The English Teacher's Corner

[john g. 31,352]

Back to „ off of.“ First used in print a while ago! Same year as the word „ puppy „ was first used in print! https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler/1567

 

 

 

[Feierabend 794]

As my darling mum in her wisdom used to say, "Not to worry, dogs don't. They pee everywhere."

 

Barking mad people might enjoy Judith Holofernes' book of poems "Du bellst vor dem falschen Baum." (Lovely illustrations even if you don't understand the text!)

https://www.judith-holofernes.de/2018/10/5144/

 

 

[tor 14,031]

Oh man I hate {most] Russian students.

 

Maybe it is wrong because you are from America.

I don't care what is say on paper, i don't like to say it that way, so I say it my way. 

 

just pay me honey, that's all i care about.  

[sluzup 164]

At my British secondary school, we didn't learn a lot of grammar.  I first learnt about the -ize vs -ise discussion through an episode of Inspector Morse.  Morse says that the dead man ('an Oxford man') could not possibly have written his suicide note because the note had a (particular) word written with the -ise ending.  In my first post-University job, we published reports and had an in-house editor.  She taught me that if you can make an -ization it should be -ize, if not, it should be -ise.  That is probably approximately in line with the OUP rules and is generally what I apply.  I know that my grammar is not perfect so try not to ever criticize unless I am asked to give feedback.  I do explain to my non-English colleagues that I have been away from the UK so long that I am not always sure what is right or wrong. I don't know if this is typical, but in recent years I was in conversation with a British junior school teacher.  She was complaining about immigrant parents and said 'and they can't even speak proper'.  My companion burst out laughing and she had no idea why he was laughing.  

[tor 14,031]

[Acton 734]

Must have been very inspiring:

[john g. 31,352]

2 hours ago, tor said:

If the teacher spelt the adjective „ useless „ with a capital U... then... then what? Dunno!😂

[Acton 734]

He probably didn't talk in Capital Letters.

[Acton 734]

For the students who think they understand Present Pefect.

 

Customer in a restaurant. 'Waiter! What is this?"

W. It's bean soup, sir".

C. I don't care what it's been. I want to know what it is NOW!"

 

Good luck with the explanation!

 

(I've been a teacher for a long time).

[john g. 31,352]

When you teach German speakers the Present Perfect v the Simple Past ,  Acton , they mostly react as if it were something new! “ Wow, I didn’t know that.”
Yes, you DO!! For the thousandth time!🙈🙈🙈

 

 

And spook them out with U2!😂 Present Perfect for an unfinished action? And a healthy dose of the Present Continuous to boot!

 

 

 

https://youtu.be/5vye_tNZYL8

[john g. 31,352]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/54127845

Leeds United’s Argentine manager after the victory today. The interpreter does a great job and reminds me how difficult simultaneous interpreting is... different kettle of fish to just teaching your mother tongue!

Been there, done it. Normally well paid.. but stressful!🙏🏻

[LukeSkywalker 5,755]

During my internship in Germany we hired several simultaneous interpreters: they work 4 hours max per day, but were paid for 8 hours, because after one hour they paused for one hour, so we had to hire more interpreters. Very anstrengend. They were paid more than DM 1000 per day. This was in... 1993. First class tickets by train, excellent hotels too.

[john g. 31,352]

Been there, Luke! Got paid absurd sums/ eg for a Brazilian film festival in London where the films arrived without subtitles and I hadn’t seen them.. and up in the box with a microphone.. and I ended up drunk and the film directors afterwards thought the film was surrealistic and clapped.

No, moi !

 

The interpreter was drunk!😂
The director of the festival apologised for underpaying me ( 😀) and I flew off to Haiti and the Dominican Republic and the Turk and Caicos Islands.

( Got micro-watched by Baby Docs Ton Ton Macout in Haiti- spelling? Tired right now😴

https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/tonton-macoutes/

 

Got it now! 

And it was Xmas time and Baby Doc‘s wife enjoyed the publicity on live TV of her „ ordering „ soldiers to „ give presents „ to children in a queue. And the soldiers whacked the young kids if they got out of line. With sticks.

Third World elite live on the telly!

I watched it live in the street.

Recommend anything by Graham Greene from that time.
This:

 

 

https://www.americamagazine.org/issue/100/greene-haiti

 

[SpiderPig 9,007]

sounds like your life story...

[john g. 31,352]

20 hours ago, LukeSkywalker said:

During my internship in Germany we hired several simultaneous interpreters: they work 4 hours max per day, but were paid for 8 hours, because after one hour they paused for one hour, so we had to hire more interpreters. Very anstrengend. They were paid more than DM 1000 per day. This was in... 1993. First class tickets by train, excellent hotels too.

There used to be a British comedian called Norman Wisdom, back in the 50s, 60s etc.

There was once a session at the European Parliament where a British MEP joked “ we need Norman Wisdom to help with this problem.”

 

The French interpreter, erm, interpreted: “ nous avons besoin de la sagesse  normande.”

Some French delegates cheered whilst those British delegates with at least a smattering of French burst out laughing.

🙏🏻😂

[optimista 4,080]

Brilliant. Language is more than just words.