The Basic Korean Conversation Club has been going on for five months now in the King Library.

I would like to share our students’ success stories. Most of our students didn’t even know Korean alphabet when they came to the first class. But now we have amazing stories of our regular students to share with you. (I am going to use their first initials of names due to the privacy issues.)

C has been attending our class ever since the first class in January 2013.  I met her at the Korean restaurant and heard the conversation with her friends right next to my table. She wanted to go to Korea as an exchange student this summer. So, I introduced myself and our Korean class to her. Finally, couple weeks ago, she got the admission from Ajou University, South Korea. She is going to Korea in August.

L also has been attending our class from the beginning of January 2013. In the meantime of looking for her job, she wanted to learn Korean language because she had been loving K-pop. She recently got a job using her Korean skill at the Korean Bakery in the Bay Area. 

V has been attending the class since March 2013. He is one of the most passionate students at the class. He is from India and just got to U.S.A. two months ago. He used to be an computer engineer in India. He says he would like to work at Samsung or LG (Korean Companies) in the Bay Area. He studies Korean language very diligently because he has very strong motivation to learn it.

J taught English as a foreign teacher in Korea. He says he doesn’t want to forget his Korean language skill in U.S.A. He knows a lot of Korean cultures. He shares his experiences of being in Korea.

Other students also have their own stories of why they would like to learn Korean. They love Korean Drama, Korean singers (idol stars), etc.

The volunteer teacher and I feel very rewarded and touched by this journey. Mostly because we can change people’s lives and give them a motivation as working in the public library.

The Basic Korean Conversation Club is open to all, and free. It's fun!

Look at the photo taken at the one of wrap-up parties for the Basic Korean Conversation Club in March.

The King Library also have other language classes (Conversation Cafés). Come join us!

Are you a first, second or third grader?

Do you want to have fun and become a better reader?

Come join us at Seven Trees Library for: 

Reading Games! (Starting in March, 2013)

Thursdays, 3:30 - 4:30 PM

Practice reading aloud, play sight-word bingo and other fun vocabulary and language games.  Have fun while strengthening reading and language skills! 

What Language Is: and What it Isn't and What it Could Be by John McWhorter

Contrary to what you may think, language isn’t a set of fixed rules, but a process in flux. A linguist views language in the way that a diver views nature under the sea. Language is living, changing and moving like a swimming fish; by comparison, the written work is like a motionless catch out of water. Using examples of languages from around the world, McWhorter describes the characteristics of language as ingrown, disheveled, intricate, oral and mixed.  

If you find the study of language and languages fascinating, here are some other books to read.

Babel No More: the Search for the World's Most Extraordinary Language Learners by Michael Erard

Through the Language Glass: Why the World Looks Different in Other Languages by Guy Deutscher

You are What You Speak: Grammar Grouches, Language Laws, and the Politics of Identity by Robert Lane Greene

Have you ever heard about Affordable Learning Solution Campaign?

The Affordable Learning Solutions Campaign promotes low-cost, high-quality alternatives to expensive textbooks as quoted on library.sjsu.edu/als.

Examples: Open Courseware Consortium, Open Academics, Open Educational Resources Center for California, Inkling, BookBoon, College Open Textbooks by Subject

San Jose Public Library has free classes and free study materials for learning languages.

Learning English Language

• ESL Conversational Club
• Partners in Reading
• Family Learning Center

Learning Korean Language

Learning Chinese Language

Learning Other Languages

Not only available for English learners to improve their English, Mango Languages database offers lessons in many other languages. If you are interested to learn the following languages: Arabic (Levantine), Chinese (Cantonese), Chinese (Madarin), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dari, Dutch, Farsi (Persian), Finnish, French, German, Greek, Haitian Creole, Hebrew, Hindi, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Pashto, Portugese (Brazil), Russian, Slovak, Spanish (Latin America), Tagalog, Tamil, Thai, Turkish, Urkrainian, Urdu, and Vietnamese; don't hesitate to take a few minutes to explore this database.

Please follow this video clip to navigate the database.

You will need to have a valid PIN and library card number to access the database. Your profile can be created by entering your email address and password. You will have to go your email and click on the link provided by Mango to activate your account.

To get a library card please go to your local library with a proof of address and valid CA picture ID. The online application is available if you want to fill it out in advance.

LearningExpress database's Learning Centers offer practice tests, exercises, skill-building courses, eBooks, and information you need to achieve the results you want—at school, at work, or in life. Looking to land a job? You'll find an entire Learning Center dedicated to helping you get the one that's right for you.

Teachers from the local schools where I presented LearningExpress gave positive feedback and indicated that they will instruct their students to use the database to improve their skills. I showed my teensReach volunteers the LearningExpress database before their SAT or ACT and they loved it. This online exams database is a wonderful supplemental tool for the many job seekers who come to the library every week and it's available 24/7. LearningExpress not only gives the user an opportunity to practice the materials before the test, it simulates the pacing of the real examination.

How do you get to the database and navigate it? Please view this video clip.