2020/12/26(土)SMC
Hi everyone!
Here is the summary of the last meeting for this year. Dec. 26. The weather was clear and comfortable.
The meeting started with the Presidential Remarks, raising an issue of the difference of pronunciation between American and British English, for example "neither".
SM Yamazaki and SM Takahata served as the Coordinator and the Lecturer respectively.
Lecturer
Filling blank questions were given from an NHK business English course.
. Packing has become a whole a lot easier in the digital age.
. shift mental gears
. keep track of who's who
. This is the crux of a debate taking place among educators . That's all well and good. それはそれでいいこと
. There is unfiltered and unverified garbage online.
. We've been down this road before.これと同じ経験をしたことがある
. Their texting is sprinkled with spelling and grammatical errors.
. Modern kids seem to be averting to using capital letters.
. Young children's affinity and often mastery of their parents' devices.
. I seem to have the attention span of a gnat.
.When I'm online, I find myself scanning and skimming articles.
Table Topic Speech
"Your favorite relative"（SM K. Narisawa）
The speaker took up an episode of a recent discussion on the phone with his elder sister after a long time in a rather humorous way. In connection with the issue, SM Takahata raised a similar case of relationship among her relatives. She also added the difference in the characters of her two sisters and their level of optimism-- one sister is at the same time much alike to and also much different from her.
"What made you change this year"（SM Kaneko）
The speaker talked about his English study meetings including SMC. Some of the gatherings were canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, as he specifically explained what happened to each meeting.
"What makes you angry?"（SM Yo. Narisawa）
The speaker took up an issue of PM Suga's joining a series of get-togethers, which drew criticism from the media and the public.
The Coordinator added his feelings of anger against former PM Abe's explanations and excuses at the diet session that was broadcast on TV. In this connection, SM Kaneko expressed his opinion, saying that he usually doesn't react emotionally against political issues in a modest way.
"Simple pleasure"（SM Takahata）
The speaker talked about her everyday exercise of interval walking, a combination of slow and brisk walking for about 30 minutes in total while enjoying the surrounding natural beauty. SM K. Narisawa, in this connection, said that he wouldn't enjoy walking, explaining that he gets bored and amusingly saying that he is fearful of wild boars.
"What is the nicest thing someone has done for you?"（SM Yu. Narisawa）
The speaker talked about an experience of getting the wallet he lost back with the words of appreciation. In this connection, SM Narisawa talked about her experience of getting support from her friend who lives nearby when she got involved in a car accident. The person kindly took her to and from a hospital for treatment everyday. SM Takahata said that her pet dog is really unforgettable, saying that living with him for 17 years is really precious.
Prepared Speech
"Recent events at my school"（SM Yo. Narisawa）
The speaker took up a little bit bitter experiences at her elementary school she had recently. In contrast to students enjoying English who may be getting private lessons, in reality there are some students who are hard to catch up with lessons and they are likely even to doze off during the lesson. An elementary school boy behaves defiantly against her even with harsh words of power-harassment, she said. However, she concluded that even hard experiences at the school feel precious. In response to her speech, members expressed deep sympathy toward her and teachers at elementary schools as a whole.
"Misfortune never comes alone"（SM Yu. Narisawa）
The speaker talked about recent bad experiences. He said that he lost his pocket book that served as a plan organizer. He searched everywhere he could think of including a bus company. Another thing he talked about was being caught by the police, and he ended up paying 6000 yen for a very minor traffic violation. He, however concluded that fortunes and misfortunes come by turns.
"Debates"（SM K. Narisawa）
The speaker said that he doesn't really like debate, reasoning that it goes against his grain to take a confrontational stance against others and taking back. His speech started with a talk of a fairly light issue of a female school female at his high school who belongs to the debate club at his school.
Then, his speech moved on his experiences of debates when he was a college student and after becoming a teacher. Specifically, he talked about an experience of debating the topic of control with an old woman. She became emotional and treated him poorly during the debate without understanding the nature of debate.
"Pandemic"（SM Kaneko）
The speaker talked about some hot topics relevant to the pandemic, say its origin, vaccination, and the Tokyo Olympics while taking a poll. Regarding its origin, there was an opinion that it seems to be artificial because apparently China is blamed for the cause. According to the poll, all the members had a negative stance against the possibility of holding the Tokyo Olympics.
Next meeting
1/9（Sat.）
Seishin Community Center（清新公民館）
Small room
. Coordinator: SM Yo. Narisawa
. Lecturer: SM Noro
1/23（Sat.）
Oyama Community Center（小山公民館）
Small room
