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English Language Institute

Volume 144, Issue 5-February 22

TheELI Weekly

 Out and About: Souq Al Mubarakiya

by Dana Alkandri, RW41

Photo Credit: https://alqabas.com

Souq Al Mubarakiya is a famous history place in Kuwait. It’s located in the middle of Kuwait city. Al Mubarakiya is the oldest street market in Kuwait which was established in 1897, by the rich people who bring their goods from many countries and display in the market. The Amir of Kuwait, Sheik Mubarak, spent some time in the souq to meet people and listen to their problems and claims in a place which is called koshk Mubarak. Nowadays, koshk Mubarak is like a museum. People can go there to see some items and pictures from the life in Kuwait in the past. You can visit Al Baraiya for shopping in many stores which sell gold, clothes, shoes, sweet and a lot of products, or you can enjoy you meals with your friend and family. If you go there you should visit Al Ruwayeh bookstore, the first book store in Kuwait which was open in 1920 until now. It is still working and has many valuable books, newspapers and manuscripts. I advise everyone who wants to visit Kuwait to visit Souq Al Mubarakiya especially in national day of Kuwait because there are a lot of nice activities.

Notes from the Office

COVID-19 Requirements: Face to face students, remember to do the weekly COVID-19 screening by 3pm on Monday, February 22 with this link: https://uf.tfaforms.net/440

You are not required to do a saliva test this week.  Your next test must be between March 1 and March 4.

Student Voices: We love to see our students writing, but more than that, we like to see the writing in print. Every semester, we take your writing and publish it in Student Voices. Past submissions have included paragraphs, essays, creative stories, recipes, letters, obituaries, poetry, creative stories, class projects, and other interesting works on a variety of topics. I encourage you to submit anything of your work that you wish to see published. It can be from any class or something you have written on your own, but ask your teachers for help editing! You can email it to Olga Moody (omoody@ufl.edu) or to your teacher. Please include your name and class on your submission. The deadline for submissions is Friday, April 2nd. 

CIP Weekday Activities

Students at the Plaza Hangout on February 9, 2021

Monday, February 22th– Game Night (Zoom) – 6-8pm

Play fun virtual games with LAs and classmates! This week we will play International Trivia!

https://ufl.zoom.us/j/96129662095?pwd=TmdIdmgvWkFIekhBc0FwdFdOeW9NZz09

  • Meeting ID: 961 2966 2095
  • Passcode: gamenight

Tuesday February 23th – Plaza Hangout (In-person) – 5:15–7:15pm

Come hang out face to face at the Plaza!  Socialize and play some contactless games.  You MUST sign up for this activity, be cleared for campus, and wear a mask at the event.

Sign Up Here!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0C4BA9A823A02-plaza14

Wednesday, February 24th– Coffee and Culture Talk (Zoom) – 6-7:30pm

Join us this week for discussion about our most bizarre experiences! What is the most adventurous thing you did?  Most interesting food you tried? Most unique place you visited?  Learn about your ELI friends and unique things that exist in their countries!

https://ufl.zoom.us/j/99582032927?pwd=UlFOQ1pjaiswa3huUk41cnBuMEFiQT09

  • Meeting ID: 995 8203 2927
  • Passcode: 926123

Thursday, February 25th – Movie Night (Zoom) – 6-8:30pm

Come vote on a movie and watch it with LAs and ELI friends as we chat in the chatbox! Stick around for a fun discussion afterward! Movie choices this week are Rogue 1, Cars, and 17 Again.

https://ufl.zoom.us/j/92962712031?pwd=dnZhVnh5WTJxWE5FNGZaRndyOFN0UT09

  • Meeting ID: 929 6271 2031
  • Passcode: movienight

Weekend Activity

There is no scheduled ELI activity this weekend since many classes will be holding Midterm Exams next week. Use the weekend to study. Good luck on your exams!

Here are some tips to help you do well on the exams and to improve your English overall.

  • Do the activities in the book that your instructor did and didn’t assign.
  • Find activities online. For example, if you Google “preposition practice”, you’ll get lots of results.
  • Practice whatever you’re studying, but do it out loud. You can practice using pronouns in sentences, reading the newspaper and finding them there, listening for them when people talk, and writing texts to friends using them.
  • Get plenty of sleep and eat well!

 

Conversation Partners: Want to meet with an English speaker every week to practice English and make a friend?  Sign up for a conversation partner! You can sign up by emailing Tate at conversationpartners@eli.ufl.edu.  We still have some volunteers waiting to be paired with you!

Grammar

Q:  What’s the difference between until and ’til?

A: It’s the same word, just shortened. We use the short form usually in conversation. We use the full word in formal writing or formal speech. Interestingly, there is also a newer written form of ’til that is becoming more acceptable: till.

  • Conversational: I have to stay ‘til 4pm.
  • Formal: I have to stay until 4pm.

Birthdays!

Students:  Yuki Yanagita 2/22

Staff:  Olga Moody 2/25

 

Notes from the Editor

Do you have something to say? Say it in the Weekly! Send your grammar questions, culture questions, and stories to Maya Shastri at mshastri@ufl.edu.

Open and download The ELI Weekly (PDF)