Spanish Success

 Manuel Carques Serrato, a civil engineer and company owner, had a welcome career change recently.  He needed an immersion to raise his level of English communication in order to improve his new career prospects in Spanish government.

When he arrived he was very nervous.  Although his grammar was good, he had never had a conversation in English – listening and speaking in natural situations.

This is what he said after his two-week immersion course with Heritage English in July 2012.

Hello,

First, I'll draw up a list of what I liked:

Visit London

Cycling in New Forest

Eat fish and chips

Listen to the Beatles

David

Travel by ferry

Play quiz in pubs

See the olympic torch under the rain

Yolanda, Anthony, James and Mat

Tea with milk

Visit the Isle of Wight

Walking in Southampton

Make barbecue

Picnic on the beach

View street theatre

Steve

Raising the importance of the sun

Walking in the rain without an umbrella

Meet new people

Getting used to say “thank you” and “please” all the time

And, of course, the time with Celia and Gail.

And now, a list of ......  I don’t like :

Phrasal verbs (arjjj!!!!!!!)

Actually, I wanted to improve my English, but aimed toward the world of politics and business. And that's exactly what I had. Now I have a very valuable basis that I must not waste, and now I'm really motivated to keep improving my English in Spain.

The learning method is perfect.

I really enjoyed the classes combined with real life. Has the theory and practice every day. If we also take into account the effect that teachers have shown me and all people who have been there for me, the experience is unforgettable.

I was actually quite scared of the method "one-to-one" because I had never spoken in English over half an hour away. And my surprise is that with this method from the first moment I was talking to Celia and Gail, and with everyone around me. The last days of course I did not remember some words in Spanish. It works!

If you are a person who has not had the opportunity to learn English, here you will find the final push to understand and speak English. I promise you.

Text in catalan

Viatjar fins aquí és molt ràpid. Hi ha un vol directe des de Girona, en tan sols una hora i quart. Però aquest col·legi té altres moltes avantatges que hauràs de descobrir. La més important és que a més a més d’aprendre anglès et converteixes en un anglès.

Translation: Coming to here is very fast. There is a direct flight from Girona, in just one hour and a quarter. But this school has many advantages that you must discover.

 The most important thing is that besides learning English, you will become an Englishman.

Reply from Celia and Gail:

- Thank you Manuel.  We enjoyed the time teaching you and sharing our culture and way of life with you.  It’s great to hear you enjoyed the London Olympic Opening Ceremony on television back in Barcelona and don’t stop practising your English after your move to Lleida in September.

You?  You are another new “student/guest”  who leaves as a new Heritage English friend.   

Best of luck Manuel! 

Frech couple prepare for USA assignment

Philippe and Ghislaine Lavanant both work for AREVA, the nuclear fuel re-processing plant in the North of France.  After many years in management positions in production, finance and quality control, they have decided to accept the offer of new posts within AREVA in the US.  Their children are now independent and will stay in France to follow their careers and the family dog goes to America with them!

Philippe came to Heritage English first for one week of intensive English language training - tailored to his professional needs and with a focus on the American accent.  On his departure, Ghislaine arrived for the same treatment!
This is what Mr Lavanant said about his experience:

"I appreciated the welcome from my host and the invitations for dinner outside (tennis club) and the people I met.  My teachers Gail and Cherry were very friendly; they gave me a good basis in grammar.  I much enjoyed the lunches in the English pub and the outings.  The conversations we had in and out of lessons has helped me improve my spoken English."

We wish them good luck in their new life in South Carolina, far away from the cold and damp climate of this part of the world!

Ghislaine working hard in a lesson with Gail

Italian junior makes progress

Gianluigi with his teacher Melinda

The family called Webb are very nice and kind.  I play with the Webb’s son.  His name is Henry.  The Mum of Webb is very good cooking.

In this two weeks I’ve got two teachers, Toby and Melinda.  They are a very good English teachers.  I learnt a new English grammar for example: Present perfect and past continuous.

The outings are very good.  One day I had tree climbing with Toby and it was really good. 

I think my English is improved in vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation.

Thank you Heritage English

Gianluigi

June 2012

Message from Gianluigi’s father : “Gianluigi was very satisfied about his 2 weeks with the Webb family and your organisation.  Both my wife and I thank you for all your efforts in making Gianluigi glad about his English immersion experience.

Heritage Directors take British culture/language Workshop to Norway

An English cream tea with Diamond Jubilee mugs - and notice the raised little fingers!

In May Heritage English directors, Gail and Celia, were invited to Norway to bring their training expertise to the office premises of a client company in Norway. 

The invitation came from a previous student Iren, who works for the Norwegian Health Economy Administration (HELFO).

As co-ordinator of the HELFO Service Centre Language Pool, she wanted to give the group of telephone information advisors an opportunity to practise their English speaking/listening skills. 

The two day workshop was based on the topic of British Culture and took the form of a presentation and a range activities to give the participants a chance to practise using English in the context of their work.  The content was specifically designed to match their role within the Service Centre with information to compare Norway with the British National Health authority regulations. Role-plays of typical conversations in their field of work enabled them, in pairs, to take turns to act as the information advisor and as a caller with a medical or financial enquiry.

Here are some comments from the girls: 

 “We enjoyed being given a variety of speaking tasks as well as the lectures – learning by doing”

“It was interesting to learn about British culture, politeness/tone, habits and behaviour”

“It was good to speak English with native speakers for two whole days”

“We will practise the language activities in our regular team meetings”
"We can apply much of the content in our everyday situations"
"The workshop was great, practical and related directly to our daily needs and challenges"

“Two exceptionally warm and charming teachers”

It was not all hard work however; the second afternoon concluded with a real English cream tea - scones, cream and homemade strawberry jam carried by air and rail and road in a sturdy suitcase.  

Final word is from Celia and Gail to our Norwegian hosts:

  "Thank you to Iren, Kristin, Guri, Cathrine, Linda, Charlotte and Katrin - such cheerful, keen and delightful students.  Also thanks to their management for giving us this great opportunity.  You were very thoughtful and generous hosts.  We were fascinated at how similar the British and Norwegian cultures are. 
 We look forward to seeing you again, maybe in England or in your lovely seaside location of Tonsberg."
Celia and Gail 

Another Success story from Kazakhstan

Arman uses new expressions to describe financial trends in a graph presentation

Arman Lukmanov is General Manager of a Kazakhstan branch of a global company providing corporate health and security services.  Arman already had an advanced level of English, having just completed his MBA in Kuala Lumpur.  However, his problem was the lack of any informal expressions and a problem with pronunciation and stress.

 "Why?" he asked "do people look puzzled when I speak?"  We found out why and taught him many colloquial expressions frequently used in business.

This is what he says about his 2-week immersion in June:What I have most enjoyed about my course with Heritage English is the people I met there. I was greatly welcomed by both my teachers and host family. During that time I was surrounded by their care and kindness.

Especially I enjoyed about communication with the Webb’s kids – Cloe, Henry and Oli!

What do you think about the one-to-one “intensive immersion” method of learning?

I think that the one-to-one “intensive immersion” method of learning is one of the best methods of developing the language skills, especially for those who needs to improve English within short time. Moreover, I found it very effective way to recognize your own mistakes in English and overcome these gaps.

Did you achieve your objectives?  How will you use the language learned in your professional life?

In general, I think that I achieved my objectives. Now I am aware of my problems in English and I know in what direction I am supposed to improve it. I am going to use the language to achieve better results in my professional career.

I will definitely recommend Heritage English to my friends!