Our Amazing Waterfalls!

I’m Patricia and I come from Foz do Iguacu, Brazil. I’m almost leaving Vancouver but I had a lot of fun here and intend to come back here one day!

But today I’m here to talk a little bit about my city, and what I miss the most, besides people, of course: Iguacu Falls!!!

The waterfalls are the biggest reason for our thousands of visitors, coming from everywhere in the whole world. And they are really amazing!!!
It’s a real spectacle of nature with their 275 falls (it can be less in dry season, less but not less beautiful!).



Iguacu Falls are shared between Brazil and Argentina and are located in Iguacu River. Iguacu is a Tupi-guarani etymology word that means “Big Water”. The great falls are only 19 and, actually, only 3 of them are located in Brazilian side. From Brazilian side we have the best view while from Argentinean side we have more contact and interaction with nature.

Visiting Argentinean side, you can get closer to the falls and to the deep cleft of erosion called The Devil’s Throat. Both sides offer a variety of nature sports like rafting, rappel, rock climbing, canopy tour and boat trips for Iguacu River and among the falls.

We had a dry season in July and August, 2006, and you can really think that was awful to visit because it changed the view. To tell you the truth, it really changed the view, I’ve been visiting in August with a friend, but it was just a different beauty!! I don’t have the pictures here with me but, as soon as I arrive my city, in the end of January, I’ll try to post them so you can compare with those that are posted with this description.

The ideal is to visit both sides so you can complete appreciate the beauty and the spectacle that our binational Iguacu Falls offer: amazing view, great contact and interaction with nature!!!

Besides that, the National Park (where the waterfalls are located) has some interpretative trails where we can really have a deep contact with nature!

Foz do Iguacu is a touristic city, so you’ll find a lot of attractions but, with no doubt, Iguacu Falls are the most amazing that we have!!!

Hope you enjoy it!!!

Paty

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the movie "Yes man"

last sunday, I went to the theater to watch "Yes man"

when I watched movie's advertisement, I wanted to watch it.
I was interested in Jim carrey who tries to learn korean.
Carl Allen(Jim Carrey) is being negative everything.
he want to avoid his friends, neighbors, etc...
It seems like hopeless in his life.

One day, he meet his friend in front of his company. the friend suggest to join a self - help program based on one simple covenant say yes to everthing and anything.
he starts to say "yes"and his life changes quickly.
while he continues to say "Yes", his word begins to open up new opprtunities and unexpected. he tries to do new things . such as bungee jump, to be an aviator, blind dating and learning korean.

also he finds his new lover. but an article is not always good just because when he always says "yes' without any thoughts.

the more he says "yes" the more positive he change

but also he lose his opinion , he just says " yes" automatically.

he believes that it will be good for his life, but suddenly somthing block to him.

during he figures out it somthing happens around him

it seems like unusaul things, although it gave me laughting a lot, it was't reality.

but I became to think about my life more seriously and how do I able to change my life successfully.

the movie overstrates the facts and it has sarcastic in human's life.

because of those things, the movie can express dramatic scenes

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Organization and Discipline

What are some of the factors that differentiate those who are successful and those who are not? I believe that the key differences are their level of discipline, organization and determination. Sure, you can still achieve success with a very low level of these things but people who can do this are few and far between, not to mention quite exceptional. If you are not a person who is capable of becoming organized, disciplined and organized there is one other option, leverage.

Organization is a big time saving skill for those who have it. I know many college and university students who have very messy rooms and that’s the way they like it since it doesn’t take too much effort. However, they often lose their work because they misplaced it in their room under the pile of boxes of Kraft Dinner, dirty laundry and beer bottles. I also know many university students who receive exceptional marks from their professors and these students are extremely organized and responsible. They keep all their notes in order and in a specific place where they can find them. All of these acquantances and friends also happened to go to elementary school with me and are both capable of great work. Elementary school teachers hound the students for their homework and really grind them to write the name and date and place their work in their binders. Post secondary institutions however are a totally different story, the responsibility lies solely on the student’s shoulders and this is where the disorganized students crumble.

Determination and discipline are intrinsic values that are very crucial to success in any field. Every year, on December 31st, people across the world have New Year’s parties where they make resolutions. Everyone is guilty of making one of those “work out every day this year” or “quit smoking forever” type of resolutions. Not surprisingly, most of these resolutions end up unfulfilled because of lack of discipline. Beginning the task is easy. You could do fine for a few days, a week, or maybe, if you’re really good, a month or two, but most people do not consistently take action. They stop just a meter short of the finish line. Those who possess great intrinsic determination and motivation are able to push through at that last second and finish the race. And in the end their efforts are rewarded, they accomplish their goals and they’re on to the next one. Discipline allows them to get past the hard times so they can see get the long term results.

If you are an extremely lazy person, there is an alternative. Have you ever played that game “Would you rather?” If you haven’t it goes something like this… One person asks “Would you rather eat a whole jar of peanut butter or kiss a fat guy?” and the other person says “Ewww kiss a fat guy? I’ll eat the peanut butter.” Tell a close friend or someone you trust that you are going to fulfill your resolution and that if you don’t you will have to do something of their choice… like clean all the toilets in your house, do something embarrassing or as simple as giving them a hundred dollars. In most cases the person would rather work out everyday than pay a large ammount of money or do something embarrassing.

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The Importance of Communication

It is important to put our ideas into action, and learn by putting things we learn into practice. The problem is that we lack opportunities to practice what we learn; but if we don’t get or seize these opportunities we may never get to reach our fullest potential. As the teacher you can prompt them to use their newly acquired English skills.

A great method that is a classic among teachers is the good old topic and cues. The teacher would bring up a topic of discussion in which the students would have to draw information from a resource such as a book, or an article. The students would then use the information and have discussions and debates in order to understand the topic more in depth, but the important thing is that they are able to practice their conversational English and the fluency in real time.

Another great way that you can aid the students in their learning is by providing structure. Although we need to let them practice communicating they can sometimes get off track or the conversation could die down. It is then the teacher’s job to get the train back on the tracks and moving on by adding an important point that they may have missed or getting them back on topic as to maintain the flow of the conversation.

It is important to ask open questions that are very general rather than non-leading questions that can be answered in one word. It allows the students to express their inner most thoughts and feelings which is a great way to start a conversation as there are often opposing views. Asking a question such as “Do you like swimming?” has one of two results: yes or no. An open question usually begins with Who, What, Why, Where, When and How and has infinite possible responses.

You can also get the students riled up by playing devil’s advocate. Start off by stating something that they will almost certainly object to in order to get them to object using everything they’ve got. An example of this is when stated in class that I thought that we should all have arranged marriages and that we should marry not for love but rather wealth, and status. Several people caved to my statement but a mini discussion began when someone stated their differing views.

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Advice: What Should I Do?

After careful observation I have realized something incredible, a great phenomenon. Advice that we receive is no longer given based on experience and wisdom instead we are giving default answers because we don’t know what else to say. I think that we need to realize that we are not always qualified to give advice, but rather to direct them to another resource that is more reliable. If we try to play counselor without very much prior knowledge we can cause many further complications which may snowball.

I first came to this realization while I witnessed two people in the class role-play a distressed individual and a counselor. The initial intent was obviously not to practice counseling but rather to use our English vocabulary in real time and practice at it. The distressed individual’s problem was that someone from one of his former relationship had become a burden and a time vampire and that it was affecting the quality of his current relationship. His great dilemma was whether it was time to say ‘enough is enough’ or if he should continue to be her shoulder to cry on and just find time for her.

The problem is very common and is just a background to the real meat and potatoes which is the advice given by the counselor. The person playing the role of the counselor found difficulty in answering because she probably hadn’t experienced something like that before. She gave a very common answer which is to continue being there for them as a friend and making them a top priority.

I do not know where exactly where we get these ideas from but we have an auto-response mechanism inside us when it comes to advice – default solutions to difficult questions. If I like a girl how do I get her to like me? Auto-response: be yourself. I feel really hurt from a break up. Don’t worry about it, there are plenty of fish in the sea, we’ll go to the bar. First of all I think that we are looking for advice in the wrong place, our peers are not always a great resource. Not only that, but when they do give advice its very hit or miss because it is just a stock response and the results are dependent on how you perceived the advice.

It is not uncommon for us to think that we give great advice. It can be addicting and as much as it strokes our ego we much find an alternative, something that is more effective. I think that the most effective way to solve a problem is to act as a prompter and inquire more deeply into the problem, as a resource that guides them to the a more qualified source, and also as a sounding mirror to build rapport and really give develop a greater understanding for both the counselor and the distressed individual and work towards resolution.

I think that when giving advice we should really speak from our own experiences and wisdom and if you don’t know the answer then just tell them that honestly. I know it sounds very simple to do, but it is a difficult task to put into practice. We can really empathize and get to understand the individual through prompting, mirroring and acting as a resource. Although this is a good solution we must remember that we need to experience things for ourselves and learn from our mistakes. If we change our approach, we may not be doomed to repeat history after all.

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Hahyun Park’s last day!(Overdue...Sept 25th)

Today was her final day here at ATC as a student. Although the will no longer be attending regularly as a student she will continue to attend classes occasionally so she can see her friends here and enjoy spending time with them. I think that she put a lot of effort into planning her final lesson for us. She understood the material in depth and was able to communicate it to us very elegantly and with a wonderful passionate smile. Her methods of teaching us grammar were very effective but that’s not the most important part. What made the lesson really memorable is that she really took us into consideration and made the lesson very fun, interactive and a great way to help us get to know each other before she had to say her last farewell. Afterwards, we exchanged contact information and agreed to have a goodbye party in Hahyun’s honor tomorrow night. If you ask me I would say that today was truly a Kodak moment.

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The Secret About Great Teachers

At this day and age I noticed that we have fewer exceptional teachers, and more mediocre teachers. I believe that the mediocre teachers lack something very crucial that hinders them from ever achieving greatness. Extraordinary teachers have a passion for what they do, they have a positive attitude and they can motivate students by relating to them and working within their incentive systems.

Spectacular teachers becoming scarcer we have begun to accept mediocrity as long as they have the practical knowledge and a piece of paper that says they do – a degree or certificate. These “teachers” have all the practical knowledge you could want; they might be able to parrot back to you the entire encyclopedia Britannica, but they still lack something, that “so close yet so far” – passion. A superstar teacher who is passionate is naturally talented because they love what they do, they are doing it because they want to see students learn and grow, and as a result they have radiate charisma and a contagious enthusiasm. I am not dreaming, teachers like this are few and far between, but they do exist. A teacher who is passionate about teaching can inspire you to be passionate about teaching and look at life in a totally different light.

Another quality a great teacher possesses is the ability to see things in a positive light and the ability to take responsibility. They don’t blame people for their mistakes, they don’t have a victim’s mentality, and they don’t want to cut themselves when someone gives them constructive criticism. Every mistake and critique they receive is something they can learn from so that they can really refine and improve on their teaching ability. They don’t play the blame game or make excuses; they take responsibility and think about what they can change, they believe that they are the masters of their destiny. A teacher who makes excuses and has a victim mentality doesn’t have control of his life, is controlled externally, never changes, never improves, and never becomes great. On the other hand, the great teacher takes responsibility, takes control of his life, takes action, adapts, improves, and achieves his goals.

Although a great teacher can generally spark a student’s dormant enthusiasm and passion, there are some who need to be motivated differently. Any great teacher is able to ‘walk in their shoes’ and take some time to think about what makes the students motivated. They know that young kids and adolescents have a different paradigm and mindset and that the same things that make adults tick aren’t necessarily the same things that make young students tick. I have seen some truly excellent teachers use this to their advantage by offering incentives such as snacks, fieldtrips, and recognition and witnessed how effective it is.

In brief, these are some of the main traits of the truly successful, wonderful, and inspirational teachers. The things that truly separate the magnificent and the mediocre are passion for teaching, the ability to take responsibility and maintain a positive attitude, and see the world through the eyes of their students. I see a bright future for the aspiring teachers who possess these traits, as they will become legends, who will continue to inspire for years to come.

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