CULTURE: GUY FAWKES - "Remember, Remember, the Fifth of November"

Today is Guy Fawkes Day, also known as Bonfire Night. In the United Kingdom, people gather around bonfires.

How did it all start? In 1605, several men, among whom was Guy Fawkes, tried to blow up the 

Parliament. Click on the following link to find out more about the history of this tradition: http://www.bonfirenight.net/

Now that you have learnt a bit about Guy Fawkes, click on this link to watch a video about Bonfire night and answer the questions (upper-intermediate level): Bonfire night - video and activities

If you prefer, you can play this vocabulary game that includes words that you can use to talk about this celebration (pre-intermediate level): Vocabulary quiz
 

Remember, remember, the 5th of November
The Gunpowder Treason and plot;
I know of no reason why Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot

Traditional British poem

 

TRINITY (B1): FESTIVALS AND SPECIAL OCCASIONS - How to Behave on your Birthday

Do you want your birthday party to be successful? Then, watch this video and learn some useful tips to behave on your birthday!

Did you understand the video? If not, don't worry, because you can find a transcription of the video by clicking on the following link: http://www.howcast.com/videos/432525-How-to-Behave-with-Class-on-Your-Birthday

TRINITY: WELCOME!

This new section is particularly intended for my Trinity students. Updates with useful resources and information to improve your English skills and prepare yourselves for the exams will be available soon.

Bear in mind that, in addition to this section, you can find a lot of resources in other parts of the blog... Have a look at them!

I hope that this blog is useful for you and helps you in your learning process!

 

http://www.trinitycollege.com/ 

VOCABULARY: VISUAL DICTIONARY

Images can be useful to remember new words and concepts. Have a look at Merriam-Webster's Visual Dictionary and check if that works for you! You will find lots of images arranged into 15 major thematic categories, including Sports, House, Food&Kitchen and transport.

 http://visual.merriam-webster.com/

SPEAKING, LISTENING AND WRITING: HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS!

If you want to improve your Speaking, Listening and Writing skills, the following tips may help you! http://www.wikihow.com/Improve-English-Communication-Skills

READING AND LISTENING SKILLS: BREAKING NEWS ENGLISH

Do you want to improve your reading and listening skills and get to know what is happening around the world at the same time? With Breaking News English, you can do it! In this website, you can choose from a wide range of news (some of them quite odd and funny) adapted to different levels... And all of them include reading (and listening) comprehension exercises!
 

http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/
 

Here you have an example (curious, isn't it?):

 Online dining latest craze in South Korea (29th January, 2014)

There is a new craze in South Korea that is very popular. It is watching other people eat online. The Reuters news agency reports there are over 3,500 people who eat live in front of their webcam. Thousands of people watch the shows. One of the most famous online diners is 34-year-old Park Seo-yeon. She is known as The Diva and has thousands of followers who watch her eat every day. She broadcasts her meals in real time for about three hours a day. She said she first tried it as a hobby, but then she started to get a lot of money. People click a link on her website to say they like her. She gets about nine U.S. cents per click. She now makes over $9,000 a month from her show and has quit her regular job. 

Many people in Korea watch the online dining webcasts because they are lonely. More and more Koreans are living alone in big cities and have no one to eat with. Reuters said: "One-person households are set to increase from 25.3 per cent of the total population in 2012 to 32.7 per cent in 2030." This is the fastest rate of any rich country in the world. Ms Park says she feels like she is providing a benefit to society. She told Reuters: "It is comforting for people who eat alone. It feels great when people said, 'Thank you for a fun and delicious time'". She also said people write to thank her for helping them with their eating problems. She enjoys being part of a big online community and talking about food.

 http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1401/140129-online-dining.html#ixzz2zU16JpK6

LISTENING SKILLS - How to...?

Would you like to practise your listening skills by watching videos and listening to tutorials dealing with a wide variety of topics, ranging from sports to cooking, from makeup to video games? Then, explore the world of HOWCAST:

  http://www.howcast.com/

Do you want to become an Olympian? Then, follow the steps of this video!

TEST YOURSELF WITH SONGS!

If you want to test your listening skills with songs, click on the picture below: 

 

HAVE FUN!

HEY BROTHER - Avicii

                                    Lyrics: http://www.musica.com/letras.asp?letra=2153311

COUNT ON ME - Bruno Mars (Lyrics on Screen)

That's what friends are supposed to do!

ALL MY LOVING - The Beatles (Lyrics on screen)

Great song by a great group! :)

ENGLISH AROUND THE WORLD

English is a worldwide language. When you hear the world "culture" in reference to English countries, you probably think of Great Britain, Ireland and the USA . However, English is an official language in many other places, including the Bahamas, Nigeria or Singapore.

If you want to know more about some of these countries and become an expert in English-speaking countries, click on the links below:

• Great Britain: http://projectbritain.com/
• Ireland: http://www.yourirish.com/
• United States: http://www.esolcourses.com/content/topicsmenu/life-in-the-usa.html
• Canada: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/canadian-culture-and-traditions.html
• Australia: http://www.australia.com/about/culture-history/culture.aspx
• South Africa: http://www.southafrica.com/culture/

STUDENT'S WORKS

SONGS

CULTURE

VOCABULARY

SKILLS