Lola's Blog

President Barack Obama giving a speech Many of my students find speaking English difficult. Let me tell you you are not alone. There are a lot of learners of English around the world who find speaking daunting . This post is about how to improve your speaking skills for the oral exam. You are not expected to deliver a speech like Barack Obama so be realistic about what you can achieve. Some tips Listen to real English as much as you can. Find a native speaker and set up a tandem partnership. You can agree to speak in English one day, and in Spanish another day. Native speakers don't tend to correct your mistakes, but if this is very important for you, make sure you ask your partner to correct you at the end of your meeting. Record yourself on your mobile phone . Choose one topic and talk about it. Then, listen to your recording and analyse your mistakes. First, you can make a note of your pronunciation mistakes , then your grammar mistakes , vocabulary and finally a...

Photo by Cancillería Ecuador CC BY SA Angelina Jolie is a famous actress. Have you been to the cinema to see her latest film, Maleficent ? She is the villain in the film. This post is not about her film but about Angelina's humanitarian work and the recent news about a summit to be celebrated in London on victims of sexual violence in war. You are going to read a news report and watch a video about this crime. Before you read What can you see in the picture below?  What are the faces of these women telling you?  Is there justice in their country? Public domain   Read the news about a summit in London Who is going to host the summit? What is the objective of the summit? Which countries are taking part? What "weapon of war" does the article refer to? What is the international protocol trying to achieve? What does this expression mean?: It was time to get rid of the "stigma and shame attached to it" Watch this video Sexual...

Shakira & Alejandro Sanz with King Juan Carlos I.  ALAS_CUMBRE_64. CC-BY Surely this is one of the top stories of the week. King Juan Carlos I of Spain announced his intention to abdicate on Monday 2 June. What is your reaction to this piece of news? Do people talk about it in your circles? How has the international press reacted? If you are interested, keep reading.... Watch or read the international press CNN. Watch the American news Visit this link to watch a series of short videos about King Juan Carlos's abdication. BBC news Visit this link to read about the announcement of King Juan Carlos's decision to step down. The Guardian Read this report published in a popular British newspaper. Canadian CBC News Another report from a Canadian point of view. Other monarchs who abdicated How much do you know about Spanish kings and queens? Do you know the king pictured below? Click on his image and learn about this Spanish king.   Portrait b...

When was the last time you sat comfortably to read the newspaper? Or do you prefer watching the news? Perhaps you prefer keeping updated on the latest news online. It is a good idea to browse the news from time to time. I strongly recommend that you do it so that you come to the Listening exam better prepared. Here you will find some links to the BBC News page. You can start watching the one-minute world news and then choose a topic of your own choice. One-minute World News Watch the news for one minute every day to keep updated.     Browse the home page Look for a news report of your interest or just browse the main home page . Interested in mobile phones? Learn about the dispute between Apple and Samsung . Other top stories Look at the photo below. What is one of the top stories of the week?  Click here to find out . Photo by Tania Rego/ABr. CC-BY Cinema Have you ever been to this place? Do you know the name of this landmark? Keep reading......

Hi everyone! This post is to let you all know that you are invited to the party that will be held at EOI Fuenlabrada on Friday 9 May, at 18:00. I'd love to see you all, whether you are attending my classes this year or you are a former student. A party, why? EOI Fuenlabrada celebrates its 25th anniversary . There will be a number of events throughout the evening: A speech by the Principal of our school and the Mayor of Fuenlabrada, followed by some singing , I believe. Tea  (you know, merienda the Spanish way). Some more singing followed by a real disco ..... We'll be finishing at about 21:30. Follow this link to find out more about this event. Please join us!

Public domain Think of an answer for these questions: 1) Do you know anyone who doesn't like money? 2) How greedy can you or anyone get? 3) How much money is enough for you to be happy? 4) Do you ever think of those who have very little or nothing? 5) How would you feel if you were young and long-term unemployed? Well, you'll have a chance to talk about these things in class. Vocabulary You are going to revise quite a lot of vocabulary this week: money vocabulary, phrasal verbs and money expressions . Do you know the meaning of the following expressions? If not, click and check.   to be in credit , to be well off , to pay the house off You can download this PDF with money vocabulary exercises . Reading Read this BBC article about young people seeking employment and answer these questions: What is the news? What has the report by the Prince's Trust revealed? What is the government doing about it?  What is a neet ?  What is the equival...

The Moorish Bazaar. Rudolf Ernst. Public domain Today we are going to step back in time and travel through time, to the trade route known as the Silk Route. Do you know anything about it? Vocabulary Task 1. Check the meaning of the following words: barter, bazaar, commodities,  goods, gunpowder, spices Task 2 . Click on this link about spices and make a list of at least five spices. What is the Spanish equivalent for each spice? What is the most expensive spice today? The map of the Silk Route Look at the map in your book on page 66 and compare it to this map. Can you locate the cities in your book in this map? Public domain. Wikimedia Commons Click on the cities along the Silk Route map to learn what life is like today in those places. Video clip on the city of Kashgar Watch this video on the BBC page and answer the following questions: Where is Kashgar? What does the reporter say about its past? Why is this city being transformed? What is it be...