Saturday, November 27, 2010

Tenth week

Hello everyone,

I am a bit sad this week because there were few students in class, and we were working on plenty of new aspects of vocabulary and grammar.

In any case, here you have the Power Point Presentation of Quatifiers that we were analysing in class:




If you click here you can download the key to handout 14 about Quantifiers.

We were also revising personality adjectives talking about what oldest children, middle children, youngest children and only children are like.

Don't forget to write a description of a child under 12 years old. You have to include details about his/her personality, explain what he/she likes or doesn't like doing, what he/she is good or bad at, and predict some facts about his/her future. Always support your sentences and use as much new language of the level as possible (including quantifiers, of course!). Around 200 words. I would prefer it if you attach it in a word document on an email (thanks!)

Then, on Thursday we were talking about our pace of life. Inma and Alicia compared our pace of life and the pace of life in London, and they did very well, because they used a lot of new vocabulary from handout 12 and the listening I recommended. Moreover, their grammar was correct. Well done! I only hope next time you can improvise a little bit more!

You also have to complete units 1C and 5A in the workbook. Next Tuesday we will be speaking about the activity on page 71. It will be useful if you read the texts on that page and revise the ways to convey your opinion and interrupt people when they are speaking.

Enjoy the weekend!

25th November. STOP DOMESTIC VIOLENCE!




I cound't insert the following video, but click on the link, please. It is worth it.

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Ninth week



Hello everyone,

Last week we had Chanelle with us. She was talking about the evolution of families in Canada, which is similar to the rest of the developped countries, I think. She talked about blended families, single parent families, common law couples, half-brothers, half-sisters, same sex marriages, divorces, etc. She gave us some figures and statistics about this in Canada.
For extension, click here.


We finished unit 5B talking about gender stereotypes to continue talking about families and relatives. What is the real difference between these two words? It is quite cultural. "Family" is included in "Relatives", which is a wider term used by anybody sharing a blood relationship. You can read in the previous link what other people think about it.


Then, on Thursday, we were talking about how to convey promises, predictions (with and without evidence), offers, plans or intentions and arrangements, as well as the difference between reciprocal and reflexive pronouns.


Here you have the key to handouts 11 (future tenses), 12 (personality adjectives and modern living) and 13 (reflexive and reciprocal pronouns.


Next week we will finish with the unit about the family and start talking about our work-life balance, free time, obligations... our lifestyle in general, so you should do "Modern living" in handout 12.


On Thursday, we will compare the pace of life in London with the pace of life in Granada, so you have to click HERE to listen to a text about it. (You can read ONLY after listening twice or three times. But... how will we organise this activity?


1. First, you have to click on the link above.
2. Second, you should learn the new expressions (to rush, he can't cut it, I make it part of my daily schedule, the pace, at a snail's pace, "me time", it's all too much for me, or any others)
3. Then, listen to the text two or three times.
4. Listen again and read at the same time. Learn any other new words which you think will be useful.
5. Compare the way people live in London with our lifestyle in Granada paying attention to the things they do that we do as well, or that we don't do. Give real examples from your daily life. You can answer some of the journalist's questions, for example:
- Is life in the capital really too fast?
- Do you ever find yourself trying to slow down?


You can also add some suggestions to slow down. If you click here, you will find some tips.
6. Think that your speech should take 3 or 4 minutes only. Organise it around 3 or 4 ideas.


7. Make sure you use new language: new vocabulary from this text and from handout 12 as well as quantifiers (we will revise them on Tuesday).


On Thursday I will choose two or three people to come to the front of the classroom and talk about the pace of Life in Granada as compared to London. You all have to prepare it.

For those who did not come on Thursday or arrived late, I recommended two readers.

Stories of Suspense, by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Black Cat- Vicens Vives.
The Canterbury Tales, by Geoffrey Chaucer. Black Cat - Vicens Vives.

The first one will be discussed after Christmas and the second one after Easter. They are not compulsory. If you don't like them, you could always choose other two. And of course, you can read more than two! I recommend you to use the Virtual Library.


Enjoy the rest of the evening!