Idioms

Idiom of the day:

A sweet tooth.

This idiom refers to someone who really likes sweets and chocolate.

B1 class 30/05/2016

We spent the most part of the lesson correctin the homework from the previous day, the exercises on reported speech.

Then we saw the idiom of the day: a sweet tooth.

And it was time to explain the last piece of grammar in the course: a quick revision of the first and second conditional and then the third conditional. It is used for imaginary situations that refer to the past

And fnally we had a look at two vocabulary exercises, exercise 1 on page 94 with some informal expressions, and the one on page 96 with exressions with get.

For homework students must do exercises 8 and 9 from page 97.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

To have a green thumb.

This idiom refers to someone who is very good at looking after plants.

B1 class 25/05/2016

This class started checking the homework on phrasal verbs, placing the object in the right position within the phrasal verb.

Then we had a class totally based on grammar. I explained reported speech in different forms: statements, questions, requests, imperatives and reporting verbs.

On the two blackboards next to this we can see how the tenses change in reported seech.

With statements we can either use said or told but after told we must use an object.

With questions we can use a wh- particle, if or whether, depending on the type of question; and then we have the same structure as in affirmative sentences.

For requests and imperatives we use the verbs ask and tell, followed by an object, and to + infinitive.

Reporting verbs have different structures depending on the verb.

After the exlanation we had a look at the idiom of the day: to have a green thumb.

For homework students must do exercise 8 page 87, 6 and 9 from page 89, 2 and 5 from pages 90 and 91.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

A shotgun wedding.

A wedding arranged to avoid embarrassment due to an unplanned pregnancy.

B1 class 23/05/2016

In this class we checked the homework related to the text about a wedding on page 82, On exercise 2 we had to decide the correct word in each sentence and on exercise 3 we had to find the synonym for each phrasal verb.

The idiom of the day was related to weddings: a shotgun wedding. I'll publish the meaning shortly.

Then I explained the different tyes of phrasal verbs, whether they are followed by an object or not, and what was the position of the object. On the picture a short explanation of the dfferent types of phrasal verbs can be seen.

Then we had a look at the vocabulary about work on page page 86 and we did the listening activity on the same page.

For homework students must do exercise 5 on page 83.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

Golden touch.

Someone with a golden touch is successful and makes money with anything.

Jim has proved he's got a golden touch again, he's just opened another restaurant and it was completely packed.

Writing tips for certification exams

Yesterday we had a workshop with students from the Centre d'Idiomes where they were given some tips for certification exams such Official School of Languages, PACLE, CertAcles, TOEFL, IELTS, First Certificate and so on.

Here is the presentation used during the workshop which was also accompanied by some exercises done during the workshop.

Writing tips for certification exams from Miguel Angel Cortés Diaz

B1 class 18/05/2016

The start of the lesson yesterday was slightly different. Instead of the idiom we checked the homework on page 78, several expression for contacting people. These include expressions such as lose touch, keep in touch with and get in touch with. Touch in this context just means contact.

Then we saw the idiom of the day golden touch. In this context the meaning of touch is completely different. 

After this we started with unit 10B, we did a revision of vocabulary for describing people, we used that vocabulary to describe the people in the picture on page 80 guessing who we were talking about. 

Related to the picture we did the listening exercise where modals of deduction were introduced and later explained.

With this piece of grammar we did a speaking activity guessing who the items on page 81 might belong to. The purpose of the activity was to make deductions and provide an explanation why we thought that particular item belonged to someone at the party.

For homew
ork students must do exercises 5 and 6 from page 81, and exercises 2 and 3 from page 82.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

Doctors make the worst patients.

This idiom means that professionals don't usually take advice well since they think they know better.

B1 class 16/05/2016

The idiom of the day for last Monday was Doctors make the worst patients. The last section of unit 9 is related to medicine and illnesses.

We corrected the homework, exercise 5 on page 75 about connectors, exercise 2 from page 76 doctors' expressions, and exercise 7 from page 77 vocabulary.

The we started unit 10 talking about wedding in Spain and we did the listening activity on page 79. In this activity we saw the structures was/were going to for plans we made in the past but didn't happen, and was/were supposed to for things we agreed to do but we didn't do. We practised these structures in conversation in pair.

To finish we had a look at the vocabulary section on page 80, describing people's appearance.

For homework students must do exercise 1 on page 78.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

To sweat bullets.

To be very worried or frightened about something.
He started to sweat bullets when he saw the lion coming towards him.

B1 class 11/05/2016

Although a bit late, this is the post summarizing what we did last Wednesday in class. We started with the idiom of the day: to sweat bullets.

Then we checked the homework, exercise 9 on page 73. Placing the adverb in the correct position in present perfect sentences active and passive. And we also checked the reading exercise on page 74. 

The grammar point that day was connectors that express contrast: although, even though, despite, in spite of and however. I've sent the students an email with an explanation on how to use them- For homework students must finish exercise 5 from page 75.

Then we discussed some aspects of lying: when it is ok to lie, how we can spot liars, if we are good liars...

And to finish we saw the vocabulary related to illnesses on page 75 exercise 1.

A letter to the Mayor of Valencia

Mayor Joan Ribó

1 Municipal Square

Valencia, 46002

            Dear Mayor Ribó,

            My name is Mayte Álvarez resident of Valencia. I’m writing with some complaints about traffic jams at in the town center of Valencia and about the municipal rules, which regulate the interrelations between people and animals.

I appreciate the development projects the city has taken on in the past few months, but I consider they there are two importants aspects to take into account for the municipal government team since they aren’t trivials problems.

In the first place, I want to refer to the problem of traffic jams and, from my point of view, the use excessive use of cars to get around the city. I think that some of the actions that could be considered to relieve the traffic in the city center and to reduce the pollution are to cut off the circulation in the town center allowing only the traffic to the residents and suppliers. Another of the measures would be to increase the frequency of the bus, underground and tram and to make electric bus stations in a the Parterre bus transfer to go to the town center. The electrics buses are littler smaller than the nine-diesel bus line and less polluting.

As well, it would be necessary to increase the number of bicycles and improve the route bike lane. Likewise, it’s important to finish the Central Park, with the arrival of the AVE to the center and therefore we would put an end to the separation of the city and we would recover an area very big in the town center of Valencia. I think that all the measures we carry out for to stimulate the use of public transportation will get better improve the quality of life that the city offers to their citizens.

In addition, I believe it’s necessary to take into account measures of control for the owner pet behaviour, so that they would be sanctioned in case of if they don’t pick up the poop. Besides, I think pets can use the underground for instance, setting up the last train car, by timetables and with lead and with muzzle for the risk-bearing races. Moreover, it will be very necessary to set up more gardens and green spaces that promote coexistence.

Thank you so much for your time.

Sincerely,

           Mayte Álvarez

Well done Mayte!! very good composition. Despite the mistakes, it's a great piece of writing. Very good structure and well-developed arguments.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

Save it for a rainy day.

Put aside some money and save it for the future when you may need it more than now.

You don't need to buy such an expensive motorbike, save the money for a rainy day!

B1 class 09/05/2016

After a really hectic week in which I attended a series of conferences related to language testing and assessment I'm back at work and ready to publish a new post explaining what we did yesterday in class.

We started the lesson as usual with the idiom of the day: save it for a rainy day, a very appropriate idiom since yesterday it was raining all day. Some of the students actually guessed what this means.

After this students described in pairs a couple of the pictures on pages 72 and 73, in particular the one where some people are demonstrating and another one where you can see some antique jewellery. Then we did a listening activity which consisted on some pieces of news and students had to complete them with specific information. The activity served as an introduction

to explaining the Present Perfect Simple for recent events in active and passive voice.

Students did exercise 8 on page 73 in which they had to complete the paragraphs using the verb in Present Perfect and deciding whether to use active or passive voice.

Finally they discussed the meaning of the verbs on page 74 related to the body.

For homework they must do exercise 9 from page 73 and number 2 from page 74. For next Monday they must write a newspaper article choosing the section of the newspaper they are more interested in and using the passive voice, present perfect and past simple, relative pronouns... 

Composition 9 A letter of the Mayor

Composition 9. A letter of the mayor

Dear Mayor of Valencia:

I write this letter so as to complain about social matters I think social sevices should change in order to improve the lives of the citizens. I hope you can read my suggestions.

One issue I am worried is about high prices of public transport. I suggest reducing the prices so as to provide resources to people without a vehicle. In addition to this, if society use the underground we will cut down the pollution of the environment.

An other trouble is picking the rubbish. I see rubbish out of containers because there are so many. People generate a lot of rubbish in the streets. One option can be to increase the number of containers in our city.

To sum up, I believe everybody should contribute so as to improve conditions of Valencia. I express your gratitude for reading my suggestions.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

Have bigger fish to fry.

This idiom means to have other things to do or other problems more important to solve.

B1 class 27/04/2016

We started the lesson with the idiom of the day: bigger fish to fry. As we were talking about beach and sharks the previous day this idiom is related to the sea.

Then we checked the homework on page 67; prefixes and suffixes and their meanings.

After this we discussed camping trips, whether we liked them or not, what to wear, what to take with us and a experience we had.

This serve as an introduction for the listening activity in which two girls are discussing what one of them needs for her hiking trip. This listening activity was related to the functional language we have seen in this unit: giving advice and warnings.

For homework students must do exercise 5 and 6 from page 69, and exercise 3 from page 70. 

Improve your skills: listening

Listen to Evan doing a tour of his fridge and explaining what's inside. Say whether the statements are true or false.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

An egghead

This idiom is used to describe a very studious and intellectual person.

James is such an egghead, he spends most of his free time in the library.

B1 class 25/04/2016

Picture 1

We have started the class as usual, with the idiom of the day. This time it's related to food as this is what we've been looking at lately. The idiom is an egg head. Tomorrow I'll publish the meaning.

Then we corrected the homework, exercise 9 on page 65 about the use of quantifiers.

After this we used some visuals (picture 1) to practise containers and quantifiers. Students sent pictures of their fridges and in pairs they had to describe them and guess who each fridge belonged to. From this fridge we could say there are plenty of cans of coke and beer and too many cartons of milk.

Picture 2

The next activity also included visuals. With a picture of some food students again in pairs had to organise a dinner party for four people saying whether the food and drinks hey had was enough or they had do the shopping.

Some expressions were provided in order to help students produce their conversation. Those expressions included pieces of grammar we had already seen in class such as indirect questions or future expressions like in case. In the end most of the students decided to cook spaghetti carbonara and a salad, and they agreed some more beer was necessary.

Picture 3

To introduce the next activities students explained what their favourite places for swimming were, river, sea or swimming pool. After this we continued the lesson with a listening activity about shark attacks on the American coast. This was related to the last piece of homework, a reading comprehension about a shark attack. To finish the lesson the structure of a formal letter to the Mayor of Valencia was explained. On the blackboard (picture 3) you can see a detailed explanation of the things to be included in the letter.

Composition 8: Social media are a threat to personal relationships

Most people have an account in social media. Facebook,Twitter and Instagram have a lot of users in the world. Nowadays, social networking has increased so much in the last.

Firstly, some people think social media can affect the relationships between persons. Users of Facebook should be careful when they upload photos and videos because a lot of people can see these publications. In addition to this, some people use photos in order to harm the social life of people.

Secondly, other people think social media can be positive about prvate life. Moreover, these people believe social media can allow you to meet new friends and promote your popularity among their friends.

Thirdly, some people can have a big troubles in social media. For example, in some schools they can produce cases of cyberbulling. These cases are produced classmates disturb some children in social networking. In the last years, when these cases have increased a lot.

To sum up, everubody are aware of the dangers of social media. From my point of view, people should be careful with the publications they share with many people.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

Be on cloud nine.

This idiom related to weather means a state of euphoria or perfect happines.

Jim has a new girlfriend and he seems very much in love, he's on cloud nine.

B1 class 20/04/2016

Yesterday we continued with idioms related to weather. This time the idiom of the day was Be on cloud nine. Some students quickly guessed the meaning and found the equivalent in Spanish.

Then it was time to check the homework, a couple of exercises on the use of the passive voice. After this we saw the different containers on page 64 that we used to describe the picture and talk about their relationship, eating habits and recycling habits. We provided some useful vocabulary that can be seen on the picture of the blackboard.

To check what we discussed we did the listening activity on that same page where the three people are talking about recycling.

To finish the lesson we had a look at the use of quantifiers to express larfe and small quantities with plural and uncountable nouns.

For homework students must do exercise 9 from page 65 and exercise 5 from page 67. I've also asked the students to send me a picture of what's inside their fridge for an activity we'll do next Monday.

Containers and quantifiers

Hello everyone, today in class we have seen different containers and how to use quantifiers. Here is a quick video explanation I've made myself, I hope you like it.

Tomorrow I'll publish the post on today's lesson.

Idioms

Google images

Idiom of the day:

Every cloud has a silver lining.

This idiom, although related to weather in form, has nothing to do with it. We may say this expression when after a bad experience or a problem we get something positive out of it.

I spent a whole week in bed because of gastroenteritis but hey, every cloud has a silver lining, I've lost 4 kilos.

B1 class 18/04/2016

Yesterday the lesson started a bit differently, we discussed some vocabulary related to CRIME, which doesn't appear in this year's textbook but it's always good to know just in case. We saw the difference between rob and steal, and then the meaning of mug, burgle and kidnap.

Then we continued with the idiom of the day: every cloud has a silver lining. The previous class we looked at vocabulary related to weather and that's why the idiom is related to weather always has nothing to do with it.

After this we checked the homework on indirect questions and the reading exercise about natural disasters before explaining the form of the passive voice in different tenses. We practised this in conversation talking about places that had suffered natural disasters recently.

To finish the lesson we had a lively discussion about our recycling habits and what we do with certain products.

For homework students must do exercises 7 and 8 from page 63 and exercise 1 from page 64.

Idioms

Google images

Idiom of the day:

Behind the times.

This idiom is used to describe people or objects; it means someone or something is old-fashioned or out of date.

Regarding technology my dad is quite behind the times, he doesn't know how to turn on the computer.

B1 class 14/04/2016

We have finally finished unit 7, the one related to technology and that's why the idiom of the day had to do with it: behind the times. Some of the students got the meaning right.

After seeing that we continued some grammar, direct versus indirect questions. Indirect questions are used in more formal situations, for example at work, when we want to sound more polite, asking for directions, or when we want to ask a controversial question, if someone is married for example. 

Indirect questions are introduced by Could you tell me...? or Do you know...? After these we would use if/whether with yes/no questions or an interrrogative particle. Then we use the same structure as in affirmative sentences.  

We practised this first on paper and then asking each other examples of controversial questions.

The we started unit 8. We saw some vocabulary related to natural disasters and we talked about weather conditions and natural disasters on TV and in our country.

For homework students must do exercise 6 and 7 from page 61; and 3c and d from page 62.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

Google images

Go viral

To spread a video, picture, audio... quickly to a large Internet audience using social networks.

The image of Madonna kissing Britney Spears went viral immediately.

B1 class 11/04/2016

As usual we have started the lesson with the idiom of the day. In the last few lessons we have been studying vocabulary related to social media and that's why the idiom of the day is "go viral". Students had no problems guessing its meaning. We also provided some examples of viral pictures and videos.

Then we solved some problems with the homework: definite and indefnite articles. We didn't go though all the activities but I explained doubts and problems regarding the photocopies about articles.

To finish with the topic of social media students discussed in pairs stuations in which someone might be using his/her phone while everyone else is having a conversation. In order to do that students described the picture on page 59 where two people are having a conversation while another man is looking at his phone.

This discussion served as the basis for the next writing activity: an opinion article about social media and personal relations. This type of essay requires 5 paragraphs, an introduction, 3 paragraphs where we discussed the viewpoints, and a conclusion. Here is very important the use of connectors and gvng examples to support the different arguments. The title of the essay is: "Social media are a threat to personal relationships".

Then the class focused mainly on practising listening. We did the listening activity on page 59; the 3 people from the picture are discussing how they use social media. To finish the lesson we did another listening activity on page 60. Students listen to 2 conversations, the first one happens at work and is quite formal, whereas the second one happens at home is more informal.

For homework students must read the tapescript for this last listening activity while listening to it on the DVD. Next class we will have a look at direct and indirect questions.

Idioms

Google images

Idiom of the day:

A bag of tricks.

This idiom refers to a set of abilities, skills or resources someone may have which helps them achieve professional or personal goals.

Jim will help us with this problem, I'm sure he'll pull something out of his bag of tricks.

B1 class 06/04/2016

As usual we started the lesson with the idiom of the day: bag of tricks. This time the meaning is quite literal but I'll post the explanation anyway. 

We continued the lesson with a quick revision of the second conditional and then we checked the homework: exercise 5 from page 57. Students read the sentences out loud to practise the second conditional and then they asked another student to practise the secon conditional with questions.

Meanwhile I explained one common mistake people make, using loose when they want to say lose. And also the different pronunciations for the grapheme -ch-.

Next piece of homework was exercise 8 from page 57 as well; we corrected out loud explaining why we would choose first or second conditional.

Then we started section C of unit 7, the one about social networks and we saw some vocabulary related to this topic. Students in general we quite acquainted with this vocabulary as they normally use it every day. Related to this we checked the reading comprehension exercise on page 58.

To finish the lesson I explained the different uses of the definite and indefinite article, and when not to use an article. You may download some extra exercises here.

Top 10 Common Mistakes Spanish Students Make in English

Here is an infographic with the most common mistakes Spanish students make when speaking or writing in English. If you want to read the whole article please click here.

Made with www.easel.ly

Idioms

Google images

Idiom of the day:

Chasing rainbows.

This idiom is used to describe someone who is trying to achieve something impossible or really difficult.

Jim really wants to be a football player but only a few become great ones, he's just chasing rainbows.

B1 class 23/03/2016

We have started the class with the idiom of the day: chasing rainbows. This one is related to what we had seen in the previous class, having objectives in life and trying to achieve them.

Then we corrected the homework, the reading exercise on page 54 and we talked in pairs about reality TV programmes. After that we continued with the homework on page 55, exercises 6 and 7. We did it out loud asking each other questions about the students' ability to do certain things.

In the next activity we saw vocabulary related to computers and practised it in conversation discussing what we do to recover a password for example or what we would do if our computer crashed.

We finished the lesson revising the first conditional and explaining the form and use of the second conditional.

For homework students must do exercises 5 and 8 from page 57, and exercise 3 from page 58.

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

Like father, like son.

This idiom is used to describe a son with similar characteristics or who behaves in the same way as his father.

"Have you heard John's son is going to become a singer as well? Like father, like son; John is a great musician".

B1 class 21/03/2016

First class after Fallas holidays so we started the lesson with a warm-up speaking exercise talking about what everyone had done during Fallas. 

Then I introduced the idiom of the day: like father like son. The reason for this idiom is that last Saturday it was Father's Day. It quite self-explanatory but tomorrow I'll write another post with its meaning.

We continued the lesson with unit 7 and some vocabulary and speaking. First in pairs students had a look at the meaning of some expressions related to goals and achievements, then they asked each other in pairs to practise fluency and finally the asked the questions out loud to practise accuracy. As a novelty we changed the position of the classroom and we used the TV to project the book and we used it as a blackboard.

After this we saw some expressions other than can and could to describe ability and the form of the verbs that goes after these expressions, either vb-ing/noun or an infinitive. Students discussed some of the things they are good and bad at in order to practise it.

For homework there's the reading exercise on page 54 and exercises 6-7 on page 55.

Preparing the speaking part

(updated)
Last Monday we had the use of English and writing parts of the exam and tomorrow Wednesday we'll do the speaking part. This post is to give an idea of how the speaking part is going to be providing some tips of how to address the topic.

Sample task
Monologue (2-3 minutes):

Watching reality TV is a waste of time.

State whether you agree or disagree.

Compare reality TV with other programmes

Discuss reasons why people like it

Dialogue (3-4 minutes):

Your partner and you would like to rent a place to live. You would like to live in a flat whereas your partner would like to live in a house.

Explain why you prefer to live in a flat.

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of one and the other.

Decide what type of home you are going to rent

Tips

Monologue: use structures to agree or disagree and give reasons and examples that support your opinion. Use comparative and superlative structures to compare various elements. Make hypothesis using first and second conditional, and modal verbs.

Dialogue: use structures to talk about your preferences (I’d rather, prefer, don’t mind…). Use discussion language, make suggestions, give examples, provide different points of view, soften your opinions. Make a decision, agree and disagree.

I hope you find this information useful in order to prepare for the speaking part. Click here for more useful tips to prepare the speaking part.

See you tomorrow

Rewriting: units 4-6

Loading Rewriting Units 4-6

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

Flying planes

Pass with flying colours.

I've chosen this idiom because next Monday we'll be doing the exam so I thought this would encourage you all. The meaning of this is to pass an exam with great success, with very good marks and I'm sure this is what you'll all get.

B1 class 02/03/2016

Yesterday it was the last class before the exam. we started the lesson checking the homework: exercise 4 on page 52. After that we saw the idiom of the day: pass with flying colours, very appropriate for these days.

After that we did some revision for the exam; I had prepared some exercises on rewriting. We did a few of them and the rest were for homework. I'll post tomorrow the exercise to be done online so that you have the solutions and I'll send you all the solutions by email as well.

And then I explained the different parts of the exam and we did some practice for the speaking part which will be next Wednesday. We practised two dialogues in which students had to take different roles and come to an agreement.

See you all next Monday! You'll do a terrific job in the exam!

Idioms

Idiom of the day:

If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.

This idiom is related to another one we saw some time ago, work for peanuts. This one means that if you offer a low salary then the kind of employees or services you'll get would probably be unqualified and not very professional.

B1 class 29/01/2016

First class after my paternity leave. We started with a revision of verb patterns, especially try, forget and remember.

forget + vb-ing: refers to actions that have already happened. I'll never forget living in London.

forget + to infinitive: refers to actions that haven't happened. Don't forget to take the rubbish out.

remember + vb-ing: refers to actions that have already happened. I remember bringing the keys but I can't find them.

remember + to infinitive: refers to actions that haven't happened. Remember to bring milk from the supermarket.

try + vb-ing: do something to see what the result is, as an experiment. Try turning it off and on again.

try + to infinitive: do something which requires some effort. Try to do the exercise, it's not that difficult.

Then we did some revision of conditional sentences, and future time clauses, especially unless and in case.

unless: it means if not. Don't come to the party, unless you feel better/if you don't feel better.

in case: it describes something that might happen. Don't touch the ipad in case you break it.

We practised the use of in case in a conversation about what we would take with us on holiday to show that we are prepared for unexpected events.

Then I introduced the idiom of the day. Since we were talking about conditionals the idiom follows the structure of a conditional sentences: if you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.

Finally we talked about music festivals and the best and worst aspects of festivals and we concluded the lesson with the listening exercise on page 52.

For homework students must do exercise 4 on page 52. 

Composition of Informal E-mail By Arturo

Composition 7 Informal E-mail

Hi, Max

Would you like to dinner with me? I haven’t seen for a long time. I miss you because I haven’t seen you since we finished the university degree together. You should tell me his experience in India. What did you do in your trip? I hope to see soon.

I work in the USA. My job is very boring. I work in Burguer King in Massachusetts. I look forward to going on a trip but I don’t have enough money in order to visit other countries. I try to save money so as to travel around the world. I am studying a Master to find a job with a good salary.

I hope to see you with more frequency because we are good friends. I hope to spend a good time with you at dinner.

Much Love

Jack

Idioms

Google images

Idiom of the day:

Get the boot!

This is an idiom related to work which means to lose your job. There are two other expressions similar to this one which are to get fired and to be made redundant. In both cases it means you lose your job but in the first one the reason is a mistake you've made whereas in the second one the reason is you are not needed anymore because the amount of work has gone down.

Back to class

Dear students,

Hello again! My two-week paternity leave is now over and therefore next Monday you will see me again in class. It has been great to be able to spend the first 15 days with my child but now I must get back to real life. 

I have to thank my colleague Elena for taking over these last few classes; she has reported to me with the activities you've been doing and the great job you have all done. I have a few compositions to mark which I hope I'll give back to you on Monday.

Have a great weekend!!

Miguel

B1 class 08/02/2016

Good afternoon everyone! if you didn't come to class yesterday, have a look to this post and find out what we did.

First of all we corrected the homework on page 39, exercises 7 and 8. This last exercise is about rewriting so bear in mind something like this can appear in the exam:

I'm more ambitious than her (as)

She is not as ambitious as me.

Then we saw the idiom of the day: get the boot! the meaning of this is to get fired and we saw the difference between these two expressions and to be made redundant / make someone redundant.

Then we continued with the listening/speaking exercise on page 41. We discussed the picture on the previous page and we checked the answers after listening to the track. This listening activity served as an exmple to explain future tenses: 

- will + infinitive: we make a decision at the moment of speaking. But also for predictions based on our personal opinions.

- be going to: to describe plans or intentions. Also for predictions based on present evidence.

- present continuous: arrangements in the future

Finally we corrected the reding exercise on page 42 and we talked about our best/worst birthdays.

For homework students must do exercise 9 on page 41 and exercise 4b on page 43.