The Plot

At Atlantic Union College, on December 3, 2009, there will be a fascinating panel discussion on the origin and demise of dinosaurs. The topic is based a new book written by Wellington Aguiar called The Plot.

The Plot's book launching will be held at Atlantic Union College on December 13, 2009

All are invited. Don't miss it!

Washington vs. Westinghouse

I spent some time at the Academy of the Pacific Rim Charter School in Hyde Park, Massachusetts just on the outskirts of Boston.

There was a big college fair there, and I went to cover for a colleague. My directions gave an address of One Washington Plaza. I spent about an hour searching, asking, and guessing where it might be. Finally, I ran into a couple of APR graduates who hopped in my car and guided me there. The address was One Westinghouse Plaza! What a difference one word can make... A good lesson for a teacher!

The school was very nice, as schools go. It was located in a refitted Westinghouse factory. The people were friendly and gave me a great spot to join the fun. I also met some quality young people. They were impressive in their seriousness and maturity.

New Books

This semester we are using some new books call Quest

Reading & Writing


Listening & Speaking

A New Semester

What a wonderful summer it was! I did a lot of local traveling and spent a lot of time with my family. We went camping several times, and did a lot of swimming, but I never took my sailboat out! It is all just a memory now...

I found this student waiting outside the first day of class.



We have a nice group of students this semester, and I think we are going to enjoy studying English together!



Here is what it looked like yesterday about 5:00 in the afternoon at the English Language Institute. I guess our crab apple tree needs to be pruned!

ADP is Underway

AUC Skype English

One of the things that I enjoy doing is spending time on the internet. There is so much to learn and discover there. I have recently begun to understand the idea of harnessing the power of new technologies to improve language learning.

In doing that I have also discovered that it is possible to deliver good, solid language instruction through a variety of web 2.0 technology. Some of the stuff you can use is listed below.

Play around with these technologies and you will see what is possible! If you would like me to show you how to do it, just email me and we can schedule something.

Tears No More

This has become my favorite song. It is called Nunca mais as lagrimas and it is in Portuguese. It literally means, tears no more.

The harmonies are absolutely phenomenal and the arrangement is just stunning. I hope you enjoy this blessing, too!

My Language Learning Re-Education Continues

When I was in college, we had videos and some language laboratories to practice our German and French, but there is just no comparison to what is out there today regarding language learning and technology.



Over the last year or so, I have been learning more about teaching languages with technology. I had heard about Second Life from a colleague, so in April 2008 at the TESOL Convention in New York City, I attended a few presentations on SL. Just a few weeks later, my quest led me to St. Petersburg, Florida for the CIBER Business Language Conference there. That was an absolutely fantastic one. So, I kept learning more and more.



I continued playing and researching on the web. I attended the SLanguages 2008 teaching conference within Second Life and got hooked. I have since attended SLanguages 2009 in May, and just a few weeks ago the NCFLRC Language Teacher Education Conference in Washington, D.C.

So, I am developing a group of tools to use in my teaching as well as some ESL Teacher mentors that are doing some of the things I would like to do with my students.

Here are some cool tools...
secondlife.com
talkshoe.com
skrbl.com
yugma.com

Here are some cool teachers...
Nik Peachey
Jennifer Lebedev

This is what the future looks like...

June 2009 Open House

All Open Houses at AUC are fun, but this past Sunday's was really great. I got to debut my new song "The AUC Admissions Song", and I met some really neat people. Several decided that they want to study with us. That is a blessing.

Here are a couple of shots...

Dr. Saturne's Welcome


Some Professors

(left to right) Natural Sciences Department Chair, Dr. Richard Brown; Art Professor Master, Wayne Hazen; Adult Degree Program Director, Dorothy Page

One of AUC's Finest


Everybody together, now!

Language Teachers Conference

I love going to conferences. It is like going back to school. You learn a lot and meet interesting people.



Preparing Language Teachers for the 21st Century: Sixth International Conference on Language Teacher Education will be held at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. this weekend.

It will be just a few blocks away from the White House. This is where I grew up, so it will be nice to see my old stomping grounds. I will be in the Nation's Capital for the conference on Friday only. After that, I will be visiting my brother and sister and their families in Ocean City, Maryland.

Did I mention that the 3 best reasons to become a teacher are June, July, and August?

Pastor Eduardo & The GNYC Luso-Brazilians

I spent Memorial Day Weekend at Camp Berkshire in New York. It was a Campmeeting for the Luso-Brazilian Adventist churches in the New York region. I made an incredible discovery...

Pastor Eduardo!



A few shots...

My Boys


Making Friends


Pastor Claudio Vilela (my friend)


Pastor Eduardo waiting to play soccer


My Beautiful Wife with Nick


Down to the River


Claudio says hi


The Cabin where we stayed


Barkhamstead Reservoir, Barkhamstead, Connecticut

Igreja Adventista Luso-Brasileira de New York

This weekend, I will be at the Greater New York Conference Luzo-Brazilian Campmeeting at Camp Berkshire in Wingdale, New York.

The camp is located in a gorgeous place, and the drive through Western Connecticut is one of the most beautiful in New England. I love back roads. The highway, although faster, just reminds me of city stress. Here is some more info on the Brazilian Church in New York...



The leader of this church is Pastor Claudio Vilela. I met him a few years ago when he brought one of his daughters to study at AUC. He is a wonderful man. Here is his church website. It is awesome!

Meet Gordon

Gordon studied Spanish with me this semester by independent study. He is currently in Nicaragua on a mission trip preaching for 2 weeks straight. There is a nice group from AUC there with one of our theology professors, Dr. Francy Duran.

Read more details here!

This is their hotel in Nicaragua...

Summer 2009 Begins!

Yesterday, was another beautiful graduation day at Atlantic Union College. We celebrated the achievements of our wonderful students all weekend as well. I attended a nice party Saturday night, and my kids enjoyed it, too!



I hope you have a chance to come to AUC this summer. There will be a lot of good stuff going on. Summer classes begin today!

The AUC Primer - Episode 1

This little talk/podcast is an introduction to Atlantic Union College that I am working on.