AUDIOS PICTURE DESCRIPTION

Dear students,

I want to congratulate you all for the great effort you made describing pictures. I know speaking exams can be frightening and stressful, but I am really happy with the results. This was the first speaking test and I am more than sure that you will improve incredibly by the end of the year.

Here you have two examples of your classmates' exams. They did really well. Congratulations again.

You can download the document with the pictures here.

And you can listen to the examples in the following links:

Example 1

Example 2

Good job, you are such amazing students!

Natalia

Answers for the Review worksheet

Dear students of 1º A Bachillerato,

As we agreed today in class, here you have the answers for 3, 6 and 5 (the exercises we didn't have time to correct).

Ex 3:

1. I didn't catch the train because I had woken up late.
2. After he had visited Berlin, James decided to learn German.
3. The students went out to celebrate after they had finished their exams.
4. He left the house after he had closed all the windows.

Ex 6:

1. After I had eaten my breakfast, I went ot college.
2. The students have just arrived at school.
3. Kim has already seen this film.
4. While I was working in Cyprus, I met Christo.

Ex 5:

1. I am waiting for my girlfriend to call now; she phones everyday at 8pm
2. She has never gone snowboarding, but she goes skiing every year.
3. When I was a child, I used to sleep with my teddy bear.
4. While he was waiting for me to arrive, he fell asleep.

You can get the worksheet here.

If you have questions, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Natalia

USED TO AND WOULD

Dear students,

We have studied that to talk about actions that happened in the past but that do not happen any more in the present, we use the expression USED TO or WOULD.

Image from Google

AFFIRMATIVE: You used to watch Friends on TV. (used to+ infinitive)
NEGATIVE: You didn't use to watch Friends on TV.
INTERROGATIVE: Did you use to watch Friends on TV?

AFFIRMATIVE: You would watch Friends on TV. (used to+ infinitive)
NEGATIVE: You wouldn't watch Friends on TV.
INTERROGATIVE: Would you watch Friends on TV?




Altough they mean the same (solía), there are some differences in use:

• We use USED TO with past habits or states:


• I used to visit my grandmother every Saturday (solía visitar a mi abuela todos los sábados). This is a habit.
• I used to live in Valladolid when I was a teenager (Solía vivir en Valladolid cuando era adolescente). This is a state.

• We use WOULD only for habits, never for states:
• I would visit my grandmother every Saturday.
• I would  used to live in Valladolid when I was a teenager.

Image from Google

If you want to see some examples in songs:

Here you have some exercises to review the use of this structures:

Used to 1

used to and would

used to and would 2

I hope you found this post useful.

Natalia

PICTURE DESCRIPTION

Dear students,

As you know, you will have the first speaking exam next week. It will consist of describing, comparing and saying your opinion about two pictures. DON'T PANIC, we have practised in class, so I am sure you will do well at the exam.

TIPS:

1. Say what the two pictures have in common (the common topic).
2. Describe what you see in the first picture.
3. Describe what you see in the second picture.
4. Say your opinion.
5. Use connectors of contrast: however (sin embargo), although (aunque), whereas (mientras que...).
6. Use all the vocabulary you know (clothes, adjectives, places...)
7. Use sentences and expressions to state your opinion: In my opinion/ I prefer/ I like/ I don't like...
8. Give reasons for what you are saying. If you say that the people look happy, say why (maybe they are smiling/laughing/having a good time...)
9. Relax, you are doing fine and Kristen and me are there to help you.

Here I give you two pictures and a possible description:

Image courtesy of stockimages at FreeDigitalPhotos.net 

Image courtesy of dreamstime.com

Both pictures show people having a meal together. The two pictures look similar in that way. However, there are some differences too. In the first picture I can see a family with two parents and two children. They are probably having luch because the father is wearing formal clothes, so maybe he has just taken a break to have lunch with his family. . They seem happy because they are smiling. It is probably spring or summer, with nice and warm weather because they are wearing short-sleeved T-shirts. They are inside a restaurant which doesn't seem too expensive. 

However, in the second picture the people are not a family. They are colleagues (or co workers). They are having a business meeting and they are eating at the office. They are wearing more formal clothes, they are not casual at all. They are having a pizza. Maybe, they didn't have time to go to a restaurant so they ordered something to eat. 

In my opinion, I prefer the first picture, because I love spending time with my family. In addition, they look much more more relaxed in the first picture than in the second one.

So, as you see, it is not difficult. Practise at home and don't be scared! You'll do well!

Natalia

LINKING WORDS

As we have seen in class, there are a huge variety of connectors (or linking words) that will improve your compositions. Here you have some documents to review their use.

Linking words

Linking words 2

PAST SIMPLE, PAST CONTINUOUS, PRESENT PERFECT, PAST PERFECT

Dear students, 

In unit 1 we are studying different past tenses: past simple, past continuous, present perfect and past perfect.

1. Past simple: for finished actions in the past.

• I talked to my family yesterday. (Hablé con mi familia ayer)
• We went to London 3 years ago. (Fui a Londres hace tres años).

2. Past continuous: actions in progress in the past, they can be interrupted by another action or they may continue in time.

• I was watching Big Brother when my friend phoned. (Estaba viendo GH cuando me llamó mi amigo).
• While I was cooking, my brother was watching TV. It's so unfair! (Mientras yo estaba cocinando, mi hermano estaba viendo la tele. ¡No es justo!)
• What were you doing yesterday at 10 pm? (¿Qué estabas haciendo ayer a las 10 pm?)

3. Present perfect: Actions that started in the past or continue to the present or actions that happened at an unspecified moment in the past.

• I haven't gone to Ireland yet. (Todavía no he ido a Irlanda)
• I have broken my arm and now I can't do my homework! (¡Me he roto el brazo y ahora no puedo hacer mis deberes!)

4. Past perfect: an action that happened before another action.

• I had already been in Paris before I went there last year. (Ya había estado en París antes de ir el año pasado).

DIFFERENCES: Past simple/Present perfect

• I have studied French (Sabemos que has estudiado francés en algún momento pero no sabemos cuando).
• I studied French yesterday evening for the exam (Fue ayer, es una acción acabada y sabemos cuándo sucede).
• I have lived in Valladolid for 25 years. (Aún vivo en Valladolid).
• I lived in Valladolid for 25 years. (ya no vivo en Valladolid)

Here you have some beautiful exercises to review. Hope you find them useful. 

Past simple/continuous/perfect  (Burlington Books)

past simple/present perfect  (Burlington Books)

past simple vs. present perfect

past simple, continuous, perfect

text past tenses