FATAL COMBINATION: Teleworking and no sport (QUARANTINE: DAY 46)

My back aches, my hands ache, I've got sore eyes, swollen legs... and I won't say anything about my super-happy belly!!! Teleworking and no sport, or any kind of physical activity, is deteriorating our bodies, apart from our minds. This situation is literally killing us!!!

 

However, some good news: the plan of de-escalation in Spain sounds really well!!! and we are really looking forward to beginning to go back to our normal life and daily routines, although with restrictions. We will be able to do some sport, but at a certain time and under some conditions. For instance, social distancing.

Coronavirus: What is social distancing? - BBC News

 

LINGOHACK  >>>

• Episode 200429 / 29 April 2020    >>>  Coronavirus: How to avoid back pain while working from home  -    Language related to 'our body'.  Need-to-know language: postures, aches, extremities & small of your back.

 

 

 

Coronavirus: Spain plans return to 'new normal' by end of June (BBC News)

Spain to begin return to work despite fears of resurgence (The Guardian)

Quarantine Scoreboard

Posts uploaded:  30

Students participating:  about 85 out of 110 (77%)

Comments written and corrected:    About 600

Emails exchanged: almost 2200

PASEN announcements & messages:   almost 2200

Things handed in and corrected: more than 1000

 

Visits to blog and site during quarantine: about 11,500 (Average of 250 visits per day)

Video lectures (ONLINE CLASSES):    9  (+ 6 Dictations on line, 4 verb exams and 2 online exams)

 

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE QUARANTINE

 Thursday, 30^th April

Tasks for today:

• Do exercises on page 80.

• Do the writing exercise 12:

  
  

  Wr12: Ejercicio de producción escrita sobre el tema:  A report about an animal and comparison with your pet (informe sobre un animal y comparación con tu animal doméstico) utilizando comparativos, superlativos y el comparativo de igualdad, además de todo lo que hay en la pagina 80. Se harán 3 párrafos: 1º descripción física del animal (en el módelo llegaría hasta "...up to 113 kilograms"); 2º descripción de su características, como si fuera su personalidad, y el tipo de cosas que hacen, comen.. (en el modelo sería lo que queda del texto); y 3º comparación con un animal doméstico utilizando comparativos de superioridad, superlativos y el comparativo de igualdad.

    

Solutions to listening exercises on page 75 (On Monday I will give you the solutions to listening exercises on page 78):

Exercise 11

Does Ethan guess the animal in each riddle?  No, he doesn’t

Exercise 12

	Animal	Colour	Size	Lives in	Eats
Riddle 1	Rat	Black or Brown	Not as big as a dog	Cities	Rubbish
Riddle 2	Rabbit	White, Brown, black, grey	Bigger than a rat	Country	Plants

 

As tomorrow is 1st May and there is no class, this is today's homework for the weekend:

• Unit 8 (Smart Planet 4) , page 90 

  
  

See you on Monday for our online class!

 

 

Tasks for today:

• You will just watch these episodes about genetics, elderly people and pensionists:          Modulo 7          Unit 3A            Unit 3B   

• On Monday in our online class we will be correcting some RELATIVE CLAUSES & REPORTED SPEECH, apart from the exercises on the Passive Voice and Conditional Sentences.

Glossary about TELEWORKING proposed by Sofía Morea (1º Bach A)

sore eyes, swollen, to deteriorate, de-escalation, restrictions, lockdown, severity of the outbreak, manufacturing, some of the toughest confinement measures, before the plan kicks, gradually, to glimpse, to lurk, to forecast, to embark, to loom, a rise in contagion, countermeasures, overstretched intensive care units, prudently, to disengage

Any more proposals?? 

Here's another one by Anabel Prados:   

non-essential workers, work from home, telecommuting, distance, supportive, telework, telecommute,  workplace, workweek,  videoconferencing,   teleconferencing, workforce, mobility, productivity, absenteeism,  workday, workspace, flextime,  jobseeker, workless, interoffice, deskbound,  employers, workaholics.

 

Popeye the Sailor is 90 years old!!!

Long, long time ago young children were encouraged to eat healthily by watching this cartoon series: Popeye the Sailor. Have you ever watched any of these episodes?

 

 

Popeye: How has he changed in 90 years? (BBC)

 

 

New Popeye Videos Show What 90 Years of Spinach Can Do for a Guy (The New York Times)

 

 
POPEYE® PREPARES TO CELEBRATE 90 IN 2019!  

Time is flying and we will shortly be flying to York on our VII Study trip to the British-Irish Isles  >>>

Here's a listening exercise to do: Is music getting faster? (6 Minute English, BBC Learning English)

Lucy advises you to stop saying this not to sound rude in English

Studying in the UK: the pros and cons

 

 

HIGHWAY TO B1.....

Part three. Look at the picture and read the questions. The picture will help you to answer the questions. Choose the correct option: 

21. So he went back ....  fish.    (A  cut   B  for cutting    C  cutting   D  to cutting)

22. The more Bert works,  ........ he smells of fish.    (A  the more    B  much more  C  the most    D   mostly )

23. When he ........ home this evening, he will have a hot bath.     ( A  goes      B   will go     C  is going   D  will be going )

24. His wife expects .......... this.    (A  his doing    B   that he does   C  him to do this  D  him doing) 

25. "I don't mind him working in a fish shop ....... I don't want to live with fish," she says.    (A  so   B  nevertheless   C  however   D  but) 
26. "He gets no supper ........ he cleans up," she adds.    (A  but    B  if   C  unless   D  suppose) 
27. He never brings .........  fish home.   (A  some    B   no   C  any   D   the) 
28. He sees ............. fish throughout the day.     (A  too much of    B  more enough   C  more of   D  those many) 
29. Mr Talbot .... likes fish.      (A   , however,      B   although      C   because he      D  instead) 
30. He has the appetite ........  a cat.      (A  as     B   of    C  like   D  same as)

Solutions to PART TWO in the previous post.11. a    12. c    13. d    14. b    15. d   16. c   17. b   18. b  19. c   20. a

And still talking about the health problems the screen overuse may bring along (remember this previous post about the issue: Screen overuse, possible cause of digital eye strain ), here's another Lingohack episode for you to analyse.

 

LINGOHACK  >>>

• Episode 190109 / 9 January 2019    >>>  Is screen use really bad for kids? -  Language related to 'technology and health'.  Need-to-know language: digital entertainment, toxic, sedentary occupation, keep you up at night  & screen time limits.

Wearables to help and save patients

It's just amazing how technology can help us!!!! Now when you go jogging you will probably have some kind of gadget on you to know how much you have run, how many calories you have burnt, your heart rate... and so on. By the end of the week certain apps report you how much exercise you have done and what you should do. 

 

Well, now, stroke patients (can you define what a stroke patient is?) can carry some wearable tech which will give vital data to the doctor.

Some interesting articles for you to read:

• Wearable technology: Clothing designed to save your life (BBC News)

• Wearable tech aids stroke patients (BBC News)

• Wearable technology – just what the doctor ordered (The Guardian)

• Can a week of wearables improve your health? (CNN)

Living Alone & Moving Abroad | Teatime with English with Lucy!

Let's revise verbs that are followed by an -ING form or by an infinitive: Exercise to do (British Council)

What's the difference between these two sentences?
1. Sometimes people are stopped for speeding.
2. Sometimes people are stopped by speeding.

LINGOHACK  >>>

• Episode 180228 / 28 February 2018    >>>  Wearable tech aids stroke patients   -  Language related to 'Health'.  Need-to-know language: vital signs, monitor (their) progress, speed (her) recovery, medical team & heart rate.

Another post related with wearable technology:

FASHION OR SCIENCE: Wearable tech

A stroke patient is a patient who has suffered a sudden change in the blood supply to a part of the brain, sometimes causing a loss of the ability to move particular parts of the body. (Example: "He suffered a stroke that left him unable to speak for a while")

Santa is coming tonight!!!

Tonight is Christmas Eve and we all have a family dinner, listen or watch to the King's speech and some people, most in the world, wait for Santa Claus' gifts. Tradition is very important these days. What traditions do you keep in your family?

 

And talking about tradition, have a look at this fishing tradition in China:

Winter fishing at Chagan Lake: A tradition of 1,000 years   (CGTN)

Here's a good way to read a book  >>>   Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (Audiobook) from the BBC School Radio   

 

Activities for my 2º ESO students:

What do you usually have for dinner tonight? Who do you have dinner with? Do you get any gifts tonight or on the Three Wise Men Eve?

Here's a listening exercise to do: The Perfect Santa (6 Minute English, BBC Learning English)

 

Lucy teaches us how to pronounce 12 brands you may pronounce incorrectly.

LINGOHACK  >>>

• Episode 171213 / 13 December 2017    >>>  The science of singing   -  Language related to 'hearing'.  Need-to-know language: hearing impairment, stimulate, hearing acuity, discriminate.

Related articles you can read about the issue:

• Singing Changes Your Brain (Time)

• Boost Your Brain and Memory by Singing (Lifehacker)

• Singing lessens stress (The Guardian)

Now let's listen to Good Vibrations by the Beach Boys   >>>>

Cities are no longer cars' territory and our biological clock

Cities used to be invaded by cars, buses, lorries.... there used to be traffic jams everywhere. This is no longer happening in cities like Bordeaux in France, Seville in Spain, Freiburg in Germany or Norwich in Britain. Now city centres are pedestrians' territory and it is really a delight not only because you can walk freely everywhere, but also because of the reduction of pollution and noise.

 

 

Here's a listening exercise to do: Pedestrianisation - is it good for cities and towns? (6 Minute English, BBC Learning English)

And now let's watch a video about the transformation of the city of Bordeaux (Bordeaux avant après), some bits of which are in French:

 

And here are some articles to read about the issue:

• Bordeaux reborn (The Guardian)

• Pedestrians are an endangered species on city roads (The Economic Times)

• Pedestrian power to shape future cities (BBC News)

 

Not long ago we saw the Question Tags! in English. Here's an interesting video to watch

Some extra activities for my students in 2º Bachillerato to do (UNIT  2. Society)

False friends . Complete the sentences with the correct form of the words in the list :

attend   -   assist   -   poor    -   pay attention

1. If you don’t … in class, you won’t learn anything.
2. When I was young, my family was quite … – we never had much money.
3. I’m learning to speak French – I … classes on Tuesday evenings.
4. If you need help, our staff will be happy to … you.

Vocabulary . Complete the sentences with the correct prepositions, then check their answers in the text.

1. Most of us can turn … family and friends … help.
2. Charities provide real support … young people … this situation.
3. He donated his final payment to fund projects … young people.
4. Sonya struggled … school and was arrested … shoplifting.
5. She visited children … serious illnesses.

Grammar . Rewrite these sentences using UNLESS.

1. You will fail your exams if you don’t work harder.
2. We won’t have a barbecue if it isn’t sunny.
3. You can’t help people if they don’t want to help themselves.

Vocabulary . Combine each pair into one sentence using too / (not) … enough.

1. This coffee is very hot. I can’t drink it.
2. Paul is very young. He can’t watch that film.
3. That team isn’t very good. It won’t win the match.
4. Sam doesn’t work very hard. He won’t pass his exams.
5. That book was really boring! I couldn’t read it.
6. He didn’t run very fast. He didn’t catch the bus.

Solutions to the USE OF ENGLISH exercise in the previous exercise. 

(1) thanks    (2) out      (3) looks    (4) fact/reality     (5) than      (6) addition   (7) bigger    (8) whether    (9) far    (10) means     (11) tell    (12) dishonest    (13) home    (14) away    (15) before     (16) available (17) yours/one     (18) last      (19) wait/delay     (20) without

LINGOHACK  >>>

Episode 171101 / 01 November 2017    >>>  Heart surgery and your body clock   -  Language related to 'health'.  Need-to-know language: biological clock, open-heart surgery, complications, high-risk patients, medicine.

Have you got a sweet tooth?

Do you usually have the need to eat something sweet? If so, be careful. You may have a serious problem.

 

Listening exercise to do: Too much sugar (6 Minute English, BBC Learning English)

Interesting video to keep you fit:

This Happens to Your Stomach Fat When You Plank - 6 Good Reasons Why You Should Do Plank Daily

 

And for my students in 2nd of ESO, can you tell me things that made you a better person? But first, watch the next video, where Lucy tells you about the issue.

 

 

English with Lucy   >>>  10 things that made me a better person  

 

 

On the way to SELECTIVITY   >>> GRAMMAR & USE OF ENGLISH.

52. RELATIVE CLAUSES.Combine the following sentences by means of a relative clause :

1. Julius Caesar came to Britain in 55BC.He was a Roman General.

2. He began a prayer. Nobody understood his prayer. He must have composed it himself.

3. Will you give me the book? I left it on the table. There's a very nice vase on it.

4. I saw several houses.Most of them were quite unsuitable.

5. He was driving his car for the first time.It broke down.

53. CONDITIONALS.Write proper endings for these sentences:

1. I wouldn't have met her if _______________________________

2. You got lost,but why __________________________ if you knew the way?

3. You won't pass the exam unless ______________________________

4. Come to the party _____________________________

5. If she were my girlfriend ________________________________

54. Put the first three sentences into the PASSIVE VOICE and the last three sentences into the ACTIVE VOICE:

    

1. They no longer make that car in Britain.

2. My mother is cooking dinner.

3. Nobody can do that.

4. It was believed that the Prime Minister's policy was not totally accepted by his cabinet.

5. It is said that Albert is going to buy a new car.

6. Nobody should be killed for any cause.

SELECTIVITY. Solutions to the exercises in the previous post:

1.  1. lavish hotel   2. wealthy family    3. controversial issue     4. instant success    5. marvellous time

2.  1. before   2. medicine   3. help   4. always   5. neighbours    6. dancer    7. small     8. in a few hours

3.  1. round (visited)    2. on (a way to encourage someone)    3. across (find by accident)   4. in (enter) 

LINGOHACK  >>>

• Episode 171025 / 25 October 2017    >>>  The risk of meat consumption   -  Language related to 'bacteria'.