Hi Everyone!

Here's a great short video on effective listening skills.

Please watch it and answer these questions:

What are the 4 key points about improving your listening skills?

Do you think about these 4 key points when YOU listen?

How will these skills improve your workplace environment?

How are they connected to emotional intelligence? Remember that emotional intelligence involves "restraint, self-awareness, self-regulation, self-motivation, empathy, hope and optimism" according to the article we read (page 96, lines 52-53).

Greetings LINC 7 Students!

In honour of Canada's federal election today, here's a link to a story on Breaking News English about how women in Saudi Arabia are getting the vote. They are also running for office as candidates!

Remember that you can easily change the reading speed by clicking below the "reading box". This link takes you to 200 words per minute (wpm) reading speed but you can challenge yourself by making it 300 wpm.


Canadian Election 2015  (for some real practice reading graphs and charts!!)

Here's a graph of the polling trends (from Wikipedia). Note that the trend for the Liberals has been continuously upward to the high 30s (about 37-38%), while support for the Conservatives has dipped down to the low 30s (about 32-33%).

Here's a website that has made some predictions (projections) about the election results. If you look at the chart, you can see that the Liberals are projected to win between 124 and 161 seats, putting them just below the 170-seat mark required for a majority. Note that 170 is 50% (half or 169) + 1 of the 338 seats. The number of seats (and ridings) in the election is 338, an increase of 30 seats from the 308 seats comprising the House of Commons (= Canadian Parliament) right now.


If this projection is correct, it would mean a LIBERAL MINORITY GOVERNMENT.

Please check out the CBC Poll Tracker to see the latest projections -- updated regularly during this evening! Right now (1 pm PDT), the Liberals have support of 37.2% of Canadian voters.

We will see tonight!

Hi Everyone,

Here's an excellent TED Talk by Monica Lewinsky, who in 1998 fell in love with her boss, President Bill Clinton. She talks about the damage that is done by cyber-bullying, and the fact that people are profiting when we click on sites that promote scandal and malicious gossip, or invade the privacy of others. She calls for empathy and compassion when using the internet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_8y0WLm78U&feature=youtu.be

Thanks to Peyman for recommending this video!

Greetings LINC 7 students!

Here's the link to Breaking News English. It's a wonderful website for learning English at many different levels.

I'd like you to read story #6 (the last one on the home page). It's called:

More People Die From Selfies Than Shark Attacks

The reading starts at 200 words per minute, but you can adjust the reading speed to challenge yourself!

If you want to stop the words, just place the cursor (of your mouse) on the scrolling page and it will stop for you. When you take the cursor off the page, the scrolling will continue...

When you've read the short article, try this fill-in-the-gaps exercise. Use the words at the top to fill in the blanks. You can check your answers by clicking on the box at the bottom. If your answer is correct it will change to bold letters in the text.

Please try to read at least 3 of these short articles using the speed-reader on the website.



Here's a link to Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech from 1963 in Washington.

This is a great example of using repetition for rhetorical (speaking) effect:

"....And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.'

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. 

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."


Have a great weekend everyone!

Hello! Great discussion today on the causes and consequences of the "niqab issue"! You are definitely thinking critically about this topic!

Here's a link to an article from the Globe and Mail about Canada's middle class (43%) vs. America's middle class.

Here's a great Macleans article about the middle class and it includes a Net Worth Calculator!

Here's the link to the video clips of Harper and Trudeau in Parliament (from The Canadian Press).

Hi Everyone,

Tomorrow we'll be discussing the two articles about wearing the niqab that I gave you today in class.

I want you to be thinking critically when you read and when you discuss this controversial issue!

Here's the link to the first article.

Here's the link to the second article. 

Here's a third article from The National Post (another national paper and a reliable source). 
In this story, Harper is quoted as asking: “Why would Canadians, contrary to our own values, embrace a practice that is not transparent, that is not open and, frankly, is rooted in a culture that is anti-women?”

What do you think?

Bring your critical thinking to class Wednesday!



And here's the link to a Wiki-how page on critical thinking. It describes three methods to improve your own critical thinking:

1. Honing (sharpening) your questioning skills
2. Adjusting your perspective
3. Putting it all together

Critical Thinking is the art of using reason to analyze ideas and dig deeper to get to our true potential. Critical thinking isn't about thinking more or thinking harder; it's about thinking better. Honing your critical thinking skills can open up a lifetime of intellectual curiosity. But the journey isn't all rosy. Critical thinking requires a lot of discipline. Staying on track takes a combination of steady growth, motivation, and the ability to take an honest look at yourself, even in the face of some uncomfortable facts.

Greetings Goal Setters!

Hello LINC 7 Goal-setters!

Think about your goals as you plan your "Lifelong Learning" essay (5 paragraphs). 

Please bring in your outline to class tomorrow because I want to give your some feedback BEFORE you start to write your complete essay over the long weekend!

Here’s the link to the short video we watched in class on “Setting SMART Goals”:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKMrWsjUOZQ

Here’s the link to an excellent fun video (11 minutes) on goals and planning your future career path. It's called “Exploring Your Career Path” (from IQmatrix.com):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rW6cZHScH3U