19 December 2015

1 B2 Homework for Christmas

Dear students,

I know that you are on holidays, but I´m sure you will find some time to write a covering 

letter to apply for the job offer below. Remember to use formal style and mind the 

structure of this kind of letters . You can use all the material at your disposal to do your 

best, including classnotes, the link in the blog and your dictionaries to include advanced  

vocabulary.


KITCHEN MANAGER / HEAD CHEF - LEADING GASTRO 

PUB  AND RESTAURANT

Job Type:  
Permanent
Location    

                   North London 
Salary:
£30-38K + Bonus
Start Date:
ASAP (as soon as possible)
Duration:
Reference:
288043-JS-437131A
0
Kitchen Manager / Head Chef - Leading Gastro Pub and Restaurant - Job Summary

Head Chef required for this stunning fresh food restaurant in North London. You will be part of a well-respected branded restaurant serving high-quality, authentic food with opportunity for future progression. We are looking for a dynamic Head Chef who is passionate about fresh cuisine, team development and constantly driving standards. Head Chefs in this business are kept motivated through an excellent bonus scheme and regularly changing menus. 

10 December 2015

1B2 Clothes and fashion

 Listening 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/newsenglish/britain/081118_what_to_wear.shtml

Reading:  Are you a fashion slave, spending all your money on the latest clothes even if you don't look good in them, or a fashion fan, enjoying wearing modern clothes but not obsessed by them?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/newsenglish/britain/fashion.shtml

Real English video about trends


speaking -http://www.jason-ism.com/english_projects/What%20people%20do%20for%20fashion.pdf
crossword https://elt.oup.com/student/englishfile/upperint/b_vocabulary/bank03/nef_upperint_vocabulary03_01?cc=global&selLanguage=en

http://en.islcollective.com/wuploads/preview/small_islcollective_lets_talk_about_fashion_11284cb48bf8b76a15_45031988.jpg

http://en.islcollective.com/resources/printables_page?id=60807

warm-up
http://www.slideshare.net/mfernanda66/modern-stereotypes


1 B2 Grammar: putting adjectives in order

Grammar: putting adjectives in order

If you have a number of adjectives before a noun they have a tendency to come in the order:
(1) comparative / superlative (2) opinion  (3) size / shape  (4) age  (5) colour  (6) origin / nationality  (7) material  (8) type / purpose.
For example, the rarest collectable round ancient reddish North-American bronze incense-burning plate - not that you are ever likely to use all categories in one go!
  1. I love that really old big green antique car that always parked at the end of the street. [quality - age - size - color - proper adjective]
  2. My sister has a big, beautiful, tan and white, bulldog. [size - quality - color - color]
  3. wonderful old Italian clock. [opinion - age - origin]
  4. big square blue box. [dimension - shape - color]
  5. disgusting pink plastic ornament. [opinion - color - material]
  6. Some slim new French trousers. [dimension - age - origin]
  7. wonderful old Italian clock. [opinion - age - origin]
  8. I bought a pair of black leather shoes. [color - material]

24 November 2015

Sleeping habits

Ask and answer the questions with a partner.   



-When you were a child did you use to be frightened of the dark?

-Did you use to share a room with a brother or sister?

-Do you find it difficult to sleep when you’re in a bed
that you’re not used to, for example, in a hotel?

-Do you think you could get used to working at night
and sleeping during the day?

-What do you usually do as soon as you wake up in
the morning?

-What’s the last thing you usually do before going to bed?

TO BE USED TO STH / TO GET USED TO STH

http://www.passporttoenglish.com/Advanced-English/Lesson8/Grammar.html


When we use used to, we are talking about something which happened regularly or was true at an earlier stage in our lives but which is now over.
Thus, it can only be used in the past tense. If we want to talk about present habits or states, we simply use the present simple tense.
With the negative we often say never used to in preference to  didn't use to or used not to - in an informal register. Study the following examples:
  • 'Do you remember? There used to be fields of clover where those houses are now.'
  • 'I never used to smoke, but now I smoke twenty a day.'
  • 'You used to play chess with your friends, but nowadays you play chess with your computer.'
  • 'I used to buy really expensive make-up, but that was when I was working full-time.'
To make questions, we use the normal auxiliary did. Note that used to cannot be used in question tag form. Note also the possible/probable replies to used to questions.
Study the following examples:
  • 'Did you use to go ice-skating when you were young?' 'No, I never did.'
  • 'Didn't you use to ring the school to say you were ill and then play poker with Sam?' 'I sometimes did, yeah!'
  • 'You used to do ballet in the church hall, didn't you?' 'Yes, I did. Every Saturday between the ages of nine and twelve.'


be used to + noun or -ing
get used to + noun or -ing

If somebody gets or is used to something, he becomes or is fully familiar with it. It is no longer strange or awkward. It can refer to past, present or future experiences. Study the following:
  • 'These are very high heels, I know, but I'm sure you'll getused to (wearing) them.'
  • 'I wasn't used to living in such a small flat and I found it really hard at first.'
  • 'I'm used to all the noise now, but I'd always lived in the country before, you see, where it is very quiet.'
  • 'I never got used to shaking hands with people all the time when I lived there. It's just not the custom in our country.'
  • 'Are you getting used to the accent now? It's very different from standard English, isn't it?
In all of the above examples be or get used to can be replaced by be or become accustomed to which is very similar in meaning, if a little more formal.
Read through them again using these replacement verbs. So, just to recap and confirm:
  • 'When I lived in Mexico, I used to drink tequila at every opportunity.' (A regular habit then, but probably not now.)
  • 'I found it quite a strong drink at first, but I soon got used to it.' (It quickly became quite palatable.)

1B1 Past continuous

http://www.isabelperez.com/happy/tenses/past_cont.htm

20 November 2015

1 B2 Talking about past habits " USED TO / WOULD"

Dear students,
find some practice on the grammar structures " USED TO / WOULD"

http://www.ejerciciodeingles.com/ejercicios-distinguir-would-used-to/

https://elt.oup.com/student/solutions/upperint/grammar/grammar_02_012e?cc=global&selLanguage=en

1 B2 Listening practice

Dear students,
After a long week working , it´s time to rest and enjoy a little bit. Enjoy!

http://www.esolcourses.com/content/lifeintheuk/cambridge/videoquiz.html


1B1 Listening practice

Dear students,
find some listening practice in the links below.
Do not read the script while you are listening an d don´t forget to have a look at the vocabulary and comprehension quizzes.
Enjoy!

http://www.elllo.org/english/1251/1283-ade-chris-cities-europe.htm

16 November 2015

Enjoy the song

Dear students,
watch the video and do the exercises on the link bellow.
Take care

http://www.esolcourses.com/content/topics/songs/katy-perry/firework-gap-fill.html

1 B2 Summary of Guy Fawkes

Dear students, 
Have a look at a very good summary about Guy Fawkes written                by one of your  classmates.


BONFIRE NIGHT

Bonfire Night takes place in the UK every year on 5th November. It is held to remember the failed “gunpowder” attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament.

On that day, a group of Catholic extremists leaded by Guy Fawkes also known as Guido Fawkes, wanted to kill James I and wiped out everyone in government in order to return England to the Catholic. However, the plot was discovered because one of the conspirators had a friend in the Parliament´s Houses and he wanted to prevent him by a letter that was intercepted. As a result, Guy Fawkes and his friends were arrested in the cellars of the Parliament´s Houses with 36 barrels of gunpowder. All of them were tortured, executed and thrown onto a bonfire.

Nowadays on Bonfire Night, people organize their own parties in their gardens or attend amazing firework displays. Children make life-sized effigies of Guy Fawkes called “guys” that are stuffed with newspaper or straw and dressed on old clothes in order to put them onto the fire such as Guy Fawkes was. Although in the beginning, people threw a figure of the Pope onto the fire instead.

Bonfire Night is a very important date, especially for children. For a few days beforehand they are pushing their guys saying “a penny for a guy” to get a little bit of money from adults to spend on sparklers (nowadays sweets). And everybody tastes typical  Bonfire Night food like sausages, roast potatoes, chestnuts and so on. It´s very typical too to sing the famous poem: “remember, remember the fifth of November” to mark that there is not treason with punishment.


                                                                  MERCEDES SOTO ZARZUELO
                                                                  EOI ZAMORA, BENAVENTE
                                                                  1º AVANZADO

                                                                  

12 November 2015

1 B1 Past simple

Here you are  some more practice on the past simple tense.

ruleshttp://www.isabelperez.com/happy/tenses/past_simple.htm

Complete the text
http://www.kico4u.de/english/uebungen/6klasse/whataday.htm
http://www.teach-this.com/images/resources/story-telling.pdf
spelling game
http://eslgamesworld.com/members/games/grammar/perfectpast/New/past%20simple%20practice%20game.html

Finally,  welcome to the fascinating world of Phonetics !
Have a look at this reminder about how to pronounce the past tense of regular verbs.
You should have a good command of it at your level , in fact I hope not to hear the past of regular verbs pronounced wrongly, It´s not acceptable any more therefore let me know if you have any doubt. 
Listen to the  pronunciation of regular verbs
http://speakspeak.com/resources/pronunciation/pronunciation-of-ed-endings-of-regular-verbs
http://www.elearnenglishlanguage.com/esl/grammar/simplepast-pronunciation.html
http://perso.wanadoo.es/autoenglish/gr.edpron.p.htm

SONG :  "Because you loved me" by Celine Dion





27 October 2015

1 B1 key answers of the initial assessment




READINGS



                                          MARK
READING TASK 1

Read the following text, then answer the questions below by choosing the correct answer, a, b or c. Only ONE answer is correct. (10 marks)

Be a model of good health
We all want our children to eat healthily and be physically active. But are we doing everything we can to help them? Research has shown that parents are important role models when it comes to teaching children to be healthy. So remember that it has to start with you. What can you do to help your children establish healthy habits?
o    Make sure that you eat a balanced diet and do plenty of exercise yourself. It’s not enough just to tell your children to do so. Remember that they will follow your example.
o    Plan family meals carefully, and try to include lots of salads and vegetables with meals. Encourage everyone to drink milk or fruit juice instead of a coke. And don’t forget to end meals with some fruit. Children usually like fruit salad.
o    Eat breakfast, and make sure that your children do too. Breakfast gives your body energy for the day ahead. And studies show that children who eat breakfast do better in school.
o    Limit the time your family spends watching television to a couple of hours a day. Instead, get active as a family. Play a sport with your children. Go on long walks together at weekends. Spend lots of time outdoors.
o    Get your children’s teachers involved. Teachers are also important role models for young children. They can help by encouraging children to stay away from unhealthy snacks when they are at school and to make the right choices for healthy eating.

1   If you want to encourage your children to have healthy habits ...
            a          you must be a good cook.
            b          you should follow your parents’ example.
            c          you should eat well too.

2   Your children will eat healthy food if you ...
            a          give them coke to drink with their meals.
            b          promise them a fruit salad at the end of their meals.
            c          make family meals healthy.



3   According to the text, ...
            a          breakfast gives you energy for the day.
            b          a light breakfast helps students concentrate better.
            c          children can have their breakfast at school.

4   According to the text you should ...
            a          tell your children to join an exercise class.
            b          go for walks and be active with your family.
            c          watch two hours of television every day.

5   You can ask your children’s teacher...
            a          what your children have for lunch.
            b          to encourage your children to eat healthy food at school.
            c          to read your children books on healthy eating.

TASK 1 (Be a Model of Good Health)

1          c
2          c
3          a
4          b


5          b



 READING TASK 2

     Read the text below and choose the correct word for each space. For each question, circle the letter next to the correct word A, B, C or D (10 marks)
                                  
                             FATHERS AND SONS
Harry Redknapp and Frank Lampard played football together for West Ham football club (0)   A   the 1960s. They were best friends and married two sisters, so their sons, Frank Lampard junior and Jamie Redknapp, are (1)________. Their fathers used to take them to the football field after school and make them (2)_________ . All the hard work meant that they were soon very good (3)__________football and they both (4)__________ to be professional footballers. In the (5)__________ they both played for England like their fathers. Harry and Frank (6)__________ playing football for West Ham in the 1980s. Later, Harry became the manager of West Ham and Frank senior took the job of assistant manager. Frank junior (7) joined _________ and played for West Ham and then Chelsea in London (8)_________ Jamie went to the other side of the country and played for Liverpool for eleven years. Jamie and Frank aren´t married to two sisters like their fathers. Jamie´s wife is (9)_________ singer who hasn´t got (10)_________ sisters.

 
0.       A. during             B. on                     C. by                               D. for
1.       A. cousins           B. nephews       C. brothers-in-law       D. uncles
2.       A. train                B. training           C. trained                       D. trains
3.       A. to                     B. at                      C. with                            D. on
4.       A. wanted          B. preferred      C. enjoyed                      D. liked
5.       A. final                                 B. end                  C. conclusion                 D. finish
6.       A. continued     B. missed            C. began                         D. stopped
7.       A. they                 B. them                               C. their                             D. there
8.       A. but                   B. so                      C. because                     D. also
9.       A. the                   B. one                  C. a                                 D. that
10.   A. some              B. no                     C. few                             D. any



TASK 2  (FATHERS AND SONS)

1.    A
2.    A
3.    B
4.    A
5.    B
6.    D
7.    B
8.    A
9.    C
10. D

LISTENINGS 


Task 1 10 marks
You will hear a recorded message about hotels in the National Park.
For each question, fill in the missing information in the numbered space.
Example:
In Upton there is (0) a three star hotel.


The Marston Hotel
Good for people who like (1)........................................

The Bristol Hotel
Price includes (2)..........................................
Phone number (3)........................................

The Ferndale Hotel
Good view of (4).........................................

Firtrees Hotel
Has won prizes for its (5)............................................
Price of a double room (6).........................................

Task 1

1.      walking
2.      dinner
3.      019655592
4.      lake
5.      (English) cooking food
6.      185


From: PET 3


Cuadro de texto: MARKTask 2
You will hear a radio interview with a young actor called Paul. For each question, choose the correct answer A, B or C. (10 marks)
0.    Paul became famous for playing the teenager called
A.   Frank
B.   Peter
C.   John

1.     Paul first appeared on TV in a
A.   Soap opera
B.   Children’s drama.
C.   Quiz show.

2.    What does Paul say about playing Frank?
A.   He didn’t like Frank’s personality..
B.   He wanted to have a bigger part.
C.   He did it for too long.

3.    What problem did Paul have when he was in the soap opera?
A.   He couldn’t trust anyone.
B.   He got very tired.
C.   He didn’t like people recognizing him.

4.    What did Paul realize when he was in a theatre play?
A.   He preferred acting in theatres to TV programs.
B.   He enjoyed performing to an audience.
C.   He didn’t know how to act on stage.

5.    In the future, what does Paul want to act in?
A.   TV programmes.
B.   Theatre plays.
C.   Films.

6.    How do Paul’s parents feel about his choice of career?
A.   worried.
B.   disappointed.
C.   surprised.



Task 2

1 B   2 C   3 A   4 C  5 B   6  A


From  Objective  Pet