Essentials 3

• Listen to this short video everyday for a week and you'll learn all these structures and vocabulary without an effort.

Awesome

Human imagination is absolutely amazing... Watch this video and you'll see why.

Some fun!

Essentials 2

• Listen to this short video everyday for a week and you'll learn all these structures and vocabulary without an effort.

A or an?

It's incredible how many people use the indefinite article 'an' in the wrong way. It's not only for nouns starting with a vowel. Listen to this post and you'll learn in what other cases we have to use it.

Essentials 1

Listen to this short video everyday for a week and you'll learn all these structures and vocabulary without an effort.

WORD OF THE WEEK: SHIVER

SHIVER

Verb [intransitive] /’ʃɪvə(r)/

1.if you shiver, your body shakes slightly, for example because you are cold or frightened

We stood shivering in the icy wind.

shiver with cold/fear/surprise etc:

She shivered with fear at the thought of seeing him again.

GREETINGS FROM AUSTRALIA

There he is in Australia.
Our dear classmate arrived safe and sound in spite of the problems with the controllers.
Next time you have to take us with you!!
What a wonderful experience! We are looking forward to seeing you again. We have so many questions waiting for you !!

Whose...?

Have you ever been in doubt about the use of "WHOSE"? You will never again if you listen to this post everyday for a week.

WORD OF THE WEEK: Mini saga

Mini Saga - stories in exactly 50 words
50 words is not a lot. With some discipline and creativity, you can say a lot in 50 words.
A mini saga is a story that is told in exactly 50 words - not 49 or 51 but exactly 50 words. This is a great exercise for the brain. I was first introduced to this by Daniel Pink via his book "A Whole New Mind".
Benefits of Writing a Mini Saga
I hope this lens inspires you to write your own mini saga. Here are a few benefits of writing a mini saga:

Benefit #1: Writing a mini saga expands your creativity. Constraints typically expand creativity or induce flight. When you have to put everything in 50 words, you have to 'leave behind' a lot. That's where the creative juices start flowing.

Benefit #2: Writing a mini saga stretches your thinking. What will you write about? You have to think about topics that will fit in 50 words or squeeze them to fit in 50 words. That puts thinking on overdrive mode.

Benefit #3: Writing a mini saga enhances your discipline. Deciding what to write about, deciding what to leave behind and putting it in 50 words requires discipline throughout."

Do you dare to write a mini saga?
Some of your classmates have already done it. You can find some examples in your students book pg 28

Regards from Albuquerque

International Balloon Fiesta
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Have you ever seen Spongebob flying in the air? Can Darth Vader’s head or a Pepsi can fly at 2000 feet? If you are seeing all of this stuff in the sky, don’t worry! It doesn’t necessarily mean that you are nuts or that you are dreaming: you could just be in Albuquerque living an unforgettable experience called the International Balloon Fiesta.

Let me introduce myself. My name is Manolo Bautista and, even though I am not actually in your classroom, I am a virtual English NA2° student who is living in the United States this year.

I am a Maths teacher who works in a bilingual Secondary school in Espejo (Córdoba). Last year I was studying English at the EOI Córdoba. However, this year I am having both an enriching and challenging experience as a Maths and science teacher in Albuquerque, New Mexico and I am following teacher’s lessons from the United States.

You probably don’t know too much about Albuquerque, the biggest city of New Mexico with 700,000 inhabitants. In this city you can discover not only breathtaking natural landscapes (such as the Sandia Mountains, the Rio Grande, volcanoes, etc) but you can also experience a remarkable event: the International Balloon Fiesta, with hundreds of air-hot-balloons gathered in Albuquerque from many countries around the world. They fill the sky during 9 days in October, the month with best conditions for practicing this activity.

I was at this festival this year and it was truly delightful! Look at these pictures taken by me and visit the following sites if you want to know more about this event:
http://www.balloonfiesta.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albuquerque_International_Balloon_Fiesta

Well, I hope we keep in touch from now and see you soon, folks!

PS: By the way, do you remember the Coyote-Roadrunner cartoons? They were created in New Mexico and I’ve already seen several roadrunners! They are so fast indeed! (but I am still waiting to hear ‘mic-mic’ ) 

If you want to say something to Manolo, you are very welcome to post a comment. He is looking forward to them. Carmen

Pronunciation tips - Other Consonant Sound 08

A video from the BBC which shows us how to produce this other consonant sound.