For these exercises, refer to the previous blog (‘Holiday of a Lifetime’). Put class into small groups and assign a city to each one. The groups have to make a presentation, using advertising-style language: hyperbolic adjectives, expressions, phrases. Furthermore, they must really ‘sell’ the holiday, so they can practice their intonation and stress skills.
The blurb contains the selling points, while the practicalities has information. The style should change for these two parts – the teacher can demonstrate.
Students are encourages to add their own information and to make use of classroom facilities such as internet, Google images etc to enhance their presentation.
To make it more competitive, the students have to vote on which holiday sounds most impressive.
once in a lifetime experience/ never to be forgotten / unbeatable prices
book now to avoid disappointment/ best decision you’ll ever make
holidays to suit all budgets, from 7* luxury to backpacking
Structure:
To begin with / furthermore … additionally / the fact is … / therefore
Demonstration with an advert for London:
Now is the perfect time to visit London, England’s glorious capital. The weather is perfect for walking, so you can enjoy the lush parks, world-famous museums and incredible, unbelievable shops. There is something for everyone … and more ! Like sports ? Go to one of the many Premier League football games. Love shopping ? Everything is here – shop till you drop ! Adore culture – soak up hundreds of years of history.
Flights from TSN airport daily. Seven-day all-inclusive package tour starting from only 50m VND ! All transfers and transport included. Air-conditioned mini bus with Vietnamese-speaking guide.
Holiday advertising vocabulary:
Try to use as many of these adjectives and expressions as possible:
‘Shadow Sonata’ was my first film shot in London since the early 1990s, and how things have changed. I started with a Bell & Howell 8mm cine camera, splicing film by hand and playing back on a projector; now I was working on a pocket digital camera and cutting on computer.
The title is a reference to the short story collection ‘Shadows of a Sound’ by the Korean writer Hwang Sun-woo, an author mentioned in the Korean film ‘My Sassy Girl,’ and the book plays a key part in the film. The influence of Asia and Asian culture should be discernible throughout.
Hwang Sun-woo
The short story collection
‘Shadow Sonata’ is a non-linear story of a man living in London, obsessed by an old love affair, while dreaming his way out of his depression. The topography of London helps the viewer place the action in the past, the present, and what could be the future, or pure imagination.
The Man starts by meeting his blonde girlfriend by an old museum in Walthamstow, north-east London. From the sunny exterior we move to the inside of his small London bedsit, decorated with Asian posters, and full of books by Asian writers.
Old Walthamstow
He walks around London, alone, the city appearing grey, cold, emotionless. He keeps seeing a beautiful Asian lady and feels very attracted to her … if only he could meet her.
I shot this film over two days on my Samsung W200, a camera that cost me around 80 UKP. It lasted until 2017 when it just died on me but anyway, mobile phones now have better cameras (I currently use an iPhone 6s).
Furthermore, I was very lucky with the weather; I had bright sun for the flashback sequence and dull wet grey rain for the present.
The was for the old love affair was played on an instrument I encountered in Sweden, a nyckleharpa:
The dream or future sequence uses ‘Oriental’ from Granados’ ‘Spanish Dances’, while the melancholic ending is a late String Quartet by Beethoven. These small scale pieces fascinate me, especially considering they followed the epic 9th Symphony … but that is possibly a theme for another blog or film.
As always, thanks so much to the actors who gave their time for free:
Mr Martin O’Shea, Ms Michelene P. Heine, Mr Stephen Grey, Mr Alex Loveridge, Ms Angie and introducing Ms Emily Yue.
Today, lots of new words to help you describe the area in which you live (the area you live in). For my classroom-students, I can listen to pronunciation and help them with natural rhythms but online students should use a dictionary with sound … then practice, practice, practice.
Vocabulary booster
Where do you live ? What’s the area like ?
Apartment block in District 2, Sai GonTwo-up, two-down houses in UKTraditional house in Jeonju, South KoreaThe Projects, South Side, ChicagoApartment in Istanbul, TurkeyLagos, Nigeria … a plan for the future ?
Remember to link words together – it’s called ‘chunking’ in IELTS language.
I live in a:
quiet, residential street. Peaceful at night.
lively and busy commercial area, many shops
dirty and dusty industrial part of town. Very noisy.
pop / rock / country and western / punk / classical / jazz / blues
Please Note: All photos are taken from Google Images or free photo sites, and are used for educational purposes only. No copyright infringement or offense is intended. If I have used your photo or image, and you wish me to remove it, just ask. This site is not monetized, I run it on my own dollar. Thank you.
eat western food cook traditional Vietnamese food ?
Today, I went to have a hair cut
(Men = barber / Women = stylist, Both = hairdresser)
Traditional UK barbers for men with red and white poleLadies hair salon
I went to a local (in the area / near / close) hairdresser. After, we went shopping and while there, we bought special beer from Czech Republic – it is my favourite, and also some junk food.
SONG:
To help you with the ‘fre’ pronunciation, here’s a song from one of my favourite bands, REM. It’s called ‘What’s the frequency, Kenneth ?’
a screw loose // solid as a rock // tough cookie // life and soul
Extending vocabulary – personality types
Computer geek / nerd / social misfit
hunk / fit / health freak
Family man / new man / sensitive
boffin / egghead / professional man
Lazy / work-shy / good for nothing
workaholic / married to his job
arty / cool dude / beatnik
useless layabout / waste of space
slackers / drop-outs / cool guys / high school kids
There may be good and bad things about all of these. What do you think they are ?
Which type would you like to marry or which type do you think you are ?
REMEMBER– use expressions of opinion
“In my experience…” “As far as I’m concerned…”
“In my opinion…” “Personally, I think…”
“I believe that…” “It seems to me …”
Please Note: All photos are taken from Google Images or free photo sites, and are used for educational purposes only. No copyright infringement or offense is intended. If I have used your photo or image, and you wish me to remove it, just ask. This site is not monetized, I run it on my own dollar. Thank you.
We had a number of blogs devoted to idioms, so now it’s time to practice using them as part of your everyday English. Not only will IELTS students earn points, but every student will feel closer to English, and sound more like a REAL native-speaker. You can only learn so much from text books …
So, without further ado, a range of dialogues for you to practice:
Dialogue 1
Hello, how’s it going ?
Great, thanks. What have you been up to ?
Oh, same old, same old. Nothing new. Are you busy ?
A little.
Do you want a hand ? (Dya wanna hand)
That would be wonderful. Can you take over for a moment ?
Absolutely !
I’ll be right back. I need to print out some documents.
Dialogue 2
What shall I get on with ?
I just need you to finish off the progress reports.
Oh, piece of cake ! (pieceacake)
You’re an angel.
I know…hahaha.
Dialogue 3
Hello, do you have a minute ?
Sure, what do you need ?
Could we have a little chat ?
OK, let’s go to my office. Have a seat. Now, what’s on your mind?
I’d like an increase in our budget. We desperately need a new photocopier.
Unfortunately, those things cost an arm and a leg. What is the exact price ?
I’ll find out and get back to you. We may have some money in our budget.
Dialogue 4
How’s the new girl ? Are you showing her the ropes?
She seems to be OK but I still need to keep an eye on her. Are we having a meeting later ?
No, it’s been called off.
Ok, back to work. I need to finish off some expense sheets.
Yes, time is money.
See you later.
Dialogue5
What were you doing last night ? I tried to call.
I was watching TV. Was it important ?
We were having a party. I wanted you to come.
Your parties are such fun ! What did you do ?
We were all looking online for bargains. Anna bought some great shoes.
She’s always talking about buying shoes.
I was looking at the clothes from London. So stylish.
Dialogue6
Did you see the email from the Manager ?
Oh, that old windbag ! He was talking so much.
Yes, even his emails go on forever hahahah.
Did you bring your raincoat ? It was raining all night.
I know – it was raining cats and dogs.
They were thinking about calling off the meeting because of the rain.
Yes, maybe the traffic will be chockablock.
Dialogue7
Oh, do you know how to use this Zoom program ?
Yes, it’s very easy. It’s a piece of cake! Have you met Jane’s new boyfriend ?
He seems a real loser. As far as I’m concerned, she can do much better.
What does he do ?
Nothing, the work-shy layabout. I believe he wants her money.
In my experience, guys without jobs are hopeless. A waste of space !
How did she meet him ? She’s such a workaholic ! At the gym ?
Well, not at the gym, he’s no hunk ! It’s obvious to me it won’t last.
I’m convinced it’ll soon be over. She needs a good solid as a rock guy.
Last week, I showed my class how to speak, and think, in longer sentences. I chose a basic question as an example:
Where do you want to visit in Vietnam ?
I showed them a plan:
Introduction / First good point / second good point / something bad / conclusion.
I choose Hoi An
Introduction: DON’T answer immediately but introduce the answer by repeating or rephrasing the question:
Vietnam has many beautiful places but my choice would be Hoi An.
First Good Point:
Firstly, Hoi An is a historical city with a wonderful Japanese bridge and lovely old shops. At night, the shops use romantic lanterns.
Second Good Point:
Hoi An is close to Da Nang, so I can fly there easily and quickly. There are many things to see and do in the local area.
Now, something negative
However, Hoi An is very small and can be extremely crowded in summer. Maybe it will be difficult to find a hotel or a table at a good restaurant.
Conclusion
In my opinion, Hoi An is a very special place to visitbecause it is a town of Vietnamese culture.
How to build sentences:
Use adjectives to describe nouns (beautiful, historic, romantic)
adverbs to describe adjectives and verbs – give more information (very, easily)
opinion phrases (in my opinion)
linking words to connect positive to positive or positive to negative – discourse markers (however)
reasons why an action is being done (because)
Now – your turn: Where do you want to visit ? This can be in Vietnam or anywhere.
SECONDEXAMPLE:
I like coffee
I like coffee so much because it tastes great and makes me wake up although too much will stop me from sleeping at night but, in my opinion, the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages.
Work experience
I teach a brother and sister; the sister is a bit of a handful always chatting or texting during class. In complete contrast, the brother is a really good student as well as being a young gentleman. I feel he is an ideal student.
Now – your turn. Try these:
Living in Sai Gon or in your city
Free time
Working and studying.
Sentence building – becoming fluent and coherent
Use
adverbs
adjectives
opinions phrases
linking words
new vocabulary
EXAMPLE: I like coffee
Ask
how MUCH do you like it (adverbs) ?
What kind of coffee (adjectives) ?
What do you think about this ? (opinions)
WHY do you like it (give reasons)
interesting words, phrases, idioms
I really enjoy hot milky coffee because it helps bring people together as well as making our minds become quite active and somewhat excited. Coffee, in my point of view, is essentially useful if we use it in moderation. On the other hand coffee can be a dreadful waste of money as well as having a detrimental effect on our health. Despite the negative aspects, coffee makes me feel over the moon!
Here’s a quick blog for a class I’m covering tomorrow. As a warm up and review, I’ll play this music as the students enter the class: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHWhebFt_r0
The video has a lot of new words, so I will pause the clip and board new words. Following the video, I’ll ask these questions. Being a large class, the students can work in teams, maybe each team having the name of an animal (that should be fun for Team Monkey).
Which big cat has spots, which has stripes ? Why do they have patterns ?
What is the name of the line that goes around the middle of the Earth ?
Rain forests has two things … what ?
What fruit can you find ?
What animals live at the top of trees ?
Is Vietnam in the tropics ?
BONUS POINTS:
Why are rain forests important ?
They absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen
They are home to lots of different wildlife
They produce water and rainfall for the planet
Moving on rapidly – Adverbs
Give me a sentence for these photos:
EXAMPLE:
The jaguar runs quickly // The jaguar with black spots, runs very quickly
KaraokeA slothReading in a library ssshhhhhhh …Buster Keaton doesn’t stand in a very safe place
How do I follow that !
The remainder of the lesson is given over to reading, the theme being a music recital, so I can lead in by asking who play an instrument (then explaining that my long nails on my left hand are for playing guitar, not for scaring students).
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