"All the World's a Stage" by William Shakespeare

CHRISTMAS words and traditions | English lesson

What is London like at Christmas? | English Listening Practice

https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/general-english/word-on-the-street/christmas/christmas-scene-2

NOTA - All I Want For Christmas Is You (Video)

Gap fill writing activity

DICKENS
ATTITUDE to Victorian society

• He criticized the injustices of his society
• He advocated social reforms
• He wasn't revolutionary
• He wasn't in favour of radical changes to the structure of Victorian society
• He never questioned the basic values of his time
• He shared the contemporary view that the secret of happiness was to be found in hard work and family life

THE VICTORIAN NOVEL

Watch Malala Yousafzai's Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech

Oliver Twist Story | Bedtime Stories for kids | My Pingu Tv

Oliver Twist Story | Bedtime Stories for kids | My Pingu Tv


summary

Key words
Orphanage
Workhouse
Draw lots
Gold Locket
Gruel
Undertaker
Thieves
Pickpockets
Handkerchief
Wallet
Burglary
To burglar
Half-brother
Hang
Squander money

FIVE WEBSITE to improve listening, speaking, reading and writing  skills

https://www.teachertrainingvideos.com/

https://it.talkenglish.com/

https://listenaminute.com/

https://www.eslfast.com/

https://breakingnewsenglish.com/

http://www.elllo.org/index.htm

10 good excuses for not doing homework

Group work

In groups of four, students were asked to find ten ’good , weird, creative excuses’ for not doing homework (the grammar focus was on could  and had to)

What did they do last weekend?

Use the following irregular verbs to talk about your last weekend

woke up

got up

leave  

ate

drank

went

sang

swam

had

came back

rode

did

put on

slept

took off

met

wore

bought

made

sent

felt

spent

How to write a review

A review is 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 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.

Hints

• It is a good idea to give your review an interesting title.
• In the first paragraph, say what you are reviewing and try to get the reader's interest.
• Give your opinion of what you are reviewing linked to the question in the second paragraph. Remember a review is not just a list of facts - it's largely your opinion.
• Give more details of what your are reviewing linked to the questions in the input in one or two more paragraphs, but only focus on those you've been asked to develop.
• Summarise your view, using different words from the introduction, and include a recommendation.
• Remember.

• Use a personal or more neutral style, according to the target reader.
• It is important that you show a range of structures in the language of opinion, description and recommendation.
• Add vivid language to add interest.

Useful language for a review

What I liked

• What I liked most was …..
• The thing I liked most was ….
• I was pleasantly surprised by …..
• If you get a chance to ….

What I disliked

• What I disliked most was …..
• I was disappointed by/with ……

Reviews of books

• main character
• is set in
• Fiction: science fiction / thriller / fantasy / mystery / historical / romance ...
• Non-fiction: cook book / travel book / textbook / manual / coffee-table book ...
• atmosphere / plot
• author
• written by
• chapter
• factual
• unbelievable
• bestseller
• ending

Reviews of concerts

• artist / band / musician / (bass/lead/rhythm) guitarist / (backing/lead) singer / drummer / soloist / trio / orchestra
• auditorium / hall / venue / lyrics / (catchy) tune / score / gig

Reviews of exhibitions

• painting / sculpture / handicrafts
• gallery / catalogue / display

Reviews of films

• lead role
• star role
• star
• star actor/actress
• starring
• secondary role
• He plays a …….
• written by ….
• cast / director / producer
• is set in …..
• based on a true story …..
• believable
• true to life
• not very believable
• far-fetched
• (As for fiction books +): animation / adaptation / comedy
• Costumes / design / photography / script / special effects / soundtrack
• ending

Reviews of TV programmes

• Chat shows / current affairs programme / debate / documentary / series / soap opera/ sitcom (situation comedy)
• Host / presenter

Reviews of hotels, restaurants, etc

• location
• service
• setting
• attractive / disappointing setting
• owned by
• run by
• head chef (restaurant)
• waiters (restaurant)
• staff …….
• staff at reception …….(hotel)
• hotel facilities ….
• reasonable prices …..
• good/excellent/poor value for money …..
• (a bit/somehow) expensive
• overpriced
• not worth the money
• always fully booked
• book in advance

Criticism

• The script seemed rather conventional/predictable to me.
• The plot struck me as completely bizarre/absurd/incomprehensible
• The characters are appealing and true to life
• The dancers were quite brilliant/amateurish

Recommendations

• Judging from this CD / show ...
• Overall, if you like ..., you'll love / you should ...
• Although some of ... he/she/it's still a great...
• You really must/should buy/see/read/visit ...
• I would definitely recommend seeing/visiting/reading/having a look at ...

Easy English - Daily Activities

English - Daily routine (A1-A2 - with subtitles)

The Victorian compromise

THE VICTORIAN COMPROMISE


It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

 A tale of two cities
CHARLES DICKENS

slides The Victorian Age

My last holiday

Some more questions

1. What did you do during the day?
2. What did you do at nights?
3. Did you enjoy it?
4. Where did you stay?
5. How much money did you spend on your last holiday?
6. Did you have any bad experiences in your last holiday?
7. Did you make new friends on your last holiday?
8. What was the weather like?
9. Where would you like to go next?
10. Would you recommend that place that you visited? why or why not?

Words and expressions

  

go on/make an excursion

half-day/full-day/weekend excursion

eat out

stay on 

pack bags

book accomodation

a must-see

to sunbathe

to get suntan

to go sightseeing

Asking for and giving directions

Asking for and giving directions



https://quizlet.com/203954145/esl-directions-flash-cards/

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/lets-learn-english-lesson-10/3285228.html

https://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/vocabulary/directions/exercises?02

http://users.skynet.be/fa598346/leshoekje/ICT-oef%20ENG2/traffic_signs_voc.htm

https://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/skills/listening/elementary-a2-listening/giving-directions

https://agendaweb.org/vocabulary/directions.html

Perfect - Ed Sheeran (Lyrics)

Imperative Lyrics

Learn English through Story: Halloween history with subtitles

Two popular forms of entertainment in the Elizabethan age

Two popular forms of entertainment in the Elizabethan age

BEARBAITING 

COCKFIGHTING 

The masque

ROMEO and JULIET

ACT 1 SCENE 5

RELIGIOUS METAPHORS (suggesting the idea of a kind of spiritual love)

Pilgrims
Holy Pilgrims
Saints
Sin
Prayer
Holy Shrine
Faith
Devotion

What kind of love do they convey?
What ideas do they suggest?

Purity of their love
Special relationship
Undercurrents of danger
Seious tone
Italy- centre of the Catholic church
Religious imagery fits with the social and historical context
A kind of love associated with purity and passion of the divine
High quality of their love. It's not just physical attraction


PHYSICAL LOVE

Blushing
lips
tender kiss
You do wrong your hand
Tender kiss
Give me my sin again
You kiss by the book

Romeo and Juliet are moved spiritually, as well as physically, their love is pure, passionate, spiritual, but it is also chaotic, destructive, bringing death to friends, family and to themselves.

Here a list of questions related to love

ESL QUESTIONS LOVE

Telling the time in English

Prompts for speaking and writing

An extraordinary  website giving interesting, involving  prompts helping students speak and write in English
http://englishbookgeorgia.com/blogebg/over-1000-writing-prompts-for-students/

How to Write Articles for the FCE

How to Write an Article

·         Focus on the purpose of an article. Remember that  an article must entertain the reader and, almost always, it must  recommend “the things” we are talking about.

·         Language: In general, an article is more informal than an essay, although it will depend on where it is supposed to be published (an international magazine, a teenage magazine, a college magazine, an online blog, a newspaper, etc.). However, the most common case is that we must write a text in an informal or colloquial style. For this reason, our tone must be relaxed, making use of contractions, phrasal verbs and other colloquial expressions. Besides, it is recommended to use rhetorical questions and exclamation marks to engage the reader. You should also address the reader directly in the second person (you, your)

·         Structure: Articles must always have a title. If possible, this must be catchy and witty so as to engage the reader. Then, each paragraph must address a single idea, to which you must add the introduction and the conclusion, where you are usually expected to make a recommendation. It is also a good idea to end your article with a rhetorical question, especially if it is going to be an online article where people could (in theory) leave a comment.

·         Giving your opinion: An article is almost exclusively about giving your opinion, so feel free to do so throught the whole piece of writing. As you are normally asked to write about something you like or enjoy, opinions are expected to be generally positive. You can speak in the first person as much as you like. 

       Useful Expressions to Write an Article

      If you want to know how to write an article, it is very important to have a repository of useful expressions ready to use. So here are some which can come in handy:

• Rhetorical questions:
• Have you ever…?
• Do you ever wonder…?
• What do you think about…?
• Are you a… like me?
• Are you one of those people who…?
• What would you say if I told you that…?

• Introducing new ideas:
• Firstly,
• First,
• In the first place,
• To begin with,
• The coolest thing about
• What attracts me most
• One thing to consider is
• Another consideration is
• Secondly,
• As for
• As to
• Also,
• As regards
• In addition,
• In addition to that,
• Moreover,

• Concluding the article:
• In conclusion,
• On the whole,
• To sum up,
• To conclude,
• All in all,
• … you will not regret it!

An extraordinary mind map to talk about global warming

WORDS TO TALK ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT

·        devastating events =extreme weather conditions= weather extremes= weather catastrophes

deforestation

trees are being  cut down

trees absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen

fires

melting glaciers

heat waves

changing weather patterns

rising sea levels

floods

cyclones

tornadoes

droughts

plastic waste goes into the sea.

shortage of rain

rivers overflow

USEFUL  EXPRESSIONS

·        burning of fossil fuels

·        an increase in the average temperature of the Earth

·        decrease in the ozone layer (The Ozone layer is a layer of gas high above the surface of the earth that helps to protect it from the sun’s ultraviolet radiation, which can damage our skins and cause cancer)

·        the extinction of many plant and animal species (a lot of animals go extinct)

·        the Earth has warmed up                                                                                                             

·        increase in the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere. 

·        entrapment of greenhouse gases in the earth’s atmosphere

·        global temperature is likely to rise by about 1-3.5 Celsius by the year 2100

·        the sea levels are constantly rising

·        ice caps are constantly melting

·        glaciers are gradually melting.

·        global warming increases the acidity of seawater

·        raise awareness about global warming 

·        save the world from disaster

·        a major threat to the mankind

·        carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions                                                                   

·        cut back emissions

·        cutting down on waste and energy consumption 

·        wind and solar power

·        renewable energy 

·        over-exploitation of natural resources

·        Carbon footprint= the amount of emissions we create

·        unseasonably=not normal for the time of year ex. it is unseasonably cold today

GREEN IDEAS

·        Recycling paper, glass and plastic

·        Using bicycles instead of cars

·        Looking for alternative Energy supplies like wind turbines

·        Reduce the areas where people can smoke

·        Using solar panels for heating

·        Make public transport obligatory in cities and ban cars

PRESENTING FACTS

·        It is clear that

·        Recently it has been noticed

OFFERING SUGGESTIONS

·        We had better

·        One possibility could be

·        The best solution is

GIVING EXAMPLE FROM YOUR EXPERIENCE

·        I remember once seeing/reading about……in a newspaper/on the Internet

MAKING CONCLUSIONS

·        For all these reasons, we must

·        It is therefore essential that

WHAT’S THE KYOTO PROTOCOL?

 The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement, initially negotiated by government representatives meeting in Kyoto, Japan, in 1997, that sets targets to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions causing climate change. It requires a variety of actions by governments, including specific emission reduction requirements for industrial countries, as well as provisions to assist developing countries in limiting their emissions.

What's the Paris agreement?

https://ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/international/negotiations/paris_en

Some  examples of article on the problem of Global Warming (done by students in  class 5B)

LIFE or DEATH?

Have you ever wondered how your life will change in 100 years' time?

Climate change - these are the two words that we have often heard in the latest few years, but do yopu know what it really is?

It is a serious problem, but many people seem not to care, though.

there are many risks to which we are exposed-in recent years we have seen a huge increase in the average temperature of the Earth, the extinction of many plants and animal species.

However, that seems enough to stop a situation, which is worse than we can imagine.

Firstly, climate change is about abnormal variations to climate and the effects of these variations on different parts of the Earth.

There are many causes for this phenomenon and the humans are increasingly influencing climate and the earth's temperature by burning fossil fuels, cutting down rainforests, polluting and producing non-renewable energy.

This adds enormous amounts of greenhouse gases to those naturally occuring in the atmosphere, increasing the greenhouse effect and global warming.

At the same time, while global warming is increasing, ice caps and glaciers are gradually melting and consequently the sea levels are constantly rising.

The solution is to implement sustainable ideas, like planting more trees, using renewable energy sources, reducing energy consumption, recycling, promoting green "start up" activities and finding alternatives to fossil fuels.

For all these reasons, we must act, but no one talks about it and no one acts as it we are really in a crisis. Our future depends on us-young people, so we should be the first generation to fight following the example of a young teenager Greta Thunberg, who has been protesting for the latest two years in big cities by launching her own # Friday for future.

And you? What are you doing to try to save our planet?

We need action, everything needs to be changed and the change must start today!

THE FUTURE IN OUR HANDS
Have you ever seen or heard of climate change or global warming?anywhere?
Surely many of you have already heard about it on TV, newspapers and some of you know Greta Thunberg and what she is doing to focus on the problem. We all know that climate is currently changing. We also know that the main cause is human. What's more, we know that what lies ahead is an awful climate future. 
What can we do, therefore to build a climate future that is instead good and eligible?
There are many problems that we should solve in order not to risk the end of the world.

Firstly, there are many environmentalists and scientists who have noticed that the summer of 2019 was the hottest across the European continent, so temperature is rising more and more and there is a continuous melting of glaciers and consequently the sea level is growing and many cities are in danger of being flooded.
Furthermore, there is the problem of deforestation-many trees are being cut down. In addition to that, many areas like the Amazon ones are on fire and that greatly damages nature. Also I want to mention Greta Thunberg who has said that 200 species are going extinct every single day. So to start saving our future all we have to do is reacting because there are so many solutions- first of all, people should turn off the lights to save energy and to recycle paper and save resources. People should also try to use less plastic, because in our world we have created real plastic islands into the seas. We should use more green ideas, that is, use bicycles and public means of transport instead of cars to reduce pollution, and stop smoking! Secondly, we need to reduce emissions and quit burning fossil fuels, like oil. One of the main solutions that Greta gives us is that we have to plant more trees because they produce oxygen.

In conclusion, to save our future we need to protect, restore and fund and again I invite you to react, so instead of looking for hope look for action. In my opinion, we have to support and follow these solutions. above all we should pollute less to make life enjoyable and healthy.

THE BEST TITLES 
Alert- our world is sick
Is mankind going to extinct?
Are you ready for the end of the world?