What really works for me

Every English learner is different. There may be things that work for your, and help you improve, and some other things that don't help you at all.
At this stage, you are already an experienced learner, you I sure you will have many things to say on the subject, with the benefit of hindsight.

Let's initiate a class discussion. Write a shot comment below (3-4 lines) and share your thoughts.

A new course starts at the EOI

Hello, folks. I'd like to welcome you students to the new English course. We will try to work hard and have lots of fun in English. I encourage you to write comments on this blog. It's a great way to practise your writing!

If you are a B2.2 student, this is your TEXTBOOK for this year:

 "Gold B2 First". Published by Pearson.  Jan Bell & Amanda Thomas.
Student's Book + Exam Maximiser

On the right-hand side of this I will post the daily homework or "assignment", as well as the monthly composition exercises due. You can check it regularly to keep up with the class. You also have some links to websites that offer extra language practice.

So enjoy the course and pull up your socks!!! (work hard!),

Ray

Hotel California

This famous song that we all know and love, written by rock band Eagles, is in reality a hair-raising horror story set in the deep south of the United States.

Here it is once more for your enjoyment, after we listened to it in class (if you are a music lover, don't miss the fabulous guitar playing just after the vocal part has ended).

Hotel California (Eagles)

Piano man

This is the latest song we have listen to in class. "Piano Man", by Billy Joel, is a bitter-sweet description of a group of people who go to the same bar every Saturday, and they share that "drink called loneliness".

Listen again for further practice and enjoy it once more

Piano Man (Billy Joel)

Exam practice for level B2

Hello, folks!


Here is the link to the exam samples I showed you in class the other day. Try to do them at home when you have a bit of time. It's useful to be familiar with the exam format and layout. I reccommend you do the two samples before the May examination.


Click here (choose "Nivel Avanzado B2")

Blackberry not working

Hi, folks. Here's a really funny comedy sketch. It's full of very clever puns (play on words), using words about technology with a double meaning. Listen a few times and work out as many puns as you can. Here's the link:

Blackberry comedy sketch


Enjoy it,

Ray

December writing: "An inspiring story"

Hello, folks.

This is my suggestion for the December writing assignment: write your account of an inspiring story. It can be the story of some admirable person, preferably not a famous person, but a rather unknown one.
I suggest you use a piece of audio as your source for your story (this will give you the opportunity to practise listening and writing together). It could be from the Outlook podcast BBC or from the really interesting website The Story Corps.

It mustn't be very long (try not to exceed 200 words). Here are some tips for it:
- Include a little introduction
- Describe the characters and the setting with suggestive language
- Include mini dialogues or reported speech (in moderation) to bring the story alive
- Try to explore the feelings of the characters a little
- Make use of a wide range of  language (structures, adjectives, adverbs)

Extra reading practice for NA1: cloze test

Here's some extra reading exam practice. This type of exercise is called "cloze test", and the purpose of it is to assess your reading comprehension skills as well as your vocabulary and grammar.

Here's the link to two different samples:

Cloze Richard Branson

Cloze Adidas and Puma

We are already in the run-up to June!

Delicious Jacket Potatoes

Hi, friends. Last Friday we discussed in class how to make delicious jacket potatoes. The basic idea is simple: Put some large potatoes in the oven for 50-60 minutes (200º). Open them in halves, and empty the potatoes with a spoon, leaving just the skin (the "jacket"). Put the inner part of the potatoes into a large bowl, and mash them with olive oil or butter, salt, pepper and grated cheese.
Stuff the jackets (skin) with some ingredient (e. g.  ham), and then cover them with the mash.
Grill in the oven for another 15 minutes. ENJOY

The following website offers many interesting variants: Baked potatoes

The Home Project

Since we sometimes talk about environmental issues in class, I thought you might like to see this film. It places humankind on our planet throughout history, and gives us some interesting lines of action to improve our future and our children's future. If you like you can leave a comment below with your views.

The Home Project