Learning Strategies

Recent Posts - page 37

• At least somebody appreciates teachers!

  By ljd42 on March 9, 2021

  

  For the last few months it has seemed that nobody in Massachusetts appreciates teachers (I’m talking to you in particular, Governor Baker). But then I spotted this sign on someone’s front lawn during my walk today. It is on Msgr…. Read More ›

• Ashmont Grill yet again

  By ljd42 on March 8, 2021

  

  Last night it was once again time for Barbara and me to enjoy takeout from our favorite local restaurant, the Ashmont Grill! Of course takeout is not the same—either gastronomically or socially—as dining in, and it’s not warm enough yet… Read More ›

• Do you speak Abruzzese? What is that? Can I understand any of it if you say something in Abruzzese? Is it a language? a dialect of Italian? a dialect of Neapolitan? Or have you never even heard of it?

  By ljd42 on March 6, 2021

  

  This great video will repay your close attention! And it does demand close attention. Also, you should definitely turn on closed captioning, unless you happen to be fluent in Catalan, French, Latin, and Spanish. And of course you’ll be listening… Read More ›

• FUE (Frequently Used Emojis)

  By ljd42 on March 4, 2021

  

  Apparently I am the only person in the world who has trouble with emojis. I find, at least as they are usually used, that they are too small for me to pick out the details. Most of the facial expressions… Read More ›

• Code-switching, code-meshing, and linguistic bias in the classroom

  By ljd42 on March 2, 2021

  

  Catherine Savini has an interesting piece in a recent issue of Inside Higher Ed. Although it’s aimed at college professors, it applies equally well to secondary educators. The issue is a familiar one: how to respond to students who don’t speak or… Read More ›

• A Place for Everything

  By ljd42 on February 28, 2021

  

  Yes, the title of the book is A Place for Everything. No, it is not a Marie Kondo knockoff. It will be the subtitle that tells you what it’s really about: The Curious History of Alphabetical Order. That’s what it’s about…. Read More ›

• Just Thai… but what more do you need?

  By ljd42 on February 27, 2021

  

  Tonight’s yummy takeout from Just Thai: JTK wings, gyoza, teriyaki beef, pork with garlic and oyster sauce.  

• Repairing Boston’s electoral process

  By ljd42 on February 26, 2021

  

  We continue on from yesterday’s post talking about some good advice from Bill Walczak… That one was about how to repair the police (repairing instead of “defunding”); this one is about how to repair the election process in Boston, which suffers… Read More ›

• Repairing the world (or at least the police)

  By ljd42 on February 25, 2021

  

  Bill Walczak reminds us: [T]he ability of police officers to be successful in ensuring peace and safety depends on characteristics like judgment, empathy, being unbiased, and able to handle people in crisis. … If our goal for policing is peace… Read More ›

• Can you explain this puzzle, WGBH?

  By ljd42 on February 23, 2021

  

  Can anybody explain this? Barbara and I have been members of WGBH for decades now. For the past 36 years GBH has sent their monthly magazine to the correct address: (As you see, I have redacted the street name to… Read More ›

• Support your local restaurant! For instance, the Ashmont Grill again…

  By ljd42 on February 21, 2021

  

  Barbara and I shared a delicious takeout dinner from the Ashmont Grill last night: garlic parmesan chicken wings fried Brussels sprouts with cilantro and mint (three nights’ worth!) wood-grilled hanger steak, cooked medium rare as ordered, with fries cheddar cheeseburger,… Read More ›

• “I was allowed to believe things that weren’t true.”

  By ljd42 on February 19, 2021

  

  Quick: who said the sentence in the title of this post? That’s right, it’s your favorite Member of Congress, Marjorie Taylor Greene! Linguist Mark Liberman, incidentally a former classmate of mine, observes that Steve Silberman nominated the above sentence of Greene’s to… Read More ›

• Who are the Sami?

  By ljd42 on February 17, 2021

  

  Hands up if you know who the Sami are without looking it up! Hmm… only three of you. I could have asked whether you can figure out where the stunning movie Sami Blood was filmed, relying on the title alone. Again,… Read More ›

• No, your family name was NOT changed at Ellis Island!

  By ljd42 on February 16, 2021

  

  Every American Jewish family—and a few Gentile families as well—have a family story that they’re convinced is true: the family name had been changed by an immigration official at Ellis Island more than a century ago. In my case, the… Read More ›

• Zia Gianna: “Valentine’s Date Night to Go”

  By ljd42 on February 14, 2021

  

  Chef Nino, Sicilian native and recently naturalized American citizen, offered a special Valentine’s Day takeout dinner at his neighborhood Italian caffe, Zia Gianna, right around the corner from us: Salmon and dill dip with imported crackers Spezzatino with tortino potatoes (i.e.,… Read More ›

• First-naming, tutoyer, and duzen

  By ljd42 on February 12, 2021

  

  When is it OK for a stranger to call you by your first name? This is a more complicated question than it first appears to be. I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts with guests during the pandemic, and… Read More ›

• Barton Fink

  By ljd42 on February 10, 2021

  

  The Coen brothers, I decided, deserved one more try. They do have a stellar reputation, after all. After disliking Fargo, Raising Arizona, and Blood Simple, I had almost given up on the Coens, but reviews convinced me to check out… Read More ›

• An English accent—in recordings from 1340 to 2006. (1340? What? Really!?)

  By ljd42 on February 8, 2021

  

  Don’t read the title to this post. It’s a lie. Simon Roper has not actually discovered recordings from 1340. Or even 1400. But his 18-minute video is still very much worth watching. When I say “watching,” I mean more than… Read More ›

• The Secret Life of Books

  By ljd42 on February 6, 2021

  

  A book about books—how self-referential! And how wonderful! The full title of the book under discussion is The Secret Life of Books: Why They Mean More than Words. More than words indeed. Tom Mole’s delightful paean to the book is largely about… Read More ›

• Racism and linguistics

  By ljd42 on February 5, 2021

  

  I’ve only once cited the first-rate Humans Who Read Grammars. Yes, only once. But it’s not my fault! I would love to cite them more, but the authors post too rarely. What’s the matter with you guys? Do you have a life… Read More ›

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