Golden Beach of Bulgaria. Amazing Place to Master Your English

Imagine!

The Golden Beach of Bulgaria, the gentle sun of the afternoon, the clear sea, small waves embracing your feet with the warm water of the Black Sea – everything in this picture is perfect!

But mine was even more perfect, if the word "perfect" can have a comparative degree, then I had it))

So, to this picture, we need to add Magic Camp, an English-speaking camp. Vova, our camp participant, he was about 14 years old, was on a shift in Bulgaria in July.

One day we decided to visit a new beach and walk around the town of Kiten. The walk was wonderful! And then Vova, who was walking next to me, shared with me that he didn't understand English grammar.

— Why are there so many structures, I can't remember them, so many rules about different structures – how can you remember all this and speak correctly? – he shared his progress in learning English with despair.

I should note that throughout the entire conversation, and indeed the entire shift, Vova spoke only English, his motivation to learn and use English was the highest, he didn't miss any opportunity to improve his knowledge and skills.

So what if it's summer? So what if it's a walk around town? I'm a teacher, and I'm always ready to help because I love it when people understand structures and see the point in using them. So, let's start the lesson:

— What structure do you have doubts about, which one don't you understand?

— Well, there are many of them, and different ones are unclear to me... – Vova got confused, not expecting such a specific question.

— Vova, choose one structure that's unclear to you, and we'll practice it right now, – I explained my request to Vova.

— How can we practice it here? Do you have a textbook with you or something? – he asked jokingly to hide his surprise at my suggestion.

— I have my head with me, it's better than any textbook. Come on, choose and let's see if I can help you while we're walking to the new beach, – I wanted my suggestion to be attractive, and I myself became curious – can I do it? Challenge accepted!

— Well, for example, should have done – what does that mean? Why so many verbs?

This is a wonderful structure – imagine that you did or didn't do something that you really regret. You really want to go back to the past and do it differently – this is the situation when this structure comes to your aid.

I should have gone to Bulgaria* you can say, since you weren't with us.

(*I should have gone to Bulgaria! – I don't like mixing two languages, but that's the story – we can't do without English!)

— Vova, I'm going to tell you what I have or what I don't have right now, and you'll regret it for me. Shall we try?

I'll remind the reader that our conversation was in English, and I'll keep it that way even here.

— I don't have my sunglasses, – I said, squinting in the sun.

— You should have taken your sunglasses, – Vova didn't quickly arrange the verbs in this structure in the correct form and in the right place, it took time and my gestures, as hints that something needed to be changed.

But when all the words fell into place, I saw a beaming smile on his face.

— So that's what it's about?! But how do I remember this? – he worried about his discovery.

I'll be honest – understanding the function of a structure is not difficult, it's difficult to remember it and use it correctly in spontaneous speech.

It's like mathematics (I hope I'm not wrong), if you know the formula, tasks get solved, but if you don't know which formula and why to use in this particular case, then nothing works out.

It took us about 15 minutes to walk to the new beach and then along the beach itself, between gentle waves on the soft-yellow sand – all this time Vova talked about regrets that corresponded to the situations I described.

There were funny ones and very unexpected ones. But the most memorable regret that Vova shared with me was this: 

— We've arrived, here's a great spot, we can settle here and go swimming, – another counselor announced, and our entire camp started laying out towels and getting ready to go into the water. At that moment, Vova said:

— Nadia, I should have asked for your help on the first day of Magic Camp!

He regretted not asking for my help at the very beginning of our shift.

And it wasn't just pleasant, it was successful – he understood the structure, it came alive in his head, it made sense.

And the sea, and the beach, and the gentle sun were witnesses to Vova's and my success – after all, that's awesome!