CR Conversation Partners: julio 2009

Week One: Food

You will start your first session by getting to know the volunteers who will be working with you, and telling them a little about yourself (Where do you live? Where are you from? What do you do? How have you learned English/Spanish? What brought each of you to Costa Rica/to this conversation group?) Then, you'll dive into this tasty first topic: food. Possible discussions include your favorite foods, food-related traditions in your family, or special places to dine out. You might even exchange recipes, or restaurant recommendations!

Week Three: Community

Week Six: Your Identity as a Language Learner

¡Hola! ¿Como está? In this program, pretty much all of us are language learners, whether of English, Spanish, or another language! Why is learning a language important to you? What helps and hinders your learning? Do you like to be corrected frequently, or to work freely on your fluency? Do you like to read and study in your free time, or is that unrealistic for you? Discuss these issues together - and discuss what your partner would like to focus on and achieve as these conversation sessions continue. This is a great time to find out more about your partner's goals and preferences.

Beyond Week Ten: A Menu of Topics

Travel

Travel is something everyone loves to do, wither it's here in Costa Rica or to a far away place. There are so many ways to travel, such as by car, bus, plane or ship, and all are fun. Some people hate to fly, some hate the water, and some love it all. To get conversation started, have group members bring in photos or mementoes from a favorite trip; a map of Costa Rica to spark memories of great travel moments; guidebooks, or a travel story from The Tico Times. Is anyone in the group taking a trip soon within Costa Rica? Help that person plan their trip!

Shopping

Shopping is something we all have to do for some reason or another, even if we hate to shop. Some hate shopping for certain things like for a car, or furniture, clothes, groceries - and then you have the "addict shopper" who loves to shop for anything and everything. Which shopping personality are you? Do you have any shopping horror stories? What are your favorite places around town to shop? If possible, the whole conversation group can take a field trip to a nearby supermarket or other store - a goldmine for new vocabulary!

Pets

Most people love pets whither they own one or not, such as dogs, cats, birds or reptiles. Do you own a pet, or did you have a pet as a child? How have your pets shaped or changed your life? How do you feel about having your pets spayed or neutered? Other activities involving this topic include brainstorming names of pets you've known throughout your life and talking about the meaning, to build some wacky vocab - Max? Fluffernutter? Sparky? - and looking at photos of group members' prized pets.

Gardening

Costa Rica is a paradise for gardeners, but most take it for granted because you throw a twig on the ground and it grows. Whither you are growing orchids or the lowly impatient, it is easy and fun. Do you do gardening or or do you just have potted plants? Do you grow vegetables or yard plants? If you don't garden, do you dream of having one someday? This topic is a great source of new vocab (fruit, vegetables, plants common in Costa Rica, and other countries). Residents might bring in photos of mystery plants they've seen around their neighborhood, so the group can help explain what they are; or talk about recipes for some of those special fruits and vegetables that are unique to Costa Rica.

About Our Program

Welcome to Costa Rica Multilingüe's Community Conversation Program! As you can see, this page includes updates and news about our project, which is working with English-speaking residents to create English conversation groups all over the country. It also includes (in the column at the right) our weekly topics and conversation questions. If you're new to our program, please download our Handbook, which should answer your questions - or write us at volunteer@casapres.go.cr so we can put you on our mailing list for weekly updates. Link to download the handbook: http://www.4shared.com/file/114109773/9e28dd09/Resident_Volunteer_Program_Handbook_for_Conversation_Partners.html. To learn more about Costa Rica Multilingüe, download our annual report: http://www.4shared.com/file/114116532/ebc4c513/Informe_Anual-versin_final.html

CR Conversation Partners

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viernes, 24 de julio de 2009

La Nación Reports on Community Conversations!

A photo from our San Pedro conversation group!

A photo from the Cañas conversation group!

Article in weekly bulletin of Casa Presidencial

Archivo del blog

Week One: Food

Get prepared: hungry yet?

Above and Beyond

Week Two: Family

Family Questions

Above & Beyond

Week Three: Community

Community Topics

Above and Beyond

Week Four: Friends and Socializing

Friendship Questions

Above and Beyond

Week Five: Entertainment

Entertainment Questions

Above and Beyond

Week Six: Your Identity as a Language Learner

Identity Questions

Above and Beyond

Week Seven: Holidays

Holiday Questions

Above & Beyond

Week Eight: Clothes & Fashion

Clothes & Fashion Questions

Above & Beyond

Week Nine: Cities

Cities Questions

Above & Beyond

Week Ten: Health

Health Questions

Above & Beyond

Beyond Week Ten: A Menu of Topics

Travel

Shopping

Pets

Gardening

Links for More Conversation Ideas and Materials

About Our Program

Links to Independent Practice