The passive with reporting verbs

In formal texts, such as newspapers, descriptions or scientific processes, when we want to talk about what is generally thought or said, we use passive structures with reporting verbs. It is also used when people gossip as it is not important who first said, but it's supposed to be in the mouth of many people. 

The construction is formed from:

Passive reporting verb + to + infinitive or perfect infinitive

He is considered to be a great piano player

(people consider him to be a great piano player)

He is believed to have reached Mountain Everest’s summit

(people believe he has reached Mountain Everest’s summit)

James is thought to have been at home that night

(They think that John was at home that night)

He was proved to have murdered his wife

(someone proved he had murdered his wife)

Or we can also use impersonal expressions, such as: 

• it is believed
• it may be considered
• it was said
• it is known
• it is thought
• it was expected

It is believed that Leif Eriksson reached America before Columbus

Leif Eriksson is believed to have reached America before Columbus

 It is known that Smith broke into several houses.

Smith is known to have broken into several houses.

It is often considered that women are more sensitive than men.

Women are often considered more sensitive than men.

Go to 'Grammar' to download the entry as a document.

......

Earth Day

Earth Day is a day designed to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's environment. It was founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in held on April 22, 1970. Earth Day is celebrated in spring in the Northern Hemisphere and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. Earth Day Network, a group that wishes to become the coordinator of Earth Day globally, asserts that Earth Day is now observed on April 22 on virtually every country on Earth. World Environment Day, celebrated on June 5 in a different nation every year, is the principal United Nations environmental observance.Many communities also celebrate Earth Week, an entire week of environment-related activities.

AN EARTH DAY MESSAGE



FIVE EASY WAYS TO SAVE THE PLANET



WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP SAVE THE PLANET? Let us know about your ideas!!!

Writing a letter of complaint

This is a kind reminder, you have homework, you have to write a letter of complaint.


Remember that a letter of complaint is usually written in a semi-formal style. The main purpose is to deal with a problem situation when other attempts (i.e. phone contacts) have failed to rectify the situation. The complaint letter formalizes a problem situation by putting it into writing and is usually the last resort to try to get a situation resolved. 

Effective complaint letters should be: 

•    Concise - can be understood quickly.
•    Authoritative - are well written and professionally presented
•    Factual - enable the reader to see immediately the relevant details, dates, requirements
•    Constructive - with positive statements, suggesting positive actions - encourage action and quicker decisions.
•    Friendly - with a considerate, cooperative and complimentary tone because the reader responds positively to the writer and wants to help.




Go to 'Writing' where you will find PDF documents with general especification and some models to give you ideas as well as the task.

Let's keep it green

Kiran, our language assistant was with us on Wednesday and we talked about environment. Now I ask you: Are you environmentally friendly? Would you like to live in a greener world? Is this what you want?




Exahust fumes, dumping waste, global warming, oil slicks, greenhouse effect, toxic effluents, sea level raising... Is there anything we could do to help the earth breath? Worried about your impact on the environment? The way we use the planet's resources makes up our ecological footprint. Why don't you calculate yours?

The planet seems not to be on a very good shape, and it really needs your help, how can you help protect it from the things that are not good for it? Click on the image below and find out by yourself.

And now, after all the journey, what can you do to help protect the earth? Let us know!

Itchy feet

 VOCABULARY

Go to these links and do the exercises to reinforce your vocabulary about travelling and tourism.


related to means of transport

travel related vocabulary

travelling, planning a trip

tourism related vocabulary

more tourism related vocabulary

travel related terms and expressions

And if you go to 'Our filing cabinet' you can download a document with travel related vocabulary

LISTENING

These are two videos from National Geographic. Go to Listening to do the exercises. Enjoy!

Destination: Ireland




Newgrange

 

The Future

As you well know the future can be expressed in many different ways, go to 'Grammar' to print or download the document with the explanations we saw in class.

Present perfect simple and continuous

Are you still in trouble with the present perfect simple and continuous? Now you can have a look at the presentation we saw in class, it might help. And then do the exercises below, practice makes perfect!!!

Presentation 1

Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3
Exercise 4
Exercise 5

April Fool's Day

April Fools’ Day, which falls on April 1 each year, has been known as a day for pranks and jokes for centuries. Our counterpart is December 28.
According to this article, the first known reference to tricks and April 1 is in the “Canterbury Tales.” Jokes have continued ever since in the form of fake events, false announcements and misleading newspaper stories. With the advent of new technology in the 20th century, the jokes have expanded into new media.
Pranks performed on April Fool's Day range from the simple, (such as saying, "Your shoe's untied, or I accidentally stepped on your glasses!), to the elaborate. Setting a roommate's alarm clock back an hour is a common gag. Whatever the prank, the trickster usually ends it by yelling to his victim, "April Fool!"

Practical jokes are a common practice on April Fool's Day. Sometimes, elaborate practical jokes are played on friends or relatives that last the entire day. The news media even gets involved. For instance, a British short film once shown on April Fool's Day was a fairly detailed documentary about "spaghetti farmers" and how they harvest their crop from the spaghetti trees.

The spaghetti tree hoax is a famous 3-minute hoax report broadcast on April Fools' Day 1957 by the BBC current affairs programme Panorama. It told a tale of a family in southern Switzerland harvesting spaghetti from the fictitious spaghetti tree, broadcast at a time when this Italian dish was not widely eaten in the UK and some Britons were unaware spaghetti is a pasta made from wheat flour and water. Hundreds of viewers phoned into the BBC, either to say the story was not true, or wondering about it, with some even asking how to grow their own spaghetti trees. Decades later CNN called this broadcast "the biggest hoax that any reputable news establishment ever pulled."

Another great April Fools’ joke by a leading media house was the Stockholm Stockings story. In 1962, there was only one television station in Sweden and the televisions in that day were all black and white. Kjell Stensson, a technical expert with the television channel, appeared on the 1st of April to make a special announcement. He told viewers that they could make their black and white TV sets display color instantly by using a stocking to cover them. To make the story more believable he proceeded to demonstrate how to cover the TV set with a nylon stocking. Thousands of viewers believed and tried it. Of course it didn’t work but they finally got colour broadcasts eight years later.

In 1972 the Veterinary Record printed a story about the diseases of a certain parasite Brunus edwardii. This species was described as being common in homes in Europe and North America. The article claimed that a survey done showed that the species inhabited 63.3% of the households in Britain. Further claims were made that the number of children in a single household was directly proportional to the number of Brunus edwardii species in the household. The article stressed that not much is known about their diseases, especially those that could be zoonotic and the effects of its close contact with man. Several subsequent articles followed this article with detailed description of the species and its diseases. The article was so popular that the Whittington Press made requests to print it but had a hard time classifying the species as the Brunus edwardii is actually what is commonly referred to as the teddy bear!

The left handed whopper was another great April Fools’ joke by Burger King. On the first of April in 1998, USA Today printed a full page advertisement by Burger King announcing the release of its latest burger, the Left Handed Whopper. This burger was supposed to cater for the 32 million Americans who were left handed. The advertisement stated that the condiments in the Left Handed Whopper were still the same as in the other original burgers. There was a slight difference however, that was meant to accommodate left handed customers. The condiments had been rotated 180 degrees to make it easier for left handed people to eat. Thousands of Burger King Customers had already made orders for the left handed whoppers by the time Burger King made its follow up announcement the next day to say that it was an April Fools’ joke. It was even reported that some people had ordered a right handed version of the left handed whopper.

April Fool's Day is a "for-fun-only" observance. Nobody is expected to buy gifts or to take their "significant other" out to eat in a fancy restaurant. Nobody gets off work or school. It's simply a fun little holiday, but a holiday on which one must remain forever vigilant, for he may be the next April Fool! 

Exam practice

If you want to test what we have been learning in class, go to 'Exam practice' where you will find more progress tests for you to take. I'm sure you will do great!

The Psychology of supermarkets

We talked about supermarkets and about the way the products, stands and aisles are arranged in order to get more sales without the customer noticing it. That is called 'the psychology of supermarkets'. Not only the supermarkets but also the companies which have their products on sale there spend millions on studying the customer's habits. Everything counts, from the place of the product on the stands, to the colour of their packages to the smell of the aisle or even the music that is playing on, ...

I just found this post on a blog which, I think, is worth reading, so go ahead!!!!

From a consumers point of view, a supermarket is quite simple; Put what you want into your trolley and go through the check-out. Behind the scenes though, psychology is used a lot to define what products and brands you buy in supermarkets. Stands are designed to catch your eye and the store layout is structured to maximise profit.

Through my investigations, I have found the following tactics can be used supermarkets and similar stores.

Eye level marketing

Generally speaking, the most expensive items with high profit margins are placed on shelves that are at shoppers' eye level. This is because you are more likely to see them than the less profitable brands at the very top or near your feet..

Aisle order

Some customers, particularly men, tend to simply shop for what they want, walking down an aisle grabbing what they want, turning back and walking the way they came, this is called the 'Boomerang Effect'.

Go on reading .....

Watch these videos, they talk about the phychology of supermarkets

SPECIALS, PRICING, LABELLING AND PACKAGING



LAYOUT

Writing a review

This is a kind reminder, you have homework, you have to write a book review. 


Remember that a review is usually written for an English-language magazine, newspaper or website. The main purpose is to describe and express a personal opinion about something which the writer has experienced (e.g. a film, a book, a holiday, a product, a website etc.) and to give the reader a clear impression of what the item discussed is like. Description and explanation are key functions for this task, and a review will normally include a recommendation to the reader.

If you need some help, go to 'Writing' where you will find PDF documents with general especification and some models to give you ideas.

St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day is celebrated on March 17, his religious feast day and the anniversary of his death in the fifth century. The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for over a thousand years. On St. Patrick's Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against the consumption of meat were waived and people would dance, drink and feast—on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.

BUT HOW DID IT ALL START?

Watch the video to learn a bit of St.Patrick's history.





WHY GREEN?

Originally the colour associated with Saint Patrick was blue however over the years the colour green and its association with Saint Patrick's day grew. Green ribbons and shamrocks were worn in celebration of St Patrick's Day as early as the 17th century. He is said to have used the shamrock, a three-leaved plant, to explain the Holy Trinity to the pre-Christian Irish, and the wearing and display of shamrocks and shamrock-inspired designs have become a ubiquitous feature of the day.Then in 1798 in hopes of making a political statement Irish soldiers wore full green uniforms on 17 March in hopes of catching attention with their unusual fashion gimmick.
Even the city of Chicago has developed a unique tradition of colouring the river water green. It started in 1962 when 100 pounds of green vegetable dye were added to its river, enough to keep it green for a week. The tradition has continued till date. Now, 40 pounds of a green food colouring keep the river green for only a few hours.

HOW DO PEOPLE CELEBRATE?

Irish community in various cities celebrate the Day with social and community works. Making charities, attending mass, promoting their own culture, and feasting with their foods.
Despite all these varieties, all are driven by a unique theme: be an Irish day. It's a celebration for being Irish and enjoying things Irish. While it reminds us about St Patrick. It also tells us to be Irish. With shamrocks and the leprechaun. As it tells us to cook and feast the Irish way. To laugh away all worries with Irish jokes. Dance to the tunes of the Irish bands. Try out the Irish words. And with all these the Day lets us know the real fun of being Irish.

Sources: History Channel (St.Patrick's Day)

History Channel (Who was St. Patrick?)

Wikipedia

The Holiday Spot

Describing personality

Given the individual natures of human beings, it's no wonder the English language includes so many personality adjectives. You might not notice it, but people use adjectives to describe each other more than they describe anything else. Personality, the most important thing about a person, has some incredibly fun words to describe it.

Here are some of the most entertainingly interesting personality adjectives to help you better describe the people you know.

PERSONALITY ADJECTIVES TO DESCRIBE YOUR FRIENDS

It's great to expand your vocabulary to more accurately or more creatively describe the people you love most Convivial:

Everyone knows someone who is so full of life that he fills others with zest. Convivial means "with life," so it makes sense that friendly people are called convivial. They make you happy to be alive.

Example: Al's Halloween parties are always the best because his convivial personality puts everyone in a festive spirit.

Amicable: Friendly or apparently good-willed people are called amicable. All of your friends could be described by this personality adjective, or at least they should.

Example: Sam is always smiling and complimenting folks, what an amicable fellow!

Similarly, amiable, literally meaning loveable, is a wonderful way to describe a friend or nice person.

Example: Mary, the amiable lady that she is, always pets stray cats and says hello to everyone she sees in town.

Someone like Mary can also be described as gregarious. A gregarious person enjoys speaking with people and finds herself energized around large groups of people.

Example: I wish I were as gregarious as Mary is; she ends up talking with everyone at the party.

To describe your friend's gentle side, you can call him affable. It means your friend is kind.

Example: Even when Joe's in a rush to work, he stays affable, never raising his temper or his voice at the Amtrak personnel.

DESCRIBING ENEMIES

Sometimes describing your enemies with intelligence and wit is difficult. The times that negative feelings demand description aren't usually conducive to accurate use of vocabulary. Keep these few personality adjectives in mind the next time you have to appear calm and collected when dealing with a difficult person. You might get the upper linguistic hand.

Scrooge in Dickens's A Christmas Carol pinches every penny. That component of his personality, more than any other, has demonized for generations of readers. People like Scrooge are called parsimonious. Parsimonious people are stingy of every petty thing, they horde and refuse to share despite being the position to do so.

Example: John just bought a Bentley but refused to loan me a dollar, parsimonious jerk!

Nonchalant: Someone who is nonchalant is unconcerned or too cool to care. Describing someone as nonchalant is saying that he lacks all the warmth and enthusiasm normally attributed to a member of the human race.

Example: John doesn't know how many homes he has; no wonder he's nonchalant about poverty.

Obtuse: Obtuse people are those who are dull, negligent, or just bored with life. They bore you because they themselves are so bored. They are annoyingly slow to understand even the simplest of ideas.

Example: Chad writes poetry that puts you to sleep; his obtuse view of life tires even the most ardent lovers of verse.

Abecedarian: It might not always be grounds for enemy making, but calling someone abecedarian is certainly useful. Someone who is abecedarian is elementary, a beginner. Temporarily, everyone can be described as abecedarian, e.g., in a new job, but not perpetually. Literally, it means someone who is learning his or her A, B, C's.

Example: Sarah is unfit to lead; though charming, she's inexperienced and abecedarian.

Truculent: A truculent person is a worthy adversary because he is fierce, ferocious, and cruel. You could just say cruel, but that would be obtuse and betray a lack of good words. The only thing worse than truculence is a lack of good words, well that and being pusillanimous.

Example: Truculent old Richard actually cussed at a colleague in front of a hundred other coworkers.

Pusillanimous: Someone who is pusillanimous lacks courage. It's much stronger than timid because it means weak spirit or mind. Latin suggests here that the weaker the mind, the more fearful a person is.

Example: In a pusillanimous move, George pardoned a criminal for fear of what he might say if left in prison.

If someone is parsimonious, truculent, and pusillanimous, one might call that person Machiavellian. Machiavelli was a Florentine renaissance writer who penned The Prince, a book that detailed the most underhanded, scheming way to rule a country. The book outlined the worst characteristics of humanity and suggested that behaving in such a way was the only effective form of leadership. Almost 500 years later, much controversy still surrounds this work. However, the English language has adopted Niccólo Machiavelli's name as the word describing all that is deplorable in a personality.

Example: Carl lies, slanders, cheats, and steals; his "playbook" might be the most Machiavellian thing the world has ever known.

As you can see, it's a lot of fun talking about people with new words. The joy of language is that it allows human beings to describe their environs creatively. The ammunition a large vocabulary affords the speaker is the ability to describe his surroundings more accurately and pointedly, which fuels creativity, too.

Source: yourdictionary.com

12 idioms to talk about personality

Sentence transformation

Transformation of a sentence means changing the form of a sentence without changing its meaning. The transformation can be done in a number of ways, which you find a headache. This kind of exercise tests vocabulary (idioms, phrasal verbs, set phrases...) as well as grammar (unreal past (conditionals and wishes), passives, reported speech, present perfect/ simple past, (past) modals, (not) as…..as, and so/ such).

There are some rules we all know such as not using more than five words, that the word given must be included with no changes at all or that the two sentences must mean exactly the same. But what about the vocabulary or the structure we must use? To help you f'ace them I've uploaded some documents with vocabulary to 'our filing cabinet' section. More documents will be uploaded soon. I hope you find them useful!

CNN Student News

Listening is very important, listening comes before Speaking. You must be able to hear something before you can say it.

CNN Student News is a ten-minute, commercial-free, daily news program produced by the journalists and educators at CNN. This award-winning show and its companion Web site are available free of charge throughout the school year and it includes daily transcripts for each show. You can also turn captions on while you watch the video.

Functional language for speaking

If you need some help with your speaking go to 'our filing cabinet' and download the document there. It is under 'SPEAKING' and it contains useful language you can use. I hope it comes in handy!!!

Lap year - when women ask men to marry them

Ireland's folklore is full of wonderful, funny, strange, but sometimes out-dated traditions and in this year of 366 days, we are greeted with one of the most well-known. Traditionally, February 29 was the day on which a woman could ask a man to marry her, this right was reserved specifically for the leap year and February 29.

But where does this tradition come from?

Looking back through ancient Irish history, it is said that the tradition began in 5th century Ireland when St. Brigid of Kildare bitterly complained to St. Patrick that women had to wait far too long for men to propose.

The legend says that St. Patrick decreed the women could propose on this one day in February during the leap year. I'm sure the women were thrilled.

Then the tradition was then taken to Scotland by Irish monks.


Back in 1288, the Scots passed a law that allowed a woman to propose marriage to the man of their dreams in a Leap Year with the law also stating that any man who declined the proposal on this day would have to pay a fine.

The law was allegedly passed by an unmarried Queen Margaret (although records show she may only have been five years old at the time) and she put in place a rule that all those women proposing must wear a red petticoat while doing so.

The fine to be paid if a man declined could range from a kiss to payment for a silk dress or a pair of gloves.

This tradition comes from another tale about St. Patrick and St. Brigid in which she drops straight to her knee at Patrick's decree, instantly proposing to him. Patrick declined her offer – he was probably too busy saving Ireland from snakes – but he gave her a kiss on the cheek and a silk gown to soften the blow.

This, too, is dubious. Although many people believe that St. Patrick and St. Brigid met, and that she offered her vows to him, Brigid would historically have been only nine or ten years old when Patrick died in 461 AD. If you believe he died later, however, in 493 AD, it may have been possible, although it's still not altogether likely. 

In some upper-class European societies, the custom of denial involved buying 12 pairs of gloves for the woman you were rejecting. To hide her shame at not having a ring to wear, of course!

In some places, February 29 has been renamed Bachelors' Day because of the tradition.

Gender roles - male vs female

Have you ever heard that men are from Mars and women from Venus? It comes from a book by John Gray offering many suggestions for improving men-women relationships in couples by understanding the communication style and emotional needs of the opposite gender. The book, as suggested by the title, asserts the notion that men and women are as different as beings from other planets. For some that's only a question of stereotypes, for others, however, it's the biggest truth they have ever heard. What do you think? Below is the video we watched in class.
Why don't you have your say?  Write an article giving your opinion and send it to your teacher.

.........

Relative clauses

Go to this page to learn about defining relative clauses

Go to this page to learn about non-defining relative clauses

And to this page to see them compared, defining vs non-defining relative clauses


This powerpoint will be useful aswell




What's theory without practice? Here you have some exercises to help you.

exercise 1 choose the correct answer
exercise 2 combine the sentences using relative pronouns
exercise 3 complete the letter with a relative pronoun
exercise 4 Decide if the relative pronoun is needed or not.
Exercise 5 Add relative pronouns where needed
Exercise 6  Combine the sentences using a relative clauses, some times you will need commas
Exercise 7 Defining, non-defining
Exercise 8 Defining - non defining

Language of lovers

In class we talked about relationships and we learned some phrasal verbs related to them. By sheer coincidence, I bumped into this blog entry and I just found it curious. Mysteries of the language...

“I love you,” she says.
“I love you more,” he replies.
“I love you most,” comes her response.
“I love you the mostest,” he answers, somewhat ungrammatically.

And they carry on like this for a further twenty minutes (with the occasional break for some snogging) as the rest of the people in the train carriage shuffle their newspapers, cough with embarrassment or turn up their mp3 players to drown out the horror of young love.


The language of lovers is something that we’ve probably all experienced or been subjected to at some point in our lives, and it’s a mixture of pet names, hushed tones and – according to new research from the University of Texas – similar words and grammatical patterns.


According to James Pennebaker, Molly Ireland and their team of psychologists, we’re not just likely to match our speech to the one we love, but we’re also more likely to be attracted to people with similar speech styles. In their most recent study they set up speed dates between pairs of students and found when the conversations were analysed, that while the topics discussed were predictably very similar, the grammatical details held small clues as to which couples would hit it off.


Using text analysis, they found that the pairs whose language styles matched most closely were much more likely to express an interest in seeing the other person again. What was also interesting here was... GO ON READING

(from Macmillandictionaryblog.com)

Strange funny laws

In class we were talking about dos and don'ts and some of you talked about recent laws. Did you know it's illegal in France to name a pig Napoleon? Or that in Ohio you're not allowed to get a fish drunk? There are many strange laws still in operation around the world. Most are no longer enforced, but technically you could be prosecuted if you break them. According to The Times this is a list of the world's most ridiculous laws:

25. It is illegal for a cab in the City of London to carry rabid dogs or corpses.

24. It is illegal to die in the Houses of Parliament.

23. It is an act of treason to place a postage stamp bearing the British monarch upside down.

22. In France, it is forbidden to call a pig Napoleon.

21. Under the UK’s Tax Avoidance Schemes Regulations 2006, it is illegal not to tell the taxman anything you don’t want him to know, though you don’t have to tell him anything you don’t mind him knowing.

20. In Alabama, it is illegal for a driver to be blindfolded while driving a vehicle.

19. In Ohio, it is against state law to get a fish drunk.

18. Royal Navy ships that enter the Port of London must provide a barrel of rum to the Constable of the Tower of London.

17. In the UK, a pregnant woman can legally relieve herself anywhere she wants – even, if she so requests, in a policeman’s helmet.

16. In Lancashire, no person is permitted after being asked to stop by a constable on the seashore to incite a dog to bark.

15. In Miami, Florida, it is illegal to skateboard in a police station.

14. In Indonesia, the penalty for masturbation is decapitation.

13. In England, all men over the age of 14 must carry out two hours of longbow practice a day.

12. In London, Freemen are allowed to take a flock of sheep across London Bridge without being charged a toll; they are also allowed to drive geese down Cheapside.

11. In San Salvador, drunk drivers can be punished by death before a firing squad.

10. In the UK, a man who feels compelled to urinate in public can do so only if he aims for his rear wheel and keeps his right hand on his vehicle.

9. In Florida, unmarried women who parachute on Sundays can be jailed.

8. In Kentucky, it is illegal to carry a concealed weapon more than six-feet long.

7. In Chester, Welshmen are banned from entering the city before sunrise and from staying after sunset.

6. In the city of York, it is legal to murder a Scotsman within the ancient city walls, but only if he is carrying a bow and arrow.

5. In Boulder, Colorado, it is illegal to kill a bird within the city limits and also to “own” a pet – the town’s citizens, legally speaking, are merely “pet minders”.

4. In Vermont, women must obtain written permission from their husbands to wear false teeth.

3. In London, it is illegal to flag down a taxi if you have the plague.

2. In Bahrain, a male doctor may legally examine a woman’s genitals but is forbidden from looking directly at them during the examination; he may only see their reflection in a mirror.

1. The head of any dead whale found on the British coast is legally the property of the King; the tail, on the other hand, belongs to the Queen - in case she needs the bones for her corset.

Source: The Times