The Old Man and the Sea - the 65th anniversary

This afternoon the Window on America center in Dnipro was visited by a mixed group of NMetUA students and NMetAU teachers (Myrgorodska Oleksandra and Pavlienko Anna). 

This group has been studying English through the great writing by E. Hemingway, which brought his author the Nobel Prize. It is The Old Man and the Sea. In the course of studies, the students a bi-lingual (English and Ukrainian) edition of The Old Man and the Sea. This very edition allows reading the original and comparing the professional translation with the own decisions. The translation was made in1974 by Volodymyr Mitrofanov and published by Dnipro Publishers (Kyiv) in 1991 with wonderful illustrations by a Ukrainian artist Mykola Pshinka.
We briefly looked through E. Hemingway’s milestone facts with the presentation of the WOA and watched the beautiful cartoon film, a screen version of The Old Man and the Sea by E. Hemingway. We discussed the themes touched in the novel: the teacher and the student, the life and the death, relations between the generations. We even tried to act as the actors and played the dialogue as if we were shooting a new screen version of the novel. The students had a good opportunity to exchange the ideas about the novel with Mr. Jason, an American volunteer who also decided to participate in the class. 

We continue working with the novel. What did the fisherman do with the marlin’s head? Why did everything in the old man’s house was old and dirty though he was strong enough to do the jobs around the house?
Participants number – 6 person.

Have a look at more pictures, please

“The Last of Mohicans” celebrates the 25th Anniversary !

The project Discover USA continues. This afternoon a group of the 7th year students from school # 141 visited the Window on America center in Dnipro. The school is WOA’s longtime partner as its focused on the English language study.
The WOA staff member T. Gavryliuk familiarized the group with the life and work of James Fenimore Cooper. Cooper is considered to be the first national writer in the USA. He was one of the first major American novelists to include Native American characters in his works. Native Americans play central roles in his “Leatherstocking Tales”. However, his treatment of this group is complex and highlights the tenuous relationship between frontier settlers and American Indians. In the presentation we focused on the novel “The Last of the Mohicans”. It depicts the iconic character Chingachgook, the last chief of the Mohicans. He is portrayed as noble, courageous, and heroic.
The Cooper’s works from the DOUNB Library collection were presented as well as the video from the WOA’s video collection – “The Last of Mohicans” (1992) film.
Participants number – 11 (10 students + 1 teacher).

Have a look at more pictures, please

 

Happy birthday, Jason!

A birthday is just the first day of another 365-day journey around the sun.
Enjoy the trip, our dear volunteer Mr. Jason!

American discovers Dnipro city

“The American told schoolchildren of the outskirts of Dnipro about America in English”.
The week of English Language in Ukraine still continues. The New Year holidays are approaching! So let’s create festive mood to everyone who studies English festively!
The American volunteer and English teacher of Mr. Jason Rush and the Head of the information and resource Window on America center Msr. Svitlana Usenko made a friendly visit to secondary school No 39 being invited by school teacher Victoria Platonova. It was a welcome surprise for 5th graders. Mr. Jason became inspirator of oral skills of the schoolchildren and checked their knowledge of English by asking questions and answering the counter-questions of the braves. The conversation was focused on Washington D.C., where our guest came from, about his sphere of activity in Ukraine, hobbies, sports, cars, plant and animal kingdom and much more on which children’s imagination is capable of.
The schoolchildren prepared several festive activities like declaiming a poem and dancing with a song.  The performing artists received commemorative photos with the guest on them.
 

The weather was pretty cold (-8 C), but it did not intervene our planned picturesque outskirts excursion in the Pivnichnyi district, which took place in the end. The group of activists made a start to feed birds and squirrels in the forest to help them to survive in these frosty days. The American guest liked the New Year garland on the front doors which looked like it was in American style, and he was interested in buildings of the Soviet architecture and enchanting Orthodox Church.
The English teachers of the school also joined the activity. So we shall wait for the new invitations and prepare new activities for the schoolchildren of the secondary school No 39.
Number of participants – 50 persons.

Have a look at more pictures, please

#УкраїнаSpeaking #americanspaces #DniproWOA #Dnipro #library #DOUNB #ДОУНБ #Ukraine #educationalactivities #LearnEnglish #Christmas

Martin Luther King day in USA

Today’s session of the Gabfest Club (Window on America center Dnipropetreovsk, Ukraine) was dealing with complex topics from both Ukrainian and American cultures.
This Saturday we were glad to see again our longtime friend Mr. Josh. The club members used this opportunity to introduce the American guest to the winter celebrations and traditions in Ukraine. The group explained to him in detail the traditions of the Orthodox Christmas and the coming feast – the Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan. The guest was recommended to visit the St. John’s church and to see the traditional rite of the faithful – the immersion into the cold waters of the river. Mr. Josh was fascinated with the symbolism and traditions of this religious holiday.
The second part of the session was dedicated to the celebration of the Martin Luther King day in USA. The group was offered to read and translate an article which explained the basics about Dr. King’s philosophy. MLK was often labeled as “American Ghandi” as he freely credited Indian leader’s strategies of personal commitment, nonviolence, and passive resistance for the effectiveness of his own campaigns in areas such as integration and voting rights. The group was offered to watch a documentary video of Dr. King delivering his speech “I have a dream”. He impressed the audience as a powerful and compelling orator.
The group was also introduced to the song that is very symbolic for all people fighting for their rights – “We shall overcome”. The version of the song performed by Diana Ross was very enjoyable. In the discussion that followed the club members told the American guest about famous Afro-Ukrainians.
The session was enjoyed by all the participants as it gave an insight into complex topics.
Participants number – 22 persons.
Have a look at more pictures, please

Jack London

Within the frame work of the “Discover USA” project Window on America center Dnipropetrovsk arranged a session for the students from the local school No. 141. 
The session was dedicated to the anniversary of the American writer Jack London who was born on January, 12.
The WOA’s Head Svitlana Usenko introduced the 8th-graders to the biography of Jack London. The slide show presented the writer as a colorful, controversial personality. Prior to literary and journalistic accomplishments London tried numerous jobs. This experience enabled him to write fascinating stories about life of seamen, farmers and factory workers of California, the gold-diggers in the Yukon Territory, etc.
 Between 1900 and 1916 J. London completed more than 50 fiction and non-fiction books, hundreds of short stories and numerous articles. Several of the books and many of the short stories are classics and still popular; some have been translated into as many as 70 languages.
To popularize J. London’s books among the library patrons Ukrainian librarians created several book-trailers to his books. The WOA’s guests were offered the screening of “The Sea Wolf” and “The Love of Life” book trailers.
The group was introduced to the WOA’s collection of J. London’s books. The students examined them with interest and the most ambitious borrowed the original (not adapted) versions of the books.
Number of participants – 18 persons.

Have a look at more pictures, please

WOA Dnipropetrovsk is a magnet for US ex-pats!

Window on America is a center of attraction for the US citizens who happen to visit Dnipropetrovsk.
Today we were lucky to welcome three young Americans at a time. Brian and Christine are Fulbright scholars currently working in Ukrainian Universities. Jason Is visiting friends in Dnipropetrovsk. All of them tuned up at the WOA Center at the same time. 
During a heartwarming afternoon tea we shared experiences about travels around USA and Ukraine and made plans for future cooperation.

Have a look at more pictures, please

U.S. Music - 3

The "U.S. Art Residence in Dnipropetrovsk” project involved a group of students from the local school No. 141. to present a lecture “U.S. Music”.
The 11th-year students learned a lot of curious facts about the history of the American music at the Window on America (Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine). They have listened to the musical fragments that introduced typical American styles of music: jazz, country, pop, rock, disco, zydeco, gospel, etc. They also learned about the world known American opera composer – George Gershwin – and listened to some tunes from his cult opera “Porgy and Bess”. The students learned about the musical instruments that are specific for each of the above musical styles and learned new vocabulary.
The students with interest examined the books and images that illustrate the topic at a book display at the Window on America Centre.
 Number of participants – 28 (1teacher + 27 pupils).