New Year’s Weekend in Boston

Posted on December 26, 2017 by faeslcommunity

This weekend, there will be a large number of special events in Boston to celebrate the new year. Most of them are part of First Night Boston. Here’s a Full Schedule

Blink light and music show – every 30 minutes from 4:30-10pm, every night through Jan 1st
Ice sculptures – at Quincy Market, Copley Square, and a few other places

Sunday afternoon Dec 31st
- Afternoon Dance Party – 2-4PM at Faneuil Hall Marketplace (Quincy Market)
  outside, for the whole family
- Free Puppet Shows at the Boston Public Library in Copley Square (1:15, 2:00, 2:45, 3:30, 4:15)
New Year’s Eve – Sunday Dec 31st
- Ligh t and Music show in Copley Square
- Fireworks over Boston Harbor (good viewing from Christopher Columbus Park and Fan Pier Park )
New Year’s Day – Monday Jan 1st
- Science on the Street – Copley Square Noon – 3pm
  Science-related demos and activities
- First Day Hike at Walden Pond – Noon-2pm
  GPS: 915 Walden St, Concord

Vacation Week Ideas

Posted on December 25, 2017 by faeslcommunity

If you have kids out of school this week, or just have extra time for yourself, here are some places to go – to see more of Boston and MetroWest, have some family fun, and practice your English:

Charlotte’s Web – at Harvard University in Cambridge (Loeb Drama Center)
Performances every day through Jan 7th ($15-20)
Special sensory friendly performance on Dec. 29th
Kids skate in their socks
- SnowMazing – – at the Boston Children’s Museum – through Jan 28th
- At Discovery Museum in Acton Dec 26-30
Boston Winter – now open for the winter at Boston City Hall Plaza
Ice Skating Path; Holiday Market; more
See video
Ice Skating– at the Frog Pond on the Boston Common – now open (Video)
Holiday Lights
- Tower Hill Gardens
  After 4pm, Now through Jan 7th
  GPS: 11 French Drive in Boylston
- Greenway Carousel Light Shows – every night 4:45 to 7pm (except Dec 25) until Jan 1st
  Walk around Boston, and then ride the carousel and watch the light show
  GPS: near 191 Atlantic Ave, Boston
- ZooLights at the Stoneham Zoo – Dec 26 – 31, 5-9pm
- Best places to see Christmas lights in New England
Places to go sledding in MetroWest
Places to go skiing near MetroWest/Boston
Places to go for a winter hike
- In MetroWest, there’s Callahan Park – and many others
- Some other good winter hiking places in Massachusetts
Lots more to find on…
- Boston Calendar
- Boston Central

Merry Christmas

Posted on December 24, 2017 by faeslcommunity

Video Dictionary

Posted on December 23, 2017 by faeslcommunity

To explain a word you don’t understand, there are good dictionaries especially for English learners – such as the Learner’s Dictionary. There are picture dictionaries – such as on the website English for Beginners. There is another website – called the Video Dictionary, or “Vidtionary” – that describes English words for you by using very short videos.

Here’s a sample video describing “vending machine” …

“Broken” English?

Posted on December 23, 2017 by faeslcommunity

Broken English means: speaking English with a lot of mistakes

Get Text Messages with Art

Posted on December 22, 2017 by faeslcommunity

The Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco is 3,000 miles away from MetroWest, but you can see some artwork from their collection on your phone – plus practice your English a little in a fun way.

The museum has a feature called “Send Me“. Just send a text message to 57251 and ask for a picture of something – and you will usually quickly receive a text with a related photograph, painting, etc. from the museum. You can even ask for art using an emoticon.

For example, you can try sending a text to 57251 like this:

Send me the ocean
Send me something blue
Send me 🌺

10 Latinas Who Made U.S. History

Posted on December 22, 2017 by faeslcommunity

Read about Astronaut Ellen Ochoa, Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, US Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, and 7 other inspiring Latinas in the United States. This is part of a series of articles by Google about Latino Cultures in the U.S.

As an example, here’s what they write about Justice Sotomayor…. Continue reading →

Could You Become a Medical Interpreter?

Posted on December 17, 2017 by faeslcommunity

Have you considered becoming a medical interpreter? It’s a valuable and rewarding job for people who can speak two (or more) languages.

Medical interpreters:

Make sure that the doctor and patient understand each other, during discussions about medical diagnosis and treatment
Can help with cultural as well as language issues in communication
Explain how health care and services work
Advise patients of their rights

More Information:

Take a look at some available jobs for medical interpreters in Massachusetts
MassBay Community College is one of many schools in the area that offers training for becoming a medical interpreter
Here’s another private school in Boston – with an article that explains more about this career
There’s a non-profit organization in Boston, called Found in Translation, which offers a medical interpreter training program for free – to women with a low income. Here’s a recent article about this organization.

Learning English in MetroWest

Monthly Archives: December 2017