There's this story about Father Frost and my two little friends from Russian. Darian and Maria.

English My Way

"Father Frost" Russia

Are you preparing TOPIK test?
As you know well, you should practice [reading], [listening] and [writing] to prepare for the TOPIK II.
So I'd like to introduce in particular how I can get help or any way to prepare for [writing] of TOPIK II.

You have to prepare a total of 4 TOPIK II questions.

The quesions are as follows.
Number 51 is writing Practical sentences.
Number 52 is writing Descriptive sentences.
Number 53 is writing a P Describing Data.
Number 54 is writing on a Given topic.
You should prepare and practice these questions types.

The first type of question I will introduce is number 51.
No. 51 contains writing contents such as invitations, notices, and text messages.
You should write a sentence into the ( blank ) in the given writing composed of 4 to 8 sentences.
It is recommended to use words and grammar above the intermediate level.
Considering the time, number 51 should be completed in 5 minutes.

Let's take a look at some strategies for writing answers faster and more accurately now.
The process for No. 51 is as follows.
Strategy 1. Skimming
Skim through the question to the end to find the purpose of the writing.

Strategy 2. Remembering the Formality of Writing
Check the sentence final endings and usage of the casual/formal speech.

Strategy 3. Guessing
Understand the context from the preceding and followig sentences and guess what to write for the answer.

Strategy 4. Correcting Errors
Finally, check it there are any mistakes such as spelling errors or the wrong usage of postpositions and modify them.

You should also check your frequently used grammar and expressions.
1. A request
(1) V-아/어 주십시오.
(2) V-기 바랍니다.

2. plan
(1) V-(으)려고 합니다.
(2) V-고자 합니다.

3. ask
(1) 구합니다.
(2) 찾습니다. 

Through this process, you will be able to understand number 51 more naturally.
If you want to study more detailed and diverse grammar, expressions, and questions together, come to my class.

Reading Korea.

How do prepare well for the writing test of TOPIK II?

Let's engage in a session of practicing Russian tongue twisters today! Tongue twisters serve as an excellent aid in refining your pronunciation, honing in on difficult sounds, and enhancing the pace of your speech, resulting in greater clarity.

Are you ready to give it a try? I'll recite each tongue twister twice: once at a slow pace and then gradually closer to a normal speed.

стоИт поп на копнЕ, колпАк на попЕ, копнА под попОм, поп под колпакОм. (п,к) 

шли сОрок мышЕй, неслИ шестнАдцать грошЕй, две мЫши поплОше неслИ по два грОша. (ш)

орЁл на горЕ, перО на орлЕ. горА под орлОм, орЁл под перОм. (Р,л)

These tongue twisters specifically target a variety of Russian sounds. Your goal is to enunciate them with utmost clarity. Remember, precision takes precedence over speed. Best of luck in your endeavor! Additionally, practicing tongue twisters can enhance your oral dexterity, further benefiting your language skills.

Russian with Elina

Russian tongue twisters - part 3

In this episode listen in to hear why I am allowed to scream at my mom once a year and use beans to kill some bad vibes. You'll be surprised to learn about this fun holiday that only Japanese people know about.

Crazy Japanese Culture

[Setsubun👹] Throw Beans at the Demons!

There's a video on TikTok in which a user takes a jar of seasoning called "Everything But the Bagel" and carefully separates the ingredients into small piles to find out the secret to the recipe.

The video has been viewed almost 2 million times — a sign of just how popular this seasoning mix, made by US company Trader Joe's, has become.

People like to put it on top of bagels and use it in lots of different meals.

However, fans of the mix have been finding out that it's not welcome everywhere in the world.

Signs have been posted at Incheon Airport in Seoul, telling passengers they can't bring jars of the seasoning into the country.

The reason is that one of the ingredients is banned in South Korea.

The mix contains things like sesame seeds, dried garlic, dried onion and salt — but poppy seeds are the problem.

Poppy seeds are banned in South Korea because they are narcotic-related items, according to the airport. The ban is not new but travelers have said that airports are now cracking down on the seasoning mix.

The seeds are also banned in a number of other countries, including Saudi Arabia and Singapore.

The poppy plant is used to make drugs like heroin and morphine, although the seeds don't contain any opiates.

However, the country worries that the seeds could be contaminated by opiates.

In fact, in the US, members of the armed forces have been advised not to eat products containing poppy seeds in case they affect the results of drug tests.

Drug tests can be very sensitive but experts say that it would be almost impossible to eat enough poppy seeds to feel any narcotic effect.

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Greece Uses Drones to Keep Sunbeds Off Beaches

CHISTES MEXICANOS

PERRO PERDIDO

I get asked about idioms all the time. This is the second part of idioms related to efficiency. Sign-up for a class with me today. https://www.italki.com/en/teacher/8543771

All American Podcast 

Idioms (efficiency) part II.

In this episode we will talk about 【Family Education】, you will learn how to say 【authority,impose on,cultivate】 ect.
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It is recommended that you study in the following ways:
1st time: listen without looking at the text.
2nd time: look at the text and write down the new words, later look up the dictionary. 
3rd time: listen again without looking at the text.
4th time: repeat after it without looking at the text.
大家好，我是Yuli。欢迎收听我的播客。今天想和大家聊一聊【家庭教育】的话题。
在中国，传统的家庭教育模式是：父母是权威，孩子要听父母的。很多父母甚至会把自己的人生梦想或人生意愿强加给自己的孩子。在做重大人生决定的时候，父母会说：“我是过来人，你应该听我的，不然以后你会后悔的。”不过也有越来越多的家长开始用新的方式教育孩子，例如和孩子做朋友，培养孩子的独立性，尊重孩子的意愿。很多育儿的书籍和课程也应运而生，家长也开始有意识地通过学习提升自己。
李一诺是一土教育的创始人，关于家庭教育，她有什么看法呢？
我觉得家庭教育一个最大的误区就是认为我们是可以设计孩子的人生的，孩子的人生是可以被设计出来的。这听上去可能还挺合理的，特别是当我们家长好像很成功的时候，是吧？觉得孩子其实可以复制我的路径。但真相是啊，如果孩子真的复制了你的人生，那才是最大的失败。这种设计其实是带着一种傲慢的，因为设计的主体是我们，是家长，不是儿童。那不是说我们就不做事情，我们做什么呢？我们做支持和引导。支持和引导，那主体就是儿童，我们是一个辅助的作用。那这有个很重要的前提，就是一种相信。相信孩子可以有足够的能力智慧去面对他自己的生活，而且相信他自己的生活走出来的道路会比我们设计的所谓的道路要精彩。他就算是不精彩，他至少真实。当他是真实的时候，他早晚会精彩。听上去有点绕啊，但是我想大家都听得懂。所以我想我们要放下的一个执念就是去设计孩子的人生，而是反过来支持和引导孩子的成长。
如果你有孩子，你会用什么样的方式教育孩子呢？留言告诉我吧。我们下期见。
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模式	/	mó shì	/	model,mode
权威	/	quán wēi	/	authority
意愿	/	yì yuàn	/	will,intention
强加	/	qiáng jiā	/	impose on
过来人	/	guò lái rén	/	a person who has had the experience
培养	/	péi yǎng	/	cultivate
应运而生	/	yìng yùn ér shēng	/	rise in response to the proper time and conditions
误区	/	wù qū	/	misconceptions
复制	/	fù zhì	/	replicate
路径	/	lù jìng	/	paths
傲慢	/	ào màn	/	arrogant
主体	/	zhǔ tǐ	/	subject,main body
引导	/	yǐn dǎo	/	lead
辅助	/	fǔ zhù	/	subsidiary
绕	/	rào	/	confusing, not easy to understand
执念	/	zhí niàn	/	obsession

Yuli's Chinese Channel

家庭教育 Family Education （Advanced level）

こんばんは！Atsushiです。
僕は今、岡山にいます。
いつもは北海道の千歳に住んでいますが、4年からしているボランティアの為に、千歳から大阪に飛行機で移動し、大阪から岡山までは電車で移動しました。

4年前に参加したボランティア活動を昨年から引き継いで、少人数のボランティアチームで運営しています。

この活動はとてもおもしろいです。
高校の授業に参加して、高校生と地域の大人が会話をします。ここで、親でもない、先生でもない大人と会話をすることで、大人や社会を少し身近に感じてもらうような活動です。

日本には定時制高校という仕組みがあります。
定時制高校は、夜だけ授業がある高校です。
いろんな理由でこの学校を選ぶ人がいます。
不登校の経験があったり、昼は働かないといけないとか、それぞれがいろんな理由があって、この学校に通っています。

社会や大人に対して、距離を取ったり、ネガティブな印象を持っている高校生も多いです。ですが、この活動で感じてもらいたいことがあります。それは、大人も大変なんだな、とか、おもしろい大人もいるんだな、とか、意外と自分たちと同じなんだな、ということを、少しだけでも感じてもらうことです。

この活動には2つ楽しいことがあります。
1つは今の高校生と関われることです。
44歳になると普通の生活では、高校生とゆっくり話すことはありません。ですが、この活動で、高校生といろんな話ができます。それはとても刺激があり、視野が広がります。

もう1つは、ボランティアで参加してくれる大人の人たちとの出会いです。
いろんな仕事をしている人たちと会うことができます。
大学の先生、介護、NPO職員、建設会社、飲食業などなど。
いろんな環境の人たちとコミュニケーションを取るのはとても刺激があります。これも普段の生活では得られない体験です。

ということで、この活動は僕にとってとても意味のあるものです。今年の活動は今日で終わりましたが、また来年も活動を続ける予定です。


みなさんは、仕事意外で、何かボランティアのような活動をしていますか？ぜひ、オンラインレッスンでお話しましょう！

今回も最後まで聞いていただき、ありがとうございます！
ではまた！