2014年2月28日金曜日

7 A woman doesn't have a good sense of direction.

Do you have a good sense of direction? I have none… The other day, I was asked to take participants of a seminar to a restaurant the event organizer booked in advance. Of course she gave me a map that said a detailed way to the restaurant. However, I totally misread the map and ended up taking them to the wrong place. I really envy a person who has a good sense of direction. 

Last Sunday, we finally held my son’s birthday party that had been put off because it had been snowing a lot and I couldn’t buy any groceries. I ordered a pizza delivery for that party, but the time I told the staff on the phone has been already passed. I went out to look around my house and found a biker wandering. I raised and waved my hand so that the biker could notice me. Although I thought the biker was a man, I realized it was a young girl who looked a high school student after taking off her helmet. Umm,,, it seems true that a woman tends to have a poor sense of direction. She murmured “Maybe it's only me who has been lost among the bikers who made a delivery.” I sympathized with her as if I was looking at myself. Anyway I was relieved that it didn't look like I was a backseat driver. However, I don’t know if this attitude came from the sympathy that I felt with a person who didn’t have a good of direction or if I was just hungry.



sense of direction・・・方向感覚
ordered a pizza delivery・・・宅配ピザを注文した
murmured・・・つぶやいた
backseat driver・・・おせっかい

2014年2月27日木曜日

Hackers TOEIC 1000 LRに挑戦(第1回)

Hackers TOEIC 1000 LC
Hackers TOEIC 1000 RC
第一回目にチャレンジしました。




やった感想

む・・・難しい。
リスニングが特に・・・。今回リスニングが満点を目指す人の間違え方じゃない・・・。
選択肢の言い換え表現が普通のTOEICより難しい気がしました。

リスニング(中は間違えた問題番号)

Part1 9/10 (9)
Part2 30/30
Part3 24/30 (44,54,58,62,65,70)
Part4 25/30 (71,84,88,96,99)

計 88/100 12問間違え

リーディング(中は間違えた問題番号)

Part5 33/8
Part6 10/12
Part7 42/47

計 86/100 15問間違え


Part5 Review (ネタバレ注意。まだ解いてない人は見ないでくださいね)

102 You can find other useful information......

あり得ない・・・
manyを選んでしまいました。
many/a fewは可算名詞にくっつきます。

106 a new office complex situated at the corner of Orchard Road and Scotts street.

situated at 、前置詞をきちんと連ねて覚えねば。

108 the highest critical ratings of any establishment in the region.....

of any establishmentは「どの建物の中でも」と範囲指定がある。
そのため、the highestと最上級を用いる。
of any establishmentを見逃したミス。

118 As software program become obsolete so quickly these days,,,,

becomeをwas becomingにしてしまった。。。
他の選択肢にbecameがあったため、過去形を選ぶべきか進行形を選ぶべきか迷い、
結局進行形を選ぶが・・・・
these daysは「最近」の意味で、現在形と一緒に使いいますよね。

recentlyは過去形・現在完了と一緒に使うので、使い分けを覚えねば~。

130 The Labor Department has the list of congressmen....

良く読めば分かる問題・・・。the list of ~で、~のリスト。簡単なのに凡ミス~。

133 as she claimed it was not distinct enough to differentiate it from her other products.

なぜauthenticを選んでしまったのか・・・。
語彙問題はしっかり読まなきゃホントダメですね。


135 Applicants for the book reviewer position must be versatile enough to provide 
commentary on materials....

versatile で「多才な」の意味。語彙不足でした・・・。

138 During Transcomp's launch of its highly anticipated new mobile phone,......

anticipated new mobile phoneで、期待された新しい携帯電話。
anticipatedを見て、即動詞だと思い込んでしまい、whileを選択。

Part6 Review (ネタバレ注意。まだ解いてない人は見ないでくださいね)

147 Other prominent dignitaries are also expected to attend.

prominentで「有名な」。prominent dignitariesで「有名な高位の人」って感じかな。

152 Thank you for your patience and consideration as we go through this transition this summer.

dress codeの変更の話だったので、「この夏に移行を行う事に対し、、、、」って感じですよね。
つい、innovationを選んでしまいました。



まだまだ満点までの道のりは遠いようです(泣)
地道に頑張ります!


※もし、「ここを解説してほしい」という個所があればコメントをください。
私なりにお役にたてるように解説してみます※



2014年2月23日日曜日

佐藤可士和の”伝える”努力とは

みなさん、こんにちわ。
英語講師のMiakiです。

みなさんは、人とのコミュニケーションにおいて努力している事はありますか?
努力していないなら、あなたの言葉は相手にとって「なかったこと」と同然かもしれません。

昨日見たテレビは、
2013年8月8日放送された、アートデザイナーの佐藤可士和さんのビジネスストーリー。
(どんだけ撮り溜めしてんだって話)

佐藤可士和さんは、セブンアンドアイやツタヤ、ユニクロや楽天など、勝ち組企業を「アート」という分野で支え、関わるプロジェクトで次々と成功を収めている人。

仕事を請け負った企業の製品だけではなく、その歴史や魅力を深く分析し、
その企業の潜在力をアートを通して最大限に引き出している。

そんな可士和さんの発した言葉で最も印象的だったのは、

「人に伝わっていないものは、存在していないのと同じ。」

という強い言葉。

つまりは・・・

どんなにいい製品を作っていようが、
知られていなければ無いものと同じ、、、という事。

この言葉は講師業にも言えるような気がしてなりません。

どんなにスゴイ英語力を持っていても、
受講者がそれを理解できなければ、意味のない講義だ、、、という事。

受講者が心惹かれ、楽しむことができ、理解が進む講義でないと、
そこに立っている講師の存在は意味のないものだ、、、という事。

そこで可士和さんが奨励するコミュニケーションで大事な点は以下の4つ。

①人の話しをちゃんと聞く。
②相手の本意を読みとる。
③自分の考えを正確にまとめる。
④相手にわかりやすく伝える。
この4つ、当たり前の事だと思うけど、本当にできているだろうか・・・
人の話を途中で「分かった」と思い込んで話を進めてないか?
相手の本意を読み取る努力をしているか?
考えを整理するための時間をきちんと割いているか?
相手に分かりやすく伝える表現力を身につけているか?

講師にとってつくづく大事な4点です。心に留めておきたいと思います。

それにしても・・・
企業をデザインで企業を甦らせる事ができる可士和さん、スゴイな~と思うのですが、
どうしても・・・
「英語であそぼ」のケボはイマイチだったなぁ~と思ってしまうのでした。











(左がケボ)

2014年2月22日土曜日

6 How can you stick to your resolution?

Are you the type of person who always makes resolutions on New Year’s Day? If so, do you have the confidence to stick to it until the end of the year?

Around the end of last year, the doctor diagnosed my father with metabolic syndrome. He doesn’t look fat from outside, so he seemed very shocked. Since then, he has been on a diet. Reducing his weight is one of his resolutions. 

Actually, it is said that metabolic syndrome can be a sign of a future disease, so people diagnosed with metabolic syndrome should take a measure to lead well-regulated life with healthy food and moderate exercise To avoid increasing the budged for health care, the city office is sincerely addressing the issue to reduce the number of people with metabolic syndrome by holding some consulting events. 

My father went to this event and got some advice from a consultant in many aspects including food and exercise. From the following day, he decided to record his weight every morning. It seems that visualizing the number itself 
becomes a source of motivation. In fact, he said he could resist himself all day after he saw an unexpectedly heavy weight in the morning. As a result, he succeeded in reducing his weight by 3 kilograms. This has been a great success! 

I wanted to try this “recording diet” as soon as I heard of his success, but I already had difficulty making a habit of taking off my clothes and measuring my weight in the morning in the first place. Do you think it is because the scale is in a cold place or am I just lazy? 

 stick to it・・・やり遂げる
 he has been on a diet・・・彼はダイエットしている
well-regulated life・・・規則正しい生活
moderate exercise・・・適度な運動
 in many aspects・・・さまざまな面で
make a habit of・・・~の習慣を身につける
measure my weigh・・・体重を測る
in the first place・・・最初の段階で



2014年2月21日金曜日

5 Is it true that non-working mothers...?

I met my friends from my high school and held a farewell party for one of them who will be leaving here for Osaka in March. Actually,she was too busy to meet me. Then the time when we finally met was the last day before she leaves…!

Anyway, I really felt comfortable with people who have the same mind-set and the fundamental values of life.

We talked a lot about a wide range of topics like our lives, husbands, kids, educations and the problems our communities have. What I got interested in and  also scared about was non-working mothers I might meet in a kindergarten. Although we have a kind of prejudice again st non-working mothers because most of us are working mothers, one of my friends had difficulty having a healthy communication with them in her son’s kindergarten. 

According to her, (of course, I can’t judge whether it is true or not, though)it appears that non-working mothers tend to have self-confidence without any substantial reasons, which may come    from a small world where they are staying and which makes them narrow-minded. Furthermore, she said that they sometimes tended to go to the extreme of seeking personal advantages for their own sake with narrow and inflexible ideas. She said that they were the type of person who has a lack of consideration.

It may sound exaggerating, but part of me think this is one of the reasons why I stay busy working outside and want to be a person of good sense.

held a farewell party・・・お別れ会を開く
mind-set・・・考え方
fundamental values of life・・・人生の基本的な価値観
self-confidence・・・うぬぼれ
substantial reasons・・・根拠のある理由
narrow minded・・・狭い心
go to the extreme of seeking personal advantages for their own sake
・・・自分自身の利益のために極端に走る
part of me・・・心の片隅では

2014年2月19日水曜日

4 My friend's fabulous house!

A few weeks ago, I bought a house-warminggift and went to my friend’s house with my son, which was just built last year.

I’ve been very excited to visit her becauseI had heard how dedicated my friend was  to design a house. She has visited myhouse and saw the details there for her 
reference.

Before I went there, I was also a bit nervousbecause I had some concerns that my son might act out in a brand new house andspill drinks or food in a clean room.
Once I entered the house, I felt deludedinto thinking that I visited a classy restaurant. The neatly arranged furniture was sophisticated and the interior was designed to be   child-friendly, but it was not too childish and there was an atmosphere which also allows mothers to relax.

As soon as I sat on the sofa and started to play with my son and her daughter, she started to prepare lunch for us. She said that she was good at cooking but it didn’t take a long time to finish cooking regardless of cooking and chatting with me. 

I could see a good sense ofher taste on dishes, too. It looked like she had a similar taste in dishes tome. It was really rare for a mother to sit back and be served everything liked rinks, forks, and meals, of course. It was no wonder why I felt like I 
stayed at a restaurant.

My son also seemed relaxed and had a good time with her daughter. He didn’t do       anything I was afraid of.

On my way home, I was wondering how I could make warm atmosphere at my own house, too. I was unexpectedly affected a lot by her house and impressed with her thoughtful hospitality. It was needless to say that I started to look for new sophisticated      coffee cups for my prospective visitors. 

 I felt deluded into thinking ~であると勘違いしてしまう。

2014年2月17日月曜日

「朝イチでそっちに行く」って英語でなんて言う?


みなさんこんにちわ、英会話講師のMiakiです。


私がはまっているアメリカンドラマUgly Bettyから、
実際に使っていて、私たちも気軽に使えそうなフレーズをご紹介します。

日本語を読み、それを英語ではどのように表現するかを考えてみましょうね。
太っちゃうよ!
I’ll get fat!
あなたが太ろうが関係ないわ!
It doesn’t matter if you’re fat or not!
Itdoesn’t matterだけでも良く使いますね。
「たいして重要じゃないわよ」って事です。
朝イチでそっちに行きます!
I’llbe there first thing in the morning.
モデルが1人来なかったんだ。彼女の代役が本当に必要なんだ。
One ofour models didn’t show up. We really need someone to stand in for her.
standin for~は「~の代役を務める」という意味。



「ふ~ん、そう言うんだぁ」で終わらせるのではなく、
数回口ずさんでみましょうね!

自分のモノにするには、声に出すのが一番です。

頑張ってくださいね!
私も頑張ります。

2014年2月16日日曜日

3 Masahiro Tanaka singed a deal worth $155million.

I saw the news on TV which said thatMasahiro Tanaka, who is a Japanese baseball player, signed a seven-year deal with New York Yankees. The deal is worth $155 million, which made every Japanese peoplesurprised. He said “They gave me the highest evaluation.”.

In 2013, he leaded his team to Japan Seriestitles. I’m not familiar with baseball at all, but I know that he has beenconsidered one of great players since he was a rookie.
 
Although I don’t know much about him, it said that he was still 25 years old. I really don’t know how  
talkativebaseball players are or how good their speeches are.I don’t mean thatsports players are reticent. However, I was really impressed with his reply tothe media. He clearly answered each question from the numerous media reporters surrounding him in a regal and calm way. He seemed like a determined, articulate       person and more mature than he actually is. As you might know, he got married with aJapanese idol last year. It was sometimes  clear that the media induced him to talk about his private life with her, asking “What dishes do you want her to cook in New York?”. He displayed his firm attitude and said “Everything is welcome as long as these dishes are eatable edible.”
 
There was one thing I was a bit concernedabout. He said “ I can’t speak English, but it would be enough to play well”.Does he really think it is not necessary to speak English despite the fact thathe works with American team mates? I’ve heard that there was a Japanese baseball player who failed to succeed in a major league of America. Was it a lack of his physical skills? The answer is “NO”. One of his team mates said“Whenever I spoke with him, I felt like I was talking with his interpreter nothim.” How can we build the strong relationships with others without eyecontacts? How can we earn others' trust without conveying  your feeling     personally?
 
Of course, he is a baseball player not businessperson who need to discuss at a meeting or negotiate a      price or something. He is not necessarily required to improve English. Still if he values the relationships with his teammates who might support his play, I believe he should be aware of the importance of a language used in America.

signed a seven-year deal 7年契約
rookie. 新人
reticent 無口な
in a regal and calm way 堂々として落ち着いて
articulate person きっぱりしている人
induce him to ~  彼を~させようと誘惑する
earn others' trust 他人の信頼を得る

2014年2月14日金曜日

2 This is a professional manner

I and my husband went to hardware store near my house to have a look at some bikes for our two year old son a few weeks ago. I picked up a bike, which lookedsuitable for him, and asked the owner in a bike department to adjust the seat.I asked him “Do you think this bike is appropriate for him? Is it too big forhim?”.

 I got an unexpected reply from him. He said “I think you should go tosecondhand store. New one would be waste of money.”, explaining that we willneed to buy bigger one for our son only a couple years later and used one wouldbe enough for kids.

Theowner looked awkward and unfriendly first because his words sounded like I wasnot allowed to buy anything here. I remained silence for a while as if I made awrong decision to come here.

However,I came to know what he was getting at. As he said, my son doesn’t need to buy abrand-new bike because we just expect him to know not how to “ride” but how to “sit”on the bike as a first step.

Aweek later, my husband and I went to a secondhand store and found a good one.The used bike looked almost brand new and it was more than enough for my son.In addition, the price is at half price of new one!!

NowI really appreciate that he suggests me go to a secondhand store without chasingonly his profit. I really thank his professional manner. 

hardware store:(日本でいう)ホームセンター
secondhand store:リサイクルショップ
more than enough:十分すぎる
chasing only his profit:利益を追い求める

2014年2月12日水曜日

「取ってきてくれる?」を英語でなんて言う?

みなさんこんにちわ、英会話講師のMiakiです。


私がはまっているアメリカンドラマUgly Bettyから、
実際に使われている、TOEICで出てきそうな表現をお届けします。

社内でも使えるように言い換え表現も載せてみました。
ぜひ、まずは日本語を読み、英作文してから答えを見てくださいね


みんな会議室にいるわよ。ダニエルが初めてのミーティングを始めるところよ。
Everyone’sin the conference room, and Daniel’s about to start his first meeting.
 
is about toは「もう少しで~するところ」の意味。

言い換え表現でGO私の上司がミーティングを今始めるところなんです。
➤Myboss is about to start his meeting now!
 
 
あぁ、人事で書類を記入してたんです。
Oh,I was filling out paper in HR.

fill outは「記入する」の意味。

言い換え表現でGO:すぐに人事で書類を記入する必要があるわよ。
➤Youshould need to fill out paper in HR right now.
 
素晴らしく才能があり、献身的なスタッフと仕事ができるなんてとても嬉しいよ。
I can’t tell you how excited I am to be working with such an amazingly talented 
and dedicated staff.

I can't tell you how excited I amは「どんなに興奮してるかって、言い表せないくらいだよ」ってことです。

言い換え表現でGO:重役に昇進したなんて、とても嬉しいよ。
➤I can't tell you how excited I am to get promoted to an executive position.
 
 
PDAを会議室に忘れたんだ。取ってきてくれる?
I left PDA in the conference room. Can you grab that for me?
 
leftはこの場合「置いていく」の意味。
grabは「手に入れる」の意味。
Whydon’t we grab some beer before seeing movies?みたいに
「ビールを飲む」という時にも使えます。


言い換え表現でGO:ジャケットを会議室に置いてきちゃった。
➤I left my jacket inthe conference room.
 

お役に立ちましたか?ぜひぜひ数回口に出してみてください。

今日は宮崎駿の言葉で締めくくります。
--------------------------------------------

面倒くさいっていう自分の気持ちとの戦いなんだよ。
何が面倒くさいって究極に面倒くさいよね。
『面倒くさかったらやめれば?』『うるせえな』って、そういうことになる。

世の中の大事なことってたいてい面倒くさいんだよ。
面倒くさくないところで生きていると、面倒くさいのはうらやましいなと思うんです

--------------------------------------------

 では、みなさん頑張りましょう。私も頑張ります!

2014年2月9日日曜日

TOEIC結果を次に活かそう


TOEICの結果が届いたけど・・・
「このAbilities Measuredって何?」と思い、「ふ~ん・・・ポイ」と
2,3秒見つめて終わり!になってませんか?

せっかくお金を払ってTOEICを受けたのにそれではモッタイナイ~!

もし皆さんがこれからTOEICを受け続け、スコアアップを目指したいのなら、
きっちりこのAbilities Measured(以下:アビメ)を分析して次につなげましょう。

例えばこのアビメ。










L1(Part1と2の間接的な表現):77%          R1(主にPart7):59%
L2(Part3と4の間接的な表現):84%          R2(Part7):56%
L3(Part1と2の直接的な表現):72%          R3(Part6,):58%
L4(Part3と4の直接的な表現):82%                    R4(Part5,6):81%
                                                                  R5(Part5,6):83%

Listening:370点
Reading:320点

合計690点

という結果です。

私がざっくり診断すると、

Listeningでは・・・

Part1,2より、Part3,4の方が若干強い。
Part1,2では、集中力が切れてしまっている可能性がある。
Part3,4のようなストーリーがある方が英語を追いやすい。
Part3,4では先読みできている可能性が高い。

という事。

Readingでは・・・

語彙力、文法力ともに80%以上なので、英語の基礎的能力は確実にある。
Part7で時間をなくして慌てて適当に塗り絵した可能性が高い。
Part5,6で時間を費やし過ぎた可能性がある。

という事。

もし、このような結果の人にアドバイスできるなら、
下記のようなアドバイスになります。↓

=============================

基礎的な力は十分あります。
そのため、継続して勉強すれば伸びる事は間違いないでしょう。

もし、短時間でスコアを伸ばす必要があるなら、
Part5、6にかける時間を20分と厳守し、20分の中で正解数を多く得られるよう、
常に時間を意識した勉強をしましょう。

Part7でもう少し時間を得られるだけで、Part7は確実にスコアを伸ばし、
それが全体へのスコアアップにつながるでしょう。

そもそも、こんなにあ基礎力があるのに、Part7でこんなに落としていてモッタイナイ・・・。
もっと取れるはずです。

また、リスニングに関しては、
Part2で一番簡単なWH疑問文を落としている可能性があります。
(L3が平均より低く、72%と一番低いパーセンテージなので)。

冒頭でどんな疑問詞が言われているのか確実にキャッチできるように練習しましょう。
この種類の問題は基礎的な力がある人にとっては一番伸びやすい問題なので、
確実はスコアアップが望めると思います。

=============================

いかがでしたか?

こんな感じで分析できます。

もし、アビメの見方でお困りの方がいればコメントで結果をお伝えください。
私なりの分析をさせていただければ嬉しいです。