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by sendaiben
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Google Reader: the end of an era
This is only going to be of interest if you use Google’s excellent Google Reader service to consume your web content via RSS feeds.
If you have no idea what that means, stop reading now 😉
I logged into Google Reader a couple of days ago to discover that Google is planning to discontinue the service in July. Seems like they weren’t able to monetize it sufficiently, or there weren’t enough users, or something data-driven like that.
While I’m sure they have their reasons, I was unpleasantly surprised. I’ve been using Reader for years now to read blogs and webcomics and really like the simplicity, and how well it syncs across computers and mobile devices.
Fortunately I am not the only one with this problem, and it seems as though Feedly has decided that they would like to snap up all of the Google Reader customers. If you go to their website, you can sign in with your Google account and when the time comes they will migrate all your settings to their system.
I’ve been playing with Feedly on Windows and my iPhone since yesterday and so far it seems like a good solution. It’s not the same as Reader, but it comes close, and I’m sure it will be fine once I get used to it.
So as a public service announcement, if you need a replacement for Reader, Feedly seems like a relatively painless solution.
curriculum EFL eikaiwa extensive reading graded readers kids language courses Language learning materials Penguin Kids Readers readers reviews young learners: EFL graded readers Japan Penguin Kids Readers review teaching English
by sendaiben
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New Penguin Kids Titles
I first reviewed this series here.
Just to recap, this is a fantastic resource for young beginners who are just getting started with graded readers. The books are extremely attractive and have interesting content. The levels start very low at level 1 (200 headwords) and only go up in jumps of 200 from there up to level 6 (1200 headwords).
I received the new titles for this year last week. Unlike last year’s releases, which were all based on Disney titles, this year’s books are a mixture of new Disney material alongside non-fiction content.
I really like the non-fiction books. They have big, attractive photographs and are interesting. I tried them out with some students yesterday (just put them on the desk as they came into class and let them read before we started) and I had difficulty getting them to put the books down so we could start the class! Always a good sign.
If you have a reading library for children or teenagers this series is well worth a look, especially now that it has its full 12 books per level.
EFL eikaiwa ES expectations extensive reading junior high school language courses Language learning oxford owl Oxford Reading Tree presentations school management teaching young learners: EFL phonics reading teaching teaching English in Japan
by sendaiben
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Okayama and Osaka Oxford Teaching Workshops
I would just like to thank everyone who turned out for the Okayama and Osaka Oxford Teaching Workshops. I had a great time meeting and talking to you, and the many questions really helped me see where my presentation needs more work 🙂
As promised, here are the slides I used for my presention
Please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions.
curriculum EFL eikaiwa ES expectations extensive reading kids language courses Language learning materials oxford owl Oxford Reading Tree presentations teaching
by sendaiben
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Oxfort Teaching Workshop Series Fukuoka Feb 3 2013
I’ll be presenting in Fukuoka again this Sunday, at the Oxford Teaching Workshop Series 2013.
I’m really excited about the topic: designing reading programs for young learners.
I’ll be on at 10:30 in the Tenjin Crystal Building. Please see the flyer for more details.
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by sendaiben
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Outsourcing design -using online design competitions for logos, websites, and more
(I’m really excited. This is my first post in response to a reader question. I feel like a real blogger now :))
A few years ago, after deciding to get a proper website made for us by a company, we realized we needed a logo for the school.
I originally approached a local designer, but that would have involved paying a high fee (over 150,000 yen) with little recourse if we didn’t like the end product.
Looking for alternatives, I found a website that arranges design competitions: people post their design projects, put up a prize, and designers then submit their ideas. The person who posted the project chooses a design they like, and that designer gets paid. We used DesignContest.com but there are now dozens of websites based on this same model. I recommend doing some research before committing to one.
The advantages for us was a much reduced price (we paid $300 for the design above), a much wider variety of ideas, and a chance to work with various designers to narrow down what we wanted.
My original idea and the final product were completely different, and I am convinced we would not have gotten such a good result if we had commissioned someone in a more traditional manner.
The best thing about the process for me was that the contest lasted for a couple of weeks, and during that time we were able to look at designs, comment on them, and have designers then come back with new designs based on our comments.
We had about 40 people participate in our contest, and it was a very smooth and interesting experience. If you don’t get enough entries or don’t like any of the designs you get your money back, so it’s a fairly risk-free process.
You can do the same thing with logos, website design, blog design, t-shirts, etc.
I’m planning to get someone to redo my blog at some point 🙂
Has anyone else used online design contests? How did it go?