Photo credit: RODNAE Productions @pexels.com

Have you ever done any volunteering work before? If not, what kind of image do you have of them? My image toward volunteering work was something special and for only special people. However, my image was changed after I did some volunteer work in a Japanese class as a language facilitator when I was studying in the UK as a postgraduate student. 

Volunteer work became more familiar to me and made me realize that it can be a good way to deepen my interest or knowledge, especially when the volunteering work that I chose related to what I wanted to do in the future. As far as volunteering work in the UK, it seems normal for university students to do it before they start job hunting, and to write about volunteering work experience on their CV.

According to a survey conducted in 2019 by the Japanese Cabinet Office, 33.3 % of Japanese young people aged between 13 and 29 answered that they are interested in volunteer work. However, this was the lowest rank compared to other countries such as USA (65.4%), UK (52.7%), South Korea (52.6%), France (51.7%), Germany (49.6%) and Sweden (45.8%). In fact, 48.1 % of Japanese young people answered that they are not interested in volunteer work, which is 6.2 % higher than a previous survey in 2013.

In terms of the word “volunteer”, Cambridge Dictionary says that volunteer means: a person who does something, especially helping other people, willingly and without being forced or paid to do it. What’s more, PATIMES.ORG [https://patimes.org/the-origins-of-the-word-volunteer/] explains that the origin of the word volunteer comes from the Latin word voluntaries, which has the meaning of willing or of one’s own choice. With reference to the benefits of volunteer work, [https://www.helpguide.org/articles/healthy-living/volunteering-and-its-surprising-benefits.htm] it explains that there are four good reasons to do such work;

1. Volunteering connects you to others. This means that volunteering can give you a chance to make new friends and expand your network.

2. Volunteering is good for your mind and body. According to the researchers, helping other people can make you feel happy and increase self-confidence.

3. Volunteering can advance your career. Volunteering can teach you some important skills such as teamwork, communication, problem solving, project planning, task management and organization.

4. Volunteering brings fun and fulfillment to your life.

It is said that volunteering can be an easy way to discover your interests and passions. Why don’t you learn not only from the textbooks but also from doing some volunteer work?

Questions:

Q1.What percent of young Japanese people are interested in volunteer work?

A. 49.6%

B. 45.8%

C. 33.3%

Q2. What does the Latin word "voluntaries" mean?

A. Explosions.

B. Willing or of one’s own choice.

C. Giving things away free

Q3. What can people receive by doing volunteer work?

A. More Self-confidence.

B. Bigger pay

C. Free lunch

Scroll down ↓ for the answers

Answers:

1 C

2 B

3 A

Photo credit: Miguel Bruna unsplash.com

I have been reading a lot recently, now that I have more time stuck at home… I have been wanting to be a better person and make good use of the time I have now. I am sure my old self would have been stuck in front of the TV watching Netflix or locked on the computer screen, stuck on the latest YouTube videos. A book that is changing my life is “Atomic Habits” by James Clear. I recommend you pick it up, it is an easy read, but it can change your life. {Jamesclear.com[https://jamesclear.com/]}

Here are a few of the many good ideas in the first chapter, but that is just the beginning… Everyone has habits, and did you know that the habits that you have now, whether they are getting up early, or turning off the lights when you leave a room, came to you without effort? Of course, your bad habits, like procrastinating or eating an unhealthy meal come very easy too, but did you know that those little decisions make up who we are? These little decisions, good or bad, add up. These “1% decisions” are not noticeable but are very meaningful. As you repeat and do small things, day by day, those habits will have an impact on the way your life will be heading. If you stay up late and finish up work you were putting off, sure you can survive on three or four hours of sleep that next day, but one day in the future, you will wake up late and miss something important or make a mistake because you were sleepy.

The author says, “Success is the product of daily habits – not once-in-a-life-time transformations.” You might be thinking that you need to change every little thing in your life… no… start with one thing that will make your actions successful. Just like when you chop a tree down, you pick up your axe, and start swinging, you cannot cut down a tree with one blow, it takes many strikes at the tree to bring it down. Just like starting a new habit, it takes many times of doing something to start a new habit, or stop a bad one. At first, it is exciting to start something new and you can see wood chips flying, but after a while you get tired and you hit and hit but you do not see change. When you finally fell that tree, the whole world will look at you and say how great your achievement was, but you know it was the work that you did when you did not see any results was the work that made things possible. Fighting on through hard times will make future success.

“All big things come from small beginnings. The seed of every habit is a single, tiny decision.” It is a new year now and people talk about “New Year’s Resolutions” (新年の抱負) . More than making a goal this school year, plan on making a “system” that will make your goals a reality. Just like every Olympic athlete has the goal to win the gold medal, if you improve the way you train and make the environment easy for you to get better, improve your training system… you will have a better outcome. Also, achieving that goal will be good, but the result of meeting that goal is nothing if your life is not changed. If you diet and lose those kilograms you wanted to lose but go back to eating as you did before the diet, you will just rebound back. You need to change your eating and exercise system so you will have those great results (lost weight and fitting into those jeans) for the rest of your life.

These are just some of the great ideas waiting for you in the book. Please read it and come to the BBP and let’s talk about it. Everything counts.

Reference: Clear, J. (2018) Atomic Habits. Penguin Random House LLC, New York.

 Questions:

1. What did the author do this past year?

A. watch a lot of TV and YouTube videos

B. sleep a lot

C. read books

2. What is the book "Atomic Habits" about?

A. making good habits

B. studying atoms

C. a boy named "Tom"

3. The book's author said, "All big things come from ___________"

A. big things

B. small beginnings

C. once in a lifetime events

Scroll down ↓ for the answers

Answers:

1 C

2 A

3 B

Do you know what the longest-running animated television series is? Do you think it’s The Simpsons? South Park? Family Guy? Well, it’s my favourite Japanese show–Sazae-san.

You all know that the Isono and Fuguta families never get old, that there’s no way Katsuo can fit his K T-shirts over his head, and that by the end of the credits we begin to feel down at the prospect of the end of the weekend.

But did you know the power of one TV show you love to help your understanding of a language? How many people in the world today have learned Dutch through Nijntje en haar vriendjes, French through La Famille Barbapapa, and Russian through Cheburashka? I can’t tell you which TV program is best for learning English—that you’ll have to do yourself. It’s really just as long as you love the program and want to watch it again and again like I like watching Sazae-san again and again.

Here are some tips. But first you’ll have to have Amazon Prime or Netflix or use your digital recorder. Next, you’ll need a friend. Nobody speaks a language by themselves.

List of tips:

--Watch for 10 minutes, then predict what you think will happen.
--Watch the entire episode, then summarize what happened.
--Freeze any random frame, then describe what is happening.
--Watch a scene with your eyes closed, describe what happened, then watch what really happened.
--Watch a scene with no sound and write down what you think was said, then check.
--Have your friend write down the English subtitles, then erase a few words.
　Next, you watch without the subtitles and try to fill in the blanks your friend made.
--Turn the sound off and practice reading the English subtitles aloud.
　Afterwards, with the sound on, check your pronunciation and intonation.
--Together write down an English-subtitled dialogue, then practice acting it out.
　You both may be better than some of the actors you find on TV these days.


I hope you will try one or two of these tips on your own beloved TV program. As for me, it’s time that I finally figure out what Ikura-chan is really saying. So, from now on I’m going to try to translate everything he says into perfect English.


Photo Credit: Taryn Elliott@pexels.com



Blog Quiz
Q1. What is the longest-running animated television series?
Q2. Which languages can you learn if you watch Nijntje en haar vriendjes,La Famille Barbapapa, and Cheburashka?
Q3. What is the best TV show to help you learn English?



Scroll down ↓ for the answers to the quiz.

















Quiz Answers

Q1. Sazae-san.
Q2. Dutch, French, and Russian.
Q3. The one that you love.

What is Gumbo?
First of all, what is gumbo? Gumbo is the official cuisine of Louisiana, U.S.A. It is a kind of stew usually made with chicken or seafood stock, meat (usually meat, sausage, shellfish, or a mix of them all), a thickener such as okra, and vegetables (onion, celery, and green pepper). To make gumbo, you must first make a dark roux using flour and a fat (usually lard or oil). This can take a long time, and you must be very careful not to burn it. Gumbo is often eaten with rice and/or bread. For some of you, it might seem like a type of curry, but the flavors are very different.

Gumbo’s History
Gumbo is a unique and loved traditional food that shares aspects of different cultures. Gumbo uses ingredients and cooking techniques from African, French, Spanish, and Native American cultures. This follows the history of Louisiana through the decades. An area which was first the home to Native American tribes, it was then settled by the French who used the waterways to trade for goods and slaves. The people arriving from Africa were experienced in farming rice, which was new to the area. After, a group of Germans moved into Louisiana and brought their tradition of sausage making. Later, Louisiana became a territory of Spain, which brought people from the Canary Islands who had experience in fishing. These people fished things such as oysters, shrimp, and crabs. They also brought spices such as cayenne pepper and chili pepper. The Spanish allowed the French people living in Canada to move down to Louisiana. Slowly and quietly, Louisiana came back to French ownership, and then it was sold to the United States in 1803. By this time, rice, seafood, sausages, spices, okra, onion, green pepper, and tomatoes had all been brought by people from different areas.

During these 100 years, gumbo started to be made in different forms and slowly new things were added to what we now know as gumbo. Now, gumbo is eaten year-round all over the South-Eastern area of the United States, and it has expanded to different parts of the world. You can even find gumbo in Japan if you look for it.

Be Gumbo
Just like gumbo, people should explore new cultures and not only observe them but also let them become a part of you. Learn from others and try to take the best parts and make them yours. So go out into the world and be gumbo. But be careful, gumbo can be spicy!


Photo Credit: Towfiqu Barbhuiya@pexels.com
Or Gumbo-Best-Wallpaper 【https://yesofcorsa.com/gumbo/】




Blog Quiz
Q1. What vegetable is used in gumbo?
a. carrots
b. celery
c. eggplant

Q2. What is one country that gumbo uses cooking techniques or ingredients?
a. Egypt
b. Cambodia
c. France

Q3. Gumbo is often eaten with what other food?
a. Naan
b. Fruits
c. Rice




Scroll down ↓ for the answers to the quiz.




















Quiz Answers

Q1. b
Q2. c
Q3. c