Hi Again

Hello Everyone. How are you?
I just heard from Emi, and from Takahiro, so I thought I'd put up a new post. Anyone who wants can post a comment.
I am very busy these days. I am teaching French in a highschool, with Grade 8s (13 years old) and Grade 12s (12 years old).
It's so much work! The younger kids are nice, but pretty wild.
It was just Halloween, a holiday where Canadian children put on costumes and go around to different houses asking for candy. Canadian adults put on costumes, drink a lot and dance. I went to a party and it was a lot of fun. I dressed as a mad scientist.
OK, tell me what you're up to.
Oh, and here's an idea. If you want to keep in touch with each other, and keep writing on a blog, you should start a new one. It's very easy. Then, you could write your own posts (instead of me doing it.) Try it out: it's easy and fun.
Take care,
Pablo

I'll miss you.

Some of you are going home today; the rest of you are going home soon. I think we will all miss each other. And I hope there are things about Vancouver that you will miss. For our last post, I would like you to tell me about what you will miss when you go home. Your host family? Your classmates? The mountains? The beach?
Also, it would be good to hear about what you are looking forward to. It is always exciting and comfortable to go home after you have been away for a while. Tell us a few of the things you are looking forward to.

I don't agree!

Hi Class,
Today we're going to play a game. The name of the game is "I don't agree."

Here's how it works.
One person writes something. For example:

Oranges are the best fruit, because they are juicy.

The next person has to say: "I don't agree." Then, they have to give reasons.

I don't agree. I think oranges are not the best fruit, because they are hard to peel. Bananas are the best fruit.

The next person has to disagree.

No, I don't agree. Bananas are not the best fruit, because they are mushy, and not sweet.

ALSO, YOU CAN CHANGE THE SUBJECT ANY TIME.

eg. After disagreeing about bananas, you DO NOT have to talk about fruit. You can say anything you want. For example:

I think Nelly Furtado is the best singer. (or) I think Victoria is prettier than Vancouver. (or) I think history is the most boring subject.


Let's start with this one.

I think Snickers is the best sweet, because you have peanuts and chocolate together.

Men and Women

Hi everyone,
I wasn't sure what to write about, today, and then I read your wonderful comments and I got an idea.
Hiromi wrote this:
"women and men are really equal in Canada. When I did a barbecue with my host family and their friends, men got drink for women."
Also, Carol wrote in her diary that she thought maybe it was easier for women to find happiness, because women appreciate the simple things in life more than men.
I think that the relationship between men and women in society is an interesting topic.
Have you noticed anything different in Canada about the way men and women act? Are the roles of men and women different here than in your country?
In your country, do you think men and women are equal? Do you think that there is fairness in the relationships between men and women (at work, in the home, in politics, etc.).
This is something to think about over the weekend. If you have any ideas, write them down.
Have a great weekend!

What have you learned?

We're almost done our first week. Congratulations!
First of all, I want to say that I'm very happy with what you wrote on the blog.
But there are two important things to remember:
1. Always write your name when you write a comment.
2. Make sure to read what other people write. This blog will only work if you read it. It's a great chance for you to learn from each other.

For this next post, I want everyone to think of 3 things they have learned since they have been in Vancouver. It could be a new word. It could be a useful phrase. Or it could be something not about language. Have you learned anything about Vancouver? About Canada? About your homestay family, or your classmates, or yourself?
That's it: three things.
Good luck.

Welcome to Vancouver. Welcome to our blog.
The purpose of this blog is for us to have a conversation. You can read what everyone else says; everyone else can read what you say. That way, we all learn from each other.
Today, I want to write about your first impressions of Vancouver.
What is different than in your country? What is surprising? What do you like? What do you not like?

When I first moved to Vancouver, here are some of the things I noticed:

1. The trolley buses (buses with electrical wires on the roof) are really slow!
2. There are lots of people from all over the world - Vancouver is more multicultural than Victoria, where I grew up.
3. The city is very colourful: lots of yellow, red, green and blue.
4. The mountains and the ocean are very pretty. But the buildings are not so pretty, in my opinion.

These are just some examples. Tell me about YOUR first impressions of Vancouver.