Saturday 29 September 2012
Friday 21 September 2012
Writing an informal letter
Writing informal letters
Opening greetings: Hi Jill, Hello,
Closing greetings: all the best, best wishes,love, hugs and kisses xx
Opening lines: how are you?, How's everything in/at... How's things/it going.. I'm
sorry I haven't been in touch/written for ages/so long/a while.
Closing lines: Will write again soon. hope to hear from you soon. Take care
of/look after yourself. Make sure you write soon. Well, I've got to go now.
Send my love to... Say hello to...for me.
Responding to previous letter/email
Saying thank you:Thank you/thanks (so much) for your letter/email/message.
It was great/really nice to hear from you.
good
news: (it
was)great to read about...(I was) glad to hear about...That's great news about
your...
Bad news: I'm
extremely/really sorry to hear/read/find out about... It's very sad to hear...
introducing points: By the way, Did you hear about... Another thing, Have you seen... I
wanted to ask you if/whether... I was wondering if... Can you let me know if...
1. Write 120-150 words in an appropriate
style
Your Scottish friend, Maggie, has sent you
an email asking you to help her organise
a special surprise birthday party for her
brother Rupert. Read Maggie’s email
and the notes you have made. Then write an
email to Maggie using all your notes.
We
must make sure that Rupert doesn't know we are planning this surprise.
I'm
not sure how many people to invite but our house is definitely too small.
Do
you think we should book the Royal hotel for the evening and have the
party
there? You know that Rupert is very keen on music so we could hire
a
live band.
I've
also been wondering what we could all buy as a present. What do you think?
Could
you come the day before the party to help with preparations.
There's
a lot to plan so I'd really like your help.
Can
you suggest something else that will really make the party special?
All
for now,
best
wishes,
Maggie
Your notes:
Paragraph
1 - Royal Hotel sounds OK but very expensive
Paragraph
2 - Rupert really enjoys fishing
Paragraph
3 - Sorry, busy that day.
Paragraph
3 - Something else - Yes, how about ....
A funny way to learn English (for adults)
*WARNING: Some of the language used may not be suitable for younger learners.
.
Saturday 18 August 2012
Spanish Robin Hood?
~Read the text and then use the words below to fill the gaps.
A mayor in a small Spanish town has become a hero (1) ____ helping steal food from supermarkets to give to the poor. The modern-(2) ____ Robin Hood is Juan Manuel Sanchez Gordillo, 59, the elected leader of the southern town of Marinaleda in Andalusia. Mayor Gordillo has (3) ____ from prosecution under Andalusian law and so can break the law without being arrested. He has so far (4) ____ several raids on supermarkets to hand out the stolen food to poor families. Unfortunately, those helping him are not immune from prosecution and seven have been arrested for (5) ____. Gordillo has been mayor for 30 years and his recent exploits have seen his popularity skyrocket, with crowds gathering to see his food (6) ____.
Many Spaniards are (7) ____ severe economic conditions. A quarter of Spain's workforce is jobless and austerity measures mean many now live (8) ____ poverty. Things are even worse in Andalusia where unemployment is over 30 per cent. Mr Gordillo defended his role in stealing food for the (9) ____ well-off. He said: "There are people who don't have enough to eat. In the 21st century, this is an (10) ____ disgrace." Spain's conservative government has criticised Gordillo, accusing him of (11) ____ part in publicity stunts to boost his own popularity. The mayor retaliated by saying he would happily accept being arrested. He is currently (12) ____ a three-week anti-austerity protest march to Spain's capital Madrid.
Put the correct words from the table below in the above article.
| 1. | (a) | ante | (b) | post | (c) | subsequent | (d) | after |
| 2. | (a) | day | (b) | week | (c) | month | (d) | year |
| 3. | (a) | immunizations | (b) | immunity | (c) | immune | (d) | immunizes |
| 4. | (a) | composed | (b) | written | (c) | orchestrated | (d) | played |
| 5. | (a) | cleft | (b) | bereft | (c) | theft | (d) | deft |
| 6. | (a) | grubs | (b) | grabs | (c) | grids | (d) | grins |
| 7. | (a) | heading | (b) | mouthing | (c) | nosing | (d) | facing |
| 8. | (a) | in | (b) | up | (c) | at | (d) | on |
| 9. | (a) | small | (b) | less | (c) | poor | (d) | more |
| 10. | (a) | arrested | (b) | austerity | (c) | absolved | (d) | absolute |
| 11. | (a) | raking | (b) | faking | (c) | taking | (d) | making |
| 12. | (a) | leading | (b) | leads | (c) | leaders | (d | led True or False? |
| a. | The people in a small town are angry their mayor is stealing food. | T / F |
| b. | The mayor cannot be arrested for stealing the food. | T / F |
| c. | The mayor only organizes the stealing but does not actually steal it. | T / F |
| d. | The mayor said prices have skyrocketed for 30 years. | T / F |
| e. | Around 25% of Spain's workforce is unemployed. | T / F |
| f. | Unemployment in the mayor's region is double the national average. | T / F |
| g. | The mayor said he understood his actions were a disgrace. | T / F |
| h. | The mayor is now on a three-week protest walk to Madrid. | T / F |
Synonym Match |
| 1. | modern-day | a. | robbery |
| 2 | immunity | b. | shame |
| 3. | orchestrated | c. | experiencing |
| 4. | theft | d. | exemption |
| 5. | exploits | e. | total |
| 6. | facing | f. | contemporary |
| 7. | poverty | g. | hit back |
| 8. | absolute | h. | deeds |
| 9. | disgrace | i. | arranged |
| 10. | retaliated | j. | destitution |
Source: Breaking news English. Follow link for full lesson plan and answers: http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/1208/120817-robin_hood.html |
Saturday 11 August 2012
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