Today, I want to share with you a very nice user-friendly site to listen to the radio. With a simple click you can listen to the best live radio stations from the UK. In fact, you can listen to any online radio station in the world, but the focus here is on English, isn’t it?
Internet Radio UK lists all top online radio stations from the United Kingdom. On the right of the screen, you will see a menu with links to different radio stations in the UK.
Do you like visiting places off the beaten track? Do you choose for your holidays unusual tourist destinations? Would you choose to visit Alcatraz, the famous penitentiary?
Alcatraz, also called The Rock, is an island and probably the most famous or maybe infamous prison in the world. Located in San Francisco, it is separated from the mainland by 2,5 kilometres of freezing water, strong currents, cold winds, and high waves, which made it impossible to escape.
Gangster and mafia boss Al Capone was one of the best-known residents in Alcatraz. As soon as he set foot in prison, he paid the guards to make his life comfortable while in prison. Below, a picture of his cell.
Would you like to know more about Alcatraz? Watch the video and test your comprehension with the exercise below. (video lasts 2:08)
Before watching the video, you might want to pre-teach the following words
Inmate /ˈɪnmeɪt/= A person living in an institution such as a prison or hospital
Infamous/ˈɪnfəməs/=Well known for some bad quality or deed
While most tourists would rather avoid jail, no trip to San Francisco would be complete without ________________________________________________
Alcatraz is located____________________________________ San Francisco Bay.
Alcatraz,the Rock, was America’s premier ______________________________and for 29 years the final stop for the nation’s most ___________________________
Make sure to buy your tickets online and in advance because they _______________
If you schedule your trip for early in the morning, you’ll have more room to _________________________
For a spooky trip, book the ___________________
When you are visiting the prison, you might want to pick up a headset for an ____________________ audio tour.
You’ll hear stories told by _______________________________________
Once upon a time, there were students who hated having fun in class….
I know, I know… this sounds like absolute blasphemy, but unbelievably there are students who mistakenly think learning and fun are two concepts that cannot be glued together. “You either have fun or you learn…and that’s flat! You can’t have both!” they claim.
I have over the years determined these students think these two concepts cannot cohabit just because they have not been rightfully exposed to them. In this blog you’ll find tons of activities and links to websites to help you change these students’ minds. One of these sites isViralelt, which is an excellent example of how fun+learning can get along.
Viralelt is a blog for adult learners from upper intermediate (B2) to advanced (C2).
All the posts on the blog have a similar structure
They all contain an engaging viral video.
10 conversation questions related to the video (Question Time)
A listening activity (Sitting Comfortably) where students will have to guess which two questions, from the exercise above, are being discussed. I find this section especially helpful because it gives students a chance to see how a native speaker would answer these questions. Therefore, I would suggest doing this listening activity before putting students into groups to discuss the questions
You can download the “Question time”and the “Sitting comfortably?”script in an editable Word document, so you can adapt it to your students’ needs.
The blog is run by Ian James, a teacher at the Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, and here you can read some of his suggestions on how to use Viralelt.
So, let’s say you see this video, The texting hat, on the Internet
You like it. You think it has a lot of potential for teaching and it is just what you were looking for to give your students a break after a tough week. However, your brain has decided to leave you. You watch the video a thousand times, but nothing so far. I’ve been there, believe, very often!
Well, this is when your addiction to this blog will begin. You go to Viralelt and there it is, together with some teachers’ notes to help you with suggestions on how to use the video, 10 conversations questions and the listening activity.
I want to thank the amazing teachers from Cosas que encuentro para clase on facebook for sharing this superb blog with me.
FAMILY, in capitals, because is there anything more important in this world?
“Family is not an important thing, it’s everything.”Michael J. Fox. How far do you agree with Michael J. Fox?
This is a lesson for Intermediate students (B1) about Family. In this post you will find
A video about traditional and non-traditional families.
Some vocabulary you might need to revise/learn when discussing this subject.
Guided speaking: questions to discuss+ answers offered by a native speaker (Flip Cards).
Freer Practice: pictures to describe and some questions to discuss in pairs or small groups
The first activity in this lesson (the video) will be set as homework.
1. The Video. What Is a Non-Traditional Family? – Definition of Options.
It is a long video. It lasts 8 minutes so I’d suggest breaking it up and asking students to work on different parts of the video. In the video five non-traditional /alternative households are mentioned.
In class, show students the video and explain it discusses traditional and non-traditional families.
Explain that everybody will need to listen to the introduction where the concept of traditional family is explained (from the beginning – 1:02).
Explain that in the video Erin Long-Crowell, an educational psychologist, talks about five different non-traditional/alternative households.
Form groups of five students and tell them that in the next lesson they will be working in groups of five and each of them will share what they have learned about their assigned non-traditional household.
Assign tasks for the different students in the group
3. Speaking .Guided speaking: questions to discuss+ answers offered by a native speaker (Flip Cards)
Students in pairs. Display question 1 and allow two or three minutes for students to discuss this question. Flip the card for them to see how a native speaker would answer the question. Follow the same procedure with the rest of the questions.
“How far away the stars seem, and how far is our first kiss, and ah, how old my heart”. William Butler Yeats
I was once kissed by a marquis, or maybe he was a count, but it was in a palace. I cannot remember his rank, but he was old and ugly, at least for me! Nothing to daydream about, believe me, but the fact remains that I was kissed by a nobleman. He was a long way from Prince Charming, but that was ok for me. He was selling. I was buying. That was it!
But the kiss… yes…back to the kiss. First time ever I had been kissed on the hand. I was ready for a handshake so I extended my hand. Instead the marquis suddenly, and in a very quick gesture took my hand, bowed and made the gesture, and I have yet to decide whether he actually kissed my hand or just the air. Now that I know a bit more about the etiquette of hand-kissing I realize he probably never kissed me.
Photo by Tim Rooke/Rex/REX USA
Level: B2
♥DISCUSS:It is not very often that a woman has her hand kissed nowadays. But let’s reflect a bit on how we greet each other in our different countries. Discuss these questions with your partner:
What are the rules for social kissing in your country? Do you always know how you are supposed to greet someone? Have you ever experimented any awkward moments where you didn’t know what you were supposed to do?
When kissing as a form of greeting, do you kiss on one cheek or on both cheeks?
Is it the right or the left cheek you kiss first? Know that you should kiss the right cheek first to avoid awkward situations.
If you don’t like the kissing business, how do you cope with people who want to kiss you as a greeting?
Is it appropriate to kiss in a business setting?
Do you ever hug?
Apart from the handshakes, cheek kissing and hand kissing which are quite common for us, do you know any unusual ways of greeting people ?
♥READ: Have a look at this interesting article about Unusual Ways to Greet People Around the World. When you finish reading , tell your partner which form of greeting you found most unusual.
♥LISTEN: Watch this video about the etiquette of social kissing and answer the following questions:
In Good Morning America, the *anchorwoman describes an awkward moment when you get to a party. Why is it awkward for some people to greet your host or hostess?
The British are described as” buttoned-up”. What do you think it means?
Laura Ford is a British artist. Does she kiss people she doesn’t know? Choose from the options below and justify your answer.
always b. never c. sometimes
According to Hillary Brown, social kissing in France might be getting out of control. Why?
Social Kissing is taught at some schools. Which ones?
What are some of the rules of kissing taught at these schools?
How are Americans and Latins different as regards social kissing?
At the end of the clip, the anchorman apologizes. Why?
*anchorman/anchorwoman = a person who presents and coordinates a live television or radio programme involving other contributors.
♥WRITE: Imagine a foreign student is coming to your school/house on an exchange visit. What advise would you give about your customs. Use the ideas below and the modal verbs should/shouldn’t , could, must/mustn’t.
