Starting blocks lesson.

Simon Pegg is taught how to start a running race in this funny short from BBC comedy show 'Big Train

ENGLISH COMEDY
 

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The office: vocabulary

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Simple past of the verb to be

SUBJECT + PAST FORM. 

 He was old

The simple past describes an action situation in the past.

• When the event is in the past: My childhod was sad.
• When the event is completely finished: Last summer I was in London.
• When you say (or understand) the time /pace of the event: I was in Tim's bedroom.

Exercises

 Simple past of the verb to be: was / were 1
Simple past of the verb to be: was / were 2

Video

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At the restaurant

Exercises

Ordering a meal
Buying a coffe

Weblinks

Find a hotel in London
Create a menu 
Be the customer or the barista in your coffee shop

VIDEOS

Please, DO WATCH THIS VIDEO!

.

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Indefinite pronouns

somebody	someone	something
anybody	anyone	anything
nobody	no one	nothing
everybody	everyone	everything

Indefinite pronouns are used to refer to people or things without saying exactly who or what they are. 

• Pronouns ending in -body or -one for people,
•  and pronouns ending in -thing for things:

Everybody enjoyed the show.
I opened the door but there was no one at home.
It was a very clear day. We could see everything.

Use a singular verb after an indefinite pronoun:

Everybody loves Tom.
Everything was ready for the trip.

When we refer back to an indefinite pronoun we normally use a plural pronoun:

Everybody enjoyed the concert. They stood up and clapped.
I will tell somebody that dinner is ready. They have been waiting a long time.

You can add -'s to an indefinite pronoun to make a possessive.

They were staying in somebody’s flat.
Is this anybody’s skirt?

Indefinite pronouns with no- as the subject in negative clauses (not pronouns with any.)

Anybody didn’t get the job >> Nobody got the job.

Do not use another negative in a clause with nobody, no one or nothing:

Nobody enjoyed the film.
Nothing happened.

Use else after indefinite pronouns to refer to people or things in addition to the ones we already mentioned.

All the family came, but no one else.
If Michael can’t come we’ll ask somebody else.
So that's eggs, peas and chips. Do you want anything else?

VIDEO

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Some and any

Some and Any are used when the speaker doesn't specify a number or an exact amount.

Some is used in POSITIVE SENTENCES 

• with uncountable nouns: You have some cream on your face
• with plural countable nouns: You have some apples in the frigde. 

Any is used in NEGATIVE SENTENCES AND QUESTIONS.

• with uncountable nouns: I don't want any risk in my job
• with plural countable nouns: Do you have any relatives in Australia?

But there are exceptions...

• Use SOME in questions when offering / requesting: Would you lke some more coffe?
• Use ANY in positive sentences when it means "it doesn't matter which": You can call me any time

EXERCISES

a / an, some / any 1
a / an, some / any 2

VIDEO

 

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One pound Fish

It is just a joke!! Come on Sing along with this video!!!!

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Food and beverage

Time to eat!

8.00 A.M. Breakfast
12.00 PM Lunch
Any time! Snack
7.00 PM Dinner

Menu

Starters.

• Appertizers  a small dish of food or a drink taken before a meal or the main course of a meal to stimulate one’s appetite:
• Soups
• Salads
• Sandwiches

Main courses  the most substantial course of a meal.

• Fish
• Seafood
• Meats.
• Side dishes a dish served as subsidiary to the main one (guarnición) 

Desserts

Beverages

• Wines
• Sodas
• Beers

Exercises

Food
Ordering a meal
Buying a coffe

Videos

Vegetables

Fruits and nuts

 Food and drinks

Ordering a meal

 

 

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Plurals

When a countable noun refers to two or more things you have to use the plural form of the noun.

PLURAL FORMS

Plurals are generally creatid by adding an "s" to make a plural noun:

book > books; school > schools; friend > friends

You need to add -es to nouns ending in –ss; -ch; -s; -sh; -x

class > classes; watch > watches; gas > gases; wish > wishes; box > boxes

When a noun ends in a consonant and -y we make the plural in -ies...

lady > ladies; country > countries; party > parties

…but if a noun ends in a vowel and -y simply add -s:

boy > boys; day > days; play > plays

But there are exceptions: IRREGULAR PLURALS

Irregular nouns do not follow the previous rules. These are the most common:
 
Woman   Women 
Man   Men
Child  Children
Foot  Feet

Tooth  Teeth

And some more irregular plurals..
Sheep Sheep (no change)
Mouse Mice

VIDEOS

 

 

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Countable and unconuntable nouns

A countable noun can have a number in front of it and can be plural 5 months, 5 trees, 1 pig,

An unconuntable noun cannot have a number in front of it and ther is no plural form: money, oil, water.

COUNTABLE NOUNS.

Use with undefinite article: A/N

You can use a contable noun with A/An the first time you use that noun. There is a handsome man on the beach.

Use with definite article: The

You can use it when the listener already knows what you are referring to: The handsome man is singing.

Use a plural countable noun with no article when you speak in general. I don't like children

UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS.

NO UNDEFINITE ARTICLES, if you mean all or any of that thing. I don't need help.

With definite article "the" when you are talking about an example: Thanks for the help you gave me.

QUESTIONS.

Countable.... HOW MANY   ?  How many apples do you have?
Uncountable.... HOW MUCH  ? How much money do you need?

VIDEOS

 

 

 

 

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Describing people's appearance

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The funniest joke in the world

I bet you'll love it!

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Present continuous

Present continous.

SUBJECT + SIMPLE PRESENT "TO BE" + PRESENT PARTICIPLE
I'm freezing

Present continuous NEGATIVE

SUBJECT + SIMPLE PRESENT "TO BE" + NOT + PRESENT PARTICIPLE 
I'm not freezing 

Present continuous QUESTION

SIMPLE PRESENT "TO BE"+  SUBJECT +  PRESENT PARTICIPLE  ? 
Are you freezing? 

Simple Present versus Present Continuous. 

Use of simple present for actions that happen regulary or things that do not often change, like opinions.
Use of present continuous for temporary actions happening now or definite plans for the future.

More about present continuous.

The present continuous tense is formed from the present tense of the verb be and the present participle (-ing form) of a verb:

Use
1. We use the present continuous tense to talk about the present:

• for something that is happening at the moment of speaking:

          I’m just leaving work. I’ll be home in an hour.
          Please be quiet. The children are sleeping.

• for something which is happening before and after a given time:

          At eight o’clock we are usually having breakfast.
          When I get home the children are doing their homework.

• for something which we think is temporary:

          Michael is at university. He’s studying history.
          I’m working in London for the next two weeks.

• for something which is new and contrasts with a previous state:

 These days most people are using email instead of writing letters.
 What sort of clothes are teenagers wearing nowadays? What sort of music are  they listening to?

• to show that something is changing, growing or developing:

         The children are growing quickly.
         The climate is changing rapidly.
         Your English is improving.

• for something which happens again and again:

         It’s always raining in London.
         They are always arguing.
         George is great. He’s always laughing.

         Note: We normally use always with this use.

2. We use the present continuous tense to talk about the future:

• for something which has been arranged or planned:

         Mary is going to a new school next term.
         What are you doing next week?

3. We can use the present continuous to talk about the past:

• When we are telling a story: 

         When we are summarising the story from a book, film or play etc

EXERCISES

Present continuous 1
Present continuous 2
Present simple or present continuous 1
Present simple or present continuous 2

VIDEOS

Present continuous versus Present simple:

 

 

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Branding 2.0 ¿Empezamos?

Tod@s vosotr@s queréis que vuestra marca/producto sea conocido en medios digitales, tener muchos seguidores en las redes, que eso se traduzca en visitas a vuestra tienda online o física y que, al final, sean ventas.

Todo esto debemos valorarlo mucho antes de lanzarnos sin red.

La mayoría lleváis años en el sector, ya tenéis una clientela fija, y además vuestra profesionalidad es incuestionable.

Pues ahora pongamos todo eso en papel, convirtamos nuestra empresa en una marca reconocida, que ya lo es.

Por eso es tan importante el branding 2.0, que nuestros lectores nos identifiquen como una marca con solvencia, experiencia y profesionalidad.

¿Empezamos?

Pues aquí os dejo un artículo de Inmaculada Urrea, un placer siempre leer sus artículos.

http://www.puromarketing.com/3/18476/intangible-marca-importa.html#

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Nuestra campaña necesita un vídeo ¿Es tan difícil?

Son muchos los que no están seguros de por qué y cómo incorporar un vídeo en nuestras campañas de marketing.
Aquí van algunas apreciaciones que esperan ayudaros a responder a estas preguntas.

• Los usuarios de internet pueden llegar a ver más de 182 vídeos al mes.

• Los vídeos publicitarios nos ayudan a decidirnos en la compra de un producto u otro (El 50% deciden según este método)

• La satisfacción de la compra aumenta si han sido captados a través de un vídeo (85%)

En este enlace encontraréis la primera necesidad que debemos cubrir, ¿cómo editamos nuestro vídeo? Tenéis opciones para Mac y para Windows y alguna online. http://www.bloguismo.com/marketing-2-0/herramientas-edicion-videos/

Para muchos es una propuesta a la que os costará adaptaros, pero una vez que habéis visto el resultado, estoy segura de que cada vez se hará más necesaria.

Javier Manzaneque es una de las personas que sigo y a la que os invito a conocer, su blog "Tu Marca Personal en vídeo" no tiene desperdicio, desde su experiencia y profesionalidad nos dará muchas claves de lo que debemos hacer y no en nuestro canal youtube. http://www.javiermanzaneque.com/


Esperamos haberos ayudado, pero sobre todo, ¿Debemos incorporar los vídeos a nuestra campaña? Seguro que vuestra respuesta es sí.

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Idioms

Idioms are expressions with a meaning that is not literal. They don't always follow the usual language pattern.

An idiom is a phrase where the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words, which can make idioms hard for students.

Here you have some examples:

It's raining cats and dogs.......  It's raining very heavily

Go the extra mile..... Going all the way to get it done

It's a small world... You frequiently see the same people in different places

Apple on my eye....Someone sho is the favourite among the others

Back to square one... Having to start all over again.

Mum's the word....To say nothing. To keep quiet

Under the weather... Feeling unwell or sick

Catch red-handed... To catch someone in the act of doing something wrong

Cost and arm and a leg...Expensive, cost too much money

Fingers crossed... Hope or wish for good luck

A blessing in disguise... Something good that is not recognized at first.

A Leopard can't change his spots... You cannot change who you are 


A taste of your own medicine... You are mistreated the same way you mistreat others

All in the same boat... Everyone is facing the same challenges.

Beating around the bush... Avoiding the main topic and not speaking directly about it

Now watch this video to learn all those idioms:

 

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Activities

EXERCISES

Everyday activities:

Everyday activities: Crossword
Find the daily routine verb phrases: Wordsearch

VIDEOS

 

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Speaking tests activities: The videos and tips below will help you to do really well in this type of speaking exam

Speaking tests are the part of any exam that we all fear most.

But don't worry!

Watch this great video series to learn all about typical activities you might have to do and how you can do them better:

Talk about yourself - http://goo.gl/00ixrI

Discussion - http://goo.gl/AdI9cF

Describe a photo or picture - http://goo.gl/Cn1bm8

By the way, do not miss the free worksheets and  downloads.

Ta-ta for now

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Like

Exercises

like + verb+ing 1
like + verb + ing 2

Videos

 

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Adjective or Adverb: The difference

ADJECTIVE OR ADVERB: THE DIFFERENCE

An adjective tells us more about a noun. Example: an expensive car, a clever girl

An adverb tells us more about a verb. Example: He talked nervously.

¿Cómo es una persona o cosa? »»» adjective.

¿Cómo hace una persona o cosa algo? »»» adverb.

THE ADVERB

HOW TO FORM

Adjective + ly

sad	sadly	quiet	quietly
nervous	nervously	soft	softly

Adjectives ending in -y »»» ily

happy

happily

angry

angrily

Adjectives ending in le »»» ly

terrible

terribly

capable

capably

Adjectives ending in ly

friendly	in a friendly way / manner	daily	daily
lively	in a lively way / manner	early	early
lonely	in a lonely way / manner	monthly	monthly
lovely	in a lovely way / manner	weekly	weekly
silly	in a silly way / manner	yearly	yearly

Irregular forms

good	well	low	low
fast	fast	straight	straight
hard	hard	extra	extra
long	long	doubtless	doubtless

Double forms

hard	hard	hardly = apenas
near	near	nearly =casi
late	late	lately = últimamente

HOW TO USE THE ADVERB

l

Verb + adverb

The adverb describes a verb (se matiza la acción indicada por el verbo).

Example:	He	drove	carefully.
		verb	adverb
	She	sold	her	house	quickly
		verb			adverb

 

Adjective + adverb

The adverb describes an adjective (se matiza el adjetivo).

Example:	Her	necklace	was	horribly	expensive.
				adverb	adjective
		She	was	terribly	sorry.
				adverb	adjective

 

Adverb + adverb

The adverb describes an adverb (se matiza el adverbio).

Example:	They	played	terribly	badly.
			adverb	adverb
	He did his homework		absolutely	correctly.
			adverb	adverb

EXERCISES

Adjective or adverb 1 
Adjective or adverb 2
Adjetive or adverb 3 
Adjective or adverb 4 
  

VIDEO 

 

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