Christmas 2015 is here! Come and join us for a Christmas celebration!!

Dear students & readers of this blog,

Christmas is just a few weeks away. We have completed our first term at the school and that is something to celebrate, so...

COME AND JOIN US NEXT 22 DECEMBER, AT 18.00, FOR A FUN CHRISTMAS PARTY!!


This is the programme for the evening:

Cartel promocional fiesta navidad from leticiaeoiplasencia

We'll have A COOKING CONTEST, A CHRISTMAS QUIZ, CAROL SINGING...and of course, FOOD AND DRINK!!

Afterwards, we'll join the rest of the Departments of the school and we'll share some time with French and German students. A unique opportunity to relax and get to know other people!!

DON'T MISS IT!!!

We all know how people celebrate it in Spain, but maybe we are not so familiar with Christmas traditions in the UK. For example, do you know what is...

• Advent?
• Boxing Day?
• mulled wine?
• mistletoe? 

If you want to learn the answers to these and other questions, click here.

If cooking is your thing, click on the mince pies below, and you'll get the recipes  for lots of traditional British dishes: 

Yes, but Christmas is also celebrated in other English-speaking countries. How do people celebrate Christmas in...

• The USA?
• Australia?
• South Africa?
• Canada? 

What's the story or Christmas Carols? To find out, click here.

These are the Christmas Carols we will be singing at the party. Why don't you practise a bit before?

DECK THE HALLS  

Click here if you want the lyrics with some notes about the vocabulary.

LET IT SNOW (with lyrics)

MAY YOU ALL HAVE A VERY HAPPY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY START OF 2016. I'LL SEE YOU NEXT YEAR!!

NB 2 - What were you doing when... PAST CONTINUOUS

Dear students & readers of this blog,

After revising the tenses we studied last year in Basic 1, the time has come to move on and study something new. A new tense.

THE PAST CONTINUOUS

As it is a new tense for us, we need to know some things about it.

FORM

Simple! BE + -ING. Please find a fully conjugated verb below:

And don't forget short answers!!! Short answers are formed with the auxiliary verbs WAS/WERE.

Were you reading? YES, I WAS / NO, I WASN'T

Were they reading? YES, THEY WERE / NO, THEY WEREN'T

USE

We usually use the Past Continuous in the following situations:

• To describe an action in progress at a specific moment in the past.

         E.g. Last night at 9 I was watching TV.

• For an action that was in progress when a shorter action (in the past simple interrupted it.

         E.g. I was watching TV when the telephone rang. 

Have a look at this video that illustrates this use:

• To describe the context at the beginning of a narration or story.

         E.g. The house was silent. John was looking through the window, while Linda was reading a magazine. The clock was ticking, when suddenly...

For a more detailed grammar explanation, click on this wonderful link from the BBC English Learning site.

And now, some practice. Listen to Naziru, Ly and Fernando talk about what they were doing on a memorable day in their lives.

(source: bbc.co.uk/learningenglish)

NB: Describing people

Dear students and readers of this blog,

In our Basic level class we have worked with basic physical and character descriptions. So here you have some resources to work on how to describe a person correctly.

In the first place, how do we ask for somebody's description? Well, don't ask 'HOW IS HE/SHE?', because you'll probably be answered something like 'fine, thanks'. If you want somebody to give you a description of themselves, or of somebody else, you have to ask...

WHAT DOES HE/SHE LOOK LIKE? (For physical appearance)
WHAT'S HE/SHE LIKE? (For personality)

Never EVER confuse this question with 'What does he/she like?', because the answer to that question is something like 'she likes going to the cinema' (likes & dislikes).

• Click here for some useful vocabulary to describe people. 
• Also, if you click on this link, you'll find a nice vocabulary bank.
• And if you want to practise a bit, click here.

Would you like to play a description game? Click here.

Happy Thanksgiving 2015 everyone!!!

Thanksgving, one of the most important festivities in the US, is here. The time is come to learn about how people celebrate it.

Did you know that...


...Thanksgiving is always celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November?
...in Canada, Thanksgiving is in October?
...the turkey, the cornucopia, the corn or the pumpkin are the symbols of this holiday?
...people give thanks for everything good in their lives?
...every year, the President of the United States pardons the life of a turkey, which ends up in Disneyland?
...every year, there's a spectacular parade in many American cities like New York or Chicago?

If you want to read about Thanksgiving traditions, click on the image below:

Now some history. What's the origin of this festivity? Where do its main traditions come from? Take some time to watch this video:

Want to know some facts about the ship that took the Pilgrims to America? Watch the video below:

Millions of turkeys will be stuffed, roasted, and served this Thanksgiving. But yesterday, one lucky bird got free to live in a farm thanks to the traditional Presidential pardon. Please know the lucky winners:

YOU ARE THE HISTORIAN. Hey, don't miss this!!! Click again on the picture below if you want to find out more about the festivity. It will be worth your time, believe me!!

And to end on a humorous note, don't miss "I will survive":

For all of you, HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

Remember, remember, the 5th of November - TODAY IT'S BONFIRE NIGHT!

"Remember remember the fifth of November

Gunpowder, treason and plot.

I see no reason why gunpowder, treason

Should ever be forgot..."

Dear students and readers of this blog,

Nowadays, we all identify the city of London with on of its most impressive landmarks, the Houses of Parliament, and the UK with its King or Queen. But a long time ago, in the year 1605, on a day like this, that could have changed...dramatically. History was about to be very different. And if was all the making of a few men, of which the most famous was...GUY FAWKES NIGHT.

 

HOW IT ALL BEGAN

1600 - Elizabeth I dies. James I is the new King of England.

James I was the son of a CATHOLIC queen, Mary Queen of Scots. But he was PROTESTANT. And he passed (aprobó) some LAWS against Catholics. They had to practise their religion IN SECRET. So they weren't happy, and they felt the situation had to change.

AND SO...

...a group of men decided to KILL THE KING, HIS FAMILY AND ALL MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT (MPs) on the 5 Nov 1605.

How? The king had to OPEN PARLIAMENT that day, so the CONSPIRATORS (conspiradores)  decided to BLOW UP (volar -with explosives!) the Houses of Parliament with the King inside, by using 36 BARRELS (barriles) OF GUNPOWDER (pólvora). They hid (escondieron) them in the CELLARS of the building. And a man called GUY FAWKES was left to WATCH (vigilar) over the barrels, and light (encender) the FUSE (mecha).

One of the conspirators sent a LETTER to a MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT telling him everything about the plot. And so the King FOUND OUT (lo averiguó). Guy Fawkes was the first one to be ARRESTED. All the CONSPIRATORS were killed.

This historical event originated one of the most characteristic festivities of the UK, BONFIRE NIGHT. Do you want to know more? Watch the video:

If you want to read more about the history behind Guy Fawkes' Night, click here.

WHAT WE CELEBRATE TODAY, AND HOW

People light BONFIRES ( hogueras) and they burn EFFIGIES (= efigies) of Guy Fawkes. Children go around asking "A PENNY FOR THE GUY", and with the money they get, they buy FIREWORKS (= fuegos artificiales). There are also FIREWORKS DISPLAYS (= espectáculo de fuegos artificiales) IN THE STREET! Read more. Click on the picture:

Did you know that even today, before every STATE OPENING OF PARLIAMENT, the YEOMEN OF THE GUARD (a.k.a. BEEFEATERS) SEARCH (buscan) in the cellars of the Houses of Parliament by the light of old candle-lanterns?

WOULD YOU LIKE TO VISIT THE INSIDE OF THE HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT? Click HERE for an online tour.

AND NOW, YOU CAN PLAY THE GUNPOWDER PLOT GAME. Discover the barrels of gunpowder and stop the conspiracy. SAVE ENGLAND AND THE KING!!

This even, as you can imagine, has inspired many books, plays and even films, among which is Alan Moore and David Lloyd's graphic novel V FOR VENDETTA, divided in ten parts and published between 1982 and 1988. It tells the story of an anarchist avenger who fights the dictatorial government ruling in Britain. This man will take up the appearance of a modern Guy Fawkes, becoming a sort of defender of the people against tyranny and oppression.

Happy Bonfire Night!!!

NB1 - Practical English: At a hotel

Dear students & readers of this blog,

These days, in our Basic Level class, we are revising some useful phrases to use when we check in at a hotel. Here you will find a sample dialogue and a few videos you might find interesting. Take a minute or two to have a look!

SAMPLE DIALOGUE:

Receptionist: Welcome to the Wyatt Hotel. How can I help you?
Guest: I'd like a room, please.
Receptionist: Would you like a single or a double room?
Guest: I'd like a double room, please.
Receptionist: Can I have your name, please?
Guest: Timothy Findley.
Receptionist: Could you spell that, please?
Guest: Sure! It's F-I-N-D-L-E-Y.
Receptionist: How many are you?
Guest: Just two.
Receptionist: Just for tonight?
Guest: Yes, that's right.
Receptionist: How will you be paying?
Guest: Is Visa okay?
Receptionist: Yes, sir. Would you like a wake-up call?
Guest: Yes, please. At 6.30.
Receptionist: Here's your key. That's room 405 on the 4th floor. The lifts are over there. Enjoy your stay, Mr Findley.
Guest: Thank you!

Here you have some videos you might find useful:




The following video recreates a real check-in situation. (In American English. Please note that the word "guys" is quite informal). Have a look!



And to finish, some humour with Mr Bean:

Halloween 2015 - Are you scared?

'Where there is no imagination there is no horror' - Arthur Conan Doyle

Dear students & readers of this blog,

Once more, Halloween is here. It is a festivity especially associated with the U.S., although its origins are quite far from there. Anyhow, Halloween is gradually imposing again on the continent where it was born. Many of us know something about it through films or TV shows. Many others have heard about it, but don't really know much about Halloween traditions, or what people do to get ready for the night when the limit between the world of the living and that of the dead disappears. So let's find out...

Halloween from leticiaeoiplasencia
 

(Source: www.worldofteaching.com)

What do we know now?

...that Halloween has Celtic origins. The Celtic festival SAMHAIN [pronounced /saun/] celebrated the end of the year, which finished in October.

...that the Celts believed that ghosts, witches and evil spirits entered the world of the living on the night of the 31st October.
...that trick-or-treating comes from the ancient "Souling", when poor people used to go around asking for "soul cakes" to eat in exchange for prayers for the family.

...that people wore costumes to scare the evil spirits away.

...that the word "Halloween" comes from "All Hallows' Eve", which is the day before All Saints' Day.

...that in some English-speaking countries people wear scary costumes and masks and go to parties.


Take a look at this video, where a London boy tells us about how he celebrates Halloween:

If we could reduce Halloween to numbers, this would be it:

Jack-O'-Lanterns are made out of pumpkins. People put Jack-O'-Lanterns in front of their windows or in their gardens, to frighten evil spirits. Did you know that this tradition originated in Great Britain and Ireland and that, originally, people used turnips?

Would you like to know how a Jack-O'-Lantern is made? Read the instructions below:

Jack o-lantern from leticiaeoiplasencia

We never think how terrifying this is for pumpkins, so we? So please, don't miss this excellent, and really scary, short film about THE LIFE & DEATH OF A PUMKIN:

 (source: tlfclips.com. Thanks, Rosa!)

To finish, have you ever been to Halloween town? Watch the following video and sing along:

TO ALL, HAVE A HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

NB Reinformecent workshops. Session 2: Of Superstitions

Dear students & readers of this blog,

Not very long ago, it was Tuesday 13th, a day usually associated with superstitions and bad luck in Spain. We used this as an excuse to talk about the origins of such a belief, and why in other countries the "day of bad luck" is Friday, and we also talked about the most common superstitions in Spain, in Britain and in the world!

The first thing we did was to try to define the concept "superstition". What is a "superstition"?

su·per·sti·tion

 (so͞o′pər-stĭsh′ən)

n.

1. An irrational belief that an object, action, or circumstance not logically related to a course of events influences its outcome.

2.

a. A belief, practice, or rite irrationally maintained by ignorance of the laws of nature or by faith in magic or chance.

(edited from www.thefreedictionary.com)

Once we did this, we tried to learn about...WHY TUESDAY? WHY 13th? Click here to find out.

Then we talked about the typical superstitions in Spain, and students learn about SUPERSTITIONS IN BRITAIN. Click here for the most common ones.

But...what about other superstitions in the world? Have a look at the video below:

And finally, we listened to a song. SUPERSTITION, by Steve Wonder:



Would you like to try with the lyrics? Here they are:
 

Steve Wonder "Superstition"

Listen to the song and fill in the gaps with the missing words.

Very _______________, writings on the wall,
Very superstitious, _____________ 'bout to fall,
Thirteen month old baby, ___________ the lookin' glass
Seven years of __________ luck, the good things in your past

When you _____________ in things that you don't understand,
Then you suffer,
Superstition ain't the way

Very superstitious, ______________ your face and hands,
Rid me of the problem, do all that you can,
Keep me in a daydream, keep me goin' ________________,
You don't wanna ____________ me, sad is my song

When you believe in things that you don't understand,
Then you suffer,
Superstition ain't the way.

Very superstitious, nothin' more to say,
Very superstitious, the ___________'s on his way,
Thirteen month old baby, broke the lookin' glass,
Seven years of bad luck, good things in your past

When you ____________ in things that you don't understand,
Then you suffer, Superstition ain't the way.

believe	broke	devil	strong	bad
ladder	save	superstitious	believe	wash

See you next week!!