Lola's Blog

Richard Huish College. Public domain Last Monday we had a class on report writing. You were asked to write a report about your experience in an English language school. We also looked at some data and you had to draw your own conclusions based on the evidence. I thought you might be interested in reading this article published on the BBC. Before you read One of the roles of the OECD (The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) is to analyse and compare data to compare how countries around the world perform. They promote policies in order to improve the quality of people's lives. One of the areas they work on is education, of course. Well, the OECD has just released the biggest school rankings ever. There are 76 countries listed. Can you guess Who heads the league table?  Who heads the bottom table?  How did Spain score compared to other European countries? How about the UK? And the USA? Click here to check your predictions. What are t...

©Lola la Torre 2015 Do you know who won the 2015 General Election in the UK? How much do you know about British politics? Can you name the main political parties? and their leaders? In this post you will learn about the British political system, interpret the results of the general election and listen to David Cameron, the new Primer Minister, deliver a speech to the nation.   Learning about the British political system This is a good short introduction to the British political system. Click on political parties . Results in full Well, after reading about the main political parties you should be able to interpret these figures . Listen to David Cameron Listen to David Cameron delivering a speech to the nation. You can download this worksheet and fill-in the gaps with the word or short phrase that you hear. You can read the transcript of the speech once you have completed the gaps. Follow this link . I hope you find this post useful. Let me know how you g...

This post is about food and recipes. How much do you know about British food? Do you prefer sweet or savoury? Look at the food displayed in this photo. What can you buy in this shop? © Lola la Torre  Now look at this photo. What kind of drinks can you order? © Lola la Torre Look at the menu below: © Lola la Torre a) Have you ever tried any of these dishes? b) Can you identify the main courses and the desserts? Brushing up your food vocabulary Do you need to brush up your food vocabulary? How about going to a supermarket and doing some online shopping? It's the best way to learn about food items and produce. You are going to visit Tesco , a big supermarket chain in the UK. Click here to browse what they have available in terms of fruti and vegetables, meat and poultry, fish and seafood, dairy products. Fancy a croissant? Well, visit the bakery and make a list of items for your shopping trolley. Perhaps you need some olive oil or ketchu...

Super Typhoon Paka. Public domain This post is about natural disasters. You will learn about earthquakes, floods, typhoons, cyclones, tsunamis and more. Do you remember the last time an earthquake hit the news on TV? How much do you know about floods, or tsunamis? Visit this BBC page and make a list of 9 natural disasters.     Earthquakes Aftermath of the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. Public domain What are earthquakes? Click here to find out more. How much do you know about the earthquake in Nepal ? What is the death toll so far? Follow this BBC link. Tsunamis  Image by Gerald Simmons. CC BY NC SA   Read the introduction about tsunamis and try to explain what they are. Video 1 Vocabulary Check the meaning of the following words: cliff ,   sea bed ,   fault .   Watch this video and make notes on the surprising facts scientists have discovered about the 2004 tsunami. Video 2 What makes the...

Image by BruceBlaus. CC-BY Is it possible to have a three-person baby? In which country is this possible? Well, we are not talking about science-fiction but about breakthrough in medicine. And yes, it is possible to create babies from the DNA of two women and one man. The question is, why? If you don't know the answer, keep reading. This post is about mitochondrial disease and how scientists from the University of Newcastle have developed a technique to treat this devastating disease. What is mitochondrial disease? Click here to find out. You can learn more about a pioneering technique developed at the University of Newcastle. More recently, MPs have voted in parliament in favour of creating babies free from this disease. Listening Listen to Public Health Minister, Jane Ellison, and Sharon Bernardi, who lost seven babies to this genetic disease. However, this has generated a debate. Some critics say that this procedure raises ethical and safety issues. What...

Photo by Foreign and Commonwealth Office. CC-BY How much do you know about Angelina Jolie? Has she ever had any surgery done? What kind? Why? Have you read her two articles published in the New York Times ? You may want to read first her article titled "My medical choice" to learn why she underwent preventive surgery. Most recently, she wrote in The New York Times newspaper an article titled "Diary of a Surgery" . How do you think people reacted to this article? Well, some people wrote to the Editor of The New York Times to express their opinion. You can read some letters here . Now it's your turn You can choose one of the topics we have discussed in class, for example, cosmetic surgery, preventive surgery or you can choose a topic you are interested in. Follow the instructions in your handout about how to write a letter to the editor. Write about 230 words.

Marilyn Monroe. Public domain Do you think that beautiful people are happier and more successful than less beautiful people? What do you know about Marilyn Monroe? Was she beautiful and successful ? Was she happy? This post is about plastic surgery, their benefits and risks. You are going to revise parts of the body, and the structure have/get something done to talk about plastic surgery procedures. Vocabulary Click here to revise vocabulary about the body . Click here to revise vocabulary about the face . Reading Read "Plastic surgery booming in the UK" and answer the following questions: What are the top ten surgical procedures in the UK? What is the most popular procedure among women? and among men? What does the article say about faulty breast implants?  Watch this video Watch Dr  Rajiv Grover talk about the rise of cosmetic surgery in the UK? He mentions a tried and tested procedure? What is it? What is the percentage of people rejected for ...

Evan Amos. Public domain When was the last time you listened to the radio in English? Which website is your favourite for listening? Well, here you have a chance to do some listening practice before the exam. You will hear an interview with Baz Luhrmann, the director of The Great Gatsby. Your task is to complete the gaps wih the word or words that you hear in English. The text is divided into two parts. Listen to Part 1, first, and then Part 2. You can check your answers by reading the transcript. Do not read it until the end, of course. Hope you enjoy this listening exercise. Let me know how you get on with it. Download worksheet.

Public domain Oral exam Please arrive 10 minutes early for the exam. Duration - about 20 minutes (25 minutes for groups of 3 people). Format - the test consists of 2 parts. Part 1 (Oral expression). It can last up to 4 minutes . Each student is required to present a topic . Your partner will listen to you but won't speak. You will be given up to 3 minutes to read the instructions and take a few notes on a separate piece of paper if you feel you need to. This part of the exam tests your ability to speak at length coherently and your ability to give your opinion on a topic. You will keep the card with instructions with you during the exam. Part 2 (Oral interaction) It can last up to 4 minutes (6 minutes for groups of 3 people). All the candidates will have the same card with the same instructions. You will be given up to 2 minutes to read the instructions but won't be allowed to write any notes. This part of the exam tests your ability to agree or disagree, to neg...

David Fincher by Elen Nivrae. CC-BY This post is about the film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button which was directed by American director and producer David Fincher. You are going to learn vocabulary for talking and reviewing a film review. Your last task will be to write a review of about 200-230 words. You should bring to class your student book Global , along with the handout on how to write a book review.   The director and the cast How much do you know about the director, David Fincher? and the cast? Photo by Maggie. CC-BY Photo by Paul Cush. CC-BY Photo by The Heart Truth. Public domain You can follow these links if you would like to learn more about David Fincher, Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett and Taraji P. Henson . Watch this interview with Taraji P. Henson How many actors played the character of Benjamin Button? Why? How did she establish chemistry with a character played by different people? How did Queenie survive in a h...