Archive for June, 2009
Pronunciation: Silent P
Jun 27th
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Sometimes English pronunciation is very difficult. Sometimes we spell words quite differently from how they sound. This happens often because the word originally comes from another language. This is the case with the silent P that comes at the beginning of some words. (As we don’t hear the P when we speak, this could be a more difficult podcast for some. Check out our Lipservice.)
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Harp: Did everyone out there know this already? That when we say the word psychology, we do not pronounce the p at the beginning. Psychology is the science and study of the mind and human behaviour.
Maura: Of course if you’re listening, you only hear the s sound but when we write the word psychology it actually starts with the letter p which is not pronounced.
Harp: So to answer Anais’s question, there are not very many words where we do not pronounce the p. But there are a few words.
Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Photo: Asami
White lies vs. brutal honesty
Jun 21st
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Sometimes we don’t want to be rude and so we need to tell a little white lie. Other times it may be important to be completely honest, and this is called brutal honesty. When is it OK to tell a white lie and when is it necessary to be brutally honest? Harp and Maura discuss this, and talk about honesty in relationships and with kids. How important is it to be honest your culture?
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Harp: Yeah, exactly, that’s a little white lie. So a little white lie is usually to protect someone’s feelings, I would say.
Maura: Right, you want to be polite, you don’t want to be rude. So what is the other one? Brutal honesty. So brutal honesty is when you tell the complete truth and it can be rude or impolite.
Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Photo: Kevin Labianco
Gala
Jun 20th
Normally when Maura and I hang out or go to parties we wear jeans and t-shirts. But last week Maura and I attended a gala. A gala is a fancy party, so instead of our normal jeans and t-shirts we had to dress a bit fancier.
I love galas because I think it’s fun to dress up every once in a while. Neither of us knew what to expect but we were very excited. We didn’t know if it was going to be a sit-down dinner or a cocktail (only drinks). It turned out to be a cocktail and so there were no seats, everyone stood and mingled. Mingling is talking to people about simple topics (not something heavy like politics but maybe the weather) and you usually do this with people you don’t know at all or only a little bit.
There were some delicious appetizers that servers (waiter/waitresses) brought around, as well as some nice wine. We both had a great time but we were both a bit nervous. We wanted to mingle but we didn’t know if people spoke French or English or both. For me mingling in English is not a problem because it’s my native language and I am not very shy. I am a bit shy when I speak in French though, because my French is not perfect and I have an accent. But I have learned that most people are very patient and willing to talk even if you make grammatical mistakes. I spoke to a couple of different people in French and it was good, I practiced my French and I felt happy that I was brave enough to talk to people.
So if you are invited to a party where people are speaking in English, don’t be shy, try to mingle!
Hiking around Montreal
Jun 15th
A few posts back, Jessie wrote about Mount Royal (a small mountain located on the island of Montreal). And just outside of Montreal there are even more mountains to choose from! Since the weather in Montreal is getting warmer and warmer I have been lucky enough to get out of Montreal on weekends and get back to nature.
A couple weeks ago some friends and I went to an area outside of Montreal called the Eastern Townships. This is a mountainous region in Quebec. We went to a little town called Mont Orford and enjoyed all the green trees around us and the amazing views on the hike. When we started the hike we were very warm and it was sunny. But when we got to the top, the weather changed and suddenly we needed to wear jackets and long-sleeved shirts. It was so cold! We had goosebumps (little bumps on our skin we get when we feel cold). The weather can change fast here, especially in the spring.
Last weekend we went to the Laurentians, a very popular place for tourists that is north of Montreal. It was also so green and beautiful. There are many cute little shops along the way there. There are many antique (old, valuable items) shops and many little places to eat too.
This time there were a lot of bugs (insects)! My friends and I all got bitten a lot. We were bitten by mosquitoes and black flies. These are two kind of insects that bite people and leave them feeling so itchy! It was worth it though, because the weather was so warm and the country was beautiful!
I have to go scratch my mosquito bites now!
Expression: Get it over with
Jun 13th
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Sometimes studying another language is really hard. We wish we could just get it over with and speak the language well. That is today’s expression to get something over with. We usually use this expression when we have an obligation to do something that we don’t want to do. We use the examples of homework and cleaning toilets!
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Jessie: “To get something over with.”
Maura: Yeah, we usually say, “to get it over with”.
Jessie: Yeah, but we usually don’t say it that slow.
Maura: No, I’m saying it slow so that everyone listening can hear the words that I’m saying.
Jessie: So how does it sound if you were saying it in normal conversation?
Maura: Well, we say it very fast, we say “get it over with”.
Jessie: Right, so the ”t” kind of mixes with the “over”.
Maura: Exactly, it doesn’t sound like a hard “t” sound, so the real slow expression is “to get it over with”.
Jessie: “To get it over with.”
Maura: “To get it over with”, right that’s how we naturally say it. So now that we know what it sounds like. What does it mean?
Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Photo credit: martapiqs
Expression: Rain check
Jun 7th
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The expression rain check in this episode has a few different meanings. The first one is described in the transcript below. And of course is connected to rain. Another kind of rain check is used in a story. And another one is used when people cancel plans. Get to know all the explanations by listening to this episode!
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Maura: Yes, a rain check.
Jessie: Rain check. Rain check is kind of neat because it has a few different types of definitions.
Maura: OK.
Jessie: So let’s start off with the very literal definition. The first, and still a meaning, was kind of given to fans when they went to see an outdoor sports event if it rained and the event was cancelled. So, if they had that ticket they could either get their money back, because they didn’t get to watch that game or they could get into the next event free, the next time.
Maura: OK, so that makes sense, if there is an event and it rains, you get a rain check for the next event, when hopefully it is a sunny day.
Jessie: Right.
Maura: OK, what else do you have?
Jessie: OK, so another meaning for rain check is sometimes used at a store…
Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Photo credit: viZZZual.com, designed by Asami
Culips is EnglishClub.com's Site of the Month!
Jun 5th
I just learned some exciting news about Culips! We’ve been chosen as the “Site of the Month” for June 2009 over at EnglishClub.com!
Here’s what EnglishClub.com has to say about us on their awards page:
Culips is a Canadian based website with playful podcasts to help you learn English. The focus of these podcasts is on real language and its everyday use. Episodes are divided into fun categories including “Close Up”, “Catch Word” , “Chatterbox” and “Curious Questions”. Podcasts can be downloaded or played in a popup window. Extra materials including transcripts and comprehension quizzes are filed under “Lipservice” and are available with each podcast. You can get involved by sending your questions to the podcast group. Your “curious question” might get answered in a future podcast.
Sounds like a pretty good description to me! One great thing about Culips winning this award is that it’s provided us with a fantastic introduction to English Club. English Club has a really interesting website with lots of information for both English learners and English teachers, and each month they announce a new ESL Site of the Month that they think is valuable for learners.
One of the things I found most interesting at the English Club website was the Learning English Video project, which is a 7-part series of documentary films about learning English around the world. So far there’s a film made in Romania, and one in Morocco. The website says that films about learning English in America, Spain, China, Brazil, and the UK are coming soon.
So if you’ve never been to EnglishClub.com, why not check it out? If you’re visiting Culips.com because you heard about us from English Club, welcome! Let us know what you think about the site, and as always, keep those curious questions coming!
I was on the radio last week!
Jun 1st
Hello everyone!
A good friend of mine who is originally from Montreal now lives in Vancouver. Her name is Marie-Eve and she has a radio show on CITR, which is a community radio station with all kinds of cultural shows and podcasts. You can look at the schdule for their shows here.
On May 21, 2009 I was interviewed by Marie-Eve for her radio show French Connection. Her show is all about Quebec culture in Canada. She interviewed me about being anglophone (English speaker) living in Quebec. We talked about all the cultural differences between English and French culture. It was really fun. Click here to check out my interview.
Some of the interview was also done in French (I was nervous speaking French) so if you are a French speaker this is extra nice for you!
Of all the podcasts with 'real world' English examples, I like yours the best. Maybe its the fun you put into the lessons. The students can here that in your voices. And they also feel your dedication to what you are doing - it's just not a job you do, but a gift you give to everyone who listens. And while the students like the Lipservice PDFs for all the information it contains, as a teacher I am impressed by the professional effort put into making them. I give the Culips podcast and the Culips crew my highest recommendation, both as a teacher, and a listener. 
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