Last Day

Here is my hard working class on our last day of classes. You can see in the bottom-right corner a box of doughnuts and some napkins. They were for Koichi's farewell party. Koichi is the student in the bottom-left corner of the picture. He is leaving UW-La Crosse for Sacramento, California.

Behind Koichi is Kazuki, who looks ready to take some notes on his desk. Hiding behind Kazuki and reaching for a Pepsi is Angus. Straight in front of me in the blue is Badr who also is ready to take notes. Looking very relaxed with a big pile on his desk is Ibrahim. To our right and Ibrahim's left is Satomi, looking very nice. To the right of Satomi is Ji Su, looking quite calm. And to the far right is Alia with her books out ready to study. But instead we partied on Koichi's behalf.

Final Comments

What did you like the most about this class?

• Jeremy is a fun teacher.
• I like everything.
• My classmates are always funny.
• This class is sometimes serious and sometimes funny.
• The room is cold.
• The room has strong air conditioning.
• The room is bright.
• The clock is located in the best spot on the wall.
• Some desks are noisy.
• I like having class outside.
• Jeremy's "ping-pong" device is entertaining.

What will you remember the most?

• Koichi always eats M&Ms.
• Kazuki usually eats bananas.
• Jeremy loves cats a lot.
• Ibrahim sometimes comes to class 1 minute late.
• The chain drill activity with A-B-C-D-E-F students.
• Pictures on the blog.
• Jeremy's blog.
• Other languages--Russian, Arabic, Korean, Japanese, and Chinese.

What should change?

• the air conditioner or the room
• That's about all. Nothing more.

What improved the most concerning your English skills?

• The word "sarcasm"
• "Really?" and "Really."
• Word stress
• Grammar in questions and answers
• Stress on "can't"
• "wanna, gonna, hafta, luvta"

Thank you.

Next Semester

Everyone has passed the first level

Some students will go to the second level

• ESL 100 Speaking with Jeremy about role-plays and journalism at 8:50 everyday
• ESL 101 Reading with Kay at 1:10 everyday
• ESL 102 Writing with Liz at 2:15 everyday
• ESL 103 Listening with Patrick at 9:55 everyday

Some students will go to the third level

• ESL 110 Speaking with Kay at 2:15 Mondays and Wednesdays
• ESL 111 Reading with Jeremy about the 2008 US Presidential Elections at 11:00 Mondays and Wednesdays
• ESL 112 Writing with Patrick at 12:40 Tuesdays and Thursdays
• ESL 113 Listening with Beth at 11:00 Tuesdays and Thursdays

One student will go to Sacramento, CA

Homework for This Week

Study for the Final Pronunciation Test on Tuesday
Study for the Final Vocabulary Test on Wednesday
Study for the Final Grammar Test on Thursday

American Cities

Today students gave presentations on northern cities of the United States. They had to answer questions about the weather, certain activities, sights to see, and the hotel. Here are some examples by two students.

Badr gave a speech about Portland, Oregon and the Doubletree Hotel there. There's a famous rose garden and Japanese garden there, plus an interesting zoo. You can see a lot of nature in Portland--the Willamette River and many mountains. Portland is not as cold as La Crosse, but you can go snowboarding in the nearby Cascade Mountains. Rooms at the Doubletree Hotel start around $150 per night. It has an outdoor pool and WiFi.

Angus gave a speech about Buffalo, New York. The weather is similar to the weather in La Crosse. Buffalo gets very cold in winter and sometimes gets more snow than La Crosse. It's about 13 hours from La Crosse by car. There are many things to do there like taking part in the National Buffalo Wing Festival where many people eat chicken wings. There's also a lot of sports teams to watch, like the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres.

Homework for Monday

Research your American city and one hotel there.

• Satomi - Anchorage, AK
  
• Badr - Portland, OR
• Ji Su - Rapid City, SD
• Ibrahim - Detroit, MI
  
• Koichi - Cleveland, OH
• Angus - Buffalo, NY
• Alia - Burlington, VT
  
• Kazuki - Boston, MA

Be prepared to answer many questions about the city and the hotel.
Also be prepared to ask your classmates similar questions about their cities and hotels.