ATC Dublin

We are delighted to announce the opening of our new summer school in the heart of Dublin City Centre on South William Street. The school is located only 170 metres from Grafton Street, it has 16 classrooms and all the facilities we offer in Bray such as canteen, student library ,computer room and free wifi.  We also have new residential accommodation options for your students in addition to the traditional host family option. For more information please email : info@atcireland.ie

New direction for Irish Tourism

I came across this great video on Ireland, it reminds you of what a fantastic and vibrant county this is! The video is brought to us by the Tourism Industry Confederation (ITIC) as part of the Tourism Opportunity campaign.

It highlights the challenges facing the Irish tourism industry and how these can be overcome to help generate revenue and employment in the industry.

Click the link below view the video and for more information on how to support the campaign!

 

http://www.tourismopportunity.ie/

TOP 10 TIPS FOR IMPROVING YOUR ENGLISH

Our Intermediate students have compiled their top 10 tips for improving your English. All budding English students take note!

LEARNING ENGLISH IN IRELAND - TOP 10 TIPS


1. Avoid coming to Ireland with friends or students from the same country as you.

2. You should have an English dictionary with you/

3. Speak English at all time

4. Avoid speaking in your own language

5. It’s a good idea to have a knowledge of English grammar before you come here.

6. Don’t miss any opportunity to meet natives and speak with them

7. Watching English TV and films may prepare you to listen to Irish people speak.

8. Read newspapers and books

9. Live in a host family and talk with them in English.

10. Build a relationship with native people.

Google Street View comes to Bray

Now everyone can see what a gorgeous sunny day in Bray is like. Google Street View is a new feature in Google Maps that provides panoramic views along many streets in the world. Click on this link to get the Street View of Dunluice House: Street View
Turn the camera around with your mouse to see the spectacular view of the Irish Sea we all enjoy from here at Dunluice House!

Irish pubs - a great way to meet people and practise your English!

Everyone knows Irish pubs are a great night out. They are also a great way to meet people and to practise your English. The Upper-Intermediate class decided to write about their experiences of the Irish social scene.....

Pubs in Ireland

Irish pubs (because every foreign student calls them Irish because they are very singular for us and they look very different to our typical pubs in our countries) are gorgeous.

You can find typical live Irish music and many kinds of beers. Guinness is one of the most drunk beers here, but one pint is a little bit expensive for students. Therefore, we prefer to drink other kinds of beers like Fosters, Carlsberg, etc.

You can find a lot of lonely men in the pub drinking a beer and listening to music or watching horse races. They could seem unfriendly, but they are really nice. You can practise your English for free with native speakers, if you sit down near these people. It could be a good experience, you are going to improve your English significantly.

In our opinion, we recommend The Hibernian, near the Dart station, because it’s very relaxing and quiet. The waiters are very friendly and prices aren’t very high.

You’re always welcome there. Visit it! It will be an unforgettable experience!

Personal experience in the pub

I am Tomas and I am studying in Bray. I’ve been here a week and I have visited some of the local pubs. Ireland is famous for being the country where most beer is drunk. That’s why there is a pub in every street. The most popular beer is “Guinness”. It has a special taste with less gas. The best place to have a Guinness is Temple Bar. It’s one of the best districts in the world, with people from every where walking and enjoying the night life of Dublin. In every pub and every corner of Temple Bar there are musicians playing different instruments and different kinds of music.

Music in Ireland

In Ireland, it’s very common to see on the streets different groups of people playing different kinds of music. For example rock music, pop music….it’s really nice! In general, these people are only doing that in their free time, but others are professional.

Especially, the people who play Irish music. In these cases, sometimes you can also see Irish dance at the same time. It’s incredible! The steps are very fast and the movements very rhythmic. 

10 necessary things to bring to Ireland

Our Pre-Intermediate class compiled a list of 10 things that you need when visiting Ireland. So if you're planning on coming here - read on to hear what they came up with!

If you come to Ireland you mustn't forget your camera because you will see a lot of landscapes and this is the best way that you can remember this beautiful country.

Josep

I think an MP3 player is a necessary thing to bring to Ireland because in Ireland there is a lot of nature and for example on a mountain you can listen to Irish music and relax alone enjoying the wonderful views while you listen to the music.

Virginia

You must bring clothes for all seasons because you'll stay in Ireland a lot of time and also because the weather changes very quickly, the best way to dress is is like an onion (with different layers)!

Giuseppe

You need a dictionary because if you want to know how to pronounce some words you can look for their phonetics or if you don't remember or if you don't know other words you can find them in the dictionary. Also you can use it to solve your questions and talk with English people.

Alvaro

It is important to have aspirin for a hangover when you go to parties and drink a lot of beer and if you have a headache. You can go to lots of parties in Ireland!

Mirella

You should bring an ID Card because if you don't bring it, you won't be able to buy some beers and you can't enter in a disco or pub. Maybe the doorman will ask for your ID Card.

Daniel

I think the bags are very necesary to bring your notebook and pencils to the school. You can save your lunch from your house every day and put your camera and wallet and more important things into your bag. The necessary things to take inside are books, food, etc... You’ll want to go on many trips and the bags are necessary to bring all you need to another place.

Valeria and Adrian

You can use trekking shoes for going to the mountain and running on the beach. They are very useful for visiting all places and walking all day or doing a large journey. You can use them in all types of weather.

Nuria and Angel

If you don't have money, you don't travel! Money is needed to visit museums, eat in the typical restaurants and to be able to stay.

Diana

You need an adapter plug because in Ireland the plug has 3 fuses. You need an adapter to recharge your mobile phone battery, computer battery and to use the hairdryer or other things that need a plug.

Sandra

Emirates Day

On Friday July 30th 2010, ATC Language & Travel hosted ‘Emirates Day’ at the Global Irish Institute on the UCD’s Belfield campus. Emirates Day was organised by over 100 Emirati students who have been attending full immersion English language and cultural programmes with ATC over the past 5 weeks. The student body is comprised of 40 boys that lived with host families and attended classes and activities in Blackrock College and 60 girls on campus in residence at University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4.

The students with ATC are part of a group of 200 high achieving Emirati students between the ages of 16 and 17 that were selected by the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) to attend an English language course for five weeks and act as cultural ambassadors for the UAE during their stay.

It is the first time groups of students from UAE have travelled to Ireland for English courses; both ATC and their partner agency have received excellent assistance throughout from the Irish Ambassador and the Embassy in the UAE; Ms. Aiveen Ryan, the Tourism Ireland Marketing Manager for the region and in Ireland from Fionnan Nestor of Fáilte Ireland.

The events scheduled as part of Emirates Day included:

1- National anthem.
2- Part reading of Holy Quran.
3- Opening speech (female & male students).
4- Documentary film about UAE.
5- Traditional folklore dance (Ayalah).
6- Short movie about HH Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zaid delegation.
7- Invitation to Emirates day fair.

Exhibition sections:

1- UAE pictures section viewing the level of UAE developments in all sides.
2- HH Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zaid section (CV, Pictures & achievements).
3- Student's pictures of view in Ireland.
4- Emirate food court and traditional dishes.
5- Henna section.
6- Heritage section (photos, clothes, sculptures & Arabic incense)

The ‘Emirates Day’ was a great success and it was a wonderful opportunity for the students from both centres to demonstrate aspects of their culture to the other international students, their host families and the staff of ATC.

We are delighted that ADEC chose ATC and Ireland as a destination for learning English, and grateful to the students and leaders from the United Arab Emirates for sharing this rich cultural experience with us. It has been our pleasure to host them and we hope they will bring many wonderful memories back home, and share these with their friends and families. We look forward to having the opportunity of welcoming more students from the UAE to Ireland in the near future.