Fatimah for her submission. She has won 15 hours free English classes!
Today I want to talk
about anti-bacterial
hand gel. I have
chosen this invention
because I think it is
very important in daily
life.
This product was
launched maybe five
years ago. It went on
sale in supermarkets and lots of people
soon found out about it. Before this
invention people used Dettol wipes, but
I prefer hand gel because the bottle is
very light and very small. You can carry
it easily and it is easy to use.
How to use it
Just put a little anti-bacterial gel on
your hands and rub, rub, rub for a few
seconds to allow it to dry, then clean
your hands with a tissue or put on a
little hand cream.
There are one or two small problems
with this product. Firstly, with some
varieties, your hands sometimes feel a
little bit sticky and you have to rinse
your hands with water before you can
touch a pen, a mobile phone, or any
other object.
In my opinion it is very important to use
anti-bacterial gel whenever you are
going to touch something which
requires clean hands. For example, it
should be applied before eating or
before feeding a baby.
From my perspective as an overseas
student, using anti-bacterial gel is a
matter of basic personal hygiene. In the
modern world, where regular air travel
in particular makes infection and
disease much more common and much
more difficult to combat, everyone
should do what he or she can to create
a clean and healthy environment.
Quizzes and Games
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Animals and Idioms
1
2
3
6 7
Do you know the names of
these animals?
4
5
Put the animals into these idioms.
Then match the idioms to their definitions.
a. I heard it straight from the __________’s mouth.
b. There isn’t enough room to swing a __________ in here.
c. He’s the black ___________ of the family.
d. Don’t count your ____________s before they hatch.
e. You can’t teach an old ____________ new tricks.
f. There are plenty more __________ in the sea.
g. I could carry on eating this chocolate until the __________s
come home.
i. Very little space.
ii. For a very long time.
iii. From the person directly concerned.
iv. Don’t be too confident of success before it is certain.
v. You can’t make people change their behaviour.
vi. A member of a family or group who is seen as a disgrace to
that family or group.
vii. There are many other people that you could find to a have
relationship with. (Often used when your friend has broken
up with their boyfriend or girlfriend.)
a b c d e f g
1
3
2
4
What’s happening this term? The first few months of 2015 are filled with festivals!: you can try beers from Manchester and around the world at Manchester Beer Festival, watch new plays at Re:Play Theatre Festival or celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at Manchester Irish Festival. You can also enjoy a more arty Manchester. Home, a new theatre / cinema / art gallery, will be opening later in the year. It will be the biggest multi-arts venue in the UK outside of London. While they wait for their new building to be ready, they are presenting theatre and art in interesting locations around the city. Also, one of Manchester’s most important art galleries, The Whitworth, is due to reopen in February after a big redevelopment. At the College, we have trips planned to visit the Beer & Cider Festival, the National Football Museum and the Imperial War Museum. We will also be having lots of movie evenings and coffee mornings. Our conversation club will now be taking place on Monday afternoons at a different location every week. Have a look at our events calendar for more information.
To all students returning to Excel College after the break or starting classes for the first
time, we hope you have a fun and successful term!
EXCEL14
18
Write for the Excel College Newsletter!
Put your writing skills to the test!
Want to review a book, film or restaurant? Love or hate something about Manchester?
Want to give a big thank you to your favourite teacher?
We’d love to hear from you!
Send articles, photos or ideas to [email protected]
Quiz Answers
Animals and Idioms 1. Chicken, 2. Horse, 3. Dog, 4. Fish, 5. Cat, 6. Cow, 7. Sheep. a) Horse, b) Cat, c) Sheep, d) Chicken, e) Dog, f) Fish, g) Cow. i) b, ii) g, iii) a, iv) d, v) e, vi) c, vii) f.
31/12/15