Laura gets ready for work through GRoW Lockdown Programme

Posted on by heathercette

Laura came to the GRoW Programme looking for help to get back to work and has now completed two courses and is interested in more training to equip her for the world of work during Covid-19.

Laura said “I first learned about the GRoW Programme following a visit to Barra Hall Children’s Centre in Hillingdon.  I was looking to get back to work after having my daughter and a GRoW leaflet at the Childrens Centre explained they could offer me help and advice.

I attended two GRoW sessions in Hayes and found out about opportunities to undertake  education and training that would help me get the kind of work I was looking for.  Because my daughter is only one I am only really interested in part-time work, particularly work I can do from home.  I am quite a motivated person but I found I just needed the right advice about where to go and what to do.  I found the GRoW Programme were really able to point me in the right direction and Liz and Tosin were always on hand to give me help and support if I needed it.  I attended the Uxbridge Jobs Fair and there was a lot of information available there that helped me understand the type of training and qualifications I would need to get in order to get the types of jobs I wanted.

Before I had my daughter I used to work in a Nursery and so I decided to do a Childminding Course at the Adult Learning Centre and I also signed up for the GRoW Lockdown Programme online training course.  I chose to do the Food and Hygiene Course and have now completed both courses which are really important if you want to work with children.

The GRoW Lockdown Food and Hygiene Course was really good to do.  As it is all done online it is easy to stop and start when you want which was really important for me as I needed to work around my daughter.

With everything going on now with Covid-19 I am considering telemarketing jobs as there seems to be quite a few jobs available in this area of work.  You can work from home which is perfect for me with a baby at home.  Tosin has updated my cv for me and I get the GRoW Job Bulletin every week which I find really useful.  She has told me that if I do need any help and advice I can contact her anytime which is so good to know.

I am quite a motivated person but being part of the GRoW Programme has really helped me as they have given me the tools to go out and look for what I want.

The next step for me now is to look at doing the GRoW Lockdown Programme Call Centre Handling course as I really think that will really help me get a job in the current climate.“

ESOL Training with DailyStep English

Posted on by heathercette

by Jane Lawson, Director, DailyStep English Training

DailyStep English is a London–based English training company providing online courses and daily online lessons at all levels of English. DailyStep English Lessons are inspected and accredited by the Continuing Professional Development Service (CPD) so you can add a DailyStep English certificate to your CV.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. This is the concept behind DailyStep lessons – one step each day leads to major progress over time. Our students learn to speak and understand a small amount of English perfectly every day, as well as absorbing the vocabulary, idioms, phrasal verbs, grammar structures, style and pronunciation patterns contained in each lesson.  The fact that the lessons are not too long and therefore not daunting is a major factor in motivating users to continue with them. Learning to speak at the same speed, pronunciation and tone as native speakers greatly improves listening comprehension skills as well as fluency and confidence when speaking.

What will you learn?
DailyStep lessons directly reflect the language issues that English learners consistently find difficult. Specific problem areas addressed in the audio lessons include:

  • Initiating and sustaining a conversation
  • Speaking fluently and with confidence
  • Sounding professional and friendly in English
  • Understanding fast idiomatic speech
  • Explaining, clarifying and rephrasing
  • Business meeting skills
  • Presentation skills
  • English telephone skills
  • Colloquial English where words are omitted
  • Short answers involving auxiliary verbs
  • Pronunciation, intonation and speech rhythm
  • Phrasal verbs and idioms
  • Speech techniques such as irony, understatement and exaggeration
  • Broken, non-grammatical sentences such as are used in everyday speech
  • Using and understanding humour
  • Cultural issues
  • IELTS and other exam skills
  • Appropriate use of formal and informal styles

Benefits of using DailyStep Lessons include:

  • Improved interaction with neighbours, colleagues and clients
  • Improved speaking and comprehension skills for business situations such as meetings, negotiation, giving presentations and using the telephone
  • More active participation in any kind of discussion
  • A developing ability to think in English
  • Expanded range of active vocabulary, idioms and phrasal verbs
  • Better speaking and comprehension skills for social situations with friends, colleagues and neighbours
  • Higher confidence levels when using English
  • Improved ability to make and sustain conversation and therefore to make friends
  • Better understanding of how to deal with a range of situations for life in the UK, e.g. dealing with shops and restaurants, schools, utilities companies, neighbours, tradesmen etc.

What is a DailyStep Lesson?
DailyStep English lessons are in both British and American English, allowing users to choose the accent they speak, and learn to understand both accents. Each lesson consists of a written dialogue, 2 audio recordings of the dialogue (both British and American English, so with some language changes) and notes on style, vocabulary, intonation, functions and grammar.
The method is simple and easy to learn. Here is a video showing how to use a DailyStep Lesson:
https://www.dailystep.com/lesson/how-to-use-level-3
DailyStep members also have access to an archive of audio grammar lessons, IELTS practice lessons, pronunciation tips and other learning materials.

How to access DailyStep Lessons
You can access DailyStep lessons by mobile app, by hyperlinks in emails, or directly by logging in to our website. The app and email notifications mean that so there is no chance to forget to take the lesson. You can download PDF and MP3 files of each lesson for offline use.

Every user has a Personal Lesson Bank, which records how many times each lesson has been completed. You can log in any time to catch up on missed lessons, download lessons or repeat lessons as required, even after your subscription expires.

If you would like to undertake a Daily Step English Lesson first contact the GRoW Team on info@belinagrow.co.uk and we will be in touch.

About
Jane Lawson is an English teacher with over 20 years’ experience. Jane developed the DailyStep method to address the problems faced by busy English learners living and working in the UK.