TONIGHT! Concert in Murcia organised by AFADECA

Dear students,

this is a brief post to remind you that there is an importan event tonight in Murcia. Our classmate María Ángeles informed us recently that AFADECA (Association of Famous People and Sportmen Against Cancer) is celebrating a GALA this evening in order to obtain funding for the fight against childhood cancer in Murcia. Have a look at the information provided on the web (click here), because you might want to support this initiative.

Thank you for your attention and support,
all my best
reme

Weekend Movies: "Dr. Who"

As suggested by Emilia today, sometimes it is difficult to find time to watch long films, even during the weekend. Many of you have children to care about, friends to go out with or parties that can't really be successful without your presence. Thus, I would like to recommend something shorter today: a tv series that you might already know, Dr. Who. This is a British programme produced by the BBC from 1963 to the present day. The programme depicts the adventures of the Doctor, a Time Lord—a time-travelling humanoid alien. In my opinion, this series is quite entertaining, full of mistery and creepy moments. Definitely, Halloween is a good moment to start watching it. Besides, the actors have a nice British accent, which make it relatively easy to understand them. Well, if you feel like giving it a try, just click the link below:

DR. WHO -- FIRST CHAPTER (2005)

Enjoy!!

HALLOWEEN, Reading and Listening: "The New Catacomb" by Conan Doyle

Dear students,
this is the video we watched today in class. You can watch it again at home and read the short story at the same time. Just click the links below:

The New Catacomb (Video)

Transcript of this short story (Text)

Enjoy!

Homework

Dear students,
please do the Reading Exercise on pages 18 and 19 ("Trading Age").
Do have a great weekend!
Best,
reme

Homework

Hi students, complete the exercises on the photocopy I delivered in class ("present perfect simple vs. present perfect continuous"). In addition, those of you who haven't handed me in the composition (informal e-mail on page 113), can do it on Thursday or next Tuesday. xoxo

Weekend Movies: "Coffee and Cigarettes", by Jim Jarmush

This weekend, I would like to invite you to watch this independent film. Coffee and Cigarettes is the title by independent director Jim Jarmush. The film consists of 11 short stories which share coffee and cigarettes as a common thread. It might be a bit unusual but I hope you enjoy it anyway.

A Book Every Week: Mark Strand

Together with novels and short stories, poems are excellent learning companions. They are short, musical and, sometimes, unforgettable. I am especially fond of British and American poetry so today I would like to introduce you to Mark Strand. He is a Canadian-born poet, essayist and translator. You can watch the video below and listen to Mark Strand reciting one of his poems, The Couple. If you feel like reading the poem at the same time or more slowly, click here.

Present Perfect // Present Perfect Continuous

Some extra exercises and quizzes to learn to use these two tenses in a correct way:

1. Present Perfect Continuous // Fill in the gaps (with answers)

2. Present Perfect or Present Perfect Continuous? -a Grammar lesson and exercises

3. Have a look at this presentation if you still have doubts:

Present perfect versus present perfect continuous 

4. And, finally, some humour:

 

Disease, lllness, Condition, Disorder...

If you feel curious and want to know how to use terms such as "disease", "illness", "condition" and "disorder", visit the following websites (providing you aren't a cyberchondriac!):

A text about the use of the words "disease, disorder and condition"

"Condition" and "disease"...

First Aid -Belén's lecture

Dear students,

as you know, we started a new unit today (Unit 2) and our lecturer, Belén, made a presentation about First Aid for you. This is part of one of the topics we will be studying this year: Health. Some of you were quite interested in such topic, so I think this is a good idea to upload the presentation for you:

JUST CLICK HERE AND DOWNLOAD BELÉN'S FIRST AID PRESENTATION

Homework

Dear students,

please do the Grammar Bank on page 134. We are also going to correct the Reading activities on page 16 on Thursday.

And, remember, if you feel like training your pronunciation at home, you can visit this link and hear the sounds of English by clicking on the symbols of the phonemic chart.

A Book Every Week: "There Will Come Soft Rain" by Ray Bradbury

Dear students,

this weekend I want to recommend this short story by the great writer Ray Bradbury. You can listen to Burgess Meredith reading it while reading the Pdf file available HERE.
If you feel curious, you can also have a look at this webpage full of resources and continue researching a bit. Just click.

Enjoy!!!

Weekend Movies: "Detachment"

Detachment is a 2011 American drama film about the high school education system directed by Tony Kaye, starring Adrien Brody. This is also a distressing film only recommended for spectators who feel on top of the world, because the story turns quite tragic at some points. Just click HERE if you feel like watching this film.

And if you feel like researching a little bit more after the film, there is an interesting interview with Adrien Brody available in The Observer. Click and read!

Descriptions: Compound Adjectives

Dear students, 

these adjectives might be useful to describe characters:


Strong-willed: determined to behave in a particular way, even if other people disagree with them.

Self-conscious:  shy and easily embarrassed because they think that everybody is looking at them and judging them.

Laid-back: relaxed and appearing not to be worried about anything. 

Open-minded: happy to accept ideas and ways of life that are different to their own.

Self-centred: only interested in themselves and their own activities.

Narrow-minded: people who don't want to accept new ideas or opinions that are different from their own.

Easy-going: people who aren't easily upset, worried or annoyed by problems or other people's actions.

Big-headed: people who think they are more important or cleverer than they really are.

Bad-tempered: often annoyed, angry or impatient.

Absent-minded: people who tend to forget things.

Level-headed: calm and able to make sensible decisions in difficult situations.

Self-assured: people who have confidence in their own abilities.

The More Double Comparatives You Use, The Easier They Seem To You

If you still have doubts concerning the use of double comparatives, watch this video. This is quite illustrative.

Some extra links with quizzes and examples:

Double comparative: exercises 1
Double comparative exercises 2
Double comparative: exercises 3

Homework

Remember to do activities on page 14 (Vocabulary: Illnesses and injuries), including the Vocabulary Bank on page 152, and the Reading and Vocabulary Activities on page 16 (Confessions of Cyberchondria).

Cheers!

Follow-up Questions in Conversation

1. How do you mean exactly?
2. What does that involve?
3. How come?
4. What for?
5. What's it like?
6. What sort of thing?

Which of these follow-up questions would you choose in these situations:

A.  I'm going to Finland next week.
     Really? _________________?

B.  I bought a new outfit for the wedding yesterday.
    Oh, yeah? _______________?

C. Our sports club organizes lots of social events.
    That's nice. ______________?

D. My sister's got a new job working for a charity.
    Sounds interesting. ________________?

E. Maria ended up in Scotland.
    Eh? _______________?

F. What's your domestic situation?
   Er, _________________?

Questions: "Do you Speak English?"

Describing your language ability...

 

 

 

 

 

So when somebody asks you if you speak English, what is your answer?

I'm quite fluent.

I speak English reasonably well.

Well, I can get by.

Yeah, I speak English, though it's a bit rusty.

I wish I could speak better.

Reading & Pleasure: Getting to Know Yourself as a Reader

Dear students,

reading is one of the best ways to learn a foreign language, especially if you are interested in what you read. Motivation is the key component of any language learning process. This is the reason why I would like to recommend a bunch of various online newspapers and magazines. Pick the one you prefer and start reading a little bit in your spare time. I have classified the magazines into different categories in the hope that I can help you develop a reading habit.

* Serious readers worried about world issues: THE GUARDIAN 

* Fans of science and technology: I FUCKING LOVE SCIENCE

* Globetrotters:  NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVEL MAGAZINE

* Incurable gossips: HELLO!

* Mad about (mostly indie) music (in English): NME

* Fashion lovers: DAZED & CONFUSED

* Poets and muses: POETRY FOUNDATION


And, finally, click here if you want to read some tips about how to develop your reading habit...

Grammar Activities: "So do I", "Neither do I", "So I am", etc.

Dear students,

in case you want to continue dipping into today's grammar lesson at home, here you are some links:

Brief explanation in Spanish and a Quiz
A longer explanation in English (with charts!)
ONLINE QUIZ: "So do I", "Neither do I" (and others)

Homework

Dear students,
please do activities A and B on page 133 (Grammar Bank 1B).
If you have any doubt, please ask your teacher. She is willing to help you anytime.
Best,
reme

A Book Every Week: "The Happy Prince"

My dearest students,

I am going to fulfill my promise and recommend a book every week.  I have been thinking about different fascinating short stories that you might like, and a title has come to my mind: The Happy Prince, by Oscar Wilde. I have read this story many times in my life and its beauty has always touched my heart. Even though, in a sense, The Happy Prince is a sad story, I believe there is something blissful and marvellous about it. You might have read this story when you where kids, as I did. Now we have the chance to read it in English and "hear" Oscar Wilde's real voice. In order to do so, you just need to CLICK HERE.

Do you also want to listen to the story? Just play the video below:

Enjoy the reading!

Weekend Films: "Vincent" by Tim Burton

As I said in class today, I will be recommending films and books to you every week. You can watch or read them at the weekend and, if you like, we can share ideas and opinions later. You seemed satisfied with this idea, so you are all welcome to take part in this new Movie Club, either as spectators or as critics.

We have been talking about supernatural events today, so I would like to start with a short film by Tim Burton, Vincent. This is the story of a young boy, Vincent Malloy, who pretends to be like the actor Vincent Price (who narrates the film). He is obsessed with the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and it is his detachment from reality when reading them that leads to his delusions that he is in fact a tortured artist, deprived of the woman he loves, mirroring certain parts of Poe's "The Raven".

Enjoy!!

Homework for the weekend

Dear students,

please write a composition (150 words) about any creepy supernatural event you've heard of. Try to tell the story (what happened? where? who were "there"?) and give your most honest and personal opinion. Remember to introduce the reader into the story little by little, increasing the suspense as you narrate the events. Finally, conclude you composition with a personal point of view, a very brief analysis of that story.

That's all for now,
do have a good weekend,

r

Homework

Dear students,
please read the text on page 6 and do the activities on page 7 (c and d).

See you soon,
reme

Homework

Dear students,

please, remember to read  the rules related to Indirect Questions on page 132 and try to complete the questions suggested by the exercise b.
And, most important, do have a good weekend!
See you on Tuesday morning,

reme