Homework for next Monday

Write a paragraph about your childhood: try to use all the past tenses we have studied.

Example

I went to school for the first time when I was five years old and learned how to read and write. It was a small private school in the neighborhood for both boys and girls. My parents were planning to send me the year after  to the nun school where my grandmother had studied but at the end I was not admitted so I stayed at home for the whole year playing on my own. It was a most unusual year but I loved it.

Today students answered a few more How to questions, we also repeated one they had answered last Monday and I was pleased to see they could remember all the terms that were required to do it clearly.

We listened to two different stories, one about an accident when some workers were digging a tunnel for a new underground line and another one about 3 children who had disppeared and had been found well 3 days later. Students had to write questions for some given answers and correct some mistaken sentences about the first listening.

This is a link to a Miami newspaper. Check the world news, find one that you find interesting. Tell us about it. You need to open the news menu and click on world.

First of all, the exercise I said I would give you for homework:

Complete the sentences for situations in the past. Decide which tense you need to use.

1. Yesterday, a plumber (come)  to our house.normal narrative past form → simple past

2. He (have)  to repair our washing machine that (break)  down a few days before.1st space: normal narrative past form → simple past|2nd space: looking back to something that had happened earlier → past perfect simple

3. Before he (ring)  at my door, he (look)  for a parking space for about ten minutes.1st space: normal narrative past form → simple past|2nd space: looking back to something that had happened earlier → past perfect simple

4. While the plumber (repair)  the washing machine, I (watch)  the news.simultaneous actions → past progressive

5. Suddenly, I (realise)  that they (show)  our street on TV.second action was already taking place when the first action began|1st space → simple past|2nd space: past progressive

6. The reporter (say)  that a car (crash)  into a stop sign just before reaching the crossroads.1st space: normal narrative form → simple past (say is generally only used in the simple form)|2nd space: looking back to something that had happened earlier → past perfect simple

7. While I (listen)  carefully to what (happen) , someone (knock)  at my door.1st space: emphasising the action's progression → past progressive|2nd space: looking back to something that had happened earlier → past perfect simple|3rd space: shorter action that started while another action was already taking place → simple past (past progressive would sound as if the person had been knocking on the door the whole time)

8. I (open)  the door and (see)  a police officer standing there.normal narrative past form → simple past

9. He (ask)  for the plumber.normal narrative past form → simple past

10.  As it (turn)  out, it (be)  our plumber’s car that (roll)  down the street.1st space: normal narrative past form → simple past|2nd space: condition in the past (after all, it was still his car) → simple past|3rd space: looking back to something that had happened earlier → past perfect simple

11.  In his haste, the plumber (forget)  to set the handbrake.looking back to something that had happened earlier → past perfect simple

I have noticed you may need to use the Past Perfect Continuous too.

Hello, I am back to give you some more work.

1) We (walk) _______ _______ by the bakery when the smell of fresh cinnamon 
 rolls (reach) ____________ our noses. 
2) Dr. Lee (treat) _______ ________ her patient when she (get) ________ a 
 signal from her pager. 
3) Annie and Lilly (climb) _______ _______ trees when Annie (fall) 
____________ and (break) ________ her arm. 
4) While Christopher (dig) _______ _______ a hole in the sand, a 
crab (crawl) ____________ out. 
5) They (sit) _______ _______ on the park bench when the fountain suddenly (light) 
____________ up. 
6) David (ride) _______ _______ his motorcycle on the dirt road when it (hit) 
 ________ a dangerous bump. 
7) Mr. Walker (earn) _______ _______ more than anyone else in his division when 
 he (retire)__________ last year. 
8) The lost dog (wear) _______ _______ his collar when the children (find) 
 ____________ him. 
9) Marcella (hope) _______ _______ to buy a yacht; instead she (buy) __________a 
 small fishing boat. 
10) Nick (water) _______ _______ the plants in the garden when a groundhog 


You may also make a list of any words that are new for you.

Yesterday  we started the class reviewing "be used to" and "get used to"by answering some questions. Then students had to tell a story they had read and a classmate had to retell it.

 Later we were listening to a recording of some news: some new words and expressions we should remember from it are: get in touch, shelter, trapped, break in the system, rescue, ordinary clothes (or something else)

Enjoy your free time.

We reviewed the Timely tips.
We were working on word formation. We saw the following word families:

convince- conviction- convincing, convincingly.

weak - weaken - weakly

improve - improvement

criticise - criticism - critical - critically

responsible - responsability

rely - reliable

originate - originality - origen - original

Remember that for homework you have to write some sentences with some of these words. You also need to complete exercise 2d on page 20.

We started our lesson today saying the names of countries in Europe. Next a student said  sentences like this one: I have never been to Poland. The other one answered: Neither have I or haven´t you? I have been there myself.

Students read Timely tips, wrote some questions about it and gave opinions about the article. According to one of the students multitasking, which is one of the tips, is not a good idea, it is much better to focus on one single task.

Some new words to learn are procrastinate, which is what we do when we keep on leaving things for another day or another time, dread, priority.

Homework questions:

Do you ever feel that you are wasting your time?

In which occasions do you feel that you are wasting time?

Tell me some ways in which you waste time.

Do you think of yourself as a hardworking and dynamic person?

Do you have a tendency to procrastinate?

Before I forget, this is the link to the the recording we listened to in our class. Listening

We started the lesson practicing numbers. Remember when we read dates in English the first number we see is the month.

Students read their homework: comparing different jobs.

We reviewed some of the vocabulary that was learned in the last lesson like pedestrian, rush hour, foreigner.

We reviewed the text Letter from abroad by asking some questions about it and answering them.

Students practiced the expressions be used to and get used to. When they are followed by an action, it has to be in the ing form of the verb.

As it is not easy, we are going to do it again for homework.
This is the exercise: write something that you...

are used to doing during the week
don´t think you´ll ever get used to
will have to get used to in the future
would find it impossible to get used to
were´t used to do it at one time, but you are now
are getting used to at the  moment.

Also students are supposed to write 2 sentences with each one of this adjectives: aware, fond, disappointed and shocked. I think. Remember to use the right prepositions.

Finally we were listening to the recording af an interview to somebody who has moved back to the USA.after living in Spain for a long time.

We started the lesson naming things we do every day, i.e. I check my email everyday or I wash my hands every day.

Students read homework:  life habits they have changed in the last five years.

We studied some adjectives and the prepositions they are used with:

Terrified of  or by

Fascinated by or with

Excited about, by or at

Satisfied with or by

Shocked by or at

Disappointed in, by or with

impressed by, with or at

aware of 

famous for 

fond of 

sure about or of

sick of

We also studied: be used to as in  I´m not used to getting up so early. Remember we always use the verb in its ing form after used to.

The difference between being used to and getting used to is that the latter means the process between not being used to something and being used to something. But that is the meaning of get.

Students read aloud  Letter from abroad and questions about it were asked. They learned words and expressions like rush hour, pedestrian, cop, adjust.

We answered a questionnaire about Halloween

Homework

Write about: 2 things you have been disappointed with. 2 sentences.

2 things you are aware of.

2 things you are fond of.

2 sentences using the verb ignore or twice when you have ignored a person or a reality because you were not interested.

2 things you are excited about or were excited about in the past.

We had a short lesson today. We started it with a drill: the teacher would say that had happened and students had to say weather they believed it or not and repeat the statement making the necessary changes.

Example: Most American children eat pancakes for breakfasta everyday. Yes, I believe that most... or No, I don´t believe that most ...

Students read the sentences they had had to write for homework using I used to... I would, I am always ...ing, I´ll +infonitive.

Exercises 4 & 5 page 17, Face to Face Upper Intermediate.

Remember: if there is a frequency adverb  we prefer would +infinitive to used to +infinitive. 

After a frequency adverb we also prefer will + infinitive instead of Present Simple.

Frequency adverbs: rarely, seldom, frequently, occasionally, more often than not, every so often, most of the time, once in a while, every now and again (or and then).

Homework: write about the difference between your life 5 years ago and your life now. Things you may consider: sleeping habits, free time activities, time with friends and family, sports and exercise, work or study, taste in music/films/TV programs, annoying habits.