British and American English

Funny way of learning some British and American slang :-)

Solutions to Grammar Homework

For the extra grammar group: Here is a quick direct link to the solutions for the homework from May 17, 2011 on the simple present. For solutions to the Simple Present Test 1 click here. For solutions to the Simple Present Test 2 click here. Online exercises and explanations for all grammar subjects can be found by clicking here.

Barack Obama's Address to Press Announcing Release of Birth Certificate

Barack Obama is considered one of the best U.S. presidential speakers ever. Listen to one of his recent informal addresses to the press. Note his use of the pause: for emphasis, for thinking time, for a shift to a new idea and for heightened anticipation. This address was made on April 27, 2011 in response to persistent allegations from right-wing republicans that Obama was not born in the United States. Click here to watch this short clip.

Giving presentations - Following Steve Jobs style

5 tips for giving presentations the Steve Jobs way. Watch the video.

Speak with authority!

Speaking with, uh, like, you know, authority -- has come out of fashion in the U.S. Click here to watch a short humorous video clip about the pitfalls of modern American English speaking -- with some generally helpful tips on speaking and presentation skills.

Grammar practise!

Need extra practise on some grammar points? Here is a link to a website where you can do some exercises online and review any grammar points you are unsure of. Just click here to open the link, then click on Grammatik-Übungen on the upper left, and then on the exercise you would like to practise. You can check yourself online.

Tiger Mother challenges western upbringing

In January, Amy Chua, 49-year-old Chinese-American law professor at Yale University, came out with a book that immediately became a best-seller in the US, as well as all over the world. In "The Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother," Amy Chua recounts and reflects on how she raised her two daughters in an extremely strict, traditional success-oriented "Chinese" way. The book is a very tongue in cheek, blow by blow account of the successes as well as failures of her attempt to bring her children up with traditional "Chinese" values of hard work in the middle of mainstream America. The book is written with much humor, self irony and wide-reaching reflections. It has caused heated debates on all sides and has caused western and Chinese thinkers all over the world to re-consider their own parenting approaches and values on both a personal as well as global level.

Click here to watch a short interview with Amy Chua.