Hello! My name's Liliana. I'm a teacher of English (Language and Literature) to Italian teenage stu

Saturday, February 14, 2026

 

British Place-Name Etymologies


1. Latin (Roman Influence)

Suffix: -chester, -caster, -cester Meaning: Derived from the Latin castra (camp or fortification).

  • Colchester: 

  • Manchester: 

  • Lancaster:

  • Gloucester:

  • Chester:

2. Old English (Anglo-Saxon Influence)

A. Suffix: -ham

Meaning: Village, estate, or settlement (related to the modern word "home").

Birmingham

Nottingham

Cheltenham

B. Suffix: -ton

Meaning: Farm, enclosure, or estate (later evolved into "town").

  • Brighton: 

  • Luton: 

  • Southampton: 

  • Northampton: .

C. Suffix: -bury, -borough, -burgh

Meaning: A fortified place or stronghold (from burh).

  • Canterbury: 

  • Salisbury:

  • Edinburgh: 

D. Suffix: -ford

Meaning: A shallow place to cross a river.

  • Oxford: 

  • Stratford: 

  • Guildford: 

3. Old Norse (Viking Influence)

A. Suffix: -by

Meaning: Farmstead or village.

  • Whitby: 

  • Derby: 

  • Grimsby: 

B. Suffix: -thorpe

Meaning: A secondary settlement or an outlying farm.

  • Scunthorpe: 

  • Cleethorpes: 


4. Summary Table

Origin

Suffix

Example

Meaning

Latin

-chester

Winchester

Fortified camp

Old English

-ham

Fulham

Settlement

Old English

-ton

Kingston

Enclosure/Farm

Old English

-ford

Bedford

River crossing

Old Norse

-by

Kirkby

Village

Old Norse

-thorpe

Mablethorpe

Outlying farm

Sunday, February 1, 2026

· JUST = appena · ALREADY = già · (NOT) YET = (non) ancora

 




JUST, ALREADY e YET

Oltre che da espressioni temporali che includono il tempo

presente, il Present Perfect è spesso accompagnato da alcuni

avverbi specifici, quali:

· JUST = appena

· ALREADY = già

· (NOT) YET = (non) ancora



JUST =APPENA


I have just finished my homework. -Ho appena finito i compiti



ALREADY

L’avverbio ALREADY viene utilizzato nelle frasi affermative. Esso

si traduce con “già”, e serve a specificare che l’azione espressa dal

verbo è avvenuta prima di quanto ci si aspettasse.

E.g. I have already seen this movie. = Io ho già visto questo film.

IMPORTANTE!

Nei tempi composti inglesi (ossia i tempi che presentano l’ausiliare

HAVE, nel nostro caso il Present Perfect), JUST e ALREADY si

collocano tra l’ausiliare HAVE/HAS e il participio passato.

YET

L’avverbio YET può essere utilizzato sia in frasi negative che in

frasi interrogative.

Nelle frasi negative, YET indica che l’azione espressa dal verbo

non è ancora avvenuta.

E.g. The match hasn’t finished yet.

= La partita non è ancora finita.


YET ........................

Nelle frasi interrogative, YET si usa per chiedere se un’azione sia

effettivamente avvenuta o meno.

E.g. Have you bought  the ticket for the concert yet? = Hai già comprato il biglietto per il concerto?

IMPORTANTE!

A differenza di JUST e ALREADY, YET va inserito sempre alla fine

della frase, sia essa negativa o interrogativa.














Migration and Conquest Timeline

 

Migration and Conquest Timeline

GroupArrival DateRegion of OriginModern Countries
Celtsc. 700 – 500 BCCentral EuropeAustria, Switzerland, Southern Germany
Romans43 AD*Italian PeninsulaItaly
Anglo-Saxonsc. 410 – 450 ADNorthern EuropeGermany, Denmark, Netherlands
Vikings793 AD (First Raid)ScandinaviaNorway, Denmark, Sweden

Tongue twister (i vowel sound)


 

MUCH /MANY/FOOD CONTAINERS


 


CLOTHES- questions

 1. Are clothes important for you?

2. Do you enjoy shopping for clothes?

3. Do you ever follow Instagram posts related to clothes?

5. What is the most expensive piece of clothing that you have ever bought?

6. Do you try clothes on before you buy them?

7. What colour suits you best?

8. What is your favourite piece of clothing?

9. Are you interested in fashion?

10.How often do you go clothes shopping?

11.Are you keen on shopping at the market?

12.Do you prefer shopping alone or with friends?

13.Do you normally go shopping on Saturdays?

14.Who do you usually go shopping with?

15.Where do you most like to go shopping?

EXPERIENCES -PRESENT PERFECT

 Practise these tenses with questions:

1. Have you ever tried a food that you thought was disgusting?

2. Have you ever  travelled alone?

3. Have you ever studied anything that you hated?

4. Have you ever tried to learn a language by yourself?

5. Which is the strangest movie  you have ever seen?

6. Which is the worst TV programme you have ever seen?

7. Which is the most engaging school activity you have ever done?

5. How many times have you been abroad?

6. How many times have you seen Titanic?

7. How many times have you eaten sushi?

8. How long have you known me?

9. How long have you lived in this town?

10. How long have you lived in your house/flat?

11. How long have you studied English?

12. How long have you had your phone?




QUESTIONS ABOUT FOOD -ordering food

 1. What time do you normally have breakfast?

2. Is breakfast an important meal? Why?

3. Do you always have lunch?

4. What do you usually eat for dinner?

5. If you want a snack, what do you usually eat?

6. How often do you drink alcohol?

7. Do you ever eat junk-food?

8. What is your favourite food and why?

9. Do you follow a healthy diet?

10.Are there any foods that you can´t stand?

11.What was your favourite food when you were a child?

12.What is your favourite restaurant and why?

13.Who is the best cook in your family?

https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/skills/listening/a1-listening/ordering-food-cafe






https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/skills/listening/a1-listening/ordering-food-cafe

14.Can you cook well?

15.Who normally cooks in your house?

COMPARE THE THREE DIFFERENT SYSTEMS OF GOVERNMENT

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

 

ITALY

THE UK

THE USA

TYPE OF GOVERNMENT    

 

 

 

LEGISLATIVE POWER

 

 

 

 

EXECUTIVE POWER

 

 

 

HEAD OF STATE

 

 

 

HEAD OF GOVERNMENT

 

 

 

THE MAIN PARTIES

 

 

 

WHAT DOES THE HEAD OF GOVERNMENT DO?

 

 

 

WHAT ABOUT CONSTITUTION?

 

 

 

 

Thursday, January 15, 2026

DEBATE- FIRST LESSON introduction


 








https://www.thenational.academy/teachers/programmes/english-primary-ks2/units/getting-ready-to-debate/lessons/what-is-a-debate#slide-deck

https://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/english-debate/26780736

GamePrimary SkillBest For
The "Um" GameFluencyBeginners / Warm-up
Balloon DebatePersuasionCharacter work
Devil's AdvocateCritical ThinkingAdvanced / Rebuttals
Soup, Salad, SandwichDefinition/LogicFun/Icebreakers

1. Warm-Up & Fluency Games

These games help students get comfortable speaking on their feet without the pressure of a "winner."

  • The "Um" Game: A student is given a random topic (e.g., "Why cheese is the best food") and must speak about it for one minute. If they use a filler word like "um," "uh," or "like," they are out. The goal is to speak clearly and continuously.

  • If I Ruled the World: Students stand in a circle. Each student finishes the sentence "If I ruled the world, I would..." with a creative law. The student to their left must immediately ask "Why?" and the speaker must justify their new law on the spot.

  • Make it Sound Good / Make it Sound Bad: Give two students a neutral statement (e.g., "The city is big"). One student must describe it using only positive adjectives, and the other must describe it using only negative ones.


2. Logic & Persuasion Games

These games focus on building a strong argument and using persuasive language.

  • The Balloon Debate: Imagine four to six famous people (or fictional characters) are in a hot air balloon that is sinking. To save the balloon, one person must be thrown out. Each student plays one character and has 45 seconds to argue why they are too important to be thrown overboard.

  • Shark Tank (Sell Me This): Give a student a useless or strange object (like a broken pencil or a single sock). They have two minutes to prepare a "sales pitch" to the class, arguing why everyone needs to buy it.

  • Desert Island: Students are "stranded" and can only bring three items. They must present their choices to the class and justify why their items are the most essential for survival. The class then votes on the most logical list.


3. Rebuttal & Critical Thinking Games

These games teach students how to listen to an opponent and respond directly to their points.

  • Devil’s Advocate: A student makes a statement they truly believe in (e.g., "Dogs are better than cats"). Another student is assigned to play "Devil's Advocate" and must argue the exact opposite, even if they don't agree with it.

  • I Couldn't Disagree More: One student makes a simple claim (e.g., "Summer is better than winter"). The next student must start their response with "I couldn't disagree more because..." and provide a counter-argument.

  • The Alley Debate (Conscience Alley): Create two lines of students facing each other. One line is "for" a topic, and the other is "against." A student walks down the "alley" between them while students from both sides whisper their arguments. At the end, the walker decides which side was more persuasive.


4. Group Strategy Games

  • Zombie Apocalypse Bunker: A group of students has a list of people with different professions (doctor, cook, engineer, poet). There is only room for three in the bunker. The group must debate and decide who stays based on who provides the most value to the future of humanity.

  • Soup, Salad, or Sandwich?: This is a fun "nonsense" debate. Give students a food (like a hot dog or a taco) and have them argue which category it belongs to. It teaches them how to define terms and use evidence for even the silliest claims.

Wednesday, January 7, 2026

DESCRIBE A PICTURE


 

















In a shop

 








Struttura del Dialogo (Istruzioni)

  1. L'accoglienza: Il commesso saluta il cliente e chiede se ha bisogno di aiuto.

  2. La richiesta: Il cliente risponde gentilmente e dice che sta cercando un capo specifico (un maglione).

  3. Preferenze di colore: Il commesso mostra i modelli disponibili e chiede il colore preferito; il cliente chiede un colore diverso.

  4. Prova abiti: Il cliente chiede dove si trovano i camerini per provare l'articolo.

  5. Feedback sulla taglia: Il commesso chiede se l'articolo va bene; il cliente spiega che è troppo piccolo e chiede una taglia più grande.

  6. Prezzo e decisione: Il cliente chiede il prezzo e decide di acquistare l'articolo.

  7. Pagamento: Il cliente chiede se può pagare con carta di credito.

  8. Conclusione: Il commesso indica la cassa e i due si salutano cordialmente.