Hi!

Only 3 students did their homework last week and it was a little sloppy. So, for next week, I expect the rest of you to do it. Remember! You have to compare 2 countries. You have to choose some of its characteristics and compare them. For example: size, population, surface ( is it flat or mountainous?) capital cities: which one is larger, more modern, with taller buildings, weather: which country is warmer or colder, age: which country is older as an independent nation, or any other aspect you may think of.

You are in ESO, it's time you start writing in a proper, rational way.

Last Wednesday we started a new unit: it's about films and books.

I explained how to make a new verb tense: the Present Perfect. This form of the verb is made up of 2 words. First: the Present of Have:

I have
You have                   +  Past Participle of the verb we need to use: 3rd column
He/She/It has         Ex: had, seen, heard, watched, read, 
We have
You have
They have

The question you had to answer was:

Have you seen any of these films?

We use this form of the verb when we want to talk about something that started in the past but it is not finished yet. When we talk about experiences we have had.

We could also ask:

  Have you listened to this song?

We talked about different kinds of films: horror films, adventure films, romantic films, comedy films, mystery films, science fiction films.

What are your favorite kinds of films?

The only homework you have this film is: learn your part for the play. 

NICO: I hope to see you next week. You'll be one of the dwarfs. Your lines are easy so I'm sure you'll have time to learn them. 

I know you miss me, so here I am.

Last Wednesday we spent the first hour practicing the comparative form of adjectives. We also learned a bit of geography. After listening to a recording where they learned how to ask questions comparing two things students had to complete a quiz by asking a partner a number of questions and interpreting a chart they had. We learned a few  words:

population, depth, length, large, crowded. 

Remember! The word large means big, spacious, not long.
We used the word large when we talked about oceans and cities.

Students asked similar questions to:

What mountain is higher, the Everest or K2?

or


What city is more crowded, Tokyo or New York?

Later we talked about the play for the end of the term. We have decided to perform Snowwhite and the 4? dwarfs? We don't know yet how many dwarfs we'll have. Roles were assigned:

Snowhite: Sandra

Hunter:

Prince: Vera

Old Woman:

Dwarfs: Nico, Victor, Jorge, Miriam?

You must remember better than me. I thought I knew but I am not sure about the Hunter and the Old Woman.

Anyway, I have been making a shorter version of the play, we'll start rehearsing next Wednesday.

HOMEWORK

Choose 2 countries in the world and compare their geographical characteristics, size of their capital cities, climate, etc.

First, you must find the data on the Internet and write it down Then you make 10 sentences comparing the data.
Ex:                    Switzerland.             Holland

Population       8 million                   16.8 million

Size                  41,293.2 km²               41,526 square kilometers           

Geography        Mountainous             Flat

Coastline          0                                 451 km.

Sentences

Switzerland is nearly as large as Holland. Holland is a few kilometers larger.
Holland is more populated than Switzerland.
Holland and Switzerland are very different. Switzerland is much more mountainous: it has the highest mountains in Europe while Holland has no mountains, only a few hills. Switzerland is inland while Holland has a 451 km. coastline.

Etc. Please, be creative, this is only an example, you don't have to do it exactly the same.

Hello!

Interesting machines the ones you designed last week.

I find this topic a little difficult myself, because I am not an engineer and I do not love machines but I am quite sure it is interesting for you. You are learning how to talk about various means of transport like  bicycles and cars.

One interesting questions you learned last Wednesday was:

How does it work?

Now you know that the verb work has a different meaning when we are talking about machines.

What do you do when your car does not work? You take it to the mechanic.

If your bike breaks do not work properly, you need to be very careful, don't ride it downhill.

We also learned how to talk about the advantages and disadvantages of a means of transport.

Advantages: good points
Disadvantages: bad points.

Two types of comparison were introduced: 

My car is faster than your father's car or  
This chair is more comfortable than the sofa.

and

My bike is as good as your bike.
Your father's car is not as fast as mine.

Notice! My car is faster than your father's car = Your father's car is not as fast as mine.

Students voted for performing a play as a term project. The play itself is not completely decided yet.

HOMEWORK

1/Talk about the advantages of planes as a means of transport. Make 3 sentences.

Ex: Travelling by plane is very fast. 

Talk about the disadvantages of travelling by car in a city. Ex:

Ex: Travelling by car in a city can be slow, because there are many cars.

2/ Say the same thing with different words:

a. English is not as difficult as you think. (Use the word easier).

b. Travelling by train is more comfortable than travelling by bus. ( use the words not as.......... as).

From now on, I have been told, it's YOU and not me the ones who have to write the blog. So, START trying. Come on! Look at the instructions you were given at the beginning of the course and give it a try. You can say anything, as long as it is in English. You can upload your favorite songs IN ENGLISH, etc.

By the way, it was nice to see you playing the teacher's role, you did a good job ( the ones that were with me). I'm sure you enjoyed it.

During the first hour we continued working on the topic: Transport. We had to study a lot of new words besides the ones we had written down the week before. An important part of a car or other transport machines are the breaks, which we use to stop the machine.

HOMEWORK

This a fun assignment: design your own moving machine. Make a drawing and describe it.

This car has four wheels. The front wheels are smaller than the back ones. It does not have a steering wheel, it's steered as a bicycle, with handlebars. It doesn't have a hood so it is not very comfortable when it rains because you can get wet. It has a seat for two people and it looks very elegant.