Staff at Embassy

Learning English through poster design

Raymond Butler, our Auckland Activities Manager, writes:

Last Friday Ray and Elena's Certificate of English classes learned all about the history of posters and then put into practice what they had learned by designing a poster to promote forthcoming class activities.

After about an hour the room ressembled an art class more than an English lesson!  Paul (Germany) and his group from Brazil and Korea made a very professional effort and also used up all the yellow paint to make a desert scene for "Snow Planet".

We could wonder how Embassy CES will fund a trip to the Middle East, particularly as the admission price is set at $10 but that didn't detract from the aim of the exercise which was to have fun and learn as well.

Their entry was a clear winner but you can see from the line-up that all the entries were of a very high standard although it looks as if Teacher Ray has attempted to get in on the strength of someone else's artwork and is also trying to win the favour of the patriotic element......

The added challenge was that the groups had to present their entry to the class and were then judged on their presentation.

The pictures also show just two of the famous "international clock collection" only a couple of which actually work but are at least it's better than throwing them out and it's great for lessons on telling the time!

Antiques Roadshow

Raymond Butler, our Auckland Activities Manager, writes:

A much smaller version of that well-known TV programme "Antiques Roadshow" was held at Embassy CES Auckland campus last week.  Armed with a variety of objects both weird and wonderful, teachers Ray and Elena introduced their classes to the "thrill of the old"!  Teacher Ray is arguably older than some of the items shown here but nevertheless everyone had a good time.

[Click to see the pictures bigger]

After viewing a clip from the programme, students picked up an object from a table and then had to ask each other questions about it as well as make up a story that matched the object in question. A toy cannon, an old jewel box, a fake whale's tooth (from a fake whale....) and Ray's grandfather's letter scale were some of the items that came to light.

Jim wondered if this old grenade would still work and if you look at Ray's face he isn't exactly sure either.......

Victoria, Celia, Jim, Young and Judy (Taiwan) stand holding their "treasures" and Horst (Brazil) and Azooz (Saudi Arabia) seem happy just to look on.

Embassy CES teachers always like to try to make the language "real", and not just words in a book - this was another chance to learn to make the language live.

A trip to Bath

Wendy Brown, Student Services Manager at Embassy CES Oxford, writes:

On 21st July the students visited Bath which is a spectacularly beautiful city, a World Heritage Site since 1987; it stands on the River Avon among the hills of England’s West Country. The city’s compactness and striking architecture - Roman baths and sweeping Georgian terraces - combine to produce one of the most elegant sights in Europe.

Groups are taken on a short tour of the city's main attractions, which include the circus, constructed by John Wood the Elder in 1754 and part of his project to create a Palladian architectural landscape in Bath; the Royal Crescent and the Jane Austen museum, dedicated to Bath’s best loved residents. The tour ends in front of the Abbey and Roman baths, the best preserved Roman religious spa in the world, which has brought health and vitality for over 2000 years. Students are given ample free time to explore this unique city to the full and to enjoy lunch in some of the celebrated pubs and tea rooms of Bath.

Click to see the pictures bigger. [Left: Students in front of the Roman bath; Right: Bath Abbey]

Things to do in London

Wendy Brown, Student Services Manager at Embassy CES Oxford, writes:

On July 14th we took a group of Oxford Embassy students to London. 

For many of the students it was their first time in the capital, so we devised a tour: visiting the Tower of London; where some of England’s most infamous criminals have been imprisoned and the home of the crown jewels, before going on a cruise down the Thames past St. Paul’s Cathedral, Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre and the Tate Modern to the Houses of Parliament.

A walking tour takes in many of the world renowned sites of central London:  Lunch in St. James’ Park, before trying to spot the Queen at Buckingham Palace or the Prime Minister at 10 Downing St, seeing the changing of the guard at Horse Guard’s Parade and marvelling at the London Eye, the world's tallest observation wheel at 135m high. 

The students are then allowed plenty of free time to explore this diverse and dynamic city or just to go shopping on Oxford Street!

Click to see the pictures bigger. (Left: students in the crowd around the Horseguards; Right: Look at our souvenir hats!)