|
Hello again to all our friends and partners around the world. This is the November edition of GEOS Ottawa's international newsletter. We send out this information every month, to help you get to know the Capital of Canada, our school, our staff and students. We are looking forward to welcoming some of your clients very soon, so they can experience it all firsthand.
Canadians love to talk about the weather and this fall has been great. October was been bright and sunny but of course it's a little cooler in the mornings and evenings. We really enjoyed the beautiful colours of fall. It's a great time to be here.
Like a lot of people who work in Ottawa, Jill wasn't born here. Jill is a western Canadian girl from Calgary, Alberta. She started working with GEOS in Ottawa in March 2010. In that time, she has taught every kind of English class we offer including all 6 levels of ESL, TOEFL iBT and the Work and Study Seminars.
Jill also has a lot of experience teaching English in different countries around the world. She has taught in Moscow, Russia; Beijing and Shanghai in China; and in Barranquilla, Colombia, which is the hometown of the singer Shakira.
As you would expect from all that traveling, Jill has a great interest in languages. She speaks Russian and French and she's also learning to speak Spanish. This helps her appreciate the difficulties that students' have in learning a new language.
Hi I'm Yi-Ti. I've been in here almost 9 months. I really enjoy this awesome school. I developed my English skills. This experience made me grow up. I met some people who helped me; they are friendly and kind so I'm lucky.
The teachers and friends who I met in GEOS helped me a lot. My stay in GEOS made me very comfortable. GEOS is my number 1 recommendation. I will recommend for my friends who want to go abroad to school.
I'll never forget my life in Ottawa
Yi Ti Lin
Taiwan
Aloha! I have been here in GEOS since 2010. When I came here I couldn't speak any English, but now it's different. I had a good time at this school and unforgettable moments. I enjoyed my free time with my classmates when I could. I'm glad to be here that long because that was a good experience for me and my English skills.
When I have finished here I'll still be around Ottawa. Thanks to the GEOS staff for being my friends and part time family : Peace!!!
Hilmi Ridvanov
Bulgaria
Winter 2011 / 2012 enrolments
The busy summer season is quickly passing us by, so it's also important to start thinking now about student's plans to study in the winter. There are a number of good reasons for planning ahead in this way -
- The visa process often takes longer in December because of Christmas holidays taken by Embassy staff;
- Many universities and colleges have January start dates. Advanced level students who start with GEOS in the fall, may be finished level 6 by January and therefore able to use the GEOS Pathway Program to enrol in a college or university program.
- Work and Study program students need to study a minimum of 12 weeks. With our winter festival in February it is a good time to get seasonal jobs in Ottawa - Our fees will change in 2012. To receive our 2011 fees, register by November 30th.
So, let's start the process now and hopefully we'll be welcoming students from around the world in December and January.
The fall is a beautiful time in many places but especially in such a natural city as Ottawa. (insert Gatineau Hills Fall picture) It's a great time for hikes and relaxing walks in the park. Just across the river from Ottawa in Quebec is the beautiful Gatineau Park which draws thousands of visitors every year to see the natural display of colours.
October is a great month for cultural celebrations too. All the GEOS schools in Canada were closed on Monday, October 10th for the Thanksgiving Day holiday. To find out more about this special time of year check out the following culture link: http://www.twilightbridge.com/hobbies/festivals/thanksgiving/canada
“Spring forward, fall back” is the popular saying reminding us about the start and end of Canadian summer time. We will be changing our clocks back 1 hour on November 6th.
As the days get a little colder we look to more indoor activities for our students. Winter sport in Canada means hockey! The Ottawa Senators are playing the New York Rangers in mid-November and we’re going! You have to see at least one hockey game while you’re in Canada.
Ottawa Senators Official Website
Some of our students will be going to the LMFAO concert (the crazy dance band who are really popular right now). We’re also having an LMFAO party night which will be lots of fun. We’ll also be going to karaoke, bingo and pool. For those more sporty students there will be indoor rock climbing and soccer games. All in all a busy month!
CONCLUSION
We hope you have enjoyed our newsletter. Please let us know your comments by email at info@geosottawa.com. We would love to hear from you.
Until the next issue you can keep up with GEOS school life by becoming our facebook friend.
|
Currently we have 25 Nationalities represented in the school among our 148 students.
Saudi Arabian: 35%
Korean: 10.1%
Brazilian: 7.4%
Canadian: 6.1%
Taiwanese: 4.7%
German: 4.1%
Mexican and Russian: 2.7% each
Swiss and Japanese: 2% each
Others: 22.6%
As you know GEOS has joined the Sprachcaffe Languages Plus Group and we will now be known as GEOS Languages Plus. It's an exciting time for us as we prepare for next year and the new opportunities this brings for us and our students.
In case you missed it, our 2012 information has been released - please find the brochure in the following link. Make sure to check out the Ottawa information in the Canadian schools section.
http://www.sprachcaffe.com/fileadmin/Redaktion/downloads/EN-2012/GEOS-EN-2012.pdf
Over the past few years, more and more students have been interested in advancing their career prospects by going to colleges and universities after they improve their English with GEOS.
We recently started a new session of our intermediate level IELTS elective course. The advanced IELTS elective class has been running all year and so it's great for us to be able to offer it to intermediate level students now.
The session start date was October 11th, but it's not too late to join up as we have continuous intake and students can start any Monday. Taking one of these classes really is the best possible preparation for the challenges of the IELTS test.
For a challenging full-time option, the TOEFL iBT class is probably the best available in Ottawa. It's hard work but really effective.
Intensive English – 24 academic hours –
Communicative Method of language teaching that is second to none! GEOS is the only private school in Ottawa to operate 6 levels of ESL year-round.
Our morning course, called Integrated Skills (IS) allows students to develop their ability in all four skills of English (reading, writing, listening and speaking). Our afternoon program is called Active Listening (AL) and focuses on improving the practical communication skills of listening and speaking.
Super Intensive – 31 academic hours –
Many of our students choose to enhance their studies with an extra elective class (7 hours per week). Our current elective classes are:
Levels 1&2 - Grammar Works (Beginner)
Levels 3&4 - Grammar Works (Intermediate) or IELTS Preparation (Intermediate)
Levels 5&6 - IELTS Preparation (Advanced)
Super Intensive Plus – 36 academic hours
A course option which was just added this year, our Writing classes are available for all levels and are designed for students who need extra practice with spelling, written grammar and composition.
Full-time TOEFL iBT Preparation Program (Advanced) – 24 academic hours
GEOS Ottawa is the perfect choice for the more serious student who is thinking about applying for university in Canada. Our very popular TOEFL iBT program prepares students in all aspects of the test to significantly increase their chances of passing.
Private Instruction / Closed groups
In addition to our regular scheduled group classes we also offer private and small group lessons in English and French with flexible schedules and class content to suit the needs of the student.
GEOS in Ocotober
You can't talk about October events without mentioning Halloween. It's an amazingly fun celebration of all things spooky and scary.
First we had a pumpkin carving competition which inspired our students to create some beautiful works of art. In Ottawa are lucky to have the Byward Market downtown, where our students go to buy the pumpkins. Then we come back to the school and get messy! Scooping out the seeds and pulp is kind gross but a lot of fun. Then you draw on a design with a marker and start to cut. We invited everyone to vote for the best pumpkin on our facebook page, and the winning team got candy! Well done ladies.
We have a costume party every year which is a lot of fun. It's the best time of the year for funny photos. Check them out!
Ottawa is well known for its world class museums. Every Thursday, we go to different one because most of them are free between 4 and 9 PM on Thursdays.
For a great online brochure about the tourist attractions created by the Ottawa Tourism department, please click the following link.
|
