How To Identify Leadership Practices That damage Employees Morale - Introvert Whisperer

Introvert Whisperer / How To Identify Leadership Practices That damage Employees’ Morale - Introvert Whisperer How To Identify Leadership Practices That damage Employees’ Morale PERSONAL BRANDING Personal Branding starts with how well you speak about YOU.  I want to help you accelerate your career by connecting you with your Free Instant Access to my eBook â€" The Definitive Guide to Creating and Using an Elevator Speech.  In this guide, I give you simple to follow instructions for creating a “wardrobe” of ways to talk about you â€" to leave a lasting impression. Get your copy now! Brought to you by Dorothy Tannahill-Moran â€" dedicated to unleashing your professional potential. Introvert Whisperer

6 Tips for Singing and Playing the Piano at the Same Time

6 Tips for Singing and Playing the Piano at the Same Time Suzy S. Artists like Billy Joel and Elton John may make it look effortless, but singing and playing the piano at the same time takes time and practice to truly master! Understandably, it’s difficult because you’re multitasking by playing two instruments simultaneously â€" your voice and the piano. It’s easy to lose concentration on one, while the other goes a little off; if you focus on your voice, you might mess up the timing with your fingers, and should you pay too much attention to the piano keys, you could find yourself mumbling along to the song. Getting this skill right will take plenty of practice, so we’ve put together a few singing tips to help you gain independence from your hands and sing excellently, too. To sing and play the piano at the same time, you will need to focus on: Singing at the correct pitch Maintaining both key and singing rhythm Assigning the correct word or syllable to a specific piano note Keeping the song’s timing and synchronized rhythm This may collectively sound like an impossible task, but with the right approach, youll get there with time. 1) Start with the Correct Posture Having correct posture is one of the key singing tips to note. Good posture translates to good breathing, and results in a better sound. It doesn’t matter whether you prefer sitting or standing â€" either is fine as long as you maintain flexibility in your spine. You may be tempted to bend forward as you play the piano, but straightening up not only looks better, it helps your voice and your breathing technique. 2) Position Your Mic Just Right The way you position your mic will affect your posture and your breathing technique, so make sure that you don’t need to lean forward too far. Your mic should also be placed at the correct height to encourage you to straighten your spine. 3) Sing and Play Separately at First During your preparation, try focusing your attention on one specific skill at a time. Start by singing a cappella and then work your way to singing along with a pre-recorded piano track. You can then try playing few simple chords while you focus on your singing technique. Then, switch the focus to the piano, while singing quietly. Keep at it until you’re feeling confident with the keys, and then slowly start to combine the two. 4) Draw Power From Your Lower Body Make sure that you’re not tightening your shoulders and neck to draw singing power from them. You should instead center your control and energy at your pelvic floor â€" this way, even if you’re sitting or standing, you’ll be able to sing with proper breathing and open throat technique. If you prefer being seated, one quick singing tip is to sit on the edge of your seat and press yourself down against it. If youre more comfortable standing, your legs should be shoulder-width apart as you draw power from your feet. 5) Play With Light Fingers This sounds simple, but playing lightly with your fingers will help reduce tension and the chance of you throwing yourself off. Keep your touch light and wrists flexible. This will allow your entire body to be more open. 6) Practice Regularly Youll need to be consistent in your practice in order to master this skill. It’s recommended that you practice at least half an hour every day, and if possible, record your sessions to track your improvements over time. You should notice a difference in your ability within a month or so. Have fun with your newfound skill! Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of prescreened teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for safe, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher Photo by  GBiB

Ask an MBA Admissions Expert Linda Abraham

Ask an MBA Admissions Expert Linda Abraham Varsity Tutors brings you insider tips and advice straight from nationally recognized admissions experts. Linda Abraham is the president and founder of Accepted.com, an admissions advising and editing service for MBA applicants. She is also the co-founder and former president of the Association of International Graduate Admissions Consultants as well as the co-author of MBA Admissions for Smarties: The No-Nonsense Guide to Acceptance at Top Business Schools. Linda has been featured in many prestigious media outlets such as The New York Times, U.S. News World Report, and more. VT:How much time should be set aside to adequately prepare for and complete the application for an MBA program? Linda: I recommend applicants start their preparation one year before they intend to submit their application. This allows time to study for and take the GMAT (and even retake it), clarify goals, research schools, strengthen areas of weakness, and then of course draft compelling, articulate, revealing essays. If an applicant is confident that they dont have to take all these steps, they can start the process later. VT: What would you say is the single most important thing to focus on for this kind of application? Linda: That will vary from person to person, but the foundation of an effective application effort is a clear goal and competitive qualifications. A post-MBA goal including function and industry and hopefully also a greater vision or purpose serves so many functions in the application process! It guides applicants in school choice, animates the response to any kind of Why MBA question, makes it easy for applicant to show fit with the program, and allows them to hit the ground running when they are thrown into the internship-recruiting vortex soon after arriving on campus. However, it makes little sense for applicants to apply exclusively to programs where the likelihood of acceptance is poor. Applicants must assess their qualifications and compare their profile to the profiles of typical accepted applicants. They dont have to be above average for every metric or criterion, but they shouldnt be below average across the board. Applicants also need to realize that there is a qualitative aspect to admissions. It isnt just about stats. Schools are going to seek students with leadership, impact, and above average progression at work as well as a host of personal qualities that they value. Finally, since schools value diversity, it is very possible to be qualified, competitive, submit a good application, and still be rejected. This happens, especially for applicants coming from over-represented groups in the applicant pool and applying to the most intensely competitive programs. VT: What do MBA admissions officers look for most in the essay questions? Linda: They look most for the answer to their questions written in an individual and authentic way. That may sound elementary, but I read so many essays where applicants dont answer the question. Or they write on such a general and superficial plane, that the essay essentially hides them instead of introducing them. Applicants need to make sure they answer the specific question in a way that also reveals something specific to them, both in terms of their experience and thought processes. VT: What are the biggest mistakes one can make on this application? Linda: Write what they think the reader wants to read. They dont know. However, they do know the real answers, and those answers can be far more compelling than something contrived. Not answering the question. Write in generalities and clichs so that they sound like many other applicants who are superficially very similar. Fail to proof. VT: What aspects of the MBA admissions process make it most different from undergraduate admissions process? Linda: Undergrads are not expected to know what they want to do in the future. Most MBA programs do expect their applicants to have a clear reason for wanting to go to business school. College applicants are not expected to have any work experience. Full-time work experience is a requirement at many if not most MBA programs. And even where not required, there are very few MBA students without work experience. And naturally, MBA programs expect more maturity from MBA applicants than colleges expect from their applicants. MBA admissions offices also are used to little or no direct parental involvement in the application process. VT: Is there anything that automatically disqualifies an applicant from being considered for an MBA program (i.e. low GPA, lack of particular work experience, etc.)? Linda: Automatic disqualification is probably too strong, but here are major red flags: Legal lapses like convictions for insider training, fraud, or breaches of fiduciary duty would fall into that category. For most MBA programs, zero full-time work experience is a significant hurdle. A GMAT or GRE score below the 20% for that school is a big hurdle. Same with the GPA. VT: What kind of work experiences should be highlighted in the MBA application? Linda: Applicants should highlight any experiences that demonstrate leadership, organizational ability, initiative, and innovation. Applicants can reveal these qualities through their resume, essays, letters of recommendation, and interviews. The best way to reveal those qualities is to tell stories and give examples that reveal those characteristics while answering the question. Another way is to provide stats in the resume that show impact. Finally, recommenders who tell specific stories of a candidates initiative, innovation, contribution, and ability to motivate others are worth their weight in MBA application gold. VT: What advice do you have regarding GMAT test prep? Linda: Im in favor! However I know that candidates needs vary widely. Some, usually those with strong quantitative and communications ability who have previously done well on standardized tests, do fine independently going through a prep book. Others need a course and hours of practice, practice, practice. Some feel a private tutor makes the difference. Each applicant needs to evaluate which approach will work best for him or her. VT: Is it absolutely necessary to have work experience prior to starting an MBA degree? Linda: There are a few schools that accept a handful of students straight from undergrad, but those applicants have to be stellar and usually have had impressive internships in college. Most full-time MBA programs want to see at least two years of full-time work experience before the MBA and three is preferred. The reason is simple: recruiters want it. Furthermore, many in graduate management education believe that experience enables the student to gain more from and contribute more to the MBA experience. VT: What are the characteristics of a great MBA program? Linda: A Career Management Center that has a track record of launching MBA students on the trajectory you want to pursue. A curriculum that you would be excited to study taught in the way you want to learn it. Extra-curricular activities that support your goals and that you would be thrilled to throw yourself into. A community and environment where you will feel comfortable. If youre thinking these characteristics imply that great MBA programs will be different for different people, youre right! Visit Accepted.com for more information. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.

Safety 101 4 Ways College Students Can Stay Safe on Campus

Safety 101 4 Ways College Students Can Stay Safe on Campus Colleges want to make sure their students are kept safe. In fact, federal law requires all colleges to create a campus safety plan. Unfortunately, no matter how many safety precautions a college puts in place, there is always potential for on-campus crime to occur. While these crimes cant always be prevented in every situation, there are some important things you can do to minimize your risks of becoming a victim. The key to staying safe on campus is to be prepared. Here are several actionable tasks students can take to maximize campus safety during their college experience: 1. Download safety apps If your college offers an emergency alert app, take the time to download it to your phone. These apps work by sending real-time text notifications from campus safety or police officers to your phone as a crime unfolds. By using the information about what kind of crime is occurring and where, you can avoid the situation and stay safe. There are also many third-party safety apps tailored to college students. One popular app is Circle of 6, a free app that college students can use to create a group of six emergency contacts. If you feel you might be in a dangerous situation, you can use the app to alert your circle of your location. Other commonly used safety apps for college students include Guardly, bsafe, Pan!cGuard, and OnWatchOnCampus. Make sure you keep your phone properly charged at all times so you can use these apps if you need to. 2. Add emergency numbers to your phone Before you head to campus for your move-in date at the end of the summer, go online to your colleges website and look for its page on campus safety. This page should list all of the key emergency numbers you can use if you find yourself in an unsafe situation on campus. Add these numbers to your phone, and consider placing the number for campus police on speed-dial. Also consider writing down these numbers on a piece of paper and putting it in a prominent place in your dorm roomit can never hurt to have extra copies of these numbers! 3. Use the buddy system Its true that there is power in numbers: Statistically, youre much less likely to fall victim to a crime if you travel in groups rather than going solo. Whether youre going for a run early in the morning or a campus event late at night, buddying up can help you avoid unsafe situations. 4. Know where your campus emergency stations are Many college campuses have emergency phone stations placed at various locations across campus. You can walk up to these stations 24 hours a day and get connected with the campus safety office, which will dispatch a campus police or safety officer to your location. Before you arrive for your move-in day, familiarize yourself with your campus by looking at a map and take a mental note of where these emergency stations are located. Consider even highlighting where these stations are and keeping a copy of the map with you in your backpack, purse, shoulder bag, etc. The college experience is an invaluable opportunity for academic breakthroughs, personal growth, and so much more. Ensure you are able to enjoy it to the fullest by practicing these smart measures to maximize campus safety. Any topics you want to know more about? Let us know! The Varsity Tutors Blog editors love hearing your feedback and opinions. Feel free to email us at blog@varsitytutors.com.

Pricey Bangers and Mash, Lads Speaking English and Surviving in London

Pricey Bangers and Mash, Lads Speaking English and Surviving in London So, you’ve been learning English a while but when you went to London you could hardly understand a word or you have an English friend who seems to be speaking a different language. Does this sound familiar? Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw famously said that “England and America are two countries separated by a common language.”English spoken in London contains many informal words and slang expressions that need to be explained to students. Here is a brief guide on what you need to know to communicate. The list is endless but if you can understand the following examples you are making a good start:1. Food   In London you will here many words to refer to something as simple as food. Among these are grub and nosh.   A quality meal generally eaten in a restaurant is called A slap up meal.   A sausage and mashed potato dish is called Bangers and mash.   Whole potatoes are called spuds. French fries are called chips. Potato chips are called French fries. A thinly sliced meat san dwich is called a bacon sarnie. Dessert is called, afters. The fruit conserve called jelly in the US in London is called jam. Sugary gelatine is called jelly.2. ClothesClothes also have a vocabulary of their own in London: A sweater is called a jumper. Trousers are called pants. Athletic or running shoes are called trainers. Lingerie for women are knickers. A small purse worn around the waste to carry money is called a bum bag.   A plastic pin to hang clothes to dry is called a clothes peg.3. Social Situations Working class Londoners from the east side of the city can sometimes be referred to as cockneys. How are you? is often said as Alright?Thank you can be said as ta. Friend can be referred to as mate or pal. A man can be called a bloke or lad. You might here someone’s surprise expressed as blimey! An argument is called a row. If someone is a good person he/she might be called sound. If something is really great, it might be called wicked or massive. If a girl is attractive she is called fit.If a person is unattractive (either male or female) they are called minging. When a person is telling their friends they are leaving, they say, right lads, I’m off. Bye can be said as cheerio or cheers.   Bathroom is loo.4. Money Money can be called dosh or doe. A British Pound can be called a quid. If something is expensive, people say it’s a bit pricey.5. Some phrases If you are very tired, I’m knackered. When someone is very surprised, You could have knocked me down with a feather (meaning, I was so shocked, even a small bird’s feather could have made me fall to the ground). If someone orders more food than they can eat they say, their eyes are bigger than their belly (or stomach). Sleep well can be said as sleep tight. Do you want a cup of tea? can be asked as, do you want a brew?Let’s enjoy some London English at its finest with this video of cockney boys, The Clash, with their classic, London Calling: Sign up for: Online English Classes | Aulas de Ingl ês | Cursos de Inglés

Introducing Yourself Online and in Person

Introducing Yourself Online and in Person First impressions have a lasting impact. It is critical therefore to be equipped with the know-how to create the right impression on people you meet online or in person for the first time. This article focuses on how to achieve this when introducing yourself to a room full of people or to a pen pal online. Step 1: Plan The first step of introducing yourself is to come up with a plan. List the main information you wish to share, such as your name, where you live, your school, your program, your goals, your job, and other interests. To create an informal tone, mention your hobbies and pastimes. You may want to emphasize what makes you different from your peers. Plan to end with a question. Questions help to continue the conversation and make you seem less self-centered. An example of an appropriate question after introducing yourself to a small group could be something like this: Now that I have told you a little about myself, could you tell me a little about yourself, too? Step 2: Understand your audience While planning your message, be aware of your audience’s interests. If they are students like you at a different college, they will be particularly interested in your school and program. Some will be interested in your career goals while others will want to delve into the details of your social life. Older readers might be interested in your family life. Readers in another country will want to know about your city and neighbourhood. If your audience is pressed for time, they won’t want to read or listen to a long treatise about your lifeso it is best to keep it short. Once you have understood your audience, you will get a sense of what to emphasize. Keep your tone friendly and informal to make you seem approachable. Avoid slang and aggressive language. You want to put your audience at ease. Step 2: Revise written introductions Write a draft, and then check it for embarrassing errorsespecially if you intend to post it online or send it in an email. Make sure to capitalize the first word of each sentence, your name and the pronoun “I.” NEVER USE ALL-CAPS. It makes you look like you are shouting. Remember to put a period (.) at the end of your sentences and a question mark (?) at the end of questions. Important! Use exclamation points (!) sparinglyyou don’t want to seem crazy. Finally, check your spelling and grammar with the VirtualWritingTutor.com grammar checker, and eliminate your errors before sending your message. Step 3: Practice oral introductions Practice your pronunciation for those occasions when you have to introduce record yourself or speak to a live audience. To make sure that you pronounce words correctly, enter your text into the VirtualWritingTutor.com and click on the speaker icon or download the MP3. Once you are sure of your pronunciation, practice reading your speech aloud to a classmate to determine the reaction of the audience in advance. Encourage him or her to ask questions and be honest about the weak parts of your introduction. Memorize your introduction. It will help you to create an impression of self-confidence. If you have to refer to your notes, read a sentence, look up, and say it. Step 5: Reduce your anxiety While delivering the speech to a room full of people, try to relax. Find a quiet place to breathe slowly and deeply. Instead of telling yourself that you are nervous, tell yourself that you are excited. Stand up straight to portray a sense of confidence and strength. Make eye contact with the people in different parts of the room. Use humor instead of apologizing for mistakes. It will indicate that you are comfortable and likable. Undoubtedly, you can introduce yourself in a speech or in a written message to create the right impression with just a little forethought and effort. The elements of proper planning,  simplicity, feedback from classmates, confidence, and humour will guide you through the process to a result you will be proud of. By Ekta Parishad (Ekta Parishad) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons Please follow and like us:

How to Keep a Language Journal 6 Ideas for Endless Entries

How to Keep a Language Journal 6 Ideas for Endless Entries How to Keep a Language Journal: 6 Ideas for Endless Entries What did Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci and Mark Twain have in common?Well, besides the hideous facial hair.They all kept journals! They wrote regularly about their thoughts, plans and experiences.And its safe to say they were all pretty smart, successful people.Why not take after them?In this post, well walk you through the virtues of keeping a language journal. Why should you do it and what are its best practices?Then well give you six inspiring ideas for  effective journaling every day, without writers block. Why Should I Keep a Language Journal?First of all, a language journal gives you a space to express your anxieties,  thoughts and insights as youre learning. The language learning path is never a straight one. It has hairpin curves, rough patches and humps from time to time. Writing is cathartic and your journal can become your emotional outlet during the ups and downs.Deathly afraid of talking to native speakers? Well, why don’t you write about it? And when you know t hat the fear is there, maybe you can then do something positive about it.Second, a journal is great for language review. Besides serving as a written record of your day and your musings (very much like a diary) a journal can also be topical in nature. A scientist can write about what happens in the lab. For example, Marie Curie’s journals are full of notes on her discoveries about radioactivity. (In fact, her notebooks are kept in lead-lined boxes because theyre highly radioactive. You need special suits and a waiver to peruse them!)For our use, it need not be so dramatic. You’ll be doing language-related entries, writing about words and phrases you find interesting, grammar rules that defy explanation or cultural tidbits that push the limits on what you thought was normal. When you read the entries at a later date, theyll serve as a great review for everything youve learned.Third,  the very act of writing itself serves as a memory-enhancing exercise. It gives you a closer relat ionship to the material and it’s an extra layer of processing that your brain goes through.When Should I Write?Should you write daily? Three times a week? Or only when the mood strikes you?Ultimately, its a personal decision based on your goals and schedule. That said, there’s an argument for treating journal entries like fresh breadâ€"made daily.We just talked about the benefits of keeping a journal. Now, wouldn’t you want to enjoy those benefits on a daily basis, instead of just once or twice a week? Daily journaling lets you grapple with language concepts when theyre still fresh.The danger of waiting for the writing bug to bite you is that it may never come. And once it comes, you mayve already forgotten what you wanted to write about. Doing short daily entries gives you a more detailed record of your progress.What did you learn today? Write about it! Even for just five minutes. Don’t worry if it seems insignificant. Seven seemingly insignificant entries a week will snowb all quickly.Daily journaling also builds positive study habits. If you’re writing five minutes everyday, you’re also telling yourself on some level, “Man, I need some study time!” Because whatll you write about when you haven’t even cracked that German book in weeks?!Tips for Effective JournalingDon’t forget the title and the date.You already know why its important to date your entries, right? If you don’t, you’ll never be able to piece together your language journey, especially if you decide not to write every day. Dates are important because theyre timestamps of your progress. They let you know the chronology and pace of your learning.While you’re at it, why not include the exact time you started writing? When you read the entry later, the time will take you back to that moment. (It’ll make you feel warm and fuzzy inside.)Many dont bother with titles, but they actually make your entries more interesting. An entry titled: Why I Hate the Spanish Word Con  (With) will clickbait you into re-reading your experience and re-learning along the way. Plus, titles really come in handy when youre looking for a specific entry. They’re great time savers, so you should make your titles highly descriptive of the content for that day.Write fast!Silence the inner critic, the grammar fascist, the perfectionist who wants every word and every line to be perfect. Dont get sidetracked with making the words fancy or thinking up a synonym for a common phrase. Get in there and write!Writing fast, without regard for aesthetics, allows you to capture those thought bubbles before they burst and disappear. Know that theres no judge, no penalty and no contest. Erasures are fine. Scribbling almost cryptic fonts can be forgiven.Plus, a fast first draft gives you a great opportunity to self-correct afterwards and catch your bad habits.If you want a clean copy of your work, you might want to start with a loose piece of paper to write the draft. Transfer it to your journa l once you’ve made your corrections.For those of you who decide to keep things digital in the first place, muddled scribblings might never be an issue. Check out LifeJournal and Day One for some online journaling options.Read what you’ve written in the past.As noted earlier,  writing is just the first part of the process. You need to review your entries, and often! Each time you leaf through the pages, something new will jump out at youâ€"a mistake you didnt catch before, different words youd use this time, or just a new way of looking at thingsâ€"much like how watching “Titanic” gives you an ever growing admiration for Kate Winslet. (Ahem!)Dont wait for three months before you start re-reading what youve written. You might even write a reaction to what youd written, say, a week ago.Or, did you journal about a language question or point of confusion previously? Address it in a different entry now that you know better!Write for two audiences: you and future you.Writing a jour nal is like talking to yourself.Therell come a time when you re-read some of your entries and you wont know what the heck youre talking about. So you need to give your future self some context on the issue or topic youre dealing with.If the entry is about why you’re changing your French tutor, for example, then give some clear reasons why you’re doing so. Because future you will have forgotten just how frustrating it felt when he failed to show up on Skype.If your entry is about a grammar question, try to state your question as explicitly as possibleâ€"not just a broad complaint like, the past tense is so confusing!Spit the details.Make your entries highly immersive. That means talking about what you see, hear, feel, taste and smell.Let’s say you’re talking about the productive time you’ve had learning Italian while in line for coffee. Write how devastatingly cold it was while you waited in line, flipping through your FluentU flashcards. Then talk about how warm and toasty it felt once you finally got in and were greeted by the rich aroma of your favorite brew.These lines dont directly correlate with language learning, but they do punch up your entries. Better yet, write the whole entry in your target language to test your vocabulary and stretch your writing skills.Commit!This ones a biggie! A journal is a commitment.I don’t want to scare you from starting one. Instead, I want to let you know that this is one of life’s activities that always gives back.The time you put into maintaining a journal will always be worth the benefits youll get. The rewards come in the form of a better understanding of yourself, a better understanding of the target language and a better idea of what works for you as a language learner.Let’s say two people decide to learn Mandarin. Theyre both starting from scratch and both use the same learning material. But one decides to maintain a journal, while the other doesnt. I’ll wager my final dollar and say that the forme r will have a faster, more rewarding language learning experience.How to Keep a Language Journal: 6 Ideas for Endless EntriesOkay, you’re sold! You’re going to keep a language journal. Then comes the vital question: whatll you write about?1. Record milestones on your learning journey.What topics have you learned so far? What areas of the language do you have difficulty with?  Are there achievements that you should be celebrating with a cone of strawberry ice cream? Write about them no matter how trivial they might seem. They can serve as your entry for the day and encourage you to move forward.In addition to updates of what’s happened, talk about the milestones youre working towards. What are your language goals? So you want to tackle prepositions next? Why and how soon?The simple act of recording these plans can prevent procrastination.2. Play with new words.The best way to remember new vocabulary is to use it. Here are some ideas to play with new words in your journal entrie s:Write a story or daily diary entry that naturally uses the word(s) you learned that day.Collect word families  or words that are related to a certain topicâ€"beverages, for example. For Spanish, you can easily create a chart or vocabulary list for words like cerveza  (beer), botella  (bottle) and jugo  (juice).Research a single word or phrase that particularly interests you. Maybe it has a nice ring to it and you like how it’s pronounced. Make that one the topic of a whole entry. Research its etymology, usage, synonyms and the different contexts its used in.3. Look for activities thatll turn into journal entries.Go to a local restaurant where they speak your target language and serve its cuisine. Go to a foreign language bookstore and pick something up.  Have coffee with a native speaker. Then write about the experience.In short, put yourself on the language learning train and watch as future entries present themselves to you.Theres an added benefit here. Not only will this give you more to write about in your journal, but itll also get you immersed in your target language in your day-to-day life. You might already know that immersion (surrounding yourself with the written and spoken language) is one of the most effective and fastest ways to get fluent.Thats what makes FluentU an especially useful tool here. FluentU provides authentic foreign language videos, like movie trailers, music videos, inspiring talks and more, thatve been transformed into language learning experiences. Each video has interactive captions, flashcards and exercises so you actively learn new words while absorbing the native sounds of the language.Just like your journal, its totally personalizedâ€"choose videos based on genre and learning level, and FluentU will also suggest new ones based on what youve watched.Want to watch the full movie of that trailer FluentU showed you? Keep tripping up on the same word in different videos?  Its the perfect bite-sized, fun and immersive learning practice that you can journal about every day. Check out how it works for free with a FluentU trial.4. Compare grammar rules to your native language.Yes, even grammar can be an interesting topic for your journal.How?You can compare the rules with those of your first language. How are they similar or different? Does your native language have an equivalent grammatical mechanism? Are there exceptions to the rules that surprise you?For example, a Chinese learner might write about how plurals are expressed very differently than they are in English. Or a Romance language learner might simply complain for a page and a half about all the grammatical genders that need to be memorized for every noun.While standard grammar rules are definitely useful, this act of comparison makes the grammar seem more relevant, more immediate. Its just a different way of doing things that youll master before too long.5. Write about your thoughts and feelings.What did you think about your new language partner? Did you feel a connection between you two? Or how about that new textbook you bought onlineâ€"was it everything you thought it would be? Think about the movie you just watched in your target language. Did you like how it ended?Write about your feelings and you’ll quickly find out, after a sentence or two, that you only have a cursory knowledge of what youre actually thinking and feeling. Yeah, you know you don’t like the book you bought  but then ask “why?”Maybe youll realize that you dont like the book because the vocabulary isnt relevant to your life. Write down that insight! Youre now in a better position to pick materials that actually bring you closer to your goals.As you get more and more advanced, try to write these entries at least partially in your target language. Dont be afraid to stop and look up the new words you need to express your full thoughts.6. Write about cultural customs.How many cheek kisses are appropriate when greeting friends in Barcelona? What are t he mechanics of bowing in Korea?  What gestures should I never make in Italy?Studying language is tied to learning about culture. So what elements of the target culture surprise you? Do you agree with them? Do you think theyre possible to adopt in your everyday life?No matter the language you’re studying, its associated culture(s) will have some interesting nuggets that are worthy of a journal entry.Writing about these things will help you widen your cultural horizon and melt your biases, making you more appreciative of others. And if that’s the only benefit you get while maintaining a journal, itll still be worth it. But you already know there’s more to it than that.Just knowing there’s a wonderful culture and an awesome group of native speakers behind the language gives you more motivation to work towards fluency.So go right ahead, start keeping a journal today! Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, Mark Twain and Marie Curie did it to their profound benefit. So should you!J ournaling is your partner in language learning. The time and effort you put into it will be richly rewarded. You have to trust the greats on this one. And One More ThingLet FluentU inspire your journaling starting today. FluentU makes it possible to learn languages  from music videos, commercials, news and inspiring talks.With FluentU, you learn real languagesâ€"the same way that real people speak them. FluentU has a wide variety of videos, like movie trailers, funny commercials and web series, as you can see here:FluentU App Browse ScreenFluentU has interactive captions that let you tap on any word to see an image, definition, audio and useful examples. Now native language content is within reach with interactive transcripts.Didnt catch something? Go back and listen again. Missed a word? Hover over or tap on the subtitles to instantly view definitions.FluentU Interactive TranscriptsYou can learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentUs quiz mode. Swipe left or right to see   more examples for the word you’re learning.FluentU Has Quizzes for Every VideoAnd FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that you’re learning. It uses that vocab to give you a 100% personalized experience by recommending videos and examples.

StudyLab School in Moscow

StudyLab School in Moscow StudyLab School in Moscow AboutStudyLab School StudyLab School is a private educational institution, which focuses on preparing Russian-speaking students to enter the world top universities and elite boarding schools in the UK and USA. StudyLab School team employs more than 35professional teachers from the UK, USA, Canada, who teach a wide range of subjects: from Drama, Science and International Relations to TOEFL, SAT and IELTS exams. StudyLab School focuses on exam preparation, tutoring, school prep and university prep courses. StudyLab School is a part of StudyLab, a leading study abroad agency in Russia, which opened its doors in 2006. StudyLab has the following departments: - Secondary Education - Higher Education - Summer Holidays - Language courses - British School StudyLab - StudyLab School Why teachers choose StudyLab? · A variety of educational projects and courses available · A School with a strong academic environment · Ambitious and motivated students · Great team of teachers with diversified talents · Academic and administrative support 24/7 · Annual contracts on successful completion of probation period · Full visa support · Competitive pay View our Brochure