Tuesday, 24 May 2016

European Commission Writing Skills. Series 2, Lesson 9

Class
Proofing & editing:

  • Weekly cables
  • Report on Constitutional Referendum Campaign
Language Input:
  • Conditionals
Sources:
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Friday, 20 May 2016

D'Amico Shipping B1 Lesson 22

Class
Situation Vacant
Listening Skills
Speaking Skills - Interview skills
Framing questions (e.g. I would like to know, Could you tell us)
Using fillers when answering ( e.g. That's a good question, I'm glad you asked me that)

Unit 3.4 New Language Leader

Vocabulary & Corrections
Vacancy = free position (job), available room (hotel)
Depend on
Positive thinking
Positive thoughts
Adaptable
Determined
Extroverted
Too much detail (uncountable)
Too many details (countable)
Some advice (uncountable)

Going Further
A humorous approach to job interviews can be found at the comedy wensite The Poke. http://www.thepoke.co.uk/2015/02/03/20-essential-job-interview-tips/

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ANIA C2 Lesson 17

Class

 Listening Skills
General Listening - Percentages
The World's Most Diverse City - More or Less Podcast
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03v1r1p

Expressions
Nearly half
A fair few
A smattering of
Skewed figures/numbers
Tricky to measure
Least worst metric
Obtain figures for the total number of
Exam Tasks - Matching
Media
Key Vocabulary
Libel laws
To put a spin on something (usually bad news)
To file copy
To put (the paper) to bed
To stake places out (c.f. To stalk someone)

Reading & Discussion
Can the web save the press from oblivion?
Expressions and Idioms
(Caught) between a rock and a hard place
(Caught) between the devil and the deep blue sea
To be at the end of your rope/tether. = to have no more patience or strength
To pluck up the courage to do something
Ostrich = someone who "buries their head in the sand"/avoids uncomfortable truths
Lemming = someone who blindly follows the crowd to their detriment

Going Further
Listening/Viewing
The BBC series The Thick of It and its spin off film, In the Loop, feature a spin doctor called Malcom Tucker (allegedly based on Alastair Campbell), perhaps the most foul mouthed character in the history of comedy.
https://youtu.be/xUky4_A7Zw4







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Wednesday, 18 May 2016

ANIA B2.3 Lesson 17

Class
Language Skills
-ing forms (BEC Masterclass p. 90)
Verb Structure
stop, remember, try
http://seansenglishclassroom.pbworks.com/w/page/25080022/Verb%20Structure

Listening Skills
Percentages
The World's Most Diverse City - More or Less Podcast
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p03v1r1p

Expressions
nearly half
a fair few
a smattering of
skewed figures/numbers


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D'Amico Shipping B2 Lesson 23

Class
Weak forms -  can you hear the difference between major decision and made your decision?
Assimilation - can you hear the difference between did carefully and dig carefully?
Pronunciation of 'oo', 'ou' and 'ea' spellings.

Activities taken from Pronunciation Games
Dictation Computer
Vowel Jigsaw

New Vocabulary
wipe: to rub (a surface or object) lightly, esp with (a cloth, hand, etc), as in removing dust, water, grime, etc
swipe: to move a finger across a touchscreen on an electronic device as a means of inputting a command e.g. swipe left, swipe right
term = semester
lead noun = a soft, grey, heavy metal

Homework Answers from 11/05
Reading p. 72-73
Question 2
1C, 2D, 3B, 4A, 5C (n.b. the difference between business and a business when answering question 1)
Question 3
the best bet - phrase = the best option
permit - noun
gauge - verb = evaluate = check pronunciation

ɡeɪdʒ

switch  verb = change        
elastic  adjective = flexible
to be counterproductive
casually dressed adverb + adjective collocation
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Tuesday, 17 May 2016

European Commission Writing Skills Series 2 Lesson 8

Class
Editing Skills - same mistake/different sentences
Report Editing

Going Further
Tenses and Hypotheticals in English
http://seansenglishclassroom.pbworks.com/w/page/11442655/The%20English%20Tense%20System
http://seansenglishclassroom.pbworks.com/w/page/11442621/Conditionals
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Saturday, 14 May 2016

Post CPE Lesson 24



Class
1) Negotiation - Role-play

Vocabulary: n.b. difference between rates and instalments
Pronunciation: vowel sounds
promise,

ˈprɒmɪs

bottle

ˈbɒtəl


2) Music
Listening - Desert Island Discs - Tom Hanks (BBC Radio 4) http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b079m78n

Discussion - Classic albums, pop music and protest
"In the 60's you could write songs that were like calls to arms and it would work. Well, Kind ....ish. It's much harder to do that now." Thom Yorke (Interview with George Monbiot, Télérama, 2015)

Reading - album reviews

Vocabulary
Eerie = (place/atmosphere, etc) mysteriously or uncannily frightening or disturbing; weird; ghostly
To excise = to delete/remove
To coo = to murmur softly or lovingly
Anguish = mental or physical torture/agony
Ripple = a slight wave or undulation on the surface of water, a sound reminiscent of water flowing quietly in ripples   ⇒ a ripple of laughter
Woke (adjective - slang) socially aware.
Run of the mill = ordinary
To put out an album/disc = release music
Hopping mad = very angry
(Opening) gambit = a risky, strategic move
To let (something) rip = lose control/proceed without restraint
To grab you by the throat = to get your complete attention
(To wear your) heart on your sleeve = to make your feelings obvious.
To pooh-pooh something (especially an idea/argument) = to say something is not very good.
Motorik = 4/4 beat used in Kraut rock for example on records by Can, Neu! or Kraftwerk. 

Homework
  1. Listening: Listen to the rest of the Desert Island Discs podcast and/or songs from the albums discussed today and share your reactions with the group in the comments section below.
  2. Writing: As there is no lesson next week, pen a review on a film, book, album, TV show of your choice (250 - 300 words). 
  3. Reading: Was 1966 pop music's greatest year? http://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jan/31/three-albums-1966-beatles-revolver-bob-dylan-blonde-on-blonde-beach-boys-pet-sounds
    Forget 1966, because 1981 was pop's year of revolution http://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2015/dec/17/1981-pop-year-of-revolution
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