READING: BEING BILINGUAL IS GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH
Хелло, мої любі :)
Сьогодні поговоримо про bilingual people.
Ти вважаєш себе bilingual? A trilingual? A polyglot?
Сподіваюся, що коли you are checking out цей пост то ти або вже двомовна людина, або тобі до того вже зовсім недалеко. Сьогодні підібраний мною Reading підніме тобі самооцінку, стане мотивацією для вдосконалення англійської обо ж надихне на вивчення нової для тебе мови. Позичаю з the Guardian (full text of the on-line article is here ).
До того ж, сьогодні ми робитимемо все трішки навпаки: vocabulary list до твоєї уваги перед прочитанням статті.
VOCABULARY
cognitive: in psychology, a cognitive science or process is one that is connected with recognizing and understanding things
onset: the beginning of something, especially something bad
dementia: a serious illness affecting someone’s brain and memory in which they gradually stop being able to think or behave in a normal way.
to hold/ keep something at bay (for): to prevent something serious, dangerous, or unpleasant from affecting you
be better at something/ at doing something
to boost: to help something to increase, improve, or become more successful
to deteriorate: to become worse
to switch between: to change from one thing to another
seem to do something:
to build up: [intransitive/transitive] to increase, or to make something increase
to run out of something: to use all of something and not have any left
Learning a second language and speaking it regularly can improve your cognitive skills and delay the onset of dementia, according to researchers who compared bilingual individuals with people who spoke only one language.
Their study suggests that bilingual speakers hold Alzheimer's disease at bay for an extra four years on average compared with monoglots. School-level language skills that you use on holiday may even improve brain function to some extent.
In addition, bilingual children who use their second language regularly are better at prioritising tasks and multitasking compared with monolingual children, said Ellen Bialystok, a psychologist at York University in Toronto.
"Being bilingual has certain cognitive benefits and boosts the performance of the brain, especially one of the most important areas known as the executive control system," said Bialystok on Friday at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, DC.
"We know that this system deteriorates with age but we have found that at every stage of life it functions better in bilinguals. They perform at a higher level. It won't stop them getting Alzheimer's disease, but they can cope with the disease for longer."
She said switching between different languages seems to stimulate the brain so that it builds up a cognitive reserve. "It is rather like a reserve tank in a car. When you run out of fuel, you can keep going for longer because there is a bit more in the safety tank."
A.The effect was greatest for people who had to use the language every day and choose between two sets of words all the time.B. "It works best for people who speak two languages every day, like immigrants moving to a new country who speak their own language at home. C. But every little bit helps." D.
Bialystock said her team was now researching whether using two or more languages resulted in any physical changes to the brain, in addition to improving cognition. Early results suggest that it may change brain size.
1. Which one of the following statements is correct:
- Learning a second language can lower your risk of getting Altzheimer's
- Learning a second language can delay the beginning of Altzheimer's.
- Learning a second language can lower your cognitive skills.
- Individuals who speak only one language have a higher risk of getting early dementia.
2. Insert the following phrase into the most suitable place, A, B, C or D:
Nevertheless, learning a language at school and continuing to practise it was also useful, she said.
LISTENING: LISTEN to INTERESTING TALKS by INTERESTING PEOPLE
Я якось сиділа і розмірковувала над тим, що є такого цікавого, щоб покращити свої Listening skills. Все залежить від твоїх вподобань.
Коли ти плануєш навчатися закордоном, і саме тому готуєшся до TOEFL, то тобі краще передивлятися/ прослуховувати різні лекції присутні в мережі.Якщо ти вже зовсім не студент і бути ним знову не збираєшся, ти вже доросла і серйозна людина, то для тебе є новини чи то на euronews.net, на bbc.co.uk чи то на cnn.com, це все up to you, адже з активним розвитком Internet, тобі вже не обовязков мати телевізор, щоб переглядти новини різними мовами з різних куточків світу. Та попри всі подкасти і новини, мене вже ж час від часу радує така річ, як TED.com. Ми не раз згадували про цей ресурс і ще не раз згадаємо, адже це джерело коротких інформаційних та часто мотивуючих speaches на будь-яку тему!
Сьогодні пропоную до вашої уваги один з найбільш мотивуючих роликів на TEDі (за класифікацією самого TED):
Elizabeth Gilbert: A new way to think about creativity
SPEAKING: express yourself!
Послухали інших? Тепер час висловитися нам самим і поділитися своїми думками за 45 секунд
INDEPENDENT WRITING: EXPRESS CONTRAST IDEAS
У попередніх постах ти можеш знайти підбірки виразів, що допоможуть структурувати твою відповідь, тим самим збільшивши бал за Writing, та і за TOEFL вцілому.
На численні прохання в цьому пості я розгляну з вами ще одну стратегію написання Independent essay: Contrast and comparison. За словом “стратегія” ховається проста організація твору.
Contrast and comparison
Зробимо це на прикладі однієї з можливих тем:
has destroyed communication among friends and family. Use
- Спершу, сформулюй свою думку:
- Далі, поясни, чому ти так думаєш, надавши пару прикладів:
Furthermore, those changes in communication shape TV programs. People tend to look for advice on a talk-show than asking their friends, we tend to look for a role-models on TV, rather than in our lives, from people we know. We become truly empathetic with heroes of reality shows trying not to miss a program, and neglecting beggars on the streets and missing calls of our friends.
- Далі, можна додати contrast своїм думкам:
- Не забувай про conclusion! Навіть коли додати вже нічого, треба просто підбити підсумки.
Вище викладене: то моя імпровізація на тему :) Щоб попрактикуватись, пишіть вашу імпровізацію з вираженням контрасту на тему
has destroyed communication among friends and family. Use
However: used when you are saying something that seems surprising after your previous statement, or that makes your previous statement seem less true
Although, Even though, though: used for introducing a statement that makes your main statement seem surprising
She used to call me ‘Tiny’, although I was at least as tall as she was.
Despite , In spite of : used to say that something happens or is true even though something else might have prevented it
Never use of after despite.
✗ Recycling is a good way to manage waste
✓ Recycling is a good way to manage waste despite its cost.
✗ Many people are successful in their jobs
✓ Many people are successful in their jobs despite the fact that they have no university diploma.
You can also use the phrase in spite of in the same way:
Recycling is a good way to manage waste in spite of its cost.
Despite and in spite of mean exactly the same, but despite is much more frequent.
In contrast to his predecessor, Bush has little appetite for foreign travel.
Thank you for your attention! and see you next week!