A postcard from Taiwain

Dear Damian, Yukari, Hirokatsu

I am in Taiwan now. It's late summer holiday. I went to Jiufen. Do you know Jiufen? This place is said to have become a model of Japanese movie 'Spirited Away'. I am enjoying everyday.


See you next week.

From Chikako

A postcard from Southern Italy

Dear Jim, Damian, Haruka

How's doing?
It has been four weeks since I came here in Salerno, South Italy.

Today I finished the school. I had really precious time. I have met many nice and lovely poeple and enjoyed a lot. I can't tell you all! I'm going to travel around from tomorrow...

Amalfi > Milan > Geneva > Côte d'Azur

LoveTeruki

Postcard from Jaipur, India

Hello, I'm in India. Today, I've been sightseeing in Jaipur. The picture of the postcard: Jantar Mantar is a big ancient astronomical observatory.

India is hot, curry is hot too.


Kaoru

A Digital Postcard from Salerno, Italy

Hi everybody!

It’s been 2 weeks and 4 days since I came here in Salerno, Italy! However I feel that more than 1 month I am living here. I am enjoying the school life and short trips every day, even though I don’t understand well what people say in Italian and can’t speak Italian almost nothing!! 

It is still very warm here in southern Italy. People still enjoy swimming in the Amalfi coast.
I will attach the photos, the view of the Salerno and the school and me and so on.

Teruki

Black Beard - After Reading Treasure Map

Look at Kaito's treasure and follow his instructions to find the treasure. Will you be a great pirate and find the treasure chest?

Black Beard - After Reading Treasure Map

Look at Daiya's map and follow his instructions to find the treasure. Will you be a great pirate and find the treasure chest?

Reading Potato Pals - inspired by Patrick Jackson

Jim was asked to 'read a book' to his son's class last term, and only just got out of bed in time to do it.

Just joking! The Potato Pals reader was about daily routines, starting with 'Wake Up!', and he needed deep pockets for his banana (breakfast), toothbrush and "hagi power" hairbrush etc.



Hilarious fun as all the children joined in very enthusiastically - I suspect not the kind of 'listen with mother" reading experience they are used too :)



Plenty more fun like this at Luna, by the way!

Postcard from....Harrod’s, London

Dear Jim Sensei,

I grabbed the opportunity to come to London. It passed about 20 years since I visited London last time...good weather, fine foods and beer! I want to come back to London soon!

Tomoko 

My favorite character and animal - After reading of The Jungle Book

My favorite characters in the story “The Jungle Book” are a bear named Baloo and a panther named Bagheera. They are one of the strongest animals in Jungle, but they are very kind and have a strong sense of justice.
A point I laughed was that Baloo’s very soft slap on the Mowgli’s cheek was quite hard for the human child.
My favorite animal in real life is dog. I had ever had 2 dogs for pet. The days with them were always happy for me and I sometimes got fed up of taking them walk. During I lived with them for a long time, I could know a little how they were feeling and what they wanted us to do.
But, after they died, I saw a movie “10 promises to My dog” and found a lot of points which I should had done for their happy life. If there is a change for having a dog for pet again, I will exercise/communicate a lot with him/her and will think more what makes him/her happy.

Postcard from...Earth Celebration Festival, Sado Island, Niigata

Hi there everyone at Luna!

We scampered away for the weekend to Sado Island. We have been playing on the beach, in a pool, and in a jacuzzi. We found bugs, frogs, and Rasmus (the nice Danish guy who danced Bon Bon with us).

Rumi-chan (it’s a secret) cooked great food, and daddy made strange cocktails with cucumber. Eugh!

We went to a drumming concert. It was more than amazing. We love Sado, and Kodo :)

Eleanor & Ceilidh

Superstructures of Japan

Check out Ayumi’s super poster, featuring big buildings & structures around Japan, as a follow up to our graded reader. 

Postcard from...Hong Kong

Hi!!

I am coming to Hong Kong on a business trip now!

Hong Kong is hotter than Japan.

The typhoon 19 and 20 caused the airplane to shake.

It was like a roller coaster.

I am looking forward to seeing you next week.

Hirokatsu

Postcard from...Gibraltar, UK

Hola!!

Jim, Yukari-san, Naomi, Runa...

I'm studying and have a medical practice in a hospital here in Spain!!

Now I'm coming to Gibraltar, England!! ;)

Then I'll go to Cordoba, Granada in the area of Andalucia!!

I want to talk a lot about my travelling.

Chao - Chihiro

Postcard from...Niigata, Japan

I went to the sea of Niigata with my mother, my sisters and family in summer vacation.

Very good weather and beer was very delicious. 

Fishing and swimming in the sea.

My son seemed very happy to make a castle of sand and pick up the shells, and he got sunburned.

The sea is the best - I love the sea!!

Posted for Kanako

Kaoru's hometown - Matsumoto City

Matsumoto Castle's annual taiko festival

I live in Matsumoto, which is in the centre of Japan. It has a population of about 200,000 people. It is about 2 hours 30 minutes to Tokyo by train.

In Matagricultureiculture is famous industry. Apples, watermelons, grapes and a lot of fruits and vegetables are made by farmers. There is a small airport in the west of the city, so there are some factories near the airport.

The weather in Matsumoto is typical of the inland. There are many sunny days, so winters are very cold. But there are not a lot of snow. In summer, it is not so how because Matsumoto is about 600m high from the sea.

Matsumoto is famous for Matsumoto castle. It is a national treasure, it was built in Edo period. In summer, a big classical music event, Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival is held in the city. A parade of brass bands of students marches as the opening of the festival. The goal of the parade is Matsumoto castle. Then the thousands of students play music in the garden of the castle.

What I like best about Matsumoto is that the city is not too urban, and not too rural. In Matsumoto, there are some shops and restaurants, and several big hospitals. But if you want to contact with nature, you can go to highlands, mountains and rivers quickly.

Posted for Kaoru

Training to become a Cambridge Speaking Examiner

For the last 7 years, I've been preparing students for the Cambridge exams. A few months ago, I decided that it was time to take things to the next level. I realised that becoming a Cambridge Speaking Examiner would help me improve my teaching skills and assess my students' levels more accurately.

As I am an online English teacher, I currently live in Asia and teach students from all around the world via Skype. This meant that I couldn't train to become an examiner back home in England. The closest centre to me was Luna in Japan, so I decided that instead of waiting for the next opportunity, I would just take a 7 hour flight to Tokyo.

Even though it was a long and uncomfortable flight, I was really excited to start the training. It took place over two weekends at Rikkyo University in Tokyo. We practised how to conduct a full test multiple times and also did a mock test with real students. We also examined the marking criteria in detail and watched several videos to practise assessing real students. The training was challenging and rewarding and when it finished I felt even more confident as a teacher.

I would like to thank Jim for giving me this fantastic opportunity and for training me to become a Cambridge Speaking Examiner. All of his advice was practical and useful and it was clear that it came from many years of experience.

If you're a teacher, especially an exam English teacher, I think training to become an examiner is certainly worth it and I cannot recommend it enough.

Anu Warrier

Super Easy FCE

Picture Credits: @CambridgeEngJP004 on Twitter

Postcard from...Aomori, Japan

I'm watching a Tachineputa festival in Goshogawara city in Aomori prefecture. The Tachineputa is very big. It's 23 meters high and its weight is 19 tons. About 70 people parade through the central city pull a Tachineputa with musical accompaniment.

Reiko

Keiko's hometown - Town of Villaba Tagbubunga

Tagbubunga Villaba in the province of Leyte Eastern Visayas in the Republic of the Philippines.

Officially the Municipality of Villaba. Is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Leyte. It has a population of 41,891 people. Tagbubunga is the one of the small town.

Near of the sea and surrounding of mountains. The town is quiet and peaceful. The have church and many small stores.

The weather is always summer 26°C-35°C. Most popular during the dry season between November and April. It's the best to travel during the cooler month of December to February. Temperatures are high during March and April.

Landmarks are usually photographed a lot by visitors. Lots of beached. Fiesta and traditions of Tagbubunga every year on May. Every community have sports, for example basketball, boxing and etc. It is famous of singing and dancing.

It is are so close to nature. They are go to the beaches. The have rivers and tributaries.

Posted for Keiko

The day I met Kofi Annan in New York

The sad news reminds me of the unforgettable moment

Kofi Atta Annan who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations, the recipient of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize, passed away on 18th Aug. To hear the sad news, I just remembered that the amazing experience which I was able to see him at the United Nations Headquarters in New York in December 2006.





I went there for the opening of the United Nations exhibition “SPIRIT OF THE EAST” with my husband Takeshi. It was composed by the works of Kaii Higashiyama, who is one of Japanese representative painter, and Chinese photograph artist Wang Wusheng. 






 The beginning of the opening ceremony, Mr. Annan and his beautiful wife appeared. I had been admiring him since 2003, when the  Iraq war happened, so I was so excited. He looked gentle and intelligent. His wife was really elegant, like an actress.






My husband had a precious experience. He guided the exhibition and explained to Mr. Annan about the works of Higashiyama, because my husband was the director of the Art Museum of Kaii Higashiyama at the moment. 





Mr.Annan, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, was a great person. I was really sorry about losing such an awesome man.

Teruki

The Wright brothers ~ those who made our dreams fly ~

Orville and Wilbur were born in America in the 1870s. They were two of seven children born to Milton Wright, their mother. Their father was a bishop and one day he brought home a toy helicopter for his sons to play with. They loved the toy and they played with it until it broke. So they built a new one. From this moment, they started to become interested in flying.

After graduating from high school without diplomas, they started thinking about creating something so that they could fly through the sky. The Wrights began building gliders based on their kites. They tested at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Unfortunately they failed several times, and Wilbur got injured during the tests, but he managed to recover.

In 1903, they built the powered Wright Flyer, using lightweight wood, and a stronger engine. After many efforts, they were able to fly 175 to 200 feet above the ground. It was the first powered flight in the world! Finally their dream, and also mankind’s dreams, had come true.

To fly was the biggest dream for humans since the first human looked at the sky. We can go abroad because of the Wright brothers’ invention. I think we should know about them and be grateful for their gift. They are two of the greatest inventors ever.

Posted for Tomoro (after reading about Steve Jobs, Scholastic graded reader)

https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/1903-wright-flyer