How to Refresh and Revitalize Yourself in a Thermal Bath

Paipa Thermal Mineral Water Therapeutic Center


Healing Treatments from Hot Spring Mineral Waters

My shoulder was still killing me. After weeks of therapy sessions with a physical therapist, and injections by a sports medicine specialist physician, my left rotator cuff was still bothering me. My wife Doris strained a muscle in her back from a minor fall and I limped slightly from a bruised right heel. In such a state as we were, the three and a half hour trip from Bogota to Paipa was a no brainer. Why? It’s because of the well-known thermal baths and therapeutic mineral treatment center located in this tiny town in Boyaca.

Pool Hydro-Massage

The first stop in the six-phase, hydro-therapy treatment sequence has you in an algae rich therapeutic pool where two steps occur. One is to have a jet stream of water cascade down on you from above. The thermally warmed powerful flow gives a deep tissue and muscle massage to your head, neck, shoulders, upper back and arms as you position yourself beneath it, There were twelve of us in the pool so we alternated between the overhead cascade and the second stop of the sequence which also takes place in this pool, a hydo-massage jet stream below the surface at navel level or below depending on your height and standing position. This lower, under water powerful stream effectively ripples your lumbar region, kidney area, spinal column muscles, abdomen and gluts.

Jacuzzi

A too short forty minutes later we were beckoned out of the green waters and led to a Jacuzzi room with two pools bubbling to a froth for the third of our six water therapy sessions. The water is quite hot but pleasant to most. Again we split up into two groups. One set gets the Jacuzzis, while the others head for the hydro bubble beds situated next to the Jacuzzis with their neck deep water. The water is pretty hot so you’ll need to go to the cool down shower on one side of the room a couple of times during this session, our therapeutic treatment guide advises. Our treatment schedule allows for twenty minutes here. At the end of this time we are to switch to the next twenty minute phase, the hydro-bubble beds.

Hydro-Bubble Bed

Have you ever been in a Jacuzzi lying down Thus begins our forth therapeutic session. The concave cement hydro bubble bed requires you to lie down, first face up while jets of warm water and bubbles shoot up along your spine, legs, back and shoulders through openings in the pebble surfaced bed. The water here is decided cooler than that of the Jacuzzi although still on the warm side of the temperature scale. I liked the hot Jacuzzi waters better, but am soon lulled into a blissful state by the bubbling streams gently pounding my back from head to toe. Turn over face down for some time too our guides voices cautions during the session. I flip over so my front can also get done, but soon decide I much prefer the effect on my back. A couple of minutes or so later I roll back over face up again and remain so the rest of the session which ends with a time to move to the sauna from our treatment guide.

Sauna

A Thanksgiving turkey must start off feeling like this I think to myself after seating myself on a wood bench at the far end of the wood lined sauna. The wooden slat lined walls are too hot for me to rest my back against at first. Soon, as planned, sweat begins to flow and our group glistens in the dim glow of heated rocks near the front wall of the room. We all fit comfortably enough into the room. One teen girl plays a guess who game with her parents while we sweat out a horde of toxins form our pollution stressed skin and systems. My wife Doris has a tendency towards high blood pressure so she pops out for regular cool off showers in an adjacent room. The cooler outside air is noticeable each time someone opts out of the steaming room. “Is it a politician?” “Is it a singer?” “No” “Is it a famous person?” “Yes.” It’s an athlete the girl coaches, “that should help you some”. It didn’t help me, my brain doesn’t work well at these temperatures, I decide. The game continues with an elderly man joining in. “Is it a Colombian?”, the mother asks. “Yes” “It’s a famous soccer player like Pembele.” Everyone breaks up in laughter. All the adults are well aware that Pembele was a boxer, not a soccer player. But then you knew that too, didn’t you? Doris heads for the cool off shower for the third time and a drink of cool, natural spring water available near each station, while I stick it out in the sauna.

Lodoterapia - Mineral Mud Therapy

For our last session we’ll head for the “lodo” (mud) therapy area states our guide from outside the opened sauna room door. Many of the ladies have been waiting for this one. Mineral-laden mud from the nearby swamp has been prepared as a skin treatment pack. This particular treatment has some distinctive benefits that include:

1. Peeling off of dead skin cells
2. Stimulation of the circulation
3. Providing essential nutrients to the skin
4. Aids in fortifying muscles and skin tone
5. The act of vigorously rubbing on the mud aids in soothing sore muscle areas

Here’s where some more fun begins, Upon entering the mud treatment room we are each given a wooden tray of the rich black mud to spread all over our (or someone else’s) body. So, each of us in turn, sets to work smearing the slick mud onto our skin. Soon we re all the same tribe or a t least we look to be as everyone is now covered with a thick coating of fine textured mud with sandy grains mixed into it to help its dead skin removal properties. I’ve never been so black in my life. Let it dry, then, rinse it off in the shower over there. As the inky colored body mask dries you can feel your skin tightening. When dried, the mud takes on a gray hue. The whole process takes fifteen minutes or so including drying time. Large mirrors are hung on the walls so you can see your smeared self. Most of the ladies actively indulged in this rare type of mud gazing. The aroma wasn’t at all unpleasant and I didn’t taste the mud, especially after seeing the face of one woman who did. Her expression convinced me alright.

Hydro Acupuncture Showers

The showers were another unique point of the hydro therapy treatments. They feature seven multi-stream shower heads which spray you from the front, back and above all at the same time. Hot water came from one side and above while cooler water pummeled your front from chest to knees. Actually the experience was quite pleasant and in a fit of hedonism I asked my wife, is anyone else waiting to get in. Her “No” response meant that I could sneak an extra few minutes in the hydro acupuncture showers as they were called. Man was it great.

The Paipa Thermal Mineral Water Therapeutic Center is open seven days a week from about 6 am to around 9 pm. In addition to their popular hydro therapy treatment the center also offers full or partial body massages and there are three thermal pools adjacent to the therapy center facilities. Whatever ails you, you’ll get relief and a relaxed session to calm your stress and frazzled nerves to aid in the healing process at a thermal spa of your choice, wherever you may live.

Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 135 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Applying to English EFL Schools Abroad: Why They Don’t Answer Your Messages

Comic: "Rabbits Against Magic" by Jonathan Lemon


Why They Don’t Answer Your Messages

With increasing frequency, I receive e-mails very similar to the following one which illustrates a growing trend in English language teaching. You write to schools, institutes and companies looking for an overseas English teaching position and after weeks of e-mails to perhaps dozens of locations, you have not received as much as a single reply. “Why?” you ask. Here’s my response to one reader on that very aspect along with my suggested solutions.

An EFL Teaching Help Request Letter

“My name is *Shelley Kelly and I am a recent graduate from *Oxford House College. The purpose for this email is to obtain advice and information concerning teaching English as a foreign language in Colombia. I am on the waiting list of the British Council, but in the meantime have been emailing universities and institutes for information on how to apply. However, none have got back to me. I am currently waiting to arrange an interview with the International House in Bogota, and was wondering if you could provide any details and advice on how to go about the application process.” Sincerely, S. K.

Note: *Some names changed to protect privacy of correspondents and schools

Here is an excerpt of my response:

Dear S.K.,

... International House is an excellent educational institution with offices worldwide. I’ve been to their local offices in Mexico City, Barcelona, Spain and in Bogota, Colombia. They are new to Colombia with an office in Central Bogota. (I passed their new office in the colonial, historic neighborhood of "Candelaria" earlier this month while I was in Bogota.) The main reason that companies, institutes and schools don't answer you is because you're not IN Colombia. This is often true of many schools, institutes and companies in a number of countries. For them, the odds of your never showing up are too great for these places to “waste time” with extensive correspondence and information. Then again, you may arrive in Colombia (or wherever), then quickly decide for whatever reasons, the language, the customs, the culture or living conditions, attitudes of the locals - that you don't want to stay, then just hop the next thing smoking out of the country. Then the school is stuck with a lot of time, trouble and resources invested with no return. It happens so much that schools are leery and won't even answer applicants from out of the country.

For Example:

Some time ago, upon arriving in Cali, Colombia to teach English for a local English language teaching institute, a former classmate of mine, Sarah Zeller, wrote to me complaining of her dislike for the conditions she faced. They had “provided her with housing” which she then described as “being on the noisiest, most crowded and polluted street in the city”. She disliked (polite term) the working conditions, the salary, the local environment, etc. and it was no wonder to me that shortly thereafter, she abruptly left Colombia for another opportunity.

Solutions:

1. Try applying through the school where you were certified. They should have a placement office or someone who handles that.

2. Another idea is to actually GO to the country you are intensely interested in and applying directly to universities, schools, institutes and companies. You'll have instant credibility because you're "on location". They can see you, talk with you directly and do a personal interview on-the-spot. You in turn, can check out their facilities first hand, ask about schedules, salary and cost-of-living, etc.

Also, one of my e-books “If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here’s What You Need to Know”, should provide you with more "practical" information on teaching English as a foreign language abroad.

I hope this initial information helps you some. Please feel free to let me know if you have any other questions or need more specific information.

Sincerely yours,

Prof. Larry M. Lynch
Santiago de Cali University
Cali, Colombia


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Teaching Speaking

written by Dr Kalyani Samantray
k25samantray@yahoo.co.in
Reader in English, S B W College, Cuttack Orissa, India

Yemen Times http://yementimes.com/article.shtml?i=1260&p=education&a=1

Among people in general, there is a stupendous amount of interest to be able to speak in English, and to speak well. It is chiefly this interest which leads parents to send their children to ‘English medium’ schools for education. Parents are most satisfied if their children could communicate in English orally. Proficiency in other language skills, such as reading and writing, does not seem to be so much their concern. Among the student population, there is a clear line of social distinction distinguishing the group which cannot speak effective English as lower in status and the group which can. Though the first group is very large, the students of this group lack self-respect, and though quite intelligent, they despise themselves and look up to the English speaking student community as their role model.

In a climate so clement for being able to speak well in English, where the motivation for learning this skill is the learner’s and parents’, why has not the curriculum delivered the goods? After years of learning English in school and college our learners are miserable failures when it comes to express a few simple facts in English orally.

One most obvious reason behind this is that speaking skill has never been included to be taught in the curriculum of state schools and colleges. The framers of the syllabus are always under a notion that if learners could read and write in English, somehow they would manage to speak in the language. There are also many other facts behind failure in oral communication.

A comparison of skills-development in mother tongue (MT) and the skills-development framework in the English curriculum in our schools and colleges would demonstrate to some extent the major reasons behind our learners’ ineffectual oral skills.

From the time a baby is born, she remains in an MT ‘immersion situation’. MT surrounds her all her waking hours. Two important factors accompany this situation:

a) There is no demand on the child to produce the language, and

b) There is no ‘grading’ of the language produced by people in the presence of the child.

The child gets to hear the MT in its natural, unalloyed form. The elder siblings and adults use the normal conversational variety of the MT that they usually use without simplification, and without grading (from the so called simple to difficult as happens in the English as a foreign language teaching curriculum). The child incubates in this kind of natural language situation for about nine to ten months before she is ready for her first meaningful utterances. One can well imagine the quantity and the quality of listening that has happened to the child before she starts to speak. After about three years of speaking, the child is initiated into reading the orthography in MT, and a little later into writing.

A clear picture of the natural order in skills-development emerges from the above description: a child to be able to learn a language well listens to the language first for a considerable period of time; then speaks in the language only when she is ready. After that come reading and writing in that order. This is the Natural Order of language learning because this happens naturally to every child learning her MT which may be any language of the world.

What happens in a second language, i.e. English, learning situation? Most children learn English at school. Before that, whatever English they might have learnt is only at the level of some words, and only those words which have been accepted into the MT, e.g., table, pen, torch and so on. The first skill that they start learning at school is writing; writing the letters of the alphabet. Then comes reading. All through, the focus in our school and college curriculum remains fixed on these two skills. Listening and speaking skills constitute just the incidental and peripheral aspects in learning English.

In learning the language, the Natural Order of skills-development gets exactly reversed. The learner starts with the most complex skill of writing. Reading happens after that. If any ‘speaking’ happens at this stage, then that is in the form of repeating words after the teacher. Learners then learn to give set answers to set questions and read a text aloud. Even though many would like to believe that these are learning to speak English, these are by no means ‘speaking’ in a language. Speaking is natural unedited conversation. There is never any provision in our curriculum for such speaking skills as would help our learners to confront real life situations such as a job interview or an interpersonal communication.

Let us examine how the little that is done in developing the speaking skill is handled in the curriculum. The aspects that mark an effective speaker are her fluency and accuracy. In the Natural Order of skills-development in a language, fluency in speaking is primary and accuracy comes much later. No parent would rebuke a child for incorrect production in the MT. That she is at all uttering a few words or fragmented utterances in whatever manner is a matter of delight for everyone. For example, an Oriya child says:



paata kaai



Paraphrased into proper syntax and phonology of Oriya, the utterance would take the following shape:

bhaata khaaibi (I want to have rice.)



But nobody minds the errors in production let alone ever think of correction. After several stages of interlanguage and self-correction, the child arrives at the proper grammar of the language. In this effort, she is entirely supported by the language situation and parental encouragement. The natural course is thus through fluency to accuracy.

On the other hand, teaching the speaking skill in English is fraught with correction and discouragement right from the early stages of learning English. A child is forced to ‘speak’, read aloud and answer questions, before any listening in proper measure in English has happened. Moreover, the child is forced by the teacher to speak correctly. There is an absolute intolerance of the so-called learner errors in speech. The curriculum does not permit for a learner’s stages in interlanguage. A teacher never cares for a child who speaks at all in English. A teacher’s concern seems to be to see that if a child says something in English, his primary job is to find and correct mistakes, and see to it that the child always speaks in complete sentences. Such untimely and unwarranted attention on accuracy at the early stage has boomerang effects on fluency. It is like putting the cart before the horse. The child achieves neither accuracy nor fluency in the long run.

Does this situation pertain to real life? Slips, errors backtracking and editing are prominent even in adult natural conversation as much as fragmented utterances. Listeners make ample allowances for all these and much more even when listening to speakers speaking in their MT. Teachers of English, on the contrary, are intolerant and impatient of even minor digressions by the learners from the formal speech patterns. As a consequence, learners choose not to speak in English.

No skill ever develops without adequate practice; and mistakes form an integral part of skill-development. No one, for example, has learnt cycling by reading a book on how to ride a bicycle. One has to ride a bicycle (that is practice) and fall down (that is making mistakes) several times in order to get the skill of cycling. This is true for getting any skill: practice and errors leading to skills-acquisition.

The scope of this article is too limited to permit a detailed description of the subtler aspects of what should comprise in a syllabus in its ‘speaking’ component and how teaching and testing should be handled in an English classroom in an incremental manner. This article only attempts to put forth the major problems that beset teaching speaking. How to overcome these problems and many others in a curriculum is a larger issue for further discussion.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

What Motivated You to Start Your Blog?

Interview Question Response:

The whole concept started when a less experienced EFL teacher asked me about a problem he was having, I wrote out a detailed answer to his question so he’d have it to refer to later on. Then as more and more teachers began asking similar questions and I thought about posting answers to them online for free. Many questions came up more than once and I could just refer them to the relevant post for further information.

The site got “discovered” somehow online and I now regularly get questions, comments and insights from hundreds ESL and EFL teachers in more than 135 countries worldwide each month according to Google Analytics. I get around 3700 hits a month at that blog site.

I've also posted detailed articles to my site at ezinearticles at http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Larry_M._Lynch. I currently have around 450 articles posted there when have received more than 325,500 page views. I put a few of my Barcelona, Spain post-grad school papers there and they’ve gotten between 12,000 and 18,000 page views EACH. That absolutely stunned me – I’m still curious as to why.

What's on your iPod ?

Sorry, but I don’t currently own an iPod. I DO incorporate the use of a laptop computer into my class room though. It’s to transmit videos, website views, music videos, readings and Power Point presentations to learners. It saves me a HUGE amount of writing on the board sometimes and I can print out articles, tables and other info for learners to photocopy instead of constantly writing notes. I can connect to YouTube (I have my own channel and videos there at: http://www.youtube.com/user/lynchlarrym), for example, and take advantage of thousands of available videos on any topic.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 135 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Describe Your First Day as an English Teacher

My "First" Day as an EFL Teacher

Since I had such a “hodge-podge” kind of start with ESL I can’t really remember my true “first day” of teaching. What I DO remember though is the first class that impressed me the most from back then up until now. I was assigned to teach a class of Chinese learners soon after starting as an ESL teacher for a Federal / State government Literacy program in Easton, Pennsylvania called PROJECT of Easton. (The small town of Easton is the home of former world heavyweight boxing champion Larry Holmes who fought both Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson.)

Anyway, what I didn’t know was that the class consisted of about a dozen or so Chinese who’d just arrived in the USA literally the week before. When I say they knew nothing, I mean they knew absolutely NOTHING about the USA. They didn’t even have winter clothes and it was still cold out although technically it was “Springtime”.


Not only that, they were from different regions of China which meant that they couldn’t even talk to each other! Using the training and little experience I did have, I survived the first class. They seemed pleased and I said to myself, “If I could manage this, nothing else would ever phase me in an English class again. Tue enough, to this day it hasn’t. That was my toughest, “trial-by-fire” EFL class experience. After that classes with them were great. They’d even bring me “authentic” Chinese food for lunch after class. I got to eat some strange, but tasty things after those classes. From then on, I was “hooked”.

So, what was YOUR first day as an English teacher like?


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Anatomy Activities Websites in English

Human Anatomy Online for English Language Learners


If you have English as a foreign language learners who have the need to study anatomy, feel free to direct them to any number of these useful websites. In my health faculty class groups, I schedule two computer room sessions to allow my Nursing and Physical Therapy English language learners time to visit up to four or five of these websites to explore and “play around” in. Most of the anatomy-based websites are inter-active, allowing the language learners to manipulate organs, acquire new vocabulary in context and expand their working knowledge of the human anatomy. Even I learn something new each time one of these class sessions is held. On occasion, I schedule a quiz the following class session to help the students internalize new material.

List of Websites on Human Anatomy Web Quest:

Human Anatomy Online
http://www.innerbody.com/htm/body.html
The site activities are separated into ten body systems, skeletal, digestive, muscular, lymphatic, endocrine, nervous, cardio-vascular, urinary, male and female reproductive. body parts are identified using the cursor to locate and click for a description to appear to the left of the figure.


Artificial Anatomy using Jerome
http://americanhistory.si.edu/anatomy/bodyparts/nma03_bodyparts.html
Jerome is the name of the male anatomy figure which can be turned 180 degrees for different views of body parts. Learners match the body part close-up with the full figure image.


Anatomy Body Parts Gap Fill British Council
http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/words/activities/body01.html
Learners drag and drop boxes with names of body parts onto a body figure, then check their answers

Anatomy Arcade
http://www.anatomyarcade.com/
This site is six different anatomy arcade games featuring muscles, bones, the eye, the brain, the heart and the digestive tract. Learners drag and drop body part images onto the correct location in the body. There is a computer voice and sound to accompany each game and give feedback to learners.

Anatomy of the Human Body – Henry Gray
http://www.bartleby.com/107/
This detailed illustrated text on the human anatomy is by Henry Gray from his classic anatomy text for serious students of anatomy.

The Interactive Body
http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/body/index_interactivebody.shtml
This site requires an updated version of Flash, available for free download. Body parts are dragged and dropped to form a correct sequence.

The Virtual Body
http://www.medtropolis.com/VBody.asp
First, choose between English or Spanish to work with parts of the brain, heart, skeleton or digestive tract. Learners can view and identify parts, see animations and listen to narrations.


Visible Human
http://www.madsci.org/~lynn/VH/
At the stunning, animated visual “Visible Human” site, the human body is explored via a series of 1800 cross-section views for a full-featured guided tour. There are transverse, coronal and sagittal cross section views to elaborate on virtually any body organ, part or system for the more serious student of the human anatomy.

Basic Anatomy – Tissues and Organs
http://web.jjay.cuny.edu/~acarpi/NSC/14-anatomy.htm
The Basic Anatomy site has the sound of a heart beating in the background. Learners can read about basic organs and systems of the human body with simple illustrations posted to the left of the text.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

March Is National Reading Month

March Is National Reading Month:
Read Across America Day, March 2nd
Babies Can Read Too!
Dr. Robert C. Titzer Verifies Babies Benefit
From Learning Oral and Written Language Earlier Than Age 4

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29464924/

updated 10:08 a.m. CT, Mon., March. 2, 2009

SAN DIEGO, CA - March is National Reading Month and there is no better time to address the need for children everywhere to be introduced to the early learning skills which will play a critical role in their lives. Babies as young as 9 months have the ability to read. Not only is this natural, it is an essential part of development, says Dr. Robert C. Titzer, an expert on infant research.

For over a decade, Dr. Robert C. Titzer has been teaching babies and toddlers all over the world to read. He started teaching his own daughter, Aleka, to read at 9 months. By the age of four, she was reading at an 11th grade level. Dr. Titzer says the current practice of starting to teach reading skills in school is too late and children actually benefit from getting a much earlier start. "Each child has only one natural window for learning language -- from about birth to about age four. During this period it is easier for them to learn any type of language including spoken, receptive, foreign and written. The earlier the child is taught to read the better they will read and the more likely they will enjoy it. My own children's lives have been dramatically enriched as a result of their early literacy."

Dr. John W. Oller, Jr., co-author of "Milestones: Normal Speech and Language Across the Lifespan" and a distinguished professor at the University of Louisiana, concurs. "The main thing to note about Dr. Titzer's work is that it demonstrates that infants can learn to read before they can talk and well before 17 months. It refutes the long-standing nonsense that reading is merely converting print to speech. That theory cannot explain the reading comprehension of Aleka Titzer at only 9 months. This was before she could talk."

Numerous infant studies prove that the earlier a child learns to read, the better they perform in school and later in life. Early readers have more self-esteem and are more likely to stay in school. Meanwhile, a national panel of reading specialists and educators determined that most of the nation's reading problems could be eliminated if children began reading earlier.

DOCTOR ROBERT C. TITZER BIO

Dr. Robert C. Titzer is a prestigious infant researcher, professor and teacher. He taught his own children to read as babies using a proprietary learning system he developed. Dr. Titzer is an expert in the area of infant learning with work published in scientific journals such as Psychological Review. He has spoken with U.S. Senators and leading U.S. Department of Education officials on the importance of early learning. He has appeared on numerous television broadcasts around the globe. Titzer regularly does free Early Learning Workshops for parents of infants and toddlers.

MEDIA CONTACT:
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Email Contact
© MarketWire 2009


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, prolific writer, author and public speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, "If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

What Do Your Language Learners Go, Do or Play on the Weekends?

English as a Foreign Language Learner Class Profiles

An integral part of my English as a Foreign Language learner class profiles include acknowledgement of their various personal interests. While here in Colombia the variety of available pastimes is somewhat limited in comparison to other countries, a large portion (sometimes TOO large a portion) of the EFL learners’ free time is spent engaged in some type of sports. The question then becomes how to correctly and accurately express participation in different sporting activities. In the (American) English language, for the most part, we use the verbs GO, DO and PLAY for this purpose.

Using the English Verb “GO”

Generally when the name of a sports activity ends with the suffix “-ing”, the verb used to express participation in that sport is “GO”. For example, you can “go”:

• Rock climbing
• Swimming
• Dancing
• Hiking
• Running
• Fishing (author shown with Peacock Bass on Gatun Lake in the Panama Canal)
• Diving (SCUBA, sky or board)
• Skating (ice or roller)
• Bungee jumping
• Skiing (water or snow)
• Hunting

Using the English Verb “DO”

On the other hand, “individual” sports participation is usually expressed using “DO”. For example, you can “do”:

• Judo
• Karate
• Weight lifting (an exception to the rule)
• Gymnastics
• Yoga
• Martial arts
• The pole vault
• The high jump (track and field sports, et al.)

Using the English Verb “PLAY”

Finally, for expressing participation in “team” or cooperative effort sports, the verb most predominantly used is “PLAY”. Form example, we can “play”:

• Baseball
• Basketball
• Soccer
• Hockey (ice and field)
• Lacrosse
• Volleyball
• Golf (an exception to the rule)
• Handball
• American football
• Tennis (another exception to the rule) racquetball
• Jai Lai
• Polo (water and horse)

General Guidelines for English Language Learners

Obviously, this hardly covers all the sports activity possibilities in the English language, but it does provide a very general guideline which can often prove to be useful to English as a foreign language learners wherever they may be. So I certainly hope it helps your language learners as much as it does mine.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, “If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Using English as a Foreign Language Skills Coupling for Virtually Immediate Improvement

Foreign Language Skills Coupling

“Teacher, can you please repeat?” It was now the third time that my university English level learners requested a repeat playing of the listening exam section. It consisted of a twenty three second conversation set in a restaurant, but my learners shrieked and moaned at its apparent “difficulty”. This was even despite the fact that the selected listening was from two English language levels below their current one.

Language Skills are Inter-Related

The four basic language skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking are inter-related even though they are not necessarily equal. For example, if you want to speak better, then practice more listening. If you want to improve your listening comprehension, then practice reading aloud. If you, or your learners, would like to write better prose in English, read more and more in English. And if you want your reading comprehension skills to develop to a much higher level, then improving your writing will help to do the trick.

Both individual and integrated practice of each of the four basic language skills will aid in developing overall English or other foreign language communicative abilities. Reading aloud, for instance, improves speaking and pronunciation in addition to listening comprehension. It also promotes internalization of language elements from short term into long term memory.

Language Skills Development by Coupling

Improvement of inter-related language skills is not equal, however. When your reading improves, so will your writing, but not as much as your reading does. Then if you focused on writing, your reading comprehension would also improve, but likely not as much as your writing would.

A Quick Activities List

So for some really fast English language skills improvement, try some of these activities for starters:

• Reading texts, poems and stories aloud
• Practice pronunciation using spoken riddles, rhymes, fairy tales and stories
• Mimic speakers on the television, newscasts, narratives and speeches
• Write down a speech or other oral discourse as a dictation-type activity
• Try saying tongue twisters, quirky quotes and short jokes on a regular basis

Oral Recitation Practice Activities

For speaking and listening skills development, reading aloud is such an effective method that I now incorporate it into all of my English as a foreign language courses regardless of the EFL learners` level. This single, seemingly simple activity impacts not only speech, but pronunciation, fluency and vocabulary too. As you vocalize the reading or text content, your listening skills become more finely attuned as well. With the possible exception of say, a radically different foreign, regional or other accent being suddenly thrown at you, you’ll generally understand other speakers, native or not, far better after even a limited amount of practice in reading English texts aloud.



Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, prolific writer, author and public speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, "If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Getting to Know Your EFL Learners

English Classes are Beginning

It’s time to start a new round of classes. There are new groups of English as a foreign language learners, new classes and new schedules for the recently-started scholastic year, semester or course period. With that of course, comes the never-ending challenge of getting to know yet anothoer entirely new group of English language learners – essential information if you’re going to successfully motivate them through the rigors of language acquistion.

What You Need to Know About Your Learners

You need to know your learners’ likes, dislikes and preferences as well as their learning styles and characteristics. Why? It’s because these help you to plan and prepare more effective lessons that take full adfvantage of learner traits.

What to Do and How to Do It

During the course of the first few weeks of class you’ll quite likely develop a detailed knowledge of many learner profile characteristics. You can however, greatly accelerate phases of the process. The fastest, easiest and simplest way to do this is by conducting in-class surveys.

Survey Question Point Ideas

Here are a few ideas you might consider surveying your learners on:

• Favorite activity types
• Hobbies
• Likes and dislikes
• Musical preferences
• Television and movie preferences
• What types of digital equipment they own
• Any preferred websites
• Favorite entertainers
• problem areas in English language learning
• Eating habits and food preferences, etc.


Using the Survey Information

Whether you choose to do one or several simple surveys or more in-depth ones, you might ask, “what can you do with the information you’ve gathered?”

You can use it to:

• Create graphs or charts
• Prepare lesson plans
• Make adjustments to class agenda and curriculum
• Identify a progression of activittes
• Prepare home assignments and online webquests and tasks
• Formulate effective teaching strategies for the class group

Conducting In-class Surveys

A final but all-important idea when conducting in-class surveys is for you NOT to do the work yourself at all. Have your English or other foreign language learners conduct the surveys among themselves – using the target language as much as possible, of course. This could done during a regular class session or for extra work in written and spoken language use or discourse. It’s a series of techniques I quite often use during the beginning of a semester with new EFL class groups. It works very well both for me and for my English language learners. It should be a valuable technique for you to use too.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, prolific writer, author and public speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, "If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Teaching English as a Foreign Language: Learning Prepositions in English

Prepositions: A Major Learner EFL Learner Obstacle

If you want to hear English language teachers and learners alike moan in unison, just ask them about teaching, learning or using prepositions in English. Prepositions in English are a major English language teacher and EFL learner obstacle world wide. Why? It’s because of the complexities of use prepositions have in English, not only in idioms and expressions, by in simple, everyday usage forms as well.

Those Pesky Prepositions in English

You know the English language prepositions that drive you to exasperation:




• in or inside of
• on or on top of
• at
• in front of
• next to, beside or near
• in back of or behind
• beneath or under
• over or overhead
• around
• through
• between
• among

Yes, there are tons more prepositions like those of time, etc., but my learners initially cringed when I broached the topic of prepositions during an early-in-the-semester class. So, I’ll start off with a few prepositionss of position to illustrate what I do to help my English as a foreign language learners to cope.

Use Different Methods to Illustrate

Since I know that most of my learners are very visual, I use graphics, pictures, photographs and other types of illustrations as aids in ELT: I’ll even draw extensively on the board to help them visualize a lexical set or concept. But I don’t stop at just verbal and visual explanation and illustration either. I use several methods, if necessary, to help learners to internalize these grammatical structures and concepts. For example, realia often work well. I’ll place an empty desk in the middle of the class room. Then I position some cute little stuffed animals on the floor and in relation to the desk.

“Bunny is in front of the desk.”

“Tiger is on the desk.”

“Piggy is behind the desk.”

“Puppy is under the desk.”

“Winnie the Pooh is next to the desk.”

Learners are encouraged to come up individually to change the positions of the stuffed animal characters. Then they orally repeat what the new positions are.

Using Realia and TPR in Teaching English Prepositions

Another useful technique is to use the learners themselves as “pieces” positioned in different ways in relation to one another. Doris is between Hector and Maria. Hector is next to Doris. Maria is next to Doris. Carmen is in front of Hector. Hector is behing Carmen. Alexander is on top of the desk. The desk is under Alexander. ... and so on. After a few of these, in addition to a bunch of hilarious mistakes and out takes, the learners “get it” without much further ado. Using graphic illustration, written and verbal explanation, realia and TPR by moving actual learners into preposition-illustrative positions, the learners not only have a little fun and laughter, but internalize these prepositions with little difficulty in one EFL class session.

Try it out for yourself and let me know how well it works with your English as a foreign language learners.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, prolific writer, author and public speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, "If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

The Trinity College London Licentiate Diploma

Years ago, when I was asked to state why I wanted to do the Trinity College London Licentiate Diploma Course, here's what I wrote:

There are several reasons why I wish to successfully complete the Trinity College Licentiate Diploma course. Briefly they are as follows :

The Trinity College Licentiate Diploma
The DELTA, Trinity College Licentiate Diploma or other certified advanced diploma credential is widely recognized and accepted as an advanced qualification in teaching English as a foreign language. In my current place of employment as an EFL professional, there are no courses or programs available for the advancement of English teachers whether native or non-native speakers of English. So, acquiring to higher level work or studies in the field are limited at best, non-existent at worst. As a native English-speaking English teacher with more than 14 years of EFL / ESL teaching experience, one of the few options I have of improving my value here at the Santiago de Cali University would be to complete a certified, recognized DELTA, Trinity College Licentiate Diploma or another advanced ELT diploma program outside of Colombia.

The British Council
I have worked briefly with the British Council here in Cali, Colombia as a substitute CELTA-level Teacher Trainer and wish to improve my qualifications formally with the option of applying for a Teacher Trainer position full time. This would require an advanced English teaching credential such as the DELTA, Trinity College Licentiate Diploma or other diploma level program since I presently meet most other requisites based on previous education and English teaching experience.

Problems in Colombia
Social, political and living conditions here in Colombia where I currently live and work, continue to deteriorate, violence against civilians is rapidly escalating, and having an advanced credential such as a DELTA or the Trinity College Licentiate Diploma would greatly improve my chances of obtaining a Senior EFL teaching position, an EFL Teacher Trainer position or an ELT Administrative position in another country when I exercise the option of moving to another location.

I am interested in exploring EFL teaching possibilities in Europe (Spain), if possible, or another Spanish-speaking country, North Africa (Morocco) or Asia (India). The diploma combined with my extensive EFL teaching and ELT topic presentation experience, publication of more than 100 articles, papers, reports, academic texts and student practice workshops would be an invaluable asset in supporting my bid for an upper-level ELT position in another foreign country.

A CELTA-level TEFL Certificate
Currently, I hold a CELTA-level TEFL certificate from TransWorld Teachers Institute in San Francisco, California (1993) and a TBE (Teaching of Business English) certificate from the Teacher’s Development Institute in Boston, Massachusetts (2002). An Trinity College Licentiate Diploma added to these in addition to my 14 years of EFL teaching experience would be an additional springboard for improving my knowledge of English language teaching and learning, ELT level, position and options for a continued career in teaching English as a Foreign Language or moving up permanently to available Teacher Trainer or ELT Administrative positions in countries worldwide.


Be sure to check out “An Interview with Prof. Larry M. Lynch” online at:
http://www.e1-network.com/professor_larry_lynch.html


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, prolific writer, author and public speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book, "If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Can You Spell Mississippi?

Now I have to say that I love a good clean joke as much as the next guy, so when I came across this pronunciation-dependent joke from the “Funny Cool Stuff” website, I just had to share it.








Can you spell Mississippi?

I always find geographical terms and names of places are the hardest to spell out. For example, like, the Mediterainians… I mean, Mediteraneans… Again! M-e-d-i-t-e-r-r-a-n-e-a-n-s.

Whew…

Then I found a humorous and fun way to remember how to spell “Mississippi” through this joke:

A bus stops and two Italian men get on. They sit down and engage in an
animated conversation. The lady sitting behind them ignores them at
first, but her attention is galvanized when she hears one of
the men say the following:

“Emma come first. Den I come. Den two asses come together. I come
once-a-more. Two asses, they come together again. I come again and pee
twice. Then I come one lasta time.”

“You foul mouthed swine,” retorted the lady indignantly. “In this
country we don’t talk about our sex lives in public!”

“Hey, coola down lady,” said the man. “Who talkin’ abouta sexa? I’m
just tellin’ my frienda how to spella ‘Mississippi’.”

So how about you? Did you get it? Hope you got at least a smile.

Part 2 - What Are the Best Toys for Your Young Learners to Play With?

Which Toys are Really “Best”?
In considering what toys to provide for their children, parents should allow for a variety of toy types and kinds. Modern toys as well as traditional toys need to be available to permit a full range of emotional and intellectual growth. Which toys are really “best”? This actually depends on several factors such as the culture, practicalities and the child himself or herself.

Traditional vs. Modern Toys
Traditional toys are still available in quantity because they not only provide vital outlets for child development, but have survived the test of time itself. Tops, Yo-yos, rag dolls, carved case and trucks, bicycles, skates, rubber and other balls of every size and material, and the classic, age-old wagon are examples of traditional toys. “homemade” noise-makers are also included as traditional toys. “Have you ever watched – and listened to a tot bang on pots, pans, bottles, furniture and even the floor for, gasp!, hours on end?” These need no batteries, sound effects or automatically-provided motions to be highly effective, absorbing to the maximum a child’s full attention span. They work on some of the best power imaginable – the child’s own mind. In Mexico, wooden traditional toys have been all the rage for decades. Better-made, less expensive and longer-lasting than most “electronic-based” and battery-operated toys, they will likely continue to be so.

Modern Toys Do Have a Place
This is not to say that modern toys have no place. They do, and can be highly effective as well – if judiciously selected based on the needs, temperament, personality, mental development and desires of the child. Games, dolls (with “active” elements) and scenarios like train or race car sets can be welcomed and effective developmental toys for children when combined with other types which stimulate play, imagination and aid in aspects of the child’s mental development. What are the best toys for your children to play with? Know the personality, character and developmental needs of your child and you’ll be much better prepared to make successful choices.

Please feel free to e-mail me at lynchlarrym@gmail.com with any questions, feedback or concerns you might have. For ideas on homemade toys for your children you might like to read my article, “Fun but Simple Creative Toys You or Your Kids Can Make”.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book,"If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

What Are the Best Toys for Your Young Learners to Play With? Part 1

Flash back to a Christmas Morning
Eyes wide and beaming with ear-to-ear smiles, a two year old boy and his five year old sister ripped open their Christmas presents one by one. A battery-powered doll that ”sings”, a new bike complete with flashers, siren and lights, a battery-powered set of race cars that pits two vehicles against each other around a closed track. Battery-powered lights flash, wheels whirl and engines “roar” while an overhead banner counts laps with colored lights and finally, declares a winner. It was a scene of utter joy on the part of the children and parents alike. But wait. I was becoming a bit leery of the scene unfolding before me.

Does Everything Use Batteries?

“Does everything use batteries”, I asked.

Apparently getting my point, the father nodded sheepishly in the affirmative before laughing out loud. How much value are such toys in the education of children and in helping to mold young, eager minds?

The two year old began to illustrate my point. He didn’t want to simply watch the red and black cars race around the tiered track. He wanted to play with the cars. Snatching the red one up, he rolled it back and forth on the floor in front of him ignoring the flashing lights and sound effects behind him.

“R-r-r-r-r-r”, “R-r-r-r-r-r-r”, “R-r-r-r-r-r-r”, he trilled, imitating a car engine.

“No, no son”, father responded, showing the boy how to turn on the battery-powered car sounds. The child watched and listened, fascinated for a few moments. Then, he’d have none of it.

“R-r-r-r-r-r”, “R-r-r-r-r-r-r”, “R-r-r-r-r-r-r”, he sounded again, the car back in his hand whirring across the cool tile floor.

What is a Toy?
Webster’s New World Dictionary defines “toy” as “an article to play with; especially a plaything for children.” The key point I want to make is that children play with or use the toy. They are not passive observers. Toys should NOT be the kind that a child just sits and watches. They MUST be “interactive” tools for children to have any true development.

What Toys Do
Toys can provide numerous aspects and functions. Some of the more important of these include:

• Stimulate role play and modeling of cultural behaviors
• Help to develop critical perceptive skills
• Help to develop and fine tune motor skills
• Directly stimulate right brain development of visual-spatial aspects and color
• Aid in development of critical thinking
• Provide a channel for development of emotional intelligence
• Educate children in a variety of ways (which can be positive or negative)
• Entertain young, developing minds

We'll continue this theme in part two of this two-part article post. See you then.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book,"If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Teaching English in Cali, There is Salsa in the air

Problems in Colombia
Even with all the changes and problems in Colombia, Cali retains a homey charm, a personality different from other cities, an atmosphere you might expect to find in the Caribbean at times. Kathleen Romoli, author of “Colombia: Gateway to South America”, describes it well:

“The most striking thing about Cali today is not the Plaza Caicedo with it imposing government buildings and rows of taxis, along the avenues of giant palms, nor the suburbs with their modem villas, and churches, whose bells chime melodies instead of clanging as it Bogotá, nor the busy factories. It is the pervasive air of cheerfulness almost of gaiety- not that it is a city of many amusements; Cali is not gay by virtue of commercial facilities for organized diversion but by the grace of god.”

Cali Attracts Travelers
Cali attracts travelers from all over; tourists, businessmen, back packers, scientists, and students; and of course, salsa fans and salsa artists. Recording studios, “rumberias”, ”discothèques” and “viejotecas” abound in many sections of the city.

What is Cali’s appeal? The city’s buoyant atmosphere? The spectacular sunsets? The natural beauty of the soaring Farallones mountains? The vaunted beauty of its women? Perhaps it’s the climate where it’s always “June”. Or could it be its remarkable cleanliness? Many Colombian towns are clean, but Cali is so clean it stands out. Or maybe it’s the trees, greenery and flowers—the billowing crimson and purple bougainvilla that tumbles in profusion from the walls, the cup-of-gold that drips from the eaves, the waxy bells of the trumpet flow, the poinsettia bushes, gorgeous gardenias, the trees with magenta leaves and carmine flowers or others with feathery green—white blossoms or pale clusters of pink—the wild extravagance of blooms among which iridescent green-bellied hummingbirds flit even in winter.

Presently though, the city has temporarily lost some of its more charming aspects. Streets and thoroughfares lie muddy and broken as a new mass-transit system, the MIO, is being constructed. Nonetheless, residents hope that later this year, as the construction finally finishes, that the city will regain much of its beauty and friendliness.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book,"If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Living and Teaching English in Cali, Colombia – No Salsa, No Dates

No Salsa No Dates
Cali has all the amenities typically offered by most large, first-world cities. But undoubtedly for many, the principal attraction that lures them to this charming city is Salsa music. The sensuous, tropical rhythms of Salsa pervade the lives of the two million plus Caleños. On every bus you’ll hear Salsa. Go for a walk, to school or shopping there’s salsa in the air. And, of course there’s Salsa on almost all of the more than two dozen local radio stations. All over town, 24-hours a day, Salsa blasts from speakers on the streets, in parks, in stores, from cars, portable radios and private homes. Cali lives and breathes Salsa.


But why Salsa?
Many other musical traditions, styles and types of folk music flourish in Cali (including the traditional Cumbia, where machete wielding dancers stomp around full-busted women in ruffled skirts). What’s so special about Salsa? After all Vallenatos, a brand of folk music with roots back to the days of the Spanish conquistadors, is still hugely popular—especially as sung by the likes of Colombia’s Grammy award winner Carlos Vives(pictured). Boleros (check out Luis Miguel’s “Inolvidable”) and Merengue continue to have strong followings here.

Why has this one style ingrained itself so deeply into the culture? To aficionados the answer is simple: “I love salsa music.” Whatever the reason for it’s universal popularity in Cali, Salsa is more than just music, more than a dance. It’s an indispensable social skill explains my friend, Carmenza, “No salsa—no dates.” You can’t meet others if you can’t dance.” And that’s why there are salsa dance schools throughout the city. You pay for lessons by the hour. Prices range from $6 up to $10 per hour for more private, one-on-one instruction. Group classes fu up fast. Salsa classes are not just the place to go for learning, but to practice and perfect your moves or pick up some new ones. They’re a good “meeting place” for neighborhood residents. “It’s important to dance very well or you’re boring,” says Sofia, an avid Salsa fan.

The Salsa Capital of the World
Cali calls itself the “Salsa Capital, of the World,” a title wrenched from post-Fidel Cuba and often shared with New York City. But even those who might take exception to “World Capital” will agree that Cali is certainly the “Salsa Capital of South America.” The top Latin salsa performers, like New York’s Jerry “King of 54th Street” Gonzalez, regularly fly in to strut their stuff. At any given time you can see all the famous names in salsa, artists hike Cuba’s “Queen of Salsa,” Celia Cruz; guitarist, singer and songwriter Juan Luis Guerra from the Dominican Republic; Frank Raul Grillo, the Cuban American also known as Machito; Reuben Blades, the popular Panamanian singer, songwriter, actor and politician renowned for his musical innovations as well as traditional Salsa; Willie Colon; Oscar d’Leon, and many others.

Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book,"If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

Cali, Salsa Capitol of the World

Different Styles and Variations of Salsa
You don’t have to go far in this city of dancers to hear all the different styles and variations of Salsa. The suburb of Juanchito, with 120 of the hottest dance halls, is the throbbing rhythmic heart of Cali’s Salsa nightlife. Every week throughout the year, two hundred thousand locals pour into this eastern suburb to party. Cali teems with discos and “viejotecas” for the young and not so young. Latinos of younger generations typically favor a smoother, more sentimental music known as Salsa Romantica, popularized by bandleaders such as Eddie Santiago and Tito Nieves. Internationally popular salsa singers of the 1990s included Linda “India” Caballero and Mark Anthony. The Puerto Rico-based orchestra “Puerto Rican Power” is another hot group with ardent fans both in Cali and Puerto Rico.

Photo: Prof. Larry M. Lynch and his Colombian wife, Doris

It’s Worth a Trip to Cali to Hear …
While it’s thrilling to hear famous performers of Salsa music from abroad, don’t forget Cali’s many own outstanding world class groups and musicians of Salsa fame blending the old with the new, the classic and the innovative. It’s worth a trip to Cali just to hear the vibrant non-traditional sounds of Jairo Varela and the Grupo Niche. Or other artists like “Son de Cali,” the all—female “Orchestra Canela” and Lisandro Meza who also inject new blood into Cali´s Salsa scene. These and the intoxicating classic Salsa sounds of Kike Santander, Joe Arroyo and Eddy Martinez thunder through the air and flow in the veins of ”coca-colos” (late teens to early 20s adolescents) and “cuchos” alike in discos, salsatecas and even in viejotecas that draw the over-35 crowd.

When I Arrived in Cali
When I arrived in Cali in 1995, I thought my salsa was OK. After all, I’d picked up some smooth moves from a bevy of hot Puerto Rican beauties during a summer stint in San Juan. Even back in my home state of Pennsylvania, there were opportunities on Friday or Saturday nights to slip out and mix with Latinos at our local Hispanic watering holes. I’d perfected a double-quick step in a rectangular pattern, too, and added whirls and spins to the heavy beat. I had no trouble getting, and keeping, dance partners. Then in Miami, during a Labor Day weekend retreat, I met a Latin cutie. I invited her for dinner and dancing later that week at “La Cima,” one of the city’s top Salsa clubs, to show off my moves. She was impressed. A year later we married and after a couple more years we moved to her native Colombia.

Colombian salsa is a different beast. The style, rhythm and beat are similar in other places but it’s a different story on the dance floor. My feet recognized the beat, but behaved as if 1 were wearing Bozo shoes. For a while, 1 stuck to downtown places like “Cuarto Venina,” perched on the banks of the brownish, knee-deep Cali River. It’s listening only, no dancing here. The music is so subdued you can carry on a conversation over "empanadas" and cold “Costeña” beer. It can be just the right touch for a Sunday afternoon. Nowadays, my Latin cutie and 1 are considered “cuchos” (the over-45 set). It’s been many years now. We’re still here though, our 14th wedding anniversary is this month. We're still dancing Salsa.
… and I’m still showing off my moves.

Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, author and speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE E-book,"If you Want to Teach English Abroad, Here's What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.

5 Keys to Boosting Your Brain and Memory for a Better Quality of Life

Healthier, Happier and Live Longer
All of us want to be healthier, happier and live longer, more productive lives. Essential to quality of life are a good brain and memory, greater intelligence and being mentally active. Here are five useful keys to help you in re-vamping your lifestyle, improving your health and boosting your mental capacity.

1. Minimize or Eliminate Causes of Stress
Not only is excess stress bad for your mental processes, it’s harmful to your health and can even be a killer. Other aids to help minimize stress include getting enough sleep along with cutting down on consumption of caffeine from soft drinks, tea or coffee. Not more than two cups of coffee a day is the recommendation. One other stress-busting key is to laugh a lot and have more fun. Have you ever seen a stressed-out person at an amusement park? (other than a caregiver with too many charges). Take time to enjoy your life more.

2. Become More Active Mentally
Do brain-teasers, work a variety of different games or puzzles. Try your hand at some crosswords, anything to get that gray matter working for a change. Play checkers, chess, backgammon, Monopoly or any other of numerous board games. You could also play card games. Bridge, Poker and other parlor card games are making a comeback from the video-game fever that has swept across the cultures of countries around the world. Whatever you do you need to challenge your brain. Only then will it respond, develop and grow

3. Eat Brain-Boosting foods
Brain-healthy fats like Omega-3, aid can not only in slowing down the onset of mind-debilitating disorders but can promote mental acuity. Consume more Olive oil, fish, and walnuts along with foods high in anti-oxidants as studies show they may actually increase mental ability. You should eat less unrefined carbohydrates - instant and processed foods can spike your blood sugar thus reducing brain function. Get the lowdown on a complete dietary overhaul by visiting a Dietician or Nutritionist.

4. Become More Physically Active
Links between reduced Alzheimer’s risk and regular physical activity has been well-established by doctors and numerous medical studies. So move it. Go for walks, jog, join a gym, take up a physical sport or go bowling. Be sure to get a medical checkup before engaging in any rigorous physical activity, but by all means do something for your muscles, heart and mind.

5. Improve Your General Health
Your general health greatly impacts your mental abilities or lack thereof. As your health improves, so will your mental skills in general. Quit smoking, or better yet, abandon any use of tobacco including, dipping, chewing, etc. Nicotine and other tobacco by products are transmitted into your system in different ways so switching from one form of tobacco use will not be of any benefit.

Other health-promoting tips include, but are not limited to:

• Don’t use addictive drugs
• Drink alcohol in moderation
• Have regular medical check ups

Learn and Practice a New Hobby or Skill
Make time to boost your mental activity by:

• Taking a class (preferably not a sedentary one like needlepoint, etc.)
• Learning a new sport, hobby or activity
• Learn an interesting new skill, even a new language

It's Never Too Late
It’s never too late to grow mentally or learn. If I can be of any further help or you have a specific question, please feel free to contact me at the site listed below. Try these six useful keys to augment your lifestyle to aid you to live a healthier, happier, longer, more productive life.


Prof. Larry M. Lynch is an EFL Teacher Trainer, Intellectual Development Specialist, prolific writer, author and public speaker. He has written ESP, foreign language learning, English language teaching texts and hundreds of articles used in more than 100 countries. Get your FREE EFL e-book, "If You Want to Teach English Abroad, Here’s What You Need to Know" by requesting the title at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com Need a blogger or copywriter to promote your school, institution, service or business or an experienced writer and vibrant SEO content for your website, blog or newsletter? Then E-mail me for further information.