Formal letter writing

You will be having shortly your B1 and B2 exams, here's a reminder for your writing skill  >>>   WRITING A FORMAL LETTER (for further information about this skill you can visit my site):

 

 

And here are some problems you can write about:

• The problem of pollution by Irene Ramón (4º ESO A)
• A campaign against child labour by María Béjar (4º ESO A)

Some examples:

• Formal letter by Andrea Gutiérrez (4º ESO B)
• Formal letter by Mª José García (4º ESO A)
• Formal letter by María Béjar (4º ESO A)
• Formal letter by Mª Jesús Mendoza (4º ESO A)

Interesting link provided by the British Council:  ESOL Nexus  with very useful examples.

Years pass....sad anniversaries!

Chernobyl, Hillsborough...sad anniversaries. Years pass for people and even for Big Ben, a British emblem. Here are some interesting articles to read about:

• Hillsborough disaster: deadly mistakes and lies that lasted decades (The Guardian)

• How the Hillsborough disaster unfolded (BBC)

• Chernobyl wounds still fresh as Ukrainians mark 30th anniversary of disaster (The Washington Post)

• It's hot: Chernobyl now a tourist zone (CNN)

•  Chernobyl remembered (News Report)

  

• Never too old (BBC Learning English, 6 Minute English)

• Do you think for yourself? (BBC Learning English, 6 Minute English)

LINGOHACK  >>>

Episode 160427 / 27 Apr 2016   >>>  Expressions presented: catastrophically, fall silent, scaffolding, glimpse & delivery.

By the way, how high do you think Big Ben is? Pay attention to the question and how you ask your measures in English. Can you measure LOVE? Listen to this song and tell me.

 

  

And here's the version sung by the Bee Gees >>>

 

 

BON VOYAGE!!!!

À la conquête de la France...

 

 

 

       A group of IES Mediterraneo students are leaving on Sunday, 24th April, for France with two teachers:  Reyes & Pilar. We wish them all the best!!!

Once upon a time, 400 years ago, a writer named Cervantes...

   In a village of La Mancha, the name of which I have no desire to call to mind, there lived not long since one of those gentlemen...

Some articles to read:

• Spain reburies Cervantes, nearly 400 years after Don Quixote author's death &Remains of Cervantes, author of Don Quixote, 'found in convent' (The Guardian)

• Chart: There are more Spanish speakers in the U.S. than in Spain &Why Spain searched for the bones of its greatest author (The Washington Post)

• BBC >>> Why is Shakespeare more celebrated than Cervantes?

Here's a bilingual edition of Don Quixote, where you can read the book both in Spanish and English.

By the way, have you ever heard of Monsignor Quixote? Who wrote this book?

What did the character Monsignor Quixote do as a job?

 

And talking about windmills, here's the film starred by Sir Alec Guinness:

 

   Would you like to read the book? in English? in Spanish?

 

When doves cry :-(((((((

Prince in Heaven!!!

Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston... and now Prince  >>  Drugs and music, so connected and usually ending the same way.

• Obituary: Prince Found Dead at 57 (Varieties)

• Prince dies at 57 (The Telegraph)

What a great singer he was!!!

 

Earthquakes!!! & Happy birthday, your Majesty!!

Notice the difference between the impact earthquakes have in two different countries: Ecuador and Japan. Compare the consequences in each case.

Read the articles about the issue:

• Ecuador earthquake: Death toll jumps to 272; more than 2,500 injured (CNN)

• Japan earthquakes: Dozens killed; 'race against the clock' to find survivors (CNN)

• Japan hit by 7.3-magnitude earthquake (The Guardian)

• Ecuador earthquake: at least 272 killed with many still trapped (The Guardian) The disaster in pictures    

Other interesting articles to read and listening exercises to do:

• Words in the news: "Record-breaking royal" (6 Minute English, BBC Learning English)

• News report: "Destroyed Syrian arch rises again in London" (6 Minute English, BBC Learning English)

LINGOHACK >>> 

Episode 160420 / 20 Apr 2016   >>>  Expressions presented: to date, precious & released.

Validity of any certificates in any language

I have always been asked this question by my students and everybody else. Here's the answer. And this applies to any certificate (Official Language School, Trinity College, Cambridge exams, TOEFL...). I hope you will understand it when you watch later the scene from the film Braveheart.

How long are any results and certificates valid for?

That is to say, like in the film Braveheart, "I was wondering if you could do this when it matters, as it matters in battle. (...) you could? Then prove it!..." See this scene and then you will understand why.

The king of clay is back!!! (part 2)

Nadal wins at Monte Carlo for the 9th time!!!! (It is his 28th Master 1000 equalizing Djokovic in his 100th final) and his 9th Conde de Godó equalizing the Argentinian Guillermo Vilas as the player with the highest number of tournements on clay court ever.

He has just defeated Gaël Monfils in the final 7-5, 5-7, 6-0 in a really tough match.

CONGRATULATIONS, RAFA!!!

 

Le match en direct (L'Équipe) 

 

Rafael Nadal sees off Gaël Monfils to win Monte Carlo Masters final (The Guardian)

The clay season is just awaiting!!!!

Interstellar travel project and Yuri Gagarin's anniversary as the world's first spaceman

Read some articles about the issue and watch some news:

• Hawking backs interstellar travel project (BBC news)   >>>  Watch it on CBS news  

• 14 April 1961: Yuri Gagarin comes back down to earth (The Guardian)

However, if we ever take this decision to send a spaceship into space, scientists will have to bear this in mind:

• Space debris collisions expected to rise (BBC news)

• 1957: Sputnik satellite blasts into space (BBC news)

So we will have to start 'cleaning up the space' (listening exercise, 6 Minute English, BBC)

LINGOHACK:

Episode 160413 / 13 Apr 2016   >>>  Expressions presented: ambitious, exceptional, triumph, the height of & winning hearts.

TRAINING, the key to success.

Training is essential in any kind of sport to have success. We've got examples such as Rafa Nadal in tennis, Pau Gasol in basketball... and this downhill mountain biker!!! Just amazing!!!

However, you cannot only train your muscles, but also your brain: BRAIN TRAINING (listening exercise, BBC Learning English - 6 Minute English). By the way, pay attention to the definition they give to the word 'bilingualism'. 

 

Health and wellbeing:  Five ways to improve your brainpower (The Guardian)

 

To achieve this goal, you must obviously wipe out any kind of distractors such as pointless strikes, hormones or social media ("Is social media a distraction?" >>> Listening exercise from BBC Learning English - 6 Minute English). 

LINGOHACK >>> 

• Episode 160406 / 06 Apr 2016   >>>  Expressions presented: prominent, prompted & honoured.

Students' diaries (Dublin 2016)

Our students had to write a diary during their stay in Dublin.

Here's the project done by Joaquín García (4º ESO B) >>>

Here's the project done by Alex España (4º ESO B)  >>>

Here's the project done by Alba Arenas (4º ESO A)   >>>>

Here's the project done by Andrea Gutiérrez (4º ESO B) >>>>

VI Study trip to the British-Irish Isles: EDINBURGH (Easter 2017)

We will be having our ZERO meeting next Monday, 11th April, in the Language Department during the break just to give you a rough idea of our proposal. Those students who have never participated in any of our experiences are welcomed!!!

   

EDINBURGH (FIRST PROPOSAL)

 

 

 

Have a look at the photos taken during our I Study trip to British-Irisn Isles in 2012  >>>

 

 

 

 

  And this is the video J. Luis Fernández (our Philosophy teacher) made for the occasion:

And here is the one made by ACTIVE GLOBAL ENGLISH HOUSE:

 

 

Scandals, scandals, scandals... everywhere!!!

What is happening in this world? There are scandals everywhere and honest ordinary people sometimes really feel stupid when they read about these pieces of news:

• Panama papers: The Pyongyang connection   >>>  Iceland PM steps aside after protests over Panama Papers revelations (The Guardian)  

• Apple vs the FBI   >>>>  Why the fight between Apple and the FBI is just getting started  (The Washington Post)      

• Sharapova's failed drug test  >>>   Maria Sharapova admits to failing drug test, will be provisionally banned (CNN)

      

However, this is not only our main concern. There are other issues that make us doubt of our governments and rulers when we hear this:

• Calais 'Jungle' clearance     

• Great Barrier Reef 'severely damaged'   

Read about any of these issues and try to find articles in the press and then write a comment about any of them. You can also propose which issues concern you the most at the moment.

LINGOHACK:

Episode 160330 / 30 Mar 2016   >>>  Expressions presented: driverless, choking, toxic, abundance & predominantly.

And just to end with a more positive attitude. Here's an impressive documentary on the evolution of cruising:

Time to register for the B1 and B2 exams as freelance students at the EOI

MOST IMPORTANT PIECE OF NEWS FOR OUR STUDENTS

I have just seen that you can register for the B1 and b2 exams as freelance student (estudiante libre) until 15th April.

ALL THE INFORMATION IS  HERE:

http://www.eoimotril.org/matricula-de-la-modalidad-libre/

http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/educacion/webportal/web/educacion-permanente/prueba-unificada-de-certificacion

  Módelos de pruebas de cursos anteriores 

GOOD LUCK FOR EVERYBODY!!!!

Our students are ready