Pages

Wednesday 8 May 2013

PRESENT CONTINUOUS USE


At this point of your learning, you can write and say sentences in present continuous tense. But how do we use it? Here are some situations when we need this tense:



1° First, we use it for things that are happening at the moment of speaking
examples: 
  • I'm working at the moment.
  • Please call back as– we are eating dinner now.
  • Julie is sleeping.
  • You are studying the present continuous.
He's playing football

2° We can also use this tense for temporary situations, when we feel something won't continue for a long time
   examples: 
  • She's staying with her friend for a week.
  • I'm living in London for a few months.
  • John's working in a bar until he finds a job in his field.
  • I'm reading a really great book. 
They're helping their mother this week because she isn't feeling well.

We can use the present continuous for habits but they have to be temporary or new habits (for normal habits that continue for a long time, we use the present simple)
   examples:
  • He's eating a lot these days.
  • She's swimming every morning (she didn't use to do this).
  • You're smoking too much.
  • They're working late every night.

I'm studying a lot these days because of my exams.

Another present continuous use is for annoying habits, when we want to show that something happens too often and we don't like it. In this case we usually use an adverb like 'always', 'forever' or 'constantly'
    examples:
  • You're always losing your keyes!
  • She's constantly missing the train.
  • He's always sleeping in.
  • They're forever being late.

He's always picking his nose and eating it!

5° Next use is for definite future arrangements (with a future time word). In this case we have already made a plan and we are pretty sure that the event will happen in the future
    examples:
  • My parents are leaving town tomorrow.
  • My plane is arriving tonight at 8.30 p.m.
  • She’s meeting David at the train station tomorrow.
  • They're travelling to Europe next month.
We're going to the theatre tonight. 

The present continuous is also used to talk about trends, that is to say, for general tendencies or inclinations
    examples:
  • More and more people are using their computers to listen to music.
  • Fuel prices are rising constantly because of strong demand.
  • On-line shopping is growing rapidly nowdays.
  • The Universe is expanding.
The population of China is rising very fast.

Finally we use this tense to talk about a situation which is slowly changing
   example: 
  • I'm getting better at playing the piano.
  • The weather is improving.
  •  Global warming is becoming an important issue.
  •  My English is getting better!
    Pollution is getting worse!



WE CAN'T USE PRESENT CONTINUOUS WITH STATIVE VERBS


AND NOW... 

EXECISES!!  

EXERCISE 1

EXERCISE 2

EXERCISE 3

EXERCISE 4

EXERCISE 5 



    Monday 6 May 2013

    Simple Past & Past Continuous - Project Work & WebQuest!

    Project Work & WebQuest

    This is our next challenging activity! 

    Read the following worksheet. Print all the pages and solve the activities in a separate sheet of paper.


    Read carefully each step before solving each exercise and ask me if you need help with our WebQuest!


    height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; -x-system-font: none; display: block;"> Simple Past-past Continuous Project Work by lilianalopreiato


        


    Hand in your Project & WebQuest on time!

     

    Friday 3 May 2013

    TALKING TEENAGERS SURVEY






    The BBC launched in 2003 an internet survey about teenagers' worries when they talked to their parents.

    The survey provided one of the biggest ever snapshots of British teenagers' attitudes and of the corresponding concerns from parents and other carers about bringing up adolescents.

    We read about the survey results in our coursebook.

                        Resultado de imagen para survey transparent

    Carry out your on survey about what teenagers and parents think about their lives and their worries.

    Assignment:

    1° Work in pairs.
    2° Ask the questionnaire to teenagers and parents who have teenage children (10 teenagers and 10 parents at least).
    3° Write the results of the survey. Use the text in the coursebook as a guide.
    4° Write your final conclusions about the results and your final opinion about the survey itself.
    5° Copy this assignment and place it after the cover of your project.
    OPTIONAL ACTIVITY: Draw the graphs with the percentages got in the survey. 

    Questionnaires:

    Teenagers' questionnaire:
    What's the best thing about being a teenager?
    2° What do you most like about your parents?
    3° What's the worst thing about being a teenager?
    4° How could your parents make your life better? 
    5° Who do you have to when you have a problem?
    6° What do you worry about most?  

    Parents' questionnaire:
    What's the best thing about being a teenager?
    2° What do you most like about your children?
    3° What's the worst thing about being a teenager?
    4° How could you make your children's life better? 
    5° Who do your children talk to when they have a problem?
    6° What do you worry about most?



    Put your survey with the results obtained in a plastic file or a folder and hand it in to your teacher in the deadline time!!





    Tuesday 30 April 2013

    ORDER OF ADJECTIVES


    The Order of Adjectives

    In English, most adjectives go before the noun they qualify. The problem comes when there are several adjectives and one has to decide in which order they should go. For example, how would you describe young Ron Weasley, one of the three protagonist in Harry Potter series?


     Young, cute, red-haired, with freckles.

    But how do we know in which order we should write these adjectives in a sentence?

    For English speakers it sounds natural when you say: He is a cute, young, red-haired boy with freckles but if you are not a native speaker you may find it difficult to decide which goes where.

    The grammar rules for adjective order are quite complicated, but if we want to set a more simple rule, we could say that the more subjective the adjective, the farther it is from the noun, while the adjective that best describes the noun goes right next to it.
    So, in the example above, cute is a subjective adjective because it gives an opinion: he may be a cute boy for me, but may look ugly for you. On the other hand, the adjective that best describes him is red-haired, that's why this word should be the one nearer the noun. The word freckles is not an adjective, so we write this particular characteristic after the noun.

    However, things are not always so simple and it's useful to know that the order should be:
    OPINION / SIZE / AGE / SHAPE / COLOUR / ORIGIN / MATERIAL / PURPOSE
    (A mnemonic technique can help you remember this easily: OSASHCOMP)
    Some examples:

    DETERMINER OPINION SIZE AGE SHAPE COLOUR ORIGIN MATERIAL PURPOSE NOUN
    My beautiful
    new
    brown
    woolen
    coat
    A pair of comfortable
    old
    black Italian leather riding boots
    A few talented
    young

    English

    men
    An expensive big
    square

    wooden
    table
    Two cozy


    blue
    cotton sleeping bags


    Take into account that this is not a hard and fast rule, and the position of some adjectives can change for emphasis reasons: breaking the patterns of adjective order can be a powerful way to emphasize one attribute over the other. 

    And now... LET'S PRACTISE!



    These exercises will help you check how much you have learnt:

    EXERCISE 1

    EXERCISE 2

    EXERCISE 3

    EXERCISE 4

    EXERCISE 5 

    EXERCISE 6

    EXERCISE 7



    Sunday 28 April 2013

    A - AN




    When do we use A or An?



    A or An are INDEFINITE ARTICLES. But how do we know when to say A and when to say AN?

    The rule is really very simple. It depends on the sound at the start of the following word. (It does not depend on the way we write the following word, it depends on the way we say it.) 

    A + consonant sound

     

    If the following word starts with a consonant sound, then we say A


    a cat
    a game of golf
    a human emotion
    a Peruvian
    a very fat woman

     

    AN + vowel sound

     

    If the following word starts with a vowel sound, then we say AN


    an apple
    an extremely easy job
    an interesting film
    an old man
    an umbrella

     

    The importance of sound

     

    Normally, we pronounce consonant letters with a consonant sound, and vowel letters with a vowel sound. But there are some exceptions. The rule about A or AN is still the same. You just need to think about the sound, not the writing. Look at these examples: 


    consonant letter with vowel sound
    an honest man on-est
    an hour our
    an FBI agent eff-bee-ai

    vowel letter with consonant sound 
    a European country you-ro-pe-an
    a one-day conference won-day
    a university you-ni-ver-si-ty




     
    In an hour.
    (Although 'house' and 'hour' start with the same three letters (hou), one attracts 'a' and the other 'an'.)

    An unknown man.

    An LRS...
    (LRS - Linear Recursive Sequence)

    A TT race...
    (TT - Tourist Trophy)

    It is a honour.
    ('honour' - starts with an o sound)

    Send an US ambassador.
    ('US' - starts with a y sound)

    A RTA.
    ('RTA' - Road Traffic Accident)


    And Now...
















    Drama in the Classroom

    Drama in the English Classroom

     


    Why are we introducing play scripts?

    Scriptwriting helps students focus on register, adjacency pairs, vocabulary in context, and fluency. A script can be edited and re-drafted to focus on the writing process. The added benefit is that the students can perform their script when it is completed.

    An easy way to learn new vocabulary is to create very short scenes in which they dramatize certain concepts. Aside from practicing newly learned vocabulary, students can focus on specific grammar features. Likewise, students may write scripts for scenes that focus on specific issues.


    Why are we using plays?

    When students are asked to take a role in a play, they can imagine and plan how to act in situations for which they do not yet have the language skills. This gives them the confidence to try their newly acquired language outside the classroom, too. Moreover, it gives them the chance to recite the same lines repeatedly, giving them the opportunity to practice pronunciation. Lines can be written (or chosen) to focus on particular aspects of pronunciation that are difficult for the student or the class as a whole.

    There are many purposes for introducing play scripts into the classroom. Students can read for the main idea, read for details, read to write a different ending, read to understand character’s motivations, read to find grammar points, or learn vocabulary in context, among other purposes. 



    Read this article prepared by your teacher. You'll find the steps how to make your own play script!




    And now, see an example of a playscript:






    I hope this will be useful to prepare your own play script!