Thursday, April 26, 2007

Best wishes from Oxford

Hello my dears



I hope you all enjoyed your Easter Holiday. I think the weather wasn't too

bad!!! ;-)



I have now been studying English in Oxford for almost three weeks and I

feel very confident. Teachers at school are quite funny and full of

energy. I learn a lot of new vocabulary but unfortunately I still have

difficulties to bring all of them in my active language! I try to do my

best!



Oxford is a lovely town with lots to see. I also had the possibility to

go to Stonhenge and Bath on a weekend trip, which was very interesting.



I' m really happy having time to improve my language skills far away from

the daily grind! In addition to this, I try to unwind and get a new burst

of life!



I hope to see you soon!



Best wishes



Eveline




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Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Summary April 25, 2007

Well, we started once again, but for those who couldn't come, you missed out on chocolate! No, no one spoke English, it was just to make everyone happy :-) (it was dark chocolate!)



Then, with a happy smile on everyone's face, we did the listen test. For those who couldn't make it, I'll try to arrange for a room to take it in.



We also looked at English in Use part 1. Here is some advice for dealing with this task (as preparation - NOT for use during the exam)

  1. Look at each set and find what the words have in common, e.g. form and meaning
  2. Go back and decide how the words differ from each other, also taking word collocation into consideration
  3. Look at the text, reading entire paragraphs, and consider which word fits the context best
homework: Exam book test 3 - English in Use 1, you can also do the one in test 4 if you want more practice, and then there is flo-joe!



We also went over the speaking. Look at C5 in the middle of the exam book.

The task is to compare and contrast the pictures, saying how important it is to be accurate and what could happen if the people in the picture aren't accurate.



We went over this picture together, looking at how one could start, by comparing or contrasting, and then possibilites for the other two parts of the task.

Ideas: Both pictures show someone talking to other people.

          This situation is very formal, but the other picture is less formal.

          If she is not clear, it can have major consequences, but if he makes a mistake, or if they don't understand, he can show them and help them understand.



----For those that were in the class - could you add more as comments???



Homework: Look at C7 and C9. Prepare to describe these pictures in class. Especially concentrate on possible language, of comparing and contrasting, hypothesis, cause and result, etc.



You can also send me a springdoo message (voice e-mail) which is very easy to do, and you can benefit from having a very concise comment!



More homework: Unit 11, see especially the reading task and grammar -inversion (pp 142-144)

Writing- either the proposal in unit 11 or another writing task from the exam you did during the holiday.

Could you also send me your results if you haven't already?



Next week: speaking!  writing (yours from the exam) and more E. in U.



If you have any other wishes, please let me know :-)



Greetings!

Illya







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Monday, April 02, 2007

Summary 27th March 2007

Summary 27th March 2007
Live your multiple lives…
We had a fuss about this topic…if you want to read something about it, look at Illya’s blog in November 2006, there is a contribution from MM about Brave New World.
In this lesson, there were three learning objectives:
• Different ways of rewrite sentences with the same meaning
• Listening part 1 + 2
• English in use part 3 (unnecessary words)
Straight to business, we started in the coursebook (cb) on p.133 with the Participle clauses, which shorten the sentence. There is a reference in cb on p. 223.
Listening part 1 + 2
We listened to the test 1 (in the exam book) part 1+2, p.25,26
Note
Before listening: read through quickly, than predict the type of words (noun, adj., verb)
After listening: look out for spelling mistakes and check the verb forms

English in use part 3 (looking for extra words)
Useful tips for doing this: look out for grammatical words (preposition, linking words, adverbs, …) and family members, time yourself!
We got two additional exercises to practise.

Homework
• copy (English in use part 3); the key is on the blog
• additional worksheet of past exams
• exam book: feel free doing exam 1+ 2
• optional: to end unit 10 in cb + wb
• good website for further practice: www.flo-joe.com

Enjoy Easter time and perk your ears up!
Have a fruitful holiday in piece and quiet

Written by MM

(Comment from Illya-
Don't forget flo-joe radio
and splendid speaking )



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