Geek and Nerd Traits

Alicia has shared this funny poster with us. Enjoy it!

I wish I hadn't done it!

Watch the following video. Then go to the page below and do the exercises. After that, answer the questions below.

• Do the exercesis on this page: http://www.real-english.com/reo/55/55fillin3.htm

It's your turn now.

1. What's the worst decision you've ever made? Why?
2. What would you have changed if you had known the consequences?

MODAL AUXILIARIES

SHALL/SHOULD/WOULD. . .?

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/cgi-shl/quiz.pl/modal_quiz.htm

http://www.englishgrammarsecrets.com/shouldhave/menu.php

Revising passive constructions

Rewrite the following sentences in the text-areas provided so that passive constructions have been changed to active verbs.

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/quizzes/passive_quiz.htm

Passives — What, How, When

FIND A VERY GOOD SUMMARY AND EXCERCISES ON THIS PAGE

Using Passive to avoid responsibility

You can check your understanding HERE

Semi-intensive courses coming soon!

 

ALSO: TEACHER TRAINING COURSES:

ICTs for teachers of foreing languages

Pedagogical tools for teaching languaes through the media.

VISIT: http://www.idiomas.filo.uba.ar/content/calendario-academico

Spring has started!

Here's a video for you to watch and speak!

How do you like this song?

Why do you think she says "flowers never last for ever"?

What do you associate with "February 14"? Any words, images, experiences connected with this special day?

Would you have chosen this video to speak about love? Why? Why not?

If not, which one would you have chosen?

Wouldn't it be nice to share some experiences about Valentine's Day, special moments, memories? Let's do it in comments!

I suggest visiting the following site for some kind of inspiration: http://taggalaxy.de/ Just type a word, flower, for example, and lots of related words will appear. When you click on a planet, photographs will be shown.

 

Teacher's Day

 Hello everyone! I'm inspired today and would like to share this with you:

"Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty."

Henry Ford, American businessman

 "The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery." ~Mark Van Doren

"The mediocre teacher tells, the good teacher explains, the superior teacher demonstrates, the great teacher inspires." William Arthur Ward

Manure

A student sent me this information that I'd like to share with you. I think it is not only funny, but also interesting.

What do YOU think? Have you learnt any new words?

Manure : In the 16th and 17th centuries, everything had to be transported by ship and it was also before the invention of commercial fertilizers, so large shipments of manure were quite common.

It was shipped dry, because in dry form it weighed a lot less than when wet, but once water (at sea) hit it, not only did it become heavier, but the process of fermentation began again, of which a byproduct is methane gas of course. As the stuff was stored below decks in bundles you can see what could (and did) happen.
Methane began to build up below decks and the first time someone came below at night with a lantern, BOOOOM!

Several ships were destroyed in this manner before it was determined just what was happening

After that, the bundles of manure were always stamped with the instruction ' Stow high in transit ' on them, which meant for the sailors to stow it high enough off the lower decks so that any water that came into the hold would not touch this volatile cargo and start the production of methane.

Thus evolved the term ' S.H.I.T ' , (Stow High In Transit) which has come down through the centuries and is in use to this very day.

You probably did not know the true history of this word.

Neither did I!

Office gossip

•  Why does Nick want to talk with his boss? What did he say about Kirsten? What is she always doing? What does Nick think about the relation? What did Nick about the rest of the people? How do they react? How did Nick say he felt?
  What did his boss answer?

• Does this also happen in your workplace?
• How common is it?

EMPIRE CRASH: answer

Yes, there were many people in the building because there was a 6-day working week during the Second World War . . .

Here is a video about this news:

Present Perfect

An interesting video about tenses:




There are some exercises for you to practise here:

exercise 1

exercise 2

exercise 3

exercise 4

On the following page you will find a complete explanation, examples and exercises. Enjoy it!

http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/simpas-preper 

Empire Crash

Empire Crash



Saturday, July 28, 1945

On a foggy morning Lt. Colonel William Smith is flying a U.S. Army B-25 bomber through New York City. He's on his way to Newark Airport, but gets lost.

Lt Smith radios La Guardia airport. He asks for a weather report. Because of the poor visibility they advise him to land immediately.

'I think I can make it to Newark,' he says. "But the fog is bad. From where I'm sitting, I can't see the top of the Empire State Building. I'll fly lower to get a better view.'

It's a fatal mistake. As Colonel Smith descends he sees the skyscrapers of Manhattan. He swerves to miss them but he is now heading for the Empire State Building. Again he tries to get the bomber to climb and twist away.

But it's too late.

Lucky Break

At 9.48 an elevator operator is working on the 75th floor of the Empire State Building 1945. It's been a busy morning and he needs a cigarette. He steps out of his elevator for a smoke.

Seconds later Colonel Smith's plane crashed into the 79th floor.

The impact cut the cables of the empty elevator. The operator watched as it crashed to the ground. Inside were two women

Miraculously, the women survived. 14 people died in the crash and the fire that followed.

Did this really happen???

The answer is coming soon . . .

Welcome message

I'd like to welcome all of you to this course. This will be a site to interact, play and learn.

Let's start with this puzzle, part of a well-known fresco.

Do you know . . .

• where you can see it?

• what it symbolises?

• who the artist is?

I'm eager to read you comments.

AND NOW, IT'S TIME TO HAVE A LOOK AT THE SIDE BAR:

What can you see there?

What's "Text to Speech Converter"? Do you think it's a useful tool?


* You can leave your comments by clicking on "comments".

* Comments are moderated, you won't find them just after you've posted them.
And remember, we'll build this site together. It's a collaborative place.

Conversation skills

How to agree and disagree: learn the best expressions to argue and debate.




How to ask someone to repeat something

How to greet someone you haven't seen for ages

How to order a round in a pub

Practicing listening

Here are some sites in which you can practice your listening skill.

http://www.voanews.com/

http://breakingnewsenglish.com/

http://www.saberingles.com.ar/listening/index2.html

GIVING OPINIONS

Students use the words “I think” way too much when giving their opinions. In this IELTS & TOEFL lesson, I will teach you better words to use that can help you express your opinion. This video is a must-see for anyone writing the TOEFL or IELTS. It will help you to score higher on both tests in the writing and speaking sections. Even if you’re not taking an exam, you should watch this class to learn the vocabulary and expressions.

 

Visit THIS SITE and listeng to the recommendations about how to give opinions when writing.

 

GERUNDS VS INFINITIVES

In the following site, you'll find a quite complete list with verbs followed by gerund or infitive as well as a test:

http://www.engvid.com/english-resource/verbs-followed-by-gerunds-and-infinitives/

Conditional sentences

Interesting pages to practice this topic:


http://www.englishpage.com/conditional/conditionalintro.html

http://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/grammar/conditional-sentences

Action and state verbs

In the following pages you will find some information and exercises about this topic:

• http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/stative-verbs-exercise.html
• http://www.eclecticenglish.com/grammar/PresentContinuous1H.html

Introduction to academic writing

Watch the following video. Once you've finished, test your understanding by doing the exercise below.

ACADEMIC WRITING » Quiz Question Maker

Reported speech again?!

YES! Just a little more practise:

Reporting verbs:

• http://valenciaenglish.netfirms.com/reporting.htm

Reported speech:

• http://a4esl.org/q/h/9901/tm-reported1.html
• http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises_list/reported.htm

Indirect questions:

• http://esl.about.com/od/gramma1/a/indirectques.htm

FINAL EXAMS DATES

AND HERE THEY ARE.....!!!

June 30th: reading comprehension and composition

July 2nd: grammar and listening

July 7th: oral and feedback

FINAL COUNTDOWN!

Spelling

If you think you need to improve your spelling, go to the following "dictation site" and practise.The story is dictated to you, and you have to type it correctly.

You can choose the speed of the reading and how often it’s repeated.

When you type, only the correct letters actually show-up on the screen, and you can ask for hints.

http://www.listen-and-write.com/audio

Chuck Brown: Still the Go-To Guy for Go-Go Music

Chuck Brown has been called the creator of go-go -- a form of African-American music that developed in Washington. Go-go is part jazz, part rhythm and blues, and part hip-hop. Watch the video and learn more about it:

Gerunds and Infinitives

Here are some pages for you to practise the topic above:

http://www.eflnet.com/grammar/gerinf1.php

http://www.eflnet.com/grammar/gerinf2.php

http://www.eflnet.com/grammar/gerinf3.php

http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/grammar/gerund.htm

http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/grammar/gerinf.htm

Conference Call

Listen to the following podcast and do the exercises below:

1) The main purpose of this conference call is:
a) To discuss trends in the market
b) To inform market analysts about a company
c) To market a company’s products

2) How would you describe the representatives of Softcell as they respond to questions during the conference call?
a) Confident
b) Nervous
c) Embarrassed

3) You hear five questions during the call. Which are the topic areas covered in the questions? Choose from the list below.

• economic recession 
• losses 
• seasonal changes 
• outlets in Asia 
• comparison of sales in Europe and the US
• competitors 
• product sales
• margins

QUESTION TAGS

Do you need more practise on question tags? Try these activities!

• http://www.english-zone.com/grammar/tags01.html
• 
  
• http://a4esl.org/q/h/mc-bd-tagq.html
• 
  
• http://www.autoenglish.org/gr.qutags.i.htm
• 
  
• http://a4esl.org/q/h/fb006-bp.html

Study English to avoid this kind of misunderstanding!

Vaccination

Dear parents, you are being lied to.

 

 

 

Read the article HERE

What's your opinion?

SENTENCE STRUCTURE - ADJECTIVES

One-minute video on sentence structure. Why learn about sentence structure? Watch a video, click HERE

 

Make a sentence game.  Can you make the sentence? HERE

 

Spot the sentence game. Can you spot the sentence?  HERE

 

Order of Adjectives in English 

 Ajective order quizz. HERE

Test Your Awareness : Whodunnit?

Watch the video below up to minute 1:54 and try to guess who's done it. Then continue watching and check your prediction:

What would you do if . . .?

Watch this video and say what these people would do if the won one millio dollars.

It's your turn now to answer the question!!!

Here's some extra practice for you:

• http://www.oup.com/elt/global/products/englishfile/preint/a_grammar/file06/grammar06_a01/
• http://www.oup.com/elt/global/products/englishfile/preint/a_grammar/file06/grammar06_a02/

CONDITIONAL SENTENCES

The first conditional (also called conditional type 1) is a structure used for talking about possibilities in the present or in the future.
This page will explain how the first conditional is formed, and when to use it. You will also find some exercises

• http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/StudyZone/330/grammar/1cond.htm

The second conditional (also called conditional type 2) is a structure used for talking about unreal situations in the present or in the future. This page will explain how the second conditional is formed, and when to use it.

• http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/grammar/2cond.htm

The third conditional (also called conditional type 3) is a structure used for talking about unreal situations in the past. This page will explain how the third conditional is formed, and when to use it.

• http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/grammar/3cond.htm

EXERCISES:

Second Conditional: http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/grammar/2cond2.htm

Third Conditional: http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/grammar/3cond1.htm

• http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/410/grammar/allcnd1.htm

Female Scientists

AND THE ANSWER IS . .

1. Ada Lovelace
Analyst, metaphysician, and founder of scientific computing. Read more about her life here:http://bit.ly/V3im
2. Rosalind Franklin
Biophysicist and X-ray crystallographer who made critical contributions to the understanding of the fine molecular structures of DNA, RNA, viruses, coal, and graphite. She received no credit for her contributions to the discovery of the structure of DNA. More on her life:http://bit.ly/4CJMC0
3. Rachel Carson
Marine biologist and conservationist whose book Silent Spring and other writings are credited with advancing the global environmental movement. More on her life:http://bit.ly/16f4Hcm
4. Lise Meitner
A physicist who worked on radioactivity and nuclear physics. She was part of the team that discovered nuclear fission, but was overlooked for the Nobel Prize in favour of male colleagues. More on her life:http://bit.ly/3js4zk
5. Cecilia Payne
Astronomer and astrophysicist who, in 1925, proposed in her Ph.D. thesis an explanation for the composition of stars in terms of the relative abundances of hydrogen and helium. More on her life: http://bit.ly/n4RNqS
6. Mary Anning
A paleontologist who made many important finds in the Jurassic marine fossil beds at Lyme Regis in Dorset. More on her life: http://bit.ly/rGXKq

Passive voice

You will find here a lot of extra practice. It's all yours!!

http://www.oup.com/elt/global/products/result/engpreint/a_grammar/unit08/8b_2/

http://www.oup.com/elt/global/products/result/engpreint/a_grammar/unit11/11d_1/

http://www.oup.com/elt/global/products/result/engpreint/a_grammar/unit11/11d_2/

http://www.oup.com/elt/global/products/result/engpreint/a_grammar/unit08/8b_1/


Are these sentences in active or passive voice?

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/active_passive/active_or_passive.htm

Turn sentences into passive voice:

http://www.english-4u.de/passive_ex1.htm

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/active_passive/sentences_simple_past.htm

http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/active_passive/sentences_simple_present.htm

Female scientists

Who are these women?

Here are a few female scientists that you might not have heard of (but definitely should have). Marie Curie hasn't bee included, because as much as we all love her, she is the automatic "female scientist" that always springs to mind and we think it's time we branched out!

I'll give you a few days to see if you recognize them and can give some info about at least one of them . . .

Great, Ignacio!!
The first woman is Ada Lovelace, the second one is Rosalind Franklin and the last one Mary Anning.
Who were they? Why did they become famous?

New comments have been published. Keep trying!

Sentence construction

Put a text into sentences. When you finish, tell us how well you did it:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/topic/instructions

Relative clauses

We may consider them quite hard, but never impossible to learn. Here's some extra practise:

Relative clauses

Just a little more help. Don't give up!

Discrimination

Listen to this podcast. After listening, try the true/false exercise below.

1. Traders in their 40’s in one bank are known as “dinosaurs”
2. Everyone is happy with the new laws.
3. Employment Equality Age regulations became law on September 1
4. The Times newspaper said, “Ageism is still seen as not that bad…”
5. Sam Mercer is the chief executive of the Employers’ Forum
6. “Pale, stale males” are white middle-aged men
7. New employment laws in the EU will make it harder for older people to get a job
8. Many middle-aged bankers when fired often suffer financial ruin.

d. Let's talk:

1. What do you think of ageism?
2. Do you know anyone who has bee affected by ageism? If so, describe it.
3. Do you think the European Union is right to have introduced these new employment laws?
4. Do you think the new laws will act as a lever to help more, older workers to stay in employment, thus reducing the burden of paying pensions on both the state and private pension schemes?

SEE YOU NEXT CLASS!

Things You Didn't Know about Easter

I forgot giving you my code. It's "sunshine"

How to Pronounce MOUNTAIN and SENTENCE - American English

LET'S GO ON WITH PRONOUNCIATION PRACTISE . . .

The "Lemur Look"

WRITING

If you want to improve your writing you can visit the following pages. I suggest visiting them in this order:

1. Planning your writing includes: CLICK HERE

• Taking account of purpose and audience.
• The benefits of planning.
• Planning strategies linked to writing purposes.
• Using planning techniques to help structure writing.

2. Format and style includes: CLICK HERE

• Writing in different genres - descriptive, persuasive, informative and instructive texts.
• How language is used in different types of text.
• Presenting information in the form of charts, images, numbered points, tables and pre-set formats.

3. Building up paragraphs includes: CLICK HERE

• The purpose of paragraphs.
• Using headings.
• Using topic sentences.
• Linking paragraphs in a text.
• Strategies for developing writing in paragraphs.

Tenses

You've been studying tenses for a long time.

Here is a wonderful table where you will find all the necessary explanations on how to use tenses.

After reading it carefully, you can try the following test to see if you understood it.


How about sharing your results and experiences?

Pronunciation: Simple Past-regular verbs

How to Pronounce -ed in English:

• · http://www.englishclub.com/pronunciation/-ed.htm

Let's see how much you remember . . .

• http://www.isabelperez.com/happy/tenses/exercises/past_end.htm

Men's and women's brains

Watch this video and shareyour opinions with the rest of the group:

• Do you agree with Dr Mark Gungor?
• How often do you experience what he says?
• Would you say men have a "nothing box"?

Indirect or polite questions

Go to the following link in the British Council page and try to change ten direct questions into indirect questions.

http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/CET/flashactivities/learnenglish-central-grammar-indirect-questions.html

Comment on the results!

Reporting verbs

You'll find some practise in the following link: http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/grammar-exercises/reported-speech-2

The classroom

I'm sharing with you a poster Emilce found on the internet:

Interesting, isn't it? What do you think about it? Is this a complete idea of what goes on in a classroom?
Is anything missing? What would you add or dismiss?

Time to share opinions!!

Reported speech

Something nice and simple about reported speech:

Reported questions:
http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/gr_movie/s_rep_que/index.htm

http://www.quia.com/quiz/1061590.html?AP_rand=854594258

Reported statements:
http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/gr_movie/s_rep_st/index.htm

Reporting verbs:
http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/gr_movie/s_rep_v/index.htm

Click on "reference" for some explanation.

Office gossip

 Watch the following video and try to answer the following questions using reported speech:

• Why does Nick want to talk with his boss? 
• What did he say about Kirsten? 
• What is she always doing? 
• What does Nick think about the relation? 
• What did Nick about the rest of the people? 
• How do they react? 
• How did Nick say he felt?
• What did his boss answer?

• Does this also happen in your workplace?
• How common is it?

WELCOME TO LEVEL 9

This welcome message is rather weird, isn't it?
Anyway, I thought it was something different and funny.
I hope you like it!

* Now, have a look at all the components on the sidebar. I'm sure you'll find them really useful.

* You can also leave your comments by clicking on "comments" below. I love reading them!

* Comments are moderated, you won't find them just after you've posted them.

HOW TO POST COMMENTS

Follow these steps (if you need to see the images more clearly, just click on them):