Outdoor Signs in State and Local Parks

If you enjoy hiking in Southern California, you need to be aware of poison oak. However, if you saw this sign and were not a native speaker, you might think that it was posted to give you information about some common plant in the area. In fact, poison oak is a common plant, but you shouldn't touch it or let your skin touch it. The reason that you shouldn't make contact with it is that you can get a very unpleasant rash from its oil.

The bottom sign, on the other hand, looks much more like a warning sign, doesn't it? The snake is on a yellow field and below the triangle, in large letters, is written the word CAUTION.  Clearly, this sign is meant to warn, even if you do not understand the English.

What English language and culture can we take from these signs? First, the top sign was found in a state park (Palomar Mountain State Park). The assumption seems to be that people who go up there to hike and camp are more knowledgeable about wildlife and this plant, in particular. Most outdoorsy Californians have heard of poison oak. The first few sentences of the top sign focus on a description of the plant. The second sign (to the left) is found in a local urban park (Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve) in the north part of the city of San Diego. Here, families with children, joggers, bicyclists, and dog walkers regularly traverse the park trails and paths. This park gets much heavier use than Palomar. In a dense residential community, park rangers want users to be aware of dangers, especially highly injurious bites from rattlesnakes. Thus, warning signs are much more conspicuous than in the mountain park.

Maybe my explanation for the differences are well known to signmakers, but since I am not one, I cannot verify my speculation. It is strange to have the rattlesnake warning more conspicuous than poison oak since the risk of poison oak rash seems far higher than the risk of a rattlesnake enounter. There is also the risk of poison oak at Los Peñasquitos, yet this sign is not conspicuously posted. Perhaps it is only the potent dangers that are highlighted in an urban park.

Area Closed

Torrey Pines State Reserve, California

What does the sign say?

"AREA CLOSED 

To protect natural features and insure public safety

DO NOT ENTER"

What does the sign mean? Why is the woman sitting on this delicate sandstone formation totally ignoring the directions on the sign? Could she be illiterate, a non-native speaker of English, or a person who doesn't care about protecting the special features of Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve? 

Many of my students from Europe comment that what they don't like about San Diego is the number of rules or laws that we have. However, every major town or city I've ever been to has signs to warn people of danger and to protect valuable historic parks, art, and natural wonders from vandalism or normal daily wear-and-tear.

Signs are a way that we protect ourselves from lawsuits - in case this woman falls and injures herself - but also to communicate to visitors in the absence of police or park rangers. Personally, I prefer to read a sign than to have park guards tell me what to do. Unfortunately, some people don't pay any attention to signs. They are thoughtless and irresponsible, and their actions sometimes lead to complete closure of areas. Please follow the sign directions.

"I" is for Impact

What is an impact?  What impact is this sign referring to?  Do you get it?

Impact in this case is a noun and refers to the force with which something strikes or hits something else. In this case, the impact of an asteroid created this well-preserved crater, located in Arizona, off Highway 40. (You can also enjoy this five-minute video narrative about asteroid impacts and listen to how the word is pronounced and used in context.)

This visual way of understanding the word "impact" can help you to imagine other meanings and uses of the word. For example, in the newspaper, editors choose their photos very carefully so that they have an impact on the reader. They want the image of an event to be memorable. They want it to be impactful. 

Impactful is a relatively new adjective that has become quite common in reporting. It is quite controversial, however, and I am one who has never used the word. For a multi-page, thorough report on the origins of this word, you are invited to read this discussion. Also, please check out another fascinating blogpost regarding impactful by the linguist Anne Curzan. Then you can decide if you want to use it. As always, in building vocabulary, keep your eyes and ears open for the words you're trying to learn. Let me know if it's working for you.

Play, Blow, Break, Split, Run, Fly, Fall, Light

I am a big fan of vocabulary building, so I am always looking for ways to squeeze a little extra vocabulary into any class.  This is a great lesson for any level, primarily to illustrate how single words in English can have several  meanings. This particular activity ties in well to Picturing English as it appeals very much to the visual language learner.  

You could also use this activity in a grammar class.  Students can ask each other questions using the vocabulary. Blow, break, split, run, fly, fall, and light are irregular verb forms. Play is a regular verb that ends with a "y" but it's preceded by a vowel. The spelling of the past tense or past participle, then, is "played", not "plaied." You can use the video as an opportunity to review a small set of irregular verbs plus their past tense and participial forms. In addition, the students get to see how these irregular verbs come up in every day life and why it's a good idea to learn them.  

"B" is for "bank"

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Here is another common word that everyone knows. Right? So, what do the fisherman and the casino have to do with bank? This link takes you to multiple definitions. Most people are familiar with the first meaning of bank as the place where we deposit and withdraw money or cash for our daily life.  It can function as a verb or a noun.

The second illustration of a man fly-fishing may not make one think of a bank. However, if you like to fish in freshwater along a stream or river, you can imagine walking along a river bank looking for a good spot to throw your line into. The bank of a river is the raised or sloped portion of land that borders a river or stream. It is what defines a river or stream - without a bank or some border or edge, the water would look like an open sea.

Finally, what is the connection between a casino and bank? When people go to a casino, they usually hope to win some money while having fun playing games, such as poker, Black Jack, roulette, craps, and the slot machines. They bank on winning!

"D" is for "date"

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One of the hardest parts of learning English is learning multiple meanings of common words in English. However, this problem can be looked at as an advantage since one word can do double or triple duty in different contexts. Take, for example, the word "date." Sometimes for vocabulary to stick in your memory, it helps to have a visual image, so I have provided some illustrations to help you. 

In the first photo (#1), you see something that looks like an orchard of palm trees.They are date palms. Although I've never had fresh dates, I am told by my Middle Eastern students that people in that region of the world eat both dried and fresh dates.There are several different types of date, and some of them are as sweet or sweeter than honey!  

The second photo is a common scene around the world, with a happy couple facing each other over a meal. The reader can easily imagine this young lady and man are out on a date (#2). This is the meaning that many students will be familiar with. In this second case, date can act as a verb or a noun. For example, "Jane and Jim have been dating each other for a year."  "They often go out on dates."  

Finally, photo #3 shows a calendar with an important date circled in red. An important date usually includes the month, day, and year of a noteworthy event, such as an earthquake or a birth. In addition, date can be used as a verb, such as "dating (=writing a date on ) a letter or postcard" that you are sending to a friend.  Now you have five different ways to use the word date.  

Advanced Vocabulary Required to Read Rest Stop Rules

What is a rest stop? Do travelers need directions on how to use one? Apparently, we do.This sign was made for New Mexico's highway drivers. Will drivers who stop read the sign? I didn't notice anyone - other than me - pause to look at the sign. The makers of this highway posting would have benefitted from advice from an advertiser or copywriter. The information here is not accessible to the masses.                        

As with Power Point slides, less is more. There is so much information printed on this metal board that it's hard for the reader to know which rule is most important. Also, the sign is at the top of a post that is several feet high. Unless you're six feet tall, the sign is not at eye level. When you look at it, you see lots and lots of writing. Why didn't the makers use bullet points and short phrases?

Since most people that stopped didn't look at the sign at all, my husband and I saw several people breaking Rule #2. They let their unleashed dog out of their car. The dog pooped on the dirt, and the owners walked away, leaving the mess to stink up the rest area and to be a hazard for any child allowed to run around the rest area after a long drive in a car seat. Rule #2 is to show consideration to others. Of course!

Pictures, such as those shown in Many Englishes, my sister blog, might be more effective than word-filled signs. How many people know what a trash receptacle is? What are firearms, poisonous snakes, and poisonous insects? What is the meaning of inhabit? What are consumption, defacing, vandalizing, sewage, and salvaging? There are lots of advanced level words here. Just keep on reading signs to build your vocabulary!

Smoking Only at the Curb

Last year while visiting San Francisco, my husband and I stopped to get a sandwich at an Italian deli. We sat at a small table outside, and I noticed this sign which I'd never seen in San Diego.

Although it has the symbol of no smoking with a red circle around the silhouette of a burning cigarette, the wording of this law seems to be focused on the rights of the smoker.  It says where smoking can be done: at the curb or - if no curb - at least 15 feet from any opening into or out of the store.

So, what's a curb?  It's the raised cement edge - usually created by the sidewalk - next to which cars park or pull up to load or unload passengers.  Below is a photo of a storm drain (where the water goes when it rains) in the street. Above the storm drain in the top third of the photo is the raised cement curb.