Happy St Andrew's Day!

B1: Let's revise!

The Lottery. Film adaptation.

SHIRLEY Trailer

"The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson. To do in class (please do not watch at home).

What is an aphorism?

 

Fritz Haber

What can you tell me about Fritz Haber, the man the song is about?

 

And you can see the video explained below:

Lest we forget

 

This is the book I'm reading at the moment and I think it would be a good idea to add it to the C2.2 Reading List.

It's easy to read and also thought-provoking. Some chapters take place in 1929 aproximately in a Ukraine invaded by Stalin's minions. The other half takes place in 2004 in the USA where a young widow is trying to discover her Ukranian grandmother's  past secrets before she descends into the downward spiral of Alzheimer's.

Fear of flying

Great-aunt Bessie loved to visit her nieces and nephews, seems she had relatives all over the country. Problem was that no matter how much she enjoyed seeing them, she hated flying. No matter how safe people told her it was, she was always worried that someone would have a bomb on the plane.

She read the books about how safe it was, and listened to the stewardess demonstrate all the safety features. But she still worried herself silly every time a visit was coming up.

Finally, the family decided that maybe if she saw the statistics she'd be convinced. So they sent her to a friend of the family who was an actuary. "Tell me," she said suspiciously, "what are the chances that someone will have a bomb on a plane?"

The actuary looked through his tables and said, "A very small chance. Maybe one in five hundred thousand."

She nodded, then thought for a moment. "So what are the odds of two people having a bomb on the same plane?"

Again he went through his tables. "Extremely remote," he said. "About one in a billion."

Aunt Bessie nodded and left his office. And from that day on, every time she flew, she took a bomb with her.

Questions

1. What did Great Aunt Bessie love?

2. Where did her relatives live?

3. What did she hate?

4. What did she read?

5. What did the familly decide?

6. Where did they send her?

7. What was the first question she asked him?

8. And the second?

9. What does she do whenever she flies now?

History of the Holidays: History of Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving history and traditions. Video for students of English.

Thanksgiving Quiz - What Am I?

C22: Where was this picture taken?

 

Thanks for sharing, Daphne.

Do you like this song?

Did you know this band before?

if you had to choose, what would you listen to: a traditional Christmas carol or this one?

Do you know them? Who are they?

 

5 Hard Detective Riddles And Brain Teasers With Answers

Why you procrastinate even when it feels bad?

The First State

Which American State is known as the first state? Why? a) Delaware b) Virginia c) Pennsylvania Source: OWAD

Terence Tao

 This is Terence Tao. What can you tell me about him?

How to write like the best-selling author of all time.

Have you read any of her books?

Do you think she's a good writer?

Do you know any interesting facts about her life?

What was one of the most important decisions she took when writing her novels?

What is one of the main criticisms of her novels?

She often ................. who the killer was while she wrote.

What kind of language she used?

Where was Poirot from?

Please do watch this video. It's very important. -ED pronunciation - /t/ /d/ or /id/? (pronounce PERFECTLY every time!)

How to use present tenses - 6 Minute Grammar

Vocabulary

What is the meaning of the highlighted expression in the sentence below? What are skittles?

“The coalition has even considered launching an advertising campaign in Romania and Bulgaria to spread the word that drizzly austerity Britain is not all BEER AND SKITTLES.”

Bagehot - The Economist (2nd February 2013)

Source: OWAD

Did you
know?

Your Level

To find out  what your level is, you can click on this link:

https://dialangweb.lancaster.ac.uk

Joke

Lucky Number 5

A 55-year-old man who was born on May 5, had been married 5 years, had 5 children, and made $55,555.55 a year. Of course, his lucky number was 5.

The man receives a phone call from a friend. The friend informs him that a horse named Lucky 5 will be running in the fifth race at the local track that evening.

Excitedly, the man withdraws $5,555.00 cash from his bank account, goes to the races and bets on Lucky 5.

Sure enough the horse comes in fifth.

Past Simple and Past Perfect - Tenses in English

This video is just an example. Ronnie has a wonderful channel where she explains grammar and vocabulary. Have a look at it. It's very helpful and she's very funny.

The Fall of the House of Usher (animated with subtitles). B2.1

This is a video I've made for a course on blended learning. I'm sure the topic will be a surprise to you all.

 

Adelante Africa Secondary School. B1 (This is related to the Listening Comprehension in your book. p. 30)

If you go to YouTube to watch it, you'll see you can click the subtitles button to make it easier for you to understand.

C2 Proficiency English Vocabulary Quiz | EXTREMELY DIFFICULT 🧐

I confess I haven't done it myself. I have only checked the beginning, but I suggest you do it if you have the time.

If you don't want to do it, at least listen to what the teacher says at the beginning. It will encourage you.

Hercules - Go The Distance (Disney Goes Rock) Peyton Parrish Cover

This is another one of my favourite singers. 

What do you think of this song? 

If you want to check some others, he's great at Old Norse Viking metal.

C22: Please do watch this video before our next class next week.

In the News

Use the words:

- Norway

- alternative medicine

- princess

to look for current news and then explain the story you find in your own words.

Google is magic!

 

INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH STORY. Listening Practice for B2.1 (blended).

Try to listen without looking at the video. If there are words you don't understand then you can listen again.

Remember as you only come to class once a week, you have to practise as much as possible at home.

English Vocabulary Quiz - Intermediate Level (B1 - B2) | 25 Questions

Can you solve the giant iron riddle? Let's try...

Joke

 

A Snail Crosses the Road

A snail crosses the road to go to his brother's house. He was in the middle of the road when he was run over by a turtle!

When he came to the doctor and his brother were standing over him.

The doctor asked, "Mr. Snail. Are you OK?"

His brother said, "What happened brother?"

The snail sat up and said, "Yes doctor. I'm fine. I don't know what happened...it all happened so fast."

 

 

Do you think this joke is funny? Did it make you laugh?
 

INSIDE MAN Official Trailer (2022)

Do you think you'd enjoy this TV series? Why/why not? Please explain.

Do you think it's true any of us could become a killer?

Read the article below and share your opinion in the comment section

Value Your Own Wisdom

Your very own inner wisdom should be valued more than any other and will always guide you in the direction you need to travel.Throughout our lives, we will encounter individuals who presume to know what is best for us. The insights they offer cannot compare, however, with the powers of awareness and discernment that already exist within us. From birth we are blessed with wisdom that cannot be learned or unlearned. It exists whether or not we acknowledge it because it is a gift given to us by a loving universe before we chose to experience existence on the earthly plane. Yet for all its permanence, it is vital that we value and honor this incredible element of the self. It is when we do not use our inborn wisdom that we begin to doubt our personal truths and are driven to outside sources of information because we are afraid. What we know to be true in our hearts is invariably true, and we discover how intensely beautiful and useful self-trust can be when we recognize the power of our wisdom.

Inner wisdom is not subject to the influences of the outside world, which means that it will never demand that we surrender our free will or counsel us to act in opposition to our values. We benefit from this inspiration when we open ourselves to it, letting go of the false notion that we are less qualified than others to determine our fate. The wisdom inside of us is the source of our discernment and our ability to identify blessings in disguise. When we are unsure of who to trust, how to respond, or what we require, the answers lie in our inner wisdom. It knows where we are going and understands where we are coming from, taking this into account though it is not a product of experience but rather a piece of our connection to the universal mind.

In the whole of your existence, no force you will ever encounter will contribute as much to your ability to do what you need to do and be who you want to be as your natural wisdom. Through it, you reveal your growing consciousness to the greater source and discover the true extent of your strength. If you heed this wisdom with conviction and confidence, the patterns, people, and fears that held you back will be dismantled, paving the way for you to fulfill your truest potential.

Source:  https://www.dailyom.com/

 

LISTENING COMPREHENSION EXERCISE

1. What would be wonderful about this hypothetical vaccine?

2.What is being developed now?

3. What does the video compare hemagglutinin to?

4. How does the immune system remember things?

5. What do we call the molds in the video? 

6. What is the meaning of antigenic drift?

7. Flu is an abbreviation for ...

8. How do we design a vaccine against a strain that doesn't exist yet?

Advanced vocabulary

For some people, CAKEISM is a reality… virtual meetings offer the best of both worlds, comfortable home working without needing to battle to the office.

What is the meaning of cakeism in the sentence above?

Source: OWAD

Do you know who this is? What do you know about her?

 

Frankenstein. B1 & B2.1 version

A belated Halloween story. C22.