The results of my first session learning

In session week we`ve learned and explored many different sites and resources. All of them are useful both for teachers and for those who learn English. The first site I investigated was shapingenglish.ning.com. I discovered it interesting because all users can: hear good pronunciation, make tasks, ask questions, watch videos etc.

The other site I revealed is the platform Edmodo. It provides a safe and easy way for class to connect and collaborate, share content, and access homework, grades and notices. We use it as connection with teacher to see the tasks we must to do and show our works. I have already knew that in the near future we`ll have our Rivne platform for teachers.

There are many other useful things I`ve been learned at our classes. I`ve made my own blog where I can share my interests, орinions, hobbies, knowledge or anything I want. And anyone can comment my posts.

The other interesting thing is presentation. We have learned to do it in PowerPoint program. It is something like a crib but it is more permitted.

Very productive was a librarian day when we visited a foreign department.

There are many opportunities for learning and improving Englis and other languages. We were acquainted with all resources of  this department. For example, we can use free Wi-Fi internet access, review all availanle periodicals, quickly and thoroughly learn English through linguistic software Rosseta Stone, use modern print, video and audio recordings on electronic media. We`ve learned many useful sites for teachers: MERLOT (Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching), Teachervision.com (where we can find lesson plans, printable books, visual materials, even calendar for lessons, clip art images etc.), elibraryusa.state.gov.

As for me it was very interesting and cognitive week. And I`m going use information I got in my practice.

Birmingham

Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London with 1,073,000 residents (2011 census), an increase of 96,000 over the previous decade. The city lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a population of 2,284,093 (2001 census). Its metropolitan area is also the United Kingdom's second most populous with 3,683,000 residents.

Today Birmingham is a major international commercial centre, ranked as a beta− world city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network; and an important transport, retail, events and conference hub. With a GDP of $90bn (2008 estimate, PPP), the economy of the urban area is the second largest in the UK and the 72nd largest in the world. Birmingham's three universities and two university colleges make it the largest centre of higher education in the United Kingdom outside London, and its major cultural institutions, including the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Birmingham Royal Ballet and the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, enjoy international reputations. The Big City Plan is a large redevelopment plan currently underway in the city centre with the aim of making Birmingham one of the top 20 most liveable cities in the world within 20 years.

People from Birmingham are called 'Brummies', a term derived from the city's nickname of 'Brum'. This originates from the city's dialect name, Brummagem, which may in turn have been derived from one of the city's earlier names, 'Bromwicham'. There is a distinctive Brummie accent and dialect.

The Industrial Revolution, innovation, science and invention

Birmingham's explosive industrial expansion started earlier than that of the textile-manufacturing towns of the North of England, and was driven by different factors. Instead of the economies of scale of a low-paid, unskilled workforce producing bulk commodities such as cotton in increasingly large, mechanised units of production, Birmingham's industrial development was built on the adaptability and creativity of a highly-paid workforce, practicing a broad range of skilled specialist trades with a strong division of labour, in a highly entrepreneurial economy of small, often self-owned workshops. Levels of inventiveness were exceptional: between 1760 and 1850 – the core years of the Industrial Revolution – Birmingham residents registered over three times as many patents as those of any other British town or city.

Most significant, however, was the development in 1776 of the industrial steam engine by James Watt and Matthew Boulton. Freeing for the first time the manufacturing capacity of human society from the limited availability of hand, water and animal power, this was arguably the pivotal moment of the entire industrial revolution and a key factor in the worldwide increases in productivity that would follow over the following century.

Sport

Birmingham has played an important part in the history of sport. The Football League – the world's first league football competition – was founded by Birmingham resident and Aston Villa director William McGregor, who wrote to fellow club directors in 1888 proposing "that ten or twelve of the most prominent clubs in England combine to arrange home-and-away fixtures each season". Professional tennis, cricket, boxing, hockey, skateboarding, stock-car racing, greyhound racing and speedway also takes place within the city.

Architecture

Birmingham is chiefly a product of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries

St Martin in the Bull RingSt Philip's Cathedral, Soho House, Perrott's Folly, the Town Hall and much of St Paul's Square.

Universities of Birmingham

Birmingham is home to three universities: the University of Birmingham, Aston University and Birmingham City University; and two university colleges: Newman University College and University College Birmingham. The Birmingham Conservatoire, Birmingham School of Acting and Birmingham Institute of Art and Design, all now part of Birmingham City University, offer higher education in specific arts subjects. The range of universities and colleges means that there are over 65,000 higher education students in Birmingham, making it the UK's second largest student city to London.

The Birmingham Business School, established by Sir William Ashley in 1902, is the oldest graduate-level business school in the United Kingdom. Other business schools in the city include Aston Business School and Birmingham City Business School. The College of Law, the largest providor of vocational legal training in Europe, maintains a large campus in the Jewellery Quarter.

Birmingham is also an important centre for religious education. St Mary's College, Oscott is one of the four seminaries of the Catholic Church in England and Wales; Woodbrooke is the only Quaker study centre in Europe; and Queen's College is an ecumenical theological college serving the Church of England, the Methodist Church and the United Reformed Church.

Birmingham Metropolitan College is one of the largest further education colleges in the country, formed through a series of mergers between smaller colleges.

10 things you may not have known about Birmingham…

1.           Birmingham is the youngest city in Europe, with under 25’s accounting for nearly 40% of its population.

2.           Thanks to its innovative 18th century Industrialists building a canal network to aid trading networks, the city has more canals than Venice with 56 kilometres of waterways. 

3.           Nearly a third of Birmingham’s residents are of minority ethnic origin, bringing a rich cultural mix to the city. 

4.           The National Exhibition Centre (NEC) and International Convention Centre (ICC) host over 200,000 conferences and 320 exhibitions every year. 

5.           With over 8,000 acres of parks and open space, Birmingham is one of the greenest cities in the UK. 

6.           Balti cuisine is synonymous with Birmingham - over 100 balti houses, many of which can be found in the city’s famous Balti Triangle, attract over 20,000 visitors each week.

7.           Birmingham Hippodrome is the busiest and most popular theatre in the UK with over 520,000 visitors taking their seats at performances every year. 

8.           Over 50,000 people watch inspirational and varied musical performances by the world famous City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) every year. That’s more than any other UK orchestra. 

9.           Birmingham has more Michelin-starred restaurants than any other English city outside London, with local stars Glynn Purnell, Luke Tipping and Richard Turner flying the flag for the city’s fine dining, which has been lauded by many national and international publications. 

10.      For over 250 years Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter has been a national epicentre for jewellery design – producing an estimated 40% of the UK’s jewellery.