How do you wish someone an enjoyable holiday season? There is a debate in the United States about whether to say “Happy Holidays” or “Merry Christmas.” Why such a debate? Today we are looking at the idea of being “politically correct” in language. “Politically correct” means that you choose language that does not offend anyone...
Today on the CISL Blog, we continue our look at each of the tenses in the English language by learning the Simple Future. To practice, we will take a look at the Gaslamp Quarter’s plans for 2014. There are two ways to express the Simple Future, which makes it unique (the Simple Present and Simple...
This October, we are continuing our series on all of the tenses of the English language by studying the Present Perfect. (To master this tense, make sure to check out our grammar post about the tense!) What better way to practice tenses than by seeing these tenses used in song? A great example of a...
At CISL, we are continuing our series on the 12 tenses in the English language with the tense of the month: Present Perfect. If you haven’t already checked out our first installments in this series, make sure to read up on the Simple Present, Present Continuous, Simple Past, and Past Continuous! This lesson also features...
One of the most common questions CISL students ask their teachers is how to respond to casual greetings. How do you respond when a friend asks “How’s it going?” Or what about when you enter a store and the friendly salesperson asks, “How are you doing today?” With these questions in mind, we have provided...
Converse International School of Languages is proud to offer an intensive TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) test preparation course. Are you planning on taking the test soon? The following are a few tips from a CISL San Diego instructor who specializes in the TOEFL course. Good luck to our students taking the...
The Hillcrest Farmer’s Market in San Diego was voted the best market in San Diego. But what makes this market so special? Discover what makes this market so unique, and you just might make it a Sunday tradition while you are studying English in San Diego! What makes the Hillcrest market so special? Of course,...
Bodega Bay, a five-mile wide inlet of the Pacific Ocean located 40 miles north San Francisco, is a popular getaway for Northern Californians. Between the water and land activities, the adorable town of Bodega Bay and its many shops, and the proximity to many vineyards, there seems to be something for everyone at Bodega Bay!...
7 students, 5 Drivers from 4 different countries, 3 States, 1 Van, All in One Weekend Adventure! Students at CISL San Francisco work hard during the week and plan exciting weekend getaways to enjoy the U.S. as much as possible. I spoke with Thais, a long-term student from Brazil, one Monday morning during Break time...
Students often ask what the differences are between British and American English. Simply put, there are numerous differences between British and American English: so many, in fact, that there are different dictionaries for each language! In addition to different vocabularies, there are different pronunciations and even different grammar for British and American English. To give...
