Tag Archives: languages

Language e-learning, for everyone

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This month we’re focusing on our fantastic e-resources which can help you learn a new language, refresh your vocabulary or simply help you get by in the supermarche or bahnhof when on holiday.

You can learn a language from home with Tell me more and use the handy speech recognition software to get your pronunciation just right. Choose from English, French, German, Spanish, Italian or Dutch. There are levels to suit everyone from the complete beginner to advanced student. With sections designed to improve your reading, writing, speaking, listening and cultural skills, you can choose from a variety of activities to tailor your learning to suit you.

Transparent Language Online offers a range 80 languages and provides a diverse array of resources,  such as access to social media in the languate you’re studying and games to help practice your new found knowledge. There’s even an iPhone and adroid app (under its previous name of Byki) for learning on the go!

Happy International Children’s Book Day!

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Since 1967, on or around the birthday of master storyteller Hans Christian Andersen, International Children’s Book Day has been celebrated all over the world. The aim of the day is to inspire a love of reading amongst young readers.

If you’re quite familiar with the Ugly Duckling and the Emperor’s New Clothes why not try something new from a fantastic global selection of children’s fiction at the International Children’s Digital Library. Flick through beautifully illustrated books in a choice of many different languages. No downloading required, just click to read online. There really is something for everyone in this vast and growing freely available collection.

Read all about it!

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International Newsstand gives you the chance to get a fresh perspective on what’s happening around the world. Access International Newsstand from Your Library and if you ‘View the Title List’ you’ll see the full list of over 280 of the world’s top newspapers as well as detail of how far back coverage goes for each title.
Use International Newsstand to compare and contrast how different newspapers in different countries view and report the same news stories.  Edinburgh Zoo’s pandas have made headlines around the world. Canada’s Montreal Gazette labelled the news a ‘Giant fuss’ whilst Delhi’s Press Trust of India report focused on the fanfare and crowd of 600 animal lovers that welcomed the animals to Edinburgh. Back in August, Glasgow’s Evening Times announced the arrival with the attention grabbing headline ‘Pandas get bullet-proof glass in zoo with a view’. While the pandas continue to make news in Edinburgh’s own Evening News with a recent article reporting on an advertising watchdog enquiry to decide when is a panda gift not a panda gift.
International Newsstand is a great tool for helping to learn languages. You’ll find dozens of regional papers as well as the well-known national papers from across the globe (and right up to the current edition). If you’re reading a foreign language news article and want to check your linguistical skills you can simply click ‘translate’ to see a translated copy of the text. Although, as with most non-human translations, some things can end up getting lost. Or indeed added to, as in this rather poetic weather report from Berlin’s Die Tageszeitung:
Dense clouds determine the Saturday-heaven, it can rain again and again.