B2.1 VIDEO: CLIMATE CHANGE EXPLAINED

ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT CALCULATOR. HOW MANY PLANETS DO WE  NEED IF EVERYBODY LIVES LIKE YOU? WANNA KNOW? CLICK HERE TO  CALCULATE  YOUR ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT?

LISTENING-CLIMATE CHANGE 
KEY VOCABULARY
to warm up, an increase in + noun, greenhouse gases, to be released, to absorb, to shrink, reef, to confront climate change, to create new sustainable growth,  to cause, to retain, to be released, absorved, to increase ( verb).

B2 ( SPEAKING TOPICS ): vocabulary, sentences, samples to prepare the speaking test.

Here's a great blog with vocabulary and monologues samples for different B2 topics.
About this blog.

topic 1- Work
topic 2- social change- mindmap
topic 3-learning languages
topic 6- shopping centres
topic 7- friendship and dating
topic 8-the mass media
topic 9- crime
topic 10-advertising world
topic 11- money
topic 12-the environment
topic 13- the beauty myth
topic 14- elderly people

Useful sentences 


A speaking workshop to improve speaking skills.

B2 Reading practice- BBC article: The Chinese are obsessed with building giant dams

Read the article and focus on vocabulary. Below there's a list of some of the key words you may find  in the article.  Can you find more? Use a monolingual dictionary to look up the new words. Feel free to  post your words and definition in the comments section.

ARTICLE: China’s Three Gorges Dam is one of the most ambitious engineering projects ever undertaken. BBC Future investigates the troubled history of China and its mighty rivers. 

 Topics: Engineering, Globalisation, Ecology. 

 KEY WORDS: dam, gorge, gritty river, electric buggy, vantage points, chunk, displayed, spillway,shiplock, concrete, silt,bellwether, intertwined ,high-handed dismissiveness, bulldozed, etc.

B2 (FYI- 5º A) : STOP DOMESTIC VIOLENCE NOW (25TH NOVEMBER)

FYI ( For Your Interest)- 5ºA

GENERAL INFORMATION
Information about the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.

The hideout.org.uk

1. Your relationship: Healthy relationship is possible and you deserve to be in one!
2. What's Abuse?
3. Is this domestic abuse?

ACTIVITIES- HOMEWORK

TESTIMONIES: READING AND LISTENING TASKS

READING  AND WRITING TASK.

Before reading the task read the following information: How to Summarise a written text.

1. Read a couple of stories and select ONE.  Now summarise ONE of the stories 150- 200 words using the techniques learnt above.

LISTENING TASK.

Watch the videos below and summarise the whole story 150-200 words.

1. Watch this video. Daisy talks about how her dad abused her mum ( video with script)
2. Daisy talks about how she was affected in school. 
3. Refugee Key worker vide + tapescript.

NEWS ARTICLE: The Guardian

• Swedish 'social experiment' shows people ignoring domestic abuse in a lift

A Swedish organisation has posted a distressing video showing women being abused physically and verbally – yet only one person reacts

B2 ( Vocabulary Upper-Intermediate and Advanced) : ENGLISH UNLIMITED VOCABULARY EXTRA WORKSHEETS AND KEYS

INDEX OF LEVELS AND CONTENTS

B2 (Vocabulary ): EOI Marbella Wiki

Vocabulary bank B2- 

B2 ( Vocabulary practice): using idioms of failure and success + comparison

The aim of this post is to practise idioms of failure and success (face2face advanced handouts)and use the language to express similarities and differences and comparison previously learnt in this blog entry.

You have to answer both tasks in this blog entry. Submit your answer as a comment.

• Vocabulary Extra: Upper Intermediate 3 (PDF - Unit 3: Education and training)
• Keys 

TASKS

Task 1. Write a short text on the following topic:
- Talk about your language learning experiences during the past 2 years: how you passed your tests, good and bad results, etc. (use idioms of failure and success).

Task 2. Read the following prompt on educational programs and do the task below.

Context:
Today, more and more colleges and universities are offering not only individual courses but entire degree programs online. Some educators worry that online programs do not provide the same quality as an on-campus education and that in an online program, students can get others to do their work.
  
Task: Compare both types of educational programs: individual courses vs. degree programs online. ( Use expressions to talk about similarities and differences, and different ways of comparing). 

Remember to submit your answers. Click on post a comment.

B2 ( Vocabulary on relationships): relationships, family, jobs and friends

DOWNLOAD THIS WORKSHEET.

B2 ( BREAKING NEWS 2014): Ebola outbreak

Ebola FAQ.
WHO Ebola virus disease fact sheet, ( Information about: Key facts, background, trasmission, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and vaccines, prevention and control, etc).

NEWS-Ebola outbreak disease in West Africa.
Spanish nurse diagnosed with Ebola virus disease.
Disease outbreak news. More news on the Spanish nurse.

US Texas worker has teste positive for the virus

B2 (Harvard Article): Instict Can Beat Analytics

You are going to read and listen to an article on Insinct and Analytical thinking.

Researchers have confronted us in recent years with example after example of how we humans get things wrong when it comes to making decisions. We misunderstand probability, we’re myopic, we pay attention to the wrong things, and we just generally mess up.
Read and listen to the interview  here.

B2 (BBC Reading + Vocabulary): Prison bank

Read and learn new words and expressions related to crime.
Exercise 

B2 ( film-based lesson): Home exchange and holidays

Topic: holidays, leisure, home exchange holidays.

1. What is a home exchange holiday? 
2. Would you be willing to do one? 
3. State briefly the pros and cons of home exchanges and submit your answers on the blog. 

 Download the worksheet below, based on the film 'The Holiday' starring Kate Winslet and Cameron Díaz and follow the instructions to do the activities.

WORKSHEETS

•  The Holiday worksheet A1 , B2. Download lesson plan, worksheet and keys here.
• Home exchange advert sample. Download here. The Holiday 'Home exchange email activity'

VIDEO- 

B2 ( Globalisation and Environment): FOOTPRINT CALCULATOR

PART 2. GLOBALISATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT
CARBON FOOTPRINTS
Source: from Face2Face upper-intermediate.
Instructions: Answer the following questions (submitting them in the comments section of this post below) and do the questionnaire at the bottom to work out your carbon footprint.

1. Does globalisation have an impact on the environment?
2. What do you understand by the term ' carbon footprint'?
3. Write down a list with the things that increase 'our carbon footprint'.
4. Make a list of different ways people could reduce their carbon footprints.

QUESTIONNAIRE: HOW BIG IS YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT? ( it only takes about 5 minutes)

B2 ( This is a joke) : the one with the power outage

Here goes a joke on technology ( LOL= Laughing Out Loud)

We had a power outage at our place this morning and my PC, laptop, TV, DVD, Samsung Tablet and new surround sound music system were all shut down. Then I discovered that my Galaxy Smart phone battery was flat and, to top it off, it was raining outside, so I couldn't cut the grass. I went into the kitchen to make coffee and then I remembered that this also needs power, so I talked to my wife for a few hours. She seems like a real nice person! Questions: Can you think of a synonym for 'power outage'? What does 'the battery is flat' mean? What does 'to top it off' mean? How can we interpret the meaning of this joke?

B2 Cross-curricular topics ( Listening): Crisis at Christmas

WARM-UP: ( Post your answers in the comments section)
1. Think of types of unpaid jobs.
2. What are the pros and cons of volunteering?
3. Have you ever done volunteer work?

Read these experiences to learn more about volunteering before doing the listening activity. 

LISTENING ACTIVITIES
Instructions: 
You're about to listen to 3 people volunteering at Crisis, the national charity for homeless people. 
Before listening read this information about donating goods and then do the listening activity below.

LISTENING 1
Watch the video ' Crisis at Christmas' : https://www.truetube.co.uk/film/crisis-christmas

EXERCISE :Match the speaker to the statements you hear. Write J for John, B for Brian and H for Hanna next to each statement.

speaker 1: John
speaker 2: Brian
speaker 3: Hannah

Statements:
1. States that it's thanks to Crisis people that ....
2. Explains7,000 people give up their time to help others.
3. Started being involved at school.
4. This person lost his/her job, house.
5. This volunteer lives in a hostel in West London.
6. This person run away when s/he was young.
7. States there are some moments of inspiration that can change someone's lives.
8. Describes volunteering as a way of escaping from everyday life.
9. Believes there's a general misconception of homeless people.
10. States that people believe homeless are drug-addicts.
11. Has experienced the situation of having no money and living in the cold.

The challenge- Here are some extra statements, do the same as above, write J, B or H next to it.
a. Has been working for Crisis for 6 months.
b. Was feed up with his/her family. 
c. Comes to the Crisis organization because there’s nothing else to do where s/he  lives.
d. Explains there are many workshops: computer, hairdressing workshops.

e. Says people think homeless people are scum.
f. Claims that people should change their perception of homeless people.all of them. 
 LISTENING 2. Listen to Russell talking about his life before and after being helped by Crisis and answer these questions:
1. Name the difficulties Russell went through before becoming a homeless person.
2. How did Crisis help him to get over his situation?
3. What was he incapable of doing before studying?

Activity created by Elena Gómez. Audio source: https://www.truetube.co.uk/film/crisis-christmas

Scroll down to see the keys



KEYS   KEYS   KEYS   KEYS   KEYS  KEYS   KEYS   KEYS     KEYS

WARM-UP- 

1. Volunteering, Internships.

2. your own answers

3. your own answers

LISTENING 1 + the challenge (xtra questions)   

SPEAKERS          STATEMENTS

speaker 1: John= 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 9,10,11

speaker 2: Brian=4, 

speaker 3: Hannah=3,7

a.B

b.B

c.J

d.B

d.J

e.H

LISTENING 2-

1. Had a breakdown with her girlfriend, started drinking heavily, lost his job, was broke and ended up homeless.

2. By providing him with educational opportunities, courses, video editing. He attended courses.

3. He was incapable of writing as he had dyslexia. He also was illiterate.

B2-(listening ): Theatre studies

http://podacademy.org/podcasts/why-study-drama/