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Breathtaking

1/31/2015

A few years ago, I went to visit a famous waterfall in the state of Washington. It was so amazing to see nature so beautiful in its unchanged state. The sound, the colors were so captivating that it took my breath away. I stood there for a long time just staring in amazement.

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Something or someone that is "breathtaking" gives you this exact feeling. It is captivating, amazing, beautiful, extraordinary. That's why a phrase that many love to hear, especially women, is "You're breathtaking!"

Have you seen something or someone that is "breathtaking?"

Related Lessons:
Compound Words
Everytime or Every Time?
What Does Multitasking Mean?

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It's Not OK To Not Try

1/22/2015

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A winner never stops trying, so do the best you can every single day. Don't give up and stop just because you don't know or understand, at least try!

If you're interested in a downloadable version without the watermark, you can find it here in the shop.

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Medicine

1/20/2015

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If you're someone who lives in an English-speaking country or works in a field where English is important, such as tourism, banking, sales, or retail, then knowing some basic terms related to medicine will be very helpful to you.

As much as I dislike talking about the topic of sickness and medicine, it's very important because we're human and we all get sick. Sooner or later, these words will be needed.

Here I have created a visual guide to some terms related to some basic drugs and also the different forms that medicine could come in.

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There are many terms here for different kinds of medicine. It's also always fine to say, "medicine for cough, medicine for fever etc" but the terms above are just more specific for your knowledge and understanding.

I also want to mention the terms "over-the-counter" and "prescription." I have worked with international students for some time and this is commonly confused and misunderstood. In many countries around the world, it's possible to buy antibiotics and almost all kinds of drugs without going to a doctor or getting consent from a healthcare professional. This is not the case in other countries such as in the U.S. There are certain drugs that can only be purchased if you have a "prescription" given from a doctor's office. You will take this prescription to a pharmacy, they will approve it and provide you with the medicine. Other drugs such as certain pain relievers or antacids can be purchased without a "prescription" which means you can go directly to a drugstore and buy them without a doctor's consent. This is known as "over-the-counter" (because you can buy them at the counter).

Related Lessons:
Describing Symptoms
Encouraging Someone Who Is Sick
Location Prepositions

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Think Before You Speak

1/18/2015

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Today we live in a world where information is given to us very quickly, messages are sent with a click of a button, and things are shared instantaneously to millions of people around the world. Thinking before speaking has become very important but not always remembered.

As much as I've enjoyed building on this blog and put in a lot of work to try and inspire people to enjoy learning, I have also received many mean messages from people or comments to other learners that are sometimes instantly sent to thousands of other people.

Our thoughts have become unfiltered and many people tend to speak too quickly before processing their thoughts. It also happens when we're angry or frustrated. So let's remind ourselves to THINK before we speak, tweet, text, Facebook, or Instagram.

Since we're language learners here, also remember that different cultures hold different values and beliefs too. This means we have to be extremely cautious not to assume everyone will think what you're saying is necessary or kind. Every culture is different.

Your words have the power to influence someone either positivity or negatively. I always remember a saying, "The tongue has no bones, but it is strong enough to break a heart. So be careful with your words." Choose what you say and write wisely.

Ask yourself the acronym, "THINK" :
Is it True? Is it real or false information?
Is it Honest? Does it deceive or cheat someone?
Is it Inspiring? Does it give new ideas or give a positive voice to something?
Is it Necessary? Does it need to be said?
Is it Kind? Is it nice or helpful to someone?

Related Lessons:
Common Abbreviations
Checking Your Work
Positive Adjectives

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10,000 Fans

1/14/2015

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Today I am humbled and extremely grateful to everyone for helping me reach a milestone of 10,000 Facebook fans. I would not be here without the help of my family, friends, multiple organizations, and of course, all the teachers and English learners around the world who have promoted my work. Thank you all SO MUCH for supporting my vision of learning through real-life context and visual arts. You have all helped change the way we think about education in this digital age- both in learning and teaching.

For some people, 10,000 fans may not be a lot, but for me, it's something I never dreamed of, so every single one of you is a big deal to me!

I want to share a story with you all. When I first had a vision to create this blog, I was a terrible drawer!! Below are my first few drawings of my logo, which was my first illustration for this blog. I have never shown these to anyone because, as you can see, they are not great at all!!! I remember clearly sitting at my desk, feeling very down and telling my husband, "Why did I think I could do this? I can't even draw a simple face!" He told me that everything takes time and I needed to believe in myself and have patience. I had so many lesson ideas, which I wrote down in my "ideas" notebook every day, but I could not make them come to life. I knew that no one would understand my vision until I took full control of everything. So I practiced A LOT until my fingers hurt, taking every opportunity to draw anything, including my family members. Then I started to learn Photoshop in my free time by watching YouTube lessons and reading books. It was only in August 2014 that I started to design and illustrate. Today, four months later, I've achieved things I never thought I could achieve.

I am, in no way, the best illustrator or a perfect drawer, I just wanted to share what I have learned: you can accomplish anything as long as you keep trying even through failure. Although I was very pessimistic about my abilities at first, if I had given up after I discovered I was terrible at drawing, my notebook of ideas would still be sitting on my desk. Now all those ideas have come to life and into your classrooms, homes, and schools. Everything takes hard work if you want to get somewhere. This is what I have learned and seen through my parents, my family, and my husband.

So please, if you have a dream, don't be lazy and don't give up on it just because of your age, your background, your education, your limited resources. If your dream is to speak English fluently, then take advantage of every possible resource out there. We are lucky to live in such a digital age where there are many things for us to learn from, use and share with each other ....all for free! Just don't give up too quickly, give it another shot! Even if you tried and it didn't work out again and again, at least you'll know you tried.

Related Lessons:
Things That Are Orange
Describing Your Symptoms
Saying You're Welcome

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Things That Are Orange

1/14/2015

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A great way to learn new vocabularies is to give yourself a specific topic and think about all the things that relate to that topic. For example, today we can look at the color orange. You can take a few days to think about it when you go out, at school, or when you go shopping. It forces you to pay closer attention to things around you in the world. It also gives you a purpose to discover new English words.

This image was posted on The English Student Facebook page the other day, and I received so many great and creative responses, such as, salmon eggs, persimmon, leaves on the tree in autumn, mango, peach, the sunset, tangerines. Look at all these new words you could learn!

What else can you think of that is orange?

**If you're interested in a pack of ten different color cards for use at home or in the classroom, they are available for download here .

Related Lessons:
New Year Plans
Names of Fingers

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