STEP 1 : Pre-listening
1) Do you like movies? What movies do you prefer?
2) What is a "science fiction" movie?
3) Do you like "science fiction movies"?
4) Do you know "Star Wars"?
STEP 2: Listenig - access the link bellow! http://www.tolearnenglish.com/free/full/sw/2bis.htm
STEP 3: Reading - read the text and do questions from 1 to 10
Some (1) critics (2) have said that much of the writing in "Attack of the Clones" is so bad that (3) it is funny. They also said (4) the story’s political mysteries are confusing and often just stupid. But most critics agree that the movie is fun to watch. George Lucas used (5) computers to create worlds of huge buildings, water or deserts. He designed battles in space and on land. Huge armies and dangerous creatures fight fierce battles using unusual space vehicles and weapons.Almost all (6) the critics agreed that watching the last battle between the Jedi master Yoda and the mysterious Count Dooku is worth (7) the price of the ticket. And many critics said that the release of any "Star Wars" movie is one of the major cultural events of the year. Most critics agree that in the "Star Wars" series, George Lucas has created one of the most important stories of the late twentieth century (8). Its cultural importance guarantees that people will continue to watch the movies as long as George Lucas continues to produce them. The sixth and final "Star Wars" movie is expected to be released (9) in 2005.
1 All the critics like this movie.
TRUE
FALSE
2 Political stories are the most interesting themes of the story.
TRUE
FALSE
3 Most critics think that this movie is interesting.
TRUE
FALSE
4 Who is the director of this movie?
Steven Spielberg
George Lucas
Tom Cruise
5 What did George Lucas use to create landscapes?
Paintings
Drawings
Computers
6 What is probably the best scene (according to critics)?
The love affair between Anakin and Padme
The space battles
The final battle between Yoda and Dooku
7 Count Dooku is a Jedi.
TRUE
FALSE
8 This episode is the final episode.
TRUE
FALSE
9 When will the next movie be released?
In 2003
In 2005
In 2007
10 The final episode will be released in 2010.
TRUE
FALSE
>> GRAMMAR IN CONTEXT
(1) SOME critics: not all the critics, some of them
(2) Warning: "a critic" (a man or a woman) is different from "a criticism" (saying if something is good or bad)
(4) Yes, it is a subordinate clause, but THAT has been left out to have a light sentence.
(5) The past simple (preterite) is used for a past action (dated and definite).
(6) "Almost all" = not all the critics but the greater part of them.
(7) A very interesting phrase. Other examples: "It was a very long journey. Was it worth it?". "Two hours' solid work is worth a day's discussion".
(8) Superlative. When comparing two things one uses the comparative; however, for comparisons in larger groups, you must use the superlative. The superlative designates extremes: the best, the first, the worst, the last, etc.
(9) "is expected to be released": People think that it will be released in 2005, but it's far from certain.
quarta-feira, 30 de março de 2011
domingo, 27 de março de 2011
Lyrics training!
Hey guys...today`s post is kinda romantic ! last week on Alison`s group I prepared a lesson based on listening training with lyrics!
The song I`ve chosen was Need you now by Lady Antebellum. If you want to boost your listening skills I strongly advise you to do this sort of activity on a regular basis, not only you`re gonna learn more vocab but also you can train your hability to listen different accents and pronunciations....
Well, let`s do the activity then! The link bellow reffers to the music chosen for this task, and there`s also it`s lyrics with the missing words. Notice that each underscore the composes the missing word corresponds to a letter of this word, e.g _ _ _ = 3 letters ( C A N )...it`ll make the activity easy for you!
Good luck Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OfsZyYPLoI
Lyrics
Need You Now Lady Antebellum
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ perfect _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ s
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ all around the _ _ _ _ _
Reaching for the phone 'cause, I can't _ _ _ _ _ it anymore
And _ wonder if I ever _ _ _ _ _ your mind
For me it _ _ _ _ _ _ _ all the time
It's a quarter _ _ _ _ _ one, I'm all _ _ _ _ _ and I need you _ _ _
Said I wouldn't call but I lost all _ _ _ _ _ _ _
and I need you now
And I don't know how I can do _ _ _ _ _ _ _,
I just need you now
Another _ _ _ _ of whiskey,
can't stop _ _ _ _ _ _ _ at the door
W _ _ _ _ _ _ you'd come sweeping in the way you did _ _ _ _ _ _
And I wonder _ _ I ever cross your mind
For me it _ _ _ _ _ _ _ all the time
It's a quarter after one,
I'm a _ _ _ _ _ _ drunk,
And I _ _ _ _ you now
Said I _ _ _ _ _ _ 't call but I lost all control and I need _ _ _ now
And I don't know _ _ _ I can do without,
I just need you now
oh ohhh...
_ _ _ _ _ I'd rather _ _ _ _ than feel nothing at _ _ _,
It's a quarter after one, I'm all _ _ _ _ _ and I need you now
And I said I wouldn't call but I'm a little drunk _ _ _ I need you now
And I don't know how I can do without, I _ _ _ _ need you now
I just need you now
Oh _ _ _ _ I need you now...
If you really lked this sort of practice you have to visit this web-site: http://lyricstraining.com/ and enjoy all the listening practice exercises based on lyrics! Bye bye!
The song I`ve chosen was Need you now by Lady Antebellum. If you want to boost your listening skills I strongly advise you to do this sort of activity on a regular basis, not only you`re gonna learn more vocab but also you can train your hability to listen different accents and pronunciations....
Well, let`s do the activity then! The link bellow reffers to the music chosen for this task, and there`s also it`s lyrics with the missing words. Notice that each underscore the composes the missing word corresponds to a letter of this word, e.g _ _ _ = 3 letters ( C A N )...it`ll make the activity easy for you!
Good luck Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OfsZyYPLoI
Lyrics
Need You Now Lady Antebellum
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ perfect _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ s
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ all around the _ _ _ _ _
Reaching for the phone 'cause, I can't _ _ _ _ _ it anymore
And _ wonder if I ever _ _ _ _ _ your mind
For me it _ _ _ _ _ _ _ all the time
It's a quarter _ _ _ _ _ one, I'm all _ _ _ _ _ and I need you _ _ _
Said I wouldn't call but I lost all _ _ _ _ _ _ _
and I need you now
And I don't know how I can do _ _ _ _ _ _ _,
I just need you now
Another _ _ _ _ of whiskey,
can't stop _ _ _ _ _ _ _ at the door
W _ _ _ _ _ _ you'd come sweeping in the way you did _ _ _ _ _ _
And I wonder _ _ I ever cross your mind
For me it _ _ _ _ _ _ _ all the time
It's a quarter after one,
I'm a _ _ _ _ _ _ drunk,
And I _ _ _ _ you now
Said I _ _ _ _ _ _ 't call but I lost all control and I need _ _ _ now
And I don't know _ _ _ I can do without,
I just need you now
oh ohhh...
_ _ _ _ _ I'd rather _ _ _ _ than feel nothing at _ _ _,
It's a quarter after one, I'm all _ _ _ _ _ and I need you now
And I said I wouldn't call but I'm a little drunk _ _ _ I need you now
And I don't know how I can do without, I _ _ _ _ need you now
I just need you now
Oh _ _ _ _ I need you now...
If you really lked this sort of practice you have to visit this web-site: http://lyricstraining.com/ and enjoy all the listening practice exercises based on lyrics! Bye bye!
terça-feira, 22 de março de 2011
Special activity “Friends” – declarative questions
Hi everyone, today I Will explain something quite common in spoken English which you may have seen in movies or sitcons.
Ley`s do a warm up before the video begins, how would you translate these sentences bellow? You have 4 minutes for it!
a)Onde está a Rachel?
b) Você sabia que o Chandler beijou a Rachel?
c) Você também a beijou naquela noite?
d) Onde isso aconteceu?
e) Em qual cama você disse que ela estava?
f) Você estava debaixo do monte de casacos?
g) Você "foi" meu 'beijador' misterioso da meia-noite?
h) Você "foi" meu primeiro beijo com a Rachel?
i) Você "foi" meu primeiro beijo na vida"?
Now, try to link what you wrote with the sentences they used during this scene
MOVIE LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gPXsacUPlQ
Probably you are surprised with the questions c), f), g), h) e i). It happened because in English, in most of the cases, we use the reverse order when making a question (verb + subject). This is what happens with the other questions of your list, maybe everything you wrote... This is what we learn since the beginning of our English studies.
Do you know why the questions they make during the video, and also the ones in our examples are different from what you are used to write (subject + verb)? Were they grammar mistakes?
Of course not! Pay attention at the questions intonation... analyze the context in which they are used...did you notice these questions are used to express a surprise? Yeah, this surprise or `shock` from who have just heard something he has never imagined, or from someone who can`t believe something is true or a person who needs to to confirm a fact.This is quite common in spoken English... let`s watch the movie again and focus these points mentioned above!
MOVIE AGAIN! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gPXsacUPlQ
Chandler: You kissed her that night too? ("Eu pensei que só eu a tinha beijado...")
Ross: You were under the pile of coats? ("Era você e não a Rachel?")
Monica: You were my Midnight Mystery Kisser? ("Eu achava que tinha sido outro rapaz...")
Ross: You were my first kiss with Rachel? ("Aquele beijo que eu imaginava ter sido com a Rachel foi com você?")
Monica: You were my first kiss ever? ("Nunca pensei que meu primeiro beijo tivesse sido com meu irmão!")
The real name for these constructions is declarative question and it`s use (Spoken English) is pretty frequent in informal situations.
We notice that in these cases the accent is strong at the end of the sentence and that people who are asking already know that the answer is. They just don`t believe in what they are listening and their reaction is to ask confirming (or would it be confirm asking? LOL).
The funny thing about this scene is the gradual way in which they discover that a fact from the past wasn`t exactly how they imagined and the declarative questions in a quick sequence are simply perfect for these amusing moments.
Now you know that not always we need to invert the order of a sentence to make a question!!!
We also use declarative questions to: (i) Express surprise/admiration; (ii) confirm a fact we have just heard; and (iii) repeat what was said before to confirm if we understood what they said. We use the same structure of an affirmative sentence, however, we change the accent. Here we have some examples:
1. A: Have you heard? Melissa got a new job yesterday.
B: Melissa was hired? Finally!
2. A: I was in Rio during the floods last week.
B: You were there? Oh, my God! How did you get to come home?
3. A: Jane spent 10 years in Europe when she was young.
B: She did? That's why she can speak so many languages!
4. A: Chris does not like going out on Saturdays.
B: She doesn't? No wonder she hasn't found a boyfriend yet...
It`s common to use the auxiliary verb in these sentences (3, 4) and when the first sentence is negative the declarative questions is also negative.
Maybe you have heard something like this before, but never paid attention, right?! Well, here is a great tip to improve your English : from now on listen carefully the movies or sitcons you watch and try to identify and use this sentence construction on your daily!
Thanks guys!
Video transcript
Ross: Hey, where's Rachel?
Monica: She and Phoebe took the stripper to the hospital.
Ross: Did you know Chandler kissed Rachel?
Monica: What? When was this?
Ross: Nineteen Eighty Seven. The weekend you guys visited me at school.
Monica: Oh my God! That's wild!
Chandler: Yeah, but it was like a million years ago, so it doesn't matter.
Ross: Well, it matters to me.
Chandler: Why?
Ross: Because... the night you kissed Rachel was the night I kissed Rachel for the very first time.
Chandler: You kissed her that night too?
Monica: Two guys in one night? Wow, I thought she became a slut after she got her nose fixed.
Chandler: Seriously, where did this happen?
Ross: Okay, after you told me she was passed out in our room, I went in there to make sure she was all right. She was lying on my bed, all buried in peoples coats. Well, I went to kiss her on the forehead, you know. But it was so dark, I accidentally got her lips. I started to pull away, but then I felt her start to kiss me back. It was only for a second, but... it was amazing. And now, now I find out that you kissed her first.
Chandler: Oh wait... What bed did you say she was on?
Ross: Mine.
Chandler: I'm pretty sure I put her on my bed.
Ross: No, she was definitely on my bed.
Chandler: Why would I kiss a girl, and then put her on your bed?
Ross: Well, then who was on my bed?
Monica: (screeching) OH! Oh, oh! (holding her hand in front of her mouth)
Ross: (realizing) NO! No, no!
Monica: YES! (Chandler gets an "oh no!" look on his face)
Ross: You were under the pile of coats?
Monica: I was the pile of coats!
Ross: OH MY GOD!
Monica: You were my Midnight Mystery Kisser?
Ross: You were my first kiss with Rachel?
Monica: You were my first kiss ever?
Chandler: What did I marry into?
Ley`s do a warm up before the video begins, how would you translate these sentences bellow? You have 4 minutes for it!
a)Onde está a Rachel?
b) Você sabia que o Chandler beijou a Rachel?
c) Você também a beijou naquela noite?
d) Onde isso aconteceu?
e) Em qual cama você disse que ela estava?
f) Você estava debaixo do monte de casacos?
g) Você "foi" meu 'beijador' misterioso da meia-noite?
h) Você "foi" meu primeiro beijo com a Rachel?
i) Você "foi" meu primeiro beijo na vida"?
Now, try to link what you wrote with the sentences they used during this scene
MOVIE LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gPXsacUPlQ
Probably you are surprised with the questions c), f), g), h) e i). It happened because in English, in most of the cases, we use the reverse order when making a question (verb + subject). This is what happens with the other questions of your list, maybe everything you wrote... This is what we learn since the beginning of our English studies.
Do you know why the questions they make during the video, and also the ones in our examples are different from what you are used to write (subject + verb)? Were they grammar mistakes?
Of course not! Pay attention at the questions intonation... analyze the context in which they are used...did you notice these questions are used to express a surprise? Yeah, this surprise or `shock` from who have just heard something he has never imagined, or from someone who can`t believe something is true or a person who needs to to confirm a fact.This is quite common in spoken English... let`s watch the movie again and focus these points mentioned above!
MOVIE AGAIN! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gPXsacUPlQ
Chandler: You kissed her that night too? ("Eu pensei que só eu a tinha beijado...")
Ross: You were under the pile of coats? ("Era você e não a Rachel?")
Monica: You were my Midnight Mystery Kisser? ("Eu achava que tinha sido outro rapaz...")
Ross: You were my first kiss with Rachel? ("Aquele beijo que eu imaginava ter sido com a Rachel foi com você?")
Monica: You were my first kiss ever? ("Nunca pensei que meu primeiro beijo tivesse sido com meu irmão!")
The real name for these constructions is declarative question and it`s use (Spoken English) is pretty frequent in informal situations.
We notice that in these cases the accent is strong at the end of the sentence and that people who are asking already know that the answer is. They just don`t believe in what they are listening and their reaction is to ask confirming (or would it be confirm asking? LOL).
The funny thing about this scene is the gradual way in which they discover that a fact from the past wasn`t exactly how they imagined and the declarative questions in a quick sequence are simply perfect for these amusing moments.
Now you know that not always we need to invert the order of a sentence to make a question!!!
We also use declarative questions to: (i) Express surprise/admiration; (ii) confirm a fact we have just heard; and (iii) repeat what was said before to confirm if we understood what they said. We use the same structure of an affirmative sentence, however, we change the accent. Here we have some examples:
1. A: Have you heard? Melissa got a new job yesterday.
B: Melissa was hired? Finally!
2. A: I was in Rio during the floods last week.
B: You were there? Oh, my God! How did you get to come home?
3. A: Jane spent 10 years in Europe when she was young.
B: She did? That's why she can speak so many languages!
4. A: Chris does not like going out on Saturdays.
B: She doesn't? No wonder she hasn't found a boyfriend yet...
It`s common to use the auxiliary verb in these sentences (3, 4) and when the first sentence is negative the declarative questions is also negative.
Maybe you have heard something like this before, but never paid attention, right?! Well, here is a great tip to improve your English : from now on listen carefully the movies or sitcons you watch and try to identify and use this sentence construction on your daily!
Thanks guys!
Video transcript
Ross: Hey, where's Rachel?
Monica: She and Phoebe took the stripper to the hospital.
Ross: Did you know Chandler kissed Rachel?
Monica: What? When was this?
Ross: Nineteen Eighty Seven. The weekend you guys visited me at school.
Monica: Oh my God! That's wild!
Chandler: Yeah, but it was like a million years ago, so it doesn't matter.
Ross: Well, it matters to me.
Chandler: Why?
Ross: Because... the night you kissed Rachel was the night I kissed Rachel for the very first time.
Chandler: You kissed her that night too?
Monica: Two guys in one night? Wow, I thought she became a slut after she got her nose fixed.
Chandler: Seriously, where did this happen?
Ross: Okay, after you told me she was passed out in our room, I went in there to make sure she was all right. She was lying on my bed, all buried in peoples coats. Well, I went to kiss her on the forehead, you know. But it was so dark, I accidentally got her lips. I started to pull away, but then I felt her start to kiss me back. It was only for a second, but... it was amazing. And now, now I find out that you kissed her first.
Chandler: Oh wait... What bed did you say she was on?
Ross: Mine.
Chandler: I'm pretty sure I put her on my bed.
Ross: No, she was definitely on my bed.
Chandler: Why would I kiss a girl, and then put her on your bed?
Ross: Well, then who was on my bed?
Monica: (screeching) OH! Oh, oh! (holding her hand in front of her mouth)
Ross: (realizing) NO! No, no!
Monica: YES! (Chandler gets an "oh no!" look on his face)
Ross: You were under the pile of coats?
Monica: I was the pile of coats!
Ross: OH MY GOD!
Monica: You were my Midnight Mystery Kisser?
Ross: You were my first kiss with Rachel?
Monica: You were my first kiss ever?
Chandler: What did I marry into?
domingo, 20 de março de 2011
Bombay TV
Hey there....second post of the day!
I`m laughing my head off w/ this web-site!
It`s called BOMBAY TV, a site where you can find Bollywood movie samples(Bollywood is the Indian version of the American Hollywood) and add subtitles to it, them you can send it to your e-mail...
As all the movies are in Indian and we can`t understand anything at all, we can use our creativity and add subtitles to the movie samples and the result will be really funny movies to make us laugh a lot!
It`s pretty easy, just access: http://www.grapheine.com/bombaytv/logo-en-20af6e25691eb4212c06179f5a52103b.html and click on MAKE A MOVIE
Now ckeck my video! Funny, isn`t it? Why don`t you make your own video and share with us??? We`ll be waiting
= )
MY MOVIE :
I`m laughing my head off w/ this web-site!
It`s called BOMBAY TV, a site where you can find Bollywood movie samples(Bollywood is the Indian version of the American Hollywood) and add subtitles to it, them you can send it to your e-mail...
As all the movies are in Indian and we can`t understand anything at all, we can use our creativity and add subtitles to the movie samples and the result will be really funny movies to make us laugh a lot!
It`s pretty easy, just access: http://www.grapheine.com/bombaytv/logo-en-20af6e25691eb4212c06179f5a52103b.html and click on MAKE A MOVIE
Now ckeck my video! Funny, isn`t it? Why don`t you make your own video and share with us??? We`ll be waiting
= )
MY MOVIE :
A.Callan new Community on Orkut
Hey guys...
Check it out : http://www.orkut.com.br/Main#Community?cmm=112563309 this is the link to the new A.Callan community on orkut.com.....
If you are/were a student/teacher fell free to join us!
Cheers!
Check it out : http://www.orkut.com.br/Main#Community?cmm=112563309 this is the link to the new A.Callan community on orkut.com.....
If you are/were a student/teacher fell free to join us!
Cheers!
sábado, 19 de março de 2011
I`m back !
Hey fellas...I`m back on the road! Next post is gonna make ya`ll think a lot!
see ya... ; )
see ya... ; )
terça-feira, 4 de agosto de 2009
A bondade nas pessoas
Precisava desabafar...só algumas linhas por hoje que preciso compartilhar ...
'hoje vi a bondade nas pessoas...mesmo num ambiente hostil no qual passo grande parte do meu dia, existem aqueles que lhe olham nos olhos e lhe transmitem boas energias...quando tudo parecia nublado para mim, percebi que ainda tenho anjos ao meu redor...e não vou mais deixar criaturas inferiores me derrubarem ou ao menos tentar...obrigado por ter aprendido mais essa lição...'
com um suspiro de alívio que vemdo peito...
Gui
'hoje vi a bondade nas pessoas...mesmo num ambiente hostil no qual passo grande parte do meu dia, existem aqueles que lhe olham nos olhos e lhe transmitem boas energias...quando tudo parecia nublado para mim, percebi que ainda tenho anjos ao meu redor...e não vou mais deixar criaturas inferiores me derrubarem ou ao menos tentar...obrigado por ter aprendido mais essa lição...'
com um suspiro de alívio que vemdo peito...
Gui
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