What is the definition for success of an English program for teens? CISL’s 2016 Junior Program at Georgetown!

This summer, students from around the world came together for an incredible experience: living and studying English on the beautiful campus of Georgetown University. Students lived in the dorms of the historic campus, studied English Monday through Friday, and spent the afternoons and weekends exploring charming Georgetown and surrounding areas, such as Washington, D.C. What fun!

Several students offered their opinion of the highlights from the trip. Basak Ozcan, from Turkey, said the following:

“Our daily program was amazing, also we had a lot of options to spend our free time to enjoy the campus.  Froyo, the movie theatre, Yale bookstore, and coffee shops were very close to the campus (which is important for coffee addicts like me). Everybody was so sincere and helpful. We all learned [about] new cultures through our friendships!”

Thanks, Basak! Coffee culture is indeed a huge part of American culture: if you’re a coffee addict, check out our article on Cafes in S.F to learn a little about some of the latest coffee trends.

Our Activities Coordinator put together a wonderful slideshow of photos from this summer. Check it out! In addition, be sure to check out our CISL video about the Junior Program at Georgetown.

Student Yuto Omachi, from Japan, sums up the experience perfectly: “Everything was awesome.” What more could we ask from our CISL Junior Program students?

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There are many English camps for teens in the United States: why choose one of CISL’s Junior Programs? CISL’s camps provide more than just English training and a chance to study in the U.S. Learn why CISL is the best choice for an ESL camp in the U.S. for your teenage son or daughter.

6 Reasons to Study with CISL’s Junior Programs

A Trusted and Established School  

Converse International School of Languages has been providing English instruction since 1972. CISL’s more than 45 years of experience shows in its relationships with partners, its curriculum, its teacher training, and its student services. CISL is also fully accredited and is a Certified Cambridge Testing Centre for the Certificate of Advanced English (CAE) and First Certificate Exam (FCE).

Prime Study Locations

CISL’s Juniors Programs are offered at some of the most beautiful college campuses and cities in the United States. Students have both East Coast and West Coast options. On the East Coast, students can choose Yale University or Georgetown University, two schools with a rich history and beautiful campuses. On the West Coast, students have their choice of three of the most beautiful locations in California: San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Francisco (Berkeley). While many people are familiar with UC Berkeley (one of the highest-ranked universities in the world), few people outside of the U.S. are familiar with Loyola Marymount University (Los Angeles) or the University of San Diego. Both are private Catholic schools with some of the most beautiful campuses in the United States (and both offer beautiful views and incredible facilities).

CISL offers two options when it comes to accommodations: on-campus dorms, or a host family residential stay. If students would prefer to stay with a host family, they may choose CISL’s San Diego Homestay program. This allows students to practice English with an American family and learn more about the day-to-day life of Americans.

Effective and Engaging Curriculum

Each of CISL’s programs focuses on improving students’ English skills. However, CISL goes above and beyond by also providing curriculum that improves student leadership skills and the ability to communicate in English in regard to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).

Focus on American Culture

With CISL’s programs, students have the chance to participate in Cultural Workshops. These workshops, which are 1.5 hours long, introduce students to aspects of American culture. Students learn more about American history and community, providing them with an enriching experience in the country they call “home” for several weeks.

Fun Activities (Every Day!)

CISL provides activities every day of the week. Students have the opportunity to participate in physical activities, such as sporting events; relaxing events, such as beach days or shopping days; cultural activities, such as museum visits and neighborhood tours, and half-day and full-day excursions to surrounding areas such as New York and Boston (East Coast programs) and LA and San Diego (West Coast programs). Students who study in California also have the option of one-week “Best of Southwest” and “California Coast” trips.

Qualified and Dedicated Instructors

CISL’s 45 years of English instruction shows in its teachers, who are qualified not only to work with English learners but are also experienced working with the teenage demographic. In the CISL classroom (which never has more than 10 students), the teacher has the opportunity to work with each student individually, improving his or her confidence as a young adult while also improving his or her English skills.

To learn more about CISL’s Junior Programs, visit the CISL Junior Program website or contact CISL.  

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In honor of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, we have some turkey-related idioms that are sure to make you laugh!

Cold Turkey

Stop something immediately.

Some people quit smoking by smoking less and less each day until eventually, they do not smoke any cigarettes at all. Not me. I quit cold turkey. 

Have you ever quit anything? How did you do it? Did you do it cold turkey?

Go Cold Turkey

To stop something immediately.

This idiom is similar to the above idiom, but the addition of the verb “go” means that you can use it without the verbs “stop” or “quit”, like in the first idiom.

To quit smoking, I went cold turkey.

My New Year’s Resolution is to go cold turkey on coffee. 

Talk Turkey

To talk business; to talk honestly and opening instead of saving one’s feelings or true opinions.

Let’s be honest, this new project is not working. Let’s talk turkey about what we can do to change things.

To Gobble Something Up

To eat something quickly.

The sound that turkeys make is often called a “gobble.” When you “gobble something up,” you eat it very quickly.

I gobbled up that pie. It was so delicious!

We would like to wish each of our students a Happy Thanksgiving!

Turkey photo from http://www.wattagnet.com/.

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Will you be studying English in California during the winter? Experience the holidays, Southern California style! Whether you are on the state’s white sandy beaches or in the Sierra Nevada mountains, you can have a “white” Christmas in California.

Christmas in California: 5 Holiday Traditions to Experience 

See Disneyland at Christmastime

Disneyland is known for decorating its park beautifully for all of the major holidays: pink and red for Valentine’s Day, red, white, and blue for the 4th of July, and fun Halloween decorations during October. But the park really goes all out in December, when Disneyland is transformed into a beautiful winter wonderland. Don’t miss it!

Disneyland is not the only place that decorates itself beautifully for the holidays: San Francisco’s Union Square is also famous for its gorgeous decor. In San Diego, check out Balboa Park, the ornaments and decorations will put you in the festive mood!

Watch a harbor boat parade

Boats decorated with Christmas lights? What a way to celebrate the holidays! The ocean is of course a large part of California culture, so it makes sense that boat owners decorate their boats during December. Check to see if your city is hosting a boat parade and spend the evening watching the floating decorations!

Meet a surfing Santa

When there isn’t snow, Santa must find another way to visit the children: in California, it’s by surfboard! Your friends and family at home will have a laugh when they see you with a sunglass-wearing Santa. A true California-style Christmas!

Go Christmas caroling

Have you learned all of the traditional Christmas songs? It’s a great way to improve your English! After learning them, find some friends and go Christmas caroling. It is a fun way to spend an evening! If you don’t know how to organize Christmas caroling, check out our article on this activity.

Make a “Sand Snowman”

If you can’t go to Big Bear or Lake Tahoe during December, do not worry: you can make a snowman without snow! Make sure to put sunglasses on your finished piece of art, and tag us at #CISLChristmas.

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Do you want to study English? Have you always dreamed of visiting the United States? If so, keep reading.

According to Research Gate, a professional network for scientists and researchers, ‘enhanced communication skills in English can result to not only an improved social life, but also better job opportunities in the future’. In this blog, we cover the top 10 reasons to study English in the US in 2019.

So You Want to Study English in the US?

If you were born in a country where English is not your native language, at some point you have probably considered learning it. Learning English not only opens up more opportunities, but it can help you earn more money and make travelling overseas easier and more enjoyable.

Studying English in Your Home Country is Hard

You also may have tried learning English in your home country and found that its hard to force yourself to practice when the majority of people around you are not speaking it. Choosing to study English in the US, not only solves this problem, but you receive the added bonus of sightseeing, taking a fun summer holiday, making new friends and learning an essential language all at the same time.  

Study English During Summer

With summer right around the corner, a very popular option if you are 13-17 years old is a summer camp program for juniors or teens. In these types of programs, you get opportunities like:

• Living and studying at some of the most prestigious and beautiful campuses in the U.S.
• Small classes to ensure more speaking time and individual attention
• Programs that focus on speaking, the arts, test preparation strategies, STEM subject introduction, and leadership topics
• Diverse classrooms with students from around the world
• Activities and day excursions that immerse students in American culture
• And more!

Still Not Convinced on Why You Should Study English?

If you are still not convinced on why you should study English in the US this summer, below are the top 10 reasons:

1. It’s the official language in 67 different countries, as well as 27 non-sovereign entities: Originating in Germany and Britain – the British Empire helped to spread English around the world during the 18th and 19th centuries. This is why many of the countries where English is an official language currently are or were British colonies.
2. It’s the 2nd most commonly spoken language in the world: Taking a very close second place after Mandarin, there are about 900 million English speakers around the world. This includes around 300 million native speakers and around 600 million non-native speakers.
3. It’s the language of media and entertainment industries: Knowing English allows you to enjoy TV, movies, books, music, theater and more without the need for translation or subtitles.
4. It’s the language of science and aviation: About 98% of scientific articles published today are in English and its the international language of civil aviation. With the expansion of air travel in the 20th century, there were safety concerns about the ability of pilots and air traffic controllers to communicate as miscommunication has been the cause of many aviation accidents.
5. It’s the language of the Internet: About 55% of online content is in English, equating to about half of the homepages of the most visited websites on the World Wide Web, with varying amounts of information available in other languages.
6. Meet the locals and make new friends: Living and studying English in the US gives you a chance to not only learn English, but you get to practice it on a daily basis everywhere you go! Chatting with locals helps you to not only learn the slang and casual language that different Americans use throughout the US, but you might just make some new life long friendships in the process.
7. Prepare for University: If you have ever thought about trying to get into University in the US, this is a perfect way to get ready! There are options to actually live and study at some of the US’s most prestigious schools and you HAVE to know English to get accepted.
8. Learn about American culture and create lifelong memories: When you choose to study English in the US, you will be immersed not only in the language, but you will quickly learn about the culture, food, entertainment and more. Whether it’s visiting California beaches, iconic American cities, or getting some history in at The Capitol in Washington D.C., you can take advantage of your free time and create an unforgettable experience of a lifetime.
9. You will become more desirable to employers: Being fluent in a second language clearly demonstrates motivation, intelligence and reflects someone who has put in the large amount of time, resources and commitment to master another language. This looks AMAZING on resumes.
10. You will become smarter! Being bilingual makes you smarter and it can have a profound effect on your brain, improving cognitive skills and can even shield against dementia in old age.

If you have made it to the end of this blog, you must be serious about a summer camp program in the US to study English! Learn more here or watch video testimonials from a summer English camp program at Georgetown University here.

You can also click on the image below. 

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