reading practice

Hi,
I'm posting the reading bibliography you asked me for.
Reading comprehension books
-Test Your Reading . Penguin English Guides
-Select Reading Upper-intermediate. Oxford U. P.
-Steps to Understanding Advanced . Oxford U. P.
-Oxford Exam Excellence. Oxford U. P.
-Effective Reading Advanced/Proficiency: Cambridege. U.P.

A REPORT

Hi fourths, I'm posting this report by Luis Nuñez ( 4th A), which I think it could be interesting to read.

LISTENING, AN URBAN LEGEND

The aim of this report is to summarize the results of the last exam of fourth level in February. It is based on information made available by the EOI Rivas and on views expressed by the teacher and students. 39 people were involved.

The first part of the survey consists of an analysis of the general results including the four criteria necessary to pass the exam. These criteria were reading, writing, listening and speaking. Only 7 were successful, four of them belong to group A, the other three are in B.

Results
Reading has been the skill where the majority passed, near 60 per 100, followed, and perhaps surprisingly by listening and writing which 21 and 20 people passed. Finally, the poorest exercise was speaking, since less than 50% were successful.

Pupils in B have a better command of grammar than their classmates in A, 13 and 11 pupils respectively passed, and are better at listening, 12 compared to 9. However, it is said that students in group A have better skills to pass the speaking part, 11-8, and above all, to take the written exam because 60 per 100 of all people who passed with flying colours belong to this class.

It was no surprise that the results were similar to those of years before. Four in every ten pupils usually are successful in all the criteria. Paying attention was rated as the most important factor in an exam, but speaking clearly and fluently coming second.

On the evidence of this survey it was found that there is an urban legend about the difficulty of listening. Many people found it the main reason to fail their exam.

Perhaps students should consider the possibility of working out a plan to improve their skills. In short, it is recommended to read newspapers and watch TV international channels every day, to create our own vocabulary with new words which could be used when we send an email or to write some paragraphs, and, finally, we might consider studying two or three hours daily.

Comparative & superlative adjectives

Comparative adjectives
A 1 bigger, 2 more careful, 3 more expensive 4 better 5 fatter 6 more famous 7 newer 8 more modern 9 younger 10 cheaper 11 more delicious 12 richer 13 longer 14 hungrier 15 nicer 16 happier 17 more difficult 18 older 19 more beautiful 20 friendlier 21 hotter 22 more wonderful 23 worse 24 smaller 25 sadder.
B 1 A is colder than S 2 S is hungrier than J 3 W is smaller than NY 4Mary is happier than Mike 5 I’m younger than my brother 6 film stars are richer than teachers 7 Peter is friendlier than Chris.
C 1 than 2 more 3 is 4 Queen Anne/ King John 5 expensive 6 slower 7 King John/ Queen Anne 8 longer.

Superlative adjectives
A 1 M is the friendliest city in England 2 M is the most expensive restaurant in New York 3 The Nile is the longest river in the world 4 Granada is the most beautiful city in Spain 5The Mona Lisa is the most famous painting in the world 6 Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in Europe.
B 1 the worst 2 the funniest 3 the tallest 4 the best 5 the most beautiful
C 1 The JJ is the shortest 2 The RD is the fastest 3The JJ is the slowest 4 the most expensive 5 the least expensive.

George Orwell

Hi Fourths, Last week we were talking about Orwell's 1984. I've found this page about it.
http://www.bibliomania.com/1/7/251/1982/frameset.html.
it could be interesting if you want to read it.

Grammar bank 8

Hi there!
As most of you know, there's a written assignment for next week.
Elementary (B&C): for those who have not learnt about the text structure in class you can look at page 85 (INSTRUCTIONS) in your book. The DEADLINE is MONDAY, MAY 26th.

Grammar bank 8
Grammar bank 8 A
a 1shorter 2 more 3 more 4 noisier 5 thinner 6 nearer 7 easier 8 richer
b 1 C is bigger than B 2 T is prettier than D 3 D is more dangerous than F 4 My English is worse than your English 5 This chair is more comfortable than that chair 6 Her husband is younger than her 7 Buses are cheaper than trains 8French Wine is better than English wine.

Grammar bank 8 B
a 1 the smallest 2 the highest 3 the most expensive 4 the oldest 5 the most difficult 6 the driest 7 the prettiest 8 the poorest
b 1 the tallest 2 the oldest 3 the best 4 the hottest 5 the most famous 6 the worst 7 the most difficult 8 the prettiest

Grammar bank 8 C
a 1 I’d like to be 2 would you like to be famous? 3 I wouldn’t like to go up 4 he would like to learn to cook 5 she wouldn’t like to be on TV 6 would they like to have children 7 I wouldn’t like to live in a foreign country 8 we would like to buy a bigger flat.
b 1 to have 2 to go, flying 3 to be 4 seeing, to go 5 to get 6 to open, cooking 7living 8 to learn

Grammar bank 8 D
a 1 slowly 2perfect 3quickly 4 good 5 carefully 6 safely 7 well 8 terrible
b 1 badly 2 slowly 3 quietly 4 easily 5 hard 6 carefully 7 healthily 8 beautifully

What do you remember 8

Grammar
1 a 2 b 3 b 4 a 5 a 6 b 7a 8 a 9b 10 b
Vocabulary
a 1 quickly 2 dangerous 3 badly 4 quiet 5 the worst
b 1 tall (not personality 2dangerous (not climate) 3 leader (not adjective) 4 friendly (not adverb) 5 safe ( not a negative adjective for a town)
c 1 in 2 of 3 for 4 up 5 than
Pronunciation
a 1 car 2slowly 3 boring 4 serious 5 big
b ag’gressive, am’bitious, ad’venture, po’litely, ‘dangerously
Can you understand this text?
b 1 a 2 b 3 a 4 c
Can you say this in English?
b 1 did 2do 3 would 4 does 5 do 6 are 7 is 8 were

Revise and check 7

What do you remember?
Grammar
1 a 2 b 3 b 4 a 5 b 6 a 7b 8 a 9b 10 a
Vocabulary
a 1 stay 2see 3 get 4 meet 5 move
b 1 dessert (not a meal) 2 strawberries (not vegetables) 3 sugar (not a drink) 4 tomatoes (not connected with potatoes) 5 coffee (not a dessert).
c 1 in 2 of 3 for 4 with 5 on.
Pronunciation
b 1steak 2 tea 3 true 4 go 5 move
c de’ssert, ‘menu, ‘vegetables, ba’nana, ‘biscuit
Can you understand this text?
a 1 c 2 b 3 a 4 b

REVIEW

Hi there!
As most of you know, there's a written assignment for next week.
Advanced (4th A& B): I’ve given the photocopy and some instructions for your review about the book you’ve chosen for this term. You have to write around 150 words.
The DEADLINE is Tuesday, MAY 27 Th (4th A&B).

Grammar bank 7

Grammar bank 7 A
a 2 an orange 3 a biscuit 4 some peas 5 an ice cream 6 some cake 7 some coffee 8 some cheese 9 some chips 10 a pine apple.
b 1 some 2 some 3 an 4 any 5 some 6 any 7 an 8 any 9 a 10 some

Grammar bank 7 B
a 1 How many 2 How much 3 How much 4 How many 5 How many 6 How much 7 How many 8 How much.
b 1 a lot of 2 much 3 many 4 none 5 quite a lot of 6 Not much

Grammar bank 7 C
a 2 she’s going to speak Italian 3 she’s going to stay in a hotel 4 she’s going to take (some/ a lot of) photos 5 she’s going to eat spaghetti 6 she’s going to see the Colosseum.
b 1 is going to cook 2 I’m going to study 3 Are (you) going to buy? 4 aren’t going to fly 5 is your (brother) going to do 6 isn’t going to have.

Grammar bank 7 D
a 1 It’s going to rain 2 she’s going to have a baby 3 He’s going to have an accident 4 They’re going to play tennis
b 1 ‘re going to win 2 isn’t going to pass 3 ‘s going to be 4 ‘re going to have 5 ‘re going to break 6 ‘s going to wake up.

Writing a postcard

C we’re having arrived we’re staying went visited we’re sitting is are go have

Revise and check 6

What do you remember?
Grammar
1b 2a 3b 4a 5b 6b 7a 8b 9b 10a

Vocabulary
a 1 make 2 play 3 have 4 book 5 take
b 1 shelf (not a room) 2cooker (not in a living room) 3 there (not a Preposition)
4 town hall (a building) 5 square (not a building)
c 1 with 2 on 3 on 4 of 5 to

Pronunciation
a 1 near 2 know 3 floor 4 church 5 theatre
b ‘opposite be’tween be’hind ‘cupboard mu’seum

Can you understand this text?
a 1B 2F 3E 4A 5D 6G 7C
b 1T 2F 3F

Quicktest 6

Grammar
a
1b, 2c, 3a, 4b, 5c, 6c, 7b, 8b, 9a, 10b.
b
11 a 12 any 13 were 14 there 15 is 16 watching 17 isn’t 18 doing 19 goes 20 do.

Vocabulary
a
1 bathroom 2 kitchen 3 living-room 4 dinning-room 5 garage.
b
6 sofa 7 fridge 8 carpet 9 shelve 10 cooker.
c
11 chemist’s 12 bridge 13 post office 14 station 15 museum, gallery.
d
16 next 17 front 18 with 19 make 20 bark.

Pronunciation
a
1 there 2 near 3 wrong 4 fridge 5 ghost.
b
6‘sofa 7 ‘hospital 8 de’partment ‘store 9 ‘mirror 10 be`hind.

PREPOSITIONS

In, at (places)
94.1
2. in a box 3. At the airport 4 in bed 5. At the end of the street
6. in the sky 7. In hospitsl 8. At the party.
94. 2
2. in that field 3. In the river 4. In my tea 5. In this book 6. In this photograph.
94.3
2. at 3. At 4. In 5. In 6. At 7. At 8. In 9. In 10. At 11.in 12. At 13. at
14. In 15.at 16. In.
To, in at (places)
95.1
2. to bed 3. To the bank 4. To a concert 5. To France 6. To the cinema 7. To hospital.
95.2
2. to 3. To 4. In 5. To 6. In 7. In 8. To 9. In 10. To 11. In 12. In 13. To
14. in.
95.3
2. to 3. To 4. At 5. At 6. To 7. At 8. – 9. At 10. To, at 11. - 12. To 13. At
14. – 15. To 16. At 17. At 18. At.
In, on, under, over
1.b. on c. Under d. Under e.in f. In g. Under h. Over.
2. b. In the cupboard by the window. C. On the table by the door. D. On the table by the window e. Under the chair by the door. F. On the shelf by the door.
In the centre, on a river
3.
b.5.in, on c.6. in, on d.2. on, in e.3. in, in f.1.on, in.
Next to, between
a. Nat b. Lily c. George d. Frieda e. William f. Albert g. Victoria h. Daniel j. David.
b. Is standing behind c. Is standing next to (beside) d. Is sitting between e. Is standing behind.
Next to, near, opposite
b. It’s near the railway station. c. It’s opposite the bus station. d. It’s opposite the cinema. e. It’s next to the cinnema. f. It’s near the bus station.
Above, below.
4. b. above c. Above d. Below e. Above f. Below g. Above.

Grammar bank 6

6 A
a 1 there are 2 there’s 3 there are 4 there’s 5 there are 6 there’s
b
1. There’s atable in the kitchen.
2. Is there a fireplace in the living room.
3. There aren’t any plants in the living room.
4. Are there any cupboards in the kitchen.
5. There isn’t a shower in the bathroom.
6. There are some shelves in the study.
6 B
a
There were some double rooms
There was a swimming pool.
There was a restaurant.
There wasn’t a car park.
There weren’t any shops.
b
1. there were 2. There was 3. there were 4. Was there 5. There wasn’t 6. There was 7. Was there 8. There was 9. Were there 10. There weren’t 11. There was.
6 C
a
He’s having a shower.
What are they doing? They’re dancing.
What’s she doing? She’s dancing.
b
It’s raining.
She’s talking.
Are you doing.
Aren’t you doing
We’re studying
She’s waiting
They’re having
What’s she wearing.
6 d
a
1 right 2 right 3 wrong He’s having a great time 4 right 5 wrong I normally go... 6 right 7 wrong what do you do?
b
1 What are you doing? I’m waiting.
2 What does your mother do? She works...
3 They’re having... They have...
4 I’m going... Do you want...

The Baker who Burned Down London

Answers:
A. 4 days (Sunday to Wednesday)
1. b; 2. d; 3. a; 4. c; 5. c; 6. d; 7. a; 8. b; 9. d; 10. a; 11. d; 12. a; 13. d; 14. c; 15. a; 16. B

A career
1 b 2c 3 a 4 c 5c

I'm off to Spain tomorrow...
1 b 2 d 3 b 4 a 5 d 6 c 7 a 8 b 9 c 10 b 11 c 12 d

5 Quicktest

grammar
A 1c 2b 3c 4a 5c 6b 7a 8b 9b 10c
B 11 was 12 were 13 did 14 watched 15 studied 16 stopped 17 do 18 went 19 wore 20 go
Vocabulary
a 1 writer 2 musician 3 artist 4 leader 5 politician
b 6 left 7 said 8 slept 9 thought 10 could
c 11 get 12 have 13 go 14 get 15 have
d 16 we did'nt go out last night
17 I started learning English three years ago
18 She didn't come to class yesterday afternoon
19 We went out on Friday night
20 My sister got married last year
Pronunciation
a 1 bought 2 came 3 said 4 drove 5 could
b 6 'president 7 com'poser 8 'journey 9 a'go 10 ins'pector

Dublin Restaurant Guide, key

1
1 The Canal Inn and The Victoria Hotel Restaurant
2 The Soup Kitchen
3 Star of the East and The Victoria Hotel Restaurant
4 The Victoria Hotel Restaurant
5 The Galway Bay Restaurant

2
1 fish and seafood
2 can't
3 not very expensive
4late
5 very good

Key Cloze Tests

Key Lost Luggage
16. some 17.a 18. Whilst 19.less 20. themselves 21. Into 22. Again 23.or 24. From 25.the 26. back 27.their 28. after 29. One 30. Which.
key Memories
1 C of 2 D walking 3 A memorable 4 B having 5 C slipped 6 A recall
Key Bad weather
1 whether 2 although 3 such 4 otherwise 5 until 6 once 7 because 8 as 9 nevertheless 10 much

Key Past Tense Exercises

Unit 11
11.1
cleaned. 2. Opened 3. Started, finished 4. Wanted 5. Happened
6. rained 7. Enjoyed, stayed 8. Died.
11.2
1 got 2 saw 3 played 4 paid 5 visited 6 bought 7 went 8 thought
9 copied 10 knew 11 put 12 spoke
11.3
1 flew 2 got 3 had 4 left 5 drove 6 got 7 parked 8 walked
9 checked 10 had 11 waited 12 departed 13 arrived 14 took
11.4
2 she lost her keys last week.
3 she met her friends yesterday evening
4 yesterday I bought two newspapers
5 last Sunday we went to the cinema
6 yesterday I ate an orange
7 this morning he had a shower
8 they came to see us last Friday
Unit 12
12.1
didn’t work
didn’t go
didn’t have
didn’t do
12.2
2. did you enjoy...?
3. did you have...?
4. did you finish...?
did you sleep...?
12.3
2. got up or didn’t get up
3. had or didn’t have
4. bought or didn’t buy
5. ate or didn’t eat
went or didn’t go
12.4
2. did you arrive?
3. did you win?
4. did you go?
5. did it cost?
did you go to bed late?
did you have a good time?
Did it break?
12.5
2. bought 3.did it rain yesterday? 4. Didn’t stay 5. Opened
6. I didn’t have time 7. How did you do that? 8. I didn’t know about it.

The past tense of BE and HAVE
Reporter: Where were you? And where was the monster?
Henry: I was here. It was a great shock. It wasn’t very nice.
R: What was the monster like?
H: IT was a very large animal. It had a large body, but it had a small head. Its eyes were blue and round. It had teeth, but they weren’t very big. It didn’t have any ears.
H: I didn’t have my camera with me. And it was very quick.
The simple past tense (positive and negative)
He didn’t repair a broken window.
He didn’t book a holiday
He wrote to the bank
He didn’t phone the sports club
He paid the electricity bill
He tidied the garage
He didn’t paint the gate
He didn’t clean the windows
The simple past tense (positive)
stopped, got. 2. had 3.held 4. threw, smashed 5. took, put
6. happened, stood, watched 7. jumped, drove 8. run, called.
The simple past tense (questions)
1 Why did she disappear?
2 did she leave the country?
3 How did she travel?
4 did her friends hide her?
5 What did she do in all that time?
6 Did she read the stories about her in the newspapers?
7 Why did she come home?
8 did her husband find her?

How to get help
B1 gave, felt, went, said, took, got.
Secret message: don’t worry, be happy.
2 grammar: Pas tense
1 felt 2 gave 3 was 4 didn’t 5 did 6 gave 7 said
B2 unscramble the sentences and answer the questions.
I felt angry with my brother
Tim went out with my friend. Yes, she did.
My sister said I was fat. No, she didn’t.
He gave the photo to my girlfriend. No, he didn’t.
He got upset with his brother. Yes, he did.
Grammar practice: past tense
Say- said
Give- gave
Feel- felt
Get-got

e-mail and text messaging

Hi fourths,
on Tuesday we wre talking about text message language. Read this issue, you may find it interesting.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3125891.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/1060952.stm