Frozen Pizza

Hi everybody

I hope you had time to read the short story Frozen Pizza. If not, this great review by Carolina (group L) will help you for sure.

I’m going to write about one of the stories I read: “Frozen Pizza”. When I read the title of the story I couldn’t imagine what the chapter was about. I thought that it was only about junk food. But at the end I realised that there was an important thing in that story: the family.

In the story there is a young man who went to England to improve his English. He thought that living in a family would help him improve his English, but when he arrived at the house he saw that he should have stayed at university. The family was very strange. They didn’t talk to each other and they didn’t even meet up for dinner. The next day the young man went to the university housing office and he moved out because he didn’t like them. But the woman who lived in the house didn’t understand why.

The author’s style is informal and easy. I hardly used the dictionary. Moreover, the story is interesting and funny and I liked it very much. I liked the situation in the bedroom and in the kitchen with the woman, it’s fantastic! Poor young man!

As regards this story’s linguistic interest, I’ve learned some new words such as “stencil” which the woman explains to the young man. She tells him: “It’s like a thick piece of paper with shapes cut out and you stick it on the wall and paint inside the shapes”. The sentence that grabbed my attention is at the end of the story: “Unsuitable, except for independent teenagers. Note: no conversation practice, no home meal, frozen pizza” In my opinion, that sentence sums up the story perfectly.

I liked the story because that could happen. I have some friends that had a similar experience abroad. The other stories in the book are interesting too, although I didn’t like all of them. I think that some of them are boring.

In conclusion, I would recommend this book to people who want to improve their English because the language is easy and colloquial.

Pineapple Radio

Hello dear students!

I'd really like to encourage you to listen to this funny and dynamic radio interview about money by Fátima, Ángela and Paula from group J.

Learning to Speak on the Phone

Hi everyone

While I try to solve the problems I'm having to post your partner's interview, you can have a look at the following pedagogic video about learning to speak American English on the phone.

Have a nice weekend!

Who says Spaniards can't speak good English?

Hello you all

Some days ago a person recommended this video in an educational forum. I liked it a lot and I think it can be useful for you to practice question formation.

The Spanish genius in the video needs no introductions, just watch him and enjoy.

Have a nice weekend!

Burials in the Moon!

Hi everybody!

Here you are a BBC video about a new invention: moon burials. Do you know what a 'burial' is? Click here to find out.

This video is not related to what we are currently doing in class, but the point is that you can listen to both British and North American speakers of English, so I think it can be interesting for you...

There are 4 speakers: the commentator,Charles Chafer and two people in the street. Who speaks Britsh? who speaks American English? Give it a try!

Easter Traditions in English-Speaking Countries

Hi!

I hope you're having a nice holiday! Here you are an excerpt from the Wikipedia about non-religious Easter traditions in English-speaking countries just in case you desperately miss our class and need some activities in English... :)

Some words are clickable, so that you can see what they mean.

As with many other Christian dates, the celebration of Easter extends beyond the church. Since its origins, it has been a time of celebration and feasting. Today it is commercially important and there are wide sales of greeting cards and confectionery such as chocolate Easter eggs, marshmallow bunnies, Peeps, and jelly beans.

In North America, Australia and parts of the UK, the Easter holiday has been partially secularized, so that some families participate only in non-religious traditions such as decorating Easter eggs on Saturday evening and hunting for them Sunday morning, by which time they have been mysteriously hidden all over the house and garden. Chocolate eggs have largely supplanted decorated eggs in Australia.

In North America, eggs are delivered and hidden by the Easter Bunny in an Easter basket which children find waiting for them when they wake up. Many families in America will attend Sunday Mass or services in the morning and then participate in a feast or party in the afternoon.

In the UK children still paint coloured eggs, but most British people simply exchange chocolate eggs on the Sunday. Chocolate Easter Bunnies can be found in shops, but the idea is considered primarily a US import.

Many families have a traditional Sunday roast, particularly roast lamb, and eat foods like Simnel cake, a fruit cake with eleven marzipan balls representing the eleven apostles. Hot cross buns, spiced buns with a cross on top, are traditionally associated with Good Friday, but today are eaten through Holy Week and the Easter period. In the north of England and the north of Ireland, the tradition of rolling decorated eggs down steep hills is still adhered to.

About Houses

Hi everyone!

Would you like to practice some reading?

Here you are a text I found at www.britishcouncil.org about houses, techonology and environment. I think it's quite interesting and you can also do some activities on the text here


ENERGY SAVING HOMES FOR EVERYONE
Energy-saving homes are no longer just a high-priced hope for the future. A housing project just outside of London is showing that technological housing can be built to help the general population and the world's environment.

HOW DOES THE PROYECT WORK?
he Ecopark project has built 39 houses that use a selection of energy-saving technological fixtures and fittings. None of these are brand new inventions - many of them have been around for some time but have often been considered too expensive. This project proves that times have changed; saving energy is no longer just for the wealthy who can afford futuristic homes. When these simple devices are used together, in everyday housing, the result is modern energy-saving homes that most can afford.

HOW IS THE ENERGY SAVED?
Each house will save energy by creating its own power through solar collectors, which use the sun's energy to heat water. Under-floor heating offers a more cost-effective source of warmth. Low flush toilets and spray taps save water. Sunrooms provide spaces that are lit and heated by the sun's energy. Rooms are painted with water-based paints (rather than oil-based paints that are a drain on the Earth's natural resources). Non-drinking water for washing is recycled for flushing. These will save energy; just as importantly, they will save money through lower water and electricity bills.

SHOWING US HOW
So that people can see how the energy-saving technology works, the project includes a Naked House. This is part of the site's visitor centre. Built with see-through walls and cut-away sections, this offers visitors the chance to see each device in action.

The visitors' Centre is open to the general public and bookings can be made at http://www.gallionsecopark.co.uk.

WHY BUILD ENERGY-SAVING HOMES?
Energy-saving is more important today that it ever was. The Earth's own natural resources are slowly reducing year by year; meanwhile, the population is growing. Projects like this are vital if we are to sustain our living standards and the planet we live on.

WHAT NEXT?
Ecopark shows us that innovation is part of everyday life - that inventions are not dreams for the future. This project proves that energy-saving can work in everyday housing. Today, it's a new idea; tomorrow it could be the standard way to build every home.