Welcome to English For Life.ca on the 'net

Hope everyone is enjoying the spring and the warm weather that should be coming your way... Time to get out the swim trunks and beach blankets.

About the Author

My name is John Kenmuir. I'm a Canadian male and world traveler, working as a self-employed English teacher and writer. In my mid-20's, I worked in the hotel management industry before realizing that English and education is where I was supposed to be. Today I get to share that with the world. I can only stand in awe of the gifts I've been given, knowing that they are not mine to keep but to share. They are the gifts that keep on giving.

Something for my Fellow Teachers

Like most people these post-Covid days, I have several avenues of employment that I pursue. One of them is recruiting teachers for brick & mortar teaching positions. My very first teaching job, way back in 1995 (which seems like an eternity ago), was in South Korea. It was an amazing, eye-opening experience for me and now I'd like to share that with others. I've partnered with a young Korean man to invite teachers to come and teach in this open and inviting country. If you feel like this is for you, click here to view the available positions and requirements.

click here to read my blogs and learn more about South Korea.

This Is How I Do What I Do


IELTS Training From 2003 to 2009, I was an IELTS speaking examiner for the British Council in Shanghai, China. I examined and evaluated more than< 3,000 candidates with an accuracy of 98%. If you're planning on taking the test, call me first. There are good IELTS training schools on the Internet, but few of them have trainers with my level of experience or dedication.		Academic English My undergraduate degree is in English Literature; it was granted by the University of Victoria in 1995. If you're struggling with writing an essay and you need assistance or a second pair of eyes, I'm your man. I have taught academic English for several universities (in South Korea, China, Canada & Saudi Arabia) in all four skill areas. Don't wait until it's too late to ask for help.


Writing Services In addition to teaching English and IELTS, I am also a freelance writer. I write about: tv shows, movies and literature music, food and travelling. I can provide assistance in writing: CV's; resumes; cover letters; reference letters; and case studies		Payments & Purchases I accept payment for my services and/or materials through PayPal; contact me by email at teacher@englishforlife.ca for more specific information about my PayPal account.

What Is New & What The Future Holds

Online Courses

As of this past February, I've started teaching conversation practice at LiveXP, a fairly new ESL portal and once that is reasonably priced for both the students and the teachers. Come by and have a look.
I am currently writing and developing English & IELTS courses in both video and worksheet formats. More information will appear when I have sufficient material to launch the courses.

Publications

My first book is " Surviving IELTS Speaking", a practical guide to dealing with IELTS exam stress. The book is designed for lower level students (band 4 to 5 or lower) who haven't taken the exam before. It explains the logistics of the exam so that the student knows what to expect during the test and what they should do (and not do). This test can be very stressful; I have seen many students have panic attacks, some have even decided to stop the test and leave the room. As someone who is passionate about teaching, it breaks my heart to have to watch this knowing there is nothing I can do to help them. Although it focuses specifically on IELTS, many of the suggestions can be applied to any exam setting.

It took awhile, I admit (working for a living does that), but they're done and on their way to the printer: the "English For Life.ca Study Journals", specially designed to help students in their language learning efforts. There are three journals, one for reading, one for writing and one for vocabulary. There is a fourth book, but this is a directory for students to record their passwords. You may think this is a lot of effort when you could store your passwords online more easily. And it's true, you can, but how many times have you read online that this website was hacked and passwords were stolen? A password directory may seem antiquated but no one can hack it (as long as you don't leave it laying somewhere where someone can find it and copy your passwords). This is what I use and it works very well.

I will be releasing some Youtube videos shortly demonstrating how to use the journals. I've taught students how to do this before, in ESL blogs and online classes, and they're not that hard to use, but a quick demonstration should have you up and running in no time. Vocabulary is much easier to learn when you're not writing new words down on small pieces of paper and then losing your notes. When you're reading, it's a good idea to write down important information as you read, such as names and dates, events, etc, rather than trust your memory and risk forgetting important details. I think the writing journal explains itself without further assistance, do you agree?

You can click on the images to have a closer look; contact me at teacher@englishforlife.ca if you'd like to purchase one or more of them. You'll find the videos on how to use them on Youtube, in my personal channel John Kenmuir. I should have them finished shortly; I'll leave a note here when they're done.

Social Media Channels

You can check out my Linkedin profile, where I network and advertise my services as a teacher and writer.

Music to Make Learning More Enjoyable

It's common knowledge that music is a great tool for language learning. If you'd like to take it a step further and learn about the stories behind the music, take a closer look at some previous Music History posts.

Music History:

Choosing who to listen to can be difficult; there are so many great artists and music genres available. You might hear a song you like and try to learn it, but what do you do in between those songs that catch your ear?

In these handouts, we're going to look at some popular western artists. We'll talk a little bit about their personal lives and also learn the lyrics (words) from one or two of their songs. Links will be included so you can listen to some of their songs on Youtube. Questions about the artists and their music can be sent to me at teacher@englishforlife.ca.

Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble
kd_lang
~~The On-eeders~~ The Wonders
Carlos Santana
Neil Young
Sting
Heart

Don't Be A Stranger

If you need help with your studies or have a writing project you need completed, I'm your guy. I can be reached at teacher@englishforlife.ca and I usually respond within 24 hours (I will leave further comments here if I am unavailable for longer periods).

Comments are always welcome, but should be limited to constructive criticism. We are all here to help each other, so please keep that in mind when writing your response.

Student drawn picture of yours truly (mimicry is the highest form of praise

Last updated Sunday, May 7, 2023