Sunday, 8 June 2025

China's snow bird - a writing & speaking project

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 You've read the book, and enjoyed the thrills & spills with familiar characters...digested new vocabulary and recycled more; read b...
Friday, 6 June 2025

Talking text - Chiharu's Snow Rabbit

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  Listen to super Chiharu describing her "Snow Animal", an after reading project from OUP Read & Imagine graded reader "I...
Thursday, 5 June 2025

The Scarlet Letter - A brief biography of Nathaniel Hawthorne

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Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) was an American novelist and short story writer. He is known for Dark Romantic novels and stories such as ...

Postcard from...Taipei, Taiwan

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  Hi! Jim! I'm visiting Taiwan, just two days. Taiwan like Japan, so I can't feel like travelling abroad. But, Taiwanese food is del...
Wednesday, 4 June 2025

Salem: where Nathaniel was born

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The author of this book, The Scarlet Letter is Nathaniel Hawthorne.  He was born in Salem, Massachusetts in 1804.  Salem is a famous histori...
Wednesday, 23 April 2025

My cute cousin Gouta

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Of all my relatives, I like my cousin Gouta the best. He is ten years younger than me. He is a really cute boy and extremely funny for me. ...
Friday, 11 April 2025

"Hunting" should be illegal or not

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 I believe that hunting is a complex issue with both moral and practical considerations.  The first thing I thought was that hunting should ...
Friday, 4 April 2025

The wonderful character in my workplace

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 Let me introduce you to the member of my workplace!  Tomoko-san is our manager. She is thoughtful. She has a wide perspective and she alway...
Wednesday, 12 March 2025

Postcard from Chicago, USA

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Jim sensei, Hello from Chicago! Chinatsu and I had a business trip to the US. On Sunday afternoon we walked around Chicago downtown and took...
Friday, 7 March 2025

How do you think about "Hunting"?

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 We sometimes encounter wild animals due to some reasons. Wild animals may come near human dwellings to search for food as they are unable t...
Wednesday, 26 February 2025

Postcard from the tropical rainforest - Malaysia

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 Hello, Jim :) How are you? I'm enjoying my life! I'm going back to Japan February 17th See you in the next lesson :) From Sachiko
Tuesday, 25 February 2025

The pros and cons of getting older

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 Some people say that getting older is the best time of your life. However, getting older has noth advantages and disadvantages. On the plus...
Monday, 24 February 2025

Postcard from Maroc - Morocco

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 My dream came true at last! I am travelling around Morocco!! I feel like travelling different countries each day. What a exotic, wonderful ...
Friday, 21 February 2025

Beats Studio 3 - product review

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 Awesome headphones for any situation I use my awesome headphones when I simply want to listen to music, or to study, but also on a train or...
Wednesday, 12 February 2025

Celebrating New Year in Japan

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Praying at our local shrine, New Year's In Japan, New Year's festival started a very long time ago. We celebrate it on the first of ...
Monday, 10 February 2025

I hate it when you leave

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Jim, with an absolute "worldy" of a student  in 2018 This time of year is heartbreaking for language school owners like myself... ...
Friday, 7 February 2025

How do we celebrate New Year in Japan?

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Many people in Japan go to a shrine on January 1st because it is New Year's Day. This is when we celebrate New Year's Day, which is ...
Thursday, 30 January 2025

Hakamata crime

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In the early hours of 30th June 1966, a fire broke out at a miso manufacturing company in Shizuoka city. The accident almost destroyed the b...
Tuesday, 7 January 2025

Postcard from Kakisa Lake, Northwest Territories, Canada

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  Hi Jim! My friend and I participated Northern Lights tour three nights and we could see northern lights every nights! Actually, northern l...
Monday, 6 January 2025

Attack by terrorism in Japan

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 I still remember the two incidents.There were gas incidents that exploded in Matsumoto and in the Tokyo subway.Both incidents were caused b...
Friday, 27 December 2024

American sprinter: Manteo Mitchell

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Manteo Mitchell is an American sprinter and bobsledder. As a sprinter, he competed in the 200m, 400m and 1,600 meters relay (4x400m). At the...
Wednesday, 18 December 2024

Shigeru Ban - the architect and his works

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Centre Pompidou-Metz Shigeru Ban, one of the most reliable and trustworthy architects, especially for vulnerable people in devastated areas...
Monday, 16 December 2024

Why do people need a hug?

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 An airport in New Zealand recently introduced a restriction on hugging time.  Why do people need a hug? People hug when greeting or saying ...
Thursday, 12 December 2024

A global perspective with young adult learners...

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A recent topic with one of my classes was where they get their news from. The responses were predictably depressing & illustrated an alm...
Wednesday, 11 December 2024

Health service in Japan

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 In Japan, universal health insurance coverage allows everyone to access health services. 30% of medical expenses are paid by us, while the ...

Book review - 'Ningen Shikkaku' (No longer human) by Osamu Dazai

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Ningen Shikkaku is a semi-autobiographical novel, set in Japan in 1948, following the life of Yozo, who has some feelings about discomfort a...
Friday, 6 December 2024

Old fashioned, but it works!

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I've always liked making materials for classes but kind of got out of the habit with so many digital resources to play with. My number o...
Friday, 29 November 2024

Papers please! Fawlty Towers in Ehime, Shikoku

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 An absolutely shocking experience trying to check into a hotel that I'd booked weeks before the long weekend, so I could try to see thr...
Thursday, 28 November 2024

Harrison Ford - a biography

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 Harrison Ford was born in the United Stated on July 13, 1942. After working for a local theater compnay, he moved to Los Angeles to become ...
Wednesday, 27 November 2024

Postcard from - Hakata, Kita-kyushu

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Naka River yatai I had a really nice weekend working in Hakata - the people I was working with were great, and the location was only a short...
Tuesday, 26 November 2024

Hikaru Utada - a biography

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 Utada Hikaru is one of the most famous singers in Japan. She was born in New York in 1983, and lives in London now. She debuted in 1998 whe...
Monday, 25 November 2024

Postcard from - Kokura, Fukuoka

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I took the opportunity to jump off the shinkansen a stop early (I was heading to Hakata for work) and take a walk around Kokura Castle. It w...
Sunday, 24 November 2024

Kurt Cobain -a biography

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 Kurt Donald Cobain was an American musician. Kurt Donald Cobain was born in Aberdeen, Washington, on Feb 20, 1967. His mother was waitress ...