Channel Steve

Listen on posterous

I’m busily preparing a lesson plan suitable for an English language TV class. I need to teach five tech words, and one of the requirements is to create a chant from those words.

Thought I’d post this my song idea quickly before I changed my mind because of the probable embarrassment I’d feel later. This was recorded on my iPhone after class today, with almost no pre-thought other than deciding that the depressing “low battery” lines had to be in a minor key before going back to major for the final great revelation.

This show will be filmed in the week of March 15, and will be broadcast later on HTV. I’ve watched a few of these English programs for beginners and pre-intermediates, and they’re good for a laugh. I guess a few of my fellow teachers & I are going to be the source of a little more laughter later in the year.

Posted via email from RockPortrait in Vietnam

"Of course, there are some cultural differences and it's important to be sensitive and pay attention to them.  An example is learning to interpret the indirect communication style of Vietnamese.  But now I'm familiar with it and I can read the tea leaves just fine.  [I've even learned a bit about the subtle art of how things left unsaid speak volumes.]"

I wish I was familiar with indirect communication, and I wish I could read tea leaves. Problem is I only drink coffee, and that's pretty direct. The caffeine in Vietnamese coffee goes straight into the veins.  But back to the reason for my post.

I used to think things left unsaid were the sign of someone lacking confidence or the ability to effectively express themselves. OK, now I can re-evaluate certain things in a new light. It's a subtle art, eh? I've never thought of myself as an artist, which is probably why I missed it.

Knowing these things now doesn't make it any easier to address day to day conflict or even minor disagreements. But it does help me understand why things are the way they are, and THAT is all I need to find the solution. Understanding is the key to everything.

Is there a course I can take on all this?

Steve McGrath

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
rockportrait@gmail.com
www.channelsteve.com
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rockportrait hrdrck hrdrck@hotmail.com hrdrck2000

Channel Steve Daily Digest for March 1st

Posted via email from RockPortrait in Vietnam