The week started off with a bang with 12 new students joining us. It’s great to have you all here, and on behalf of the GV team I’d like to welcome you all to the school and Byron Bay. It’s going to be a great summer!!
Welcome Maria, Evi, Daniella, Nadia, Vanessa, Yong-Sik, Janina, Daniel, Linda, Lea, Jong and Gabriella. If you guys need anything, please drop into the office and talk to either Kate or I, any time! We’re here to help.
Posted in Announcements, Pictures, Student News
On top of welcoming all of our new students to GV Byron Bay this week we have also had the pleasure of having a family being born right in the garden! The Pluvers, (birds) have been extremely protective of their babies over the last week or two.. but we are now delighted to welcome the new members of the GV family to the school!
Mama & Papa Pluver’s chicks are finally out of their shell just in time for the first day of Spring. So cute! We love watching them learning with mum and dad in Global Village’s backyard.
Posted in Announcements, Events, Pictures
Today I caught up with the newest member of the team. James!
How long have you been teaching at GV Byron Bay and what did you do before you worked here?
I have been here for a month which has been great! Before I came here I was working for another language school in Sydney. I came to Byron because it’s a great lifestyle, the beach, the weather and the general natural beauty of the landscape
Do you speak another language and what was your biggest challenge when learning it?
I’m currently learning Spanish at the local community college. The biggest challenge is finding native speakers of Spanish to speak with. I think it’s really important for any language teacher to experience the other side of the classroom.
Which class are you teaching at the moment?
I am teaching the intermediate class who are a great bunch. Everyone is really friendly and well motivated to learn, and are a pleasure to teach
Please tell us about a student in your class who you feel has made outstanding progress…
I have had a young Japanese student in my class for the last two weeks. He is a great student and works very hard at developing his language skills. He has made amazing progress in the very short time that he has been here, and is a real inspiration to the other classmates and I.
What do you most enjoy about teaching at GV Byron Bay?
I like that the school is small and very friendly community of teachers and students who are supportive of one another. I also enjoy the activities that the school puts on after class. Things like kayaking and surfing are really valuable in bringing the whole school together and helps us all bond more closely with one another.
If you weren’t a teacher, what job do you think you would be doing now?
I would be producing websites.
What do you like most about living in Byron Bay?
Well, like I’m sure everyone says, the beach and the environment. That, and I find people in Byron to be very friendly.
What is your favourite café, restaurant, shop or place in Byron?
My favourite café is “Ate” which is a small café in Bangalow, the vibe and the food are great.
Thanks James. Welcome to the team.
Posted in Announcements, Teacher News
We very sadly had to say goodbye to our first Junior Study tour on Friday.
This was a really succesful tour and we all really had a lot of fun getting to know them. We did various things from Kayaking, to surfing, to going to the circus, to dancing to … well anything you can imagine! And.. of course.. we learnt lots of ENGLISH!!
Thanks guys for being such a wonderful and positive part of the school.
We wish you all the best and look forward to seeing you again..
Posted in Activities, Announcements, Stay in Touch, Student News
We have been most fortunate over the last week to have some great new personalities around the school.
To celebrate this we have been doing some fun activities (as well as some serious studying of course!!)
A very special hello and warm welcome to our Hatsushiba Hashimoto High school students. It’s great to have you here and we wish you all the best for your upcoming study and life in Byron Bay.
Posted in Activities, Announcements, Pictures, Student News
We have been enormously lucky these days in Byron with a fantastically mild winter, days of beautiful sunshine and whales swimming in the sea!
To celebrate these lovely days we had another fun BBQ. Thanks to everyone for making it another fun day!
Posted in Activities, Announcements, Pictures, Student News
Very sadly we had to say goodbye to our dear and very special Bec’s today.
She has been an absolute integral part of the school and we have all grown to love her with her multitude of talents! It was very sad to say goodbye but we struggled through by eating lots of cakes !!
Thanks a million for all your help as well as for all the joy, enthusiasm and humour that you brought to GV Byron Bay. We’ll miss you!!
Posted in Activities, Announcements, Stay in Touch, Student News
Remember to look on job sites such as seek.com.au or jobsearch.gov.au for new jobs offered daily.
Casuals required at weekend markets, leaflet drops. Ph 0428 657549
Kitchen Hand/ Floor Staff: Energetic and friendly person for busy Byron eatery. Varied duties including food prep and serving customers. Relevant experience required. Résumés to : jobs@asiajoes.com
Waiter: Experienced flexible and hardworking for friendly team at Bangalow Dining Rooms. Email bangalowdining@internode.on .net
Posted in Announcements, Jobs
This is a great week for art on the beach. The beachfront in Byron will be displaying art sculptures from local, national and international artists.
Check out: http://www.artscapebiennial.org/#
“artsCape Biennial”, is an exhibition of environmental sculpture situated within the beautiful beachside parklands in the heart of Byron Bay. It is a free 16 day outdoor sculpture event. Get down to the beach this weekend and check it out! There is an offical opening for artsCape at the Beach Hotel on Sunday afternoon at 2pm. See you all there!
Posted in Activities, Announcements, Byron Bay Secrets
This weeks Jobs:
Experienced cleaner: Required for small tourist facility, well presented, experience essential. Phone 0422 036 770
Experienced wait staff required: Italian restaurant at the Pacific. Phn 0412 199 710.
Short order breakfast cook: For bust Byron Cafe. Must have passion and experience. Ph 6685 6810
Grill Cook wanted: Capable person to work breakfast and lunch shifts. Good pan skills essential. Poinciana Cafe Mullumbimby. Phn: 6684 4036
SkyDive Byron Bay: Sales and operations oppertunity.Skydive Byron Bay is looking for a passionate, vibrant and dependable personality to join their team. 7 day availability required. email sharnicubis@australiaskydive.com
Don’t forget! The GV Byron Work shop is on again this Tuesday and Thursday with Andrew. Go along to learn all the skills you need to have in order to get a job in Australia!
Posted in Announcements, Jobs
One of our Spanish students is an incredibly talented flamenco singer who I had the great fortune of listening to on Saturday night. Sergio is going to play again, at the Buddha Bar on Monday night from 6pm. I highly recommend that we all go down and watch him and his “right handed” flamenco guiaritst.
This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to hear some brilliant music.
Will see you there Sergio!
Posted in Activities, Announcements, Byron Bay Secrets, Events, Student News
Thinking of doing other things aside from walking down the beautiful beaches, watching the whales and dolphins and enjoying the beautiful winter in Byron?
Check out:
The Lennox Head Gromfest.
This the world’s original and best gathering of young surfing talent with all of Australia’s best and many young internationals confirmed in the line-up.
Check out : http://www.visitnsw.com/town/Lennox_Head/Rusty_Gromfest/info.aspx for more details.
With our IELTS class kicking off this coming Monday I thought I’d just go through a couple of ideas on “good study practises” to help you make the most of your time here with us at GV Byron Bay.
Brainstorming!
As you will have heard constantly from Andrew, Ginny, Angie and I, brainstorming is the key to success with any kind of academic language use. It helps focus you and prepares you for the topic. There are also some other great advantages to brainstorming; such as helping enforce co-operation between students (which is really useful language practise too!) and it helps in energizing the classroom, which is better than having a coffee sometimes!
Make sure you allocate a certain amount of time for your brainstorming. In the IELTS exam, for task 2, 5-7 minutes is enough. Write down your key ideas. Then try to organise your ideas by paragraphs. Don’t write sentences, just write down the key words. Once you have come up with enough key ideas, try to think of associated vocabulary around the topic. Remember, the better your vocabulary, the better your grade.
Practise, practise, practise..Brainstorming is a critical skill in order for you to get the best possible outcome from your exam. Even a very educated native speaker will always brainstorm before attempting any kind of formal essay. So I can’t encourage you enough to do the same!
Posted in Announcements, Student News, Study
It is coming to that time of the year when internationally famou\s writers from around the world descend on Byron Bay. This year one of the guest stars is Brett Easton Ellis, the author who wrote, Less than Zero and American Pyscho.
The festival always needs volunteers, and I know several of our students have already registered to help out in the festival in what is bound to be a really interesting experience… this is a just a little reminder for you guys to get in touch now! Please read the below information provided by the writers festival.
The Festival would not be possible without our brilliant crew of volunteers and we’re very proud of their track record. It is largely due to their unfailing willingness, courtesy and hard work that the Festival has earned its reputation as a friendly, relaxed and well-run event.
Volunteering at the Byron Bay Writers Festival is an enjoyable experience. Festival volunteers meet happy people, make new friends and absorb fresh challenges. It’s rewarding, it’s stimulating and it’s fun.
Volunteers fill a wide range of roles including administration, venue and event supervision, ushering and ticket checking, driving writers about, hospitality and site maintenance.
If you have registered and have an enquiry please email
The start of the week was kicked off by the first reported sighting of a Whale for the season! It’s a beautiful Monday and seeing a whale at the start of the day is an amazing way to start the week..
We strongly recommend that you all go to the lighthouse to look out of them. They are beautiful creatures and we can look forward to seeing them for the next four or so months! Yay!!
Posted in Announcements, Byron Bay Secrets, Pictures, Student News
Tourism Australia is currently running a photo competition called “There’s Nothing Like Australia” which gives participants an opportunity to share their favourite moments in Australia.
The competition is a great way to show off your photographic skills and to practise your English at the same time.
When you submit your photo entry, you also need to complete the sentence “There’s nothing like…” with a phrase which explains your photo and your favourite experience in Australia.
You can enter the competition online at: http://nothinglikeaustralia.com
We encourage you all to give this competition a try.
Perhaps “There’s nothing like studying at GV Byron Bay!” might prove to be a winning entry!
Good luck!
Here are a few shots which we have to share… this is why we love living in this wonderful place.
Posted in Announcements, Byron Bay Secrets, Student News
The results from the last round of the FCE and CAE exam our out and I have had several emails from our past students telling me that they have done really well.
This is such great news and we here at GV Byron are delighted to hear this! Well done everyone, it’s a tribute to your hard work and great language skills that you have done so well. For those of you who haven’t let me know yet, fingers crossed! Cheers Justin.
Posted in Announcements, Stay in Touch, Student News, Study
We are running the GV WORK shop next week from 2-3:30 pm on Tuesday and Thursday! This great programme helps students find work in Australia!
The classes are very practical and students have the chance to write and print out their resumes, learn how to apply for work locally and around Australia and how to do their best at interviews. Teacher Andrew ensures that the classes are never boring and the best thing is that they are FREE! There are still places available, so if you are keen to work in Byron and Australia as soon as possible, sign up today or come and see Justin for more information.
Posted in Activities, Announcements
Looking for a job in Byron? Need help? We have all the answers!! Come along to the GV Byron Bay workshop which starts on Tuesday the 6th of April.
Make sure you come to the free GV Work Shop every Tuesday and Thursday April 6th and 8th from 2:00pm to 3:00pm.
Teacher Andrew will go through information on on how to write a resume and cover letter, interview techniques, language assistance and where the best places are to find work in Byron.
Don’t miss out on this essential information to give yourself the best chance at getting a job in Byron Bay.
Posted in Announcements, Jobs, Student News
We need someone to help us move furniture and other assorted jobs every day in the morning and afternoon around the school. If you are interested please come into the office and ask Justin or Rebbecca.
Posted in Announcements, Jobs, Student News
Some of you have been asking me for some of the photos we have taken over the last few weeks.. so here is a small selection of our lives here! Thanks everyone for making this such a great place to live, work and of course study in!
Posted in Activities, Announcements, Pictures, Stay in Touch, Student News
Yesterday was a big day for us here at GV Byron Bay, with the start of our new Cambridge courses and of course welcoming our new students from around the `world.
We welcome you one and all to GV Byron Bay and wish you all the best in your new life here and with your studies!
Posted in Activities, Announcements, Student News, Study
We are delighted to report that all of our students who sat the Cambridge exams passed! Congratulations to you all! It’s a brilliant result! Well done!
Posted in Announcements, Stay in Touch, Student News
This is seriously advanced notice, but long term students should mark their diaries now…April 1 – 5 is the Byron Bay Bluesfest!
.
.
.
.
.
The line up this year is amazing – some of the top musical talent in the country. Crowded House (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQOlwMKpmvQ ), Jimmy Barnes (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwIdbN1QW24 ) Jessica Mauboy (http://www.youtube.com/user/jessicamauboy?blend=1&ob=4#p/u/7/kx99fEEN6bs ), Buena Vista Social Club, Jeff Beck, Gipsy Kings, Buddy Guy and much, much more. In fact, there are over 200 performances over 6 stages.
Tickets are on sale now, so if you are going to be in Byron then, make sure you get yours!
The official website is at http://www.bluesfest.com.au/ .
Hint: For the ultimate Byron Bay experience, check out the links to volunteer at the Festival. Students who did it in 2009 report that it was absolutely WILD.
Posted in Announcements, Byron Bay Secrets, Events, Jobs
Join our community today to keep in touch with all your friends!
Just search for Global Village to find us.
Posted in Announcements, Uncategorized
