Friday, March 20th
Prepare for the debate : “Should social media be banned for under-16s?”
Do some research in ENGLISH using DUCKDUCKGO (set “region” according to your preference)
Below is a list of possible keywords for your research :
• social media age limit
• teenagers social media effects
• minimum age social media law
• arguments for banning social media under 16
• arguments against social media age restriction
• pros and cons of social media for teenagers
• mental health teenagers social media
• screen time effects adolescents
• online safety children risks
• freedom of speech teenagers
and 4 themes to articulate your reflection :
Mental health
FOR: addiction / anxiety / depression / low self-esteem / cyberbullying / online pressure
AGAINST: support communities / self-expression / access to help / sense of belonging
Freedom & rights
FOR: protection of minors / lack of maturity / need for regulation
AGAINST: freedom of expression / personal choice / digital rights / part of modern life
Education & productivity
FOR: distraction / lack of concentration / time-wasting / lower academic performance
AGAINST: access to information / learning opportunities / digital skills / educational content
Safety
FOR: online predators / privacy issues / personal data risks / harmful content
AGAINST: education over banning / awareness / responsibility / parental control / safer use
Tools to debate with:
Giving an opinion
I tend to think that… / I would argue that… / It seems to me that… / From my perspective… / I am convinced that…
Introducing an argument
One of the main arguments is that… / A key point to consider is that… / What is particularly important is that…
Developing an idea
This can be explained by the fact that… / The main reason is that… / This is mainly due to the fact that…
Cause & consequence
This can lead to… / This often results in… / As a consequence… / In the long run…
Nuancing
While it is true that…, it is also important to note that… / Although this may be true… / Even if…, it does not necessarily mean that…
Agreeing / Disagreeing
I completely agree / I couldn’t agree more / I see your point, but… / I understand, however… / This argument is valid to some extent, however…
Giving examples
For example… / For instance… / A clear example of this is… / This is particularly evident when…
Proposing solutions
Instead of…, we should… / A more effective solution would be to… / It would be better to…
Concluding
To sum up… / In conclusion… / Overall… / All things considered…
Tuesday, March 17th
Exercise 1 – Countable or Uncountable
information — U
students — C
furniture — U
mistakes — C
advice — U
apples — C
traffic — U
bottles — C
money — U
jobs — C
Exercise 2 – Much or Many
How many students are in your class?
There isn’t much time left.
I don’t drink much coffee.
How many books have you read this year?
There were too many people in the room.
She doesn’t have much experience.
We didn’t see many accidents on the road.
How much water do you drink every day?
Exercise 3 – A few / Few / A little / Little
I have few friends in this town, so I feel lonely.
There is a little milk in the fridge.
He made a few mistakes in the test.
There is little information available on this topic.
We have a few minutes left before the train leaves.
She showed little interest in the project.
Exercise 4 – Some / Any / No
There are some students waiting outside.
Do you have any questions?
I don’t have any money with me.
There are no restaurants open at this hour.
Would you like some tea?
We didn’t see any evidence of the crime.
She bought some flowers at the market.
Exercise 5 – A lot of / Lots of / Plenty of
She has a lot of / lots of ideas.
There is a lot of / lots of / plenty of work to do.
We have a lot of / lots of / plenty of opportunities.
There is plenty of / a lot of / lots of food for everyone.
Exercise 6 – Each / Every
Every student must complete the exercise.
I go running every morning.
The teacher spoke to each student individually.
Every room in the hotel has a balcony.
They gave a prize to each participant.
Exercise 7 – Either / Neither / Both
Neither of my parents speaks Spanish.
You can take either road.
Both solutions are correct.
Neither of the answers is correct.
Both candidates were qualified for the job.
Exercise 8 – Articles
I like Ø music very much.
She is a doctor.
The music in this film is beautiful.
I had a sandwich for lunch.
The lunch we had yesterday was excellent.
Ø dogs are loyal animals.
The dog is a loyal animal.
Ø France is a beautiful country.
The United Kingdom is an island nation.
I saw it on Ø television.
Exercise 9 – Add the article
Ø life is complicated sometimes.
I am studying the life of Beethoven.
Ø silence can be uncomfortable.
The silence in the room was strange.
She wants to become an engineer.
The engineers in this company are very skilled.
I saw him in Ø hospital yesterday.
Where is the hospital?
Exercise 10 – General or specific
I love Ø chocolate / the chocolate you bought yesterday.
Ø history is fascinating / the history of Rome is fascinating.
Ø books are expensive / the books on the table are expensive.
Ø life is short / the life of a soldier is difficult.
Exercise 11 – Titles and names
The President of the United States
Ø President Biden
The Queen of England
Ø Queen Elizabeth II
The Netherlands
Ø Italy
Exercise 12 – School / work / home
She is at Ø school today.
I went to the school to speak with the teacher.
He is in Ø hospital after the accident.
The visitors are waiting outside the hospital.
She stayed in Ø bed all day.
The cat jumped onto the bed.
Exercise 13 – A or An
a university
an hour
an honest person
a European city
an umbrella
a useful tool
Exercise 14 – Writing task
(examples)
Dogs are loyal animals.
The teacher in my class is very kind.
My father is a doctor.
I usually have Ø breakfast at 7 a.m.
The best student in the class won a prize.
Friday, March 13th
explore and browse test-english.com, a good starting point may be this test.
Friday, March 6th
The Hobbit : (chapter one and the notes) describe and analyse the picture below using this form
Friday, February 27th
Read and listen to the rest of Chapter one (below) and read these notes about The Hobbit
Tuesday, February 24tH
Thror’s map as designed by Tolkien for the first edition of The Hobbit
Friday, February 6th
Finsih the work about Carrie Reichardt + Tale, you may send both to me using this contact form (copy and paste) or my email pierre@acobas.net
Tuesday, February 3rd
Carrie Reichardt, artist and craftivist, You may have a look at her Instagram account.
Exercise: Carrie Reichardt, follow the link and choose one picture to study.
Friday, January 23rd and 30th
Telling a Tale: WORKSHEET
Friday, January 16th
Telling a Tale: WORKSHEET
Friday, January 9th
Telling a Tale: WORKSHEET
Tuesday, January 6th
Telling a Tale: WORKSHEET
Friday, December 12th
WATCH: Vincent, a short animation by Tim Burton
TASK: If you feel comfortable writing in English and inspired write a short film review abour Vincent here OR if you feel like being guided write about Vincent by filling in the following form
Tuesday, December 9th
Extract from The Drowning Woman
Now answer the QUIZ
Friday, December 5th
Orals + Reported Speech => exercise & correction
Tuesday, December 2nd
FRIDAY, November 28th
Orals +
See last week’s entry about The story of an Hour
- do the revised QUIZ
- watch this video
- read the study-guide
- take some notes
Tuesday, November 25th
Friday, November 21st
The Story of an Hour first appeared in Vogue in 1894:
The Story of an Hour (link to the PDF file of the short-story)
by Kate Chopin (link to her entry in Wikipedia)
QUIZ: The Story of an Hour
To go further: Study-guide
Friday, November 14th
Orals +
2. answer here
Friday, November 7th
now watch this other video and answer these questions.
Friday, November 4th
1. Vous avez dû rêver. You MUST HAVE dreamed.
2. J’ai dû changer un pneu. I had to change a tyre
3. Est-ce qu’ils ont pu le vendre? Could they sell it? Were they able to sell it? Did they manage to sell it?
4. Il a fallu qu’elle prenne le train de sept heures. She had to take the 7 o’clock train.
5. C’était dangereux, il aurait pu se casser un bras. It was dangerous, he could have broken his arm.
6. Si elle avait dix-huit ans, il pourrait voter. If she was/were 18 she could vote.
7. La tâche des enquêteurs pourrait être difficile. The investigator’s task MIGHT/COULD/MAY be difficult.
8. ils n’ont pas dû s’en apercevoir. They MUSTN’T HAVE realized.
9. Si tu les avais cassés, tu aurais dû les remplacer. If you had broken them, you SHOULD HAVE TO replace them.
10. J’aurais pu l’acheter, mais j’ai préféré garder l’argent. I COULD HAVE BOUGHT it but I prefered to keep the money.
11. Ils auraient dû s’en apercevoir avant. They SHOULD HAVE REALIZED it before.
12. Il se pourrait que leur équipe gagne la coupe du monde. Their team MIGHT WIN the world cup.
13. Elle a dû recevoir ma lettre. She MUST HAVE received my letter.
14. Il faut qu’il parte avant la fin de la réunion. He HAS TO GO before the end of the meeting.
15. Ce n’est pas la peine que tu restes. You DON’T NEED TO stay
16. Il ne faut pas conduire si vite. You SHOULDN’T DRIVE so fast.
17. Ça ne doit pas être très difficile. It MUSTN’T BE too difficult.
18. Ce n’était pas la peine que tu te presses. You DIDN’T NEED TO HURRY.
Friday, October 17th
Oral presentation about:
- something you like
- something you know about
- something which can be talked about in English
-
- => search the web IN ENGLISH for information and vocabulary,
- Google is mainly going to give you results in French, try another search engine called Duckduckgo which can be easily switched to another language and location => https://duckduckgo.com/settings
- => compile a long list of elements (nouns, adjectives, VERBS, phrases, sentences etc. Store this list ONLINE.
- => prepare your presentation using the collected material
- => you may bring some pictures or a very short video clip on your phone (but no slides)
- => you need about 300 words to talk for a few minutes.
Tuesday, October 14th
1. Certainly, Tina knows that smoking is forbidden
Tina MUST KNOW that …
2. Certainly, Tina knew that smoking was forbidden.
Tina MUST HAVE KNOWN that…
3. It is possible that Tina didn’t know that smoking was forbidden.
Tina MAY NOT HAVE KNOWN that…
4. The Masked Avengers were probably the best group at the concert.
The Masked Avengers MUST HAVE BEEN …
5. Brian forgot his own address. That’s incredible.
Brian CAN’T HAVE FORGOTTEN …
6. Perhaps she is right after all.
She MAY BE right after all
7. It is probable that the fire started in the kitchen.
The fire MUST HAVE STARTED…
Friday, October 10th
Friday, October 3rd
you need to work with 2 windows side-by-side (one for the sound, the other for the exercise, or you may listen to the sound file on your smartphone)
The Bear and The Dragon by Tom Clancy – American accent + extract from a spy novel – you may download the mp3 file or listen to it directly below.
and/or
Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling – British accent – extract from the first chapter of the first volume – you may download the mp3 file or listen to it directly below.
Tuesday, September 29th
Re-write the story using Morag’s point of view, and write it in the first person (350 words +/-10%)
- put yourself in her shoes an visualize the landscape (see photos below) and the scene (the Vikings coming ashore)
- collect vocabulary and information in the short-story which you are going to recycle in your own version.
Reading Tartan, a short-story by George Mackay Brown.
Friday, September 26th
- Compound adjectives
- Compound nouns
- Word formation
- Howlers – most common mistakes to avoid
- numbers and figures (to train yourself at home use this)
Tuesday, September 23rd
Reading Tartan, a short-story by George Mackay Brown.
Friday, September 19th
Use these handouts as reference : Simple Tense Chart / Complete Tense Chart
-
- http://englishmaven.org/HP6/Present%20Tense%20Final%20Exam.htm
- http://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/all-tenses-19.htm
- http://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/all-tenses18.htm
- http://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/all-tenses17.htm
- https://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/t139-all-tenses.htm
- https://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/t138-all-tenses.htm
- https://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/t137-all-tenses.htm
- https://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/t135-all-tenses.htm
- https://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/t133-all-tenses.htm
- https://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/all_tenses1.htm
- https://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/all_tenses2.htm
- http://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/all_tenses3.htm
- http://www.english-grammar.at/online_exercises/tenses/at050-my-piano-lessons.htm
- http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/verbs29practicetest.htm
Friday, September 5th
Reading Tartan, a short-story by George Mackay Brown.
Visualizing the scene by drawing elements. The scene takes place in the north of Scotland, near Durness and it looks like this when the weather is good!
Tuesday, September 2nd
General introduction & a short history of the English Language
