I love the questions my students ask me about American culture. Usually something that is very confusing for them takes just a few moments for me to explain.

Here is a great example. Can you guess what this sign means? Do you think it means that drugs are free near a school? That's what many students think, but it doesn't make sense to them!

Actually, 'drug-free' means 'no drugs'. Think about 'sugar-free' or 'fat-free'.

This sign tells illegal drug dealers that they will get into more trouble if they sell drugs close to a school. The idea is to discourage drug dealers from selling drugs near schools. Does it work? Actually, I have no idea!

Here is a picture of me teaching a TOEFL class in New York City. I don't usually sit down---I'm way too hyper! Do you see the cup of coffee in my left hand? Maybe I hadn't had a sip yet...

"Raining Cats and Dogs?"

Today one of my students said, "Tomorrow it will rain cats and dogs". This idiom means that it's raining A LOT!

This is a very interesting idiom and it's in many ESL books. But Americans rarely use it!

What do we say instead?

• It's raining hard
• It's pouring (rain) (out)
  
• It's raining like crazy

So, my student could say:

"Tomorrow it's supposed to rain really hard"

or

"It's going to be pouring tomorrow"

Here is a picture of my son and daughter. They are four years apart.

My son is usually nice to her, but sometimes he loses his patience.

This picture was taken at my father-in-law's house in February. He lives in Benin, which is a country in West Africa.

We went there for a three week vacation!

This Blog is for All of You!

Do you have a question about how to use English?
Are you confused about an idiom from a TV show?
Is there something about American Culture that you want to know?
Do you need advice on living in the U.S.?
Is it hard to speak English with Americans?
Are you struggling to make friends here?

E-mail me!

True International Experience. For me, this phrase means many things. First and foremost, it means making genuine, meaningful connections with people from different countries. As an ESL instructor in the United States, my mission is to facilitate these connections between English learners and native English-speaking Americans.

Why do I feel that this is my mission? Why not just stay in the classroom teaching ESL lessons, assigning homework, and giving tests?

Simple. True International Experience (TIE) is the best (and fastest) way to learn English, discover American culture, make friends, get into universities, get jobs, and have fun. It's why people decide to study English in a foreign country instead of in their own. I mean, it's not logical to travel so far away and pay so much for ESL classes if you don't spend time with Americans and your English doesn't improve.

Is it?

But what happens to most international students in the U.S.? Do they make American friends easily? What happens to most international businesspeople? Do they socialize with their American co-workers? What happens to most of the spouses of these businesspeople? Do they find opportunities to speak English?

(These are what we call 'rhetorical questions'; if you're not sure what I mean, look up 'rhetorical' in a good English-English dictionary (Cobuild's my favorite). Oh, and please be sure to notice the stress in the word: rhe-TOR-i-cal and practice saying the word out loud!)

If you need to make more genuine, meaningful connections with native English speakers...

E-mail me!

If you need to learn more about American English and American culture...

E-mail me!

If you need a way to practice your English...

E-mail me!

E-mail me your questions, thoughts, stories, problems, or concerns. I will post and respond to as many as I possibly can. When you e-mail me, PLEASE tell me if I can write your name and where you're from on the blog or if you prefer to be anonymous (a-NON-y-mous)

Let's do this together for True International Experience! Let's do this for TIE!!!!

jrhlevine@gmail.com