ENGLISH AT HOME - LEVELS 9 / 10 - 2011

Babel II

2011-11-29T23:02:00.001-03:00

ARTE + MÚSICA +PALABRAS

ENCUENTRO DE FIN DEAÑO

Bienvenidosa Babel II

Te invitamos al SegundoEncuentro de Lenguas organizado por el Laboratorio de Idiomas de la UBA. Eneste evento vas a poder hablar en tu propio idioma y conversar con hablantesnativos de la lengua que estás aprendiendo. Además habrá participación dealumnos del Laboratorio a través de música en vivo y de una exposiciónde obras de arte.

Fecha: Miércoles 7 de diciembre | desdelas 7 PM

Lugar: 25 de Mayo 221 | Ciudad de BuenosAires

Introduction to academic writing

2011-11-21T00:30:00.000-03:00

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

ACADEMIC WRITING » Quiz Question Maker

Describing people, places and things.

2011-11-19T20:05:00.000-03:00

1. 'Read all about it!' It is a game where you'll use adjectives to make more interesting sentences.

Are you ready to play? Click here and start!

2. When you want to describe people, places or things you need to use adjectives. These are words like 'brown', 'long' and 'curly'.

Do you think you're ready for the adjectives quiz? You will find it here (try the three levels).

3. Once you've finished doing the activities, share your experieces in the comments section.

Gerunds and Infinitives

2011-11-19T20:00:00.000-03:00

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

I would very much appreciate some comments about it.

Future Continuous

2011-11-19T19:59:00.000-03:00

Something to remember:

Future progressive puts emphasis on the course of an action taking place in the future.
It puts emphasis on the course / duration of an action taking place before a certain time in the future. It can also be used to express an assumption regarding a future action.
It is not used very often as it can usually be replaced by future simple.

Use

action taking place before a certain time in the future
puts emphasis on the course of an action
action that is sure to happen in the near future

Signal Words

for ..., the last couple of hours, all day long
in one year, next week, tomorrow

PRACTICE

Definite and Indefinite Articles

2011-11-09T15:51:00.000-03:00

If you feel like practising this topic, you can visit THIS SITE and do it while you read traditional English Fables.

You will find theory and rules as well.

Personality transplant

2011-10-23T17:46:00.000-03:00

Listen to the article and decide if these statements are true or false

a.	Doctors have found a way to transplant people’s personalities.	T / F
b.	A professor said people wouldn’t mind receiving the heart of a killer.	T / F
c.	People who receive new organs say they share the donor’s memories.	T / F
d.	Most donor patients believe they have some of the donor’s personality.	T / F
e.	The professor said very few people are superstitious about transplants.	T / F
f.	The professor said the most logical people are the most superstitious.	T / F
g.	A British teenager received a new heart even though she didn’t want it.	T / F
h.	Scientists have evidence that personality accompanies donated organs.	T / F

Would you be willing to donate your organs after you die?
Do you carry an organ donor card?
Do you think parts of a donor’s personality is transplanted along with the organ?
Would you accept a killer’s heart if you needed a heart transplant?
What do you think of giving someone a transplant against their will?
Would you like a personality transplant?

Survey

2011-10-18T21:08:00.003-03:00

In order to improve our services, Laboratorio de Idiomas has published a survey. You will find it here:

http://www.idiomas.filo.uba.ar/novedades

Action and state verbs

2011-10-05T15:28:00.004-03:00

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

Indirect or polite questions

2011-10-05T15:27:00.000-03:00

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!

2011-10-05T15:11:00.000-03:00

Listen to a Danish college student talking about culture shock and living abroad.

Press the "Play Audio" button, and answer the questions as you listen.

To check your quiz, press the "Score" button. http://netgrammar.altec.org/Units/Unit_12/a101c12_301000.html

If you want to revise connectors, go to the following page: http://netgrammar.altec.org/Tasks/a101d1_104000.html

BEAUTY, SELF-ESTEEM, ADVERTISING

2011-09-08T19:50:00.000-03:00

Cecilia suggested these two videos in her comments to a previous post. I watched them, shared them with another teacher and decided to do something together.

They're really interesting and food for thought. We'll be dicussing with Natalia's students, who are in level 11.

Please, follow these steps:

1. Before watching, it would be nice to read about your opinions. Read the questions, and then write your answers in the comments section:

How much influenced by commercials/advertisements do you feel at the moment of buying things?
Is there a commercial/an ad that has made you change your mind when having to choose among a line of products?
Do you think commercials/ads have the same kind of influence on all target ages? Who do you think are the most vulnerable?
What do you think commercials/ads must have in order to be good?
Do you think government organizations should be tougher when regulating advertizing?

2. You can now watch the videos:

3. It's now time to TALK! We'd like you to give us your opinion in the following site: www.voxopop.com

HOW?! Follow these steps:

Here, you'll be able to listen to the thread. You will find paticipants from another course and people from other countries might participate, too.
You will need a microphone to record your voices.

Once you've listen to everyone, you'll record your own message.

How? Follow these steps:

1st) Click on " ".

2nd) Choose "Take me to the signup page". It is not necessary to complete the optional details column.

3rd) Fill in the required details. Remember: do not write your surname, just your first name. Select a nickname.

4th) If you want to, you can upload a photograph.

5ht) Click on "I agree, sign me in"

6th) Go back to the discussion page.

7th) You are now ready to record a message! You'll need a microphone and "java", just that.

Listen to your previous classmates comments and answer them as well. By double-clicking on them you can access to their accounts and leave a peronal message in their accounts.

We are all eager to listen to you!

Past tenses with time

2011-09-05T23:00:00.000-03:00

I've decided to include the following game. Hope you enjoy it.

I'd also like to hear about the results. Feedback is always positive.

There are 6 questions to answer and you only have 15 seconds to answer each one! Click A, B or C. But remember you only get one try! At the end of the quiz you can see your answers and get feedback. Then you can play the game again if you like.

You'll find it here: http://www.go4english.com/qg/read.php?unitid=2049

Invitation

2011-09-04T12:11:00.002-03:00

I've just received an invitation that I'd like to share with you. It sounds like a great idea.

I've copied/pasted it:

MÚSICA + PALABRAS

BIENVENIDOS A BABEL

Te invitamos al Primer Encuentro de Lenguas organizado por el Laboratorio de Idiomas de la UBA. En este evento vas a poder hablar en tu propio idioma y conversar con hablantes nativos de la lengua que estás aprendiendo. Será en el marco de Piano Itinerante, un programa que acerca la posibilidad de tocar este instrumento a quien quiera hacerlo. Si tocás otro instrumento, podés traerlo. ¡Te esperamos!

Fecha: Jueves 8 de septiembre │ 7 PM

Lugar: 25 de Mayo 221 │ Ciudad de Buenos Aires

Entrada libre y gratuita

Men's and women's brains

2011-08-31T20:17:00.000-03:00

-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"?

WELCOME TO LEVEL 10

2011-08-24T11:03:00.000-03:00

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.

Spelling

2011-06-14T20:29:00.002-03:00

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

LINKING WORDS AND IDEAS

2011-06-14T08:33:00.001-03:00

YOU'LL FIND LOTS OF DIFFERENT EXERCISES HERE:

Matching game:
http://www.go4english.com/eia/read.php?unitid=1926

Reading and multiple choice:
http://www.go4english.com/eia/read.php?unitid=1926&pageid=3528

Matching pairs:
http://www.go4english.com/eia/read.php?unitid=1926&pageid=3529

Sentence ordering:
http://www.go4english.com/eia/read.php?unitid=1926&pageid=3530

Reorder the e-mail:
http://www.go4english.com/eia/read.php?unitid=1926&pageid=3535

Gap fill:
http://www.go4english.com/eia/read.php?unitid=1926&pageid=3536

QUESTION TAGS

2011-05-30T20:37:00.000-03:00

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

Indirect or Polite Questions

2011-05-30T20:17:00.000-03:00

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

2011-05-17T15:16:00.000-03:00

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:

Ageism

2011-05-13T16:00:00.001-03:00

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.

Discrimination and something else

2011-05-13T15:45:00.001-03:00

a. You can listen and read this interview about Philip Roth, whose bold stories explore how individuals face the tensions of family, politics, sex and race. Click HERE.
From http://www.voanews.com/

Do you think the number of people reading books is decreasing?
Would you like to read one of Philip Roth's books? Why? Why not?

b. On July 1st, America's oldest university will get its twenty-eighth president but, most notably, its first female president. Listen and read HERE.
From: http://www.voanews.com/

What do you think about this article?
Can we compare the situation in the States with ours?

c. 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:

What do you think of ageism?
Do you know anyone who has bee affected by ageism? If so, describe it.
Do you think the European Union is right to have introduced these new employment laws?
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 MONDAY!

Relative clauses

2011-05-13T15:33:00.000-03:00

How much do you remember about relative pronouns? Here’s a chance to play a game to see how much you have remembered. Use your mouse to drag the correct word from the list into the gap in the sentence. When you’ve finished click ‘submit’ to check your answers. Click ‘replay’ to play again. Click ‘answer’ to see all the correct answers.

http://www.go4english.com/vg/read.php?lang=en&unitid=1541

CONDITIONAL SENTENCES

2011-05-10T15:38:00.000-03:00

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.ht m

WHICH CONDITIONAL SHOULD I USE?

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

Sentence construction

2011-05-10T15:37:00.001-03:00

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

http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/words/grammar/sentencebasics/whatisasentence/flash7.shtml

Relative clauses

2011-04-13T21:45:00.004-03:00

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

Relative clauses

Relative clauses

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

Office gossip

2011-04-13T21:45:00.001-03:00

Watch this video and answer the questions below. Try to use 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?

Passive voice

2011-04-10T20:00:00.002-03:00

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.pearsonlongman.com/challenges/interactive/?fileName=xml/level3/Unit03-01.xml&courseID=undefined&anchor=undefined

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

Grammar: Passive Voice

http://www.pearsonlongman.com/challenges/interactive/?fileName=xml/level3/Unit03-01.xml&courseID=undefined&anchor=undefined

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

Passive voice

2011-04-06T20:38:00.000-03:00

Here's another way of looking into passive voice. Try to watch it and answer the questions, of course! :-))

How did you like this video? Did you find it useful?

Reported speech again?!

2011-03-30T16:05:00.001-03:00

YES! Just a little more practise.

Reporting verbs:

http://www.learnenglish.org.uk/grammar/archive/reportingverbs01.html

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

The Third Man

2011-03-30T16:00:00.002-03:00

Next week you will start reading this novel by Graham Green. It was a film as well.
Here is a video that shows the opening credits of the "Third Man", featuring the theme song by Anton Karas..

And here is another one which gives you some more information about this classic which originally wins the First Prize at the Film Festival in Cannes and is awarded the Oscar for Best Camera for a Black and White Movie in . . . . . In 1999 the British Film Institute elects The Third Man as "Best Film of the Century".

After watching them, I'd like you to tell me:

what you think you're going to read about,
when and where the story takes place
what kind of genre it is.

Click on "comments" and write your answer.

Reported speech

2011-03-23T17:12:00.000-03:00

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.

WELCOME MESSAGE

2011-03-21T18:48:00.002-03:00

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" (see detailed explanation below).

* 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.

HOW TO POST COMMENTS

2011-03-21T18:20:00.003-03:00

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

Revision time

2010-06-23T20:56:00.000-03:00

Phrasal verbs and nouns matching exercise.

Phrasal verbs and similar verbs match. Match phrasal verbs to other verbs that have similar meaning.

Reported Speech

Reported Speech (2)

Passive voice

Pronouns
Relative pronouns matching quiz. Who, which, where, whose.
Subject and object Pronouns : Fill in the blanks with the correct pronoun.

TENSES
Past simple or present perfect? When do we use the past simple and present perfect?
Past simple or present perfect ? 2 Know the difference between the two tenses.
Past simple or past continuous? What is the difference in use? Learn from this quiz.
Present perfect simple or continuous?Past Perfect Past review

CONDITIONAL SENTENCES
http://www.englishmedialab.com/Quizzes/advanced/upperintgrammar1.htm
Second conditional
Third conditional

2009-11-02T14:31:00.004-03:00

2009-11-01T10:06:00.006-03:00