Christmas is coming…

Welcome to English - Speaking Club. Last month we had a variety of topics discussed:

7.12 Playing the Game “Mafia”

14.12 Christmas Carol ( party and movie)

Christmas is coming… It is the time for the whole family to get together at Christmas dinner. Christmas is one of the most popular and important holidays in the USA. And today we had a chance to learn more about Christmas traditions of the American people. We watched the film “Christmas Carol”. And it was a pleasant surprise for us that our volunteer Arden arranged a small stand-up party. So we enjoyed the national American drink and food.

Thanksgiving Day.

Welcome to English - Speaking Club. Last month we had a variety of topics discussed:

2.11 Communication

9.11 Playing the game "Let's get Acquainted"

16.11 Thanksgiving Day

23.11 Thanksgiving Party. Thanksgiving is a holiday in November and it is a time for people to think about the things they are thankful for. Families and friends come together to celebrate Thanksgiving. They gather around a large table to give thanks for all blessings they have received during the year.
On Tuesday our volunteer Arden decided to make a Thanksgiving party and everyone was welcome to enjoy the warm atmosphere of the holiday. Every guest tried to bring something to eat: fruit, sweets, chocolates, cookies, juice, rolls, and buns. Some people made their best to cook something themselves so they brought home-made food. Before sitting down to dinner, all the participants paused to give their thanks in turns. Then they learnt about Thanksgiving in the USA, discussed interesting issues, took part in playing activities and just communicated with each other. The party was of great success.

30.11 Signs of the Zodiac.

The Launch of the Virtual Library Databases

WOA center is pleased to announce that access is now available for the global virtual library databases
All EBSCOhost Resources - Cross Searchable A set of databases from EBSCO Publishing - mostly full-text periodical collections, with an emphasis on peer-reviewed journals. Major components are Academic Search Premier with over 4,600 full-text journals and Business Source Premier with more than 2,150 full-text journals. Smaller, more specialized full-text databases include Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts with Full Text, Regional Business News, and Fuente Academica.
All Gale Resources - Cross Searchable
Gale Virtual Reference LibraryGale Virtual Reference Library is a database of encyclopedias and specialized reference sources for multidisciplinary research. These reference materials once were accessible only in the library, but now you can access them online from the library or remotely 24/7.
Ebrary Public Library (with Elibro & Elivro)Online, full-text collection of over 20,000 books in English, and 35,000 books in Spanish and Portuguese. Covers a wide range of topics, including sociology, psychology, history, political science, medicine, language and literature, philosophy and religion, education, business, the hard sciences and more.
Encyclopedia BritannicaBasic introduction to over 75,000 different topics, including encyclopedia articles, maps, news, definitions, and statistics.
Encyclopedia Britannica for KidsPerfect for students 8 years and above, this resource includes thousands of images, videos, animated timelines and of course, encyclopedia articles. It also has learning activities for English and language arts, mathematics, science and social studies.
Pop Culture UniverseAn authoritative digital library of information on American and world poplular culture, past and present, in a dynamic package. Built on hundresds of award-winning titles for all levels of researchers, PCU provides a safe haven for investigating topics that appeal to students-without the bias, advertising, suggestive content, or questionable authorship of commercial of fan sites.

English Language Teaching

On November 11 WOA center hosted a seminar for teachers of English language of Sumy and Sumy region. We acquainted them with teaching materials ( books,magazines,CDs, DVDs collections), presented online resources for teachers(English Language Learner Reference Center, Encyclopedia Britannica, Pop Culture Universe). A lot of request for future seminars of this kind were received.

Rosetta Stone

On November 5 over 30 pupils of secondary school attended our "Window on America" center for the first time. Pupils were told about the activities held in our center and were acquainted with the center's collections of books, CDs, DVDs. Our pupils were acquainted with the Rosetta Stone for learning English.This program uses a combination of images, text, and sound, with difficulty levels increasing as the student progresses, in order to teach various vocabulary terms and grammar without translation. They call this the "Dynamic Immersion method".
Our pupils took an interest in this program.

Michael Jackson, legendary king of pop

Welcome to English - Speaking Club. Last month we had a variety of topics discussed:

5.10.Elvis Presley

12.10. Quiz

19.10. Social issues

26.10. Michael Jackson

For two weeks the main topic of discussion was American culture and especial attention was paid to American music. We learnt much about two singers, who had taken the top of popularity not only in the USA but also around the world and both of them undoubtedly, had become the symbol of the American pop culture. They are Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson. Our volunteer Arden made the meetings full of activities to make the new information easier to capture: the participants watched music videos, listened to music, read and discussed the articles concerning the topic.

American Exchange Programs

On 27 and 8 of October our guests Nataliya Bulgakova, director of Educational Advising center "Osvita"(Kharkiv) and Oleg Tseluyko, program coordinator PH International USAID Community Connections program( Kyiv) delivered presentations on american exchange programs for students( Undergraduate Exchange Program) and for office employees, specialists, leaders of local commynity on topic law enforcement and preventive measures in dealing with crime among young people. Our local TV Channel put this event in it's evening news program.

Study in the United States

The Undergraduate Exchange Program provides an all-expense scholarship for one year at an undergraduate institution in the US. UEP fellows lead, learn, volunteer and receive project funding to improve their home communities! Eligible applicants must be in their second year of Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Luhansk, Mykolaiv, Odessa, Poltava, Sumy, or Zaporizhia university studing: American Studies, Art History, Economic Theory, Fine or Performing Asrts, History, Jornalism, Law, Literature and Languages, Sociology.
Applications due December 1, 2010.
For eligibility requirements and applications, please visit:
www.soros.org/initiatives/scholarship

WOA center and the English teachers

On October 12 a presentation for 16 teachers of English of Sumy and Sumy region took place at the Window on America center. The event included an exhibition of literature, an overview of center's resources and Internet resources for English teachers. We presented also the Virtual Library Databases (Encyclopedia Britannica, English Language Learner Reference Center and Pop Culture Universe) and invited our guests to take part in numerous WOA center events.

Making - up Poems

Welcome to English - Speaking Club. Last month we had a variety of topics discussed:
7.09. Getting acquainted.
14.09. Making - up poems.
Are you fond of Shakespeare, Byron, Burns? Are you dreaming about composing verses yourself? Aren't you aware of how to do it? Then you are welcome here to make a try! Our new volunteer Arden told about the main principles of writing verses. Everyone was given his own topic and was offered to create a small verse. The friendly atmosphere of the club encouraged the participants to open the hidden talents. The task was rather puzzling but nevertheless at the end everyone was ready to perform his work.
28.09. Asking questions.

English - Speaking Club

We are glad to inform that sessions of our English-Speaking Club will take place every Tuesday at 5p.m. with participation of the Peace Corps volunteer. The English Speaking Club is a group of friends who meet on a regular bases. So if you want to speak or practise your English or make new friends from all over the world then come and join us.
You are welcome to English - Speaking Club.

Foreign Languages - Courses

In the age of globalization, difference in languages should not become a barrier in communication. Keeping this fact in mind our center has started offering foreign language courses – French, Italian and Czech languages. If you decide to include foreign language in your studies, you will find that you have taken an important step in preparing for a career in today’s world. All the language courses at our center are designed to help users to learn and understand the language, literature, and culture of others countries. All foreign language courses are the fun, fast and effective way to learn a second language.
You are welcome!
If you want to join us, call 22-01-33.

Great American Writers.

On February 16, 2010 WOA center in Sumy hosted an event devoted to the American fiction. We’ve opened book exhibition of such famous American writers as Philip Roth, Ian McEwan, L.Alcott. The books are granted by the American Embassy in Kiev.
32 students from the Machine Building college gathered to listen presentation about the famous books by great American authors such as Jack London, Mark Twain, E. Poe, J.F. Cooper. The event had a great success.

Teachers at WOA Center

On 27 of January we welcomed teachers at our center despite of January crazy frost (-25C). We presented our resources for teachers, new e-journals and also the Popular Culture Universe database. We hope such resources will help the teachers in their work.

Presentation of "Window on America" Program

On January 22, 17 teachers from Sumy and Sumy region came to visit WOA center for the first time. They were welcome by the center's director's talk about resources and activities and invited to visit us in the future.
All teachers enjoyed the meeting, after which one person confessed: "We are certain that Window on America is a unique and important program".