Lesson 28 – Test and Reflections

Final Test
We took a short test about what we have learned and vocabulary.


Project Presentations
Each group presented a progress report about their projects.

Submit any materials, even if incomplete, today. I will inform you if any revisions need to be made.

Due 7/19 23:59


Spring Term Reflection Questions
Talk with your partners about the following questions.

• We repeated a few activities this semester (speed reading, extensive writing, Quizlet study, academic vocabulary reading, presentation skills, extensive reading, blog writing, essay writing).  

• Which was your favorite and why?  Which was your least favorite and why?

• Think about those same activities? Which ones benefit you most in your other classes? Which ones do you think might benefit you after you graduate?

• Did you have a favorite lesson? If so, why did you like it?

• What are two things you did well this semester and why you think you did them well?

• What two things you would like to improve next semester and why you want to improve them?



Journal
Write in your journal about the above questions. Also, write about these questions.

• Do you think you helped your classmates participate? Is there something you can do to help them more?

• What did Daniel do that was helpful for you? What can Daniel do better?

• What grade do you feel you deserve in this class? Why do you deserve this grade?  Are you satisfied with your performance (behavior, participation, attendance) in this class?  Why or why not?

Due 7/21 23:49 


Essay Revision
Submit your revision of your essay based on the meeting we had. 
Due 7/23 23:59

If you need to do another revision, I will let you know.

Lesson 27 – Presentations and Preparation

Presentations
We had our final group of presentations today. Use the feedback form below:

Final Presentations Feedback



Unit 5: The Study of the Seasons
We checked our homework. These words have been added to Quizlet set and will be part of the final test.


Projects
Continue working together on your projects. On Thursday your group will present your project (whether completed or in progress) to the class. Also, you will need to negotiate the final deadline for your projects if they are not completed by Thursday.


Test
We will have a short test on Thursday. Review the Quizlet set, CRAP and the 4 Strands.

Video – Let the Bright Seraphim (Kathleen Battle & Wynton Marsalis)

Let the Bright Seraphim
Kathleen Battle is a famous opera singer and Wynton Marsalis is a famous jazz trumpeter. Marsalis is the only person who has ever won grammies for both jazz and classical music. I love how they have shining eyes and bring out each other's shining eyes.

The music was composed by George Handel about an episode in the Bible.

Lesson 26 – Presentatoins (cont)

Presentations
We continued with presentations today. Use the feedback form below:

Final Presentations Feedback



Homework
Do the tasks in the handout, Unit 5: The Study of the Season. We will check the answers in class. Also, the vocabulary will be on the final test.
Due before class. 

Video – The Piano Guys original tune: All of Me

The video we watched an original tune by The Piano Guys: All of Me. Jon Schmidt (the pianist) wrote this song years ago and many people have performed it on YouTube. Finally, he recorded his version for YouTube.

Enjoy the video again.

Lesson 25 – Presentations and Project Work

Presentations
We begin the first group of presentations today. Use the feedback form below:

Final Presentations Feedback

Those who haven't given their presentations yet should learn from today's feedback. Also, go back and look at the recent posts about handouts, PUNCH, Q&A and finishing strong.



Projects

Continue working together on your projects. Write a submit a report about what needs to be done and how it will be completed.

Write a document together using Google Docs. Share the doc with your members and then share it with me. Title your group report with AE18 Project Report L25 + group members' first names.
Due before midnight. 


Call for Volunteers
The special interest group (SIG) I am involved with for the teaching organization I am a member of (The Japan Association for Language Teaching – JALT) is holding their 25th anniversary conference at Rikkyo September 15-16. If you can help on either or both days, I would be very happy.

JALT CUE Conference 2018 (25th Anniversary)

Volunteering duties would include helping people to find the campus, help people on campus to find the conference rooms, helping conference goers with their questions, helping conference presenters with time management and equipment, etc …

Volunteers will receive a T-shirt which will identify you as a volunteer. You will be able to keep the shirt. Each day, you will receive a bento lunch and you will also receive a small amount of money that will help with transportation or other costs. In addition, I will invite you to a pizza party. By this, I don't mean we will order cheap takeout and sit in a room. I will take you to Borsa, my favorite local restaurant.

Presentation Handouts

For your presentations, you should prepare 10 handouts (which includes one for yourself so you can show it to the audience).


Here are some things to consider:

• Show numbers, graphs, quotes, and other information that is too long or detailed to put on your slides.
• Include your references at the end.
• You can use serif fonts and smaller font sizes for your longer texts.
• You can use sentences and even paragraphs if you need to.
• Keep your handouts to two pages printed double-sided on one piece of paper. A single page is fine.

Also, review the Lesson 19 post to review tips for handouts.

Essay Meeting Reservations

Each of you needs to make a reservation with me to go over your essay at my office. I have made a spreadsheet on Google. It's first come, first served, so I suggest you make your reservation early. If you can not find a time on the spreadsheet, you will need to make arrangements with me directly.

Essay Meeting Reservation Spreadsheet

Note: You can only sign into the spreadsheet using your Rikkyo account. 

Lesson 24 – Benjamin Zander & Finishing Presentations

Benjamin Zander at TED Talk
We watched (again!) Benjamin Zander's TED Talk called The Transformative Power of Classical Music. I didn't realize I had assigned this video for homework before. Somehow, I can't find it on the blog. However, I hope you benefited from watching it again. Perhaps having done the homework and seeing again helped you see how much more you could understand and appreciate. 

What I hope you notice this time is how Zander used humor as his PUNCH strategy to introduce his topic. 

You can watch the video again here:

Write in your journal about these questions (and any other thoughts you have)

• What is one-buttock playing?
• How can you be a one-buttock player?
• What similarities can you find between Zander's talk and Duckworth's talk including what she wrote about her experience?
• How can you apply these ideas to your presentation, to your studies, to your life?
  Due 7/8 23:59

Make your ending sticky
Here are some suggestions for making your ending sticky. Being sticky means that your ideas will stick and be easy to remember. The idea comes from a book by Chip and Dan Heath, Made to Stick. Garr Reynolds in his book The Naked Presenter refers to their ideas when suggesting how to finish your presentation strong.

Here is a summary of the points Reynolds shares from the Heaths' book:

• Simplicity – do not add much new information at the end of your talk.
• Unexpectedness – just as your PUNCH can include something unexpected, your ending can as well. In fact, you begin an anecdote or a question in your introduction and give the conclusion here.
• Concreteness – Avoid being abstract. Give a specific example or use a specific image to make your final point.
• Credibility – Use a final example or statistic to make your final point.
• Emotions – Find a way to make your audience care about your final point. This can be similar to the Personal part of PUNCH.
• Stories – Use a story to help your audience remember your talk. People like stories.

Just like with PUNCH, you probably cannot use each of these ideas. But, consider using one or more.



Handling Q & A
Here are some tips for handling the question and answer time (also from The Naked Presenter).

• Be engaging – Keep your energy level high. Consider getting physically closer to your audience members and look them in the eyes.
• Be brief – Keep your answers to the questions short. Don't give a second presentation during this time.
• Be silent – Let your audience member finish their question even if you think you know what they want to ask.
• Be gracious – If your audience member is annoying you, continue to remain calm and kind.
• Be assertive – Even though you are being patient and kind, do not let an audience member to take too much time from the rest of the audience.
• Repeat or rephrase the question – This shows consideration to the full audience who may not have heard the question. Reynolds says this is a "pro tip", an action that shows your skill.
• Know when to stop – When your time limit is approaching, do not continue to go on speaking. Or, if someone has a question and you know you will not have enough time to answer, take control. You can say something like, "I'm sorry, we are running out of time. You can come speak to me after the presentation."

Finally, end the Q&A time with about 1 minute or so left in your time and close powerfully with your main point. One way to do so is to say something like:

If you only remember one thing today, remember that …Thank you.

Lesson 23 – PUNCH and Projects

Project
You revised your reports from lesson 22 and continued work on your project by planning goals and roles.


Keep in mind:

• Most of your grade will be based on the usefulness of your final product to the target audience.
• Your final product will be in English.
• You should use English as much as possible to achieve your goal.
• Your final product medium should be what is most useful to the target audience.

Write a document together using Google Docs. Share the doc with your members and then share it with me. Title your group report with AE18 Project Report L23 + group members' first names.
Due before midnight.


PUNCH
Presentation expert Garr Reynolds has written on his blog and his book The Naked Presenter about starting your presentations well. He says this is necessary because of the primacy effect, that is, how what people hear at the beginning has the biggest impact on how effective your presentation will be.

Read more about PUNCH on his blog:
PUNCH on the Presentation Zen Blog

On Thursday, we will learn more about Q&A and finishing your presentation well.