Is it important? Yes! Why? When you go to an international airport, you show your identity card / passport. Often the airport personnel (Mitarbeiter) ask you to 'spell' you name.
Restroom or bathroom? Read the story aloud for extra practice.
Laura is at the airport. She waits for her flight. Her flight is to Berlin, and it is 4 hours away. Laura walks around the airport and looks at the shops. She has a nice time.
After an hour she wants to visit the bathroom. She searches for it, but she doesn't find it.
"Where is the bathroom?" she asks herself.
She looks and looks but she can't find it. She starts asking people where it is.
Laura: "Excuse me sir, could you please tell me where is the bathroom?"
Man: "You mean the restroom, right?"
Laura: "No, I mean the bathroom."
Man: "Well, the restroom is over there." He says and walks away.
Laura doesn't understand. She asks a lady: "Excuse me madam, could you please tell me where is the bathroom?"
"The restroom is over there," the lady answers and walks away.
Laura is confused. "What's their problem? I need to use the bathroom and they send me to rest?! I don't need a restroom, I need the bathroom!"
After a while Laura gives up. She feels tired of all this walking and asking. She decides that maybe they are all right and she does need to rest.
She walks to the restroom. Now she is surprised. She realizes the restroom is actually the name for a public bathroom!
The 600 nouns in this list are part of Charles K. Ogden's compilation of 850 words, which he released in 1930 with the book "Basic English: A General Introduction with Rules and Grammar." This list is an excellent starting point for building up vocabulary to converse fluently in English.
While this list is helpful for a strong beginning, more advanced vocabulary building will help you improve your English.
1. account 2. act 4. adjustment 5. advertisement 6. agreement 7. air 8. amount 9. amusement 10. animal 11. answer 12. apparatus 13. approval 14. argument 15. art 16. attack 17. attempt 18. attention 19. attraction 20. authority 21. back 22. balance 23. base 24. behavior 25. belief 26. birth 27. bit 28. bite 29. blood 30. blow 31. body 32. brass 33. bread 34. breath 35. brother 36. building 37. burn 38. burst 39. business 40. butter 41. canvas 42. care 43. cause 44. chalk 45. chance 46. change 47. cloth 48. coal 49. color 50. comfort 51. committee 52. company 53. comparison 54. competition 55. condition 56. connection 57. control 58. cook 59. copper 60. copy 61. cork 62. copy 63. cough 64. country 65. cover 66. crack 67. credit 68. crime 69. crush 70. cry 71. current 72. curve 73. damage 74. danger 75. daughter 76. day 77. death 78. debt 79. decision 80. degree 81. design 82. desire 83. destruction 84. detail 85. development 86. digestion 87. direction 88. discovery 89. discussion 90. disease 91. disgust 92. distance 93. distribution 94. division 95. doubt 96. drink 97. driving 98.
dust 99. earth 100. edge
101. education 102. effect 103. end 104. error 105. event 106. example 107. exchange 108. existence 109. expansion 110. experience 111. expert 112. fact 113. fall 114. family 115. father 116. fear 117. feeling 118. fiction 119. field 120. fight 121. fire 122. flame 123. flight 124. flower 125. fold 126. food 127. force 128. form 129. friend 130. front 131. fruit 132. glass 133. gold 134. government 135. grain 136. grass 137. grip 138. group 139. growth 140. guide 141. harbor 142. harmony 143. hate 144. hearing 145. heat 146. help 147. history 148. hole 149. hope 150. hour 151. humor 152. ice 153. idea 154. impulse 155. increase 156. industry 157. ink 158. insect 159. instrument 160. insurance 161. interest 162. invention 163. iron 164. jelly 165. join 166. journey 167. judge 168. jump 169. kick 170. kiss 171. knowledge 172. land 173. language 174. laugh 175. low 176. lead 177. learning 178. leather 179. letter 180. level 181. lift 182. light 183. limit 184. linen 185. liquid 186. list 187. look 188. loss 189. love 190. machine 191. man 192. manager 193. mark 194. market 195. mass 196.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year. For a couple of weeks every year the world takes on a magic glow, people seem merrier and even winter somehow feels cosy.
Whether you’re celebrating a religious festival, like Hanukkah or Christmas, or a more secular occasion, you’re sure to have your own selection of rituals or customs that make the holiday season so special. Our favorite Christmas traditions around the world are loud, proud, and guarantee oodles of festive fun.
Giant Lantern Festival, Philippines
The Giant Lantern Festival (Ligligan Parul Sampernandu) is held each year on the Saturday before Christmas Eve in the city of San Fernando – the “Christmas Capital of the Philippines.” The festival attracts spectators from all over the country and across the globe. Eleven barangays (villages) take part in the festival and competition is fierce as everyone pitches in trying to build the most elaborate lantern. Originally, the lanterns were simple creations around half a metre in diameter, made from ‘papel de hapon’ (Japanese origami paper) and lit by candle. Today, the lanterns are made from a variety of materials and have grown to around six metres in size. They are illuminated by electric bulbs that sparkle in a kaleidoscope of patterns.
Gävle Goat, Sweden
Since 1966, a 13-metre-tall Yule Goat has been built in the center of Gävle’s Castle Square for the Advent, but this Swedish Christmas tradition has unwittingly led to another “tradition” of sorts – people trying to burn it down. Since 1966 the Goat has been successfully burned down 29 times – the most recent destruction was in 2016.
If you want to see how the Goat fares this year when it goes up on December 1st, you can follow its progress on the Visit Gävle website through a live video stream.
Krampus, Austria
A beast-like demon creature that roams city streets frightening kids and punishing the bad ones – nope, this isn’t Halloween, but St. Nicholas’ evil accomplice, Krampus. In Austrian tradition, St. Nicholas rewards nice little boys and girls, while Krampus is said to capture the naughtiest children and whisk them away in his sack. In the first week of December, young men dress up as the Krampus (especially on the eve of St. Nicholas Day) frightening children with clattering chains and bells.
Kentucky Fried Christmas Dinner, Japan
Christmas has never been a big deal in Japan. Aside from a few small, secular traditions such as gift-giving and light displays, Christmas remains largely a novelty in the country. However, a new, quirky “tradition” has emerged in recent years – a Christmas Day feast of the Colonel’s very own Kentucky Fried Chicken.
The festive menu will soon be advertized on the KFC Japan website and, even if you don’t understand Japanese, the pictures sure will look delicious with everything from a Christmas-themed standard bucket to a premium roast-bird feast.
The Yule Lads, Iceland
In the 13 days leading up to Christmas, 13 tricksy troll-like characters come out to play in Iceland. The Yule Lads (jólasveinarnir or jólasveinar in Icelandic) visit the children across the country over the 13 nights leading up to Christmas. For each night of Yuletide, children place their best shoes by the window and a different Yule Lad visits leaving gifts for nice girls and boys and rotting potatoes for the naughty ones. Clad in traditional Icelandic costume, these fellas are pretty mischievous, and their names hint at the type of trouble they like to cause: Stekkjastaur (Sheep-Cote Clod), Giljagaur (Gully Gawk), Stúfur (Stubby), Þvörusleikir (Spoon-Licker), Pottaskefill (Pot-Scraper), Askasleikir (Bowl-Licker), Hurðaskellir (Door-Slammer), Skyrgámur (Skyr-Gobbler), Bjúgnakrækir (Sausage-Swiper), Gluggagægir (Window-Peeper), Gáttaþefur (Doorway-Sniffer), Ketkrókur (Meat-Hook) and Kertasníkir (Candle-Stealer). Visit Iceland this Christmas and catch them all!
Saint Nicholas’ Day, Germany
Not to be confused with Weihnachtsmann (Father Christmas), Nikolaus travels by donkey in the middle of the night on December 6 (Nikolaus Tag) and leaves little treats like coins, chocolate, oranges and toys in the shoes of good children all over Germany, and particularly in the Bavarian region. St. Nicholas also visits children in schools or at home and in exchange for sweets or a small present each child must recite a poem, sing a song or draw a picture. In short, he’s a great guy. But it isn’t always fun and games. St. Nick often brings along Knecht Ruprecht (Farmhand Rupert). A devil-like character dressed in dark clothes covered with bells and a dirty beard, Knecht Ruprecht carries a stick or a small whip in hand to punish any children who misbehave.
Norway
Perhaps one of the most unorthodox Christmas Eve traditions can be found in Norway, where people hide their brooms. It’s a tradition that dates back centuries to when people believed that witches and evil spirits came out on Christmas Eve looking for brooms to ride on. To this day, many people still hide their brooms in the safest place in the house to stop them from being stolen.
Lighting of National Hanukkah Menorah, Washington, D.C. – US
The Jewish holiday of Hanukkah is celebrated with much fanfare across the United States with one of the most elaborate events taking place on a national stage. Since 1979, a giant nine-metre Menorah has been raised on the White House grounds for the eight days and nights of Hanukkah. The ceremony in Washington, D.C. is marked with speeches, music, activities for kids, and, of course, the lighting of the Menorah.
The lighting of the first candle at the White House takes place at 4pm, rain or shine, and an additional candle is lit each successive night. The event is free to attend, but tickets must be booked in advance.
Venezuela
Love Christmas, but think it could be improved by a spot of roller-blading? If the answer is yes, visit Caracas, Venezuela this year. Every Christmas Eve, the city’s residents head to church in the early morning – so far, so normal – but, for reasons known only to them, they do so on roller skates. This unique tradition is so popular that roads across the city are closed to cars so that people can skate to church in safety, before heading home for the less-than-traditional Christmas dinner of ‘tamales’ (a wrap made out of cornmeal dough and stuffed with meat, then steamed).
Day of the Little Candles, Colombia
Little Candles’ Day (Día de las Velitas) marks the start of the Christmas season across Colombia. In honour of the Virgin Mary and the Immaculate Conception, people place candles and paper lanterns in their windows, balconies and front yards. The tradition of candles has grown, and now entire towns and cities across the country are lit up with elaborate displays. Some of the best are found in Quimbaya, where neighbourhoods compete to see who can create the most impressive arrangement.
Cavalcade of Lights, Toronto
In wintry, wonderful Toronto the annual Cavalcade of Lights marks the official start to the holiday season. The first Cavalcade took place in 1967 to show off Toronto’s newly constructed City Hall and Nathan Phillips Square. The Square and Christmas tree are illuminated by more than 300,000 energy-efficient LED lights that shine from dusk until 11 pm until the New Year. On top of that, you’ll get to witness spectacular fireworks shows and engage in some outdoor ice skating.
The end of the year is approaching. That feeling of Christmas is beginning to arrive as well. In some countries, people gather together to sing Christmas songs and carols. In others, everyone listens to them at home. If there is anything that exists almost everywhere in the world, that would be Christmas songs.
Have you ever considered using this traditional music to help improve your English level? Learning and developing your skills in this language doesn’t have to be tedious. You don’t need to isolate yourself from the world to study for hours on end. On the contrary, learning should be an opportunity to meet more people and to discover new cultures.
Learn English With Songs and Movies
One of the fundamental pillars when learning English, or any language, is to also learn about the culture that language belongs to. This will help you know how the language works in context and is something that needs to be present in any learning program.
Listening to songs or watching movies in English will help you improve in many aspects of the language itself. But it will also help you to immerse yourself in Anglo-Saxon culture and context. This is very important! Knowing the culture will help make it much easier for you to know what to say or how to behave in specific situations. This is something you simply can’t achieve through memorising grammar rules.
The Benefits of Learning English With the Lyrics to Christmas Songs
Learning English with traditional Christmas songs or with more modern versions will really help your English. These incredible benefits are similar to those that storytelling gives you. Would you like to learn about them?
You will expand your English vocabulary. You’ll also learn specific words related to this beautiful time of year. ’Tis the season to be jolly!
In some modern songs, but also in slightly older ones, there are some very interesting words and sayings. This is similar to what happens with Cockney rhyming slang. Slang, that is to say, colloquialisms, go beyond the English you learn when you study grammar. This is the English spoken in the streets, which is the part of the language that is most alive and changeable.
Just like what happens when you watch movies, TV series, or programs in English, when you listen to Christmas songs in this language, you’ll also be training your ear to how the language sounds and how different words are pronounced. This is an excellent opportunity to practice understanding different accents!
With each song, you’ll learn a little more about the culture to which that particular theme belongs. You’ll learn about what they eat, the activities they enjoy, the traditions they have, and how they celebrate Christmas.
Learn English With Subtitled Songs As with movies, it can often be difficult to understand what you’re hearing at first. This can happen when you don’t know the language well. It can also happen when your ear isn’t accustomed to the accent or vocabulary of the person speaking.
Don’t despair! There is always a solution. Something that can help you, in the beginning, is to look for subtitled versions of the songs. As you know, there are two ways to subtitle audio, in your language or in the speaker’s original language. The first option can solve many obstacles but it doesn’t present as many challenges as the second.
Short Christmas Songs in English If you like this idea and want to start practicing before December arrives, here are the titles of some of the most well-known Christmas songs. With these short songs, you’ll definitely improve your level of English. You’ll also get into the Christmas spirit at the same time! Let’s sing!
Let It Snow
Silent Night
Deck the Halls
Santa Claus Is Coming to Town
Jingle Bells
If, after singing, you want to know how much your English has improved, we invite you to find out. You’ll see that after singing these songs (or any others that you want to learn) you’ll have learned new vocabulary. You’ll also learn more about the climate, traditions, food, and Christmas activities of the English-speaking world. This means that not only will your English level improve, but you also will have taken a small Christmas trip without even leaving your home. You can prepare yourself to talk about Christmas in English with people from other countries and learn about their customs just through songs. That’s amazing!
When a child is just learning to read, comics can be a great supplement to help foster love and enjoyment for books. As detailed in this wonderful handout, “Raising a Reader,” from the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, comics have a lot to offer young readers. For that crucial first stage of early reading (ages 5-8, grades K-2), though, it can be hard to find appropriate comic book reading material. Many parents will either disregard comic books as a reading option or assume that any old superhero comic will do. The appropriate range of choices for this specific age group and reading level is actually pretty narrow, but it contains some fabulous picks.
I’ve put together a list of 10 great choices to consider giving your early reader. I’ve tried to keep in mind both reading level and content appropriateness. Also, it should be noted that 98% of today’s superhero comics are written for a minimum age of at least 13. Both Marvel and DC publish a couple of choices for younger readers based off their animated TV shows, but even those tend to skew older than the reading level we’re talking about here.
1. Toon Books
Without a doubt, the best go-to option for parents looking for quality comics for early readers is the many graphic novels from Toon Books. Started in 2008 by comics power couple Françoise Mouly (art and comics editor for the New Yorker) and Art Spiegelman (creator of the literary comics masterpiece Maus), Toon Books is the only comics publisher that organizes their publications by reading level. For early readers they have a number of great offerings spread across two levels: Brand-new readers (ages 3+, grades K-1) and Emerging Readers (ages 4+, grades 1-2). They also publish books for later stages like grades 2-3 and beyond.
The best part about Toon Books is the quality of the creative talent that Mouly and Spiegelman have tapped. There are books in these early levels by outstanding cartoonists such as Lilli Carré, Renee French, and Rutu Modan, and children’s book award-winning contributions from Jeff Smith and Eleanor Davis. Most books come in hardcover and softcover format and are pretty readily available in bookstores, but you can browse them all on Toon-Books.com.
Difficulty: The best part about Toon Books is they clearly label each book according to grade level beginning at K-1 up to Grade 3+. Content: Think of these as a bridge between reading picture books and reading comics. The varied offerings include lots of books about cute, anthropomorphic animals learning moral and educational lessons. Where to start: You can’t go wrong with Eleanor Davis’ award-winning Stinky, about a monster who is afraid of people but learns that, once you meet them, they’re really not that scary.
For early readers who are still trying to gain their confidence with the written word, there are comics like Andy Runton’s Owly that let the pictures do the talking. These cute, award-winning books are mostly wordless, sometimes using word balloons that contain pictures instead of words. This is a great way of getting new readers into the flow of reading—especially comics reading—without stumbling over word recognition. The stories usually center around friendship, loyalty, and nature and are charmingly innocent. While there may not be any words, Runton’s illustrations will give you and your little reader a lot to look at and talk about.
Art Baltazar and Franco Aureliani have made a name for themselves by creating all-ages superhero comics in their very recognizable kid-friendly style. They’ve applied this style to everything from their own creations like Patrick the Wolf Boy to “Itty Bitty” versions of horror comic characters like Hellboy and Vampirella. The book that put them on the map, though, is Tiny Titans which ran for 50 issues from 2008 until 2012, twice winning the comics industry's top award for Best Kids Series, and has been collected across 8 volumes of trade paperbacks.
Difficulty: The books consist of short stories—mostly 2-4 pages in length—and the storytelling relies a lot on visual gags so the word count is pretty low and non-intimidating. Content: The stories are focused on elementary-school versions of many DC Comics characters (primarily those associated with the Teen Titans like Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Aqualad) and it’s more about being in school than fighting criminals. Some of the jokes may require some familiarity with the DC Universe and other pop culture for kids to fully “get” them, though. Where to start: You may be able to find some random back issues at certain comic shops, but since the series has ended, your best bet will be the trade paperback collections like Tiny Titans Vol. 1: Welcome to the Treehouse.
How can you go wrong with nursery rhymes and fairy tales? Especially when they’re drawn by some of the best cartoonists in the business? First Second Books and editor Chris Duffy had the brilliant idea of putting together two separate large collections (there are 50 nursery rhymes in one book and 17 fairy tales in the other) by a dream lineup of primarily indie-comic stars like Roz Chast, Gene Luen Yang, Mike Mignola, Jamie and Gilbert Hernandez, Emily Carroll, Raina Telgemeier, David Mazzuchelli, Eleanor Davis, Stan Sakai, and others.
Difficulty: As you might be able to surmise, the Nursery Rhyme collection skews a little younger, but both are perfect choices for this reading level. Content: Kids will recognize most of the stories here, but they do mix things up with a couple of obscure selections in each. The fairy tales are certainly no more disturbing than any Grimm fairy tale you read when you were young. Where to Start: Both books should be pretty easy to find wherever books are sold.
Unexpectedly, one of the most enjoyable kids comics to come out in recent years is Scooby-Doo Team-Up which, each month, has the Scooby Doo gang meet various DC Comics heroes as well as characters from classic Hanna-Barbera cartoons like the Flintstones and the Jetsons. Parents reading along will appreciate writer Sholly Fisch’s inside jokes in relation to these old shows.
Difficulty: The vocabulary should be within most early readers' ability. These are written a little more like a standard comic book than the previous entries on this list, with lots of word balloons and pages with many individual panels. This will pretty much be the case with the rest of the items on this list, but I point it out because navigating the architecture of some comic pages can be intimidating for some readers. Content: These are fun stories and actually a better, kid-friendly introduction to superheroes like Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman than you’ll find in 95% of all other superhero comics today. Where to start: As of this writing, the 9th issue of the series was just released, so most comic book shops should at least have the recent issues in stock. You can start with any issue as they are mostly self-contained stories.
Why not start them with the classics? Carl Barks’ Uncle Scrooge comics from the 1940s, '50s, and '60s are widely considered to be some of the greatest comics ever made. Unlike a lot of comics from that era, though, they hold up really well and will still get laughs out of kids today.
Difficulty: There is some complicated wordplay at times and the occasional old-fashioned jokes and plot line that may go over some kids' heads. Content: At a certain point Barks—and later Don Rosa—began to tell stories with Scrooge McDuck and his nephews Donald, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, that took on a globe-trotting bent with archeological digs and explorations of far-off cultures. These would inspire the popular Duck Tales animated series of the 1980s. Huey, Dewey, and Louie’s adventures may inspire a yearning for knowledge in your own little Junior Woodchucks. Where to start: Fantagraphics has put out many collected volumes of the classic Uncle Scrooge comics. They generally run about $30 each but are beautifully put together. Most public libraries are bound to have an Uncle Scrooge book or two on their shelves if you want to sample them that way.
Luke Pearon’s Hilda series of graphic novels follows a young elementary-school-age girl who lives in a village called Trolberg, populated by talking birds, giants, black hounds, and, of course, trolls. Otherwise, her world is not much different from our own and Hilda is not much different from any other girl her age. She’s smart and sassy, lives alone with her mom, and loves animals. That realism amidst the fantasy world she exists in is what makes this series so enjoyable for kids (boys and girls alike). Pearson has a wonderful, European sensibility to his cartooning, which matches the vaguely Northern European setting of the stories and makes these books a delight to read.
Difficulty: The reading level shouldn’t be a problem for grades 1 and up and the page lengths (the first two books are 44 pages and the third is 64) are long but achievable. Content: Very kid-friendly stories with nice life lessons, but they’re also thoughtful and sophisticated in a way that makes them rise above kiddie fare. Where to start: The very first book, Hildafolk, is a 24-page comic, but Pearson has moved into a longer, more European-style graphic “album” format. He has released three book-length adventures so far and the most recent, Hilda and the Black Hound, is absolutely fantastic, with Pearson taking everything he’s built so far and making a nearly perfect all-ages comic.
Brad Meltzer and Chris Eliopoulos’ Ordinary People Can Change The Worldseries of picture book/graphic novels about famous people who made a difference in history is an easy-to-read and fun way for a child to learn about important figures like Abraham Lincoln, Rosa Parks, Albert Einstein, and even (in an upcoming volume) Lucille Ball. Both writer and artist are familiar names in the comics world. Meltzer is more famous as a novelist, but comic fans will know him as the writer of DC’s Identity Crisis, while Eliopoulos has illustrated a number of comics for kids like Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius.
Difficulty: There are some lengthy picture book-style text pieces in addition to the comic book-style word balloons, but it’s all written for a Kindergarten-and-up audience. Content: I think some educators and sticklers for facts have questioned the validity of presenting biographies in this way, but it’s certainly a great way to get young kids interested in history. Where to start: There are currently 5 stand-alone volumes (I am Abraham Lincoln, I am Amelia Earhart, I am Rosa Parks, I am Albert Einstein, and I am Jackie Robinson) that are readily available in the children’s section of most book stores.
Abigail and the Snowman is published by Boom! Studios and written and drawn by Roger Langridge (most recently known for his spectacular run on the Muppet Show comics). It’s a funny story about friendship in which a 9-year-old girl named Abigail moves to a new town with her single dad and struggles to make friends until she meets Claude, a Yeti who has escaped from a secret government lab and who only Abigail and the other kids at school can see. Kids of all ages – boys and girls alike – will get a kick out of Abigail and Claude’s friendship.
Difficulty: Langridge is masterful at character design and physical comedy and that really goes a long way in making this fun to read. Content: There are some government agents chasing Claude but the danger here is not too scary. Where to start: This is a four-issue limited series that is still in the midst of its run as this is being written. The fourth issue is yet to be released, but most bigger comic shops may still have the first three issues. If not, a trade paperback collection will surely be out in a couple of months.
For kids who enjoy an odd sense of humor, Anouk Ricard’s delightfully weird graphic novel series Anna & Froga is an easy read that will earn some giggles. Each book contains a collection of short stories centered around a young girl named Anna and her animal friends—Froga the frog, Christopher the worm, Bubu the dog, and Ron the cat. Like any group of friends, they tend to bicker and tease each other while also accepting their idiosyncrasies. Ricard’s drawing style is fun and childlike, but her understated, sometimes testy dialogue among the friends is what makes this so fun.
Difficulty: This can be easily read by most new readers, but the sense of humor—the books are translated from French—may be too subtle and low-key for some kids. Content: The friends do fun, innocent stuff like go to an amusement park, make their own movie, and take a trip to the lake, but there’s a healthy dose of sarcasm involved. Where to Start: Drawn & Quarterly has published four volumes of Anna & Froga stories: Fore!, Thrills, Chills and Gooseberries, Want a Gumball?, and I Dunno, What Do You Want To Do? They all feature various self-contained stories so you can jump in anywhere.
Welcome to English at LERNFORUM Chur.
We teach English one to one or in small, personalised groups at every level and for every English language need.
Cambridge and Swiss qualified, we're mother-language speaking, and most importantly, have a passion for helping you speak English.
