When being broody begs you to broaden your brood.

Im sick nd blogging from bed. It is absolutely the wrong way to have a day off work, needless to say thinking about the backlog is already increasing the dull thud in my face from my blocked sinuses to a banging force. I tried to study a little, given that I am not at work doing my job I thought the least I could do is a little study but my headache says no.

But enough about that. My head hurts and I just can't face a blog about education today I want to talk about pets. As I lye here with my baby beside me, i think to myself pets make even the cruddiest of days just a little bit mofe pleasant!
As those of you who know me already know, I am a mother to Paco, my 5 month Shih Tzu who is the light of my life( sorry Tiago). And after a strange dream where this little munchkin of mine morphed into two animals, himself and a little black cat named Picnic, I cant help but wonder if I am ready to take on a second pet. Coincidentally, whilst Tiago was at Paco's vet clinic on Saturday, there was a cat for adoption who fits Picnic's description exactly.
My immediate thought was, stop what you are doing, throw on a dress and get that cat! It was destiny, fate, a sign from God, that this cas was in YOUR dream, Hayley, it is your responsibility to adopt him. Think of how much less lonely Paco would be while you aren't there...

However there are questions to be raised. Is there room in your house for another animal? How will Tiago feel about having two babies at home? You live on the second floor, how do you avoid the cat from jumping out? And the biggest of all, where will the kitty litter and dinner bowls go?
You see I don't exactly live in an apartment the size of a mansion. I don't live in an apartment the size of small house. So I decided that some research was in order. I went to my biggest research tool(google)and researched two very important facts: Average apartment size Japan and Pets Japan.
I discovered that with land becoming so over valued in Japan, the average person has no way of acheiving the common dream of being a homeowner! So in order to reach their dreams the Japanese are buiding smaller and smaller homes which, they aptly call - Ultra-Small-Homes.
These homes are built for two people and they are built on a piece of land the size of a carparking space ( all be it that it is an American car parking space and they do usually drive big cars...). Now that is a small house, even if they do build two stories. After reading this information I thought that the last thing that the Japanese would want in their car space sized apartments would be a pet, how wrong I was. 52% of the population has a pet in Japan. Pets range from small dogs, cats and turtles to tropical fish, hamsters and surprisingly so-ferrets!
If the Japanese in their car space sized homes can have a dog, then I in my 7 cars space sized home can have a dog and a cat. 
Put on your dress Hayley, grab your boots. It is off to the vets we go. Picnic, mummy is coming to get you!

Get your best dress out, we be going to a ball!

Blog 31 july 2011

Today is my third sister, Rylee Kate's birthday. Happy birthday to you little sister who is not so little anymore.

I am writing today's blog from my couch. Not so extroadinary, interesting or even relevant really. However, as i am supposed to be at dinner with my darling friends at LIV Lounge, and I am not, I thought I had best start with a big hug and a kiss to each of them. I wish I wasn't feeling so ill from the extremely dry climate here. it is amazing to me how each year gets easier and easier to deal with climate wise, yet I still end up getting my big foreign butt kicked for a few days a year by the extremely dry days of winter.

I am at a loss as to what to write about today. So many things have been happening this week,  both good and bad but I think I am going to jump the bad and talk about the good.

This week was my second real week ( full week) at my new job. And I was happy to learn about future progress and plans for business and growth, plans for me! Hoorah, I made a great decision by jumping ship and starting again. It is after all, always a risk to change jobs.  One loses one's security and confort in knowing what is and is not expected to do. One knows where the good, the bad and the ugly lye and one knows what can and should be expected for the future.
I seemed to have avoided jumping out of the frypan and into the fat this time and my life is suddenly a much more pleasant place to be.
On another high note, business is booming this week, loads of enquiries and trial classes. Not as many sign ups as I would have liked but interest in PoGo means that people are hearing about us from somewhere or another and that does tickle me to the back teeth (makes me happy). So, for those of you spreading the word, liking the Facebook page and following this blog, I would personally like to send you a big hug and a kiss of thanks and ask you to keep doing what you do.

Another great thing was that my darling Cultura Inglesa students had their exams for CAE ( Certificate of Advanced English) this week and although I know everyone did their best, some people acheived outstanding results and then were kind enough to attribute that success to my teaching style and classes. I cannot tell you as a teacher how thrilling it is to be recognised and thanked for your work. I think that it is also important to recognise that the work of a student ( in and out of the classroom) is highly influencial in the level of results obtained in any professional measuremnt of skill level ( test). So thank you and congratulations to each and every one of you who participated in the test and/or the course. It has been a challenge but we have acheived some great results along the way and had a whole lot of fun too!

Finally, I was invited to my very first graduation ceremony in which I received personal thanks for my support on the actual graduation invitation that every guest will receive. I feel very honoured and think that in fairness I came in on the easier part of the course where my support and understanding were of course required by this person but somehow not quite so intensely as those who were being supportive and understanding from the first year onward, andI still get a mention! 
Of course the signature end of course ceremony, graduation paper exchange and being in formal receipt of your very own transcripts is a moving event and to be invited to such a grand celebration is quite an honour. We all know that these events always have limited tickets, someone is always left off the invite list and eternally disgruntled, unforgiving. It can be expected that the food will be in abundance that the music will start out classy and develop into a series of similar sounding songs of a sexual nature ( as will the dancing, the hair and the make up all deteriorate by the end of the night) and that many a mother and father will experience that knot of pride well up their stomachs as they see their son or daughter move on to another level of social independence, personal evolution and for some people, they will finally know that feeling of always having something to fall back on or better still, something to jump forward from.
I feel that there is no better example than Brazil of the importance of a good education. We here love to further our personal development and growth until the day we die, not only as a symbol of status and validity of position within the workforce but so as to ensure that the grey matter stays grey indeed and not a mushy-pea or duck egg green colour instead. If there is a saying for " use it or lose it" in Portuguese, i do not know it. However, society here is always so encouraging of furthering your education that I cannot see why it would even be necessary.

So folks, be Brazilian and keep motivating  yourself to go on studying, learning and trying new things. Gosh, review old things if it takes your fancy but dont, for the love of Christ stay stagnate! Nothing good can come of that.

Enjoying my education I am, keep enjoying yours

Beijos

Miss Hayley
PoGo Communications

Three splendid dinners and a dog of a day...

Today was one incredible day. I am in the super advantageous position at the moment of having more time ( in theory), more money ( once again in theory) and Great people to spend it with. 
My darling Tiago is on holiday (well deserved might I add) and is about to graduate in an area of public safety and police science. Impressive hey! I am unfortunately not on holiday, however, I have been in the most fortunate position of having a personal assistant to request all of those favours ( including our new and amazing business cards thanks to EDRO Comunicação, check them out for all of your graphic design needs) that just can't be done when you work a 9-5 along with a 7-10 and study. 
It probably wasn't his first thought of a vacation but it has certainly helped me out enormously and having a lunch buddy everyday has been great too!

Today though, was one of those amazing days where the planets align and you feel like the Earth is giving you a "me day" just to say thank you for all that you do day in, day out.
I woke up to a glorious morning, before my alarm sounded the gentle awakening falsetto of Robin Thicke's voice, feeling rested and ready to face the day. I had a lovely cuddle with each of my two boys and went and had a shower. The water didn't go cold on me once, nor did it go excruciatingly hot and when I got out of the shower and came into my room the bed was made ( hospital corners, just the way my grade 5 teacher Mr. Leahy taught me) and then as I stepped into the lounge room I saw before me breakfast ready and a gorgeous pot of steaming tea, ahhhh she cried! I knew today would be great at that very moment! Breakfast was stunning and the company perfect.
Then it came to lunch, and my usually lonely lunches at the new job (usually because I am resolving problems at the school or organising demo classes) was poignantly turned as I went to toss my salad-good-girl-gone-bad style, I paused to chat, which then became stopped to chat, with two new colleagues which turned out be such a lovely discussion of culture, circular breathing and the spiritual side of having a baby. 
The post work rush took me from office to brief passing in mi casa, puppy time and a quick change act to go on to classes. Final class with one of the babies I teach. A classic class if the friends of the letter 'H' ( them being letters P,S,C and T). These cheeky letters always change their sound when they hang out with their friend H. We practiced the sounds of the aforementioned in the words top and think, song and shop, cat and chocolate and pink and photograph. Such trickers are this bunch that you always need to see who they are sitting next to in the word to know how you are going to say them. Ai, que falsidade!
Post lesson took me to Cafe Savannah at the veeeeery end of Asa Norte, for a business meeting with the PoGo Partners. Always a good laugh in that I tell ye! Dinner was delicious and the company fantastic but by gosh the service was below standard. However, when a meeting is both productive and relaxed it makes you a little less concerned about things like the service ( not the hygiene though!).

I have finally arrived at home, my lessons planned for the weekend, my studies done for my impending return to university on Friday, my tea piping hot next to me as write this rather longwinded entry. And just when you think that everything is OK you see that when you thought that instead of mending your pup's play toy/girlfriend that it would be cleaner to throw it out (their relationship was rather spicy!) you see that you dog is not going to simply let that one pass and wait until Saturday when you have a minute to go and arrange him a new wife, he is going to make you pay for tearing him away from the love of his life. And when I say make you pay, I mean to say he is going to make your arm his substitute. Poor little Paco, desperate for a little bit of lovin' was really having a dog of a day, it was written all of over his tiny little puppy dog face, "How could you do this to me?". 
So seeing as I have had not only  wonderful day but a productive and enjoyable week, I decided to donate the smallest decorative pillow that generalliy resides on my bed to Paco as an acknowledgement of the gross error committed on my behaUlf. 

I guess I will have to add a trip to Casa Park for a new decorative pillow to my to do list for the weekend.

As far as my learning curve is going with my new job, so far so very good is what I hear from the head honchos. A little smile did creep on to my face when I was told, I do love a bit of praise! The learning experience is a bit daunting at times, and it is never fun to be out of control and have to ask questions all of the time. Yet it is so important to never forget just how it is to be a student and a good student at that. It is nice being the teacher and controlling what is in the lesson, keeping it safe s that you are always in a comfort zone. Remember the importance of development and continued evolution though as it is what keeps us from being a monkey, and it validates our existence. Why settle for mediocre when we have so much out there that can make our live and the lives of those around us great?

Keep learning and enjoy your education.

Miss Hayley
PoGo Communications

 

Keeping focus while having fun. Learning shouldn't be synonymous with boring.

Drawing a line in the sand. Marking your territory as teacher and demonstrating your student's as pupil. This can be one of the toughest battles for a teacher.
I tonight had to balance carefully, with a delicate little kidlet, the act of friend and teacher.

I don't teach in a classroom and I don't sit in a teacher's special chair and this, at times, makes my job a little bit harder.

Being a freelancer I have the freedom to create my own classes, write my own syllibus and even create my own children's learning method but I also have to; create the image of a classroom that isn't there, the sense of focus and structure that that in itself brings (all very important for a condusive learning environment) and constantly engage children in places of distraction and general relaxation, usually at a time where the little one is tired and not really interested.
So, how do I do it you ask? Well, yes, sometimes it involves me acting like a clown, or an elephant or a seal in tonight's case. Sometimes it is by bringing serious matters to the table such as no TV, only a white paper and pencil to eliminate distraction and other times it is by sitting that little person down and saying enough is enough - playtime is over or Miss Hayley is going home if the bad behaviour doesn't stop (obviously a last resort).

Keeping classes dynamic and interactive is the key part in making education fun and the learning process a bi-product of the laughing and roleplays etc. Planning and knowing your student helps to support this, and facilitate the dual process of education and positive experience/memory association.

Remember that as a teacher you are not there soley to entertain, nor are you there soley to sprout information. Your role as teacher is to find a way to move information from you to the student in the best and most enjoyable way possible.

Learning is sometimes necessary and always important, why shouldn't it be fun too?

Playing games and learning the past tense- Is it too good to be true?

Tonight I was full of energy and scouring (searching) the internet for new material for the kiddies that I teach.

To my surprise, I realized that there is so much material out there that I didnt realize was available to me!

I found after an exhausting conversation as to why we say ´t´ ´id´or ´d´ to pronounce éd´correctly according to the word written when reading, a wonderful site that has a basketball game for the kids to play as practice (almost playing, nothing like actual study) where the words are all pronounced by a native speaker as options before being selected. If the student gets the answer to the question right then he/she gets 2 points for an easier shot and 3 points for a more difficult shot. Fantastic!

http://www.marks-english-school.com/games/b_past.html

This is the link. Check it out and show it to your children who are in the early learning phases of the English language.

Have fun with your education and your child's education too. Be a participant and a parent.

Miss Hayley
PoGo Communications

Teacher: Egocentric Performer or Kind Informer ?

After a little break due to an ill tummy I am back in the land of blog!

Today I taught a great class to a wonderful little miss who amazingly is a Brazilian who at the age of 6 has developed a second language with minimal formal training but foramlly attending an American school for the past year to year and a half.
She has a wonderfully supportive family who has provided many wonderful resources, yet she is always apologising when she makes a mistake.
She reminded me that we are all in need of reasurrance. We all need a careful explanation at times and to be respectfully informed rather than spoken to as if being no more than a moron.

Sometimes, as we get used to being the centre of attention (as a teacher), the most important thing in the room, and we forget the importance and the level of the intellect of those we teach. Our tone changes and we sound egotistic, arrogant or superior. This is not what a good teacher does.
A true teacher is humble in his knowledge and willing to share it. They will recognize that educating is a two way street, that a person who is open to learning new aspects of any area of life is actully in a position of vunerability, and that in itself should be respected.

I took a class a week ago, a singing class. I felt so awkward. I didn´t like being told what to do,I wanted to excuse myself everytime the teacher explained something and I respeated it incorrectly. The funny thing was that the teacher was lovely. She did nothing wrong at all. I was made to feel comfortable and relaxed. The pressure and awkwardness I felt was completely me being unaccustomed to the hot seat. It was a very educational experience for me both in relation to the singing and the student experience (thank you GTR).

So next time you go to teach someone something, anything really, have patience and be respectful. Possessing knowledge does not make you superior or others inferior but it does give you a certain power that you can choose to use positively or negatively.

Enjoy education and be open to learning.

Miss Hayley
PoGo Communications

Homeland ahoy! The rattle and chill of a journey home.

As I start planning my trip back to Australia in November, I realise that I am not feeling so easy about the whole thing. Strange really, as I ahve cried, moaned, and pittied myself for the best part of the alst 3 years about poor me, no chance to see the people I have loved the longest. Why though? What makes me feel all stringy in the stomach? What provokes the feeling of hmmmm, perhaps I will just go when I have rights to take leave?

I flicked through my facebook pics last night and saw pictures of old friends with new loves, new cars, new children, new pets, new jobs - all of which I know nothing about. I am like a visitor who has never been before to a lot of people. I have the old times stories, I have the 'do you remember when....'lead in line with many of them, yet the 'now'stuff (see I know how to use quotation marks correctly being an English teacher) I am as foreign too as the old stuff of many of my friends here in Brazil. I am now seeming to be living in a halfway zone of new and old friend.

I ahve managed, thankfully, to keep myself in reasonable shape, so when I go back it wont be, "Wow that Hayley Gogeff got porky" I ahve managed to keep myself very educated and well travelled, which should facilitate conversation, depending on who I am talking to.
Everything here is so comfortable. I know where to geta  great bite to eat (Giu and Kate), I know where I get all my great imported things (Jess and la palma), I know where to get my party on (the couch girls who have numerous pics in Rachel`s album of VIP guests) and I know where to get my schooling from (too manyplaces to name here). yet, when I go back to good old cultural Melbourne, I will be like a tourist in my own city! I don't knwo where to eat, where to party, where to buy great books, where to pick up the best mushrooms. I don't know what the drink of choice of anyone is (although being Australian I gues that would be anything with alcohol in it). I do however, know what I like and don't like. I know that my tastes have changed in a major way since I left that little town and that big city that I oscilated between all those years ago. I know that my opinions, are even more open minded than they were back then, controvertial some may say.

I guess what I fear is not fitting in. It is almost like going back to school again, ang being the stranger whilst everyone else in in their comfortable little group.
I don´t want it to be difficult, or uncomfortable. I do hope that the subject matter is interesting and upbeat and a whole load of laughs.

I guess while I am here with my friends and family in Brasil, I have my work, my style, my girlfriends, my puppy and my darling Tiago that all represent the Hayley of today. And I love that. I love the comfort of it, the natural way of it all.
I dread the fact that I am going to be listening to native English speakers making crass grammatical errors all the time, just the thought of the classic Australian interchange of me and my makes me cringe. Imagine when a 'yous' comes out or an 'I seen the uver (other to the rest of us) day...' comment. It pains me to the back teeth to think that all the work I do here with PoGo Communications teaching, reviewing text, translating etc is all but gone to waste when I see my students off to the homeland only to have them e-mail me upon arrival to ask "Miss Hayley why did you teach me X when everyone says Y...?" in a muddle because I have taught them how to speak correctly.

So, nerves and all I will be visiting the homeland for the first time in 4 years in November of 2011. Quite an achievement for a girl who didn't even own a bed this time last year (thank you Aunty Hilde for you help and guidance).

So, I am going to do some research, educate myself on the psyche of the human who must readjust to one's natural habitat over a short duration of time. Study, it seems to me, along with the exchange of personal experience, to be the key factor in dealing with most of lifes prickles. Find out the lastest, greatest and unique (Marcos) about anything and with the power of knowledge, you can conquer.

Any tips, email me please!

For the meantime however, keep studying, keep finding out new information to make yourself a more interesting person and a more useful tool to both yourself and others.

Miss Hayley
PoGo Communications - Brazil

Behavioural education, crime and a good book.

Yesterday I took a blog day off for reflection. I don’t know that it did me much good, as I seemed to just fill up that time with a long list of things to do that otherwise would have waited but I think I got a good amount of time in there for some reflection and consideration of behaviour, crime and education.

I am reading a wonderful book at the moment, lent to me by my darling friend Kate, The Secret River. It is just incredibly interesting and full of facts, some dark, some uplifting.

It shares the tale of Londoner in the late 1700s caught thieving, shipped off to Sydney and, plonked in the middle of nothing to start all over again only to achieve a whole lot more than he ever dreamed he could. It is a story of success and triumph, of love and loss and a clear demonstration of the behaviour that we are forced to partake in when the wrath of hunger and poverty beat down upon us.

This is all very interesting for me on many levels. As a teacher here in Brazil, I deal with upper middle class to high society. I don’t see anyone who is hungry, I don’t see people who need for anything, in fact the most common thing I witness here is the compulsive nature of a consumerist society (not excluding myself here) where there is always a thick water building up in the mouth as the taste of the next purchase to facilitate life comes to mind.

I am, however, not ignorant to the many of us who live on this beautiful, exotic continent who do not live in this manner. Who live by thieving their next dinner, begging for basic necessities in the street and turning to glue sniffing and smoking crack to keep the hunger pains at bay. Gosh, the number of times I have bought disposable diapers in the pharmacy at the request of a bleary eyed mother or father, flanked by at least 3 other children is countless.

So why, I ask myself, is it that we are so focussed on the reduction on crime? Why are we so quick to punish these people for possession and thievery? The answer to these problems lies in community policing and education. Police need to be revered rather than feared and social inclusion programs, such as some of the many provided by NGOs, government divisions and public organs need to be supported financially and otherwise to encourage the less fortunate of us to grow and prosper.

The law cannot be changed for those of us who are hungry, who have mouths to feed and not a penny to bless ourselves with. However, some considerations and the implementation of education in place of a jail term could more appropriately take the opportunity to rehabilitate a person, make them a more capable member of society. That is what jail is supposed to do, correct me if I am wrong, but penitentiary centres are for the re-education of the behavioural issues that some members of society suffer from?

So once again education triumphs. This article is but another demonstration of the positive turns education can give person. It opens opportunity to learn the skills to earn a living, honestly. Education gives the techniques to think for himself and make better decisions to benefit one’s family and then finally, education give one the ability to reason well, consequence and action. Is it worth stealing my neighbour’s car if I don’t have enough money to pay taxes and gas for it beyond this month...?

Keep educating yourself and take part in educating others. Scold less and explain more.

This is probably my favourite part of my life here in Brazil, I get to be an educator of language, culture, history, sport, politics anything my students want or need to know about.

Thank you Brazil for giving me this opportunity and also for educating me.

Have a great day.

Miss Hayley

PoGo Communications

It is important to have nice manners

After a trip to my one and only, my favourite absolute supermarket in Brasilia Pao de Acucar today we have just eaten the most delicious fake souvalakis you can get your hands on.

The supermarket provided some interesting entertainment. It amazes me how so many people, well academically educated or otherwise have absolutely no manners at all. I find this disappointing and a little bit shameful as it is becoming quite apparent to me that the importance of good manners is becoming a thing of the past. I say this after a man left the line prior to my arrival and then abruptly informed me of his place being infront of me without any concern or worry that what he was saying was both rude and not the way that lines work.

I was brought up to believe that manners were as pertinent to life as air or water and the failure to demonstrate them resulted in a swift kick in the backside or a slap upside the head. It was amazing how quickly one learnt to always use one's manners at home, at school, in the street, everywhere and anywhere you went. My parents found it one if their main responsibilities to make sure that my 3 sister and I were equipped with excellent manners and the social skills to survive in any situation. I dare say that their methods were questionable but the result I must say was quite an achievement.

The highlight of the afore written paragraph is the fact that it was my parents personal decision to make social skills and good manners a personal quest. Nowadays, in a society of nannies and babysitters, afterschool care or at times no supervision at all, children are just not equipped to enter society and be socially aware of  the prerequisites that that entails.
The other aspect of this problem is that nowadays both parents usually work, business hours are longer, life pressures are higher too, so does that mean that tired busy parents are resulting in under-educated children socially?

I hear a lot of parents say "I pay a fortune for my child's schooling so it is their responsibility to educate them." I also see in my class that I am constantly reminding my students (children and adults alike) of the importance of saying please and thank you, sorry or pardon instead of 'WHAT?' and it is amazing how foreign my students find it when I do this.
I find it said that so many parents have reliquished responsibility for so many aspects of their childrens learning process. However, I am not sure that these parents are even all that aware of what their actions will result in. As for the adults such as the man mentioned above, I imagine that his life would be far easier if he were polite with other people.
I am not sure that there is a manual defining the responsibilities of the teacher, the parent, the nanny, the school carer etc ready to download but I am quite sure that having manners is important and whilst in my classroom, I will always demand that my students have lovely manners that they use with me, with their classmates and anyone else they have contact with from the school.

I think that nice manners and being polite always get your further in life than being gruff, rude and impolite.

So, thank you for reading my post and please do come back and read it again in the future.

Take care and enjoy the last part of the weekend.

Miss Hayley
PoGo Communications

Practice makes perfect and Try, try, try again.

Motiviation is my topic today. It is something that passes in fleeting moments for some and yet for others is like a fire in the belly that burns faultlessly allowing them to acheive their goals/desires/dreams or at least to push on in the event of being required to jump a few of life's hurdles, in order to get their piece of the pie. For others that sensation of running after something big, chasing the dream, it simply just never comes. Mediocrity never bothers them, in fact, I think that it almost comforts them.

I have always found myself to be quite a go-getter. A person who always wanted things on the top shelf, out of reach. I always had to scheme and plan as to how I was going to get those things to be mine. I have for the most part been very successful in doing so, there really are few things that I am yet to accomplish that I have set out to do, which is quite amazing really. It is my belief that this is largely due to two major facts. Of these two important facts, the first one is that my grandparents always told their story of working very hard and not being afraid of hard work to achieve what you want. The second is the fact that I am the oldest in my largish family of 4 female siblings, so there was always work for me as a leader within the family unit. I could never be the follower as I was the eldest and it was my role to lead the sisters to do what my parents required, hide the things they weren't to know, explain the facts they couldn't and be a reference for them in any situation. That is what the eldest child does in the Gogeff family.

So with these two facts, I was influenced to always do what was required and expected and work very hard, never to be afraid of hard work. These to simple factors in my life taught me to always do what was necessary and more to get what you want and I am very thankful for that. Yet, this still doesn't motivation. I don't know where motivation comes from exactly but after a lot of contemplation, I think I am beginning to understand some of the contributing factors to its presentation in people.
I think that motivation often comes from a mix of consequence and perhaps also from a little bit of fear of the past in some cases. Knowing  what can become of ones choices gives a certain level of incentive to most of us. Knowing that if we get an 'A' on a test we get a present from mum and dad yet if we get a 'D' we get a wrap over the knuckles and no TV time for a week motivates even the laziest of us to study harder.

So after that long introduction and release of personal information I want to talk about my students and their motivations. Their motivation to attend class, to study at home, to participate in class, to pay money for education, to utilize their skills obtained during my class and to continue to further their already adept language skills.
Upon my arrival home from my class last night with little Clarissa, I can tell you that there are two motivations for her to participate in class. One is that if she does I don't get upset, speak to her mother and get her in trouble and the other more motivating yet, is the opportunity to increase her sticker collection by being a good girl who participates, is polite and practices what we study in class.
Yet, upon arrival from my very small class today at Cultura Inglesa I pondered the motivations of my late-adolescent to adult students.
When I woke up today at 6am it was very cold and I already knew, subconsciously, that this would take a few of my students from class today. The fact that I have recently given a lot of tests and that there could be more would take a few more. I remember that the long and very challenging CAE (Certificate of Advanced English) cource is coming to a close in just 3 mere weeks, meaning people think that the classes could be less beneficial than personal study time in the library. Goodbye to a few more students. When I arrived at class to a total of 5 students from the 17 that should have been there. I wasn't surprised but I was disappointed. How can I motivate my students to come to class even thought it is cold, and there are tests and they are tired of studying on the weekend? How do I make them see that the hard work is worth the result of a great grade on their CAE exam?
Is it through a personal phonecall, an e-mail gently reminding them of their responsibility to attend class? Is it through a cold gaze and a scolding tone when they all appear at the last class of the course for the bonus pre-exam tips? I don't know! This is what I have realised today, I know so much about language (about the English language in particular), about being a good teacher, about getting results and dynamism within the classroom, catering to learning styles and sucking production and use of English right out of them without them even knowing but when it comes to really motivating to push through the hard times, I am completely lost.

When it comes to my private students, the people who come to study with my our company PoGo Communications people are always highly motivated. They also often have to make a presentation to many in their second or third language on a highly specific area. That would motivate me too. I always have the odd student who stops doing their homework that I need to highlight the importance of writing in English in a professional environment or someone who is so convinced that their area of weakness is not of equal importance when it comes to studying their area of strength. A quick in-class test usually is enough to jerk a student back into focus. Yet teaching one-on-one makes this process far more feasable than teaching 10 or 15 or 20 on 1 as I do at times.

So, if any of you have any ideas about motivation, where it comes from, why it goes and how to call it back (preferrably to stay) please do let me know.

For now I am off, going to enjoy my weekend here in Brasilia by taking a stoll by the lake at Pontao, perhaps having a delicious Specialito at Gula Gelada and finally, cleaning up the mess that shows the lovely dinner Tiago and I enjoyed with our dear friends Jess and Mau last night.

Take the time and think about what motivates you, and for those of you who are already motivated, keep on going after what it is that you want. I am highly motivated when it comes to the precious commodity that we call education. I am motivated to make it accessible to everyone, everywhere. I could do with some more motivation in other areas of my life though, some rethinking shall be done this weekend, a little selfmotivating in the savings department is most definitely in order!

Enjoy your weekend people, keep studying and enjoy the learning process.

Miss Hayley
PoGo Communications

Maiden Voyage

So, blog number one. Quite important really. As an English teacher the first thought that comes to my mind is "what kind of writing style does a blog require?". I am torn reasoning a response to this question between the informality of group communication and the fact that this is essentially an open journal. So as I ponder the rigidity of my tone and the level of my register, I see that regardless of the internal stuggle I am writing as if I was talking. So informal it is, written speech.

After an exceptionally productive meeting with my lovely business partners on Wednesday night at the cafe SEBINHO on 406 north, I have decided to become a blogger. Yes, it is partially business and yes, it is partially advertising but it is also a big part personal interest in the world of blogging and online sharing of information. As a teacher the importance of online communication to learning has been apparrent for some time now but as a member of modern day society I have always been a little behind the times in term of being involved in online communities. Oh of course I am on Facebook and I have countless Twitter accounts out there somewhere to which almost all of them I have lost the passwords. However, never have I really entered the deep dark backwaters of the streets that exist in the world of BLOG.

Well, that is it for my first entry (is that what you call this, an entry? Someone please update me on the correct blogging terminology, and fast!) as I am off to teach my little Clacla very soon.
Today we shall continue to learn of the amobinalities suffered by the lovely Rapunzel at the hands of her wicked step-mother, practice spelling by doing some look-write-cover-say-check exercises and of course finish class with a big monkey hug to say goodbye.

Enjoy your evening - keep learning

Miss Hayley
PoGo Communications - Brasilia - Brazil