A Day in the Life at Michigan State University

A Day in the Life at Michigan State University The tutors behind Varsity Tutors are not just here to teachtheyre sharing their college experiences as well. Ross is a Detroit tutor who earned his Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan State University in 2010. He specializes in calculus tutoring, algebra tutoring, and several other areas of math. See what he had to say about his timeat Michigan State University: Describe the campus setting and transportation options at Michigan State University. Ross: The campus is safely closed in with all the dorm rooms and classes in a 20-minute-maximum walking distance from each other. On the outskirts of the campus is where you will find the campus apartments and restaurants. There are four transportation options on campus: driving, buses, biking, and walking. The buses take you all around campus but you have to know the schedule. How available are the professors, academic advisers, and teaching assistants? Ross: My professors were always available when I emailed or contacted them beforehand but they could also be reached by walk-in appointments. The Teaching Assistants always held review sessions which were very helpful to me during the tougher classes. I was a student athlete so my Academic Advisor was in the Smith Center, which is a student-athlete academic building for campus athletes. He was always available for me, probably due to the fact that he only dealt with athletes. How would you describe the dorm liferooms, dining options, location, socialization opportunities with other students? Ross: Dorm life at MSU was very pleasant because of my roommate. A huge part of the dorm life experience is your roommate. This can make or break your experience, regardless of the facilities and location. The dining rooms in the dorms were great even though some included better meal options than others. One of the best things about the dorms were the events that were held on the weekends which allowed students to get know their Resident Advisors and other students in the dorms. Which majors/programs are best represented and supported at Michigan State University? Ross: My major was Mechanical Engineering because I was a math guy. I love the design part of the engineering program. As far as support, the Engineering Department gave 100 percent support to the students and supplied us with a vast amount of resources for classes. How easy or difficult was it for you to meet people and make friends as a freshman? Does Greek life play a significant role in the campus social life? Ross: As previously stated, I played football during my tenure at MSU, so I socialized with mostly athletes my freshman year due to the fact that we were always around each other. Though I had a demanding football schedule, it wasnt difficult to meet new people because of campus activities. How helpful is the Career Center and other student support services? Ross: The Student Support services did an excellent job helping students get comfortable with writing resumes, looking for jobs, choosing careers after college, and speaking with companies. Companies often visited our campus at job fairs, as well as academic events held by departments. How are the various study areas such as libraries, the student union, and dorm lounges? Ross: Our study areas were available and spacious when there were not final exams being taken. Each floor in the dorms had small conference rooms that could be used for studying. Also, the dorms had computer labs available for those who needed access to the web. The library and the student union were always available to meet up with friends to review for tests or to simply work on homework projects. Describe the surrounding town. Ross: Downtown East Lansing was a great place to enjoy your social life. The restaurants were very delicious and clean for friends and families, as well as local bars that showed sports events on the weekends. There was a mall not too far from campus that contained everything I needed. Multiple grocery stores were located no more than 15-20 minutes from the dorms. How big or small is the student body at Michigan State University? Were you generally pleased or displeased with the typical class sizes? Ross: Michigan States student body size is about 38,000. The class sizes were perfect for me. Some courses were taught in smaller high school-like classrooms while the larger classes that were taught in auditoriums. I enjoyed both settings because each gave students the opportunities to interact with the professor and other students. Describe one memorable experience with a professor and/or class. Perhaps one you loved the most or one you regret the most. Ross: One memorable experience at MSU took place my sophomore year on the way to take a final. My roommate and I went to the wrong building for our final which made us late to the actual exam. When we arrived to the exam, after walking around campus for 15 minutes, it was jam-packed. The only available seats were two seats right next to each other and we ended up being the first two done, which was weird. We both ended up with a 3.0 in the course. Check out Ross tutoring profile. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.

Learn Painting Online

Learn Painting Online How to Become a Painter with the Help of the Internet ChaptersThe Benefits of Learning to Paint OnlineLearning to Paint Online Without a TeacherLearning to Paint Online With a TeacherImproving Your Artistic Skills Online“The best introduction to art is to stroll through a museum. The more art you see, the more you'll learn to define your own taste.” -  Jeanne FrankIn March 2018 there were a total of 4.0 million visits to the DCMS-sponsored museums and galleries in the UK (an increase of  around 17,000 visits compared with March 2017). How many of these were painters?Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso, Degas, Rubens, Gericault, Dali, Braque, Vermeer, El Greco, Chagall, Caravaggio, Toulouse-Lautrec, Modigliani, their work went beyond the confines of a museum. First, they had to learn how to paint.And if you don't live right next to a museum, why not go online? FernandoPainting Teacher 5.00 (8) £30/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors EmmaPainting Teacher 5.00 (5) £75/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors DavidPainting Teacher 4.75 ( 4) £40/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors NatashaPainting Teacher 5.00 (7) £37/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors StefaniaPainting Teacher 5.00 (4) £40/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors SakinaPainting Teacher 5.00 (1) £12/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors LorrenPainting Teacher 5.00 (2) £18/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors Off2themoonholliePainting Teacher £8/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutorsThe Benefits of Learning to Paint OnlineLearn to sketch, draw a portrait, draw the human body, paint with a knife, paint a landscape, do watercolours, gouache, oil painting,... mastering fine arts is not a walk in the park.To become skilled at painting, you need to practise (to learn how to draw expressions, master  chiaroscuro, imitate impressionist painters, experiment with painting on fabric, choose a canvas, tackle various techniques, etc.).You also need to choose a painting technique!Watch any video on painting, they will tell you artistic flair does not happen overnight. It takes years of experience to be able to achieve your goals.But the internet can be your best friend in your quest to become a professional.Having private lessons on Skype, or simply watching Youtube videos, learning painting online has many advantages.Paint When You WantThere is nothing more demotivating than having to take a painting class when you're not in the mood.If you're tired, don't have enough time or want to be doing something else, painting lessons at an art school or art workshop can quickly become imprisoning.An artistic hobby should only be done when you feel like it.If this is an extra-curricular activity, there should be no obligation.This is the advantage of online painting classes London. You decide what time suits you to paint.You may also work out a beneficial schedule when you take private painting lessons!Paint What Interests YouChoosing to learn to paint online also requires you to choose how your learn. You are entirely in control of your progress.Why not take a class in the middle of nature? Source: Visual HuntThe type of painting, technique, print, medium, you decide what you learn. A freedom you'll never get bored of.Even if you take painting classes near me face-to-face with a teacher, you should tell them what you want to get out of your lessons to make sure they are worthwhile.Paint Where You WantAt a local park, in your back garden or living room? What if you could enjoy painting in all your favourite places?Painting classes in art schools often take place in soulless classrooms. Tables and stools are sometimes the only decorations in the room.Yet the decor and atmosphere of the room greatly influence the artist.Treat yourself and take painting classes from your favourite spot.Learning to Paint Online Without a TeacherLearning any kind of art is different for everyone.I myself learned how to paint in a few different ways.First by copying what I saw and then by taking weekly classes with a teach er. But online content has also been a great source of inspiration for me.Thanks to YouTube videos, social media and art blogs, the budding artist can get inspired around the clock.YouTube TutorialsYouTube is a goldmine for painting classes. Many artists and art students who have channels openly share their knowledge with their YouTube community.Watching these videos is a great way to progress as Youtubers often explain the difficulties they have personally gone through and what they have learned from their experience. It is very easy to identify with and benefit from these stories.In addition, some channels give viewers exercises to do. Why not set yourself strict goals from week to week.Specialised Painting WebsitesBlogs or websites specialising in art are also a wonderful source of information.Websites are often presented in such a way that you can logically follow a class or course. Beginners, intermediates and even experienced painters can learn accordingly by choosing the cate gory that suits them best.Blogs are written in a more personal way.This is another good way to learn. By reading about the experiences of other artists, you can develop as a painter.Moreover, blogs allow the reader to choose articles which focus on areas that interest them. Nevertheless, blogs are generally less well ranked in comparison to websites offering online courses.You should also know about essential painting equipment...Social MediaSocial media is a great tool for painters as well as artists in general.Pinterest, Instagram,... The Internet is bursting with ideas and inspiration. Source: PixabayThis methods really flexes your imagination and creativity.Pinterest and Instagram, being very visual, are among the most popular social media platforms for artists.In the form of tutorials or demonstrative photos, a visual image makes it much easier to understand a specific technique or discover a new art style.Images are often more effective than large paragraphs of text.During you r lunch break or before bed, there's no easier way to learn how to paint than the internet.But what kind, of course, should you look for on the internet?Courses are often organised by theme:Type of painting: acrylic, oil, watercolour, gouache,Painting subject: portrait, landscape, outdoors, still life, live model, trees,Perfecting the composition, focal point, perspective, choice of colours, superposition,Drawing and painting techniques: Indian ink, charcoal and sketch, graphite pencil, ink wash, dry pastel, porcelain, fabric, pen, canvas, silk, knife, visual arts,Artistic style: graphic art, calligraphy, abstract, decorative, introduction to Chinese painting, contemporary, modern, representational art,Etc.However, there are some drawbacks.For example, online you cannot be corrected by a teacher.Of course, you can show your work to friends and get their opinion, but you can't ask a professional questions while you're working on your piece.Learning to Paint Online With a TeacherLearn ing to paint and learning to draw are one in the same. You need to be able to draw in order to transfer your idea to paper.Very often you'll have an image in your head but can't put it on paper.To learn the basics of drawing and painting online, there are more options than just websites and Youtube videos.A learning method that gives you professional advice and allows you to learn in the comfort of your own home: live painting lessons with a teacher.So put away your colouring pencils and get out your paint brushes!Because this method is surely one of the most effective learning techniques online.Hiring a private art tutor means you can get personalised lessons via chat or webcam.This way the teacher can see exactly what you're doing and can correct you if needed.This direct teacher-student contact lets you directly ask questions and, in turn, progress much faster.Opting for an online tutor also ensures you follow a consistent program from start to finish and don't drop out because o f lack of time or motivation.Indeed, setting regular appointments with a teacher helps establish a routine.Get expert painting advice without stepping out your front door. Source: PixabayIt's never been simpler to find these kinds of teachers.Plenty of Superprof teachers currently offer this learning method. You can also look at advertising posters and classifieds online.You can also take painting classes with one teacher without doing live videos.On specialised websites or YouTube channels, some teachers can offer you a specific programme to follow through a set of videos.They also give students the opportunity to contact them if they have any questions.The chance to improve your art skills and ask for advice on painting materials (brushes, palette, easel, canvas, pencils, paint, drawing board, black stone, art eraser, glaze, drawing pad, binding agent, varnish, Canson paper, watercolour paper, linseed oil, paint remover, turpentine, ...).This does not prevent you from also attendi ng a training course for all levels to learn or improve your sketching or painting technique. Painting workshops organised by artists are often carried out in larger cities as well as small ones.And why not apply for the Royal College of Art?Improving Your Artistic Skills OnlineAlthough the practice is key, so is the artistic knowledge. They complement one another.Jeanne Frank was partly right in saying that painting is best learned from visiting museums.Even if being a regular visitor to museums and art galleries like Tate Britain, the National Gallery or Sommerset House will not be enough to make you the new Rembrandt, Courbet, Manet or Da Vinci, it definitely helps.The art world is a very broad field and any form of inspiration is beneficial. While some musicians are inspired by paintings and vice versa, sharpening your eye for art is an excellent way to find inspiration.Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Dance at the Moulin de la Galette. Source: Visual HuntIf you don't happen to live in Lo ndon, don't panic!Many historical works of art are available online. On art websites, Google images, or even directly on museum websites, it is possible nowadays to find most great masterpieces from recent centuries online.But what to look out for?The composition, colours, technique, everything is good to take in. Make a list of the elements you would like to emulate in your own work during your private painting classes.Reproducing famous works is also a great way to make progress.I personally have used images taken from the internet when painting. My reproductions have not only taught me different painting techniques but also how to respect the dimensions of the human body as well as perspective.You'll also find a range of articles and discussions on art history for free on the internet on platforms like YouTube.Now learn more about how you can become a painter...

Build Math Skills With Tutoring Services

Build Math Skills With Tutoring Services Building Mathematical Skills For Academic Success As a parent it is difficult to watch your child struggle with math homework. The nightly routine of completing the assigned homework may lead to frustration, confusion, and feeling overwhelmed. Math shouldn't be the dreaded evening chore. Instead it should be an opportunity for your child to apply previous knowledge to current understanding while completing the assigned homework tasks. It is important to understand the core knowledge strands that comprise a student's mathematical learning. Whether your child is in second grade or a sophomore in high school these concepts are vital to mathematical understanding: Counting and Cardinality - Counting, cardinal numbers, comparing numbers, and understanding quantities Operations and Algebraic Thinking - Addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, use of multiple operations, relation of operations to one another, factors, multiples, numerical expressions, patterns, and relationships Number Operations in Base Ten - Place value, sequencing, place value in arithmetic, place value in fractions and decimals, and applying and understanding relational place value skills Fractions - Equivalence, ordering, building fractions, and arithmetic with fractions Measurement and Data - Understanding measurable attributes, classifying, measuring length, telling time, representing and interpreting data, estimating, counting money, applying geometric measurement principles, using probability to evaluate outcomes, and converting measurements Geometry - Identifying, analyzing, comparing, classifying, creating, and composing shapes with specific attributes, graphing points on a coordinate plane, understanding congruence and similarity, and using geometrical understanding to solve real life problems Proportional Relationships - Ratios, analyzing proportional relationships, and applying rate reasoning Expressions and Equations - Algebraic expressions, reasoning with equations and inequalities, quantitative relationships, variables, radicals, integer exponents, and linear equations Functions - Defining, evaluating, and comparing functions and modeling quantity relationships Statistics and Probability - Statistical variability, distributions, random sampling, comparative references, probability models, and bivariate data These skills are distributed among grade levels to provide a careful progression of skill attainment. Students are expected to master basic and prerequisite skills before moving on to more difficult concepts. These basic skills are then applied to current understanding to create ongoing learning and mastery. Tutors at Huntington Learning Centers use their deep understanding of mathematics and knowledge of how students acquire math skills to create customized tutoring sessions. Regardless of a student's current understanding or skill mastery, the professionals at Huntington Learning Centers can create a program that is ideal for cultivating basic academic skills.There are several effective strategies that parents and students can utilize to improve academic skills, including: Knowing the standards Each state and school district has different mathematical standards for each grade level. Understanding what your child is expected to master, and which specific skills are assessed, is crucial to cultivating strong academic skills. Taking the time to read and understand the standards documents will give you insight into essential academic skills and how these skills build upon one another. Working the problems Math is learned by working the problems. Students must spend time in ongoing practice to master basic concepts, understand formulas, and connect math skills to prior learning. If your child is struggling with a specific skill you can generate multiple opportunities for ongoing practice. This repetition will build solid foundational skills over time. Applying basic concepts True mathematical understanding occurs when a student is able to apply basic concepts to larger problem solving tasks. Many tasks require students to apply a variety of skills across mathematical strands. Consider a problem requiring a student to calculate elapsed time. This problem is far more complex than just reading the time on an analog clock. A student must be able to tell time to the minute, subtract, add, regroup, apply basic problem solving strategies, and participate in mathematical communication. Asking for help If your child is continuing to struggle with the assigned math homework it may be time to ask for help. The professional tutors with Huntington Learning Centers are experts at understanding why a student is struggling in math. Assessment data is used to create a customized learning plan that incorporates both a student's strengths and weaknesses. Personalized tutoring sessions are carefully crafted to meet the specific needs of each student.

Simple Academic Strategies Part Two

Simple Academic Strategies Part Two Improving Academic Performance In our last article, we talked about how thinking strategically is as important to students as it is to businesses. We described how, by thinking strategically about what classes to take, any given student can position him or herself well to graduate on time even if they switch majors, be more attractive to employers, and enjoy their academic experience, at the margin, more than they otherwise would. In this post, we’ll explore some simple, obvious, but powerful strategies for performing well in any given class. I wasn't the best student in high school, but I do remember setting goals. The problem was with the goals I set. I wanted to get “As and Bs.” Well, if you aren’t the most diligent student, and your goal is “As and Bs, “ what happens? You get As, Bs, and Cs â€" nobody meets their goals all the time, particularly if they aren’t the most diligent student. Putting aside the fact that I wasn’t the most diligent student, this was an example of poor goal setting, which you could also call poor strategy. Here’s another example, ever since high school, I’ve been amazed at the number of students who didn’t fully realize how their grade in any given class was going to be determined. They didn’t gather the simple facts that would help them determine what percentage of your grade is based on homework, attendance, tests, quizzes, or projects. If you don’t have a full understanding of how the grade is determined, your chances of earning a high grade are drastically diminished. Or, the effort you must exert to attain a high grade will invariably be higher than it needs to be, because you focus on the wrong things. Again, bad strategy. Moving beyond how the grade is determined into the meat of the article, many students get frustrated by not understanding concepts in class, having difficulty on homework, exams, and papers, and ultimately struggling to get an “A” while ignoring simple actions they could be taken to improve their situation. They retreat to the library or their room, put their head down, and study for hours, which is tiring and not much fun. In this article, I’m not even going to address specific strategies for achieving better understanding of difficult concepts and improving memory which will ultimately improve your performance. Previous articles on the growth mindset and deliberate practice cover topics like this. You could also read A Mind for Numbers: How to Excel at Math and Algebra Here, I’ll just describe some simple, yet strategic approaches to doing better in any given class. First, you need to set a goal. If you’d really like to get an “A,” make that your goal. If that’s your goal, you will naturally be inclined to work a little harder to meet that goal. If you say “A or B”, it’s far more likely you’ll meet your goal â€" and not get an A. Second, you need to gather some simple facts on how the class works. For example, many teachers or professors make it clear that their class will operate in specific ways: many of the exam questions are direct derivations of problems reviewed in class, or any student should feel free to drop off their reports a few days in advance to obtain feedback before final submission or class participation counts for a lot (or a little) or some concepts you’ll need to know are covered not in class, but in the required readings done for homework, or office hours are from 3-5 PM on Mondays and Wednesdays, and I’m happy to cover questions from class, homework, or exams, etc. Reading the syllabus in detail and attending the first class to learn the intricacies of the professor, and in general, the process of understanding how you’ll be graded, is really the fact-base that should feed into your plan of attack for the class. If you know you’ve never performed well on written assignments or essays, written assignments count for 50% of this class, but the teacher is also willing to read and provide feedback on any given paper that is turned in a week before the due date, then you need to make plans to have that paper finished for review 7 days in advance. So, now we’re getting into what alternatives to consider and plans to make coming out of the fact-base you’ve developed about the class. Let’s consider two scenarios: completing a paper early, and using office hours. If you just get your paper done 7 days in advance, the professor will sometimes review it and provide you with feedback. I’m not saying this is always true, but it sometimes is. Do you think your chances of getting a good grade go up if your professor is reading a final version that incorporates the suggestions he or she made to you already? Absolutely they go up. They go up a lot. Or, let’s consider homework and office hours. Many students are busy. They have a lot of classes, and many other responsibilities. But, the simple strategy of a) always doing assigned homework and b) going to office hours if you don’t understand something in the homework is one of the most simple, but powerful ways to perform well in a class. But, few students follow it. It takes a little dedication and time management, but honestly, it’s easy to do. The final step is simple, but important. If your strategy is to get every paper done 7 days in advance and have it reviewed, and to complete your homework and attend office hours if you need to, you have to plan the time to actually do those things. This is where time management and organization skills play a key role. A good strategy, poorly executed, won’t lead to the results you’re looking for. To learn more about being more strategic in school business, and life, consider reading Nine Things Successful People do differently. hbspt.cta._relativeUrls=true;hbspt.cta.load(215486, '52337b73-0659-4f8e-b26c-4c198e0cdabf', {});

I finished the italki 2014 World Cup Language Challenge!

I finished the italki 2014 World Cup Language Challenge! Lindsaydoeslanguages is blogging about her World Cup Language Challenge and we’re reposting here to share with the entire italki Community. This blog post  originally was posted  on  Lindsaydoeslanguages.com  website. Well, that’s it! It’s over! 25 lessons in 8 weeks sounds like quite the challenge, and at times, it definitely was. So today I want to share some things I did (and didn’t) do during the italki World Cup Language Challenge â€" and what I want to do next time to make it even better and more productive. Things I did. Book in advance I booked all my lessons right at the start â€" with the exception of one that a tutor couldn’t do that I rebooked later on. Would I do this again? Yes! Although 2 months is quite a long time and unexpected trips and other exciting (or not so exciting â€" I’m looking at you essays!) things pop up, it really helped with motivation to have the structure there from the outset. No other study I just had my italki lessons for learning Portuguese. I didn’t get my head stuck in a grammar book (or any other book for that matter) and I really enjoyed just speaking with people, in a natural way about normal stuff. Would I do this again? Yes and no. I’d love to try this out with other skills. For example, I’d love to see how far I could get with just reading in a language, like Dani over at I Simply Love Languages is doing right now with Catalan, or just listening. You know, just for fun. A weekly challenge Setting myself the weekly goals worked a treat at keeping me on the ball. I know the World Cup is over now but I genuinely wrote that sentence with no football puns intended. Honest. Would I do it again? Yes! Little goals are fab because you can constantly achieve something. Saying “I want to speak ___ fluently by ___” is great, but you never feel like you’ve got anywhere if you don’t set mini goals along the way too! Change my challenges a bit Despite setting myself these goals and finding them a great help, I wasn’t afraid to change them along the way if they didn’t quite fit. For example, week 7, I didn’t do a video at all and decided to try my hand at a bit of writing in Portuguese. Would I do it again? Yes! Obviously, changing a goal of “learning 10 words a day” to “learning 1 word a day” is a slight over exageration and won’t quite be effective, but if you feel something is too easy (see week 3!) then don’t be afraid to up your goals. And if it’s not a case of upping them, but rather lowering them, don’t! Keep your goal the same, just perhaps change how long you give yourself to achieve it, or how you’re going to measure it. Lots of different teachers I had a grand total of 9 different tutors for the challenge! Murillo, Luana, Danillo, Fernanda, Valdecir, Lucas, Sophia, Wesley and Renan. Phew. I wanted a range of European and Brazilian speakers as well as male and female just to mix things up a bit. Would I do it again? Hmm..pros and cons. It was good for this challenge because I just wanted to talk to lots of people but to really progress quickly I think one tutor to get to know you may be better. That said, I really enjoyed meeting such a range of Portuguese speakers! Things I didn’t do. Write on the italki notebook I didn’t do this for the New Year Language Challenge either. I’m lazy! Would I not do this again? It depends. For Portuguese, my main focus was speaking so the Notebook wasn’t a top priority â€" especially if I had a couple of back to back lessons! If I wanted to achieve a higher level in a language then I’d definitely make the effort to use the Notebook after each lesson. Write notes I didn’t even write any personal notes. Living on the edge. Would I not do this again? I don’t know. I’ve not written language notes on cold hard paper for a while despite being a bit of a stubborn one when it comes to technology and loving an actual paper book in my hands. Maybe I should treat myself to a fancy notebook next time! Worry about progress Hakuna Matata! The lack of exams, tests or necessity took the stress of speedy progress off. Phew. Would I not do it again? Yes! I love learning languages for the fun of it rather than to pass an exam. I can’t wait until I have the time to devote to a new language in this way! Oh, and one more thing I did do was make videos throughout. Head over to my YouTube channel to check them out if you missed any. In the meantime, here’s the video for my final weekly goal â€" all about idioms. And if you enjoy, don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube. There’s even a button to do it at the top right hand side of this page. Easy peasy! And if you’ve been inspired to learn Portuguese then be sure to enter my very first giveaway here on the blog to win some goodies to get you started! Entries close August 4th at 23.59 GMT. Have you done the World Cup Language Challenge? How did you find it? Let me know in the comments below! I finished the italki 2014 World Cup Language Challenge! Lindsaydoeslanguages is blogging about her World Cup Language Challenge and we’re reposting here to share with the entire italki Community. This blog post  originally was posted  on  Lindsaydoeslanguages.com  website. Well, that’s it! It’s over! 25 lessons in 8 weeks sounds like quite the challenge, and at times, it definitely was. So today I want to share some things I did (and didn’t) do during the italki World Cup Language Challenge â€" and what I want to do next time to make it even better and more productive. Things I did. Book in advance I booked all my lessons right at the start â€" with the exception of one that a tutor couldn’t do that I rebooked later on. Would I do this again? Yes! Although 2 months is quite a long time and unexpected trips and other exciting (or not so exciting â€" I’m looking at you essays!) things pop up, it really helped with motivation to have the structure there from the outset. No other study I just had my italki lessons for learning Portuguese. I didn’t get my head stuck in a grammar book (or any other book for that matter) and I really enjoyed just speaking with people, in a natural way about normal stuff. Would I do this again? Yes and no. I’d love to try this out with other skills. For example, I’d love to see how far I could get with just reading in a language, like Dani over at I Simply Love Languages is doing right now with Catalan, or just listening. You know, just for fun. A weekly challenge Setting myself the weekly goals worked a treat at keeping me on the ball. I know the World Cup is over now but I genuinely wrote that sentence with no football puns intended. Honest. Would I do it again? Yes! Little goals are fab because you can constantly achieve something. Saying “I want to speak ___ fluently by ___” is great, but you never feel like you’ve got anywhere if you don’t set mini goals along the way too! Change my challenges a bit Despite setting myself these goals and finding them a great help, I wasn’t afraid to change them along the way if they didn’t quite fit. For example, week 7, I didn’t do a video at all and decided to try my hand at a bit of writing in Portuguese. Would I do it again? Yes! Obviously, changing a goal of “learning 10 words a day” to “learning 1 word a day” is a slight over exageration and won’t quite be effective, but if you feel something is too easy (see week 3!) then don’t be afraid to up your goals. And if it’s not a case of upping them, but rather lowering them, don’t! Keep your goal the same, just perhaps change how long you give yourself to achieve it, or how you’re going to measure it. Lots of different teachers I had a grand total of 9 different tutors for the challenge! Murillo, Luana, Danillo, Fernanda, Valdecir, Lucas, Sophia, Wesley and Renan. Phew. I wanted a range of European and Brazilian speakers as well as male and female just to mix things up a bit. Would I do it again? Hmm..pros and cons. It was good for this challenge because I just wanted to talk to lots of people but to really progress quickly I think one tutor to get to know you may be better. That said, I really enjoyed meeting such a range of Portuguese speakers! Things I didn’t do. Write on the italki notebook I didn’t do this for the New Year Language Challenge either. I’m lazy! Would I not do this again? It depends. For Portuguese, my main focus was speaking so the Notebook wasn’t a top priority â€" especially if I had a couple of back to back lessons! If I wanted to achieve a higher level in a language then I’d definitely make the effort to use the Notebook after each lesson. Write notes I didn’t even write any personal notes. Living on the edge. Would I not do this again? I don’t know. I’ve not written language notes on cold hard paper for a while despite being a bit of a stubborn one when it comes to technology and loving an actual paper book in my hands. Maybe I should treat myself to a fancy notebook next time! Worry about progress Hakuna Matata! The lack of exams, tests or necessity took the stress of speedy progress off. Phew. Would I not do it again? Yes! I love learning languages for the fun of it rather than to pass an exam. I can’t wait until I have the time to devote to a new language in this way! Oh, and one more thing I did do was make videos throughout. Head over to my YouTube channel to check them out if you missed any. In the meantime, here’s the video for my final weekly goal â€" all about idioms. And if you enjoy, don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube. There’s even a button to do it at the top right hand side of this page. Easy peasy! And if you’ve been inspired to learn Portuguese then be sure to enter my very first giveaway here on the blog to win some goodies to get you started! Entries close August 4th at 23.59 GMT. Have you done the World Cup Language Challenge? How did you find it? Let me know in the comments below! I finished the italki 2014 World Cup Language Challenge! Lindsaydoeslanguages is blogging about her World Cup Language Challenge and we’re reposting here to share with the entire italki Community. This blog post  originally was posted  on  Lindsaydoeslanguages.com  website. Well, that’s it! It’s over! 25 lessons in 8 weeks sounds like quite the challenge, and at times, it definitely was. So today I want to share some things I did (and didn’t) do during the italki World Cup Language Challenge â€" and what I want to do next time to make it even better and more productive. Things I did. Book in advance I booked all my lessons right at the start â€" with the exception of one that a tutor couldn’t do that I rebooked later on. Would I do this again? Yes! Although 2 months is quite a long time and unexpected trips and other exciting (or not so exciting â€" I’m looking at you essays!) things pop up, it really helped with motivation to have the structure there from the outset. No other study I just had my italki lessons for learning Portuguese. I didn’t get my head stuck in a grammar book (or any other book for that matter) and I really enjoyed just speaking with people, in a natural way about normal stuff. Would I do this again? Yes and no. I’d love to try this out with other skills. For example, I’d love to see how far I could get with just reading in a language, like Dani over at I Simply Love Languages is doing right now with Catalan, or just listening. You know, just for fun. A weekly challenge Setting myself the weekly goals worked a treat at keeping me on the ball. I know the World Cup is over now but I genuinely wrote that sentence with no football puns intended. Honest. Would I do it again? Yes! Little goals are fab because you can constantly achieve something. Saying “I want to speak ___ fluently by ___” is great, but you never feel like you’ve got anywhere if you don’t set mini goals along the way too! Change my challenges a bit Despite setting myself these goals and finding them a great help, I wasn’t afraid to change them along the way if they didn’t quite fit. For example, week 7, I didn’t do a video at all and decided to try my hand at a bit of writing in Portuguese. Would I do it again? Yes! Obviously, changing a goal of “learning 10 words a day” to “learning 1 word a day” is a slight over exageration and won’t quite be effective, but if you feel something is too easy (see week 3!) then don’t be afraid to up your goals. And if it’s not a case of upping them, but rather lowering them, don’t! Keep your goal the same, just perhaps change how long you give yourself to achieve it, or how you’re going to measure it. Lots of different teachers I had a grand total of 9 different tutors for the challenge! Murillo, Luana, Danillo, Fernanda, Valdecir, Lucas, Sophia, Wesley and Renan. Phew. I wanted a range of European and Brazilian speakers as well as male and female just to mix things up a bit. Would I do it again? Hmm..pros and cons. It was good for this challenge because I just wanted to talk to lots of people but to really progress quickly I think one tutor to get to know you may be better. That said, I really enjoyed meeting such a range of Portuguese speakers! Things I didn’t do. Write on the italki notebook I didn’t do this for the New Year Language Challenge either. I’m lazy! Would I not do this again? It depends. For Portuguese, my main focus was speaking so the Notebook wasn’t a top priority â€" especially if I had a couple of back to back lessons! If I wanted to achieve a higher level in a language then I’d definitely make the effort to use the Notebook after each lesson. Write notes I didn’t even write any personal notes. Living on the edge. Would I not do this again? I don’t know. I’ve not written language notes on cold hard paper for a while despite being a bit of a stubborn one when it comes to technology and loving an actual paper book in my hands. Maybe I should treat myself to a fancy notebook next time! Worry about progress Hakuna Matata! The lack of exams, tests or necessity took the stress of speedy progress off. Phew. Would I not do it again? Yes! I love learning languages for the fun of it rather than to pass an exam. I can’t wait until I have the time to devote to a new language in this way! Oh, and one more thing I did do was make videos throughout. Head over to my YouTube channel to check them out if you missed any. In the meantime, here’s the video for my final weekly goal â€" all about idioms. And if you enjoy, don’t forget to subscribe on YouTube. There’s even a button to do it at the top right hand side of this page. Easy peasy! And if you’ve been inspired to learn Portuguese then be sure to enter my very first giveaway here on the blog to win some goodies to get you started! Entries close August 4th at 23.59 GMT. Have you done the World Cup Language Challenge? How did you find it? Let me know in the comments below!

The 5 Types Of Students You Meet In Business School

The 5 Types Of Students You Meet In Business School theodysseyonline.com Do you want to avoid this girl? Maybe not. She could very possibly have connections around campus and know all the best bars in town. It doesn’t hurt to have a tour guide if you are new to the town you decided to go to school in. 2. The Do-Gooder This is the type of person who never let anyone take a tiny, little glance at their homework during undergrad. And, to my best prediction, even if he/she is over 21, they will still feel guilty for drinking the night before an exam. Honestly, they might not even be smart, so don’t bother trying to befriend them to get some of their knowledge. All I know is that he or she plays by the rules a little too much. 3. The Know-It-All Don’t get a know-it-all and do-gooder confused with each other. They very well might have some of the same qualities, but I believe it’s better to befriend someone who knows too much than someone who won’t even help out with what they have. Now by no means should you try to cheat in business school because this is your life now. However, we all need assistance every once in a while. I recommend befriending this person if you find him or her in a particularly difficult class. How will you identify them? According to hercampus.com, they “have an answer, comment or opinion for every question, whether right or wrong. They’ll keep their hands up for so long they’ll have body-builder-toned arms, and they’ll go off on so many tangents they’ll sound like they’re getting over a case of mono. If they’re a member of any gender, cultural, political or geographical group, they will always find a way to tie any point made in class to their backgroundâ€" “As a _____, I can personally relate to the readings because of the author’s sense of ______.” If you can handle their need to insert their (always correct) opinion every time you work together, then go ahead and get to know them. 4. The Party Animal It’s hard to imagine this person when they weren’t 21. Now that everyone is of age, you can expect him or her to be at the bar almost every night, and trying to drag you along. Never, ever count on him or her to be in class before 11 a.m. How to identify the party animal? Almost too easy. Look for sweatpants and dark sunglasses, accompanied by a dark colored container that doesn’t exactly smell like coffee. If you’re looking for a good time, hit this person up for a night on the town. unsplash.com 5. The Potato This person typically never shows up for anything. They don’t like to try and would rather binge watch Bloodline on Netflix than do their research paper. You should never really count on the potato for any group projects.  You can find them rolled into a ball on their couch covered in crumbs from the night before. How do you find this person? You don’t. Learn more about Kaplan’s test prep options and start building the confidence you need for Test Day.

Polyglot Problems 21 Hilarious Problems That Only Polyglots Understand

Polyglot Problems 21 Hilarious Problems That Only Polyglots Understand Polyglot Problems: 21 Hilarious Problems That Only Polyglots Understand Do you speak multiple languages?Did you ever expect that it would be anything less than pure, multilingual bliss?Whether you grew up speaking several languages  or you  took the time to learn them  in adulthood, you may know by now that being multilingual isnt always a walk in the park.Sure, most of the time being multilingual is great, but every now and then  there are some problems you encounter simply  because  you know multiple languages.Even if youre not fluent in all of your languages, youve probably still come across some #polyglotproblems. Same goes for  bilingual people, by the way. Were all united in the joys and challenges of language learning. What Are Polyglot Problems?Before we get into that, lets  travel back in time to 1997â€"way back when the hashtag was still called a pound sign.Here, well find that the late rapper, Mr. Notorious B.I.G., might have been on to something with his hit Mo Money, Mo Problems. Through  this catchy tune, he and his mates gave  a detailed account of the struggles they faced as their  burgeoning celebrity status caused them  to acquire more and more money. Its a tale for the ages.Now, its unlikely that a polyglot will encounter many of the same issues faced by hip-hop superstars, but theres a theme here. The more you have of something, the more conflict youre going to face.Languages are no exception.As such, the multilinguals of the world took to the Twitterverse to air  their grievances. From this came the rise  of the now popular hashtag in the language learning community: #polyglotproblems.Its hard being brilliant and ambitious, isnt it? But you should  expect that youll have to jump over some hurdles if you take the road less traveled.  We could all sit in the corner of our bedrooms and let life pass us by so that we dont run into challenges  (except for abject loneliness, of course).  Or, we can choose to be bold and adventurous and #slay any problems that are sure to come our way.Lets be honest, would we really even take the time to learn several languages if  they werent something to conquer? We thrive on the challenges. We look forward to them. Besides, many of the problems arent even problems, but merely hilarious nuisances.And if were really being honest, its kind of fun to complain about issues  that we know will fly right over most monolingual heads. Its not to be mean. Its just that no one else really  understands woes of a polyglots life, do they?You spend your days  studying and memorizing, living your life in front of a computer screen or beneath  a pile of books. Youre not alone. We understand. We polyglots  have  issues and well cry about them  if we want to, in several different languages if we must, and theres nothing anyone can do about it.So, ready to vent yet? Good.  Lets do this.Polyglot Problems: 21 Hilarious Problems That Only Polyglots Understand1. People try to test your knowledge.You speak how many languages?! Say something in ___! Now in ___! Now in ___! Somehow yo ur hard work and practice  becomes something of a parlor trick for friends, family and sometimes strangers.But polyglots  are  a resilient  bunch. Dont huff and puff next time you hear this request. Smile, show off and make everyone around you a little jealous. They asked for it, anyway.2. You mix up languages.Je voudrais (French) un vaso de agua (Spanish), per favore (Italian).  (Id like a glass of water, please).  This is a pretty common occurrence for people who speak multiple languages.Sometimes, you  arent sure of a word and replace  it with another foreign word, and sometimes your brain just rattles off foreign words at will, it seems.Either way, when this happens dont beat yourself up. Just try to slow down when you speak, and  the words (in just one language, hopefully) will come to you more easily.3. Subtitles give you anxiety.*cries because I dont know if I should start watching my shows in Spanish, French or Korean* #polyglotproblems ??baby grass?? (@astrangegal) July 24, 2016Its no secret that we polyglots  like to use  subtitles when  watching TV or movies to maximize our productivity. The trouble is, we never really know which language to choose. There are just too many options. Its enough to make you toss your remote and give up on TV forever.Next time this happens, try just adding subtitles (or  audio) in the language that you struggle with the most. Learning through entertainment is one of the bestâ€"and most pleasantâ€"ways to focus on the trickier language issues youve been trying to avoid.4. You feel insulted by bad translations.So, youve decided on which subtitles to use. As youre watching your show  you realize that youre much more fluent than you thought, because every few seconds youre shouting at the TV, Thats not what that means!Nothing sends a polyglot over the edge like a bad translation. Its unacceptable and someone should pay. Perhaps you can write an angry letter shaming the translator for  their less than perfect  work.5. They o nly like you cause youre a native.This happens often in the language learning community. People seek you out solely because youre a native English speaker. But youre more than your language abilities. Youre funny, creative, a good listener, loyal. The list goes on.Maybe your new friend will learn to love you for who you are, but as of now, they just want you for  your vocab.6. You only like them cause theyre nativeCant really get too mad at that first guy, can you?  You probably have a friend for every language that you speak.It doesnt mean youre a  bad person. As long as youre kind and consistent, a genuine friendship is likely to flourish anyway, and youll have a language buddy for life.7. but they only speak to you in English.except if they only speak to you in English. This union is now a waste of your time. Find someone else whos willing to split the time evenly so you can both benefit from the relationship.8. You know the word in every language except your native one.Can say i t in 3 foreign languages, can ´t say it in my native #PolyglotProblems #AlmostPolyglot Emil Jönsson (@BlackAce919) July 18, 2016Were so focused on achieving fluency that we study every and anything we can. We know massive amounts of  vocabulary in the foreign languages  weve learned, so much so that  sometimes we know  words for things that we never even learned in our native language.Its always a little funny when you can identify an object in several languages, but then you realize you actually have no idea what its called in the language youve been speaking your entire life.9. You want to learn a new language while still struggling with your current ones.Our ambition can go into overdrive at times.There are several reasons why we might decide that we want to pick up a new language while were currently studying  others:  travel, competition, curiosity, love, work and many more. We want to be able to talk to everyone. It drives us crazy to say Im sorry. I dont understand.Still, sl ow down. Cramming never helps  anything.Perfect the ones youve got right now.Life is long. Theres plenty of time to learn others.10. Reading does not mean comprehension.Youve succeeded. Youre able to read books and documents in French, German and Korean  seamlessly. Theres just one problem: you only understand 50% of it.Reading is a  whole new beast. You encounter  new words and you also encounter  old words used in ways that you cant make sense of. Its stressful. It can make you feel like youve learned absolutely nothing.Its normal. Besides, if youre confident enough to read books and documents in a foreign language, youre much  further along than youre letting yourself believe.11.  Mediocrity has become an  unlikely ally.There are some polyglots who seem to have superpowers and can speak all of their learned languages at near-native fluency. Most of us cant do that. We want to but it can be a bit much.Its quite normal to set a goal for near-native fluency in one or two languages a nd decide to just be pretty okay at all the rest. This isnt failure. Its just keeping your sanity.12. That internal battle when Google asks if it should translate the page.What do you do? Do you accept the challenge or do you go native? Theres some important stuff on that website. You cant afford any misinterpretations.Oh, but youre so much better at the language now. You might even learn a word or two now that  youve mastered context. You  did come to this page knowing it wouldnt be in English but you didnt expect Google to show up and give a choice.  Now what do you do?Your finger hovers back and forth over yes and no. You have to make a decision, and you have to make it soon. Theres no time to waste. You close your eyes, and you click.13. They think that you dont understand them.This is always fun.Sometimes youll be in a place where someone  will start talking about you in their language, thinking you dont  understand. People should really stop doing that. Havent they seen a sing le television show or movie? Its just never safe to assume.If this has ever happened to you, hopefully it was a kind or benign comment. That actually happens sometimes. But if someone is talking trash about you, well, theres no better time to practice oral communication than when youre giving someone the shock of their life.14. When you speak to someone in your target language and they respond  in English.Its like someone has just burst your bubble.  When this happens we feel foolish, and a little bit insulted. However, many times, people will speak English because they think theyre helping you. Or, maybe, they just want to practice English themselves.If this happens, and youve still got even a shred of confidence left, try to pick the conversation back up in your target language. Its the only way youre going to get better.15. People think you have  Dissociative Identity Disorder.For every language I have a slightly different personality. When Im bored I name them. #crazy #polyglotp roblems #whounderstands Marcus Miller (@Marquisdetour) August 6, 2016In one language youre timid. In one language youre pragmatic. In one language youre a comedian. Its not uncommon.Many of us dance between personalities as we switch languages. Most of the time we dont even realize it. Youre not crazy. There have been a ton of studies trying to figure out why this occurs. Just embrace it as being part of the job.16.  Its hard to be in multicultural locales.Ever been in a place and you hear several languages you know being spoken at once? That happens quite often to polyglots living in major cities. The brain goes topsy-turvy  trying to figure out which language to focus on.In this situation, pick the one where youre strongest. That way youll be able to hear the words with clarity (as opposed to it sounding like garble if youre  still in the learning stages) and you might be able to pull out some words or phrases you havent learned yet, and stick them on your to-do list to learn late r.17. You try to translate idioms to no avail.Who has a good example of these? #PolyglotProblems pic.twitter.com/6MGmhs3KI9 italki (@italki) June 28, 2016Yeah, its terrible when youve got a perfect idiom to whip out but you just cant.If youre trying to tell your Japanese  friends that theres no cow on the ice (ingen ko pÃ¥ isen)  which means theres nothing to worry about in Swedish, you might be better off just being direct or learning an  idiom that has a similar underlying meaning.The Swedes are right, by the way. Theres really nothing to worry about. Embrace the struggle. Its part of the process. In due time, this will all come to you like a roll with butter  (bulka z maslem),  as we say in Polish.18. You panic when studying one language because youre worried youll forget the others.Its simply not true, but weve all been there.You put so much focus on one language. You spend hours, days, weeks or months studyingâ€"and then you stop in a panic thinking of the other languages that arent getting your attention. Trust your brain. Its a lot more reliable than wed like to believe.Your sentences may sometimes sound like a language smorgasbord (see problem 2), but that goes to show you that all the words are in there. Take your time with each one. Set a schedule and follow it. This  way, youll know that even though youre not focusing on the others now, youll definitely get to them later.19. You say polyglot, they think polygamist.People who arent language enthusiasts most likely have never even heard the word polyglot before.Since our human brains like to make sense of things, theirs might just substitute polyglot with the other poly word it knows, and so now this other person is just kind of shocked and bemused.If youre met with awkward, uncomfortable looks when you say that youre a polyglot, just assure that  person that, no, you do not have several lovers. Though, if you did, none of them would speak the same language.20. Youve  thought about learning Dothraki.O r Valyrian. Or Klingon. Or any of the other made-up  languages associated with popular fictional  series. Lets be honest, we all want to sound as cool as Dany Targaryen when she shouts the Valyrian command dracarys (breath fire) to her dragon, Drogon.As a polyglot, you simply dont want to be left out of the language loop, even if youd  only be one of five people in the entire world who speaks the language outside of the presence of a film crew.If youre perfectly fine  being the super-awesome person in the room who doesnt have to read the subtitles when watching Game of Thrones, then were fine with it, too.21. Your friends  just dont get you.Youre not doing this for school or for work, but simply for internal glory.You want to be the ultimate language master of the world. You want to  increase  your  brain function and expand  your mindset.Some people just dont get that. Some people wouldnt put that much hard work and dedication into something  without the expectation of a tangible r eward. Thats fine for them.We, on the other hand, will let our passion for languages continue to drive us. We may get some funny looks for turning down a happy hour or staying in on the weekend so we can practice, but thats okay.Sure, we may have some #polyglotproblems from time to time.In the end, well have the fulfillment we need from the languages we love.So, do what makes you happy. Thats all anyone can ask for.Oh, and be sure to let us know all about  your  polyglot problems on Facebook and Twitter! And One More ThingSomething else polyglots have in common is that they love using FluentU. FluentU makes it possible to learn languages  from music videos, commercials, news and inspiring talks.With FluentU, you learn real languagesâ€"the same way that natives  speak them. FluentU has a wide variety of videos like movie trailers, funny commercials and web series, as you can see here:FluentU App Browse Screen.FluentU has interactive captions that let you tap on any word to see an i mage, definition, audio and useful examples. Now native language content is within reach with interactive transcripts.Didnt catch something? Go back and listen again. Missed a word? Hover your mouse over the subtitles to instantly view definitions.Interactive transcript for Carlos Baute song.You can learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentUs learn mode. Swipe left or right to see  more examples for the word you’re learning.FluentU Has Quizzes for Every VideoAnd FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that you’re learning. It uses that vocab to give you a 100% personalized experience by recommending videos and examples.Start using FluentU on the website with your computer or tablet  or, better yet,  download the FluentU app from  the iTunes store  or Google Play store.