Learning Strategies

Recent Posts - page 64

• Bury the Lead… or is it the lede?

  By ljd42 on December 21, 2018

  

  It’s been nine years since I’ve reviewed an Archer Mayor novel! And my November 2009 review was none too enthusiastic. So I am pleased to report that I am definitely enthusiastic about Bury the Lead, even though the correct phrase should be… Read More ›

• The Reckoning

  By ljd42 on December 19, 2018

  

  “But this isn’t a courtroom thriller!” That’s what I heard you say, and then you threw it aside because you are a certain type of reader. Maybe you’re that type of reader, maybe you’re not. But you’re right that The Reckoning is… Read More ›

• A beautiful concert

  By ljd42 on December 17, 2018

  

  Three of my students — Laura Sullivan, Thea Schwallie, and Mimi Gotbetter — joined a dozen other young people in a beautifully inspiring multilingual and multicultural concert yesterday afternoon by the group Youth pro Musica at the Second Church in Newton…. Read More ›

• There are only 500 people here — yet they speak 9 different languages!

  By ljd42 on December 15, 2018

  

  Let’s follow up my post of November 25 about hyperpolyglots and the book Babel No More by taking a look at a small island where 500 people speak nine different languages, as described in an article in The Atlantic by Michael Erard, author of Babel… Read More ›

• Another excellent Asian lunch

  By ljd42 on December 13, 2018

  

  A second excellent Asian lunch in one week! Continuing Tuesday’s theme, today Barbara and I went to our local Neponset Cafe for the first time. Everything turned out to be scrumptious. We started by sharing shrimp fresh rolls and beef teriyaki… Read More ›

• Dumpling Daughter and Vester

  By ljd42 on December 12, 2018

  

  Excellent lunch with great hospitality yesterday at two sister restaurants sharing space in Cambridge: Dumpling Daughter and Vester. I use the word “sister” quite literally, as the owners are a pair of sisters from Weston, Nadia Liu Spellman ’00 and… Read More ›

• What’s the difference between honors and regular math classes?

  By ljd42 on December 10, 2018

  When you were in high school, did you take honors or regular math classes? Or a mixture of the two, depending on the year? In any case, what motivated your decision? What’s the difference between the two levels — or,… Read More ›

• How geeky can you get?

  By ljd42 on December 8, 2018

  

  ‘There’s no excuse for being early,’ said Breslin. ‘No, I suppose not.’ ‘None whatsoever.’ ‘No.’ ‘It is forbidden.’ ‘Yes.’ He looked at his watch, studying it intently for several long moments before returning his gaze to me. ‘So now we’ve… Read More ›

• Lexicographers: Fact or Fiction?

  By ljd42 on December 6, 2018

  

  Do lexicographers really exist? Or are they like unicorns? Or perhaps they’re like mailmen. Lexicographers are unlikely protagonists of a novel — though of course they might not exist and could still be protagonists of a novel, as hobbits are. You… Read More ›

• The first film ever in Babylonian!

  By ljd42 on December 4, 2018

  What an amazing class project! Claiming to be the world’s first film in ancient Babylonian, it was made by members of an Assyriology class at Cambridge (not our Cambridge: the other one) along with some local residents. Their pronunciation is… Read More ›

• Is it Hanukkah, Chanukah, Hanukah, or … ?

  By ljd42 on December 2, 2018

  

  This post in All Things Linguistic is the best description I’ve seen yet of why there are so many English spellings of Hanukkah (but the author oddly leaves out “Chanukah” in her list at the end, even though it’s in… Read More ›

• Misplaced modifier

  By ljd42 on December 1, 2018

  

  Hmmm:  

• Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald 

  By ljd42 on November 30, 2018

  

  Meh. That’s my main reaction to Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, the dark film that I saw yesterday. Admittedly, there’s a lot to like about it — but there’s nothing to love. It’s certainly weaker than the previous nine films… Read More ›

• Dreaming of a white Dorchester?

  By ljd42 on November 28, 2018

  

  I’m truly embarrassed to have served on the board of directors of an organization that can commit a faux pas like this, especially in the current political climate. Here is this year’s annual Christmas holiday card from the Dorchester Historical… Read More ›

• How some people talk to teachers

  By ljd42 on November 27, 2018

  

  Excerpts from a recent article in McSweeney’s, “If people talked to other professionals the way they talk to teachers”: “Ah, a zookeeper. So, you just babysit the animals all day?” – – – “My colon never acts this way at… Read More ›

• Hyperpolyglots/Babel No More

  By ljd42 on November 25, 2018

  

  “What do you call someone who speaks three languages?” “Trilingual.” “And what do you call someone who speaks two languages?” “Bilingual.” “And what do you call someone who speaks only one language?” “American.” OK, it’s a stereotype, but — sadly… Read More ›

• Matching mats

  By ljd42 on November 23, 2018

  Douglas and I now have matching purple exercise mats — matching purple, that is, even if they have very different dimensions. Douglas, of course, thinks that his is a sleeping mat, not an exercise mat.          … Read More ›

• The Breakers

  By ljd42 on November 22, 2018

  

  The Breakers is a rather low-key episode in Marcia Muller’s long-running Sharon McCone series. In general there are two types of long-running series: those where the characters remain static and familiar, and those where the characters change and develop. Sharon… Read More ›

• Recommended podcasts

  By ljd42 on November 20, 2018

  

  The downside of giving up the commute from Dorchester to Weston is that I don’t listen to as many podcasts as I used to. (Sure, I can — and sometimes do — listen to them at home, but it’s not… Read More ›

• MR@MoS

  By ljd42 on November 18, 2018

  

  Disappointing. That’s all I can say. The Museum of Science had announced a special one-day members-only preview of their new model railroad exhibit, so of course I had to go. “What does it have to do with science?” asked Barbara…. Read More ›

• ‹ Older Entries
• Newer Entries ›