The power of words

I thought this video might be interesting to listen to just to reflect on the power of words. What do you think?

Christmas Period

I wanted to thank you all for your personal reviews on the class. They are really helpful to me.

For those who couldn't attend, we have the following for January:
- "Deseree's Baby" short story with questions on the comment below.

For more information on the writer, Kate Chopin, and other stories written by her, click here.
- A handout with extra activities on the Present Perfect
- A handout with extra activities on Collocations

Key

KEY TO EXERCISES IN THE BOOK

PAGE 32, Wimbledon’s Unsung Heroes.

EX. 2: 1. E; 2. A; 3. F; 4. C; 5. D; 6. B

Ex. 3: 1: B; 2: A; 3: B; 4: E; 5: F; 6: D; 7: F; 8: A; 9: C; 10: D; 11: C; 12: D

PAGE 36, GRAMMAR

EX. 1

1. Haven’t emailed; 2. Saw; 3. Has been; 4. have been doing; 5. Have taken; 6. Have joined; 7. Bought; 8. Have heard; 9. Walk; 10. have been wearing; 11. Have noticed; 12. Haven’t been working

EX 2

1. already; 2. just; 3. still; 4. yet; 5. since; 6. for; 7. ago; 8. since

VOCABULARY. EX 3

<!--I’ve beaten him every time I’ve played so far.

<!--he’s got a strong competitive spirit/instinct/streak and has always hated losing.

<!--Our team were clear champions and won by a huge margin.

-Some racehorses seem to have an inbuilt desire to win/succeed.

-He’s just set a new world record with an incredibly fast time.

-I’m expecting a hard match because he’s a strong competitor.

-They came up against unexpectedly strong/intense/stiff competition today.

-I’m doing a lot of training because I’m competing in a sailing race next week.

EX. 4

<!--1. resounding; 2. admire; 3. status; 4. reputation; 5. personal; 6. models; 7. reached; 8. standards; 9. goals; 10. credit

Auld Lang Syne

I would like to wish you all good things for the holiday season and for the coming new year. Hope you enjoyed the song yesterday in class, "Auld Lang Syne.

"Auld Lang Syne" is sung at the stroke of midnight in almost every English- speaking country in the world to bring in the new year. At least partially written by Robert Burns in the 1700's, it was first published in 1796 after Burns' death. Early variations of the song were sung prior to 1700 and inspired Burns to produce the modern rendition.
And old Scottish tune, "Auld Lang Syne" literally means "old long ago", or simply, "the good old days."
-->

Casa Manolo

CASA MANOLO by Mónica Aranda

My favourite place is “Casa Manolo” restaurant. Casa Manolo has been specializing in fresh sea food from the Mediterranean Sea since 1969. It is located in the centre of Madrid, next to Metro Sol station. It is an old and established restaurant. Casa Manolo has attentive staff and a relaxed atmosphere. It hasn´t got a glitzy design neither plush.

In Casa Manolo food is exquisite, serving seasonally selected fresh fish, premium oyster and Certified Angus steaks. Casa Manolo has become known as one of the best places in Madrid for dinning. Their dishes have become favourite among both locals and tourists. The smoked salmon salad is served with guacamole and it is worth it! I would certainly recommend an excellent gazpacho. It is extremely good! Other delights are the chorizo, morcilla, two kinds of cheese (Manchego and Ibérico) and harm. The fishcake is absolutely perfect!

I was pleasantly surprised by the Casa Manolo's wine list, it is particularly excellent!

Casa Manolo proves very clearly my long held belief that restaurants should display their prices straightforward, so that customers can easily understand what they are going to be paying for when the bill arrives instead of receiving a nasty surprise.

Finally, I would recommend it to you for two reasons: its well prized menu and the fact that it is a cosy place. 

Long Weekend

We won't be having class again till Monday 14th so yesterday I sent you quite a lot of homework for the extra long weekend:
- Reading a Text: "Familiarity Breeds Contempt" (see questions on post).
- Extra exercises on modal verbs of possibility.
- Ex. 4, p. 29 and ex. 1, 2, 3 & 5 on p. 30 from the coursebook.

BTW, are you coming Thursday today to the Cultural day at school?
At 4pm we're showing The Visitor, and
Little Ms. Sunshine at 18h in room 14.
20:00 Talk about India, by Dr Deepak Prem
Prizes for the Writing Competition will be awarded as well.