THE GREAT SPANISH CRASH

To help you with your writings on Social Issues, why not watching this video?
It's got subtitles.
Enjoy your Xmas

SantaCon

Do you know what SantaCon is?
I'd like you to find out. But here's a tip:


Check out this link 1

Now read about the Do's and don'ts of SantaCon

Santacon is an annual, alcohol-soaked Father Christmas-themed flashmob. No one's in charge, anyone can join in and anything can happen. Alexi Duggins is a veteran. He runs through the dos and don'ts.

DO go with the flow.
Given that Santacon involves hundreds of inebriated Santas staggering the breadth of the city, chaos is the spirit of the event. Well, that or ethanol. Either way, you will lose people, and it will prove logistically impossible to meet up with pals. Never mind, though. You'll make many new best friends. Just go with it.
DON'T address anyone by name.
At Santacon, it's not enough to just think like Saint Nicholas. You have to be him. Or at least a rowdy, boozed-up incarnation. You, and everyone else you know, are simply referred to as 'Santa'.
DON'T go dressed as an elf.
In previous years, there's been an undercurrent of Santa-elf hostility. If you have to go as a little helper, use an imaginative interpretation. Think Elf Garnett, Elfis Presley etc. You should still expect to be pelted with sprouts, though.
DO be prepared to sing.
Expect comical chants and witty songs akin to those performed the year that clothing shop Cyberdog hosted several Santas reinterpreting the work of early-'90s dance act 2 Unlimited. ('THERE'S HO LIMITS!'). Our perennial fave: 'What do we want? CHRISTMAS! When do we want it? NOW!'.
DO take a belt.
Most Santa costumes come with their own belts, but they're about as useful for holding up trousers as chewing gum is for patching a hole in the ozone layer. Also, make sure you wear real clothes beneath your suit. Within a couple of hours, the cheap material will have worn away, creating a fishnet effect.
DO check the Santacon website on Friday December 14.
That's where the starting point and route will be announced. The site also has details of the afterparty
at Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes, which you'll need to book in advance.

Santacon takes place on Sat Dec 15. www.santacon.co.uk.

1. Would you join them?
2. Have you ever seen it anywhere in the world?
3. Jot down the new vocab.

When Santa got stuck up the chimney

Hi there,

Feeling Christmassy already?  Are you up for caroling?

Here's the Xmas carol we have been singing.

Enjoy

MORRY CHRISTMAS and JAPPY JOLIDAY

OOOOPPPPPSSSS!
Good English lesson! LINK

To brush up on the topic of SPORTS and XMAS, check this link.

BRITISH SCHOOLS

Here's another video on the series of life in Britain. It also comes with a worksheet for you to do.

Enjoy!

The videos on food and homes are equally interesting.

SPORTS IN BRITAIN

Learn more about sports in Britain.

Here's a nice video on sports in Britain. The video comes with a worksheet for you to do.

Have a nice weekend

RESILIENCE

Here's the video I told you in class.

It's all about being successful in life.

Here are the questions:

1. What personality trait is she talking about?
2. Can you summarize the story?
3. What 3 techniques did she implement after the setback she tells us about?
4. Write down as many words as you can from the video

Learn English with Ricky Gervais

Do you know who Ricky Gervais is? He is a comedian, a bit rude, if I may, starring in The Office.

Anyway, here's a funny English lesson.

Think about this:

- different ways of being ripped off
- what does kipper mean?
- how do you say 'hacer un hueco'?
- forget about the 'waxing' bit (I told you, he IS rude) (so sorry about this bit)
- NO MORE QUESTIONS!!!!!

Do you speak English?

This video is somewhere in the blog, but I enjoy it so much that I decided to upload it again.

THE TUBE

Dear all,

I've just found this video on youtube. I love it!

Can you answer these questions? (up to minute 2)

1. How many workers take care of the tube everyday?
2. What is the tube going through right now?
3. How does the speaker describe Liverpool Street Station?
4. What happens to Liverpool Street Station at weekends?
5. How do customers have to use the scalators according to the PA system announcement?

I find it very funny, don't you? If you are interested in the tube, there is a National Geographic video on the tube. Click here to learn more.

KEY TO EXERCISES and REVISIO OF FUTURE TENSES

Page 121
Exercise A: OTHERWISE / OTHER THAN THAT / APART FROM THAT
1. otherwise
2. apart
3. other than
4. otherwise
5. apart from / other (both are correct)
6. otherwise
7. other than that

Page 139: FUTURE
Exercise 1
1. Shall we get .... I'll go
2. I'm meeting ... I'm going to do
3. I've got to go ... It starts... I'll give
4. We'll have to chat ... )'ll walk ... I've got to
5. We're going ... will you do ... it might rain ... we are probably still going to go ... you're bound to enjoy

And here's a quiz for you to practise BOUND TO, DUE TO, ABOUT TO

Click here to revise the future tense.

Don't forget that perhaps using WILL for offers, promises, threats ... is what you find most difficult. Please brush up on this.

Ta-ra

ORDERING A COFFEE AT STARBUCKS

Ordering a coffee at Starbucks is not that easy as it is a mix of Italian and English.

Click here to learn more.

CLOTHES FASTENERS

I reckon you are very very very interested in clothes fasteners.

Do you remember the word PRESS STUD? This picture will show you other ways of referring to that kind of fastening. The one I said in class was POPPER.

WORD FORMATION EXERCISES

Check the following links out if you want to brush up on word families:

- Link 1
- Link 2
- Link 3

KEY page 22

Page 22

READING

Read the text carefully and underline any word or structure that is unkown to you. Then, look it up in the dictionary. Should you have any problems, we will work on this in class.

A.
1. All kinds of things. vacuum clearners, old doors, windows, records, newspapers, children's toys.
2. There's a bit of Mr.Trebus in all of us. The writer also collects things that are no longer useful
3. Mr. Trebus: that they were useful. The writer: the instructions and guarantees in case things break down, coins because they might be useful.
4. Your own opinion.

B.
1. His house became a health hazard.
2. He was a veteran of the Second World War.
3. He was a tank commander.
4. The trauma of what he lost when he left Poland caused his obsession.
5. He settled in Britain after the war.
6. He sorted the junk into piles of similar things.
7 He acquired every record Elvis Presley had ever made.
8. The neighbours complained about infestations of rats.
9. He resisted eviction.

VOCABULARY: WORD FAMILIES

A.
- al; -ise; -less; -y; -ious are adjectival suffixes. Can you think of adjectives ending in these suffixes? I'm sure you can.

B.
1. Obsession
2. Eviction
3. Caution
4. Fear
5. Intentions
6. Optimism
7. Meanness
8. Pessimism

TOOLS

ARE YOU A BOB THE BUILDER FAN?

 

 

Do you really want to know the name of the most useful tools in English? Well, here are some useful pages where you can expand your vocab:



- Link 1: picture dictionary
- Link 2: move the mouse and listen to the word
- Link 3: if you really want to become an expert in these things, this is your link.
- Link 4: heavy machinery

HALLOWEEN

Dear all,

It's Halloween today! It's time for creepy costumes, spooky films, or Trick or Treat.

If you want to learn more about Halloween, click on the following links:

- Link 1: There are stories and podcasts.
- Link 2: Creepy recipes, yummy yummy!
- Link 3: A fun-packed webpage