Whatever you think of it, Halloween is firmly a part of British culture and has been for a very long time. It is deeply rooted in the British Isles originating from ancient Celtic harvest festivals, particularly the Gaelic festival Samhain (pronounced Sow[rhymes with cow]-Inn). Samhain is actually the Irish Gaelic word for November. Samhain to […]
A2 Key for Schools and B1 Preliminary for Schools A2 Key for Schools and B1 Preliminary for Schools are two very popular Cambridge exams specifically designed for school-age learners. These exams help learners gain confidence to communicate in real-life situations. To provide better alignment between the exams helping students progress step-by-step, Cambridge has updated these […]
Dyslexia is one of the world’s most common learning differences. Some studies estimate that as many as 1 in 5 people have a degree of it, so the chances of you knowing someone with it is extremely high. Although different cultures treat learning differences with varying degrees of recognition, the fact is that dyslexia does […]
What does it mean to be a teacher? In this blog, for World Teachers’ Day, we reflect and share some of our Buddies thoughts. World Teachers’ Day, also known as International Teachers Day, is a celebration held on 5th October. It has been an annual event since 1994 to commemorate the signing of the UNESCO/ILO […]
Poetry is the clear expression of mixed feelings. – W.H. Auden The Power of Poetry Poetry is a kind of alchemy. It has this unique ability to take the complex, messy, joyful, painful thoughts and feelings that we all experience as human beings, and crystallise them down into ink on a page. These lines and […]
As ESL teachers following the immersive method, we have 3 main goals when helping our students learn English: 1. To help our students reach their language goals Being more skilled in speaking will in turn help our students become better readers and writers. Overall, they will be better at communicating in all areas in their […]
Food festivals happen all year round in the UK, a major one being British Food Fortnight which takes place each year from the 19th September to 4th October. Briefly, it’s a competition that celebrates and supports local food producers and communities. It was founded by Alexia Robinson in 2002 to bring together all of the […]
You may have heard the phrase ‘blended learning’ in recent meetings and seminars. Do you know what it means? Hopefully, this blog will clear up any confusion! If it doesn’t then feel free to e-mail academic@iqbar.co.uk with any questions or comments you may have. Blended learning is an approach to education that combines self-directed online […]
Spy, fighter pilot, celebrated writer. Who could be in possession such an extensive resume, but Roald Dahl? Author of such beloved children’s books as Matilda, James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and many more, Dahl’s enchanting, funny, whimsical tales have been adored by children worldwide for decades. Each year, Roald Dahl Day […]
In developed countries, it’s easy to forget that learning to read and write is a privilege. Internationally, 750 million people lack basic literacy skills, and out of this number, 250 million are children. Two hundred and fifty million children worldwide. According to international reports, there is a clear and significant direct connection between illiteracy and […]
