How To Start Learning A (New) Foreign Language?

A FEW WORDS ON SETTING YOUR LEARNING GOALS, ACTION PLAN & WHY NUMBERS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS

In today's post I wish to write about the very start of your adventure with a new language. If you are not sure how to begin, or don't know how to set about it at all, then this brief article is for you. I hope that my suggestions might be useful. Also, I would like to share bits of my personal experience related to learning Spanish on my own. When I started thinking of learning Spanish, I stuck to my action plan opting for self-study learning, then completed my resource base so to speak, and decided to find up to 25 minutes every day for learning. On the weekends, I devoted more time for studying (usually up to 2 x 2 hrs). I found that learning Spanish for 20-30 minutes a day was far more effective than studying up to 3 hours at one go in a single day.

After 1 year I could communicate in Spanish, hold casual conversations, and manage in everyday situations while being in Spain for 3 months. Later I attended a B2 Spanish language course for foreigners when I took part in the Erasmus student exchange program. After four years and six months of learning, and consistently following my action plan, I passed the DELE Superior exam with excellent results.

All right, memories aside now. Let us come back to the idea of your goal: what will it be? You may think: 'I want to learn English/Spanish/German... or any other new language of your choice. I want to know the basics, and possibly reach an A1 level* within 6 months/1 year, etc. Ok, once you know your goal, then it is time to prepare your action plan. Bear in mind that it will depend on several factors such as the method of study, i.e. if you intend to study on your own, or prefer to choose a language school and attend language lessons there, or maybe you would like to opt for private tutoring. Of course, every method has its pros and cons, but you need to choose the best option for you. Another issue worth considering seriously is your 'resource base' - having the right language learning resources is also decisive. At the beginning of my learning process I usually like to have those books by my side:

- A bilingual dictionary (I like to have a traditional hardcover dictionary with a CD);

- A general textbook for beginners (a follow-up on how to choose a good, learner-friendly textbook for beginners will be outlined my next post);

- A grammar reference book (also for beginners) with explanations in my native language, so for starters, I can quickly grasp the new rules and don't get discouraged by lots of unknown new words of L2. Once I reach A1 level I usually opt for an elementary grammar book in the target language;

- A reference book with basic vocabulary such as the most common used words in the language I am going to learn. I believe it is good to begin with it and with time switch to more advanced vocabulary sources.

Moreover, I buy vocabulary learning software to install on my laptop and computer, and use it as often as I can. I also install a vocabulary learning app on my smart phone.

As you can notice, the 'resource base' can be helpful as in case of doubts you can always consult your dictionary, see explanations in the grammar book and step by step absorb the vocabulary chunks from your vocabulary textbook. In the meantime, you can study new vocabulary units by means of your software and cell phone.

Numbers speak louder than words...

Finally, time & vocabulary management is another extremely decisive issue. In everyday, fast-paced environment we definitely lack time, struggle with our duties, work, or studies, but to succeed with your overall learning process you need to find at least a tiny bit of spare time during the day (at least 20-25 minutes every day throughout the week to learn something new or possibly review what you have learned), and up to 1.5 hr everyday during the weekend, if you can manage it. If you think that 20-25 minutes daily is not enough, let us focus on the following example.

Given that you are going to study for 25 minutes for 5 days in a week, and 4 hours at the weekends:

25 mins. X 5 days per week = 125 mins. X approx. 52 weeks in the year = 6.500 mins. ~ 108 hrs

Plus

4 hours X 52 weekends in a year = another additional 208 hrs

TOTAL: 316 hrs

To my knowledge, those 316 hours would be enough to reach A2 level, as approximately 100 learning hours is needed to reach A1 level, and 200 (200 in total) for A2.*

Please, keep in mind that not only the amount of time devoted to learning, but also the time of the day when you learn is crucial. I felt more relaxed and was willing to learn at night. Well, if you don't want to burn the midnight oil, you can learn during early morning hours. It is totally up to you to find the most convenient time to learn. If you commute to work by bus or other public transportation means you can always have some notes with you and do a quick lesson.

As for the vocabulary management concept given earlier, I recommend setting a MNNW (minimum number of new words learnt every day). Yes, it does matter to progress with your knowledge of new words on a daily basis. Let us analyze the following example:

Assuming that our minimum number will be just 5 words per day, then you could learn 1825 new words in a year. Of course, you are free to learn as many words as you wish, but let e.g. those 5 words be your minimum per day. Remember, rain or shine at least 5 new words each day!

A BRIEF SUMMARY OF KEY POINTS:

1. Your goal is set: get to know the basic understanding of Spanish (or any other L-2).

2. Preparation of your ACTION PLAN.

3. Your Resource Base.

4. Time and vocabulary management.

Copyright by My Foreign Language Craze

NOTES:

* A1, A2 acronyms refer to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. I will try to write more about it in my next posts.

** L-2 is an acronym used for the language you are learning.

Please feel free to find more information on my language learning blog.

You are invited to visit my blog for all foreign language geeks!

http://myforeignlanguagecraze.blogspot.com/

Hopefully, everybody will find something useful on language learning strategies, resources, and other tips.

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How to Choose the Best Language School

Today, there are numerous kinds of programs available to learn language. Many of them are offered by reputable educational institutions. Even though it means there are more options for students who want to enroll the language program, finding the best school for the purpose becomes trickier than before. If you are interested to study language and need help in finding the best language school, this article will be very helpful for you.

When it comes to the language teaching method to choose, not only you can think of the regular school, but also you can consider the long distance or online one. However, before anything else, when you think about language school to look into, you have to check first about the school's accreditation. Accreditation means a lot in telling whether a school is worth your time and money to join or not. If you have difficulties in finding information about accreditation status of a school you can always get help from local government offices dealing with education.

The next considerations in finding the best language school are related with study duration, expenses, certificate values, safety and the syllabus. Some language schools have a little bit more complicated bureaucracy. However, that is common because the schools want to secure the school fees and to make all of the students comfortable. It is a great bonus if a language school can offer combined language courses with other courses that may involve commerce, hospitality or cultural related activity in addition to the core lessons.

There are language schools offering single language programs while the rest offer multiple language programs with a wide range of variety languages to teach like English, French, German, Mandarin and Japanese. Usually, a language school with single language program is more focused in curriculum development and has more dates to begin the class. Therefore, usually such school is more recommended to study language than that with multiple language programs.

In short, the best language school to choose will depend on what you really need and how much resource you have in terms of time and money. It should not depend on the mainstream because the choice can be very personal. Every person has different need and starting point in terms of education. By knowing what you really want, the length of study that you expect and the affordability that you have to pay the fees, you will be able to find a school fitting most of your requirements.

Stalis Ethica is an experienced article writer and a writer manager with science background. She specializes in writing informative articles in different niches.

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Can Watching Movies Really Help You Learn a New Language?

If you have ever come across a couple of smart-looking (a.k.a. geeky) dudes speaking in Klingon or Vulcan, then you already know the answer to that question. If people can learn languages that are not on this planet from watching movies, then people can certainly do the same thing with any language spoken on this world.

Maybe you have heard of people learning a foreign language by watching TV or movies. Some years ago there were reports that said actress Mila Kunis, who is originally from Ukraine, learned English by watching The Price is Right.

That didn't turn out to be true, but most of us believed it back then probably because it wasn't such a crazy idea to begin with. Many of us pick up lines or words from movies. Who hasn't quoted a famous line from a movie at one point or another?

Sometimes we even pick up foreign phrases or words from the shows or movies we've seen. I know many kids, real ones and ones who are "kids-at-heart," who can effortlessly spout Japanese phrases or words. They got these words and phrases from watching their favourite anime.

Of course, they can't necessarily converse in Japanese when they have to, but it was easy for them to pick up these words or terms from the movie or show they watched. This doesn't really prove that you can learn a foreign language solely by watching movies. It only proves that watching foreign films can help any person become more familiar with a foreign language.

Many language learning centers are already using videos and digital media to help their students learn their target languages. Some of these language learning centers use educational videos to teach languages. Some learning centers use clips from movies to make learning more fun and interesting for their students.

With movies, having subtitles can help give language learners a clue on how words or phrases are pronounced or used in context. People who are trying to learn a language can become more familiar with their target language by watching a film in that language with English subtitles or if they watch it with the same language subtitles.

Having English subtitles help them recognise the words or phrases more. For more advanced learners, being able to read what the characters are saying helps them keep up with the conversation because, more often than not, the natural speakers of a language tend to speak faster and use a lot of slang.

People have different ways of learning a language. Some people learn more when they hear it while others prefer to see it or read it. Some people learn more through practicing and speaking the language regularly.

Whatever category you may fall under, you can't lose anything by using movies to help you learn a language. If you really want to learn a language, take a class or get a teacher. If you just want to confuse people by spouting lines in Klingon, then by all means catch a Star Trek movie and take notes.

Want the ultimate movie watching experience? My home theater projector reviews will amp up the experience at http://bestlcdprojectors.com/ - and while you're there check out some of our money-saving projectors tips. But be careful, you might never watch TV again!

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Key Language Skills To Gain If You Are Looking To Learn English

Due to the economic woes of the Eurozone's periphery, countless young Italian and Spanish students are finding themselves attracted to Western Europe's largest city.

London still has a relatively active job market. Furthermore, a diverse and dynamic society make it an attractive destination to Italian and Spanish, who are struggling with their home countries stagnant economies. The EU Free Market means that Work Visas are no an issue, so the only issue is potentailly a lack of language skills.

While German and French education promoted the learning of the English language in the 80s and 90s, Italian and Spanish educational programmes were relatively slow in promoting English language competency in their young.

Consequently, a lot of young Spanish and Italians are arriving in London unprepared, from a language point of view. Despite having very relevant skills in the work environment, a lack of language skills can lead to people taking unsklilled work, relative to ability. This is a dilemma and tough learning experience. Although there is a lot of language institutions in England, you cannot guarantee that you will always get a class to teach you English in order to get into the workplace fast.

How do we know that these schools are providing suitable training? What should we look for when searching for a course?

Students need good quality English vocabulary and grammar lessons, but in not all cases this is happening. It definitely pays to ask students about how happy they are with the course before signing up.

The next thing is to check that Business English skills are the focus of the training course. This will ensure that you gain the key work skills of structuring letters, emails and communicating on the phone.

Learning these skills in a course can be beneficial also to those looking to study in London and return to work in Italy and Spain, as the commercial focus has universal benefits.

At the moment few schools offer these course, but I hope that more schools in London will learn to provide quality language classes combined with a business focus to meet their students' long term life goals.

I have been talking to many Spanish students in London over the last few months and this seems to be the key challenge that they face when dealing with London's Language Schools. Naturally in all industries there are good and bad ones, but I hope more will create more business minded classes for the more economically driven student.

Business English Courses, Written Business Communication and TOLES English Language for Lawyers are offered at this Language School. This is situated in heart of the City of London.

London English School

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The Brazilian Portuguese Language

In Brazil the overall language is Portuguese although it has a typical Brazilian flavor to it. Although there are many dialects the language is basically the same. Since 1960 when news broadcasts became common the SE dialect has gained popularity.

There is some controversy over how far the original Portuguese has diversified due to these dialects, in Brazil. The written language remains the same but differs when spoken by the various local dialects. The grammar remains the same but different words have crept into the vocabulary of the language, giving it a Brazilian flavor. Spellings differ and it has now become similar to English and American.

It has become the national language of Brazil because of Portuguese settlers who have been in the country since the 16th century. At first the language mingled with the various tongues that prevailed at the time. However by the end of the 18 century Portuguese was well established as the language of the country. This was largely due to the large influx of immigrants using this tongue and their slaves. The settlers threw out the Jesuits who taught the local language and established their own tongue.

If you want to be truly fluent in Brazilian Portuguese then it is wise to learn the idioms and slang that the locals use. You will then get a compete feel for the language and really speak it like a native. You can do this by getting a slang dictionary or simply talking to people in Brazil. Many of the slang words are derived from foods.

Brazilian Portuguese is a fun language to learn because it gives you access to a diverse country. Brazil is an exciting place to visit and if you know the tongue, you can enjoy the country even more by talking to the people. There is nothing like mingling with the locals to really get the flavor of a country.

And this way, you are able to learn the language with ease. You will have all the time to enjoy the country and not have to worry about getting tongue tied trying to come up with the words in which to speak. Or to find a translator to speak the words for you.

Brazil has a rich history of culture in its roots. Learn the language well, and you will gain the knowledge and wisdom to navigate the labyrinth of Brazil's expansive cultural dynamics in which it is well known.

Webmaster of http://www.thebrazilianlanguage.com/ - Daniel Baker
Learn Brazilian Portuguese phrases, verbs, expressions, grammar, and even crossword puzzles. Site is frequently updated. Also, visit The Brazilian language facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Brazilian-Language/193167957402049?ref=hnav

The Brazilian Language Macapá, Amapá, Brazil

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A Good Translation Service Translates More Than Just Language

A good translation service translates more than just a language. This is especially true if you are a client for a good language provider. You, as the customer, do get to see all the different sides that an excellent translating business does have and offer in abundance to all those who are fortunate enough to become its regular pool of clients.

What are some of the things that good language translation is all about and how is that visible in a provider that does business in this specific industry? One of the things that does stand out the most and is something that does clearly separate one service provider from another is the great pains and pride that the translators do put into their works of translation for customers.

Besides being able to translate only the best material possible that is error free and as perfect as it should be in every detail. A translating provider that does stand out from the mediocre is one that is totally successful and transmits that success on to everyone that it comes in contact with as a business entity in this specific industry. Therefore, it does tend to translate more than just language, it transfers all that it is into a very effective product that customers do expect from a company of very high quality.

Translation in general can be used for many different things and the world of language is just as broad a thing equally. Therefore, if a language conversion firm can go beyond just what they are known for doing, they are a business that is definitely unique in description. Uniqueness and being able to express that uniqueness in a world that is filled with all sorts of languages will definitely stand out from amid other services.

Striving to be different by offering various solutions from a total language perspective is the key to being able to go beyond just standard every day interpreter type things. If a language provider is able to have a specialized way of doing something from that of another company. They are surely assured success due to the fact that they are striving to be different and not like everyone else in the industry.

Sometimes, uniqueness can take on the form of offering a broader range of answering specialized tasks in a specialized way, something which not every language business can do. A company's uniqueness in language will stand out from amid the thousands of other ones out there. It is something that is very visible like a lighthouse in the middle of a dark night serving as beacon to light the safe way for ships everywhere.

Translation service provide language translation in over 130 languages. No matter whether you need technical, medical, business or general translation, we are well versed in providing accurate and high quality translation services.

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A Good Translation Service Translates More Than Just Language

A good translation service translates more than just a language. This is especially true if you are a client for a good language provider. You, as the customer, do get to see all the different sides that an excellent translating business does have and offer in abundance to all those who are fortunate enough to become its regular pool of clients.

What are some of the things that good language translation is all about and how is that visible in a provider that does business in this specific industry? One of the things that does stand out the most and is something that does clearly separate one service provider from another is the great pains and pride that the translators do put into their works of translation for customers.

Besides being able to translate only the best material possible that is error free and as perfect as it should be in every detail. A translating provider that does stand out from the mediocre is one that is totally successful and transmits that success on to everyone that it comes in contact with as a business entity in this specific industry. Therefore, it does tend to translate more than just language, it transfers all that it is into a very effective product that customers do expect from a company of very high quality.

Translation in general can be used for many different things and the world of language is just as broad a thing equally. Therefore, if a language conversion firm can go beyond just what they are known for doing, they are a business that is definitely unique in description. Uniqueness and being able to express that uniqueness in a world that is filled with all sorts of languages will definitely stand out from amid other services.

Striving to be different by offering various solutions from a total language perspective is the key to being able to go beyond just standard every day interpreter type things. If a language provider is able to have a specialized way of doing something from that of another company. They are surely assured success due to the fact that they are striving to be different and not like everyone else in the industry.

Sometimes, uniqueness can take on the form of offering a broader range of answering specialized tasks in a specialized way, something which not every language business can do. A company's uniqueness in language will stand out from amid the thousands of other ones out there. It is something that is very visible like a lighthouse in the middle of a dark night serving as beacon to light the safe way for ships everywhere.

Translation service provide language translation in over 130 languages. No matter whether you need technical, medical, business or general translation, we are well versed in providing accurate and high quality translation services.

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6 Great Ways To Help You Learn A Foreign Language

Learning a second language is always a great way to broaden your horizons and keep your brain active at the same time. It can be especially useful if you're planning to live in or visit that country. But there are things you can do to speed up the learning process, just as there are things that won't really help that much at all. My first language is English, but I also know French and the language I'm learning currently is Italian.

Read Labels

The trick to learning a new language is to expose yourself to it at every opportunity. This may mean just looking at the label on products we buy all the time. Grocery products especially have the ingredients and so on usually in many different languages. Just by looking over the label then, you can learn two or three different words. If you do this often for different types of products, you'll be amazed at how quickly your vocabulary expands.

Listen to the spoken word.

This can offer itself several different forms, but what I'm suggesting is just a couple of these. Typically, you can purchase programs that incorporate spoken lessons rather than written. You can listen to recorded interviews in your language delivered by native language speakers. This is particularly useful as it allows you to get used to hearing the language spoken at the correct, meaning usual on-the-street, speed. You see, learning to speak the language is quite tricky, but to understand the spoken word over which you have no control is very much more tricky.

Avoid Holiday Phrase Books

In my opinion these are largely a waste of time, although they are for some reason incredibly popular. OK, so you open the page and you can see how to say "Good Morning" in your language. But how on earth can you possibly be prepared for the myriad possibilities that might come forth by way of a reply? You can't! That's why they are a waste of money.

Hire A teacher

You can do this quite economically. Look in the local paper or enquire at your school. What I did was to ask the local high school Italian teacher if she would put the feelers out to her Italian colleagues and friends to see if anyone was interested in one on one conversation lessons. This got floods of responses and I chose someone who lived nearby. This helped me enormously.

Hook Into Conversations

When I'm out walking or at the shops, and I hear someone talking Italian, I talk to them in Italian. It's surprising how willing people are to join in and help. To be honest, I often get lost, especially if they start talking too quickly. But I just stop and ask them - in Italian - to slow down a little. They are happy to do this. The trick is not to panic, and if you can't understand, I've asked people to use just simple words before now.

Practice Talking

This is so important. Your mouth and voice box get used to making only the sounds and syllables of your native tongue. The way your mouth and lips form these sounds is second nature, but when all of a sudden you have to start putting unfamiliar sounds and syllables adjacent to each other in a sentence, it is very difficult to do until your mouth adapts. And you can only do this with constant practice. Therefore, I recommend staging conversations with yourself when you're out walking or in doing the housework or whatever. Talk to yourself OUT LOUD in your language, and your mouth and ability will soon adapt to the changes required.

If you do these things, I promise you, you'll progress faster than you ever thought possible. And not surprisingly, once you have one extra language conquered, a third will be easier still. I say easier because many concepts are similar across languages in the same group - like the Romance languages for example. To give my own example of French and Italian, much of the structure follows identical rules, and many of the words are very similar. And when I start on Spanish, it will be easier again. Good Luck, Bon Chance, Buona Fortuna!

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A Beginner's Guide to the Chinese Language

If you want to learn a new language, tackling something like Chinese is one of the harder languages around. But, since almost one-fifth of the world's population speak Chinese it's worth learning - or maybe finding access to a Chinese translation service.

We should start with spoken Chinese as most people learn to talk before they learn to read or write. Spoken Chinese is difficult. Arguably one of the hardest parts is mastering the tonal aspect of Chinese. For example, the sound "ma" has four different sounds depending on pitch: mā means mother, má means hemp, mÇ? is for horse or mà is to scold. To begin with, a native English speaker may have trouble even distinguishing the tones, let alone reproducing them to any proficiency. Then there's stringing them into sentences once you have mastered putting them into words.

There is also a distinction between spoken (hua) and written (zi) Chinese. There are a variety of spoken languages or dialects that differ, the most prominent of which are Mandarin and Cantonese. One saving grace for a beginner is that there's only one written script - although there is also simplified Chinese which was adopted by the People's Republic in the 1950s and 60s, but it's based on the same characters.

As Chinese has its own written script (what could be called an alphabet), this brings its own demands, as most native English speakers may not have had much exposure to it. So the best course of action for the beginner learning Chinese is to start with the task of learning some of the more common characters. Even knowing 2,000 characters may not mean you can read a Chinese newspaper, so the more characters you know the better. If you compare this with English, which has just 26 letters to learn and memorise before you can start trying to pronounce and read words phonetically, it really is a large undertaking.

Phonetically, reading written Chinese aloud is a little bit of a jungle too. Compared with English, Chinese is not very phonetic at all. If you want to say the word mother in English, you can spell it out and then say it, assuming you have learnt the 6 of the 26 letters of the alphabet which appear in the word. However, reading the word mother in Chinese assumes you have seen the word before and know how to say it. Some characters give no clue as to their pronunciation. Unfortunately, you can't rely on cognates (words that are similar or the same as your mother tongue) either, as Chinese has none.

Because many of these things simply take time, learning Chinese has a lot to do with patience; the patience to keep learning the tones accurately and then patiently adding them together to form sentences. Then you need the patience taken to memorise Chinese characters, and learn to draw (or at least type) them.

Contact Blue South Australia for all your Translation for Business requirements.

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A Basic Understanding Of The French Language

When you start learning French, you might be pleasantly surprised to find that you already have a bit of a head start. There are a surprising number of French phrases and words that are part of the English language, some which were introduced during the Norman Conquest and some much later. In fact, more than 25% of English has its origins in French or at least has some influence from it, so some French translations may be as simple as taking away the accents! For example, words such as competition, force, role, routine and table all have French roots.

There are also a number of words and phrases that the average person may know, and which were introduced later, so they have not been 'anglicised'. Some of these are occasionally even used in conversation or in writing. For example: bonjour (hello), au revoir (goodbye), baguette, blasé, brioche, café, charlatan, cliché, clique, crèche, crème brûlée, croissant, décor, entrepreneur. The list could go on.

There are already many points of familiarity that can give you a good starting point for learning French. Words that come from a similar source like some of those above are called cognates. With such a large number of cognates, even a native speaker of English who's never tried to learn French may be surprised about how many words they already know.

Moving on from your starting point of writing down the words you already know, another idea is to join an immersion class, where you learn by speaking French the whole time. If it's impossible to join one of these, you can effectively do the same thing by watching movies or streaming TV with subtitles. Hearing French while reading English subtitles will help you pick up a number of common words and phrases - and a few unusual ones.

If you do get a chance to practice your French with someone, it's worth noting that there are informal and formal phrases in French, so be careful about how you say certain things in a formal situation. As things get more complicated, this is where you may need to call the services of a company specialising in French translations! Until then, here are a few phrases and words for beginners - including both formal and informal options.

Your beginner's French translation dictionary
Bonjour - Hello
Bonsoir - Good evening
Bonne nuit - Goodnight
Salut - Hello / Hi (informal)
Merci - Thank you
S'il vous plaît - Please
Comment allez-vous? - How are you? (formal)
Ça va? - How are you? (informal)
Très bien - Very good
Comment vous appelez-vous? - What is your name? (formal)
Tu t'appelles comment? - What's your name? (informal)
Comment? - pardon?
Comprenez-vous? - Do you understand? (formal)
Tu comprends? - Do you understand? (informal)

Wherever the market, whatever the business, leading companies trust Blue South NZ to deliver the translations they need; on time; on budget; professionally.

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Benefits of Learning Spanish As a Business Language

The Spanish language is now being recognized as one of the business languages all over the world. With the growing number of Spanish speaking people from all around, businesses have to do something if they would like to tap this market as part of their global expansion. Businesses can take advantage of being able to market and to promote their products and their services through this language as well. Individuals may also benefit from learning this language for their career advancement or for their personal growth.

People who are not in the work force or in business may still benefit from learning the Spanish language. They may be able to communicate better especially if they travel to various countries where majority of the locals speak this language. People who can interact well can make their visits and vacations to Spanish-speaking countries may enjoy and learn more about life and culture in general. Individuals may stand out in their work places if they know how to read, speak and write in this language. They may also be chosen to represent their companies to business partners around the world. This is another benefit that people can derive if they exert a little effort in learning Spanish.

Those who plan to further their studies may have additional eligibility that they can put in their academic transcript of records so even students can benefit from knowing it more. Others may opt to earn from their knowledge and proficiency in Spanish. They can teach or tutor others who need to learn it. People may be surprised to know that there are lots of individuals who would like to acquire proficiency in this language. Some of them for personal reasons but a lot of them would be for work purposes and for business endeavors as well. The possibilities are great for people who have the necessary communications skills in various business languages that are widely-used around the world.

It may not be that difficult for English-speaking people to learn the Spanish language as both languages have lots of words coming from the same origin which is Latin. People may find short courses being offered to them though there are also classes being offered in community colleges or schools. They may also choose to hire a private tutor instead and they may learn Spanish in various ways. Businesses that would like to go with the global trends have to employ individuals who are good in several business languages such as Spanish.

Do you want to know how you can learn Spanish words easily? In order to learn Spanish program, you must memorize the words. The best way to do this is by using memory techniques. This will help fun ways to learn Spanish as possible.

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Travel and Study English As a Second Language

Studying English as a second language is vital when aiming for an international career in a global work environment. Constant conversation and practice of the English language will help develop fluency, correctness, and confidence in the English-speaking world. The best way to achieve this like any other language is to live among and communicate with native speakers.

Combining study and travel is an opportunity of a lifetime. There are several outstanding reasons why one needing to learn English and enjoy travelling at the same time would definitely have both professional and personal advantages. Learning English while travelling abroad will help an individual acquire new skills and qualifications, be able to experience and understand different cultures and way of living, gain independence, and most importantly, relax and enjoy!

Moreover, there are huge advantages in studying a language in a place where it is widely spoken. It is an unspoken truth that there is no better way to fluently learn a language than to be with native speakers. For persons who have already studied English in their own countries, there is always room for improvements especially if English is not commonly used, thus, studying abroad will be a great idea. On the other hand, those who have no prior knowledge of the language or may have a little of it may find that living and learning the language for a certified TESL/ TEFL tutor in a place where it is spoken results in them being able to pick it up quickly, accurately and with confidence.

Being able to speak English increases professional opportunities. Having international experience enhances the chance of getting hired from a job either in a student's country of origin or abroad. Finding employment is tough now a days especially when one is targeting a high paying job. Sad enough, skills may sometimes be not the only thing needed to be eligible for employment. For global recognition, there is no doubt that internationally experienced employees with cross-cultural skills and fluent in English are currently and will continue to be in high demand.

Lastly, mixing travel and study windows an opportunity to see the world and have fun at the same time. Opting to learn English abroad and a place like Hawaii is a wise decision especially for one who loves to travel and explore. This will help not only maximize exposure to learning the English language but also experience and feel a different kind of culture apart from their own and be open to adventures which they would unlikely have elsewhere.

Study and travel collaboration makes a person experience a wide range of professional and personal benefits. Also a priceless exposure to other cultures and lifestyle, living and learning English abroad can equip a person with abilities that boost chances of employment and probability of getting paid well.

ESL Honolulu is the best place to learn English while you enjoy the tropical climate and oceanic surroundings. We offer great private and group conversation classes in English that can accommodate your needs. To schedule for a tutorial you may call us at +1-808-781-9565 or visit us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ESLHonolulu or thru our website at http://eslhonolulu.com/

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Spanish Language Learning for Kids

Kids may also be given the opportunity to learn the Spanish language. They may benefit in various ways from knowing the language at an early age. At an age of globalization, kids now may develop skills that will give them an edge in a very competitive world. Aside from learning how to speak Spanish, kids also develop other skills that are necessary for them to do well in their academic work. Their listening skills for example are enhanced when they participate in language classes. They need to say their words correctly so in the process, they will have to be very attentive and they need to listen carefully.

Teachers or tutors may provide activities that will enhance the Spanish language learning process that kids undergo. They do not only help them with the acquisition of proficiency in the language but they also facilitate the enrichment of their experiences about life and culture of other people as well. Kids who will be able to learn how speak Spanish will have more chances of interacting with other children from various parts of the world. They are also able to expand their concept of the community. As these kids grow, they develop a better perspective of living in harmony with others in a culturally diversified society.

Parents and teachers may work together to make the Spanish language learning for kids more effective. Other people like friends may also positively reinforce what children learn or acquire in school. The significant people in the lives of children may help in the growth and development of kids. Children on the other hand may realize that what they are learning is important for them to understand other people as well.

Children may learn languages such as Spanish when they are older or when they are adults. However, they learn new things very quickly while they are still young. Their minds need to be filled with positive things that will contribute to their growth and development. They also have to acquire skills that they can apply not only in their school work but in their careers later on in the future. Kids may enjoy the activities that will be provided to them in their language learning classes but the best part is that they are being equipped with skills and proficiency in the use of the Spanish language which in turn could benefit them throughout their lives. They can interact with Spanish-speaking people, they can travel around and they can get very good jobs for their skills as bilingual or even multi-lingual speakers.

Do you want to know how you can have fun ways to learn spanish? In order to learn spanish, you must memorize the words. The best way to learn spanish quickly. This will help you to learn spanish as quick as possible.

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Spanish Manual - Learning to Speak the Spanish Language

Spanish is one of the best known languages in the world. It's spoken by millions of people worldwide and is high in ranking as one of the worlds most spoken languages. In Latin countries the language is more predominant and is usually their main language. Having a Spanish manual with you at all times during a trip to a Latin country will be essential for yourself and those around you.

Here are some reasons why you should consider learning the Spanish language, become noticed in the Spanish speaking world:

- Communication is key and like for everything, vital to survival among a group. Not only will you be able to talk to Spanish speaking people but you will also be able to enjoy traveling a lot better when knowing how to speak it. You won't be as frustrated as the person next to you who doesn't really understand the language that well. Knowing how to communicate your thoughts, ideas or opinions is very handy especially when you encounter a Latin restaurant where they speak Spanish.

- A Spanish manual to help you learn Spanish will help you understand how to succeed in the workplace as well with your fellow Spanish coworkers. Think about that promotion that you couldn't achieve elsewhere and is available to you in the Spanish speaking community. Being bi-lingual or even tri-lingual or more is in very high demand for many employers. You'll be able to communicate back and forth in your company's relations.

- If you've been wandering the streets of a Latin country, you've probably seen a a very appealing man or woman by now, if you haven't there is a lot of Latin people out there waiting for love, but how exactly can you come to communicate with them on a romantic level to earn their love if you're single? This is where your Spanish manual comes in handy. To many people the Spanish language is absolutely beautiful and is a lot more expressive than the English language itself.

- When coming into a Latin country, expect most of the countries television programming to be in Spanish. Be able to enjoy the thrills of Latin television, Spanish speakers tend to make very great "novelas" which are soap operas in English. There's a lot of sports programming, as it is very loved by the Spanish speaking community, especially the sport of soccer. Be able to understand the news broadcasted on television as well.

- Being able to assist those around you is another obstacle that you can get around by learning Spanish, you may encounter service requests from others around you and by knowing your Spanish you will be able to help them out.

- Listen to the music around you as you travel in Latin countries and learn their deep cultural backgrounds by learning Spanish. You will be able to sing along to any Spanish song available and your voice will be very appealing to those around you. All Spanish speaking countries have a very great music selection and the variety in taste is exceptionally well composed. There are many leading artists found in Spanish Speaking countries to listen to. You will fall in love with Spanish music as it is the most romantic of them all.

Learning Spanish will serve you well all your life, and learning the language will help you control what's around you and that's where your Spanish manual will be there for you.

If you truly wish to prosper in the Spanish Language and obtain the best Spanish Manual, then you must visit the world's best resource. Go to this website immediately:
http://spanishmanual.net/

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Children and the Spanish Language

Parents may encourage their children to learn how to speak other languages aside from English. They may teach them or they may get some tutors to do it for them. However, if it is an option that is offered in school, then they may take advantage of it for the benefit of their children. Aside from learning the language, there are other necessary skills that children can develop. They are able to learn how to listen properly and attentively. This is very important especially in the learning process of children. Correct listening skills will also enhance the learning process of children in their other academic work.

Children who learn more about the Spanish language also learn more about other people as well. They develop better interaction with other children who may be speaking Spanish only. In time, they will also be able to enhance their inter-personal relationship skills as they become proficient in the use of the language. Children who can speak other languages will also be more confident and this will help them in achieving their goals in life. Learning how to speak the Spanish language will be a big accomplishment for children.

Children may be encouraged to love learning new things in life as well especially if they succeed in their early learning of one of the world's major languages besides English. They also become more interested about the culture of people other than their own. Later on, children may continue enhancing their proficiency in the use of the Spanish language so that they can fully gain the benefits from it. Children may also have the opportunity to make new friends from around the world. They can make use of their skills in the language to communicate and to learn more about other people of the world.

Children who succeed in learning how to speak Spanish may also learn other world languages as well. Those who grow up to become multi-lingual individuals will have more opportunities later in life. They can use it for their personal growth, for their social interaction as well as for finding the best career opportunities in the future. Though it is never too late to start learning how to speak Spanish, it would still be better to start early in life to do so. Children may not be able to realize it on their own so their parents have to provide them with the opportunity. Parents should know that their children can have the best of everything in the future if they will be well-prepared for it.

In this day and age it is more important to learn spanish language than it has ever been. Fortunately the tools and resources are readily available to you. You just need to figure out which program meets your needs and then get started. Soon a whole new world will be open to you. Click here to discover how to learn spanish easy.

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Methods for Increasing the Motivation of Language Learners

There's nothing like authentic motivation to uplift the learning quotient of language students. Well-motivated ESL students learn faster, retain lessons better, discover opportunities to apply lesson principles more frequently, and express themselves in English more fluently compared to students who lack proper motivation.

Early learners are naturally curious and are often compelled to explore and engage their environment. As people grow older, however, this natural curiosity tapers off substantially, such that many students in a conventional classroom environment find it hard to focus on the lesson.

As demonstrated in countless studies, motivation in very young children is almost always very high. This allows for cognitive, associative, assimilative, and imitative learning at an unparalleled rate. At this stage, language learning is among the areas where children exhibit unusual affinity and learning speed. However, as children grow older, the intrinsic motivation to learn new skills gets eroded by different external stimuli. Bullying, the fear of being ostracized by peers when an attempt at something fails, and excessive parental restrictions are just some of the factors that can hamper young students' learning rates. Eventually, the experience of learning--a process that previously generated pure excitement among toddlers--becomes something more associated with boredom in a four-cornered classroom. Given this scenario, the intrinsic motivation to learn among many adults is understandably low and subconsciously de-prioritized in favor of externally induced motivation (learning something to help pay the bills, being the most prominent).

That said, motivation--regardless of origin--is pivotal in hurdling the challenges associated with language learning. The more motivated ESL students are, the better they are at absorbing and applying lesson principles. It is therefore important for ESL educators not only to know the nature and properties of motivation but also to adopt approaches that help motivate students to learn English.

Nature of Motivation

To motivate language learners more effectively, ESL educators first need to fully grasp the concept of motivation. Different students engage ESL lessons differently. For one thing, the desire to participate in classroom dynamics differ from one student to the next, with each having their own reasons or goals for getting involved in the learning process.

Cognitive experts believe that students can be motivated in at least three fundamental ways:

1. Intrinsically motivated - students who are intrinsically motivated get involved in a learning interaction for its own sake. Intrinsically motivated students genuinely enjoy the learning interaction and feel some form of achievement once the learning process is completed.

2. Extrinsically motivated - students who are extrinsically motivated participate in a learning interaction primarily as a result--or in pursuit--of an external factor. Commonly, this factor is some variant of the reward-punishment principle. This is clearly established in the training of animals, wherein rewards (such as food or tangible expressions of affection/affirmation) and punishment (whip lashes, electric shocks, and confinement) are used to goad an animal into performing an activity or task designed by its human trainer. In human learners, rewards include high grades or acceptance into a state college while punishments include the fear of parental reprisals.

3. Motivated to learn - students who are motivated to learn are propelled to participate in a learning interaction by a blend of intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Ordinarily, students who are motivated to learn are more mature in terms of their awareness of the value of learning something and tend to pursue learning regardless of whether a subject elicits personal enjoyment or not. In one research, being "motivated to learn" implies in-depth involvement in and a strong commitment to learning a specific subject.

Methods of Establishing and Increasing Motivation

As competent ESL educators know, being aware of the nature of motivation in the context of language learning is just half the journey. It would be a great thing to teach in a classroom full of intrinsically motivated students, but such is a rare and unlikely thing indeed. It is much more probable for a language teacher to have a class where the roots and level of motivation vary among students. Almost always, there will also be students whose learning progress is hindered by a serious deficiency in motivation. Hence, to help students complete the learning journey, ESL educators need to adopt the right approaches in increasing student motivation.

Before going any further into the specific approaches, it is imperative for ESL educators to understand that their own motivation and energy inevitably affects those of their students. In the first place, how motivated and committed is the ESL teacher in instructing language learners? Does the ESL educator truly understand what she is trying to impart? Situations wherein ESL teachers are not properly motivated eventually translate negatively on the learning progress of students. Simply put, if a language teacher lacks commitment or is poorly motivated, students will have less motivation to learn. Secondly, commitment without the right skills is inadequate. ESL educators must come into classrooms equipped with the right teaching skills, tools and resources in order to become effective sharers of new knowledge. Lastly, language teachers should be aware of the specific needs of their students in order to engage them more meaningfully. Drawing from the cultural, political, and economic backgrounds of students will help second language teachers design relevant lesson plans and achieve more positive learning outcomes.

Once ESL educators have fully appreciated and prepared for their roles in the learning dynamic, they can then proceed to applying the different approaches. The techniques are pretty straightforward and any ESL teacher who has been engaged in the profession for some time can easily adopt and customize based on the needs of specific classes. If you are an ESL educator, following these basic guidelines will help you motivate your students better.

1. Exude your own excitement about the subject matter. There's nothing like learning from a teacher who's genuinely enthusiastic about the lesson and exhibits this enthusiasm in class. Energy is contagious and demonstrating positive energy will speed up the learning rate in any class.

2. Make each individual lesson relevant to students. Depending on class size and other factors, you may want to consider students who have the least level of motivation and align your lessons to make them more relevant to these students. If this is not plausible, making the lesson meaningful to the most number of students is the safest course to take.

3. Avoid giving assignments and homework that are irrelevant to the students' personal lives (i.e., that outside the classroom). As much as possible, give assignments that excite them or attract their interest.

4. Be proactive in building relationships with challenged learners. Probe for their weaknesses and identify the factors that impede their learning. Determine the tings that inspire and excitement. Based on the information you have gleaned, create learning bridges that hurdle difficulties and help them appreciate the lessons.

5. Practice variety and rhythm in teaching approaches. The use of computers, rich media, and group dynamics should be interspersed with out-of-class engagements and traditional teaching methods.

6. Don't be frugal in the use of humor. Studies have shown that people learn more in relaxed and positive environments than they do in stressful ones.

7. Encourage students to talk more in class.

8. Create scenarios for collaborative learning.

9. Never skimp on giving praise and positive feedback. Demonstrably recognizing student efforts and achievements will help reinforce their motivation to learn.

10. Regularly gather student feedback and their opinions on how they think and the learning process can be improved.

Conclusion

For ESL educators, the most important input in motivating students is to show them that you are genuinely motivated in the lesson yourself and that you truly care about their learning progress. Once this have been established, you can then proceed with applying the different guidelines that encourage language learners to participate more and become more involved in classroom activities. Knowing students' specific backgrounds, needs, and learning difficulties will help ESL teachers align lesson plans and methodologies such that the best learning outcomes are achieved.

Michael G. Hines is an educator living in Thailand and the Founder of Icon Education Group - Educating the Future (IconEducationGroup):
TEFL World - TEFL Jobs Overseas

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Practice Writing in a Different Language By Writing Online Articles - A Good Way to Learn English

The other day, I was talking to a fellow online article writer over the Internet. He is in a country, a rather large one, but it isn't an English speaking nation. Although many people there do speak English, it is not their regular language. He told me that he wrote online articles to reach English-speaking markets, and to make new friends. I could tell by his e-mail that he was still practicing, and honing his skills. Okay so, let's talk about this case study for a moment shall we?

Does writing online articles help someone learn English? It certainly helps them learn to write in English, and English is a hard language to learn because of its idiosyncrasies, and difficult spellings. Nevertheless, he was well on his way to making it happen. For instance, he knows that his articles need to be perfect, and in grammatically correct English, otherwise no one will take him seriously. He also knows that he must spend time to make sure it is correct, and check his work against various electronic translation devices, and also show it to his friend who speaks and writes English already.

Having someone that speaks and writes in their native English able to do your editing will go a long way to assisting you in understanding what is right and what is wrong. It was interesting to see so many people from all over the world jumping on board into the world of article writing on the Internet, and although at first even though their quantity was high, it was obvious that they were challenged by many of the sentence structure, grammatical rules, and hard to learn spelling of important words.

It is possible to learn "Simple English" which would be about 750 words in the English language without too much problem; being able to put the writing together in proper sentences for use in blogging, e-mails, tweeting, and all sorts of electronic communication? I believe so. The more people who learn English; to both write and speak it, the closer the world will get together because it is in fact the business and Internet language of the world.

Yes, it can be frustrating for someone that doesn't know how to write English yet, having their articles rejected, but nothing good in life is easy, and if foreign speaking individuals learning English as a second language are able to make this happen, as well as get these articles published, everyone wins around the world, as more and more people share information about their culture, way of life, and needs, wants, and desires. It brings humanity closer together, and it's a good thing.

Lance Winslow has launched a new provocative series of eBooks on Writing Skills. Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank; http://www.worldthinktank.net/

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Origins Of The English Language

It is the language of business, popular media and the most diverse in the world. With more than one million distinct words at a yearly growth rate of 8,500, English is more diverse and confusing than any other language. The little intricacies of inflection and pronunciation make it considerably different to any other language and notoriously difficult to master for non-native speakers. Its diversity and sheer size make it one of the most descriptive languages, and with just over 500 million total speakers, it is not uncommon for words and phrases from other Indo-European languages to be borrowed and incorporated either. If you're planning on studying English abroad, you might be interested to know more about the beginnings of the language.

A History of English

A West Germanic language, English is from the same group as German, Dutch, Yiddish and Afrikaans. English finds its roots in the Anglo-Frisian dialects that Germanic invaders and settlers brought with them into Britain. These dialects were initially quite diverse, each becoming part of what we know today as Old English. Late West Saxon became the dominant dialect among the four that Old English was comprised of. The others, Merican, Kentish and Northumbrian, lost their popularity with time and especially as Late West Saxon became the first written English dialect - known as the Winchester Standard.

The language changed significantly during the Middle Ages, with modern English dating back to the 15th century and the 'Great Vowel Shift' - an event that separated middle and modern English quite distinctly with a dramatic change in pronunciation.

1604 marks the year of the first English dictionary, the Table Alphabeticall, and also the time when the language became clearly recognisable as English. The next four centuries saw changes in minor details such as pronouns and developments in pronunciation, but from the 17th century onwards the English we speak today had taken its form.

Learn English in New Zealand

Because of its popularity and its status in international business throughout the developed world and in both Western and Eastern countries, English is a popular language for students looking to better their opportunities in the future. New Zealand welcomes ESOL students with schools dedicated to the subject throughout the country. As the biggest city in the country, English language courses in Auckland are some of the most popular choices for international students with great accommodation available around the CBD and all the Kiwi culture to go along with it.

CCEL ( Christchurch College of English Ltd ) is a privately-owned English language school located on the University of Canterbury campus in Christchurch. CCEL works in partnership with the University and provides international students with a pathway to further study, find out more here: http://www.ccel.co.nz/

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Overcome the Language Barriers in Your Business With Translation Services

As the name implies document translations are all about translating a document written in one language into some other language as per client's specifications. In a way, translation has helped in overcoming language barriers in international trade. When it comes to global trade, English is mostly a source language while target languages can be Arabic, German, Chinese, Italian, French or any other. Irrespective of your target language, it is important to seek services of highly qualified, skilled and experienced translators for accurate document translations. It does not matter how easy your business documents are to translate, you must always make sure to go for professional services.

Most nations in Asia have different national languages. There are a number of countries out there which have quite a huge consumer market; still they don't have English as a main language such as Indonesia, Malaysia, China and Japan. Most translation agencies which translate texts to Chinese also translate texts to Malay and Japanese. The only thing which as a customer one needs to keep in mind is to look for a credible and efficient company offering quality work.

Talking about Arab market which happens to be world's richest market, well a marketer would find himself advertising his products or services to the Arab consumers for making large profits. All Arab nations have Arabic as their main language including Syria, Egypt, Yemen, Dubai, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. For selling goods to these nations, one cannot overlook to avail the benefits of document translations. However, the translation agency chosen must be reliable with translators and interpreters who can speak and write well in Arabic.

Another market which can't be ignored is European market. Europe is known to have some largest economies in world. France and Germany are two European nations with largest economies. But as both these countries do not have English as their national language which further arises the need of professional services of translators to translate document's material to French. An adept translator would take into account French grammar, French idioms and French writing conventions. Likewise, to easily communicate with German-language speaking world, it is imperative to hire the services of proficient translators with an excellent command over spoken and written German to make sure they accurately translate your documents to German.

Today, when businesses want to reach out to the global market by selling their products and services all across the globe, there is immense need to completely overcome the language barriers. This can become possible with translation service. Considering the fact that language is one of the biggest barriers when selling products/services worldwide, document translation services play a significant role in businesses.

For the best translation service and for professional translation services contact All Translation today

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Factors to Consider When Selecting the Language Translation Services

Considering a flurry of translation companies operating worldwide, choosing the best agency can be an extremely baffling and overwhelming experience. One would not really know which one among the several companies claiming to be the best can be relied upon. Based on experiences of professionals from diverse fields such as banking, law, business and medicine, following factors must be thoroughly considered before making the critical decision to entrust your confidential business documents to any language translation service provider.

• Kind of services- A reliable language translation agency does a lot more than simply translating documents. For instance, they can handle video or graphic productions, advice you regarding the work and perform many more such tasks. Even without client's supervision, they can efficiently handle their entire project right from the beginning to the completion.

• Quality assurance- Seek services of an agency which can guarantee quality assurance. Apart from translation, they should also offer you editing as well as proofreading from qualified professionals. Usually, reputed translation agencies which are acknowledged for producing top quality work offers proofread materials and samples, a number of times to the customers.

• Competence to deliver- It is extremely important for you as a customer to delve into the reputation and background of the translation company before finalizing a deal with them. If the company does not have a good reputation for meeting deadlines and timely responding to the queries of the customers, it simply can't be trusted. And thus one must consider services of some other translation agency instead.

• Professional translators and interpreters- Entrusting a legal or medical document containing crucial information to any translator who can just speak the foreign language, but does not have any experience in the relevant field, would be downright dangerous. It is even applicable to several other regulated industries and sectors like finance, government, banking etc. By choosing the best language services, you can be fully assured of receiving quality work not just in terms of grammar but also in maintaining the exact meaning of the text or message in the document.

• Reasonable rates- Just because any translation agency proffer affordable translation service doesn't imply that the agency cannot perform a good job or only because an agency has steep rates doesn't imply it can guarantee excellent work. It is always viable to perform a good background check before forming an opinion about any company.

Taking into account all the above mentioned factors would definitely help you to choose the best language translation services.

For the best translation service and for professional translation services contact All Translation Services today

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