2. 3
3. INTRODUCTION
4. VOX POP
Tell us about a popular festival
in your country
6. FESTIVALS AND TRADITIONS
7. STUDENT FEEDBACK
CONTENTS
2
9. SMART LEARNING
10. TLG TORONTO AND LONDON
10. GO OUT & ABOUT
14. TLG AROUND THE WORLD
3. 4
Dear students,
Welcome to the Summer edition of the TLG Times!
Many of you will soon be leaving us, either to go
back home with new language skills or to begin your
career somewhere new. We wish all of you the very
best of luck!
This is the second summer of TLG Juniors’ summer
camps, where young people can learn how to play
football with coaches from Liverpool Football Club
as well as improving their English skills and sports
leadership. We’re all sure that this summer will be
even better than the last.
In this issue, you can find out about what’s been
happening at the London campus and discover other
students’ cultural traditions and festivals.
Happy reading!
Simon Power
TLG Managing Director
INTRODUCTION
3
4. 5
VOX
POP“It’s a big party,
all the population
goes out in the
street. I go every
year, it’s a really
amazing place.”
4
5. 65
TELL US ABOUT A POPULAR
FESTIVAL IN YOUR COUNTRY
“We have two big carnivals in Brazil.
Rio de Janeiro is the biggest; it has
a lot of people and people from other
countries come to Brazil to see the
festival. A lot of people go to the
streets and put on masks. The people
are so friendly; they talk with you,
and drink!
It depends on the year, but the Carnaval
is common in February or March. Next
year I think it’s 22nd February. It’s so
nice, really!”
– Rodrigo, Brazil (TLG Manchester)
“There are five main festivals,
or carnivals, in Colombia. One of them
is Barranquillas Carnival, in the north
of Colombia – it’s so hot, it’s nice.
The previous carnivals lasted maybe
one month, and the main carnival for
maybe two or three weeks. It’s a big
party, all the population goes out in
the street. I go every year, it’s a really
amazing place.”
– Jhon, Colombia (TLG Manchester)
“Summer in Japan is the season
of fireworks! Hundreds of firework
shows are held every year from late
July to late August. People dress in
‘yukata’ and streets are lined with food
and game stalls. The fireworks are lit
after sunset and last one to two hours.”
– Kento, Japan (TLG London)
“The biggest celebration in Iran is called
Norooz. It marks the first day of spring.
We have 2 weeks holiday. The 13th day
of the new year is called “Bedar”,
and people spend the day mostly
outdoors. People will go to the parks
or local plains for a festive picnic.”
– Farima Maghrebi, Iran (TLG London)
“The best festival for me is Newroz.
It’s a Kurdish tradition and common
in the east of Turkey, especially where
I live in Ankara. Everyone marches
in the street then goes to see people
play music. 2 billion people partake
in it and many people from Europe
come as well.”
– Agit, Turkey (TLG Toronto)
“I love the Holy Festival. It’s a big music
festival that has dance and pop playing
all the time. It’s just for young people
and there’re lots of people that throw
paint around while they dance to the
music they like.”
– Michela, Italy (TLG Toronto)
6. 76
FESTIVALS AND
TRADITIONS
THE JUNINA PARTY
In 1500, during the Brazilian colonisation
by Portugal, a great amount of European
characteristics were taken to Brazil. One
of these is the Junina Party.
At the beginning, the Junina parties
aimed to celebrate Saint John’s day
which takes place every June 24th.
However, this celebration became bigger
in Brazil and started to be a celebration
of the Catholic Church. It pays homage
to three saints - St Antony, St John, and
St Peter - all in June, hence the party is
named “Junina”.
Every year throughout the month of
June, many Junina parties can be found
in almost all Brazilian cities. People dress
in specific colours and have a fun time
dancing next to a big fire pit. There are
typical foods made from corn such as
cakes, soups, tamales, popcorn, baked
corn and others. There are also games
and fireworks.
It is a really good time to spend with our
family and having fun with friends!
- Hugo, Brazil (TLG London)
DÍA DE MUERTOS
In Mexico, one of the most popular
traditions is Día de Muertos or ‘Day of
the Dead’.
We do this to commemorate our
relatives that died. We get together with
our family and then go to the cemetery.
Some people even eat dinner and have
long conversations all night there too!
It’s not to make fun of our family that
have died—it’s to celebrate together
with family and learn not to fear death.
Many people paint their face like a
skeleton and have special parties.
The big event for most people is to cook
the food that the people that passed
away liked. We eat that, light candles,
lay out flowers of those that died, and
just spend a good time with family and
spirits together.
- Irving, Mexico (TLG Toronto)
7. 87
TLG MANCHESTER
Would you recommend TLG to your friends?
100% of our students said that they would
recommend us to their friends. Thank you!
They said they’d recommend us because:
“It’s very interesting.” Olzhas, Kazakhstan
“The teachers are well-prepared and the staff
is very friendly.” Paolo, Italy
“It’s [a] really very good program for improving
English. Due to this course I got new knowledge,
found new friends and improved my level.”
Violetta, Kazakhstan
“Other students are friendly and we can play billiards.”
Jérémy, France
“Students are friendly, good and fun. It’s good! Lessons
are interesting.” Ahmed, Saudi Arabia
Your comments
You mentioned that students should try to only speak
English in student areas: we are making huge efforts to
push the use of English at all times in the school from
the very first day onwards.
You wanted clearer information about SMART learning
and the social programme: we have created bigger
and better noticeboards, easier sign-ups, and a wider
variety of activities to get involved in.
You said that classes were becoming overcrowded:
we have recruited more teachers and opened
more classes.
TLG LONDON
We asked students if they would recommend
TLG to their friends. Nearly everybody said yes,
and we received these comments:
“You can meet new people, speak English and learn
new cultures.” Elisa, Italy
“The methodology is good, the price is fair and the
staff, including the teachers, are very nice and helpful.”
Patricia, Brazil
“Very friendly and helpful people (students +
teachers).” Celine, France
“It is a school that cares about students.” Isabel, Brazil
“Because I improved my English, I met with nice people
and I enjoyed London.” Marta, Spain
When we asked what they liked about their
classes, our students said:
“I liked the way of teaching.” Dahir, Somalia
“I like the environment of study. I feel happy and also
learn lots of things.” Zening, China
“It’s the whole process of the lessons. It was effective,
useful. All of teachers tried to find the right way to
each student.” German, Russia
When we asked our students what we could
improve, they suggested:
“More excursions outside or together” and “More
SP [Social Programme] and SL [Smart Learning]
activities in the park.”
So, we recruited a Smart Learning Co-ordinator and
now run a SMART Trip every Thursday. So far we’ve
organised a picnic, a rounders game, and the chance
to see London and experience a pub atmosphere on a
riverboat!
Other SMART Trips this summer include Shakespeare’s
Globe and the Greenwich Royal Observatory.
We hope you continue to enjoy your studies
at TLG, whichever campus you’re attending!
STUDENT
FEEDBACK
9. 109
At The Language Gallery, we know that you
learn better when you feel confident and have
fun, so we created SMART Learning.
SMART Learning means that the whole school
studies a similar topic every week. That means
everybody has something to talk about, no matter
their level of English.
With SMART Learning, you will:
• make faster progress through free activities
in addition to your lessons
• put what you learn into practise on our
SMART Trips
• make more friends
• experience the UK or Canada through our events
We care about your learning and social experience, so join our community: come and be a SMART Learner!
SMART
LEARNING
11. 1211
TORONTO
As the weather has become
warmer, the Toronto campus has
been a hotbed of academic and
extracurricular endeavours.
In class, students have been
achieving a great number of skills
and were rewarded by their teachers
for their accomplishments, such as
teacher Sally’s awards ceremony.
Students also took part in Canadian
holidays such as Victoria Day and
Canada Day, learning more about
Canadian history while building
their English skills. They also took
their studies outside the classroom
with trips to the Ontario Provincial
Legislature at Queen’s Park and to
High Park, where TLG staff hosted
activities and picnics.
This season, we have seen lots
of students from countries like
Colombia and Italy, which has
increased student numbers and
created many great new friendships.
With other activities coming soon,
including trips to the Ontario
College of Art and outdoor mini-
golf, TLG Toronto staff and students
will enjoy their summer to the full!
12. 1312
LONDON
Students at TLG London have
been taking part in a huge range of
activities! They learned how to make
beer at the Brew Club and were able
to experiment with different flavours
and techniques. They also visited
iconic London areas, such as Notting
Hill (famous for its carnival and rock-
and-roll connections)and Hampstead
Village. Students also had fun on our
pub nights and by learning salsa from
Colombian students.
They also took an opportunity
to practise English at a Language
Exchange meeting at the Zoo Bar,
making friends along the way.
SMART Learning also played a part
in student activities, including a trip
to the park to learn about different
cultures. When the topic was health,
they visited Regent’s Park to play
rounders. When they were learning
about work and careers, they
prepared job adverts, wrote CVs,
and took part in practice job
interviews – all in English.
Well done to all our students!
