tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73635562929688160472024-02-21T07:12:37.588+01:00Ana Bueno's English CornerIf you want to keep your English alive and continue learning outside the classroom, this is the place for you!Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-50577327622023276712015-10-14T08:00:00.000+02:002016-11-07T13:02:21.923+01:00The power of adjectives in descriptions: cities<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Hi there!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">These days we've been talking about cities and we've learnt some very useful vocabulary to describe them. Below I include some of these words (remember to check their <a href="http://www.wordreference.com/">pronunciation</a>!). Can you add any other?</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGST8RbFQOwgiRWL_2OBOUg-dCquOrrxTwbJWOPVccs_3IgjnZTLcCxr2nNRrhYBxGcylIvrfAlqwpnfX_O3UHqPjluWpCgdfqgVGK6n3LFMGX0KmJ3Fxu-udluzpX3rO3kEMXu8iOMBU/s1600/Cities.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGST8RbFQOwgiRWL_2OBOUg-dCquOrrxTwbJWOPVccs_3IgjnZTLcCxr2nNRrhYBxGcylIvrfAlqwpnfX_O3UHqPjluWpCgdfqgVGK6n3LFMGX0KmJ3Fxu-udluzpX3rO3kEMXu8iOMBU/s400/Cities.png" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, today I didn't want to focus solely on these adjectives, but rather highlight the effect and crucial importance that adjectives have in our writing and speech: being able to be <u>specific</u> and <u>choose the right word</u> adds value to our language, and colour to our descriptions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Have a look at the following text about Mexico:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mexico City is Mexico's capital city and one of the most important political, cultural, educational and financial centres in North America. With a GDP of $411 billion US dollars in 2012, it is ranked as the eighth richest city in the world. Settling on an altitude of more than 2,000 metres, tourists are instantly enamoured by the city's glamour, cultural heritage and contemporary development. Every corner of the city is sprinkled with stories to tell of famous personalities and ancient tribes. While the Aztecs discovered and gave the city its culture and heritage, the Spanish revamped and added their touch. Today, the cultural amalgamation is mirrored in every landmark of Mexico City, be it the Templo Mayor, El Zócalo square, Catedral Metropolitana or Frida Kahlo museum.</span></span></blockquote>
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<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What feeling do you have when you finish reading?</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now compare it with the text below, about the English city of Middlesbrough:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What kind of adjectives are used the most: positive, negative or neutral?</span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">How does this affect the impact of the article?</span></li>
</ul>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzj9GRTczVpby4COVQyJksjg9H6gRrF5k-QA9TADTtRE2fXuS_V2wtGx_z34hYKp6UiXjuj8TWkKoHUaHqTnmAWo5LTUSSTR4gtgBUH_a6mLdlxWzOHXo-LlEIbnA32qNPWA_bfOLA_D0/s1600/Negative+description.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="388" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzj9GRTczVpby4COVQyJksjg9H6gRrF5k-QA9TADTtRE2fXuS_V2wtGx_z34hYKp6UiXjuj8TWkKoHUaHqTnmAWo5LTUSSTR4gtgBUH_a6mLdlxWzOHXo-LlEIbnA32qNPWA_bfOLA_D0/s640/Negative+description.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">(<b>Note</b>: No offence intended to the people in Middlesbrough. It is deliberately wildly exaggerated to show the power of negative adjectives in an English text.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The text is evidently extremely negative, something which is mainly achieved via the adjectives used. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now, do the following:</span></div>
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</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Highlight all the negative adjectives/expressions.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Replace them with some more positive ones.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When you have finished, check the impact the text has on the reader now. Has it changed?</span></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This exercise would be a very good opportunity to start using an <b>antonyms dictionary</b>.<b> </b>Check the entry "<a href="http://anabuenoeoi.blogspot.com.es/2015/10/back-with-dictionaries-again-enrich.html">Back with dictionaries again! Enrich your vocabulary fast and easy</a>" to learn how to do it!</span></div>
Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-30448497694977643272015-10-07T08:00:00.000+02:002015-10-16T12:17:19.906+02:00Natural disasters: Chile's earthquake<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhUMpnSh6qRtrL8WEuUdY-TsXh6_x3sLhSYeUWnpoJT278axWwAYFMJl4Yw9YCEHgjkb3QooQ7jjc-PUErk2YybnVpFohTqMUmSGkkWOpMRD08Q10cnweebdAV1Yqp6qKePkJscCTHApY/s1600/Reuters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="98" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhUMpnSh6qRtrL8WEuUdY-TsXh6_x3sLhSYeUWnpoJT278axWwAYFMJl4Yw9YCEHgjkb3QooQ7jjc-PUErk2YybnVpFohTqMUmSGkkWOpMRD08Q10cnweebdAV1Yqp6qKePkJscCTHApY/s200/Reuters.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today I post a quick listening activity with a video from Reuters News Agency. It covers the earthquake and later tsunami that affected Chile last September 2015. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As you know, the topics of "cities", "natural disasters" and "the environment" are included in our curriculum, and therefore in the contents of the different levels.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I ask you to find some time to do this listening activity, and write down some interesting words you could learn. Remember:</span><br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Watch once for general understanding (forget about the activity at the beginning)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do the activity in the second listening</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally, check your answers in the last listening</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As usual, remember that the answer key is at the end of the document :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thanks for watching!</span></div>
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<div class="youtube" id="NI1JgDckhus" style="border: none; display: block; height: 315px; margin: 0 auto; width: 560px;">
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<div style="-x-system-font: none; display: block; font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 12px auto 6px auto;">
<a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/283428785/Quake-Triggers-Tsunami-Warnings-in-Chile" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Quake Triggers Tsunami Warnings in Chile on Scribd">Quake Triggers Tsunami Warnings in Chile</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/AnaBueno_LearnEnglish" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View AnaBueno_LearnEnglish's profile on Scribd">AnaBueno_LearnEnglish</a></div>
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="0.7080062794348508" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_61267" scrolling="no" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/283428785/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-KmH8l7wPlW6AqoSyi8uD&show_recommendations=true" width="100%"></iframe><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After watching this video and doing the activity, you might want to visit: "<a href="http://anabuenoeoi.blogspot.com.es/2014/10/school-reopens-after-oklahoma-tornado.html">School reopens after Oklahoma tornado</a>".</span>Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-16330578751284019632014-12-10T07:00:00.000+01:002014-12-18T17:00:32.077+01:00"If" or "whether": what's the difference?<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTab9IZ_bqNWxHUwbdKR8MqQDVpNPzYqzL7M9Izgv0lFkfJKkoAT8u66noY272Shk5XZXu6Do7HY6pCzJFl4DLcWJcGT6X26nAMypEOgl0gZ0PioPcJFWWZkaCa6SyUDCh7-lVUT6BUQM/s1600/Whether-if.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Whether or if" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTab9IZ_bqNWxHUwbdKR8MqQDVpNPzYqzL7M9Izgv0lFkfJKkoAT8u66noY272Shk5XZXu6Do7HY6pCzJFl4DLcWJcGT6X26nAMypEOgl0gZ0PioPcJFWWZkaCa6SyUDCh7-lVUT6BUQM/s1600/Whether-if.jpg" height="122" title="" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi there!</span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today I post a grammar lesson on the difference between </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>if</strong></i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>whether</b></i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. These two words normally pose problems for English students, since the translation into Spanish is the same in both cases (</span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">si</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">). Here I'll post an explanation on when to use each. Hope it helps!</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In very general terms, we use <i><strong>if</strong></i> in <u>conditional sentences</u> and <i><strong>whether</strong></i> to show that <u>two alternatives</u> are possible. In the cases where both are possible, <i>whether</i> is understood as more formal.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That said, let us look at both conjunctions in some deeper detail:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<h3>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>If</i> and <i>whether</i> are interchangeable in the following contexts:</b></span></h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><u><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">IN REPORTED OR INDIRECT <i>YES/NO </i>QUESTIONS:</span></u></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>She asked if / whether I'd be attending the party.</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do you know if / whether dinner will be ready soon?</i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="background-color: white; color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don't know if / whether she's coming or not.</i></div>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><u><i style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"WHETHER / IF ... OR ... " </i><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">CON</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">S</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">TRUCTIONS</span></u></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I'd really like to know <u>whether / if</u> he's lying <u>or</u> telling the truth.</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></h3>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-large;">Use ONLY <i>whether</i> in the following contexts:</span></span></h3>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>TO PRESENT TWO ALTERNATIVES:</u></span></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Let the principal know whether you'll attend the meeting</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(there are two alternatives: you'll attend the meeting or you won't. You have to inform the principal in either case).</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Let the principal know if you'll attend the meeting</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(this sentence is grammatically correct, but the meaning is different. In this example, the principal is only be told if you'll attend the meeting. Therefore, <i>if you'll attend the meeting</i> is a condition, it doesn't present two alternatives).</span></div>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><u style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">AFTER PREPOSITIONS:</u></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="color: #38761d;">My final decision depends on whether you agree </span><strike>(on if)</strike></i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I would like to talk to you about whether you'll continue working here </i></span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strike>(about if)</strike></i></div>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><u style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BEFORE INFINITIVES:</u></li>
</ul>
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #38761d;">I've been thinking whether to quit my job</span> <strike>(if to quit)</strike>. </span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="color: #38761d;">She can't make up her mind whether to marry him</span> <strike>(if to marry him).</strike></i></span></div>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>DIRECTLY BEFORE <i>OR NOT:</i></u></span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Please, tell me whether or not you agree (<strike>if or not</strike>)</i></span></div>
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(Note that <i>or not</i> can be placed at the end of the sentence. In that case, <i>if</i> is possible: <i>Please, tell me if you agree or not</i>).</span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>WHEN <i>WHETHER</i> STARTS A CLAUSE:</u></span></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Whether she liked the present, I don't know.</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Whether he comes or not is nor my concern.</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I don't care whether you study or waste your time.</i></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(If we use <i>if </i>in these contexts it would be understood as a condition)</span></div>
<ul style="text-align: justify;">
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>WHEN <i>WHETHER</i> EXPLAINS SOMETHING THAT COMES BEFORE:</u></span></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="color: #38761d;">You have to answer my question, whether I can count on you</span> </i>(that is my question).</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></span></div>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></span></h3>
<h3 style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: x-large;">Use ONLY <i>if</i> in the following contexts:</span></span></h3>
<ul>
<li><u style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">TO INTRODUCE A CONDITION:</u></li>
</ul>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i></i></span><br />
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>If I had the chance I would travel all around the world.</i></span></i></span></div>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>
If it hadn't been for my family, I wouldn't have got so far.</i></span><br />
<ul>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<span style="background-color: orange; color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">YOUR TURN! :)</span></div>
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now check how much you can remember with the following exercises!</span></div>
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.englishgrammar.org/grammar-exercise-20/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>If</i> or <i>whether</i>: grammar exercise</a></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.learn-english-today.com/lessons/lesson_contents/exercises/whether-if_ex.htm" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>If</i>, <i>whether</i> or <i>whether or not</i></a></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.perfectyourenglish.com/grammarworksheets/whether-if-worksheet.htm"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>If</i>, <i>whether</i> or both (multiple choice)</span></a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="Primeroprrafo">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-62007064930831459452014-11-28T07:00:00.001+01:002014-11-28T07:00:01.707+01:00Exam practice C1 level (I)<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOV36T7OY4h4q9lsiIpGJGjcXBsO1yPJxuEyVLmMZ3eGDYRz4i38cH5zkrk0QnWxH1Fn_WuEaZcGrv56-zGzBHpEscyzaYXXXngeFJziQ5nrsHfKw9T86k7e6wsMY6ytmYvjB8ecSVMA/s1600/C1-level.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOV36T7OY4h4q9lsiIpGJGjcXBsO1yPJxuEyVLmMZ3eGDYRz4i38cH5zkrk0QnWxH1Fn_WuEaZcGrv56-zGzBHpEscyzaYXXXngeFJziQ5nrsHfKw9T86k7e6wsMY6ytmYvjB8ecSVMA/s1600/C1-level.jpeg" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqOedH3ZsCaKWUQ9Q3l6xs0BselVwWDTJ2-N2j-ifiQRs_wDSSuoYamJ73D13QBLuRIK8QrJBpP_pNVNzFHn24c1oPbxbAykD80UkDy9SM4W3ZqpoUNQWvSRqUu9MFO6_O79em-8J1a98/s1600/Exam-practice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The exams are coming closer and I wanted to give you some <strong>exam practice</strong> to get ready!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These exams are all taken from the Cambridge Advanced Certificate in English, which roughly corresponds to a level <b>C1</b>:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>READING</b></span></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_reading1.htm">Reading Part 1</a>: three themed texts with multiple-choice questions</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_reading2.htm">Reading Part 2</a>: text with 6 paragraphs missing</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_reading3.htm">Reading Part 3</a>: long text with multiple-choice questions</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_reading4.htm">Reading Part 4</a>: Multiple matching</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>USE OF ENGLISH</b></span></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_use_of_english1.htm">Use of English Part 1</a>: multiple-choice cloze</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_use_of_english2.htm">Use of English Part 2</a>: open cloze</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_use_of_english_part3.htm">Use of English Part 3</a>: word formation</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/useofenglish4.php">Use of English Part 4</a>: Gapped sentences</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_use_of_english_part5.htm">Use of English Part 5</a>: Key word transformations</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>LISTENING</b></span></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_listening1.htm">Listening Part 1</a>: three short extracts from conversations with multiple-choice questions</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_listening2.htm">Listening Part 2</a>: sentence completion</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_listening3.htm">Listening Part 3</a>: conversation with multiple-choice questions</span></li>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.examenglish.com/CAE/cae_listening4.htm">Listening Part 4</a>: multiple matching</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Good luck! :)</span></div>
Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-74620546634091545122014-11-24T07:00:00.000+01:002014-11-24T10:54:20.954+01:00Learn how to be more descriptive!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi there!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'm sure you've all heard your teachers asking you to use more complex vocabulary, and avoid using words like <i>nice</i>, <i>good</i>, <i>say, ask, </i>etc. Indeed, as we advance in our language learning, we have to be more specific and avoid 'empty words' like the ones I mentioned before.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How can we do that? A very good idea is to compile a list of synonym words and include some linguistic variation when we talk/write. Here I post an example: </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXEqIazTehrLNEipTBdehnvdhK6p_dhlIrVPHsvuSZSRuLTNUpkdhfUu6Cpl2i1lF3KA_NLOG7BeYTx1aJj1S2D_cxSht6EeEyow0iWDlZmJu_q8Y9o7pnb1AqKZB5F5CPyKxZ9Y1e8OQ/s1600/Descriptive-language.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXEqIazTehrLNEipTBdehnvdhK6p_dhlIrVPHsvuSZSRuLTNUpkdhfUu6Cpl2i1lF3KA_NLOG7BeYTx1aJj1S2D_cxSht6EeEyow0iWDlZmJu_q8Y9o7pnb1AqKZB5F5CPyKxZ9Y1e8OQ/s1600/Descriptive-language.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My suggestion is that, for every word, you choose two or three synonyms that you've never used before. Circle/underline them and make an effort to use them in the next few weeks. That way you'll enrich your vocabulary little by little!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let me know how it goes! :)</span></div>
Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-25386734651232770352014-11-19T07:00:00.001+01:002014-11-19T11:58:08.423+01:00Improve your conversations in English!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi everyone!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNWbzJS1IDpftFl59OnKA1iRRl9MNmwrhlU2E_rVOQ2Q5NMUIRNf4UWjzWGLl2WNkmZ30PyvoZbZq-US9nCj0Uwr8PoBmGXtliFFShZLLfemsgbSvAmJTC-bn-6P7mgjS_X4qqN9ZuQxs/s1600/Oral-interaction.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Oral interaction" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNWbzJS1IDpftFl59OnKA1iRRl9MNmwrhlU2E_rVOQ2Q5NMUIRNf4UWjzWGLl2WNkmZ30PyvoZbZq-US9nCj0Uwr8PoBmGXtliFFShZLLfemsgbSvAmJTC-bn-6P7mgjS_X4qqN9ZuQxs/s1600/Oral-interaction.jpg" height="200" title="Oral interaction in English" width="187" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today we're going to focus on speaking and, more specifically, on <b>interaction</b>!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As you know, a language is, above all, a vehicle to <b>communicate with other people</b>. That means that we need to know phrases to express our opinion and ask for theirs, agree or disagree with what they say, ask them to repeat, show interest, etc.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Knowing how to interact is an essential part of our speaking skills in a foreign language. Responding to what other people say and being able to engage them in conversation is of paramount importance. However, explicit training on this issue is sometimes overlooked (<i>pasado por alto</i>) in our language classrooms...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For this reason I have done a compilation of useful phrases that you can use at different levels. Start using them in your conversations in class and you'll see how little by little your communication becomes a lot more natural and fluent!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you find this useful, please feel to share on your social networks!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Basic Levels 1 and 2</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://es.scribd.com/doc/247106090/Interactive-Language-Basic-Level" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Interactive Language - Basic Level on Scribd">Interactive Language - Basic Level</a></div>
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="undefined" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_73318" scrolling="no" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/247106090/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&show_recommendations=true" width="100%"></iframe>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Intermediate Level</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://es.scribd.com/doc/245210189/Interactive-Language-Intermediate-Level" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Interactive Language - Intermediate Level on Scribd">Interactive Language - Intermediate Level</a></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Advanced Levels 1 and 2</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/245209707/Interactive-Language-Advanced-Level" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Interactive Language - Advanced Level on Scribd">Interactive Language - Advanced Level</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/AnaBueno_LearnEnglish" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View AnaBueno_LearnEnglish's profile on Scribd">AnaBueno_LearnEnglish</a></div>
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>C1</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/245209738/Interactive-Language-C1" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Interactive Language - C1 on Scribd">Interactive Language - C1</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/AnaBueno_LearnEnglish" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View AnaBueno_LearnEnglish's profile on Scribd">AnaBueno_LearnEnglish</a></div>
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Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-5304025648493881112014-11-17T07:00:00.001+01:002014-11-17T17:21:24.374+01:00"Bed and breakfast", "fish and chips" and other binomial expressions<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A <strong>binomial</strong> is a combination of two words, normally linked by a conjunction (<i>and </i>or <i>or</i>). Their order is almost always fixed, that is, they are irreversible.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">English is extremely fond of binomials, and when I say "extremely", I do mean "extremely"! If you want to check for yourselves, have a look at</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> this</span><strong style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> <a href="http://www.isabelperez.com/pdf/binomials.pdf">list of binomials</a></strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, with their corresponding meanings. You'll be surprised!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do these ones ring a bell??</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYKUH56R1x8HnGZtKyKcdu3q35fozdUWnnk97cm0UD80WVJrkmxEvxL_PMHKpjNfVu_SL-W4F1LeJE8SIAT_j81ivwVxjKBYPPLpemJakfI4_Ai78WdDIwuAhsoDvpFAc-5YSrjzva9Gk/s1600/Binomials-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYKUH56R1x8HnGZtKyKcdu3q35fozdUWnnk97cm0UD80WVJrkmxEvxL_PMHKpjNfVu_SL-W4F1LeJE8SIAT_j81ivwVxjKBYPPLpemJakfI4_Ai78WdDIwuAhsoDvpFAc-5YSrjzva9Gk/s1600/Binomials-1.png" height="288" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some other common ones include:</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4zH2sMTugwonVACCaiazzZ3nqJDQ-Jtw4zYeHkzqcTht5UwKJ7m32E0Nrgn_UVNEHL0HgoV61iC5fN3ZR04TvPIwiokNbQOENzQCiDuEkM9G29CgPs7CS6XJYD-CiTeFHN1ULK-VSdj4/s1600/Binomials-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4zH2sMTugwonVACCaiazzZ3nqJDQ-Jtw4zYeHkzqcTht5UwKJ7m32E0Nrgn_UVNEHL0HgoV61iC5fN3ZR04TvPIwiokNbQOENzQCiDuEkM9G29CgPs7CS6XJYD-CiTeFHN1ULK-VSdj4/s1600/Binomials-2.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you want to know a few more, check the video below: "<strong>10 common binomial expressions in English"</strong>. She speaks rather slowly, but her explanations and examples are very accurate!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally, for more <b>advanced learners</b>, here I post a handout with some more complex ones. See if you can complete the exercises! </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(The answers are at the end, as usual!)</i><br />
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<a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/244740700/Binomials-pdf" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Binomials.pdf on Scribd">Binomials.pdf</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/AnaBueno_LearnEnglish" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View AnaBueno_LearnEnglish's profile on Scribd">AnaBueno_LearnEnglish</a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, the best way to remember binomials, as every other item of vocabulary, is to place them in context. Choose your favourite ones and post a few examples in the comments below!</span></div>
Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-6118173442089657802014-11-06T07:00:00.000+01:002014-12-03T18:22:16.572+01:00Politics: anti-corruption raids in Spain<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsU8j8i45lHUQkUVS-7nQBGwH_XtwwUIrcs2ppnq1_ICq2sPckRZBZyq8aE0FUrK8td0YrP2iAzJIPAP4aqk7YhzHU5SwgWCBTfZK0k02-mdFnzDPgq8JIsMR7Jc1XR4Oe6TY77t2kGZg/s1600/Politics.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsU8j8i45lHUQkUVS-7nQBGwH_XtwwUIrcs2ppnq1_ICq2sPckRZBZyq8aE0FUrK8td0YrP2iAzJIPAP4aqk7YhzHU5SwgWCBTfZK0k02-mdFnzDPgq8JIsMR7Jc1XR4Oe6TY77t2kGZg/s1600/Politics.jpg" height="216" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi everybody!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today's entry is a summary of one of my lessons and, as you can see, the topic is <b>politics</b>. I'm going to share some of the materials I used in class for you to practise reading, listening and also learn some vocabulary related to politics!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Without a doubt, politics is becoming a hotly debated topic in the streets today because of the countless cases of corruption that are coming to light. What characteristics do you think every politician should have? Would you include some of the ideas below? (please, look up the new words in a dictionary).</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCtVXJU7qbUBmFjAWYbN4Ku6TkQL558V1TocmRFk4HCcPKYtBMBy91H5ReUBlkpYTactFBxgbNuCzX0BVuXOHhkDU9LQjMrmnTEeGrvXHXEE8yuBiuz74vqEeagm2W3XiG9dwZV4j3T9Y/s1600/Politics-vocabulary.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCtVXJU7qbUBmFjAWYbN4Ku6TkQL558V1TocmRFk4HCcPKYtBMBy91H5ReUBlkpYTactFBxgbNuCzX0BVuXOHhkDU9LQjMrmnTEeGrvXHXEE8yuBiuz74vqEeagm2W3XiG9dwZV4j3T9Y/s1600/Politics-vocabulary.png" height="249" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Every time there is a "domestic" scandal, it is well-advised to investigate a little bit and see how the international press is covering it. Is the image of Spain abroad changing? For the better or for the worse? Have a look at the following three newspaper articles and see for yourselves:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/28/us-spain-corruption-apology-idUSKBN0IH1V320141028">Spain's Prime Minister says sorry for corruption</a> (Reuters) </span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/reuters/article-2809612/Spanish-police-arrest-dozens-300-million-corruption-case.html">Spanish police arrest dozens in €300 million corruption case</a> (Dailymail)</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/08/spanish-cristina-corruption-probe_n_4750749.html">Infanta Cristina, daughter of Spanish king, testified in corruption probe</a> (Huffington Post)</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After reading the articles, take some time to think about the following questions:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What are the main points put forward?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How is Spain depicted?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Is there any reference to the Spanish citizens' attitude towards these events?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How do you feel about the articles?</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally, we're going to end with a short video from Euronews. Watch it the first time to see how much you understand. Then do the listening activity below (the answers are at the end of the document, as usual!)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="351" mozallowfullscreen="true" scrolling="no" src="https://uk.news.yahoo.com/video/spain-dozens-arrested-anti-corruption-152403527.html?format=embed&player_autoplay=false" webkitallowfullscreen="true" width="624"></iframe></span></div>
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<a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/249056019/Dozens-Arrested-in-Anticorruption-Raids" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Dozens Arrested in Anticorruption Raids on Scribd">Dozens Arrested in Anticorruption Raids</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/AnaBueno_LearnEnglish" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View AnaBueno_LearnEnglish's profile on Scribd">AnaBueno_LearnEnglish</a></div>
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="0.7080062794348508" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_24840" scrolling="no" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/249056019/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-1C7OWR6dJpzS4ltqzIET&show_recommendations=true" width="100%"></iframe>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After these activities I hope you now have some more ideas and vocabulary to talk about this so up-to-date topic!</span>Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-45525834166546839232014-11-03T07:00:00.001+01:002014-11-05T13:27:28.283+01:00Stop sounding like a book!<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA7pFqV_jwQ8VFtxEpSW2HsPBNHvAkmDfPUfuUUgvR3WgQOY1sZHZpm-fkc7Vr6eC6Ntm-hrJ0uJZqnHcx0HqjmxyTjj5J6CsDyQ0JBsGKBlpjyE7u1e2qHJCLSXOBaKEXJz_oQGYO-Cw/s1600/You-wish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA7pFqV_jwQ8VFtxEpSW2HsPBNHvAkmDfPUfuUUgvR3WgQOY1sZHZpm-fkc7Vr6eC6Ntm-hrJ0uJZqnHcx0HqjmxyTjj5J6CsDyQ0JBsGKBlpjyE7u1e2qHJCLSXOBaKEXJz_oQGYO-Cw/s1600/You-wish.jpg" height="158" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi there!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today I'm going to post some useful expressions that will help you sound a lot more natural in English!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They're mainly short comments to continue the conversation and respond to what the other person said. Things like <b><i>ya te digo</i>;<i> ¡ni de broma</i>!; <i>me lo dices o me lo cuentas;</i> <i>lo que tú digas</i>,</b> etc.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Useful, right? Check them out!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz5x-f_Rr-eiu_ZdoW0EU_ZBC2u2xnUqBOmDgA4bYBUM3IGwimSZ9yq_m556O34mztUawttpZbbDW7RXZTHFJR5HDSmL3eGZHl9f97sm8nIABCJn4DsM0TJsV0aB5TK9ox37W5mh33IZU/s1600/Oral-interaction-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz5x-f_Rr-eiu_ZdoW0EU_ZBC2u2xnUqBOmDgA4bYBUM3IGwimSZ9yq_m556O34mztUawttpZbbDW7RXZTHFJR5HDSmL3eGZHl9f97sm8nIABCJn4DsM0TJsV0aB5TK9ox37W5mh33IZU/s1600/Oral-interaction-1.png" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipVdbsMb5IZmYGdlEC3pNDlvzTR74BugHsW_cJs7EkoCR0FU3oW9FxRD481H53P5iC43JirYbOlfaH1WZXCedNrcRXMOWguEjpn0cdSJRhxsLN-ui2B5GG5cxPeU1djZNDZkBMQ8vLUXU/s1600/Oral-interaction-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipVdbsMb5IZmYGdlEC3pNDlvzTR74BugHsW_cJs7EkoCR0FU3oW9FxRD481H53P5iC43JirYbOlfaH1WZXCedNrcRXMOWguEjpn0cdSJRhxsLN-ui2B5GG5cxPeU1djZNDZkBMQ8vLUXU/s1600/Oral-interaction-2.png" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinv-37dsm6VQKCtSakddGPjhjf6Dm7AfnKKm6kbHSByFQ7xjjF_s1Hf5Ki_2ws0MCOfHJ1OitAKkn7spOYOj2A-xTEy6B5pePcttaHBs9JWRpoEtBZwZVkiR2t7373nWVxn_cK9rdK7qs/s1600/Oral-interaction-3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinv-37dsm6VQKCtSakddGPjhjf6Dm7AfnKKm6kbHSByFQ7xjjF_s1Hf5Ki_2ws0MCOfHJ1OitAKkn7spOYOj2A-xTEy6B5pePcttaHBs9JWRpoEtBZwZVkiR2t7373nWVxn_cK9rdK7qs/s1600/Oral-interaction-3.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Had you heard any of these expressions before? Check their meaning in a dictionary or at <a href="http://www.linguee.es/">www.linguee.es</a>. Then practise with this online exercise from the <a href="http://www.yes-mag.com/yes-exercise-number-42/?utm_source=Yes+Magazine&utm_campaign=a9e540f820-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_0aa762b955-a9e540f820-67441157">Yes! Magazine</a>. After that, why don't you write a short dialogue with as many expressions as you can?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Enjoy!! :)</span><br />
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Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-6143323125134459442014-10-27T07:00:00.001+01:002014-10-29T13:21:00.499+01:00The police is... or are? - Singular and plural invariable nouns<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi there!</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XICVDJhL0hM/VDQm0DoyFCI/AAAAAAAAAYU/SmMhnGYAZME/s1600/Captura%2Bde%2Bpantalla%2B2014-10-07%2Ba%2Bla(s)%2B19.45.23.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a></div>
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4dioUNEhXwo/VFDbgLSp0BI/AAAAAAAAAq4/dbPy3a7W2Lc/s1600/Invariable-nouns.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Invariable nouns" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4dioUNEhXwo/VFDbgLSp0BI/AAAAAAAAAq4/dbPy3a7W2Lc/s1600/Invariable-nouns.png" height="112" title="" width="200" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The other day in class some of you asked me about nouns which are always singular, and nouns which are always plural. This is important for the ageement (<i>concordancia</i>) with the verb and pronouns.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, here you have a complete list of those nouns!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Nouns which are always singular </b>(singular invariable nouns)</span></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Proper nouns</u>, e.g. <span style="color: #38761d;">Sally, Bruce, Jamie.</span></span></li>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Uncountable nouns</u>. If we want to count them, we have three options:</span></li>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> 1. Measures: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">one pound of butter; two litres of milk; three kilos of sugar...</span></i> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> 2. Partitives: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">a piece of, a bit of, an item of...</span></i> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> 3. Specific counters: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">a flash of lighting; a word of advice; a burst of applause...</span></i></span></div>
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<ul><u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
<li style="text-align: justify;"><u>Some nouns ending in -s</u></li>
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1.<i> News</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> 2. Subjects and sciences which finish in <i>-ics</i>: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">linguistics, politics, phonetics...</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> 3. Some games: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">billiards, draughts, darts, dominoes...</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> 4. Certain diseases: <i><a href="http://www.wordreference.com/es/translation.asp?tranword=measles">measles</a>, <a href="http://www.wordreference.com/es/translation.asp?tranword=mumps">mumps</a>, <a href="http://www.wordreference.com/es/translation.asp?tranword=rickets">rickets</a>, <a href="http://www.wordreference.com/es/translation.asp?tranword=shingles">shingles</a>...</i></span></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Collective nouns</u>, which refer to groups of single entities. The verb can be either singular or plural; the decision depends on whether the speaker is thinking of the group of a whole or as a collection of individuals:</span></li>
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<i><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Government, team, company, council, committee...</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Nouns which are always plural </b>(plural invariable nouns)</span></div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tools, instruments and articles of clothing which consist of two parts joined together: <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>glasses, scissors, binoculars, spectacles, trousers, jeans, trunks, tights, shorts...</i></span></span></li>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nouns that refer to entities which comprise an indefinite number of parts: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">clothes, outskirts, stairs, surroundings, goods, remains...</span></i></span></li>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some proper nouns: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">the Netherlands</span> </i>or<i> <span style="color: #38761d;">the States</span></i></span></li>
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<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nouns that do not have an <i>-s,</i> but are plural anyway: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">police, people, staff, clergy, folk, cattle, poultry, livestock</span></i></span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Useful? :)</span></div>
Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-5769443727563085572014-10-20T10:00:00.001+02:002014-10-23T01:41:01.062+02:00Emphatic structures (1): Cleft and pseudo-cleft sentences<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOo3IkVAYJrumOji9csf7HAmZ1GWYByKLx3vgm6X3roPw7PctyyxJzzN4S98oidq61z5u0voYLvIBvTcgoGKjZbJu71jRhyphenhyphenOblhCdumFxE5U3diK2K4ECrwGlexFxgG5i1EtQjZN5vD3s/s1600/Cleft+sentence.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img alt="Cleft sentence" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOo3IkVAYJrumOji9csf7HAmZ1GWYByKLx3vgm6X3roPw7PctyyxJzzN4S98oidq61z5u0voYLvIBvTcgoGKjZbJu71jRhyphenhyphenOblhCdumFxE5U3diK2K4ECrwGlexFxgG5i1EtQjZN5vD3s/s1600/Cleft+sentence.png" height="205" title="Cleft and pseudo-cleft sentence" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi there!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today we are going to be concerned with <b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">emphatic structures</span></b>. English offers many different ways to give prominence to specific parts of the sentence and we'll explore all of them little by little.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In this entry we are going to focus on </span><strong style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">cleft </strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">and</span><strong style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> pseudo-cleft sentences</strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, which allow us to emphasize different parts of the sentence by dividing it into two parts (these two parts will be marked with a double slash // )</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong><span style="color: #0b5394;">Cleft sentences</span> </strong>are formed with <i>it is/it was + </i>emphasized element + relative clause. Different parts of the sentence can be emphasised in this way:</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="Ejemplo" style="line-height: 150%;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN-US">Dave lent me his car last week.</span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="Ejemplo" style="line-height: 150%; margin-left: 82.35pt;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">a.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN-US">It was <u>Dave</u> // who/that lent me his car last week.</span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="Ejemplo" style="line-height: 150%; margin-left: 82.35pt;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">b.<span style="font-size: 7pt; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN-US">It was <u>his car</u> // that/which Dave lent me last week.</span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div class="Ejemplo" style="line-height: 150%; margin-left: 82.35pt;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i style="line-height: 150%;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US">c.<span style="font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><span lang="EN-US">It was <u>last week</u> // that/when Dave lent me his car.</span></span></i></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We can also find examples with </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">because</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was because he was angry // that he didn't come to the cinema.</span></i></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong><span style="color: #0b5394;">Pseudo-cleft sentences</span></strong> are introduced by <i>what </i>and the emphasis is postponed to the end (in cleft-sentences the emphasis is at the beginning):</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Dave lent me his car last night --> What Dave lent me last night // was <u>his car</u>.</i></span> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>I love rainy days --> What I love // are <u>rainy days</u>.</i></span> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>You need a rest --> What you need // is <u>a rest</u>.</i></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We can also emphasise events using the auxiliaries <i>do/did</i>:</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Peter forgot his keys at the cinema --> What Peter did // was (to) <u>forget his keys at the cinema</u>.</i></span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>We are destroying our planet --> What we are doing // is (to) <u>destroy our planet.</u></i></span></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Last but not least, we can also start a sentence with <i>all</i> to mean "the only thing".</span></div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I only need you --> All I need // is <u>you</u></span></i></div>
</blockquote>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you need more information, click on the following links on </span><a href="http://www.grammaring.com/cleft-sentences" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">cleft sentences</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> and </span><a href="http://www.grammaring.com/pseudo-cleft-sentences" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">pseudo-cleft sentences</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Finally, download the following document if you want some practise! (The answers are at the end of the document).</span></div>
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<div style="-x-system-font: none; display: block; font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 12px auto 6px auto;">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/243200310/Cleft-and-pseudo-cleft-sentences-pdf" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Cleft and pseudo-cleft sentences.pdf on Scribd">Cleft and pseudo-cleft sentences.pdf</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/ana_uk877884" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View ana_uk877884's profile on Scribd">ana_uk877884</a></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="0.7080062794348508" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_46801" scrolling="no" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/243200310/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-RNOrQeok0EYeSOtFpD2K&show_recommendations=true" width="100%"></iframe>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
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Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-69792721091351800462014-10-17T10:00:00.001+02:002015-10-01T19:45:09.732+02:00Urban legends<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi there!</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCL3Bk0j6EBrdi5I2Xcku52AWnWDR6Hi21w7j0Y6krCtP9SNtjX4qz-tSdrXVdoxPsQcLeT2ZVvIIyCQYXuV9pkB2UhNK8U1hgqGMODSOsO3Xji4vp-WhroAJLbNK6f9c6_t8N_LSTu0g/s1600/Urban_legends.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img alt="Urban legends" border="0" height="150" legends="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCL3Bk0j6EBrdi5I2Xcku52AWnWDR6Hi21w7j0Y6krCtP9SNtjX4qz-tSdrXVdoxPsQcLeT2ZVvIIyCQYXuV9pkB2UhNK8U1hgqGMODSOsO3Xji4vp-WhroAJLbNK6f9c6_t8N_LSTu0g/s1600/Urban_legends.jpg" title="Urban legends" urban="" width="200" /></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
Today we are going to talk about <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d; font-weight: bold;">urban legends</span><span class="Apple-style-span">, which are a form of modern folklore made up of stories whose truth is doubtful, but which nonetheless spread like wildfire!</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
In the document below you have several urban legends taken from <a href="http://www.snopes.com/">www.snopes.com</a> (this website is ideal if you want to check if a spreading rumour is true or not!!). Take some time to think whether you believe these stories, and then check clicking on the link at the bottom of the page!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<div style="display: block; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 12px auto 6px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/243201388/Urban-legends-pdf" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Urban legends.pdf on Scribd">Urban legends.pdf</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/ana_uk877884" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View ana_uk877884's profile on Scribd">ana_uk877884</a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="0.7729220222793488" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_53046" scrolling="no" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/243201388/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-3eoUv5WTWfGXq4fIcjbC&show_recommendations=true" width="100%"></iframe>
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</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Once you read that, take some time to watch this video about the 25 most popular urban legends still being told!</span><br />
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</span><br />
<div class="youtube" id="8ThQcXnW2g4" style="border: none; display: block; height: 315px; margin: 0 auto; width: 560px;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
Are there any urban legends famous in your area? Please share them in a comment! :)</span>Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-19995254876375301662014-10-15T10:00:00.000+02:002014-10-21T12:06:52.784+02:00The Scottish referendum<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">The last 18th of September took place the Scottish referendum/opinion poll to decide whether Scotland should continue being part of the United Kingdom or become an independent country. The image below, taken from the Scottish National Party's (SNP) website, tries to provide evidence as to how Scotland could manage away from the United Kingdom:</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpgQ0E0p4qqP19SrPT_TFoj5b8CU8BoHKmbKUAs-G0D_ByZRQjxB-n1rd0CHdCY-ZA-F-n_2aeCLbMJReQ7TKNCsaCBmcCW_hN8qa5QHS0iQZe7a9OTPx35ZLvmJkX8c7iLlQiOcgU3TI/s1600/Scotland_referendum_pinterest.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img alt="Scottish referendum" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpgQ0E0p4qqP19SrPT_TFoj5b8CU8BoHKmbKUAs-G0D_ByZRQjxB-n1rd0CHdCY-ZA-F-n_2aeCLbMJReQ7TKNCsaCBmcCW_hN8qa5QHS0iQZe7a9OTPx35ZLvmJkX8c7iLlQiOcgU3TI/s1600/Scotland_referendum_pinterest.png" height="320" title="Referendum in Scotland" width="290" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>(On the issue of how Scotland and England became united, visit <a href="http://anabuenoeoi.blogspot.com.es/2014/10/how-did-scotland-and-england-become.html">this entry</a>)</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Below I post a video of the very same day 18th September, with everybody getting ready for the referendum to start. Scroll down for the listening activity (answers at the end of the document).</span></div>
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<div class="youtube" id="t2y0hDbi488" style="border: none; display: block; height: 315px; margin: 0 auto; width: 560px;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<div style="display: block; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 12px auto 6px;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/242391351/Scotland-decides-pdf" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View Scotland decides.pdf on Scribd">Scotland decides.pdf</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/ana_uk877884" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View ana_uk877884's profile on Scribd">ana_uk877884</a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-66944440908218248332014-10-07T17:55:00.001+02:002014-10-17T13:24:20.161+02:00Can you use the word "indeed"? Indeed I can!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwLAhbHSBZm7xs5GFNlxhNzpEa1mEhQn6sIVQbooSfLIQD_10OeMhlOQTsEeAOzyaStXjjCkOwjpwyuH1Ez90SB-Y0hW-sit2aNLUn7LIZIiJKOOUunbUgFDs_A-X74DKffvOL34yDg-c/s1600/7WhiteShadowApplied_thumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; color: #444444; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<h3 style="text-align: right;">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>B2, C1</i></b></span></h3>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwLAhbHSBZm7xs5GFNlxhNzpEa1mEhQn6sIVQbooSfLIQD_10OeMhlOQTsEeAOzyaStXjjCkOwjpwyuH1Ez90SB-Y0hW-sit2aNLUn7LIZIiJKOOUunbUgFDs_A-X74DKffvOL34yDg-c/s1600/7WhiteShadowApplied_thumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwLAhbHSBZm7xs5GFNlxhNzpEa1mEhQn6sIVQbooSfLIQD_10OeMhlOQTsEeAOzyaStXjjCkOwjpwyuH1Ez90SB-Y0hW-sit2aNLUn7LIZIiJKOOUunbUgFDs_A-X74DKffvOL34yDg-c/s1600/7WhiteShadowApplied_thumb.jpg" height="149" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #444444;">In yesterday’s class we discussed the possible uses and meanings of the word </span><i><span style="color: #3d85c6;">indeed</span></i><span style="color: #444444;">, which can be a bit tricky to translate. Some of you suggested it was synonymous with “in fact”, although in some cases it can also mean something like “certainly”, “very” or it can even be used to express surprise - “you’re telling me!” (¡</span><i style="color: #444444;">no me digas!</i><span style="color: #444444;">).</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span><br />
<div style="color: #444444; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To start with, the word <i>indeed</i> originates from the Latin phrase <i>in dede</i>, which meant “in truth”. This meaning can clearly be seen in all of the following four uses:</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<ul style="color: #444444;">
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When it is used after <i>very</i> + an adjective/adverb, it has a clearly emphatic meaning: </span></li>
</ul>
<i><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thank you <u>very much indeed</u>.</span></i><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was <u>very happy indeed </u>to hear about your results!</span></i></div>
<div style="color: #393318; text-align: justify;">
</div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It can be used to emphasize a positive statement or answer:</span></li>
</ul>
<i style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That is indeed the person I was talking about.</span></i><br />
<i style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They are indeed braver than most people.</span></i><br />
<i style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘Was he very upset?’ ‘Indeed he was!’</span></i><br />
<i style="text-align: justify;"><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">‘Do you agree?’ ‘Yes, indeed.’</span></i><br />
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the beginning of a sentence, it is used to complete or add information to a statement. In other words<span style="color: #444444;">, </span><i>indeed</i> provides emphasis or indicates that the sentence is evidence/an example of what was said previously.</span></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes, I passed the exam. Indeed, I got the highest mark in the whole class.</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You don’t have to thank me. Indeed, I am delighted to help.</span></i></div>
<div style="min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i></i><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>The economic crisis has a negative influence on how much we spend. </i><i>Indeed</i><i>, foreign investments have never been as low.</i></span></div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As an interjection, <i>indeed</i> indicates surprise or sarcastic doubt. In this use, <i>indeed</i> is often the only word in the sentence.</span></li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #38761d;">"He thinks she'll marry him??" "Indeed!" </span>(¡Vaya si lo piensa!)</span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hope you now have a clearer idea of how to use the word <i>indeed</i>! If you still have any questions or doubts, or simply want to say how useful you found this entry, feel free to post a comment below!</span></div>
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<i><br /></i></div>
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These days in class we've been talking about cities that had dramatically changed in the last decades.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today I post a video from the Reuters agency on the tornado that devastated Oklahoma last August 2013. I believe it is a good example of how a city can recover after a natural disaster of this scale.</span><br />
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Below you have the video and the "pdf" with the listening activity (please, find the answers at the end of the document, as usual).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/242039438/School-reopens-in-Oklahoma-town-pdf" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View School reopens in Oklahoma town.pdf on Scribd">School reopens in Oklahoma town.pdf</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/ana_uk877884" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View ana_uk877884's profile on Scribd">ana_uk877884</a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="0.7080062794348508" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_50596" scrolling="no" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/242039438/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-kt4yp9tAmN46B8fTAb55&show_recommendations=true" width="100%"></iframe></span>Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-4154595402218416172014-09-30T13:36:00.002+02:002014-10-17T13:23:42.568+02:00Saxon genitive ('s) or of + noun?<h3 style="text-align: right;">
<span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>B2, C1</i></b></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>"Saxon genitive ('s) or of + noun?</b><b>... that is the question."</b></span></h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWNZdXHy6JMcfEtV1-53I_NOSM8M-GzXtO-biDCYTVicG60JJcsPIhiqT3ZEwqmJZZrsVdX0rHPjpsHzsGGSOAK60BtBHxkb3H4r3RHn5LUg2QOXcaQYUxCztkv6A1NKq8z5cn9ffUCk/s1600/question-mark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMWNZdXHy6JMcfEtV1-53I_NOSM8M-GzXtO-biDCYTVicG60JJcsPIhiqT3ZEwqmJZZrsVdX0rHPjpsHzsGGSOAK60BtBHxkb3H4r3RHn5LUg2QOXcaQYUxCztkv6A1NKq8z5cn9ffUCk/s1600/question-mark.jpg" height="200" width="131" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Choosing between the Saxon Genitive ('s) or the structure "<i>of</i> + noun" can sometimes be difficult. Below I include all the factors that influence the choice. I'm sorry if the explanation is a bit too technical, but it's the only one there is...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To start with, it is important to note that there are lexical, syntactic, communicative and relational factors influencing the choice between the Saxon genitive and a prepositional phrase (<i>of</i>).</span></div>
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Lexical factor </b>(related to vocabulary)</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When the possessor is a <u>person</u>, the genitive is preferred, <i>e.g.</i> <span style="color: #38761d;"><i>John's boat</i></span>.</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Syntactic factor </b>(related to grammar)</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If the noun has a very long modifier, we prefer the <i>of</i>-construction, <i>e.g.</i></span><br />
<i><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The answer of the student who was sitting next to the window</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(<b>NOT</b> <strike>The student who was sitting next to the window's answer</strike>).</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Communicative factor</b>, depending on where we want to lay emphasis:</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="color: #38761d;">The world's <u>economy</u></span></i> --> emphasis on <i>economy</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="color: #38761d;">The economy of the <u>world</u></span></i> --> emphasis on <i>the world</i>.</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Relational factor</b> (related to the relation between the words)</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">- Partitive meaning: the <i>of</i>-construction is preferred --> <i><span style="color: #38761d;">A glass of water; a pint of beer</span></i></span><br />
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- Object relation: it favours the <i>of-</i>construction: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">The imprisonment of the murderer </span> </i>(they put the murderer in prison - object)</span><br />
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- In subject relations both are equally used: <i><span style="color: #38761d;">the arrival of the train / the train's arrival</span> </i>(the train arrived - subject).</span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaXFjZm89wQxD5VAnLYz47WFendhTG3EJinECoE2s3OMBjhGyKT04GD1ot1YqzzozDVY3NIUi34vGl6GZWwC5UhvK3VBIUA0OkCxvhtnNW3Wn5cg-glU8iHD9kp7su25TmTRZHknMhuts/s1600/clipart-thumbs-up-happy-smiley-emoticon-256x256-8595.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaXFjZm89wQxD5VAnLYz47WFendhTG3EJinECoE2s3OMBjhGyKT04GD1ot1YqzzozDVY3NIUi34vGl6GZWwC5UhvK3VBIUA0OkCxvhtnNW3Wn5cg-glU8iHD9kp7su25TmTRZHknMhuts/s1600/clipart-thumbs-up-happy-smiley-emoticon-256x256-8595.png" height="189" width="200" /></span></a><br />
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Well, I hope this explanation has been useful!</span><br />
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If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below!</span><br />
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Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-18845642565527332242014-09-15T12:58:00.000+02:002014-10-17T13:21:16.904+02:00What is a Level C1?<div style="text-align: right;">
<b><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">C1</span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hi there!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKMWUdME6_wtIEOfL4I-mlllXzzCe1zJ8y4KaiM5Db30ecs9hiaaegHdHhW3ZwGBiNjFX7AW9Spg3ZIOOocD9H4YCw1kLAM1xjaZ3lFeYGvORi3eE8i6daqyoThIdYhEtVCedlKqRBS1s/s1600/council_of_europe_logo11-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKMWUdME6_wtIEOfL4I-mlllXzzCe1zJ8y4KaiM5Db30ecs9hiaaegHdHhW3ZwGBiNjFX7AW9Spg3ZIOOocD9H4YCw1kLAM1xjaZ3lFeYGvORi3eE8i6daqyoThIdYhEtVCedlKqRBS1s/s1600/council_of_europe_logo11-2.jpg" height="161" width="200" /></span></a></div>
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</span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuzu4k58Dy16ob1wb_0woDmJ7AFBz1PIInnOcapf6PEpQH-AvyPNNdHuEeabdTkkXhR7RbnMxKwiCZctzx9f0lKZE3N8XJ4VgHLbx6aUhAyRWz8rvOOD6PW-5zTSZkYb4Cd8oceEPytAA/s1600/council_of_europe_logo11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As you know, in the last years people are increasingly enrolling in C1, but many of them don't really know what it is asked for at this level.</span><br />
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For many it's a continuation of level B2, but once you start you'll realise there's a big jump between one and the other. Therefore, from the very beginning of the year I believe it convenient for you to get acquainted with what C1 level really means.</span><br />
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With this purpose in mind I've selected this information from the <a href="http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/linguistic/source/framework_en.pdf">Common European Framework</a>, which perfectly sets the objectives in the different skills.</span><br />
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Now that you know what we have ahead this year... pull your socks and get down to work! :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.scribd.com/doc/242041186/What-is-a-level-C1-pdf" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View What is a level C1.pdf on Scribd">What is a level C1.pdf</a> by <a href="https://www.scribd.com/ana_uk877884" style="text-decoration: underline;" title="View ana_uk877884's profile on Scribd">ana_uk877884</a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe class="scribd_iframe_embed" data-aspect-ratio="0.7080062794348508" data-auto-height="false" frameborder="0" height="600" id="doc_61718" scrolling="no" src="https://www.scribd.com/embeds/242041186/content?start_page=1&view_mode=scroll&access_key=key-w4CRV6eLVPJsPknWAWKV&show_recommendations=true" width="100%"></iframe></span>Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-40413439845084477662013-11-03T19:43:00.001+01:002014-10-17T13:18:17.820+02:00Language, culture and identity: the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis<div style="text-align: right;">
<i><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>B2, C1</b></span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Hi there!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today's entry is devoted to the relationship between language, culture and identity: believe it or not, the language we speak shapes the way we are, feel and behave, as it also affects the way our brain works. At the same time, our language is always deeply rooted in one particular culture, which determines the way we think and the way we conceptualize the world.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">However, to what extent is that determination true?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Would you agree with the following sentence? What implications does it have?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="color: #0b5394;">"Without a culture we cannot see,</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span style="color: #0b5394;">but with a culture we are forever blind</span>.<span style="color: #0b5394;">"</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>K.J. Irving</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #38761d;">Sapir-Whorf hypothesis</span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> holds that the structure of a language affects the perceptions of reality of its speakers and thus influences their thought patterns and world views. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Therefore, people who speak different languages can "live" the world from different perspectives and therefore have a richer experience.</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you are interested in this subject, check out the video below. I must admit it might be a little bit too technical, but it will give you a good picture of what the Sapir-Whort hypothesis defends.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>NB: </b>If you open the video on YouTube, you can activate the option "subtitles", although I'm afraid they're only available in Spanish...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Enjoy!</span></div>
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<div class="youtube" id="Df25r8pcuI8" style="border: none; display: block; height: 315px; margin: 0 auto; width: 560px;">
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Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7363556292968816047.post-91933078346733868742013-10-07T19:44:00.002+02:002014-10-23T13:07:54.820+02:0042 Idiom Origins<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHVB0Wycks0Fi8pARAYoGjI_mbyY7w8ATP6jfegtsXQEbDg0zXulh6Wvq7JC9LNlcBTWVW5J2pF1eBdXFqydT-DijyOAHWpf6hhmrA0hxHrp8FWyOfqSeWKdLzSejaFWwgPPOAJTqj5Kw/s1600/I+LOVE+WORDS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHVB0Wycks0Fi8pARAYoGjI_mbyY7w8ATP6jfegtsXQEbDg0zXulh6Wvq7JC9LNlcBTWVW5J2pF1eBdXFqydT-DijyOAHWpf6hhmrA0hxHrp8FWyOfqSeWKdLzSejaFWwgPPOAJTqj5Kw/s200/I+LOVE+WORDS.jpg" height="171" width="200" /></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you are a "word nerd", check out the following video: the origin of 42 idioms explained in under 10 minutes!</span></div>
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Ana Buenohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08401439195588360652noreply@blogger.com0