Post Tagged with: "reading"

/ May 16, 2013 11:00 am

5 Study Tips for Success

Finals are coming up soon and it’s a good time to begin your studying so there won’t be any last minute cramming happening. But wait – before you crack open that textbook, it’s a good idea to think about your studying strategies and learn more effectively so you can finish faster and ace that exam. Here are a few stress-reducing strategies [...]

/ March 7, 2013 11:02 am

Our freedom to read and express ourselves

Did you know… even in Canada today, books including Harry Potter, Perks of Being a Wallflower, Shine, the Hunger Games, and sooooo many other young adult novels are being challenged because of their content! There are individuals and groups who believe we shouldn’t be choosing what we read! Last week (February 24-March 2, 2013) was Freedom to Read Week, and [...]

/ February 15, 2013 2:29 pm

Awesome books not enough people know about

Escaping to another world, making friends with fictional characters, and learning how to face life’s obstacles are all key aspects that make us love literature. However, many of us are trapped in a small bubble of well-known books, but really, there are sooooooo many great books out there, so look beyond the common trends! Before I get to my list, [...]

/ February 5, 2013 9:40 am

Places to visit: The Devonian Garden

In the midst of the concrete jungle downtown lies some gorgeous greenery; the Devonian Gardens. It is located in the The Core mall and is a beautiful, serene place to do some quiet work. It is a massive ’2.5 acres and contains over 550 trees’ (Calgary Herald). As well as the trees, It also contains 2 Koi ponds (a pool for ornamental carp), a play area and rental space intended for [...]

/ January 8, 2013 11:55 am

Book review: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

“Cancer stories suck,” declares Hazel, the protagonist of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars. One-fifth of the way into the book, no less. This is an odd introduction to a book that details the life and times of a girl living with (and dying of) thyroid cancer. Yet, it also provides a fair outline of Green’s vision for this [...]

/ September 24, 2012 2:39 pm

6 reasons to get an eReader (preferably a Kindle)

I’m going to sound like an advertiser for Amazon, but whatever. I love my eBook. It is currently my favourite toy, for a good reason. Here’s why. 1. Bookmark free reading: I have a few patience problems, especially with those long books. Considering my self-diagnosed lack of attention span, I can’t concentrate on complicated texts for more than an hour [...]

/ March 27, 2012 8:07 am

My top 10 favourite childhood books

So, I was feeling a touch nostalgic, and decided to compile a list of my favourite novels from my elementary years. Many of these, I would go back and read again today, and I encourage you all to do the same. Have a childhood favourite? Comment below. In no particular order, here goes: 1. Anne of Green Gables Series by [...]

/ November 28, 2011 8:17 am

The Maze Runner: Book Review

I’ll admit it, the only reason I read this book was because I heard that it’s similar to The Hunger Games. But as it turns out, the similarities are quite small. Basically Thomas, the protagonist, wakes up with his memories wiped and finds himself in a place called the Glade – a village of sorts, filled with kids just like [...]

/ September 26, 2011 9:01 am

Book Review: A Song of Fire and Ice

Over the past summer, I started reading the Song of Fire and Ice series, by George R.R. Martin after browsing through the library one day. An epic fantasy that currently spans five of a planned seven books, A Song of Fire and Ice paints the picture of a fictional society split into two continents – Westeros and the distant Free [...]

/ September 20, 2011 12:31 pm

Book review: Flowers for Algernon

Recently I had been recommended a book called Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes. At first I was hesitant to pick up the book because the first page I saw was full of spelling and grammatical errors. Flowers for Algernon is a first-person narrative told by Charlie Gordon whose innate IQ is an exceptionally low 68. He is chosen as a [...]

/ June 20, 2011 8:30 am

HUGE Tip for any English Reading Comprehension Exam and Examples!

Get ready to throw your copy of The Key out the window, you won't need it anymore. It is possible to complete a reading comprehension exam without reading most, if any at all, of the given texts.

/ May 31, 2011 8:15 am

Life of Pi Book Review

I had heard from others that this book was great; in fact, I’d even heard it being described as a masterpiece. So there was really not choice in the matter, I had to read this book. But then I found out that this would be one of the books assigned for English class, so I procrastinated until last week. Basically, [...]

/ February 22, 2011 9:16 am

Volunteering at the Calgary Public Library

There are many libraries spread out across Calgary, and at each of them they offer numerous volunteer opportunities. I have been a part of a few of the libraries volunteer opportunities and was delighted by the time I spent volunteering with the children there. A couple of the programs the public library offers for the youth are Reading Buddies, Computer Buddies, ESL [...]

/ February 3, 2011 9:12 am

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

After reading this book, I often wondered if I read the same “The Lovely Bones” that everyone else is talking about. Because to be honest, my opinion greatly differs from that of the majority. Basically, this is a story about a girl who was violated, murdered and now in heaven. but she is restricted to a small portion of heaven [...]

/ February 1, 2011 10:16 am

New Start! Read!

The second semester is coming soon! And many of us may have great individual plans for a new start, especially Grade 12 students. As an ESL student myself, I would like to focus on a big tips for English. Read a lot!!! We have to be flexible readers through skimming and scanning. Skimming is an important task to pre-read the [...]