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Hello again to all our friends and partners around the world. This is the September 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.
It really has been a great sunny summer. June and July were fantastic and hot, August was a little mixed but there was still a lot of sun. September is generally a little cooler (between 20 and 25 degrees most days) but by the end of the month we start to see the beautiful colours of fall. It’s a great time to be here.
Please find below an introduction about one of our English teachers. Her name is Caroline Agnew:
Caroline was born and raised in Ottawa, but has lived and traveled in a few places including the United States, Scotland, Greece, Turkey, and France. She has also been across Canada a few times, and has lived in Halifax and Toronto! She’s taught at GEOS on and off since 2006.
Right now, Caroline is studying Public Administration at Ottawa University at the PhD level. It’s a lot of work, but she loves learning new things so it’s worth it. When she’s not teaching and studying, Caroline likes cooking, eating, and gardening. Her favourite thing is trying new foods from all over the world!
Hi. My first steps in GEOS were great. I met nice personnel who helped me find my class. A few days later things became even better, I made new friends and fantastic teachers. When I finished my school I was really sad that I must leave this wonderful place. I spent so much good time here.
Every day, I rollerbladed to school. Thank you Ottawa for your bike pathway! Everyday I met nice friends too. I miss you so much and I hope that I will come back.
p.s. If you rollerblade to school, don’t forget your shoes to change (unfortunately I forgot my shoes TWO TIMES...!)
Kamila Kuplowska
Poland
I am from Italy and this is my first experience in Canada. Beginning my studies in GEOS I was mainly interested in learning English, but now, after a month, not only have I improved my language skills, but what is more, I have met a lot of friends from all over the world. I get in touch with different cultures every day and, enjoying the several funny activities of the school, I have the opportunity to practice my English in different contexts.
This experience is definitely going to be a joyful moment in my life.
Vannia Vendrametto
Italy
Fall and Winter Enrollments
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 Fall. There are a number of good reasons for planning ahead in this way:
- The visa process often takes more than a month, and embassies may be slower because of summer vacations
- 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. January and February are good times to get seasonal jobs in Ottawa
So let’s start the process now and hopefully we’ll be welcoming students from around the world starting in October and November.
Coming up in September
 September is back to school time for students from elementary school to university. Although GEOS is open all year round there’s a definite feeling that summer is ending and it’s time to study more. This month we are welcoming back many of our Arabic students who be travelled home to observe Ramadan with their families.
The fall is a beautiful time in many places but especially in such a natural city as Ottawa. 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. We’ll be organising a sight-seeing bus trip. Don’t forget your camera.
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Currently we have 38 Nationalities represented in the school among our 113 students.
Saudi Arabian: 31.8%
Korean: 12.4%
Brazilian: 6.2%
Italian and Canadian: 4.4% each
Vietnamese and Swiss: 3.5% each
Taiwanese: 2.7%
Others: 31.1%
We’ll be starting a new session of our TOEFL iBT program. Session start date is September 12th.
We’ll also start a new session of our Grammar Elective class for levels one and 2.
In addition, it’s time to start a new session of our job skills seminars for students in the Work and Study Program. So it’s a busy month.
Intensive English – 24 academic hours –
A program based on the 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 – Pronunciation
Levels 3&4 – Grammar Works or IELTS Preparation (Intermediate)
Levels 5&6 - IELTS Preparation (Advanced)
Super Intensive Plus – 36 academic hours
A recent addition to our course options, 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 August
This year we started working with a great student travel company called ISX. Recently, some of students have gone on great trips to Toronto and Niagara Falls, Montreal and Quebec City, and also New York City! Ottawa’s central location makes it easy to visit some seriously cool places.
Summer in Canada is all about barbeques and staying cool by the water. We’re lucky in Ottawa to have 2 rivers, various small lakes with warm water for swimming, and the biggest water park in the country all nearby. We also organized a rafting trip one weekend. Just have a look at the pictures and you’ll see how much fun it was.
Of course, the good weather also meant we had afternoon soccer games, and a beach volleyball tournament. Ottawa is well known for it’s world class museums. Every Thursday, we go to different one because most of them are free between 4 and 9 PM on Thursdays. Check out our Nature museum pictures.
Esprit Rafting
Nature Museum
Canadian Prime Minister in South America!
In August the Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper left Ottawa for a week to meet with the Presidents of Brazil, Colombia and Honduras. The purpose of the trip was to improve business relations with those countries. For example, he completed a free trade agreement with Colombia and Honduras, and made a number of trade and travel agreements in Brazil.
All this could mean easier travel for students from those countries to visit Canada and study with GEOS.
There’s always something free to do in Ottawa. For 3 months each summer parliament hill has an amazing multi-media sound and light show. Please have a look at the promotional video on the following link. It’s a really breath-taking show. http://www.mosaika-sl.ca/mosaika.asp?lang=en
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.
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