August 8, 2009

Week-end Creativity Post

Art using melted crayons and glitter

August 4, 2009

Good advice on technical terms

The right advice, from a recent accounting training assignment:

  If accounting terms are to be used, you must  explain what those terms mean in plain English.  Avoid accounting jargon, but use  accounting terms correctly where appropriate, so long as it is explained clearly to the  reader.

August 3, 2009

UK plain language movement


Halifax Council to choose jargon-busting team of 20

03 August 2009
from the Evening Courier

Head of communications at the council Louise Tonkinson said that from October all council publications would have to be reviewed and approved before they were published.

  • The council was asked last year to join the Campaign for Plain English but that would cost up to £12,000….
  • The Local Government Association, which is backing the move for plain English in councils across the country, would like to ban the following words and replace them with simpler ones:

    • Ambassador – leader
    • Best practice – best way
    • Citizen empowerment – people power
    • Community engagement – getting people involved
    • Customers – people
    • Facilitate – help
    • Initiative – idea
    • Service users – people
    • Partnerships – working together
    • Slippage – delay
    • Stakeholders – other organisations
    • Strategic/overarching – planned
    • Sustainable communities – environmentally friendly
    • Third sector – charities and voluntary organisations
    • Transparency – clarity
    • Value added – extra

    August 1, 2009

    Weekend Creativity Post

    This is an anonymous woman I saw in the news last week.

    I finally have drawn a face that I am willing to show you. I am using techniques I learned from this video series by Sharon Tomlinson: http://allnorahsart.blogspot.com/2009/06/faces-with-crayons.html

    Try it; it is addictive.