Happy new year!!

Hi guys!! :)

It's been a while but I'm back to wish you a very very very happy new year! And to do so, I'd also like to show you how the new year is celebrated in some of the most popular English-speaking cities. Let's have a look!

London

New Year's Eve at London's South Bank is festive in a way you don't see for 363 days of the year. The pubs and restaurants that face the Thames are full and cheerful, as people prepare to bid the previous year adieu. Towards midnight, everyone makes their way over to the footpath for Big Ben's countdown to midnight. When the clock strikes twelve, one of the most spectacular firework displays in the UK kicks off on another of the city's most recognisable structures: The London Eye.

New York

One of the most prominent celebrations in the country is the "ball drop" held in New York City's Times Square. Inspired by the time balls that were formally used as a time signal, at 11:59 p.m. ET, an 11,875-pound (5,386 kg), 12-foot (3.7 m) diameter Waterford crystal ball located on the roof of One Times Square is lowered down a pole that is 70 feet high, reaching the roof of the building one minute later to signal the start of the New Year. The Ball Drop has been held since 1907, and in recent years has averaged around a million spectators annually. After the ball drop, there is an amazing show with many stars right in the middle of Times Square where they usually sing, among many others, a song which is considered the new year's anthem: Auld Lang Syne. 

Auld Land Syne is a very well known Scottish poem turned into a song whose title could be translated as "long long ago". Consequently "For auld lang syne", as it appears in the first line of the chorus, might be translated as "for (the sake of) old times" or, in Spanish "por los viejos tiempos".

Here I show you an extract the comedy film "New year's Eve" where you can listen to this popular song. Check the lyrics out! They are very beautiful :)

Should old acquaintance be forgot --¿Deberían olvidarse las viejas amistades
And never brought to mind --y nunca volver a recordarse?
Should all acquaintance be forgot --¿Deberían olvidarse las viejas amistades 

And auld lang syne --y los viejos tiempos?

For auld lang syne, my dear, --por los viejos tiempos, amigo
For auld lang syne, --por los viejos tiempos
We'll take a cup o' kindness yet, --brindaremos
For auld lang syne ---por los viejos tiempos

And surely you will buy your cup --y seguro comprarás tu copa
And surely I'll buy mine --y yo la mía
And we'll take a cup o'kindness yet  --y brindaremos
For auld lang syne --por los viejos tiempos

We too have run around the slopes --Los dos hemos correteado por las colinas
And picked the daisies fine --y hemos recogido margaritas
We've londoned many weary foot --hemos caminado con pies cansados
Since auld lang syne --desde los viejos tiempos

For auld lang syne, my dear, --por los viejos tiempos, amigo
For auld lang syne, --por los viejos tiempos
We'll take a cup o' kindness yet, --brindaremos
For auld lang syne ---por los viejos tiempos

We too have paddled in the stream --También hemos sorteado la corriente
From morning sun to night --día y noche
But the seas between us broad have roared --pero han rugido mares entre nosotros
From auld lang syne --desde los viejos tiempos

For auld lang syne, my dear, --por los viejos tiempos, amigo
For auld lang syne, --por los viejos tiempos
We'll take a cup o' kindness yet, --brindaremos
For auld lang syne ---por los viejos tiempos
We'll take a cup o' kindness yet, --brindaremos
For auld lang syne ---por los viejos tiempos

 

Thanksgiving

Each year on the fourth Thursday in November, Americans gather for a day of feasting, football and family. While today’s Thanksgiving celebrations would likely be unrecognizable to attendees of the original 1621 harvest meal, it continues to be a day for Americans to come together around the table—although with some updates to pilgrim’s menu.

The history of Thanksgiving:

In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast that is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. For more than two centuries, days of thanksgiving were celebrated by individual colonies and states. It wasn’t until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be held each November.

Would you like to know more? Check this link!! 

http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving

The Thanksgiving Parade

The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade presented by the U.S.-based retail store chain Macy's. The tradition started in 1924,tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States, along with America's Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit. The three-hour Macy's event is held in New York City starting at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on Thanksgiving Day, and has been televised nationally on NBC since 1952.

Do you want to see it?

Good luck with your exams!!! See you in class! :) 

Blanket + popcorn + movie = Sunday night

Hi guys!!

How are you doing? I have just checked the TV guide and there are some good movies you can watch today if you feel like it!! Come on! As you know, it's always a good way to learn English and have fun at the same time! Don't forget to activate the English audio on your TV!

Antena 3: 22:45

The Da Vinci Code 

Director: Ron Howard

Stars: Tom Hanks, Audrey Tatou

A murder inside the Louvre and clues in Da Vinci paintings lead to the discovery of a religious mystery protected by a secret society for two thousand years.

TVE: 22:10

The Social Network

 

Director: David Fincher

Stars: Andrew Garfield, Jesse Eisenberg, Justin Timberlake

Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg creates the social networking site that would become known as Facebook, but is later sued by two brothers who claimed he stole their idea, and the cofounder who was later squeezed out of the business.

Before leaving, I wanted to show you some links where you can find some exercises to practice grammar (present and past perfect for 1º Upper secondary and conditionals for 2º Upper secondary!) 

Present perfect exercises

Past perfect practice

Conditionals

See you soon!! :)

VOA News

Good evening everyone!!

Today I'd like to show you a very interesting webpage I usually recommend to my students: 

VOA News

One of the first things I do every morning when I wake up and before going to bed is reading the news. I normally read two or three different newspapers in Spanish in order to have my own opinion of the facts and, at least, a foreign newspaper. 

That's why I believe it would be a great idea for you to visit VOA NEWS, since it is a site which is focused on English Learning through news. There are three different levels and you can read and listen to the audio to check your understanding. It's fantastic! You can improve your vocabulary about many different topics as well as your listening skills!

I hope you like it! :)

More films to watch + more writing tips

Hey guys!!

How are you doing today?? Have you been studying for the exam? I hope so! :P 

I believe at this point you know how much I love watching films and TV series. Well, guess what? Today I'd like to recommend two more great films you can watch on the TV in order to practice your listening skills. Apart from that, you can learn some new vocabulary and, what is even more important, you can have fun while you are learning English!! Actually, I know for a fact that some of you wanted to do this so...

let's cut to the chase!! (¡vamos al grano!)

16:00 TVE
Catch me if you can (Atrápame si puedes)

Biography, Crime, Drama
Year: 2002
Director: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken.
A true story about Frank Abagnale Jr., who, before his 19th birthday, successfully conned millions of dollars' worth of checks as a Pan Am pilot, doctor, and legal prosecutor. More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0264464/

And especially... 

22:00 Antena 3

Argo 

Year: 2012
Drama - Thriller
Director: Ben Affleck
Stars: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman

Acting under the cover of a Hollywood producer scouting a location for a science fiction film, a CIA agent launches a dangerous operation to rescue six Americans in Tehran during the U.S. hostage crisis in Iran in 1980. More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1024648/

Both are fantastic movies, with well known and talented actors. Besides, "Argo" won several Oscars, including Best Motion Picture (Mejor película) last year. Come on! What are you waiting for??

By the way, in order to help you improve your writing skills, I have uploaded several documents for you to have a look, which are the following:

Writing reference 1 and Writing reference 2 (common mistakes, connectors, brainstorming, etc.)

Especially for 1st Upper intermediate students (unit 2): How to write a Biography 1 and 2

Especially for 2nd Upper intermediate students (unit 1): How to write a narrative essay 1 and 2

More examples:
How to write a discussion essay 1 and 2

How to write a topic essay 1 and 2

Aaaand that's all folks!! See you on Tuesday and do not hesitate to leave a comment or contact me if you have any questions or doubts before the exam!! :)

Take care!

Grammar practice

Hi everyone!!

As you may know, we have our first exam next week which is why I have decided to publish a new post with some webs where you can practice what we have seen in class!

For 1st Upper Intermediate: 

Pronouns

Possessives, present simple and present continuous, questions, etc.
Present simple test
Past simple test
Gerunds and infinitives space game

For 2nd Upper Intermediate:
The past: past simple and past continuous, present perfect + past simple
Past perfect simple and past perfect continuous
Present perfect and past simple
Future will or going to

Very useful summary for Bachillerato: 
How to write compositions, questions, connectors, verb tenses, conditionals, reported speech, irregular verbs, etc.
Some great guidelines for Selectividad and some more here!

And...
More exercises with answer key
More printable exercises for Bachillerato
More interactive tests (on grammar)

And remember, if you would like to practice a little bit more, send your compositions to me and I will correct them! :)

Have a nice afternoon and see you tomorrow!! :)

For movie fans

Hi guys!!!

It is Saturday and it's pouring down! What a storm!! It's even scary!!! You should better have candles around just in case!!! 

Well if you are home because of the rain, I advise you to turn on your TV and watch "Batman: the Dark Knight" (by the way, in ENGLISH please!!!) which is airing on Antena 3 right now!! 

As you may know, the second part of the Batman trilogy and sequel to "Batman begins", is a superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan and includes amazing actors such as Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman or the late Heath Ledger who won an oscar for his incredible performance as the Joker. 

So come, turn on your TV, put it in English (and you can also use the subtitles for hearing-impaired people on your TV) and enjoy this impressive film!! And don't forget to pay attention to the film's music by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard. Come on, it's started only a few minutes ago!!! Let's practice!

P.S:  And if you like Batman and superhero movies, there is a new TV series you should check out!! Its name is "Gotham" and it talks about the origin of this hero. I'm sure you'll like it!

Have a nice loooong weekend!! :)

How to write an informal letter or email

Hi guys!! 

As you know, nowadays we barely write letters. Instead, we usually send emails. They can be professional emails or informal emails. Here you have some tips!! (you can download the image on "Guardar imagen como" to see it bigger!)

For CICLO students: You must write an informal email to a friend to tell him or her about your weekend.

Vocab: barely (apenas)

Have a nice afternoon!! :)

Classroom language

Hi guys!! 

I hope you had a great weekend!! Are you ready for a whole new week? 

Learning a language takes a lot of practice. It is a not a chip in your brain! That's why, you must do something everyday. For example, watching Tv series or movies, reading books and listening to music are awesome ways to master English. All you need is perseverance. 

So, in order to practice as much as possible, I would like to show you a list of expressions you can use in class so that you can make the most of our lessons. Please have a look at them and try to use them!! Don't be shy! It is the best way to improve your speaking level! :) 

1. Who is absent today?  --   ¿Quién falta hoy?
2. Get out/Open your books  --Sacad/Abrid los libros
3. Look at exercise.....on page....  --- Fijaos en el ejercicio....de la página...
4. Who knows the answer?  --- ¿Alguien sabe la respuesta?
5. What page/exercise is it? --- ¿Qué pagina/ejercicio es?
6. What did you say?  --- ¿Qué has dicho?
7. Can I come in? Can I go out?  -- ¿Puedo entrar/salir?
8. Can I borrow......?  --- ¿Puedo pedir prestado...?
9. Can you repeat that, please? --- ¿Puedes repetirlo, por favor?
10. I don't understand it --- No lo entiendo
11. Can you speak more slowly please?  --- ¿Puedes hablar un poco más despacio?
12. Can I pull down/up the blinds?  --¿Puedo bajar/subir las persianas?
13. What's the meaning of.......?    --- ¿Qué significa.....?
14. How do you pronounce...? --- ¿Cómo se pronuncia...?
15. I can't see the board. Can you step aside?  --- No veo la pizarra. ¿Puedes apartarte?
16. When is the homework for? ---- ¿Para qué día son los deberes?
17. Can I switch on/off the lights/fan?  --- ¿Puedo encender/apagar las luces/ventilador?
18. Can I open/close the window?  --- ¿Puedo abrir/cerrar la ventana?
19. Shall I help him/her?   --- ¿Le ayudo?
20. Get in pairs/Form groups of three  --- Poneos en parejas/en grupos de tres
21. Work independently  --- Trabajad de manera individual
22. There are still five minutes to go  --- Todavía quedan cinco minutos
23. We still have a couple of minutes left  --- Todavía quedan un par de minutos
24. We have run out of time  -- Nos hemos quedado sin tiempo
25. Have a good weekend/afternoon ----Que paséis un buen fin de semana/tarde

More vocab: master (dominar), whole (entero, completo), perseverance (constancia, perseverancia), improve (mejorar).

And that's all, folks!! See you on Tuesday!!

Writing tips

Hi everyone! :)

How are you? I hope you're doing great! As you know, you are supposed to write a composition for Wednesday, that's why, I've decided to devote today's post to show you some connectors that might help you with your writing assignment. 

Connectors play a very important role in compositions. They help you structure and organize your text and connect different parts of it. Have a look at the following link:

http://ies.isidradeguzman.alcala.educa.madrid.org/departamentos/ingles/ejercicios/bachillerato2/connectors.pdf

And remember, keep it simple! do not create long and complex sentences if you are not sure they are correct! That's "Compositions 101"*!!

*In American Universities, the easiest or introductory subjects are always indicated like that. For example: "History 101". This is a very common expression! ;)

By the way, are you having problems with verb tenses?, then you should visit these webpages: 

1 Bachillerato

2 Bachillerato

And now I leave you with a song that I really like by Sia. Its name is "Chandelier". I hope you like it!!

Have a nice evening!!! And please leave a comment if you have any questions! :)

Learning English through cartoons! - Grammarman

Hi guys! First of all, sorry for the delay! I wanted to post this before but it's been impossible!! 
Anyway, I'm here now! Now that our second week is coming to an end (time flies, isn't it?!), I would like to share something with you.
Do you like reading cartoons?? Cartoons and comics are also a great way to learn and practise English while you are having fun! Hope you like them! :)

Did you like them?? Then check: http://grammarmancomic.com/comicsgman.html 
Grammarman is a superhero who will help you with your English!! Besides, you will be able to improve your listening skills! 

Don't be shy and leave a comment!! 
Have a nice evening!!! :)

Welcome back!! :)

Hi guys! How are you? Are you ready for this new course? Did you recharge your batteries during the summer? I'm sure you did!!
I have created this blog so that we can have a place to chat and communicate after class. You can use it to post your questions or comments and I will upload complementary activities, news, etc.

Don't forget that this is going to be a very important year since you start your way towards "Selectividad" which means we have to work together so you can make the best out of it and follow your dreams!

That's why, I leave you with a very optimistic song by American Authors that I like to listen to when I want to be positive! Its name is "Best day of my life".

Did you enjoy your holidays? Where did you go? What are you going to study after finishing high school? Leave a comment and tell us!

American Authors - Best day of my life

I had a dream so big and loud

I jumped so high I touched the clouds, oh

I stretched my hands out to the sky

We danced with monsters through the night, oh

I'm never going to look back

Oh, I'm never going to give it up

No, please don't wake me now

This is going to be the best day of my life, my life

This is going to be the best day of my life, my life

I howled at the moon with friends

And then the sun came crashing in, oh

But all the possibilities

No limits just epiphanies, oh

I'm never going to look back

Oh, I'm never going to give it up

No, just don't wake me now

This is going to be the best day of my life, my life

This is going to be the best day of my life, my life

I hear it calling outside my window

I feel it in my soul, soul

The stars were burning so bright

The sun was out till midnight

I say we lose control, control

This is going to be the best day of my life, my life

This is going to be the best day of my life, my life

This is going to be

This is going to be

This is going to be

The best day of my life

Everything is looking up

Everybody up now

This is going to be 

The best day of my life, my life