Learning tools (2/2) (the beginning of this note can be found in the previous entry of my notebook) [...] It’s when you’re engaged in a conversation HelloTalk began to show its qualities. If the chat looks quite alike your regular text-message service you have access to many useful options : - A speaker which translate what you or your partner writes - A «favorite » icon to review/work on this sentence later - A « share’ « icon to send sentences to another user - You can add « friends » here called « partner » But what if you fear you’ll be overwhelmed with partners only willing to speak your language and not theirs ? HelloTalk thought about it too : you have access to a special chat with real « exchange sessions » with your partners. Each partner is allowed to talk only in his own language for about five hundred words and then it’s the second partner’s turn. This is really helpful if you find a partner willing to « work » with you. This app is pretty great! I’ve always been fond of the « peer reviewed » work on Italki, but the tools Hellotalk introduced on the chat are powerful and useful for effective learning. It’s also great to be able to use it on my dear Nexus 4… Italki, I’m waiting for you to developp an even better app ! Thank you for reading this, if you know any other apps which help people work on their langage skills, let me know !

Learning tools (1/2) « Keep learning, keep listening, keep writing and keep talking, that’s your only chance ! » answered one of my teacher when I asked him how I could improve my skills in english. Even though this advice is not really new, i is the basic lines which should guide anyone who wants to be better at learning any language. At the university, this was easy to do : I tried to watch a lot of british or american movies, serials etc. in original version, I had essays given by my teacher and it was possible to have one or two speaking-sessions per week alone with your teacher or another assistant. So I could say it was pretty neat. But now I work in France, in an engineering company which doesn’t really care about getting customers outside the borders… I can still watch movies but no more essays nor speaking-sessions and my english slowly becomes rustier. Thus in order to keep it fresh, I was looking for other means to work on my skills. After some research on the internet, I stumble upon the HelloTalk app. It’s similar to the concept of Italki which means it allows people from everywhere in the world to lean a language with a native speaker. But it’s actually the only one app existing on both android and apple platforms. After launching the app, it invites you to register and create a profile. This profile is very basic and allows anyone to see your picture, know the languages you know and want to learn, your country of residence and a very useful clock so you won’t get the very annoying question « what time is it in your country ? ». At first, I was a bit annoyed by the lack of information you can put on your profile but it fits the needs : you’re here to talk not to look through profiles in search for the perfect match ! Once you’re done, the app invites you to search through the users and talk to them immediately. It seems a bit harsh and you might be troubled about how begining a conversation but as far as I know, everyone I met was very kind and willing to meet new friends. It’s when you’re engaged in a conversation HelloTalk began to show its qualities. (my note is too long! more to read in the next article!)

Anyone available to help me practice my english for a job interview? Hey! I know the notebook is not really appropriate for this kind of request but I'm trying anyway! :) Next Wednesday, I have an interview for a job in Romania. This interview will be all in english (and by phone!). I'd like to practice this interview with a native speaker who would be able to correct me and give me some advice. If you want to spend some time working on your french, I'd be glad to help you back! Thanks a lot! Hope to hear from you! :)

Just a bit of Hello, friends! Today, I'm a bit tired and sick. I wanted to write an article on how I try to learn english "the funny way" but it don't feel like doing it.. So I will chat on whatever cross my mind because it's easier! (but it will be a lot less interesting, sorry :p). I'm finally registered for the toefl test! I just need to wait until I receive the confirmation email. I will need you all to make a lot of progress and manage to pass the exam with a decent grade! :) Today was a loooong day! I had to get up at 4.45 am and drive to work this morning. I generally take the train but there was a strike this morning (France, you know...). Of course, everybody had had the same idea and it tooked sooo loong! I managed to be at my work in time but working the whole day was so hard! I had to make calculations today (pressure drops in pipes, valves, these kind of things...) but I was totally asleep. It took me a long time to do it and it messes up all my schedule. Fortunatly, I was able to drive back home at the end of the day without any trouble. So tonight, I'm going to sleep early and be ready for tomorrow! (Will write my article too! And a much more interesting one I promise!) Thanks for reading this! Have a nice day/evening/morning! :) Ps: Oh and because I'm sorry for this poor article, here is a badly drawn cheerleader I made for a friend! Her name's Scatterbrained Fanny... She's ready to cheer her favorite team, but forgot to put her pants this morning!

Hey wanna learn english AND be fit at the same time? :D Today just a quick note about a very peculiar app I started using two month ago. I'm always looking for new ways to practice english (mostly my listening skills) in every day situation: when I cook, I look for the recipe in english, I try to read some books in english, newspapers, and when I walk alone, I often listen to podcasts. But there was a problem (Okay, not a real problem, but still!). When I run, I can't listen to anything because I have trouble focusing on my breath and the podcast at the same time. This was before I found a really clever running app: "Zombies, Run!". Hey! don't leave! I'm not just selling some weird geeky stuff! (ok, it may be a bit nerdy :S...). This app does what every other running app is doing: track your progress, your position, the lenghth of your runs, set goals etc. But at the same time, it tells you a story. And the hero of the story is... you! Yes, you're the hero of the story and your name is "Runner 5". The beginning of the story is classic: The world of "Zombies, run!" have been devastated by an epidemy and only few humans survived. You live in a fortified base camp but it's running out of supplies. In order to save the city, the "Runners" have to catch supplies outside and of course avoid.. zombies! And that's where the fun begins: when you run, it's not only to finally beat your time, it's also because you have to save someone, bring back food etc. When you put your earplug, the mayor, the doctor or the radio operator give you basic instructions on your mission, and add comments while you run. The creator of the app manage to developp a story which is interesting and not overwhelming: you can focus on the run while the story is told bits by bits by the different characters (who are all funny! ^^) It's a lot of fun, interesting and healthy! And you can practice your learning skills while running! Thanks a lot for reading this, if you've tried this app, give me your impressions! :D See you guys!

Podcastons à fond! Hey everyone! My first post here... so much pressure! :$ While trying to get in touch with as many english speakers as I can, I'd like to improve my overall comprehension of English even when I'm not in front of my keyboard! I wanted something fun, dynamic and at the same time interesting or inspiring... I tried to read books but I can't do it when I'm driving or when I take the over-crowded subway/bus (very tough reading when you're stuck under someone else's armpit!!). That's why I decided to try listening to audio podcasts and it appears that I love it! I started a year ago and try many of them. Some even become regular appointments I'm looking forward to listen to! I'd like to share two of them with you! #1 Planet Money MY favorite show and the podcast i'm following for the longest time. I checked this morning: nearly two years! It's a show from the National Public Radio of the US. Twice a week, it explains with everyday word what is going on with the economy. The subjects are very diverse: from the industrial revolution in Pakistan to the laws of economy in motion in the mormon society. Special mention to their coverage of the 2008 crisis: they bought a real toxic asset (and give it the sweet name of "Toxie") and followed it's "life" until the end. It was really interesting! #2 Welcome to night vale Imagine a small quiet town deep in the middle of the USA. Quiet? It only seems very calm and the people living there seems very nice but each character is weirder than the other one. "Welcome to night vale" is the fictious radio show of this town. In each episode, you have a main story and other anecdotes, false commercials and other surprises! It annoys me a lot that I don't understand everything! It's a bit hard to follow because the humour of the show relies mostly on non-sensical sentences and you really have to pay attention. Anyway I like this kind of storytelling which always surprises me as well as the very dry-humour of this show. I have other shows in my pocket but they're boring being the newshour of the BBC radio for example, so there's no need to mention them! :) I hope this first entry was pleasant to read. I'd like to hear from you if you have other audio shows you'd like to share! My podcastaholism needs new stuff to listen to! Have a great evening/morning/day, Matt