2017年12月13日水曜日

BR 1-08: Stranger Than Fiction


What happened to the man who jumped from the Empire State Building? What about the family who went to sleep in the wrong house? Can cows fly?


This book is consisted of many short stories. One story ends in one page, so it is easy to read. In addition, each story is funny. Totally I like this book. I want read it again.

Healey, Phil. and Glanvill, Rick.(1999). Stranger than Fiction. Harlow: Pearson Education.

BR 01-6: Forrest Gump

He's an unusual man: a footballer, a soldier in Vietnam, he meets the President of America, he goes into space - and his best friend, Sue is an ape!

This book is a human drama which depicts a half of life of Forrest Gump. His intelligence is inferior, but he achieves many successes with his pure heart and support from people around him. I'm sure that you will feel happy after reading this book.

Groom, Winston.(1999). Forrest Gump. Harlow: Pearson Education.

2017年12月7日木曜日

BR 1-07: The Full Monty



Gaz and five others work at a steel factory, they lose their job due to depression. Gaz don't have enough money to raise his son. They are at a loss about what to do. So, they decide to form a strippers' group. None of the men has stripped before. Gaz must make sure the local woman come to the show, so he tells them that the group will take all their clothes off. Will these unlikely strippers dare to go for the 'full monty'?

Holden, Wendy.(1999). The Full Monty. Oxford: Penguin Readers.

2017年11月30日木曜日

BR 01-5: The Incredible Journey

The country is wild and dangerous. Mountains are high, rivers run fast, and there are strange animals in the woods. But three family pets - two dags and a cat - begin a long, long walk through western Canada. They miss their family and they are trying to get home. But will anyone see them again?

Burnford, Sheila.(2004). The Incredible Journey. Oxford: Penguin Readers.

2017年11月2日木曜日

BR 01-4: Babe in the City


 'Nobody wins in the city. And obody helps anybody.'


Babe is a very cleaver little pig. One day, Farmer Arthur Hoggett gets hurt severely in the well because of Babe's carelessness. After the accident, Hoggett no longer work for a long time. In order to meet the bank's requirment, Babe leaves the farm for the city. There, Babe unwillingly causes deep trouble.
Babe is tiny, but has kindness and courage for sure.

Escott, John. (1998). Babe in the City. London: Penguin Readers.

2017年10月30日月曜日

BR 1-03: Money for a Motorbike


Martin worked in a garage. He had a bike for sale. It was a beauty!
Martin wanted €350 for the bike, but Stuart didn’t have €350. He didn’t have any money.

Stuart wanted to buy a bike for sale. But he quit his school already, He didn’t have enough money. Unfortunately, he entered a home illegally and stole a lot of money. In a minute he went to buy the bike he wanted. Finally, he arrested. Martin also felt sad because he thought he got money. But Stuart promised to Martin that someday he will buy the bike by his own money.

 Milne, John. (2005). Money for a Motorbike. Oxford: Macmillan Readers.

2017年10月19日木曜日

BR 1-02: Dangerous Journey

Four men are trapped in the forest. Heavy rain has turned the tracks into mud. The bridge across the river is broken.
. There is four man. They have been in forest to look for irons and other metals. After thier stay in the forest, they decided to go home. On their way home, they are in trouble. Unfortunately, it starts to rain heavily, and it caused flood. They are so close to death. They work together and manage to go through the unmapped path, although they don't get along each other.

 Cox, Alwyn. (2005). Dangerous Journey. Oxford: Macmillan Readers

2017年10月12日木曜日

BR 1-01: All About Space

In stories, aliens are living things from another world, but are they real?
 Many people laugh at those who believe in aliens. But I assure the existence of creatures outside the earth. Space is too big to learn by today's technology. There is no way to study planets away from the earth as of today. This planet is much more smaller than you expected. If you learn space to read this book, you can learn how this planet is so tiny.

Raynham, Alex.(2010). All About Space. Oxford University Press.

2017年7月27日木曜日

The Lost Wallet

Two friends, John and Eric, find their teacher's wallet full of money. John wants to give the money back, but Eric wants to spend it. What will they decide?

Eric spent the teacher's money to buy a new guitar in spite of John's advise. stealing is one of the things you shouldn't do most of all, no matter how much you may hate the teacher. Bad things always come to light.

Vocabulary
・scratch: a thin mark or cut on the surface of something
・to say nothing of: は言うまでもなく

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).The Lost Wallet,USA:Thomson ELT.

The Big Test

The big test is tomorrow!
Everyone is  studying hard, but not Steve and Ryan. They have a plan to steal the test. How do they plan to steal it? Will the teacher catch them?

Steve and Ryan steal the data of the test from the teacher's computer. But a surveillance camera caught their behavior. As a result, they fail the test. They got what they deserved.

Vocabulary
・transmitter: equipment that sends out radio or televisions singals
・steal: to take something that belongs to someone else

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).The Big Test,USA:Thomson ELT.

Think Daniela!

Daniela always tries to help her friends, but she doesn't always think carefully and often makes things worse. When she sees a bear near her friend Faye, she must think quickly. What will she do?
I totally understand how she feel. Kindness is very important in friendship. Like the end of the story, you keep kind to people, you will have a very good friend.

Vocabulary
・sneaker: a type of light soft shoe with rubber sole, used for sports
・blanket: a cover for a bed, usually made of wool
・smell: 修飾語がない場合はしばしば「悪臭」の意
 order: 強いにおい scent: かすかなにおい fragrance: よいにおい perfume: 香水などの快いにおい aroma: 芳しいにおい stench: 強烈でいやなにおい

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).Think Daniela!,USA:Thomson ELT.

Stone Soup

Once upon a time, there was a village. It was a nice place to live except for one thing. People did not like to share.

In the village, people don't like to let others use anything. One day, a visitor came to the village. He started to cook stone soup, and told them to bring ingredients to cook the soup. Finally, it was ready. Everyone ate a big bowl. The soup made them happy. from then on, the people in the village shared.

Vocabulary
・sniff:to breathe air into your nose noisily, for example when you are crying or have a cold
・broth: soup with meat, rice, or vegetables

Reference
Findley, V.(2006).Stone Soup. New York, NY:Scholastic.

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

"What a nice home!"

Once upon a time, a family of three bears decided to go for a walk. They shut the door of their tide house and off they want. Sooner a girl named Goldilocks entered the house without permission. I can't understand why she enter the bear's home. Now she will be called trespasser.

Vocabulary
・porridge: oats that are cooked with milk or water and served hot for breakfast
・yikes: said when something frightens or shocks you
・(as) quick as a wink: 瞬く間に、たちまち、すばやく
・slurp: to make a loud noise while you are drinking sth

Reference
Findley, V.(2006).Goldielocks and three bears. New York, NY:Scholastic.

Goodbye, Hello!

Alex meets a beautiful girl in a store. He falls in love, but she goes away. He wants to meet her again, but doesn't even know her name. How can be meet her again?

He meet her again in school. I know it is impossible, but I hope my life will go well like him.

Vocabulary
・store: a place where good are sold to the public. In British English, a store is large and sells many different of things, but in American English, a store can be large or small, and sell many things or only one type of things.
・gear: a set of equipment or tools you need for a particular activity

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).Goodbye Hello!,USA:Thomson ELT.

No, You Can't!

Anthony's mother stops him from going to the motorbike races. But when his mother finds out he has secretly gone to the races with his grandfather, he gets into a lot of trouble with more than just his family. What's going to happen to Anthony now?

Anthony got injured because of his mother's interference. Parents shouldn't interfere with their children. Let them do a lot of things. Children grow up with many failure.

Vocabulary
・garage: a building for keeping a car in, usually next to or attached to a house
・motorbike: especially a small fast two-wheeled vehicle with an engine

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).No, You Can't!,USA:Thomson ELT.

Singer Wanted

This school band Hot Rock is looking for a new singer. Daniela and Gemma both want to sing with the band. Who will be the new singer?

I belong a rock band in my university, so I'm very interested in this story. I know singer is the most important for a band, so this story was very interesting for me.

Vocabulary
・rock: a type of popular modern music with a strong loud beat, played using guitar and drums
・pop music: modern music that is popular, especially with young people, and usually consists of simple tunes with a strong beat

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).Singer Wanred,USA:Thomson ELT.

Do I Tell?

Ji-Sung sees some classmates spraying paint at a but stop. He feels he should tell the police, but the boys are bigger than him. He is afraid they will hurt him if he tells. His problem gets worse as the boys order him to throw stones at some birds. Does he do it? Or does he tells the police?
If I were Ji-Sung, I would tell the police. I don't care what the boys say to me. I don't want to get along with those who have a bad influence on me.

Vocabulary
・ticket: a printed piece of paper which shows that you have paid to enter a cinema, travel on a bus, plane etc
・garbage can: a countainer with a lid for holding waste until it can be taken away

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).Do I tell?,USA:Thomson ELT.

Who's Best?

Kate has to choose between the very popular and handsome Scott, and Adib who she meets in art class. He is much quieter, more intelligent, and more interesting, but he's not as popular or handsome as Scott. Both Adib and Scott ask her out on Saturday. Who will she choose?

People tend to judge from appearance. But I believe personality is much more important than appearance. We should not judge by how people look.

Vocabulary
・concert: a performance given by musicians or singers
・gallery: a large building where people can see famous pieces of art
・remember: to not forget something that you must do, get, or bring

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).Who's Best?,USA:Thomson ELT.

Boys vs. Girls

At the summer camp, some boys and girls start to make trouble for each other. The girls spray the boys with milk, so the boys let some tars out in the girls' cabin. How will this end?
I don't like boys who look down on girls. We have to cooperate with each other.

Vocabulary
・camp: a place where people stay in tents, shelters etc for a short time, usually in the mountains, a forest etc
・cabin: a small house, especially one built of wood in an area of forest or mountains
・cage: a structure made of wires or bars in witch birds or animals can be kept

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).Boys vs. Girls,USA:Thomson ELT

New Guitar


Ray sees a guitar in the music store. He wants it for his birthday, but his father will not buy it for him. Ray buys the guitar. That is only the start of his problem.


I have my guitar and love it. So, I can tell how sad when the guitar is broken. I have to take care of my things.

Vocabulary
・guitar: a musical instrument that usually has six strings, that you play with your fingers or with a plectrum
・keyboard: an electric musical instrument that has keys like a piano and can be made to play in different styles or to sound like different insruments
・band: a small group of musicians who play popular music together, often with a singer or singers

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).The New Guitar,USA:Thomson ELT.

Bad Dog? Good Dog!

Yoon-Hee, and her brother Ji-Sung, go shopping. Yoon-Hee takes her friend's dog, Dingo, for a walk, but Dingo doesn't want to go for a walk. What does he really want?
Like Ji-Sung, I don't like big dogs. the yelping of big dogs is too loud.

Vocabulary
・street: a public road in a city or town that has houses, shops etc on one or both sides
・meat: the flesh of animals and birds eaten as food

Reference
Waring, R.(2006).Bad Dog? Good Dog!,USA:Thomson ELT.

Rain, Rain, Rain!

Faye is late for school. She gets on her bike and races to school in the rain. She has many troubles getting to school. Is she late for school.
I have experienced exactly the same situation. So, I sympathized with Feye. It is better to give yourself extra time when going to school.

Vocabulary
・dress: to put clothes on yourself or someone else
・station: 署、場所


Reference
Waring, R.(2006).Rain, Rain, Rain!,USA:Thomson ELT.

Sarah's Surprise

It is Sarah's first day in the cafe. A man comes into the cafe, takes some food, but does not give any money to Sarah. What does she do? 
It is natural that Sarah mistook the boss's husband for a thief because he put some sandwiches in his bag in silence. It was a realistic story.

Vocabulary
・sandwich: two slices of bread, often spread with butter, with a layer of meat, cheese, etc. between them

Reference
Wegener, C.(2006).Sarah's Surprise.USA:Thomason ELT

The Spider and the Beehive

"Will you take me to the best plums?"

In a small African village, lived a little boy and a tricky spider. The spider thought that he was smarter than everyone else. The boy had a special talent. He was able to find the biggest, sweetest fruit in all the jungle. The spider used the boy and ate all the fruits. As a result, The spider couldn't move at all. Then, the spider realize that he can't live by himself. After read this book, I felt that friends are very important in my life. By the way, the picture of spider was creepy.

Vocabulary
・greedy: 貪欲である
・belly: 腹

Reference
Findley, V.(2006).The Spider and the Beehives. New York, NY:Scholastic.

The Tortoise and the Hare

"Let's have a race,"
"OK, but you know I will win."
"We will see."
Once upon a time, there lived a tortoise and a hare. The hare always teased the slow tortoise. On the day of a big race, they raced with each other. It is obvious that the hare win. However the tortoise won the race. As you know, this story is a famous tale. I learned from the tortoise that slow and steady wins the race.

Vocabulary
・tortoise: カメ
・hare: ウサギ
・grin: にやりと笑う

Reference
Findley, V.(2006).The Tortoise and the Hare. New York, NY:Scholastic.

The Ugly Duckling

"You are ugly. Go away!"

Once upon a time, five eggs hatched. Out popped five little duckling. Four were fluffy and cute. One was gray and ugly. The cute ducks were mean to their ugly brother. He was bullied all the kind of animals. However, he grew into a beautiful swan like others. And the once ugly duckling lived happily ever after. And he was always kind to all the living things. I thought that those who have undergone many hardships can understand others' feelings.

Vocabulary
・fluffy: ふわふわした、うぶ毛のような
・ever after: それ以降ずっと(過去時制で)

Reference
Findley, V.(2006).The Ugly Duckling. New York, NY:Scholastic.

The Little Red Hen

Who will help me plant this?

Once upon a time, a little red hen decided to plant some wheat, but no one is willing to help her whatever she asked. After all, she made bread all by herself. When she ate it, everybody who did not help her asked her to eat it. Of course, she didn't allow them to eat it. It represent "If any would not work, neither should he eat."

Vocabulary
・hen: 雌鳥
・before long: soon

Reference
Findley, V.(2006).The Little Red Hen. New York, NY:Scholastic.

The Nightingale

This bird lives in the forest behind my palace, but I have never heard him sing. I must!

Once upon a time, there was a king. He lived in a beautiful palace in the land of China. Behind the palace was a forest. In a forest lived a nightingale. The king want to hear a nightingale sing, so he sent his most trusted servant to bring back the nightingale. By and by the servant brought back a nightingale. However, the king loved a toy nightingale more than the real one, so it ran away from the palace. years passed and the king grew very sick, and... the end of the story was very touching.

Vocabulary
・servant: 使用人
・by and by: まもなく、あとで

Reference
Findley, V.(2006).The Nightingale. New York, NY:Scholastic.

2017年7月25日火曜日

The Three Billy Goats Gruff

Once upon a time, there lived three billy goat brothers. One day, they decided to cross the bridge to eat the sweet grass on the other side. There was a problem. A troll lived under it. However the three goats got through in a very smart way.

Reference
Findley, V.(2006).The Three Billy Goats Gruff. New York, NY:Scholastic.

vocabulary
cranky: strange
sneaky: behaving in a secret and sometimes dishonest or unpleasant way
ram: to drive into or hit another vehicle, ship, etc. with force, sometimes deliberately.

Band Audition

The last Saturday, I attend a band audition in my university. If I pass the audition, I will be permitted to play in a venue. We played Metallica, which is one of the most famous heavy metal band in the world. Our play is too loud, so I felt sorry for audience. Finally, we passed the audition. I'm looking forward to playing in the venue.

2017年7月18日火曜日

Val's Diary

school's over at last! Summer holidays are here but who wants to spend them in the countryside? Not Val, of course! She hates the country, but eventually she'll change her mind. Guess why! Read her diary and find out.
She tells her diary all about herself, her moods, her emotions and her dreams. This country holiday is really boring and she can't stand it, but don't despair ... something very exciting will happen soon, thanks to Luke and the others!

Val is always angry or unhappy. She hates her brother, and she certainly doesn't want to go and live in a small village. But when she met Luke, she is changing her mind.

Vocabulary
・rosy: pink
・yippee: That's wonderful!
・lid: top of a box

Flagan, M. (2009). Val’s diary. Recanati, MC, Italy: Eli.

How's it going?

How are things? I feel happy because yesterday I bought a new guitar effects pedal called wahwah pedal. I had wanted for a long time. It is essential for Blues guitar playing. And I am going to play in the university, and it will be fun.

2017年7月11日火曜日

Food and Drink in Britain (Oxford Bookworms Factfiles)

For a small country Britain offers a wide choice of food and drink. People in Britain still enjoy roast beef and other traditional foods, but the way they eat has changed a lot in the last fifty years. This book looks at the traditions, and the changes, and even gives some recipes if you want to make British food for yourself. 
In Japan, British food is famous for its bad taste. However, written in this book is completely wrong. This book changed my view of British food.

Vocabulary
・herb: fresh or dry plant used to give food extra taste.
・cider: adult drink made from apples
・vinegar: a strong tasting liquid use to flavour food.


Heavy Metal Band

The other day, my friend asked me to join his band as a guitarist, and it confirmed that I become a member of the band. We are going to play heavy metal songs. It is hard for me to play, but so fun!
These days I see many people wear T-shirts printed logo of rock band such as Nirvana, Metallica, AC/DC, Van Halen, and so on. I don't know why it is getting popular.

2017年6月27日火曜日

The Jigsaw Puzzle

The children couldn't go outside so they stayed in and do a jigsaw puzzle. When the jigsaw puzzle was completed, the magic key a boy had (I don't know why he had that key) began to glow. The magic took the children into another world.

Vocabulary
・glow: (v) to produce or reflect a soft steady light

Hunt, R.(1994). The Jigsaw Puzzle. Oxford Reading Tree

Rice planting

The last Saturday, I plant rice in a rice field with my father and relatives. We do this every year in this season. Fortunately, it was cloudy and rainy, so is was not hot weather. The rice field is so large, so it took about 10 hours to plant rice. I was very tired, but I enjoyed a party after the rice planting.

2017年6月20日火曜日

Zombies in Tokyo

Today, I read Zombies in Tokyo, a book in the Atama-ii series. Atama-ii books are multi-path adventure books. This story is about a zombie attack in Tokyo.
I'm afraid to say I don't like this. The gloomy scenery and the people covered in blood are very weird for me. However, the story was intriguing and made me want to read a sequel.

Vocabulary
gun: a weapon that shoots metal bullets, often carried by the police.
train tracks: the metal "road" that trains ride on

Boon, A. (2014). Zombies in Tokyo.
Florida, USA: Atama-ii Books

Concert

The last Saturday, I played a gig in a small concert hall near the PUK. I had been preparing for this concert. I hadn't ever played the guitar in front of many people, so I was nervous before I stood on stage. The concert ended in success.  It was very precious experience.

2017年6月6日火曜日

The Gingerbread Man

I have seen this character before, but I didn't know the story at all. This story seems very famous. But, I never understand why the gingerbread is live.

VOCABULARY
・fib: to tell a smart unimportant lie
・munch: to eat something noisily
・naughty: (especially of children) behaving badly; not willing to obey


Findley, V. (2006). The Gingerbread Man. New York, NY: Scholastic.

Drum

The last Sunday, I went to the university and played some songs with my band members. After that, I played the drum for the first time. It was very exciting and blew my mind. Maybe it's much fun to play the drum than the guitar.

By the way, I want to have my own car as soon as possible. It's too much bother to go to school by train and bicycle. 

2017年5月30日火曜日

Henry & Mudge: Take the Big Test

Henry's dog, Mudge, knows how to drool, chase the lawn mower, and be Henry's best friend. But he doesn't know how to sit, stay, or heel. Mudge needs to go to school.
Today, I read Henry and Mudge: Take the Big Test. Henry's dog Mudge is always causing trouble. Henry and his mother decide to make Mudge to go to school. After eight weeks at Papp's Dog School, Mudge earns a certificate and lots of liver treats. I heard that dogs can't understand what is right or wrong without being trained. So, Mudge was not a bad dog.

Vocabulary
・wag: 振り動かす
・sniff: においをかぐ
・heel: (犬が)ついてくる

Reference
Rylant, C.(1991). Henry and Mudge take the big test. New York, NY: Simon Spotlight.

My bands

The other day, my friend asked me to join his band as a guitarist, and it confirmed that I become a member of the band. I belong to another band already, so I didn't expect that I'm in two bands. I'm busy for preparing for a concert, but having a really good time.

I'm going to play this song.

2017年5月23日火曜日

Mr Bean

Mr Bean eats some popcorn and hurts his tooth.
Now he has toothache! Can he takes out the tooth or does he go to the dentist ...?
Mr Bean had a toothache. He tried to take out it. He put a string round his tooth, and tied it round a doorknob. But it was the doorknob that took out instead of his tooth. Next, he went out to the road, and he tied the string round a tree. He stood across the street and waited for a car to pass. I was surprised his idea.
I don't know Mr Bean at all, but this story was fun.

First activity in my band club

The other day, I played some songs with my friends in a Folk song club. Although the club name includes Folk song, no one in the club is interested in Folk song. So, We played Punk instead of Folk. It was so exciting!

2017年5月16日火曜日

The Smallest Cow in the World

Rosie is the meanest cow in the world―and Marvin's best friend. When his family moves to a new farm, Marvin is sad and lonely... until he finds Rosie again. But now she's making a lot of trouble for everyone. Will she and Marvin ever adjust to the changes of a new life in a new place?

There is a cow named Roise in a large farm. She is hated because she is mean. However a boy whose name is Marvin loves her.

My favorite music

Today, I'm going to talk a bit about my favorite music.

I love Rock 'n' Roll, In particular, 80's Hard Rock. How do you think of Hard Rock? I guess you think it as a very scary music. However, it is completely wrong. Hard Rock is an enjoyable and cool music, so please check it out!

2017年5月9日火曜日

The Bear's Mouth

At the summer camp two teams have to race to find some flags hidden in the forest. They are told the final flag is "in the bear's mouth." Who find the flag, and how do they get it out of the bear's mouth?
Today, I read this book. The team that did't cooperate with each other couldn't win. I learned from this book that it is very important to work together on the task.

Golden Week

This year's golden week was very boring because I did a part time job every day. I deeply regret that I did nothing special during golden week.

The other day, my father came home from a business trip, so I went out to eat with my family after a long time.
I rented some CDs in a rental shop as usual. I really love them. Rock music always makes me excited.

2017年4月25日火曜日

Robinson Crusoe

Robinson Crusoe is at sea when there is a great storm. His ship goes down, and his friends die. The sea throws Crusoe onto a beach. He is o...