Учебен център предлага разнообразие от курсове по английски език с високо качество на обучение, независимо от това дали вашата цел е обучение, професионално развитие или защото обичате да изучавате чужди езици.

Летни интензивни курсове I: от 11 до 29 юли;
Регистрация: от 13 юни до 7 юли

Летни интензивни курсове II: от 15 август до 2 септември;
Регистрация: от 27 юни до 12 август

Есенен срок: от 19 септември до 10 декември;
Регистрация: от 5 до 17 септември

Работното време на Центъра за обслужване на клиенти е следното: от понеделник до петък от 09:00 до 18:00. За повече информация се обадете на (02) 942 43 44 или ни напишете email на: learnenglish@britishcouncil.bg.

За повече информация:

http://www.britishcouncil.org/bg/bulgaria-english-language-courses.htm

Study English this Summer at the British Council! Choose from our two intensive courses.

Summer Intensive I: 11 to 29 July
Registration: 13 June to 8 July

Summer Intensive II: 15 August to 2 September
Registration: 27 June to 12 August

Autumn Term: 19 September to 10 December
Registration: 5 to 17 September

Our Customer Services opening hours are: Monday to Friday, from 09:00 to 18:00. Call us on 02 942 43 44 for more information or send us an email on learnenglish@britishcouncil.bg

http://www.britishcouncil.org/bulgaria-english-language-courses.htm

Embracing this wonderful achievement, the Sri Lanka offices in Colombo and Kandy celebrated World Environment Day in full fledge.

Celebrations in Colombo:
The British Council Green Team in Colombo organised a series of fun, exciting, and educational events and workshops to mark World Environment Day 2011. To launch the event, Chief Guest, Dr Ajantha Perera, Founder of the National Programme on Recycling of Solid Waste and Advisor to the Ministry of Environment, conducted a tree-planting demonstration for children, where Sri Lanka Country Director, Tony Reilly, was invited to plant a tree on the British Council lawn, followed by a few children, and some members of the Green Team.

Dr Ajantha, being a very inspiring personality, was very good at getting the environmental message across to children in an engaging way. She explained, very simply and interestingly, how trees breathe and how they are helpful to mankind.

Country Director, Tony Reilly,
plants a tree to launch the
World Environment Day
Celebrations in Colombo

Tony and Dr Ajantha Perera
address a gathering of
children on the lawn of the
Colombo premises

Members of the Green Team
happily plant a fruit-bearing
tree
 

 
After the tree-planting, Dr Ajantha demonstrated to the enthralled crowd on how to make organic compost out of simple household waste, such as used teabags, and vegetable scraps; after which, she proceeded to the main hall and delivered a lecture about the importance of taking care of our environment by living in a sustainable way: not littering, opting for tap water rather than bottled, and eating simple food grown in our own gardens.

After the lecture, 70 students from the Teaching Centre were given a stationery set and some paper, and were invited to take part in an art competition, on the theme: ‘Trees Are Our Friends’. All the posters that were developed were wonderfully creative, which left the judging panel, led by experienced WED art competition judge, Marion Hughes, a tough decision. The panel, however, selected six winners, three in each age category. All six winners received a free British Council library membership for a one year period, while the two first prize winners also took home dinner-for-two vouchers, from two top Colombo hotels. 

Listening to the lecture
delivered by Dr Ajantha Perera
 
 
 

Children at work designing
their creative art posters for
the competition
 
 

Dr Ajantha Perera and Green
Team Leader Louise Zaaijman
with the Junior Group winner
of the art competition
 

The day did not end there. Towards the evening, our hall was transformed into a film hall. Organised by the British Council Sri Lanka Climate Change Project Manager, Thushara Gunasekera, and her team, an environmental film festival took place. The festival, which was free and open to the public, screened a range of inspirational and educational BBC and Wildscreen films on issues such as global warming, deforestation, over-hunting and fishing, and coral regeneration.

To celebrate the global achievement of obtaining full EFT Level 3, the Green Team organised an all-staff tea party amidst the World Environment Day celebrations. At the event, a bicycle raffle draw took place, where Tony Reilly was invited to draw the lucky winner. The event also saw the launch of the British Council Sri Lanka Green Blog, enforcing a digital focus.

Other highlights included, ‘Cosmic’, a recycled paper manufacturer, demonstrating how recycled paper is made. They also provided the recycled paper leaves for our pledge tree, which many chose to write on and hang their green leaf promise for the coming year. Pledges included, ‘I promise not to leave the tap running while I am brushing my teeth’, and ‘I promise not to drop litter on the road’.

A number of stalls were also set up at the premises. Free herbal drinks were distributed to all visitors, courtesy of Mount Lavinia Hotel, and stalls set up by Ayurvedic jewellery sellers, plant sellers, and organic fertiliser sellers, all contributed to the atmosphere of a most enjoyable day.
&nbsp

A happy customer purchases
organic fertiliser

Ayurvedic Jewellery on display
 

The plant seller’s stall
 

 
Celebrations in Kandy:
The office in Kandy, too, celebrated World Environment Day, through a range of activities, including, film screenings, photography-related seminars and an organic home gardening workshop. The Kandy office reached out to an audience of over 200, comprising mainly of secondary school students from nature, environment and photography clubs.

Teaming up with Wildscreen, the World Environment Day celebrations in Kandy helped spread awareness of the importance of conservation and preservation of our planet for future generations. Three guest speakers spoke at the event; firstly, Dr. Bhathiya Sumithraarachchi, who spoke on the conservation of nature and his knowledge and experience as the former Director of the Botanical Gardens in Peradeniya, secondly, Dr. Ranjith Pallegama, who shared his expertise on  the basics of nature photography, and thirdly, Mr. Palitha Handunge, who screened his award winning feature film ‘Sinharaja village – life in transition’, while providing an overview of how to produce effective films and videos.
 
This event was the first of its kind in Kandy, and was well received and appreciated by the audience. A participant, Anuththra Rajapakse, provided positive feedback. She said, ‘Through this event, I became aware of what we are doing to the environment, and I understand the consequences of pollution and learned to experience the beauty of the environment that was shown in the presentations. Most importantly, I learned ways in which I can help to protect the environment’.
  
In his very interactive workshop on organic gardening, Dr. Jayantha Attapattu from the Department of Agriculture provided tips on how to produce an organic garden and how to make best use of a small space to achieve optimum results. All participants received plants and seeds, along with leaflets providing sound grounding on how to create their own small home gardens. One of the participants, Rizna, said, ‘I had the opportunity to gain a good knowledge on how to create a home garden in an urban space and to prepare healthy and nutritious food for my family’. Due to the popularity of the event, Dr. Attapattu said that he would arrange a field trip to continue this project to help develop an interest among the public in home gardening and sustainable living practices.
  
- While British Council Kandy chose to celebrate WED on Friday 3 June, and the Colombo office chose to celebrate the day on Saturday 4 June, World Environment Day was internationally celebrated on 5 June 2011 this year. -

The British Council Eagles played one of their best games in the Stolichna Amateur League to beat BG Bar 7:2. This was the third consecutive win for the Eagles, who are in third place in League One.

The BC player-manager-goalie-coach-match organizer etc. Eddie had his biggest ever official match-day squad at his disposal. Todor started in goal, defensive Alex and Hristo began the game in defence, Adrian and Ibrahim were deployed in the middle, with Ilian starting up front. Miro, Pancho, forward Alex, defensive Vassil and Toni were on the bench for the start of the game. In stark contrast, Bg Bar had no subs at all and the Eagles could have been inclined to embark on a war of attrition.

Bg Bar were up and running in the early stages though, taking the lead through the efforts of the League One top goalscorer. The opposition goalkeeper hurled the ball to their lone striker, and the latter, wearing a #14 shirt, somehow escaped the company of three defenders for a one-on-one with goalie Todor, whom he soundly beat with a mighty low drive. The Eagles tried to retaliate, forcing two corners in quick succession, the Bg Bar goalie making an incredible save after a crisp Ilian effort. But BCE equalized before long as defensive Alex, who had switched positions with holding midfielder Adrian, smartly dummied a shot, then took his time and picked out Ibrahim who scored despite the keeper getting a touch on the ball.

The Bg Bar #14 was proving to be a constant threat at the other end, regularly making himself just about enough space to shoot. Fortunately, most of his efforts were going either high or wide, and when he managed to put a low strike on target, Todor was more than equal to it.

In the meantime, Ilian proved his goalscoring prowess, sending a ballistic rocket into the top corner after the Eagles had stolen possession in the Bg Bar half, to make it 2:1 Eagles. Defender Hristo also tried his luck from afar and struck the post.

Bg Bar started the second half the brighter of the two teams, winning a free-kick on the edge of the area, but the ensuing effort hit the defensive wall.

Ilian then lost his marker brilliantly on a quick-fire counter-attack, but his shot was pushed wide by the diving Bg Bar goalkeeper. The Eagles allowed their opponents to equalize soon after when the unstoppable grey-clad #14 got his 43rd goal of the competition, scoring into the roof of the net with an angled drive from the left wing.

Moments later Ilian again escaped from his marker thanks to a neat first touch and cut back. Unfortunately the ball came behind for defensive Alex, who lost valuable time trying to control it, and eventually the keeper closed him down. Defensive Alex and Ilian made amends on their next foray forward though. Alex beat a Bg Bar defender and cleverly set up his striker with the goal at his mercy. It was 3:2 now and the Eagles never looked back. They scored again when a Bg Bar defender lost his footing, allowing Ilian to pounce on the ball. The striker was supported by Pancho, but preferred to go for a hat-trick. His shot was saved, but the ball was then guided over the line by an unfortunate Bg Bar player.

But if the fourth was a bit scrappy, the fifth Eagles goal was one to remember. Defensive Vassil, forward Alex and Hristo embarked on some intricate triangle passing, and Alex was finally set up for an easy finish to make it 5:2 for the British Council side. Todor brilliantly parried a rising #14 effort during a swift Bg Bar break and there was enough time left for the Eagles to score twice more. First Ibrahim sent forward Alex clear on goal and the latter duly obliged. The Eagles playmaker-goalscorer then scored himself, sealing the final outcome at 7:2.

Aram Potourlian

at “Mir i Druzhba”

by one of my students Tulya Elif B.

There are films that change your life. There are songs that give you a very strong heart beat and there are books that spiritualize you. There are also some days or events that change your whole life. My story begins on a nice snowy day in Istanbul of the 1990s.

It was the day when I first entered the doors of the British Council at Istiklal Street in Beyoglu. I was a fifteen year old prep student with the strangest hair style ever. My mum who has supported me all the time took me there after my English teacher had advised me to become a member of the British Council Library. I can still remember the smell of the books, the cosy atmosphere and the friendly people working there. The hardcover books were really big and thick with many unknown words. I enjoyed walking through the library aisles looking through the reference books, atlases and novels. Unfortunately I was only able to read the leveled readers as an elementary level student. I was considering myself lucky if a reader was in a plastic bag because that meant the reader had a ‘cassette’ (a flat rectangular device that is used to record sound. (Hard to find one of these nowadays. Oopsie I think I became a little old:) ) These bags were soft and transparent with hard white handles. If the readers and cassettes were heavy, the handle could nearly cut my hand but I never thought of putting it in my rucksack. It was kind of a pride (but not a prejudice:) for me to carry them with a serious look in my eyes saying “I’m learning English.” My favourite section in the library was the great classical novels and poems. I didn’t understand a word in them but I was making a secret oath deep inside my heart to become a real reader of those books one day. I spent hours and days in that library. Looking through newspapers and magazines, choosing the books sitting on the stool by the shelves, reading and listening to cassettes by the bay window, the best liked seat of the library. That place was like the front seat at a theatre because you could watch the busy people walking along Istiklal Street and the little red and white tram ringing its bell.

Days chased days and I became a university student. I was studying English Language Teaching and drowning in homework and projects so once again the British Council Library had been my loyal assistant. Now the library had this huge catalogue, a machine looked like a mixture of a computer and an Atari. It was easier to search the books and materials through by using this thing. Besides I could understand and enjoy the books on any shelves. It was nice not to be limited with the leveled readers. There was also a video club (still no VCDs or DVDs) which was a bit expensive for me but we were allowed to watch them in the special area they provided in the library.

It was just after I had become an English teacher. I learnt that there were seminars about drama techniques and teaching young learners at the British Council. I did my best to attend these seminars given by Laura Woodward and Gulfem Aslan (They were both my heroines and idols, actually they still are) and tried to improve my teaching style.

All these live memories rushed into my mind and filled my heart with a bit of gratitude and a sip of nostalgia at the end of the 2^nd International Conference on Language Education, Eclipsing Expectations at Sabancı University. As I was leaving with a bitter feeling and thinking “If only it hadn’t finished so quickly…” (but that’s another story to be mentioned in another blog post), I saw Raymond Kerr sitting there in the foyer outside the conference hall. I walked out saying bye to him but then I went back and shaking hands I thanked the British Council for providing me such a nice award after the Blogathon, the blog competition. As a silver award winner, getting a ticket to that conference was a real pleasure for me.  Then, I handed him my card and kindly invited him to my blog. I said “My real award is this blog I started. The Blogathon that brought a lot of teachers together gave me the real inspiration and courage.” He was surprised and asked again if I was serious or not. Then he offered me to share this experience with others through a blog post. “Why not?” I thought. And here I am.

Thank you British Council for changing my life sooo many times. The very first day I entered in that library made me walk in doors of time. Does everything happen for a reason? Yes, I believe that there was a reason that made me go there.

MY UNFORGETTABLES OF THE BLOGATHON

Here are some callouts appeared just above my head during the Blogathon:

Fantasies about my blogathon t-shirt: feeling a relationship emerged between the number 120 t-shirt and me.
The wonderful (!) word limit: Cookie for me !!! “What if I omit this word and add a comma? Mmm, is a comma considered as a word? Gosh! Why is this limited with 250 words but not between 250 or 300?”
Happy as a kid: The excitement I had whenever I see a comment in my inbox.
Me, the magician: Ordering the inbox with a bossy manner. “Inbox, Inbox! I order you to be bold.” (so I could see that I had mail.)
Super disturbing: The anger I felt if it was one of those spam or forwarded e-mails.
Sense the presence of the blogathon spirit all the time: Approaching every little situation in and outside the classroom as a potential blog post.
I admit: The anger and panic during the technical problem in the process of readers’ voting. (Luckily we were all officially evaluated by the professional team of the British Council.)
I am available: Making myself available even at lunch and break times to read posts and comment on them.
Feeling flattered: Cooperation and support of all fellow bloggers and other readers. Post and comments from famous bloggers.
A bump in the road: Facebook and Twitter. I did not have any chance to share my posts on social network because I deactivated my accounts for some reason then. (Fortunately, they are active right now.)
Trusting my instincts: The day I decided to start my own blog. Apparently it worked out:)

Never forget! Everything happens for a reason

Merve Oflaz
www.merveoflaz.org

England’s Italian football manager Fabio Capello claims he can manage his players with just 100 words. Despite his sometimes colourful language, some people do think communicating with Wayne Rooney does not require a Shakespearean command of English. However the BBC recently examined how far you could get with a vocabulary of that size.

Probably the best answer can be found in the UK NHS guidelines suggesting that 100 is the number of words toddlers can use by two years of age. Most of the experts interviewed by the BBC also confirmed that this is a ridiculously small number – an adult could learn 100 words in a couple of days, particularly when you’re in an English speaking environment.

If you want to improve your English even faster than that you won’t need to visit the UK because this summer British Council in Sofia is running two intensive courses, one in July and the other in August. Our methodology focuses on real life communication in English. “We believe that the best way to learn English is to use the language as much as possible so only English is spoken in our classrooms,” says Peter Ashton, Director English Language Services.

The two intensive English courses this summer start on 11 July and 15 August respectively. To learn more about the course visit www.britishcouncil.org/bulgaria.  British Council is the world’s leading provider of English language training, with teaching centres in 60 countries throughout the world and more than 75 years training experience.