Slang, informal and little tips to sound more like a native speaker. 

Send me a message to learn with me.
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Everyday English with Teacher Alyse

He is a master of satire and a writer who can turn diary entries into poignantly crafted stories. While his stories might make readers laugh, he often ends with a deep, memorable moment.

Three by Sedaris ( Adult 18+ )

This is a thought-provoking book dealing with family, sacrifice, teamwork, and leading kids to think about their feelings on animal testing, written by Award-winning author Robert C. O'Brien. 

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH 

The Adventures of Captain Underpants” is a popular children's book written by  Dav Pilkey. 

The Adventures of Captain Underpants

Join me with Captain Seasalt and his curious band of pirates as they explore the 26 Islands of the alphabet. 
Send me a message for free flashcards to follow along: 
www.italki.com/en/teacher/13365914

Captain Sesalt & The ABC Pirates

Short Stories by David Sedaris **Content is suitable for Adults** Listen and follow along as I read short stories from Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk. 


Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk ( Adult 18+) 

夏料理と聞いて、何を連想しますか？
夏はやっぱり冷たくてのどごしがいいものが食べたくなりますよね。
今回は、アヤが好きな夏っぽいものについて話します。

What first comes to your mind when you think of a summer dish? 
It might be the season for the food that is cool and feels good going down.
This time, Aya talks about her favorite summery food.

♤ キーワード 
・バグる（gone buggy）
・豆板醤（トウバンジャン：Chinese chili bean sauce） 
・ふりかけ（rice seasoning）
・ピリ辛（ピリから：a little spicy）

♧ 理解度チェッククイズ 
1. アヤさんが食べた夏っぽいものは？ 
2. アヤさんのご主人がそれを残した理由は？ 

♢ 前回のクイズの答え 
1.  フミさんがこの夏したいことは？ 
→ ５キロ痩せること 
2. それを続けるために、アヤはどんなアドバイスをした？ 
→ 今回をラストチャンスだと思う！ 

BGM special thanks：MusMus

アヤさんとフミさんの日本語雑談（Aya and Fumi’s Japanese Chit-Chat）

Episode 09：夏料理

Uskoro nam stiže 14-ti veljače, tada se u Hrvatskoj obilježava Valentinovo ili Dan zaljubljenih...

Priče iz Hrvatske

Epizoda 5 : Valentinovo, dan zaljubljenih

The Power of Storytelling in Leading Change emphasizes the role of storytelling in driving organizational change. Leaders often face the need for significant shifts within their organizations, from cultural to product-related changes. To unite their teams behind a new direction, they must craft a clear, compelling narrative.

Storytelling is a potent tool for inspiring action and connecting with people on a deeper level. It helps articulate the ‘why’ and ‘what’ of change, making the abstract tangible and the future vivid.

The article presents a four-step approach to effective storytelling in leadership:

Deep Understanding, Simple Description: Leaders must deeply understand the change to communicate it simply. John Legere’s transformation of T-Mobile into an “un-carrier” is a prime example of conveying a complex change with a single, powerful word.
Honoring the Past: Leaders should acknowledge the organization’s strengths and history, showing respect for the past while guiding towards the future. This builds trust and eases the transition for those resistant to change.
Articulate a Persuasive Mandate for Change: Leaders need to present a clear vision that motivates and aligns with the organization’s values, addressing both the positive and negative aspects of the past.
Lay Out a Rigorous and Optimistic Path Forward: The narrative should be action-oriented, providing a clear roadmap for change while maintaining an optimistic outlook.
In summary, leaders must master storytelling to effectively lead change, balancing respect for the past with a clear vision for the future. By doing so, they can capture the hearts and minds of their employees, fostering a culture of optimism and honesty.

The Global Professional Podcast

The Power of Storytelling in Leading Change    -   Episode 50

Neste episódio darei exemplos e explicações das duas preposições que você mais gosta, rs! Vamos aproveitar para estudar? Recomendo que estude junto com a transcrição! O que é preposição? É uma palavra que serve para ligar dois elementos que se relacionam - o segundo será sempre subordinado ao primeiro. Então os dois elementos são interligados pela preposição. A preposição com relação de finalidade, destino e direção é a PARA. Logo no início do seu aprendizado, uma das primeiras preposições que você se depara é com ela. Geralmente, seguida pelo verbo Ir, um dos verbos mais utilizados na língua portuguesa, principalmente quando queremos usá-lo para nós referirmos ao futuro imediato do indicativo. Ex. Vou ir para o museu. A medida que nosso nível do idioma for aumentando, vamos entendendo melhor a situação das preposições.
Para continuar com a transcrição, me mande uma mensagem ,)

Brasileiríssimo

Por x Para

こんにちは。今年の夏、2022年7月より東京・六本木（ろっぽんぎ）で、妖怪（ようかい）の絵を集めた展覧会（てんらんかい）、『水木しげるの妖怪（ようかい）　百鬼夜行（ひゃっきやぎょう）展』が開催（かいさい）されます。

百鬼夜行は「ひゃっきやこう」とも読みます。「100の鬼（おに）が夜（よる）行く（いく）」、「妖怪たちが夜、行列（ぎょうれつ）になって騒いで（さわいで）歩く（あるく）」、という意味です。　

今から900年前の書物（しょもつ）『今昔物語集（こんじゃくものがたりしゅう）』に、100年以上（いじょう）昔に百鬼夜行が目撃（もくげき）された、と書かれています。　

日本人は昔、人に災い（わざわい）をもたらす、目に見えない存在（そんざい）がいると信じていました。また昔からの神道（しんとう）の自然（しぜん）を畏れ敬う（おそれうやまう）信仰（しんこう）と共（とも）に、悪い事をすると報い（むくい）がある、罰（ばち）が当たる（あたる）という仏教（ぶっきょう）の教えが、日本人に広まっていきます。　

やがてこの世（よ）には、人の目に見えない妖怪がいる。妖怪は突然（とつぜん）人に災いをもたらすこともある。だから妖怪を怒らせないように、悪い事や危ない事をしてはいけない、という考えが広まるようになりました。　

しかし今から200年以上前の平和（へいわ）な江戸時代（えどじだい）、日本人は怪談（かいだん）など怖い（こわい）話を楽しむようになると、妖怪は奇妙（きみょう）で面白い（おもしろい）存在になり、多くの人が楽しむようになります。日本には江戸時代、妖怪を楽しむ「妖怪ブーム」があったのです。

ところが江戸時代が終わると、妖怪は昔の誤った（あやまった）考えが生んだものとされます。民俗学（みんぞくがく）から妖怪を研究（けんきゅう）する学者（がくしゃ）もいましたが、妖怪を信じるのは間違いだ、迷信（めいしん）だと多くの人が信じるようになります。

その妖怪を『ゲゲゲの鬼太郎（きたろう）』などの漫画（マンガ）を描き復活（ふっかつ）させたのが、水木しげるです。『ゲゲゲの鬼太郎』は1965年頃にマンガが人気になり、アニメも作られ日本に新たな（あらたな）「妖怪ブーム」が起きました。

水木しげるは江戸時代やそれ以前に書かれた絵、民俗学者の研究を参考（さんこう）にして妖怪を描きました。日本人が忘れかけていた、昔の妖怪の姿を、現代（げんだい）に甦らせた（よみがえらさせた）のです。

『水木しげるの妖怪　百鬼夜行展』は、水木しげるが生まれてから100年、生誕（せいたん）100年を記念して開催されます。彼の作品だけでなく、彼に影響を与えた昔の妖怪の絵、書物など文献（ぶんけん）を見ることができます。　

水木しげるが生んだ「妖怪ブーム」の後、妖怪は日本でポップカルチャーのキャラクターになります。その後何度も妖怪はブームになり、妖怪が登場（とうじょう）する映画やマンガ・アニメやゲームなどがたくさん作られます。『鬼滅の刃（きめつのやいば）』や『呪術廻戦（じゅじゅつかいせん）』も、そんな作品だと言えるでしょう。　

あなたが楽しんでいる日本のマンガやアニメから、日本の歴史（れきし）や日本人の習慣（しゅうかん）、考え方を学ぶこともできます。このような視点（してん）から、日本のサブカルチャーを楽しんでみませんか？それでは、さようなら。


Ken先生の映画・歴史・カルチャートーク

【第5回】2022年7月、東京で妖怪の展覧会が開かれます！

Have you ever wondered if the festive magic of Christmas could transform your language learning? It did for me! Let me take you back to one chilly December when I felt stuck and uninspired in my language studies. I decided to embrace the holiday spirit and experiment with writing Christmas cards in my target language, watching festive movies with subtitles, and even learning carols. To my surprise, these small steps reignited my passion and made learning fun again.

This Christmas, why not give yourself the gift of language? Tune in to Episode 60 of "111 Tips for Learning a Language" to discover how the spirit of giving, connection, and patience during the holidays can inspire your learning journey. 🎁

111 Tips for Learning a Language 

Tip 60 - A Christmas Special: Language Learning Lessons from the Season of Joy

A bluefin tuna was sold for 36.04 million yen -- around $273,000 -- at the first auction of the year at Tokyo's Toyosu fish market.

The price of the 212-kilogram fish was more than double that of the most expensive fish at last year's New Year's auction: a 211-kilogram fish that sold for 16.88 million yen -- at that time worth $145,000.

Both fish were caught off the coast of the town of Oma in Aomori prefecture.

This year's auction began at 5:10 a.m. on January 5, and around 230 tuna were sold in just 15 minutes.

Seafood wholesaler Yamayuki bought this year's most expensive fish for the sushi restaurant Ginza Onodera. The tuna was served to the restaurant's customers later that same day.

This is the third year in a row that Yamayuki has bought the most expensive tuna. However, prices had fallen in recent years as the restaurant industry suffered during the coronavirus pandemic.

Yamayuki's president Yukitaka Yamaguchi told The Yomiuri Shimbun that the increased price this year "is good news that symbolizes the gradual recovery from the pandemic."

This year's top price was the sixth highest since records began being kept in 1999.

The highest price recorded was at the New Year's auction in 2019 -- just after Tokyo's fish market moved from Tsukiji to Toyosu. At that auction, a 278-kilogram fish was sold for 333.6 million yen -- at that time $3 million -- to Kiyomura Corp., whose owner, Kiyoshi Kimura, runs the Sushi Zanmai restaurant chain.

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Tuna Sells for ¥36 Million at Tokyo New Year Auction

In this English language podcast we talk about ping pong.
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