Monday 8 September 2014

Changemakers in August

Dear readers!
Did you know that Changemakers is the club which takes no vacation during summer? We try to do our best not to lose precious time and priceless opportunity to work out our tasks to help club-members in their zeal for self-development. 



In August we spent marvellous and rather useful meetings: we heard approximately 25 unprepared speaches during the Table Topic sessions dedicated to public speaking using different topics and forms. 


 The participants and attendees heard around 10 prepared speeches. You won’t believe how interesting could be the Ice Breakers when you hardly know a person! The discoveries of this month for me are two handsome guys – Myroslav Moldovan and Denys Sosnin. The first told the audience about himself through his “in spite ofs” and “regardlesses” which for sure are mighty driving forces for majority of people. The second shared with us numerous of his hobbies which can tell about a person even more than his CV. Among speakers we also hosted our guest-speakers who were kindly demonstrating us well-prepared projects of their own as an example of structure and well-built line of thought: Iryna Piven, Graham Siebert and other.



 One of the most exciting project held at the club in August was Facilitating discussion held by Maryna Gotovkina providing her pieces of advice how to be a better Grammarian. 


Nevertheless the VP Education of Changemakers is striving every meeting to persuade us in necessity to be fans of Grammar as it is one of the core elements of successful language speaking. And honestly saying it seems she’s already managed!
We have met a number of new people as for example Rick Maxwell – the President of Gem City Toastmasters in Quincy IL (located next to the Mississippi River) and also Area 1 Governor. And met old friends as Maksym Danchenko who lives in Slovakia at the moment but used to attend our club for years before. 

One more fascinating news we received this month – we have achieved enough goals according our club’s plan to get the Selected Distinguished Club award! Actually this is just a ribbon but for a small and young club this means that we are going the right way. The officers’ team continues to lead the club towards success hoping to create and support strong and well-developed community of people who are changemakers themselves as well as for other people. We hope to see all the guests joining our club sooner or later ))  

Follow our news, visit our meetings, and change your outlook step by step together with us in process of developing your public speaking skills, leadership skills and practicing your English weekly as only practice makes you perfect.
Be active!

Oleksandra Osypova-Safronova
The President

P.S.  never listen to those who tell you it's not pleasant to write "the President" )) if you want to try yourselves in this role follow our leadership track!


Friday 25 July 2014

Meeting on 22 July 2014

Dear Friends, 

Do you know what is Glossophobia? How to overcome your fear of public speaking? How to face your past fears? Should you appreciate your kids? 
The people who have visited our Changemakers Club on 22nd July know all the answers.


 Mr.Toastmaster, Graham Siebert, shared the quotation with us"Never in doubt, but often wrong"and lead the meeting. 

Yuriy Nechayev informed us in his speech on the role of information in our life and gave a piece of advice not to watch any news or search Internet before going to bed. This is really a very important for all of us especially during summer, when we could take a walk and breath warm and pleasant night air.



Oksana Sayko encouraged us to get updated from young generation and was assuring that every person is a teacher in someone's life. Throughout the meeting we had to recall our fears (fear of public speaking, fears from our childhood and youth), and these fears appeared to be very nice and pretty. Masha Kuzmenko did a great job and prepared a short training explaining how to overcome the fear of public speaking.
Lucy Povaliy arranged a great Table Topic session where our guests and members could talk on their fears. The most memorable phrases from that TT session:
  • you don't have any fear if you are in love (especially if you are a student)  
  • if you turn your face to your past then you turn your back to your future
  • you have to think about something pleasant not to be afraid of something (for example, about dolls)
Dear friends, please overcome your Glossophobia (fear of public speaking), be pro-active and come to our next meeting on Tuesday, 29 July 2014!!!




Friday 11 July 2014

Meeting of the Detective Agency "Changemakers"

Dear friends, 
we had a wonderful meeting on Wednesday with a detective story and lots of fun!
A police officer from one local office visited our meeting to ask a piece of advice on what had happened in a room at the outskirts of the city.
He provided us with the crime scene and five pieces of evidence which had been found in the room. They were strange and unrecognizable so everybody in the room understood we could not help that poor officer.
The officer was not able to solve the riddle, but was very creative. By using her superpowers, she raised ghosts of five famous detectives - Monsieur Poirot, Mr. Sherlock Holmes, Miss Marple, Commisionair Maigret and Mr. Columbo.

The moment captured the scene, when Monsieur Poirot realised the task was so tough, he even lost his moustache. You know, only twice Poirot was mislead in his life, and on Wednesday it happened  third time. Even his little grey cells couldn't help him.









Past Immediate Area Governor from Madrid (Spain) Alex aka Commissioner Maigret proved he was an excellent detective. He immediately understood that no crime had been committed and the stain of blood on the floor was actually  spilled wine. What a brain, Mr. Maigret! Bravo.

Want to check your Crime and Punishment vocabulary?
Solve this riddle.There is a crossword puzzle in the first worksheet. The second contains a matching exercise and a close exercise.

Sunday 22 June 2014

Elections

Dear friends!

You could congratulate us, as we've elected new officers team, which rule our club for the next educational year.
If you are unfamiliar with Toastmasters educational system, it is non-profit organization where everyone could find how to improve his speaking skills by doing projects and taking part in an impromptu session, but what more important he could find how to become a leader.
Six brave people decided to rule our club and help everybody to achieve their goals. So, welcome them!

President - Oleksandra Osypova-Safronova
VP Education - Maria Kuzmenko
VP Membership - Oksana Sayko
VP PR Anna Tsurkan
Treasurer - Oleg Pokidko
Secretary - Galina Nikonchuk

We wish them good luck and may the educational force be with us. Always.

Friday 13 June 2014

Meeting at the Kyiv School of Economics - June 17, 2014

Dear fellow Toastmasters and Club's friends,
Changemakers TM club organizes first joint event with the Kyiv School of Economics.

Tuesday, 17 June, seven in the afternoon.
1 Ivana Mazepy Str. (1 minute walk from Arsenalna metro station)

Our meeting, led by Associate Professor of KSE Volodymyr Vakhitov, is full of interesting events. The agenda is completed with 3 prepared speech projects (You will know our new member Natalia Ilina better as she is about to deliver her first project: guest speaker from Chamber Toastmasters Club Iryna Piven will share with us her non-feminists's musings and another guest from Dniprohills Club Roksolana Melnyk together with the audience will be diffusing verbal criticism).

Moreover, our TT master Oleksandra Oceandrop will play with you a popular Truth or Dare game, which has existed for centuries.
Eminent speech evaluators and a brilliant team of technical evaluators are waiting for you.

Book the date in your schedule and tell your friends.
To follow the details about the upcoming events, please follow our FB page - https://www.facebook.com/groups/changemakers.tm/

Tuesday 10 June 2014

Drama activities on Tuesday, 10th of June 2014

Are you ‘practical’ or ‘creative’? We will prove that every person could be creative, all you need is to build the confidence for creativity. The best way to do it is to practice a lot. At our special meeting devoted to different drama activities you will dive deeply into the world of theater. ‘Two-headed Professor’, ‘Death in a Minute’, ‘Bucket’ - these are just several creativity games we’ve prepared for you. Don’t keep calm, be dramatic!

We are waiting for you on Tuesday, 10th of June
Sahaidachnoho str. 12 (3rd floor), 5 minute walk from m.Poshtova ploshcha (see the map below). The room will be available sharply at 7 p.m., so we'll start at 7.15. Please, do not be late or inform me if you come later.

The next meeting will be a standard one and we've already got 2 speakers, so save a role for yourself!

Do not hesitate to write and call if you have any questions. We love answering them, so give us that pleasure ;)