The American money system is logical and very easy to use. It is based on the dollar ($1.00), on which all cash and coins are dependent. There are 100 cents in a dollar. Coins are parts of one dollar, for example: a quarter ($0.25) is 1/4 of a dollar, a dime ($0.10) is 1/10th of a dollar, and so forth. Paper bills are multiples of a dollar: for example, a $5 bill. US Paper Currency The twenty, ten, five, and one are the most frequently used bills.

When speaking about money, $1 is referred to as “a one”, “a dollar”, “a dollarbill”, or “a buck”; $5 is “a five”, “five dollars”, “a five dollar bill”, or “five bucks”; etc. Another way to refer to money is to call it “cash.” One popular slang term for money is “cheddar.” The five, ten, twenty, fifty and hundred dollar bills have recently been changed in order to provide more security features. Both the new and old versions are currently used. The one dollar bill is not being changed as it is not considered as likely to be counterfeited. Also in use but not as frequently seen are the $2, $50 and $100 bills. The two dollar bill is rare – people often collect, rather than spend, them. $50 and $100 bills are not widely used and many places may not accept them for small purchases. You probably won’t ever see any larger-value denominations such as $1,000, $500, $5,000, and $10,000. People not familiar with these bills should probably not accept them, because counterfeit, or fake, currency does happen, especially in the higher and more unfamiliar denominations. Store employees may not like the use of very large bills to pay for very small items. For example, try not to use a $50 to pay for a 25 pack of candy! It would be better to pay with a smaller denomination or some coins. If you don’t have anything smaller, it is polite to let the store worker know. US Coins The most widely used coins are the quarter, dime, nickel, and penny.

Each type of coin has a specific size and design, usually with the image of a president or other famous American person on the front. Quarters have been made with different pictures on their back sides, in honor of the 200th anniversary of the USA, and honoring each state. Coins that are rarely used include the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin, and the Kennedy half-dollar, also known as the 50-cent piece. Canadian coins are seen in the northern United States and are also available in dimes, quarters, nickels, and pennies. However, not all stores and restaurants accept them; commonly, the closer you are to Canada, the more accepted they are. Canadian coins may be accepted as equal in value to US coins, but the exchange rate usually places a higher value on the US versions, so be careful not to accept too many.

Practical use The quarter is one of the most useful coins. If you are a student, be sure to save these! They can be used in almost any coin-operated machine: clothes washers & dryers, arcade games, pay phones, and vending machines dispensing food, drinks, stamps, tickets, newspapers, etc. Quarters and nickels can usually be used in pay phones and vending machines. Many vending machines will take small bills, such as ones, fives, and tens, but the change you get back will all be in coins. Often there will be a dollar changer near coin-operated machines which dispenses quarters in exchange for small bills. One word of caution: vending machines do not take dollar coins, half-dollars, pennies, or Canadian coins. Credit or charge cards are being used more and more, even for buying small things. Many Americans don’t like to carry much cash, and the cards are easy and safe to use. They are accepted almost everywhere, but not at all fast food restaurants! Traveler’s checks are a good idea for visitors also. You won’t have to carry large amounts of money in your pocket or purse, and the checks can be replaced if they get lost or stolen.

Much Continued ESL Success,

The creator of ESL Free Lesson

Understand American Money is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org

Given the 24/7 culture which prevails in international business circles, this news will undoubtedly be sweet music to the ears of New Lingos many clients worldwide. New Lingo is a perfect example of the new breed of virtual company, and its pedigree is impeccable. Established only three years ago, the dynamic language services provider has a well-deserved reputation for excellence, due in no small part to a policy of having every translation independently proof-read. Moreover, with all staff home-based, New Lingos operating costs are kept to a minimum – a benefit which is passed directly on to their clients in the form of highly competitive rates.

As language experts who pride themselves on their state-of-the-art translation technology solutions, New Lingo staff are renowned for their ultra-modern approach to business. Indeed, in the words of Christof Schneider, chief of operational improvements at New Lingo: This new service is just the latest in a series of technology-enabled firsts. It offers organisations which operate under time-critical conditions an immense commercial advantage. He continues: It also gives our clients complete peace of mind to know that while theyre sleeping, the documents they require for their meeting the next morning are being translated! Korean-born project manager Austin Kim explains: The nature of our business lends itself perfectly to a 24-hour production system. Many of our clients are multi-nationals and operate 24 hours a day themselves. Moreover, our translation team already spans all time zones, so providing a round-the-clock service is simply a natural extension of what we already do. In-house (and at New Lingo, that means her own house!) German expert, Barbara Bumer adds: We have a close reciprocal relationship with a respected UK translation company which works really well. Through them we regularly provide translations for prestigious end-clients such as Microsoft, Orange and Honda.

Impressive names certainly but equally impressive is what New Lingo itself has achieved in a relatively short timescale. The maths is simple: a network of tried and tested translation professionals, all beavering away during normal working hours in their own time zones, but collectively working 24/7. Add to this equation the New Lingo factors of project management experience and state-of-the-art translation tools, and you have a winning formula: a round-the-clock stress-free professional translation service for members of the global business community.

Translation Service Now Open All Hours is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org

Don’t insist on translating your text word-by-word or sentence-by-sentence. Contrary to the popular belief, the translation won’t be more accurate this way. Just the opposite is true: a translator who translates word-by-word is a BAD translator, or a mediocre one — at the most.

A MEDIOCRE translator will diligently substitute words, word-combinations and idioms of one language for those of another language. He searches piles of dictionaries for various lexical units. He will be really proud of the result. Don’t blame him — he probably is conscientious and hard-working. The only drawback is that his translation won’t work.

A GOOD translator will care for the MESSAGE of your text. He realizes that good translation isn’t just finding right words. He will try to find right linguistic means to convey your message; what’s more, he will leave your style intact. He will be proud of the result, too — and he has the reason to think so. Your message will be conveyed — in every respect. Will it work? That’s another question.

The difference between a GOOD and an EXCELLENT translator is the following: an EXCELLENT translator will care for the GOAL of your message. Before he stats the work, an excellent translator asks himself simple questions: does your message fit into this particular culture? Will the audience accept it? If the answer is “no”, he will always warn you about it.

Will you appreciate his advice? You’d better do. It might be not too pleasant for you to learn that your text is not perfect (especially if you thought it was). Of course, you can put this smart Aleck down. You are the Client, so you’re always right. He will translate the text he is given the way you want. As a result, you will get what you ordered — a MEDIOCRE translation.

That is why it is reasonable to listen to an expert (an excellent translator will always serve you as an expert on the culture of your target audience — even if you haven’t asked for it and are not going to pay extras for such a consultation.) Sometimes these advice might seem a bit odd to you; that’s because such a translator is able to think like a person who will be visiting your website.

Be prepared to throw some expressions, phrases, or whole paragraphs away or re-write them working perfectly in one language, they won’t do in another. Be ready to change photos and illustrations, sometimes redo the graphics and alter the whole style of your website if necessary.

Cooperate with your translator — it pays. Do this work now and you’ll be rewarded with success of your business in a foreign country.

Translation: Cooperate With Translators — It Pays is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org

A link to this story’s translation will be provided at the end of this article.

* GERMAN STORY *

Guten Tag! Mein Name ist Monika. Ich bin Autorin. Ich habe einen Bruder namens Bob. Bob ist auch Autor. Ich bin Bobs Literaturagentin. Er schreibt interessante Artikel und Bcher. Er schreibt im Moment ein neues Buch. Der Titel ist: Das Telefon klingelt fr Dich. Letztes Jahr hatte er 2 Bcher auf der Bestsellerliste.

Bob lebt in Kanada – in Montreal. Er ist 30 Jahre alt, mit blondem Haar und blauen Augen. Er hat ein altes Auto. Freitags fhrt er mit dem Auto zum Supermarkt.

Im Supermarkt findet er Kaffee, Tee, Mineralwasser, Milch, Zucker, Butter usw. fr Mutter. Er findet auch Frucht wie Bananen, pfel, Orangen usw. Dann geht er zur Bank und wartet eine Weile auf Mutter. Er fhrt danach mit Mutter nach Hause und parkt sein Auto.

Das Haus ist wei und blau. Es hat einen Garten mit wundervollen Blumen und luxurisem grnem Gras.

Im Haus sitzt Bob auf dem Sofa und trinkt oft ein Glas Bier oder Wein und hrt Radio (laut). Mutter sagt: Bob! Das Radio ist zu laut! Bob lacht und geht in den Garten.

Im Sommer, wenn die Sonne scheint, sitzt Bob im Garten. Wenn Mutter will, mht Bob das Gras.

Im Winter schaufelt er den Schnee oder sitzt im Haus beim Feuer.

Meine Mutter hat eine Katze namens Lwe. Lwe ist braun, grau und orange. Sie miaut, wenn sie Bob sieht, springt auf Bobs Knie und schnurrt laut. Mutter hat auch einen Hund – namens Br. Br ist ein Dachshund.

Ach! es ist spt – Mitternacht. Ich muss zu Bett gehen. Gute Nacht! Ich schreibe mehr morgen frh.

* MORE EXAMPLES *

Winter kommt im November.

Sommer kommt im Juni.

Die Toilette ist beige.

Das Papier ist wei.

Meine Hand hat zehn Finger.

Mein Arm ist gebrochen.

Wir haben eine Party!

Bring den Salat hier!

Der Mann tanzt und singt.

Der Wind ist eisig.

Die Tomate ist reif.

Das kostet 5 Dollar.

Komm hier!

Er hat Hunger und Durst.

Der Film beginnt um 8.

Sie fotografiert die Familie.

* HOW DID IT GO? *

Maybe you didn’t understand the German text completely. Read it a second – and then a third time.

If you are observant, you will notice a few details:

*German usually uses a ‘K’ instead of a hard ‘C’: Canada=Kanada, Monica=Monika.

*The English ‘ph’ often becomes ‘f’: telephone=Telefon.

*Nouns are capitalized: fruit=Frucht, milk=Milch, butter=Butter, sugar=Zucker.

*Possessives are not formed with an apostrophe + s: brother’s=Bruders.

*The English ‘sh’ becomes ‘sch’: shines=scheint, shovels=schaufelt.

*Many words are exactly the same: Winter, November, Finger, Party, Wind, Hunger, Film.

Now that you have a few hints, you can probably read the German text again and understand even more. Think of the words in context, and allow your mind to fill in the blanks.

Related words, like the ones above, with common ancestral roots are called ‘cognates’. There are many, many more than those presented here.

Over the years, however, many words that used to mean the same thing in both languages have evolved and have acquired different connotations. For example, the old German word for ‘wife’ – ‘Weib’ is nowadays generally applied in a deprecating manner. It might be used in a phrase that means ‘you crazy woman!’ or in instances where an English person would say ‘broad’ or ‘dame’.

The German word ‘Gift’ does not mean ‘gift’ – it means ‘poison’.

The point that is being made here, however, is that you should actively search for similarities. Over time you will discover the exceptions. You will feel comfortable with the similarities and form a foundation on which you can build. The learning task then becomes less daunting – and even enjoyable.

Over the centuries the world has become a melting pot of cultures and languages. Many words and phrases have crossed borders. Globalization – spurred by newspapers, radio, TV, the internet, and jet travel – has accelerated the process. We often use foreign-derived words without even realizing – angst, soup du jour, cafe au lait, poltergeist, bona fide, carte blanche, nom de plume, savoir-faire . . .

Every time you come to a new text passage, scan it to find what you already know (or can guess) for a general sense of what it means. Then tackle the unknown parts.

Your learning will progress more quickly as a result.

To Learn a Language (like German) FIRST Find the Similarities is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org

In mainland China they no longer use the traditional Chinese characters that go hand in hand with Chinese history. For some reason, the Chinese Communist Party decided to alter the Chinese language and thereby change the vehicle for written communication.

Traditional Chinese characters evolved naturally over a period of time from pictographs or small drawings. By contrast the simplified Chinese created by the Chinese Communist Party has watered many of the traditional characters down to the point that they no longer are rooted in more ancient traditions.

Here is an example. The traditional Chinese character for the word ‘love’ contains a picture of a heart in it. This makes sense because love is closely associated to the heart. Not so in simplified Chinese. There is no heart in the word ‘love’ in simplified Chinese. One may ponder how you can love without a heart.

Just as this example shows, in many ways the Chinese Communist Party has removed the heart of the entire language, distorting and altering it into a water downed version of its former self. In Taiwan, however, they still use traditional characters.

So if your community or children’s school is planning to teach Chinese, you may wish to ensure that you are getting the traditional variety. It more fully encompasses the rich history of China and the Chinese people. By contrast, those who teach our children simplified Chinese are from mainland China and unfortunately, they will also be passing on the values and ideas of the Chinese Communist Party. Whether they do so on purpose or automatically as a result of growing up in that environment, the end result is the same. Only you can decide if you want the influence of the Chinese Communist Party imparted to your children.

Be sure to insist that our children are taught traditional Chinese and not the simplified version. This way the richness of traditional Chinese culture can be more fully enjoyed and appreciated. There will be a more solid foundation to understand the more ancient Chinese traditions.

The Push to Learn Chinese in Our Schools is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org

In some societies, the standards for what constitute literacy are different from others. For example, some cultures believe that only people with skills such as computers skills and basic numeracy may be considered literate. This takes into account the fact that there are people who can add and subtract, but can’t read letters as well as people who can learn to use a computer to a limited extent but may still not be able to read text. One example is Scotland, which defines literacy as: “The ability to read and write and use numeracy, to handle information, to express ideas and opinions, to make decisions and solve problems, as family members, workers, citizens and lifelong learners.” That’s probably as specific as you can get in defininng what literacy is all about.

On a global level, analysts and policy makers consider illiteracy rates as an important factor in a country’s or a region’s “human capital,” and with good good reason, as it turns out. Based on numerous studies into this area, they conclude that literate people are easier and less expensive to train and have broader job opportunities and access to higher education. In Kerala, India, for example, female and child mortality rates declined dramatically in the 1960s, after girls who had been schooled to literacy in the education reforms after 1948 began to raise families. There are recent findings, however, that raise questions on correlations such as the one listed above, arguing that these may have more to do with the effects of schooling rather than literacy in general.

Illiteracy rates are highest among developing countries, especially those in the South Asian, Arab and Sub-Saharan African regions where illiteracy is prevalent among 40 to 50% of populations. The East Asian and Latin American regions also have relatively high illiteracy rates ranging from 10 to 15%. In contrast, the illiteracy rate in developed countries is only a few percent. However, it is important to note that illiteracy rates vary widely from country to country and often are directly proportionate to a country’s wealth or urbanization level, although many other factors play a determining role.

The Problem Of Illiteracy is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org

The few real scholars and intellectuals left are on the retreat, back into the ivory towers of a century ago. Increasingly, their place is taken by self-taught “experts”, narcissistic bloggers, wannabe “authors” and “auteurs”, and partisan promoters of (often self-beneficial) “causes”.

Dismal results ensue: the Wikipedia “encyclopedia” is “edited” by anonymous users with unlimited access to its contents and no credentials; fads like environmentalism and alternative “medicine” spread malignantly and seek to silence dissidents, sometimes by violent means; the fare served by the media now consists exclusively of soap operas and reality TV shows; Reading is on terminal decline; with few exceptions, the “new media” are a hodgepodge of sectarian view and fabricated “news”; the few credible sources of reliable information have long been drowned in a cacophony of fakes and phonies.

It is a sad mockery of the idea of progress. The more texts we make available online, the more research is published, the more books are written – the less educated people are, the more they rely on visuals and sounds rather than the written word, the more they seek to escape and be anesthetized rather than be challenged and provoked.

Even the ever-sliming minority who do wish to be enlightened are inundated by a suffocating and unmanageable avalanche of indiscriminate data, comprised of both real and pseudo-science. There is no way to tell the two apart, so a “democracy of knowledge” reins where everyone is equally qualified and everything goes and is equally merited. This relativism is dooming the twenty-first century to become the beginning of a new “Dark Age”, hopefully a mere interregnum between two periods of genuine enlightenment.

The New Dark Ages is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org

Thousands of people travel to the island paradise of Hawaii every year. Its beautiful beaches, terrific surfing, and breathtaking vistas make Hawaii one of the most common vacation spots on the Earth. The residents of the islands share a real sense of history and community, and consider themselves to be ohana, or family, with one another. Hawaiians love to share their interesting history, vibrant culture, and the beautiful poetry of the Hawaiian language with visitors. When visitors arrive on the Islands, they are often greeted by native Hawaiian ladies who present new guests with a kiss on each cheek, a friendly aloha! and a beautiful and fragrant lei, or garland of indigenous flowers from the Islands.

Today, there are many words from the Hawaiian language that are still used conversationally and informally by the Islands inhabitants. We all know the word aloha, which has a myriad of meanings including hello, goodbye, and love. There is also hula, which is a very common Hawaiian dance that you often see at luaus, or traditional Hawaiian feasts, where ukulele music is played along to meles (traditional songs and chants), and tradition Hawaiian foods such as poi are served.

Today, the Hawaiian language is enjoying a resurgence in popularity. Native Hawaiians looking to reconnect with their ancestral pasts are learning the traditional native tongue. And children are also being educated in the Hawaiian language, as a means of teaching them the history and legacy of their people. The Hawaiian language is being taught in public schools on the Islands as a second language alongside English.

For tourists, there are Hawaiian language books available that can provide lessons in the basic Hawaiian language. Also, computer software can provide a fun and interactive experience for a person who is interested in learning the native tongue of the Hawaiian Islands before embarking on a vacation there. There are also websites available that offer free, accelerated lessons in Hawaiian. Learning the basics of a language like Hawaiian will provide tourists with an opportunity to gain more understanding of a fascinating culture that thrives still today. Though there will not be any real language barriers for tourists when they visit Hawaii, learning some of the ancestral language will also serve as a history lesson, which will allow tourists to appreciate the culture that they are being exposed to so much more.
Traveling to the tropical paradise that is the Hawaiian Islands is a chance of a lifetime. Experiencing the sights, the sounds, the people, and the exotic surroundings is likely to broaden anyones scope of the world.

Though the Hawaiian language is not widely spoken any longer, its concepts remain in the hearts and souls of the people who inhabit the idyllic and ancient oasis, and they relish the opportunity to welcome their visitors in the true spirit of ohana. www.foreign-languages-school.com

Find the essential information on where and how to learn a new or second language at Hawaiian Language

The Fun of Learning the Hawaiian Language is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org

If you decide to learn the Chinese language, there a number of ways you can go about doing so. As a college student, you can study Mandarin Chinese and earn a degree in it. Earning a college degree in Chinese will provide you with a solid knowledge of formal, or Mandarin, Chinese. You will also be proficient in reading and writing the alphabet, which is a standard alphabet throughout the Chinese-speaking world. If you are established in your career, and find it necessary to learn Chinese for business dealings and /or business-associated travel, you can enroll in an accelerated Chinese language course online, or by purchasing audiotapes that teach quick techniques, which will help you to rapidly learn how to speak basic Mandarin Chinese. Learning to speak Chinese this way is convenient if you need to learn it before an important business trip. There are several learning centers that provide accelerated online programs in Chinese, and many lesson on tape available for purchase.

If you are a student majoring of minoring in Chinese, or if you are a tourist with a desire to travel to Asia, an ideal way to learn the Chinese language is through participation in an immersion program. By doing this, you will not only learn how to speak Chinese, but you will learn about and experience Chinese culture. By studying Chinese in a city like Beijing, where the language is natively spoken, you will become part of the life and culture, and you will find learning to speak the Chinese language is much easier than you thought. Since it is a total immersion into the Chinese world, you will learn all conversational and idiomatic styles of the language. You will interact everyday with people who are native speakers of Chinese, and who cant or wont speak English with you. You will be taken on guided tours of the famous landmarks, as well as the everyday places. You will grow to understand and recognize the value of the ancient Chinese culture: the history, the art, the architecture, the food, and the people. You will attend courses in which you will learn the complex Chinese alphabet, how to read it, and how to write it as well. Learning the Chinese language by attending an immersion program is an ideal way to go.

If you are fluent in the Chinese language, not only could it help you if are established in a career, but it could also open doors to new careers for you. For example, you could take a job as a foreign language translator, where you would be responsible for translating websites, training documents, and other important business documents, while helping to bridge the communication gap between two very different cultures. You might also consider a career as a teacher if English as a second language. You have the opportunity to relocate to a Chinese-speaking nation, and teach the English language to Chinese students. Being fluent in Chinese will definitely make your relocation less stressful.

Learning how to speak, read, and write the Chinese language has many advantages. It gives you the potential to enhance you career by working and/or traveling abroad, or you would have opportunities to embark on new careers as a translator or a teacher. If you plan to travel to Asia, learning Chinese will make your journeys less stressful and more enjoyable. Taking the time to learning the Chinese language will open your eyes to a new and often misunderstood culture, and is an achievement that can be personally and professionally fulfilling.

The Challenge Of Learning The Chinese Language is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org

Today, Latin is taught primarily for the purpose of translating ancient literature. It is not really taught conversationally. Proficiency in Latin is achieved in reading and translating. Often, students that study Latin in college are majors in Classical Studies, wherein they study all aspects of Ancient Greek and Roman history and Culture, or they are pre-Law or pre-Medicine students. Having a knowledge of the Latin language has obvious benefits for Law and Medical students in that they will be better able to learn technical terminology, most of which is comprised of Latin words and phrases. Classical studies majors often go on to earn Masters degrees and Doctoral degrees either in Art History or Archaeology, where knowledge of the Latin language helps them in their research, or they often devote their graduate studies to the language itself, where they can go on to teach Latin in high schools or earn a place as a professor of Classics at a college or University.

Teaching the Latin language in high school can be challenging. Most students take foreign languages to satisfy requirements for graduation, not for the enjoyment of learning a new language. And they often take easier language such as Spanish or French. And since Latin is not taught conversationally, learning it can be considered a boring series of memorization or vocabulary words and noun and verb endings. It is important for the Latin teacher to make learning the language for those students that do decide to tackle it interesting and not just a matter of memorizing verb conjugations and noun declension charts. There are several ways in which success in teaching Latin in high school can be achieved.

Using modern technology to teach an ancient language might seem unlikely. But, there are many resources available online to assist the Latin teacher in his or her pursuits. Many websites offer charts, tutorials, and games to not only help the teacher, but to help engage the students. Learning Latin can be made easier using technology, while allowing the students to use the Internet as a means of education. Students today are all but required to use the Internet academically, and eventually professionally. Combining learning Latin with learning Internet skills is a perfect way to bridge the gap between ancient and modern.

Another way to make learning the Latin language interesting is by incorporating Roman history and Mythology into the subject. By bringing history and myth into the study of the Latin language, students will understand the origins of the language, as well as understand the impact the language and the history of Rome has had on our modern world. Games can be played and plays can be put on, utilizing Roman mythological stories and literature, and students can learn everything from Roman military strategy to Roman engineering to Roman cooking to how Roman people dressed.

As a high school Latin teacher, it can be frustrating that the language is misunderstood and under-appreciated. But, by using modern technology and creative teaching methods, The dead Latin language can be brought to life, and students will learn not only the language, but have a clearer understanding of English grammar, as well as a foundation that will open up their options as they enter college.

Teaching The Latin Language In High School is a post from: Reference Education Center | At4schools.org