Rub-a-dub-dub, Who's That in the Tub?

It may not be the butcher, the baker, or the candlestick maker next year.

But what do these professions have in common: real estate agent, postal worker, auto worker, and eight other jobs?

Well, in the United States at least, they represent "10 industries where the jobs aren't coming back"!

1. What about Canada--how similar or how different is our employment situation?
2. What opportunities do you see for yourself?
3. How about becoming a boss in these industries?

Think about it, and blog away!

How e-Canadian Are You, Eh?

We have always had the longest coastline. We make the most apologies per minute. We ruled the hockey world at the most recent Olympics. Now what?

How about camping out the longest on the Internet?

Check out this article and list the number of ways we're Number One in the online world!

So, how Canadian are you in this regard?

The Documented Origin of Christmas and What It Means for Canada

There are many myths about Christmas. There's Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer. There's Santa Claus, the obese, bearded guy in red who jumps down chimneys. There's yule logs and chestnuts roasting on the open fire. There's even a manger scene, the creche, where shepherds and farm animals stand around a man and woman and their little baby. But all this makes no sense--it's like dropping in on a telephone conversation already in progress. What are they talking about? So we need to start at the very beginning.
The story of Christmas begins with the story of the world. Actually, it goes way before that. It starts before the beginning of time itself! You may wonder: Who is that babe in the manger? Was he an ordinary child? A prophet, perhaps? A king? Or something more? Why did he come? Why so suddenly?
The answers lie in history and the documents of the ancient world:

1. The baby was long expected. It was sudden, but people knew he was coming. God, through prophets living hundreds of years before Jesus' birth, had told them who exactly would be born, where exactly he would be born, and how exactly he would be born. But God did not say when.
2. He existed before he was born. He existed 1,000 years before he was born. He existed 2,500 years before he was born. He made everything. He was not created--He has always existed!
3. He came for a reason. Because God made human beings to praise Him, and human beings turned away from Him instead, we deserve the punishment of being separated from Him forever. Yet God chose to save some and sent Jesus, the Son, to come as a human being, a little baby, to save His people--anyone who believes and receives Jesus as their Master and Saviour. What happened next was witnessed by many and recorded for us as well: Jesus' life, works, death, burial, and resurrection. And so are the prophecies of his Second Coming.

There are many stories about Christmas, but now you know the original one. Canada, like some other countries of Western Civilization such as Australia, Britain, New Zealand, and USA, was founded on these facts. Together, these facts are known as the Good News, or the Gospel. The story of Christ-mas--which is about Christ--affects the laws and the culture of these places. Love and sacrifice, repentance and forgiveness (see Ontarian and former refugee Kim Phuc's amazing story), obedience and submission, freedom and industry, faith and hope--all these are based in response to what God did for human beings through Christ. To some degree, these principles still characterize countries like Canada. Not everybody likes to hear the original story nowadays, and some strongly oppose it and prefer to substitute it with one that honours human beings rather than Christ. Things are changing, indeed. But that's how it happened in earlier Canadian history, what all Canadians knew a few generations ago, and why Canada is the way it is.
Welcome to Canada!

Congrats, Beatriz, Maria, and Michael!

Three of our classmates' articles were featured in the year-end editions of NewsLINC.

Beatriz's "Christmas (Navidad in Mexico)," a poignant reflection of her childhood experiences in Mexico, was published in the December 2010 issue of the newsletter.

Maria's "Cheap and Fun Holiday in Canada" (September) and Michael's "Pleasure Trip to Varadero, Cuba" (October) were selected for republication in NewsLINC's Annual 2010 edition.

In addition, Michael's article on "Winter Health & Safety Tips" was posted under Student Writing in our LINC Home Study Forum:

Way to go, folks! Keep up the good work, everyone!

If anyone would like to submit a piece for the January newsletter, please put it in a Word.doc file and  send it to me by December 15. If you don't see your piece getting published, please remind me! Maybe I haven't submitted it yet!

Can You Pass the New Citizenship Test?

The new citizenship test is based on Discover Canada, a new book by the Conservative government to replace the previous one by the Liberal government. Besides updated information, it features a higher passing mark, 15 out of 20. The Toronto Star conducted an informal test with questions such as the following:

1. What are the three responsibilities of citizenship?
a) Being loyal to Canada, voting in elections, serving in the navy, army or air force.
b) Obeying the law, taking responsibility for oneself and one’s family, serving on a jury.
c). Learning both official languages, voting in elections, belonging to a union.
d) Buying Canadian products, owning your own business, using less water. 

 For the other questions and the answers and all the results, click on the links on this line.

 Feel free to do the test and then post your results under Comments. All the best!

NewsLINC Topics for January 2011

How time flies! It's December already, and we're looking forward to ringing in the new year once again.
The topics for January are as follows:

• New Year celebrations and traditions in Canada or abroad
• New Year resolutions
• What did you learn in 2010 and how you will apply it in 2011 and onwards?
• 2011 is the “International Year of Forests” and the “International Year of Chemistry” – (UN):
• An article on how to raise awareness on sustainable management, conservation and sustainable development
• An article on saving forests, eco-systems, the environment etc.
• Types of forests and what resources we get from them
• An article on chemistry and achievements of chemistry and its contributions to the well-being of humankind
• Writing on winter season:
• Winter activities in Canada
• Winter survival tools and tactics
• Winter tales
• Winter recipes
• Vacation ideas in winter
• Winter fitness ideas for kids

We always welcome student biographies, so please keep submitting them.

Please make sure you save your articles as Word.doc files and send them to me by email attachment by noon, December 15.

Secret Telephone Numbers

Game Card

Look up the phone directory, and then tell your partner the secret phone number you have selected, using code. Do not say the numbers out loud. Instead, say:

E.g. “Code NBM: that, height, height” 

Based on your information (Code NBM), your partner will tell you back what your secret number is, and then identify the organization from the Phone Directory. Partner will say the answer, "9-1-1, Emergency Services."

Phone Directory

• St. Michael's Hospital 1800-435-2976
• St. Mackle's Hospital (395) 412-8670
• Downtown Gas (520) 348-9176
• Dung Tongue Guys (627) 539-0418
• Hippocrates Clinic (321) 412-3241 
• Emergency Services 9-1-1
• Municipal Services 3-1-1

CODE NBM (NIL BY MOUTH)

1. height
2. hate
3. heat
4. hat
5. hit
6. these
7. this
8. those
9. that
10. they

CODE DNR (DO NOT RESUSCITATE)

1. myth
2. miss
3. withhold
4. we sold
5. brick
6. prick
7. Mick
8. Mike
9. bat
10. bite

CODE DOA (DEAD ON ARRIVAL)

1. specially
2. especially
3. state
4. estate
5. pride and joy
6. bride and joy
7. school
8. a school
9. vein
10. wane

CODE VSOK (VITAL SIGNS NORMAL)

1. mine
2. mean
3. main
4. man
5. men
6. manly
7. mainly
8. meanly
9. might
10. mate

CODE RX (PRESCRIPTION DRUG)

1. Sri Lankans
2. 3 Lankans
3. Go shrew
4. Go through
5. shred it
6. thread it
7. horse house
8. house horse
9. meet the funder
10. meet the founder

More Minimal Pairs Here

Your Answers

1. (       ) _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ = __________________________
2. (       ) _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ = __________________________
3. (       ) _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ = __________________________
4. (       ) _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ = __________________________
5. (       ) _ _ _ - _ _ _ _ = __________________________

ADDITIONAL CODES FOR NATIVE FARSI SPEAKERS

• CODE YALDA NITE


1 faith
2 fate
3 turd
4 third
5 Perth
6 purse
7 sum
8 thumb
9 ensues
0 enthuse

• CODE NOUROZ
1 bleep
2 blip
3 weak
4 wick
5 pull
6 pool
7 board
8 bode
9 walk
0 woke
 
ADDITIONAL CODES FOR NATIVE MANDARIN SPEAKERS
CODE QINGMING FESTIVAL

1 vein
2 wane
3 wavered
4 wayward
5 verse
6 worse
7 they
8 lay
9 teller
0 tether

CODE DUMPLING FESTIVAL

1 canning
2 caning
3 mass
4 mace
5 horse
6 house
7 no!
8 now!
9 icepick
0 aspic

Congratulations, Iwona!

The November issue of NewsLINC newsletter features our classmate Iwona W.'s article on "Go Green," a how-to guide to a "manageable" environmentally friendly lifestyle. Well done, Iwona! We can't wait to see your next article.

Let's all keep up the good work and complete our submissions for the December article.

December Articles - Due Noon, November 14th.

Our NewsLINC newsletter is now accepting articles for the December issue on the following topics:

1. An article on Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanza, or New Year’s Eve
2. Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanza, or New Year’s Eve recipes
3. Winter craft and decoration ideas
4. Activities and winter games in Canada
5. Winter shopping tips and recommendations
6. Health and safety tips in winter
7. Things to do during the winter holidays
8. Boxing Day (December 26, 2010)
9. International Day of the Disabled (December 3, 2010) – United Nations
10. Human Rights Day (December 10, 2010) – United Nations

Please email your entry (just the link to your blog post) to me by noon, November 14, so that we have some time to work on it.

We always welcome student biographies, so please keep submitting them.

Ever Seen a More UPbeat Speech Than This?

First, listen to Dr. Kimberly Alyn's 3-minute 10-second speech. What kind of phrasal verbs does she use?




Now watch the video again and post a list of all those phrasal verbs. How many of them are there? What do they mean? Pick five of your favourite and write a sentence or paragraph for each to bring out its meaning.

Finally, if you like, take dictation of her speech from beginning to end. Read it to a friend over the phone! Was it fun? What kind of response did you get?

P.S. Don't forget to post the website that has the full transcript of this speech--you should be able to find it by googling!


All right, all right, here's the transcript, one of them, anyway.

Halloween: The Bad and Ugly and the Good

You already know the bad and ugly Halloween.

However, could there be a good side to it?

It depends. If you're looking to popular culture, the jack o' lanterns, the ghost masks and costumes, witches on broomsticks, trick o' treating, horror movies, Samhain, etc., forget it. The same goes for the crazy amounts of candies kids collect on that day--any parent knows that can't be good for weight or attention management!

But if you check out the history of Halloween, especially that particular one in 1517 in Wittenberg, Germany, you will see the event that helped a town, a nation, and the world overcome a thousand years of darkness, superstition, fear, and corruption, an event that gave us what we now call western civilization or the free world (including this great country of Canada!).




The Halloween of 1517 is one alternative celebration embraced by those who don't really go for the ghouls or the candies.

Feel free to click the article below and enlarge the picture.

Which Halloween are you celebrating this weekend? Write about it on your blog!

It's LINC Homework Day today (Friday, October 29th).

Here's the Word for the Week: Say, Noomano ...

In case you thought English words are short in comparison to those in your first language, here's a word for you to consider, and negotiate:

pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.

How many syllables do you see? Which syllables are stressed? How do you pronounce each syllable? How do you say the word? This website provides the pronunciation; remember to click the speaker icon.

Do you think any of the 33 Chilean miners might suffer from it? Thank God they're safely out!

Congratulations, Michael and Justyna!

The October issue of NewsLINC is not out. With his article on his vacation trip, Michael joins two of his classmates who have been published. And Justyna gets published twice in a row!

Student’s Submission	Student	Region	Teacher
Dinner For A Prince	Martin C.	Peterborough Region	Lesley H.
Teacher’s Day	Manju J.	York Region	Fiona E.
Fall	Rachida L.	Halton Region	Deborah K.
Fall	Xiao Mei D.	Toronto Region	Deborah K.
Fishing In Canada	Xuan Z.	Saskatchewan	Samuel M.
Thanksgiving In Canada	Patrice S.	Hamilton Region	Natasha A.
International Day Of Older Persons	Ke Y.	Peel Region	Alena S.
Halloween	Maria K.	Toronto Region	Jonathan B.
Korean Thanksgiving Day	Sunnam H.	New Brunswick	Rachel B.
Fall	Karen G.	Nova Scotia	Samuel M.
Returning To School	Bob G.	Prince Edward Island	Paul H.
Pleasure Trip To Varadero, Cuba	Michael C.	York Region	Joseph N.
Halloween In Philippines And Canada	Lorna M.	Niagara Region	Marilyn K.
Having A Baby As A Newcomer	Nils P.	Peel Region	Brenda V.
Recipes
Pancit	Frankie O.	Durham Region	Jonathan B.
Turkish Meatballs	Duygu G.	Guelph Region	Jonathan B.
Pumpkin Soup	Justyna K.	Hamilton Region	Joseph N.
Fish Cutlets	Nirosha G.	Peel Region	Andrea R.
Student Corner
Biographies
	Xuan Z.	Saskatchewan	Samuel M.
	Yulia K.	Niagara Region	Brenda V.
	Su Ling C.	Toronto Region	Alena S.
	Nathalie M.	Peterborough Region	Terese C.

Check out their articles and more at the NewsLINC site. Great job, people!

Happy Thanksgiving!

But how did it happen?

Did it have anything to do with

1. Martin Frobisher, 

2. Plymouth Rock, 

3. John A. MacDonald, or 

4. None of these? 

The answer is ... (drumroll) ... read on:

Look who's selling an iPad today for $10!

UPDATE: Just came home tonight from redeeming six Team Save coupons on a Chinese buffet dinner. Burp.



Canadians are some of the most avid online shoppers. Sometimes, buying things as a group can save you a lot of money. Instead of one customer buying a buffet meal for $13, how about 100 people buying the same meal for $6 each? Or maybe 1,000 people? Many businesses love this idea. Customers, too! This is known as economies of scale. Here are few great group-buying sites:

1. Fab Find - Just for today, they're offering an i-Pad for $10! But it's a rush to get it.
2. Group On
3. Team Buy
4. Wag Jag
5. Team Save
6. Deal Find
7. Steal the Deal

Some of these sites also give you a bonus if you introduce your friends to group buy, like what I'm doing now! Check these out and let me know what you think.

Vets, Volunteers, or Santa: Your Pick This November

OK, it's back to the drawing board--or, the writing pad or QWERTY keyboard! This November, the LINC school's newsletter is calling for articles on the following topics:

1. An essay on your favourite city/town/village in Ontario, what you like most about it and what you recommend to see especially in this fall season
2. Indian summer
3. Diwali  - November 5th
4. Remembrance Day – November 11th
5. Toronto Santa Claus Parade
6. How you spend the fall season (your hobbies, sports or any other recommendations)
7. Fall recipes
8. Benefits of volunteering
9. Emergency preparedness (storms, hurricanes, floods, epidemics etc)

If you'd like to blog on any of them, please do so by noon on Friday, October 15th. That's about two weeks from now. It might be a good idea to send me the text via My Messages as well.

You're always welcome to write about yourself, your life, your interests, etc.--student biographies are always popular reading!

CONGRATULATIONS, Maria and Justyna!

Two of our LINC classmates, Maria R. and Justyna Ewa S. got published this month. Way to go, guys!

These are the articles in our September newsletter:

Student’s Submission	Student	Region	Teacher
THE SECRET GARDEN	Elzbieta M.W.	Peel region	Marjan B.
DRAGON BOAT RACING	Mei Y.G.	Nova Scotia	Jessica W.
THE LIBRARY SYSTEM IN PHILIPPINES	Jay L.T.	Kitchener Region	Jonathan B.
COMING TO CANADA	Christine K.	Hamilton Region	Carla M.
SHORT STORY	Sunnam H.	New Brunswick	Rachel B.
HEALTHY EATING FOR BACK TO SCHOOL	Jazmin L.	Peel Region	Fiona E.
FRUIT PICKING IN SEPTEMBER	Maria K.	Toronto Region	Jonathan B.
MY LIFE IN SOVIET UNION	Konstantin K.	York Region	Theresa R.
CHEAP AND FUN HOLIDAY IN CANADA	Maria R.	Barrie Region	Joseph N.
MY CHILDHOOD	Xuemei W.	Kitchener Region	Lisa Gayle R.
MY NEW HOME	Jin R.Z.	Toronto Region	John W.
IMMIGRATION	Behshid A.	York Region	Laura W.
Recipes
Egg Masala	Neeru M.	Toronto Region	Lesley H.
Chorizo	Astrid G.	Kitchener Region	Christine L.
Compote	Maria K.	Toronto Region	Jonathan B.
Tomato Coulis Penne	-	-	Alena S.
Student Corner
Biographies
	Larysa D.W.	Saskatchewan	Jessica W.
	Shirley B.	Saskatchewan	Rachel B.
	Veronica G	Ottawa Region	Terese C.

 The following have been posted under Student Writing on the LINC Home Study Forum.

Student’s Submission	Student	Region	Teacher
Energy Conservation Ideas for the Summer Heat	MASIH E.D.	London Region		Ana R.
Energy and water conservation ideas for the summer heat	Hameeda J.	Peel Region		Art R.
World Humanitarian Day	Justyna Ewa S.	Hamilton Region		Joseph N.
WORLD FRIENDSHIP DAY	Marta Sofia R.	Kingston Region		Sayuri N.
Chicken with Rice (Arroz con Pollo)	Libia Leguizamo F.	London Region		Elizabeth C.
Chickpeas Salad	Hina B.	Kitchener Region		Esther B.
Garlic-Thyme Ultimate Angus Top Sirloin steaks	Rania N.	Hamilton Region		John W.
Lemon Rice	Sriranganayaky S.	Toronto Region		Joanne P.
TV & Children	Alpesh Kumar P.	Toronto Region		Jonathan B.

Please note: You are able to read postings without logging in, but you need to login to post any messages.

Hopefully, there will be more of you participating in the upcoming months. For the October newsletter, here are the suggested topics to think about:

·         Indian Summer

·         Fall season and activities in this season

·         Articles on Halloween

·         Crafts and home decoration idea for fall season

·         Fall season, thanksgiving and Halloween recipes

·         Article on Thanksgiving day

·         International Day for Older Persons Oct 1 (UN)

·         World Food Day Oct 16 (UN)

·         International Day for the Eradication of Poverty Oct 17 (UN)

·         United Nations Day Oct 24

·         World Teacher Day (UN) October 5

·         Women's History Month – (National)

Please blog your drafts by September 15, with the following items taken care of:

1. If it's a recipe, a brief description of the culture, origin/background, and significance.
2. Avoid topics that could be viewed as controversial.
3. Spell out your correct name, not the “English” name; level and region.
4. Edit submissions with me; then send me the final copy to forward to Helpdesk.

Online Job Search Resources

The long summer's just about over, and for many it's time to get back on the job hunt.


What are some of your favourite online resources for looking for a job? Here are a few common ones:

1. Job Bank, by rhe Canadian Government
2. Monster Board
3. Workopolis
4. Ontario Government Jobs
5. City of Toronto Employment

However, don't forget other free sites as well, such as:

• Craigslist's Resume Postings and Job Openings
• Kijiji's Jobs in Downtown Toronto

What other ideas or tips do you have? Would you use YouTube and FaceBook?

Blog your comments and let us know! If all this gets too stressful, take a moment to study this page.

Writing Topics for the September Newsletter

The LINC Home Study school has announced the next topics for our next newsletter:

1. · Labour Day (September 6)
2. · Eid Festival after Ramadan/Muslim Fasting (September 10 or 11)
3. · Rosh Hashanah - Jewish New Year (September 18), or Yom Kippur - Jewish Fasting (September 28)
4. · International Literacy Day, recognized by the UN (September 8 )
5. · International Day of Peace, recognized by the UN (September 21)
6. · Fruit picking in September
7. · Articles on fishing or the salmon migration in September from lake to river
8. · We are looking forward to receiving recipes for back to school snacks and lunches

If you would like to submit an article to the newsletter, please email your draft to me by August 21, 2010, and we'll work together on it.

Tips on a Cheap and Fun Holiday in Canada

By Maria R.

My name is Maria. I am from Poland. I have been in Canada since 2006. I like travel; that means Canada is like a paradise for me. My husband, Pawel, and I already travel a lot from coast to coast in Canada. Based on our experience, I think I have a couple of useful tips which I would like to share with others. First, you have to choose the kind of transport you like. We travel by car, canoe, bicycle or RV.

Tips:

1. Hiking:

Wherever you are, you can go outside your home and walk for a couple days and enjoy the beautiful country in which we are living.

Hiking, which is completely free of charge, is good for the environment and for your body.

2. Cycling:

Bicycling doesn't cost you anything:

a) Fuel is free when we travel from city to city in the Niagara Region. Our expenses were on food, which we prepare at home anyway.

b) Travelling off-season allows you to enjoy fewer crowds and more quiet.

3. Canoeing:

a) If you want, you can buy a used canoe from Kijiji for 1/10 the cost of a new one.

b) Canoeing saves on gas because you use your muscles.

c) You don't have to stay in provincial parks or national parks because Northern Ontario offers you 1,000 lakes free of charge. Camping there is also free because nobody is there to collect a fee.

d) If you are lucky, you can catch some tasty fish for dinner.

4. Driving:

a) You have to choose a cheap car, either a diesel or a small car.

b) You can sleep in your car to save on hotels, or you can sleep in a tent at a campground.

c) You can share the gas money with friends if you car pool.

d) In provincial parks you can share a campsite with friends with 2 or 3 cars, and you can prepare your own food instead of eating out.

5. RVing:

Recreational vehicles are like homes on wheels:

a) First, you save on gas because you can share an RV with up to 8 persons.

b) Another thing is you sleep comfortably inside, so you save on hotel.

c) You save on restaurants because you have a full kitchen.

d) You can park at truck stops, where you don't have to pay anything for the parking.

e) You can be a member of Passport America, where you pay only 50% at many campgrounds in Canada, U.S.A and Mexico.

f) RVs are very kid-friendly, where they feel like home and you can bring along a lot of their favourite toys, games, etc.

The best tip: You only need a willingness to do this and have fun!