MFWI Extension Writing Class

Last week, the extension students visited New Mexico and Arizona. They are located in the Southwest. Arizona is the state where aboriginal people live most in. New Mexico has an ancient trail through it. The two states are very historic. During this trip, I had a splendid experience. There were three things I was deeply impressed with by this trip.   enjoyable trip First of all, I learned tons of information in Acoma Pueblo. It is called Sky City because it is located in a high place. The landscape from top of Sky City was fabulous. The most surprising thing is that some aboriginal people still live in New Mexico. In Sky City, I saw many accessories and potteries which were handmade. The quality was so high. It made me imagine that it took a long time to make them. Also, I saw a horno. Horno is Spanish. It means oven. When I saw it, I could imagine easily that ancient people used it. The oven was preserved at that time. When I saw it, I felt a long history of this area. The mos

  Southwest trip was incredibly awesome for me. Although our trip got off to a late start because of airplane trouble, I had much more fun time as if there had been no trouble. Extension Students went to New Mexico and Arizona. I learned fascinating culture, visited appealing towns and experienced the magnificent nature.   First, I learned about wonderful Southwest culture. Extension students visited Acoma Pueblo. The Acoma Pueblo is known as Sky City because it sits on top of a high mesa. Native American guides showed us around it. Although Acoma Pueblo is in the US, I felt like that it is in a different country. That's why, the buildings, houses and languages differ there from Spokane completely. The buildings and houses stand on not concrete but on soil ground. In addition, most of the buildings made of sandstone, and there are some ovens made of sandstone outside houses. People use them to make bread and meal. The oven is called "horno" in Spanish. Also,

We Extension Students went on a  trip to the Southwest last week. It was a phenomenal and amazing trip. We visited some museums, a village of Native Americans, some wonderful Mexican restaurants and the Grand Canyon. Through this trip, we learned many stunning things at Acoma Pueblo, Montezuma Castle, and the Grand Canyon. Wide Sky Blue from Sky City First, I really took delight in the Acoma Pueblo visit. “Acoma" means a group of Native Americans and “Pueblo" means village. Their village sits on top of a high mesa and it is called “Sky City.” Before this trip, I had learned that Native Americans faces look like Asian people. When I met with them for the first time, I was surprised by this true. We joined an Acoma tour by an Acoma man is a very good talker. The village has an old admirable church and it is used twice a year; Christmas and the day to pray for the repose of their ancestors. Inside of the church, I saw some rainbows on the wall. The colors each have meanin

We went on a Southwest trip from October 14 to 19. We flew from Spokane to New Mexico, and then went to Arizona by bus from New Mexico. I had a delightful experience and an awesome time there. There were a lot of marvelous things that I didn't know and I've never experienced before. I was amazed by worthy culture, magnificent nature, and wonderful encounter through this trip. First, I came in touch with a lot of cultural things such as history, art, and traditional entertainment. In New Mexico, we visited Acoma Pueblo which is a village at the top of the high sandstone, and I learned about the history of Native Americans. They built the sand brick houses which are called "Adobe", and some of the Native Americans are still living there. I was surprised they are living there without water pipes, electricity, and gas. Also, they were selling some accessories or apricot pies in the village. The kind husband and wife who were taking a tour in this village bought the pie

The Extension students went on the Southwest trip from October 14th to 19th and we had a totally adorable time even though our airplane had some problems, and we couldn’t depart on time. As the matter of fact, at the end of trip, I forgot that, because it was quite delightful and precious trip. We enjoyed this trip so much meanwhile we learned a lot of things about the Southwest. There are many fabulous things, especially the Grand Canyon, Acoma Pueblo and Loretto Chapel.  gorgeous Grand Canyon First of all, needless to say, the Grand Canyon was the most impressive place for me. I had never seen such an amazing view until I visited there. I couldn’t believe that I live same earth as the Grand Canyon. Especially, sunset and sunrise were awesome. When the sun was rising, the mountains around the sun’s color turned red. I will never forget this view. It was the most beautiful view I have ever seen. At the free time, I and my friends hiked around the Grand Canyon, then we were

Our Extension students went to the Southwest on October 14 to 19. This trip had a little problem. At first for example, the first day we couldn't leave for the Southwest because of engine trouble of the airplane, and next day, our estimated time for departure greatly changed because of airplane problems again. I think we were a quite lucky because this is a kind of rare opportunity. I have three favorite places. These are Acoma High School, Black Barts restaurant and the Grand Canyon. I had never been to these places so I got a fresh impression from my favorite three places. my great memories First, I enjoyed seeing and hearing traditional dances and songs at Acoma High School. The performance had power so it charmed me. When students dancing and singing, they were dressed in traditional clothes and wore turquoise. After that I asked one of the students about performance. She said “That dance expresses a gesture of extracting jewels. So they wore turquoise.” I felt this pe

This South West trip was one of the greatest trips in my life. It was a first time to go to the South West of the U.S. I went to many places, and especially Route 66, desert landscape, and Grand Canyon were inspirational for me. First, I was really glad to go to Route 66! Actually, to go to Route 66 was one of my dreams because my favorite movie, Cars, took place there. Route 66 is one of the streets which takes us all over the U.S. When I stood on Route 66, I was so moved. I saw a lot of cars. Also I could take a picture of the Route 66 sign. I was so happy to make my dream come true. Secondly, I was astonished at the deserted landscape. I expected that Arizona had a desert, but I didn’t expect it to be so huge. When we drove on the highway, I saw only the desert. I also was surprised at the plants in the desert. Most of the plants were bushes, and I also could see many cacti. One of the cacti was three times as tall as me! I thought that a desert had no plants, but only sand. Howev

The Extension students visited Washington State University (WSU), and had a great time at the IALC (Intensive American Language Center) on September 22. This is where international students study English before entering the university. We met and talked with international students who came from around the world, and are learning English at the IALC to enter the undergraduate program at WSU. Two things were interesting to me.  Eating ice cream with my fantastic friends First, I learned a lot about the personalities and language of the students by talking with them. I talked with 4 international students who came from Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and China. They were cheerful and welcomed me. We enjoyed talking and communicating in English. I was surprised they speak English naturally even though they came to the US just a few months ago. I felt they don't hesitate to speak English, or make mistakes. They are very eager to learn English, and happy to live in the US and surround them

I have had some interesting experiences here at MFWI which I have never experienced in Japan. One of my most favorite things is the beauty of nature in Spokane. I'm sure that the number of times I take pictures here is much more than in Japan, because of that reason. It often reminds me of my childhood in Japan. I really enjoy especially seeing different animals here. First, while I walk the streets, I can see many squirrels. There are many squirrels from big to small one. They always look busy and doing something nimbly. I have never seen wild squirrels in my country, and they always look cute so it is one of the most cheerful things here. Second, we also can see deer on our campus. We can see them especially in the early morning or around the sunset. They are often with their group, sometimes not. They usually move slowly and aren't friendly. I really like seeing a herd of deer because they look peaceful when they eating plants. Third, there are some anther animal

The extension student visited Washington State University  (WSU) last Tuesday, and we had a wonderful time with the students of Intensive American Language Center (IALC). This center teaches English to international students who wants to enter WSU. There are many students who came from various countries. This was my first time to meet international students, so I was impressed a lot by them. I learned many surprising or awesome points during the great exchange. First, they were very talkative and kind to me. We talked a lot about ourselves, for example, our dreams, family or opportunities to come to the America. However, I couldn't explain what I wanted to say well, but they tried to understand me many times. Their talking was very amusing and I was very happy to talk with the students who came from different countries. I talked to four students who came from China, Saudi Arabia, Brazil and Taiwan. I was surprised that they enjoyed talking in their second language, English, and

Y esterday, the Extension students visited Washington State University. This University has 4 campuses. These are located in Pullman, Spokane, Tri-Cities, and Vancouver. We visited Pullman campus. It is the administrative office of the university. Pullman has an interesting institution. It is called the IALC which means Intensive AmericanLanguage Center . The purpose is to help international student to improve their English before entering the university. I met international students at the IALC. I had a splendid experiences. Two things were very surprised and impressive to me. Stunnungly Beautiful  Campus The most surprising thing was their pronunciation. I spoke to two Saudi Arabian students. They had a strong accent. There was a great difference between native speaker's English and Saudi Arabian's English. I think Saudi Arabians can't pronounce the letter "P". For example, they said "Jaban". It means Japan. They also said "bolice". I

Today, the extension students went to  Washington State University and had a wonderful opportunity with IALC (Intensive American Language Center) students.They are students who study English to prepare for successful study at Washington State University or other universities and colleges in the United States. During my time there I enjoyed getting to know the students and learning about the WSU international program. My Stunning International Friends First, I had a good time talking with a Chinese man and a Saudi Arabian man in my group. They were very talkative and friendly. I asked them about their class and their way of studying English. There are 16 students in their class and they basically speak English always in the class because the class has people come from various countries. They said that when they get some new vocabulary in the class, they try to use the word in their conversation. I realized that I was satisfied only to write my new vocabulary in my notebook.

Today, I had a wonderful experience at Washington State University . I visited the Intensive American Language Center (IALC). It is a school where international students study English before entering the university. I met many international students there. They were from Saudi Arabia, China, Japan and Brazil. I learned two interesting things while talking and spending time with them.  New Fabulous Friends  First, I was very surprised that the students from different countries are different each other both in their culture and their personality. My group has Chinese, Japanese, Saudi Arabian and Brazilian students. They are different ages and have different customs. For example, one of the students who is from Saudi Arabia was wearing traditional Middle Eastern clothes. She has to hide their body except her face and hands because of her religion. It was my first time to see a person who is wearing traditional Middle Eastern clothes so I was really surprised. Also, one of the s

Our Extension class went to Washington State University on September 23 in Pullment. We visited the Intensive America Language Center on campus. This is the school where not native speakers learn English before entering university. I talked with many international students at the IALC. They were really kind and we had a good time so I felt comfortable. We shared our cultures. I learned two things from international students. Beautiful football field  First, I noticed that their pronunciation was not like native English speakers. Actually there were students from Brazil, China and Saudi Arabia in my table, and their English had strong accent. I could understand their words but often I couldn’t understand it. Surprisingly, the fact was reassuring because sometimes they seemed to have the same problems which I have. For example, they couldn’t say sure “R” and “L” sound and don’t like “TH” sound. Meeting them was impressive and stimulated me to study English. Second, I learne

I feel sky city with my whole body Clear sky, look down at the tiny village Wind brings an earthy scent Holding pottery full of history Booming voices, rhythmical sounds of drums and rattles Tasting three stages of life bread My senses are filled with sky city

The Extension students visited Washington State University on September 22, and we had wonderful time. We went to the Intensive American Language Center . At this center, there are many students who study English from various countries. We made some small groups and had conversations. My group members were Chinese, Brazilian and Arabian. They were very kind and they taught me a lot of things. I learned a lot about language. An Arabian showed me Arabic letters, they looked very difficult for me. He also said English is easier than Arabic. I couldn't believe that. I have never thought English is easier than Japanese. Next, I asked the question "How long have you studied English?" One of them answered "just one year." I was surprised because he can speak English better than me!! I have studied English for about 7 years. When I was a junior high and high school student, I studied grammar. I hardly speak English, and my teacher taught me English in Japanese. I

Today, the Extension student went on a marvelous tour to WSU (Washington State University) in Pullman. We visited IALC (Intensive American Language Center) There are a lot of international students from several countries there, and they study English to enter WSU. We talked with them, ate lunch together and walked around WSU. I learned some new things such as motivation and culture while spending time with them. Marvelous Campus First, I was stimulated by my four pleasant friends. They were from Saudi Arabia, Brazil, China and Japan. I joined their grammar class and talked with them. I was surprised there are a lot of Chinese students at the school, and they were friendly. Actually at first I was a little nervous because Japan and China has some problems, but the students were kind and chatty. On the other hand, Chinese people communicated with other Chinese people, they often spoke in Chinese. Then, one Brazilian said, “English please!", and he also said to me, "we g

Exploring the Grand Canyon was tremendously amazing. Beautiful sunrise, sunset, and starry sky, Animals, flowers, even smell of the sand drifted on the wind, Unique texture of the rocky cliff and prickle cacti, Surrounded by numerous languages from all over the world, Delicious meals at the restaurant made me full, What a marvellous place the Grand Canyon was.

Beautiful sunset GrandCanyon was absolutely wonderful. Red rocks, some animals, sunrise and sunset Fresh air and dry air Sand, rocks and huge open air Various languages such as Spanish, French, Chinese and Japanese Turkey burger at Arizona park restaurant We can make incredible memories at the Grand Canyon.

Feeling a new different part of American history Old culture; Native American's respectful dance to God Dead trees at volcano eruption Grand Canyon's huge scale Cathedral bell's remind us of their history Mixed culture food Teaching the significance of history    

It is totally amazing. Birds flying calmly. Take a deep breath. Open my eyes, mouth, nostrils. It calls a ton of stars at night. Gives me great pleasure. The sky which I saw at the Grand Canyon was totally amazing all the time.

Route 66 is the mother road of the U.S. Find some rusted car, Gasoline smell floating in the air, I hug the wind made by running cars, My ears catch the engine sound, The smoky taste of air, Route 66 is where U.S. cars gather.

 The Cougar Statue I went to Washington State University on September 23. Before I went there, I was nervous, because it was my first time to interact with foreigner university students. Also, I was excited to know about an American university and to make new friends! When I talked to international students, I was amazed because they were very kind, friendly, talkative, and active. I talked to two Saudi Arabian men and a Chinese woman. We asked them many questions. At that time, one of them explained about Sushi. He wanted to say “raw”, but he couldn’t pronounce it very well, so the teacher didn’t understand what he said. However, he didn’t give up, and tried to use other words, such as “not cooked” and “fresh”. The teacher finally understood and taught him the correct pronunciation. He made sure that he could pronounce it correctly again and again. They have high motivation to study English. After that, they held a campus tour for us. I was very surprised at the

There were a lot of people from various countries at Washington State University. My group had Chinese woman and Saudi Arabian man. I was able to make many friends and I had a wonderful time with them. I was impressed by a lot of things.   First, their English was not perfect but they tried to talk to me a lot. I asked them how to study. They said, “Only practice!” I thought I have to practice English because I have a chance to talk to native speakers. Every international students were very close to each other. They looked like they were really enjoying themselves. After the WSU visit I was interested in IALC.   Second, I was surprised a Saudi Arabian could get money to study abroad from his country. They had a lot of chances to study abroad. If the people who can speak English increase in Saudi Arabia, their country will develop. Third, the campus was huge. There were many students from every state in the U.S., plus one hundred other countries. The number of International stud

The Washington State University visit gave me opportunities to have a broader point of view and know about IALC (Intensive American Language Center). First of all, we could know why many foreign people came to WSU, what they wanted to learn. It was a great opportunity to contact with such international students. Students who were my partners were from Saudi Arabia and Brazil, and they told me that they came to the U.S to study engineering and accounting. One of a Saudi Arabia students said that he wanted to help his father who owned his own oil company, so he came here to study accounting. Each student had different reasons to come and study at WSU, but it was clear that they had their definite goals and high motivation. At lunch time, we shared our own cultures and our traditions. By chance, on September 23th was the national day of Saudi Arabia, so there were many Saudi Arabians who wore traditional clothes. “In general, most of nine to eleven years old boys have clothes as a