Hanukkah

What do you know about Hanukkah? Find out how the Jewish Festival of Lights is celebrated in the UK.

What is Hanukkah?

Hanukkah (or Chanuka) is the Jewish Festival of Lights. It lasts for eight days and is usually celebrated in November or December. Hanukkah traditions include lighting candles, giving presents, playing games and eating food fried in oil, like doughnuts or potato pancakes.

Special candles

The traditional Hanukkah candle holder is called a Hanukkah menorah or hanukkiah and it has been used as a Jewish symbol since ancient times. A Hanukkah menorah has nine candles which are lit at night-time during Hanukkah.

In London you can see a giant menorah lit up with candles for the Hanukkah London event, in celebration of the Jewish Festival of Lights. This huge menorah in Trafalgar Square is installed close to the Christmas tree for a truly multicultural winter celebration.

Playing dreidel

A dreidel is a four-sided spinning top with Hebrew letters on each one of its sides. Playing with the dreidel is a traditional Hanukkah game played in Jewish homes in Britain and all over the world, and rules may vary from family to family. There are various games you can play with the dreidel. The games involve spinning the top and placing bets (often using coins, raisins or matchsticks) on which letters shows when the top stops spinning and falls over.

Food

Fried food is traditional at Hanukkah. Latkes are fried pancakes made with potatoes, onions, eggs, flour and oil. Jam-filled doughnuts are another popular Hanukkah treat. Dairy food such as cheese and cheesecake are also traditionally eaten at this festival.

Presents and cards

It’s traditional to give presents or money to family and friends at Hanukkah. Hanukkah Gelt refers to money given as a gift at the festival.

Gelt is the Yiddish word for money. Children are often given chocolate coins wrapped in gold foil.

People also give Hanukkah greetings cards. The cards often show a picture of a menorah or dreidel.

One UK online greetings cards company even combines Christmas (December) and Hanukkah (November/December) to make a card with the greeting “Very Merry Chrismukkah wishes”!

Happy Hanukkah!

Thanksgiving

The Pilgrims Come to America
In 1620, the Pilgrims sailed on the Mayflower to America. Theywere warned that Indians may attack them. The voyage could be dangerous. There could be pirates or hurricanes. The Pilgrims risked their lives.

It all started with a king. The King of England said that everyone must belong to his church. The Pilgrims wanted to pray in their own church. They tried to meet in secret but the king had the Pilgrim leaders arrested.
The Pilgrims decided to leave England. They sailed on the Mayflower to find religious freedom. They gave up their houses.They said good-bye to their friends.
The ship was very crowded. There were 102 people on the Mayflower. There were 70 men and women and 32 children. The children could not bring any toys. They couldn’t run and play. There was no water for washing. They couldn’t change their clothes.
They became dirty and smelly. The food was not good. The Pilgrims ate the same thing every day.
Some of the food had worms.
The Mayflower carried supplies as well as passengers. It carried barrels of water and food, seeds to plant, tools for planting, tools for building houses and clothes, knives, and beads for trading with the Indians.

Halloween exercises

Read the text about Halloween, then do these exercises to check your understanding.

1. Check your understanding: true or false
Circle True or False for these sentences.
1. People celebrate Halloween on 31st October in Britain.                         True    False
2. Halloween is not a public holiday in the UK.                                       True    False
3. Halloween lanterns are usually made from potatoes.                          True    False
4. Apple bobbing is a game which involves apples, water and a bowl.        True    False
5. Only children dress up at Halloween.                                                True    False
6. Trick or treating is an American custom that is now popular in Britain. True    False
7. Fright Night is a big Halloween party in the north of England.               True    False
8. The film ‘Psycho’ is suitable for all ages.                                            True    False

2. Check your vocabulary: grouping

Write the words in the correct group.

apples     black     curry     vampire     ghost     soup        witch     zombie     red     pumpkins     orange     white

Colours	Food	Halloween characters

3. Check your vocabulary: gap fill – collocations
Complete the collocations with a verb from the box.

dress up     wear     go     go to     make     celebrate     play     watch

1. _______________ Halloween
2. _______________ a lantern
3. _______________ apple bobbing
4. _______________ as a witch
5. _______________ a costume
6. _______________ trick or treating
7. _______________ a party
8. _______________ a film

Discussion

Do you celebrate Halloween?      What Halloween character would you dress up as, and why?           Do you like watching horror films?      Why do you think Halloween is so popular?

Vocabulary Box     Write any new words you have learnt in this lesson here.

Keys

1. Check your understanding: true or false

1. True                              5. False

2. True                              6. True

3. False                             7. True

4. True                              8. False

2. Check your vocabulary: grouping

Colours	Food	Halloween characters
black red orange white	apples  curry  soup  pumpkins	vampire  ghost  witch  zombie

3. Check your vocabulary: gap fill – collocations

1. celebrate                       5. wear

2. make                           6. go

3. play                             7. go to

4. dress up                       8. watch

Halloween

In October many shop windows in Britain turn orange and black, with pumpkins, witches, broomsticks and cats. What do young people do to celebrate Halloween? Read this article to find out.

Flying witches, pumpkin lanterns, trick or treat ... What do you know about Halloween? Here are some Halloween facts to get started.

• Halloween is celebrated on 31st October. This isn’t a public holiday in Britain.
• Halloween is the night before the Catholic festival of All Saints and the pagan Celtic festival of Samhain (1st November).
• Halloween is also sometimes called All Hallows’ Eve, All Hallowtide and can also be written Hallowe’en.
• Halloween colours are orange and black. Orange is related to harvests because the end of October is the end of the harvest (the time when fruit and vegetables are collected). Black is related to death.

In the UK Halloween traditions are very much alive and popular, especially amongst kids and teenagers. We looked at some of the most common.

Pumpkin lanterns

These are pumpkins (an orange, football-sized vegetable) with the inside removed and a nose, eyes and mouth cut into one side. A candle is placed inside the empty pumpkin and the light creates a scary face effect. In the past people used potatoes or turnips to make lanterns but nowadays pumpkins are more popular. They are easier to cut and you can buy them in supermarkets. People use pumpkin lanterns to decorate their homes at Halloween. Do people actually eat their pumpkins? Yes, they do! Pumpkin soup and pumpkin curry are very popular meals at this time of year.

Apple bobbing

To play this game, lots of apples are placed in a large tub or bowl of water. The competitors have to take a bite from one of the apples without using their hands. To make this more difficult, the competitors have their eyes covered with a scarf. You are not allowed to use the sides of the bowl to help you bite the apple. This game often involves getting very wet so it's a good idea to bring a towel!

Apple bobbing may be related to the ancient Roman festival of remembering the dead, which was also in October. The Romans remembered the goddess of trees and fruit, called Pomona. When they came to the UK, about 2,000 years ago, they continued with this tradition.

Dressing up

People of all ages dress up on Halloween. The most popular fancy dress costumes include witches, vampires, ghosts, skeletons, zombies or monsters. You can buy a costume from a shop or you can make your own costume at home. It’s easy to make a ghost costume from an old white sheet or wear black clothes to look like a witch. You can even cover your face in bright red tomato ketchup to look like a Read UK: Halloween – textvampire! What would you choose? Rachel, 14, from Liverpool says, 'If you go trick or treating it’s best to dress up as a witch. You don’t need a bag for the sweets – you can just use your witch’s hat!'

Trick or treating

Children dress up and then visit the houses in their neighbourhood asking for a ‘trick or treat’. The neighbour gives them sweets or money as a ‘treat’. If there is no treat, the children play a trick on the neighbour, for example they might throw soap at the window. Some people think that playing tricks is unkind but luckily there is nearly always a treat! This custom is imported from the USA and is more popular with young people than with adults. The police in some parts of Britain give out 'No trick or treat, please!' posters for people to display on their door on the night of Halloween. Young children usually go trick or treating with parents or with an older brother or sister.

Halloween parties

If you are in Sheffield, in the north of England, at the end of October you can go to Fright Night. What is Fright Night? People in Sheffield say it’s 'Britain's Biggest Halloween Party' and it attracts about 40,000 people each year. There are activities for kids, teenagers and adults including a fancy dress catwalk, urban dance, a monster in the fountain and a zombie garden, as well as the traditional apple bobbing and a competition for the best pumpkin lantern. If you don't have a big Halloween party in your area, some people have parties at home or at youth clubs where they dress up and play scary games or tell ghost stories.

Watch a horror film

Not in the mood for a Halloween party? Older teenagers that aren’t helping their younger sisters and brothers to trick or treat sometimes watch a scary film with friends either at home or at the cinema. Any film with the words 'Halloween', 'Vampire', 'Dead' or 'Zombie' in the title is probably going to be quite scary. In the UK films are divided into categories depending on whether they are for children, teens or adults. 'U' films are suitable for all ages, '15' films are for people aged 15 or over, and '18' films are for adults only. Many cinemas in the UK show old black-and-white, classic horror films such as 'Psycho' on the night of October 31st. Interestingly, you needed to be over 18 to see 'Psycho' at the cinema in 1960. Now the film has a ‘15’ rating.

Happy Halloween!

Scary Halloween jelly

Cooking time

Prep: 25 mins Plus chilling

Skill level

Easy

Dracula's blood punch

Cooking time

Prep: 10 mins    Cook: 5 minsplus 4 hrs chilling

Skill level

Easy

Pumpkin halloween

Cooking time

Prep: 20 mins Cook:30 mins

Skill level

Easy

A report

A report is a formal document prepared by one person or a group of people who have been studying a particular subject. There are two basic kinds of reports:

• The first simply provides information on a topic and gives a brief conclusion or summary at the end. Example: a report on the educational system in a particular country, written to help someone research the subject.
• The second sets out to identify strengths and weaknesses in a particular situation and make recommendations for improvement. Example: a report on the library facilities in a college written at the request of the principal.

Language and register

Reports are the most impersonal kind of writing and it is usually best to avoid expressing personal opinions or feelings, except, perhaps, in the conclusion. Instead of I think that … or I found that… for example, you can use the impersonal “It” construction and a passive, eg It seems that… It was found that …

It is also advisable to avoid making very definite statements unless you’re absolutely sure they’re true. Instead of saying It is for example, you can use a modal verb eg It could/may/might be or a more tentative expression such as It seems to be or It tends to be.

Layout and organisation

Reports should have a clear factual heading and may also have subheadings which divide the writing into shorter sections. The information should be organised and presented as clearly and logically as possible, with a short introduction explaining the aims of the report and how the information was obtained and a suitable conclusion, summing up the information and making recommendations if necessary.

Useful language

Introduction:    The aim of this report is to..          It is based on…

                     This report is intended to..             It draws on

                     This report looks at / describes..     It uses..

Reporting an

observation:      It seems/appears that..                 It was found that..

                      The majority / minority of …        It was felt that ..

Quoting:    According to …     As X said…         In the words of …

Speculating:     It may / could / might (well) be that ..

Generalising:   In general       On the whole        In the main

Commenting:   Interestingly     Curiously     Oddly       Strangely

                     Surprisingly             Predictably

                     As might be (have been) expected     It is interesting that

Making a recommendation:        It is recommended that ..

                                             (Perhaps) it would be advisable for X to (do)

                                             (Perhaps) X might /should consider

Summing up:   To sum up / To summarise    On balance      In short

Study the following example carefully:

Leisure Facilities in Grimthorpe

Introduction

The aim of this report is to describe and assess the leisure facilities available in Grimthorpe. It is based on information made available by the Grimthorpe Tourist Office, and on views expressed by local people who were interviewed.

Sport

Grimthorpe has a wide range of sports facilities, both public and private. There is a large modern leisure centre in the High Street and facilities include a swimming pool, a sports hall for judo, fencing and other activities, and tennis courts. The centre runs courses in all these sports and these tend to be very popular. Membership costs £150 a year, which was felt to be rather expensive, but a special temporary membership is available to visitors. The public swimming pool on the outskirts of the town is older, less attractive and often overcrowded, but entry is only £1.50.

Theatres

There are two theatres in town, the Kings Theatre in Bee Street, which offers mainly “serious” drama and has a good reputation for its productions of Shakespeare, and the Little Theatre in Sea Street which specialises in lighter entertainment and the occasional pop concert. In general, it seems that the Kings Theatre is more popular with the older members of the community while the Little appeals more to people in their teens and twenties.

Museums and Art Galleries

The City Museum has an extensive collection of maps, pottery and other articles connected with Grimthorpe’s history. The attendants are said to be very friendly and helpful, and there is also a small café with reasonably priced home-made snacks. Interestingly, few of the local people interviewed had ever been to the museum but it was recommended highly by several tourists.

Conclusion

Grimthorpe is well provided with leisure facilities for a town of its size and these are well used by the townspeople on the whole. Sport seems to be the most popular leisure activity, while cultural activities like visiting the museum or art gallery appeared to be the least popular among the Grimthorpians who were interviewed. Perhaps the City Council should consider launching a publicity campaign to show how much these facilities have to offer.

Vocabulary: Personality

Positive aspect

ambitious	ambicioso
attentive	cortés
audacious	audaz
calm	calmo
charming	encantador
cheerful, amusing	divertido
considerate	considerado
courageous, brave	valiente
creative	creativo
curious	curioso
determined, b-willed	decidido
energetic	energético
extroverted	extrovertido
frank	franco
friendly	amigable
generous	generoso
gentle, kind, polite	amable
honest, truthful	honesto
humble	humilde
ingenious	ingenioso
likable / likeable	agradable, simpático
loyal, faithful	leal
mature	maduro
obedient	obediente
optimistic	optimista
organized	organizado
passionate	apasionado
patient	paciente
polite	amable
practical	práctico
realistic	realista
reliable, trustworthy	confiable
respectful	respetuoso
responsible	responsable
self-confident	seguro
sensible	sensato
sensitive	sensible
sincere	sincero
sociable, outgoing	sociable
strong	fuerte
sympathetic	compasivo
thankful, grateful	agradecido
tolerant, patient	paciente
understanding	comprensivo
zealous	entusiasta

The Royal Baby - First Birthday

At 4.24 p.m. on July 22nd a baby was born in London. But not just any baby! This baby boy is a prince and will probably one day be the King of England.

The Royal Family and the golden couple

The British Royal Family are more popular than ever. 69% of the population think Britain would be "worse off" without a royal family, and only 10% would prefer to vote for the next Head of State. So what explains this pro-royal feeling? Well, perhaps it has something to do with the popularity of Prince William, and his wife Catherine (Kate for short). Since their romance began at university, the couple have provided constant interest and entertainment for the British media and their fans in the general public. Now, with the arrival of their baby, who is third in line to the throne to be the future King of England, excitement is higher than ever.

A royal wedding

Prince William and Kate Middleton announced their engagement in 2010, and the wedding took place in April 2011. The Queen declared the wedding day a national holiday in the UK. There were street parties all over Britain, including one in Downing Street hosted by the Prime Minister David Cameron. The media talked obsessively about every detail of the day; the wedding dress, the guests, the route to Westminster Abbeey, the kiss on the balcony ... everything was analysed carefully. You couldn't open a newspaper or a magazine or switch on the television without seeing the happy royal couple.

A fairytale princess?

For people from countries who do not have a royal family, maybe the idea of marrying a prince and becoming a princess seems like something from a fairytale. But is it really a dream come true? What is life really like for Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge? On the one hand she lives a celebrity lifestyle of exotic travel, beautiful clothes, the best restaurants and spending time with famous people. On the other hand, she actually works very hard. She supports several charities, appears at official events and has the eyes of the world on her at all times. It can't be easy knowing that every step you take is beig photographed and reported by the press and later examined by your adoring fans.

The royal baby

Kate and William's son was born on July 22nd 2013 and has made Prince Charles a grrandfather for the first time. The Queen is now a great-grandmother! As the royal couple arrived at the hospital there were already hundreds of reporters from around the world waiting outside to hear the news.

Buckingham Palace announced the birth by putting a notice outside by  the palace gates on a fancy-looking golden stand. Immediately hundreds of people arrived at the palace to celebrate the news. There was a party atmosphere on the streets of London and news reports went out around the world to tell everyone about the arrival of the baby prince. Other cities around the world joined in  the celebrations too; Niagara Falls in Canada was llit up with blue lights, as were other landmarks around the world. The day after the birth of the prince the front pages of all the major newspapers carried  the story. One paper, The Sun, even changed its name to The Son for the day! Others published special souvenir editions. One online newspaper, the Guardian, gave their readers two options on their website - to see the news with or without reports of the royal birth. This was welcomed by many who find the hype and media attention a little too much.

The life of a prince

What sort of life will the little prince have? Kate and William will no doubt try to keep his childhood as normal as it possibly can be. But this won't be easy with the world's media following your every move from even before the moment you are born. Princess Diana faced the same challenge with her sons, William and Harry. She tried to ensure that they did some of the same things as other children of their age llike go to theme parks and play outside. Only time will tell what sort of life this prince will lead. For now it seems the nation are enjoying welcoming him into  the world and whether you're a keen royalist or not, there's not a lot you can do to avoid hearing the news about  this new arrival. Congratulations to Will and Kate!

Glastonbury Festival - much more than music

Glastonbury festival is one of the most vibrant, colourful and energetic events of the British summer and tickets sell out minutes after going on sale. It als is the world's largest open air musical festival, as 180,000 people flood (sometimes quite literally) to Worthy Farm in the heart of the Somerset countryside. Every June, thousands of tents, caravans and stages pop up over night for a weekend of brilliant live music, art and merriment. The festival covers 1300 acres of farmland and uses the same amount of electricity as the city of Bath - the Main Stage alone has over 250 speakers! Last year Glastonbury celebrated its fortieth birthday - let's find out how and why superstars, hippies, and music lovers all still head to the mother of all music festivals.

Glastonbury began life as the "Pilton Festival" and was unrecognisable from the town-sized event we see today. Michael Eavis, the festival's founder, was inspired by the hippies of the 1960s and local New Age Travellers to host an open air music concert at his farm. In 1970 tickets only cost £1 and a more 1500 people attended. "T-Rex" headlined the festival and free milk from Eavis's frm was available to everyone. Eavis remains in charge today and unbelievably the land goes back to being a working farm when the festival is over. Tractors fitted with giant magnets are used to pick up left over tent pegs before cows and pigs return to the fields.

Wizards, Druids and Hippies have always attended the festival bringing tai chi, yoga, meditation, vegan food and messages of peace and harmony to Glastonbury's Healing Fields. This gives the festival its relaxed and alternative atmosphere. Walking around the festival can feel as though you are on another planet or have gone back in time! The festival lies on ancient pagan Ley Lines, believed to channel elemental and powerful energies. There is even a megalithic Stone Circle - a smaller version of Stone Henge. The festival is involved in campaigns to highlight worldwide social problems; such as climate change and human rights issues. As a large amount of Glastonbury's profits go to charity, the festival relies on volunteers and artists often perform at the festival without being paid.

Despite Glastonbury's impressive ethics the festival has a long history and of people sneaking in to enjoy the festival's legendary music and atmosphere for free. Over the years "gatecrashers" have tried everything to get in without a ticket. These include smuggling theselves in on delivery vehicles, bribing a corrupt official or even pretending to be a celebraty! Most popular, however, is attempting to break through, climb over or dig under the outside fence. After a major breach in the fence in 2000, people attending the festival reached over 250,000 even though only 100,000 tickets had been sold. So, in 2002, the "super-fence" was introduced: a 6 mile long, 15 foot high stainless steel barricade that is dug 3 feet into the soil, making it nearly impossible to gain illlegal entry.

Glastonbury is renowned for one more thing - the mud. Although it takes place at the height of summer, the Great British weather means that it usually rains at some point over  the four days. As the festival is in a valley, fields turn to mud surprisingly quickly. 1997 and 1998 are famous for being particularly muddy years, with huge areas of  the site being reduced to knee-high sloppy gloop. In 2005 two months worth of rain fell in 3 hours, causing flash floods across the valley. Tents, bars and stages were all underwater and many left the festival early. However, last year unbroken sunshine shone throughout the weekend and the temperature was above that of Spain, Brazil and California. Glastonbury is the perfect example of the unpredictable British weather!

Of course you can't talk about Glastonbury without talking about the music. In recent years Glastonbury stages have been graced by Lady Gaga, Coldplay and Bruce Springsteen (who played for two and half hours which broke the 12am curfew and cost organisers £3000 in fines). This year saw Beyonce close the Main Stage on the Sunday night. A diverse range of music is one of Glastonbury's greatest appeals and you can listen to everything from blues to jazz, from electro to classical, from folk to punk and even ear splitting techno until 7 o'clock in the morning. If this has convinced you to try for a much sought after ticket next year, I am soorry to disappoint you - Glastonbury is having a year off in 2012. The festival often has "fallow years" to allow the fields and farm to get back to full health. It is also rumoured that as the date would clash with the London Olympics there would not be enough fencing, police and portable toilets available!

Phrasal Verbs with two particles

EXERCISE 1

Replace the verb in italics with a synonymous phrasal verb with two particles:

1.- He was despised by almost everybody who knew him.

2.- That old law was abolished long ago.

3.- I am not prepared to tolerate insolence from you!

4.- Well, I attribute his failure to the recent death of his mother.

5.- If you admit the offence, we shall deal with you leniently.

6.- In life one has to confront a good many problems of this kind.

KEY

1.- looked down on; 2.- done away with; 3.- put up with; 4.- put his failure down to; 5.- own up to; 6.- face up to.

Phrasal Verbs

Los ejercicios de transformación con verbos frasales son más fáciles de lo que pueda pensarse. La clave está en encontrar un sinónimo no-frasal del verbo frasal en cuestión. He aquí algunos ejemplos:

• to account for sth = to justify - dar cuenta de, explicar, justificar: Every penny you spend will have to be accounted for/will have to be justified - tendrás que dar cuenta/justificar cada penique que gastes
• to act/play up = to give trouble - causar problemas, dar la lata: my car has been acting up/has been giving me trouble again - mi coche me ha estado dando la lata otra vez
• to blow over = to be forgotten - pasar, olvidarse (suceso): I hope the incident will soon blow over/will soon be forgotten - espero que el incidente se olvide pronto
• to blow up a photograph = to enlarge a photo - ampliar una foto: I like this photo. I'm going to have it blown up/to have it enlarged - me gusta esta foto. La voy a ampliar
• to brush up on sth = to review - poner al día/revisar (conocimientos): If you are going to France, you must brush up on/you must review your French - si vas a ir a Francia, debes poner al día tu francés

Conditional Sentences

El uso del condicional significa que una acción depende de otra. Los condicionales se utilizan para hablar sobre situaciones reales o irreales. En general, las frases condicionales llevan la palabra "if" (si).

Ten en cuenta que no existe un tiempo verbal para el condicional en inglés como existe en español. A la vez, se usa el verbo auxiliar "would" para formar el condicional en inglés.

Hay cuatro tipos de frases condicionales y el uso de uno u otro refleja la probabilidad de la acción.

Conditional Types (Tipos de los condicionales)

Grammar Unit Present Perfect

• We often use the present perfect to talk about things from the beginning of our life until now.

         John has travelled to lots of different countries.

         I haven´t met your brother.

• When we use the present perfect with this meaning, we often use ever (= at any time in someone´s life) in questions, and never (= not ever) in sentences.

         Have you ever eaten seafood?

         She´s never tried to cook.

         Has Steve ever won a prize in a competition?.

Reported speech 1

When we report someone’s words we can do it in two ways. We can use direct speech with quotation marks (“I work in a bank”), or we can use reported speech (He said he worked in a bank.)

In reported speech the tenses, word-order and pronouns may be different from those in the original sentence.

Present simple and present continuous tenses

• Direct speech: “I travel a lot in my job” Reported speech: He said that he travelled a lot in his job.

The present simple tense (I travel) usually changes to the past simple (he travelled) in reported speech.

• Direct speech: “Be quiet. The baby’s sleeping.” Reported speech: She told me to be quiet because the baby was sleeping.

The present continuous usually changes to the past continuous.

Repaso oraciones condicionales

Oraciones condicionales con unless

Frecuentes son también las oraciones condicionales con unless (a no ser que/a menos que), que denotan una condición sin cuyo cumplimiento el hecho expresado en la principal no puede realizarse.

Equivalen, por tanto, generalmente, a las introducidas por if + el verbo en forma negativa:

She won't go to sleep unless you tell her a story = she won't go to sleep if you don't tell her a story - no se quedará dormida a menos que le cuentes una historia

We'll have dinner out tonight unless you're too tired = we'll have dinner out tonight if you're not too tired cenaremos fuera esta noche, a no ser que estés demasiado cansada/si no estás demasiado cansada

pero conviene tener en cuenta que if....not y unlessno son siempre intercambiables:

I think Steve would be happier if he didn't work so hard - creo que Steve sería más feliz si no trabajara tanto (en este caso, no puede usarse unless, porque es un hecho, no una suposición, que Steve trabaja mucho).

Otras conjunciones empleadas en la oración subordinada

Además de if y unless, pueden usarse otras conjunciones condicionales, como: provided (that)/providing (that)/as long as/on condition that - siempre que/con tal que/a condición de que:

I'll let you in on the secret, provided/providing/as long as/on condition (that) you don't tell anybody - te contaré el secreto, con tal de que/siempre que/a condición de que no se lo digas a nadie.

Verbs and prepositions

Vamos a estudiar los verbos + preposición. No se trata esta vez de los verbos frasales, sino de saber con qué preposición se construyen los verbos ingleses, sin que dicha preposición modifique su significado. En la mayoría de los casos, no hay grandes problemas, al coincidir la preposición en inglés y en español: to accuse of (acusar de), to agree with (estar de acuerdo con; puede ser también verbo frasal con el significado de 'sentar bien un alimento'), to arrive at/in (llegar at con lugares, pueblos o ciudades pequeñas; in con ciudades grandes o países), to benefit from (beneficiarse de), to escape from (escaparse de), to lend to (prestar a), to rescue from (rescatar de), to suffer from (padecer de), etc. Hay, sin embargo, un buen número de verbos cuyo régimen preposicional no coincide en los dos idiomas. Pueden darse varios casos:

1.- Verbos con distinta preposición en inglés y en español. He aquí algunos de los más comunes:

to answer for - responder de

to be married to - estar casado,-a con

to charge with - acusar de

to count on - contar con

to dream of/about - soñar con

to feed on - alimentarse de

to fill with - llenar de

to laugh at - reírse de

to live on - vivir de

to settle for - contentarse con, aceptar

to settle on - decidirse por

to smell of - oler a

to taste of - saber a

Passives

We make the passive using ‘be’ – in a suitable tense – and the past participle (‘done’, ‘played’ etc.). We use the passive:

1) … when we don’t know, or we are not interested in, who does an action.

• My car was stolen yesterday.

         We don’t know who stole the car.

• A lot of wine is produced in France.

         It’s not important who produces the wine.

2) … when the main topic of the sentence isn’t who did the action.

• Television was invented in the 1920s by John Logie Baird.

         The main topic here is television – we aren’t particularly interested in ‘who’.

• Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

         In English we tend to put the most important thing at the start of the sentence.

3) … more in written English than in spoken English.

• War and Peace was written by Tolstoy.

         You often see the passive in textbooks.

• The mixture is heated to 500˚C.

         Scientific texts especially use the passive.

Easter

In the UK,  schools close for two weeks at Easter time. Read on to find out more about how Easter is celebrated in Britain.

What does it mean?

Easter is a spring festival of new life. As a pagan tradition it is the beginning of growth and new life after the cold, winter months. The name comes from the Anglo-Saxon goddess of the dawn and spring - Easter. For Christians, Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ and practising Christians attend special church services at Easter time. Easter celebrates life and rebirth, which is why we see lots of symbols of new life and fertility at Easter, like eggs, chicks and rabbits.

When is it?

Unlike Christmas, Easter isn't on the same date each year. It takes place on the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring. Schoolchildren and students in the UK have a two-week holiday at Easter time which is almost as long as the Christmas holiday. It's also the first public holiday after Christmas and everyone looks forward to their Easter break as a moment to relax, have a short holiday or visit family and friends.

Chocolate eggs

For most British children Easter means chocolate Easter eggs. The shops are full of bright Easter displays decorated with chicks, rabbits and flowers, all with the objective of selling chocolate eggs in huge numbers. And it works! Ninety million chocolate eggs are sold in the UK each year, and each child receives on average eight chocolate eggs. The eggs are sold in cardboard boxes and sometimes there's more packaging than chocolate!

Some people believe that too much chocolate is eaten at Easter time and most doctors and dentists would advise people to eat Easter eggs in moderation.

Other "egg-straordinary" traditions

In the UK, chocolate is definitely the most popular way to enjoy eggs at Easter. But there are some less sugary traditions, too. Chickens' eggs are painted and decorated to give as presents, and eggs are also hidden for children to find as part of an "egg hunt". Some places even hold competitions to see who can roll an egg down a hill without it breaking! Hot cross buns are typical cakes that are made at Easter time. They are like spiced bread rolls with raisins and they alway have a cross shape on top. They are delicious served hot with butter.

Saint Patrick's Day

St. Patrick is the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland. He was born in the fourth century and is famous for bringing Christianity into Ireland. St. Patrick’s Day falls on the 17th of March.

Saint Patrick's Day

St Patrick’s Day is now celebrated throughout the world, not just in Ireland, with the largest parade taking place in New York City.

There are several elements of this Irish festival that children love to find out about and you can find numerous on-line resources to help you prepare a very culturally rewarding lesson for both you and your young learners. This festival is full of magical stones, Irish fairies, hidden treasure, lucky charms; everything’s green and there’s even a rainbow with secrets at the end of it. What more could you ask for in a fantasy filled English lesson.

St. Patrick is the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland. He was born in the fourth century and is famous for bringing Christianity into Ireland. St. Patrick’s Day is a very well known Irish national holiday, which is celebrated not only in Ireland but all around the world. It falls on the 17th of March.

History of St. Patrick

St. Patrick was born to wealthy parents in the late fourth century. Until the age of 16, he thought of himself as a pagan. He was kidnapped and sold as a slave at this age by Irish marauders. It was during this capture that he turned to God.

He managed to escape after being a slave for six years and then studied in a monastery in Gaul for 12 years. This was when he knew that his ‘calling’ was to try and convert all the pagans in Ireland to Christianity.

St. Patrick went around Ireland founding monasteries and successfully converting people to Christianity. The Celtic Druids were very unhappy with him and tried to arrest him several times but he always managed to escape.

After 30 years of being a missionary in Ireland, he finally settled down in a place called County Down. He died on the 17th of March, AD 461.

Red Nose Day

Wearing a red nose for a day may seem like a strange way to raise money for charity.
However, it seems to work in Britain.

Red Nose Day (RND) is a well-known event in the UK. The aim of the day is to raise money for a charity called Comic Relief which helps people in need in Africa and in the UK.

Red nose?
Comic Relief was started in 1985 by the scriptwriter Richard Curtis. He wrote the series ‘Blackadder' as well as the famous films 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' and 'Notting Hill'. Richard's idea to start Comic Relief was as a response to the severe famine in Ethiopia. It's called Red Nose Day as on this day many people buy a plastic red nose to wear! The money made from selling red noses goes to the charity.

When is RND?
Red Nose Day takes place every two years in the spring and is now so well established that many people consider it to be an unofficial national holiday. For example, many schools have non-uniform days. This year Red Nose Day is on March 15th.

Money

The slogan for the last RND was ‘Do Something Funny for Money' and the money that was collected helped to fund projects in the following areas: treating malaria, education, maternal health and mental health. The BBC Red Nose Day telethon raised £74.3 million! Money-raising events take place all over the country and many schools participate. People also donate money by post, in banks, by phone using a credit card
and online.

Getting sponsored

Getting sponsored to do something is a common way to raise money on RND. If someone sponsors you it means that they agree to give you a specific amount of money for your actions. Here are some ways that people raise money:
• Get sponsored to wear your pyjamas all day at work or in school.
• Get sponsored to grow a moustache or beard for a month.
• Ask colleagues or classmates for a donation to wear a red wig for the day.
• Get sponsored to give up chocolate, biscuits or crisps.

Red Nose Day is everywhere

In the evening of Red Nose Day a telethon takes place on the BBC TV channels. This is like a television marathon that shows a selection of the events of the day, as well as lots of comic sketches and reports of how the money raised will be spent. There’s a RND Facebook page and you can follow RND on Twitter. People also upload videos of local charity events on YouTube and Facebook.

So, if you are ever in the UK on Red Nose Day, now you know why you may find normal people wearing red noses and doing silly things! It's all for a good cause! If you want to find out more about the day, have a look at the official Red Nose Day website.

The build up to Easter!

I really like celebrating Easter with my family and I know that the time is coming up due to the arrival of Shrove or Fat Tuesday, which this year will be on 4th March. Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday. Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent which is then 40 days before Easter Sunday! It might seem a bit confusing but traditionally many people may give up certain rich or fatty foods for lent which means they will not eat that food again until Easter Sunday.

Shrove Tuesday is better known to me as Pancake Day! On this day people try and use up as much of the rich and fatty foods that they have left in their house so they eat lots and lots of the food they are trying to give up. Pancakes are made of flour, eggs, milk and butter so are quite rich and fatty. That's why it's a tradition to eat pancakes on this day!

I love pancake day and I use it as an excuse to have pancakes for breakfast, dinner and tea! I like to have them savoury with meat or cheese but my favourite ones are sweet ones. I like to have them with orange and sugar, chocolate spread or ice cream!

Sometimes I try to give up certain foods too. Last year I gave up crisps for Lent and the year before I gave up chocolate. It can be really hard though and in previous years I have forgotten! This year I haven't given it much thought yet though what I might like to give up this year!

Grammar Unit Will/Won't

WILL/WON´T

• We use will(´ll) and won´t to make predictions about the future.

          When I´m older, I´ll live in France.

           I won´t live in England.

           I´m sure you´ll pass the test tomorrow.

          The questions won´t be very difficult.

• Will is a modal. We use will/won´t + base form of the verb, and the form is the same for all subjects. We don´t use any form of do in the negative.

          You´ll pass the test .
          You won´t pass the test.

          Most students will pass the test.

          Most students won´t pass the test.

• Questions are formed with will + subject + base form of the verb. Again, we don´t use any form of do in questions or short answers.

          Will Sonia go to university? Yes, she will/No, she won´t.

          Will your brothers come to the party? Yes, they will/No, they won´t.

Grammar Unit Present continuous for future arrangements

PRESENT CONTINUOUS FOR FUTURE ARRANGEMENTS

• We can use the present continuous to talk about things that are planned or arranged for the future. We don´t use the present simple or will/won´t for future arrangements.

          I´m travelling to Italy next week

          We´re having a party on Saturday

          Alan is meeting Judy at the airport tomorrow morning

• Future time expressions are often used with the present continuous for arrangements.

          Tomorrow, tomorrow night,next week,next Sunday evening

          The day after tomorrow,the week after next,in three hours´time

Grammar Unit Be going to

BE GOING TO: INTENTIONS

• We use be going to to talk about things we intend to do in the future.

          I´m going to visit my grandfather at the weekend.

          Marco is going to buy some new jeans tomorrow.

• The form is the present simple of be + going to + base form of the verb.

          I´m going to stay at home on Sunday.

          She isn´t going to spend much money.

• The questions is formed with the present simple of be + subject + going to + base form of the verb.

          Are you going to watch the film tonight? Yes, I am/No, I´m not.

          Is Paul going to meet you after school? Yes, he is/No, he isn´t.

Modal verbs / Modals

This is a practical summary of the main meanings expressed by the set of verbs generally called modal verbs or modals.

Modals can express a varied range of ideas and shades of meaning, very useful to complete the English verb conjugation system.

They are usually divided into central modals(can/could, may/might, must, shall/should, will/would) and semimodals or marginal modals (ought to, used to, need, dare).

I'll concentrate on the main meanings expressed by the central modals, though I will include some notes about the following semi-modals: ought to, as an alternative to should,needn't (the negative of need), for absence of obligation, and used to, for habitual actions in the past, as against to be used to, for sth you are accustomed to doing.

Vocabulary: professions, occupations, work and employment

PROFESSIONS AND OCCUPATIONS

accountant	contador
actor	actor
actress	actriz
air hostess	azafata
architect	arquitecto
astronaut	astronauta
au-pair, babysitter	niñera
baker	panadero
bank clerk	empleado bancario
beekeeper	apicultor
barber	barbero, peluquero (de hombre)
bookseller	librero
bricklayer	albañil
bus driver	conductor de autobus
butcher	carnicero
chemist	farmaceutico
chimney-sweeper	deshollinador
consultant	asesor
cook	cocinero
customs officer	oficial de aduanas
dentist	dentista
disc jockey	DJ disc jockey, DJ
doctor	médico
driver	conductor
driving instructor	instructor de conducir
dustman	basurero
electrician	electricista
employee	empleado
engineer	ingeniero
factory worker	obrero
farmer	agricultor
fashion designer	diseñador de moda
firefighter, fireman	bombero
fisherman	pescador
gardener	jardinero
graphic designer	diseñador gráfico
hairdresser	peluquero (de mujer)
inspector	inspector
interior designer	diseñador de interiores
jeweller	joyero
journalist	periodista
judge	juez
lawyer	abogado
librarian	bibliotecario
lifeguard	salvavidas, socorrista
lorry driver	camionero
mechanic	mecánico
model	modelo
mailman (US)	cartero
nanny	niñera
nurse	enfermera
office worker	oficinista
painter	pintor
photographer	fotógrafo
pilot	piloto
plumber	fontanero, plomero
policeman	policía
policewomen	mujer policía
politician	policía
postman (GB)	cartero
psychiatrist	psiquiatra
psychologist	psicólogo
receptionist	recepcionista
reporter	reportero
sailor	marinero
salesman	vendedor
scientist	científico
secretary	secretario
security guard	guarda de seguridad
shepherd	pastor
shoemaker	zapatero
singer	cantante
soldier	soldado
sports instructor	instructor de deportes
stockbroker	agente de bolsa
student	estudiante
surgeon	cirujano
tailor	sastre
taxi driver	taxista
teacher	profesor, maestro
technician	técnico
telemarketer, telesales person	persona que vende por teléfono
tourist guide	guía turística
translator	traductor
university lecturer	profesor universitario
vet (GB), veterinarian (US)	veterinario
waiter	camarero
waitress	camarera
watchmaker	relojero
writer	escritor

Valentine's Day

Do you celebrate Valentine’s Day in your country? In the UK it's the most romantic day of the year!

                   February 14th is traditionally a celebration of love, so how do people in the UK mark the occasion?

Vocabulary: Cinema

cinema	cine
movie (US)	film película
action film	película de acción
cartoon	dibujos animados
comedy	comedia
detective film	película de detectives
documentary film	película documental
educational film	película educativa
full-length film	largometraje
horror film	película de terror
love story	historia de amor
musical	musical
romantic film	película romántica
science-fiction film	película de ciencia ficción
short-length film	cortometraje
silent film	cine mudo
war film	pelicula belica
western	película del oeste
commercial	publicidad
episode	episodio, capítulo
actor	actor
actress	actriz
audience	audiencia
cameraman	camarógrafo
cast	elenco
catering	catering
catering assistant	camarero de catering
cinema review	críticas de cine
clapper‐board	claqueta
costume	vestuario
dialogue	diálogo
director	director
extras	extras
film prop	atrezzo
film star	estrella de películas
make‐up artist	maquillador
plot	trama
producer	productor
role	papel, rol
scene	escena
screenwriter	guionista
script	texto
sequel	secuela
set	plató
soundtrack	banda sonora
star	protagonista
studio	estudio de grabación
stuntman	doble
subtitles	subtítulos
supporting actor	actor secundario, de reparto
supporting cast	reparto
supporting role	papel secundario
titles	títulos
to go to the cinema (GB)	ir al cine
to go to the movies (US)	ir al cine
to rent a video/DVD	alquilar un vídeo/DVD
to watch a video/DVD	mirar un vídeo/DVD

Verbs and phrases:

• A film is set in … (location and time)
• A film is based on … ( a novel, a book, …)
• The book was made into a film
• The film was filmed/shot on location in Venice
• …played the part of the main character
• The film was dubbed into other languages

Other vocabulary: 

Exciting, thrilling, moving, touching, emotional, violent, crazy, hilarious, dramatic, callous, vicious, false, shallow, intriguing, disturbing, perturbing, worrying, troubling, good, comic…

Vocabulary: Clothes

shirt = camisa
t-shirt = camiseta
polo shirt = polo,
blouse = blusa
sweatshirt = sweater = pullover = jersey = slip-over = jersey
cardigan = rebeca
dress = vestido
vest = chaleco
suit = traje
three-piece suit = traje de tres piezas
coat = abrigo
raincoat = chubasquero
waistcoat = chaleco
mackintosh = impermeable
anorak = anorak
bomber jacket = chaqueta ajustada en la cintura
duffel coat = parka de lana
denim jacket = chaqueta vaquera
trousers = pantalones
slacks = pantalones informales
jeans = jeans
shorts = pantalones cortos
overalls (GB) = peto, mono
trainers (GB) - sneakers (US) = zapatillas
boots = botas
Wellingtons = botas de agua
slippers = zapatillas de casa
clogs = zuecos
shoes = zapatos
sandals = sandalias
high-heeled shoes = zapatos de tacon alto

Vocabulary: the environment

acid rain	lluvia ácida
carbon dioxide	dióxido de carbono
chemicals	sustancias químicas
climate change	cambio climático
conservation	conservación
contaminant	contaminante
contamination	contaminación
deforestation	deforestación
eco-friendly	que no daña el medio ambiente
ecological	ecológico
ecologist	ecologista
ecosystem	ecosistema
effluent	aguas residuales
endangered species	especies en peligro de extinción
environment	medio ambiente
environmental	medioambiental
environmentalist	ecologista
environmentally friendly	que no daña el medio ambiente
exhaust fumes	humos de los tubos de escape
extinction	extinción
factory fumes	humos de las fabricas
garbage disposal (US)	eliminación de residuos
garbage separation (US)	separación de residuos
global warming	calentamiento global
greenhouse effect	efecto invernadero
noise pollution	contaminación acústica
nuclear radiation	radiación nuclear
organic	orgánico
ozone	ozono
ozone-friendly	que no daña la capa de ozono
ozone layer	capa de ozono
pollution	polución, contaminación
radioactive substance	sustancia radiactiva
radioactive waste	residuos radiactivos
radioactivity	radiactividad
recyclable	reciclable
recycled	reciclado
recycling	reciclaje
reforestation	repoblación forestal
sewage	aguas residuales
sewage farm (GB)	estación depuradora
sewage plant (US)	estación depuradora
sewage works (GB)	estación depuradora
smog	smog
solar energy	energía solar
sulphur dioxide (GB)	dióxido de azufre
sulfur dioxide (US)	dióxido de azufre
toxic waste	residuos tóxicos
waste separation (GB)	separación de residuos
waste disposal (GB)	eliminación de residuos
wind power	energía eólica
to become extinct	extinguirse
to conserve	conservar
to contaminate	contaminar
to die out	extinguirse
to poison	envenenar
to pollute	contaminar
to recycle	reciclar

Grammar Unit Present Continuous

PRESENT CONTINUOUS for activities happening now.

• We use it for actions that are happening now or around the time of speaking.

           Ex: My brothers are watching a video at the moment

                 It´s raining now

• It is formed with the present simple of be + verb + ing

          Ex: I´m enjoying this book

               You aren´t working very hard

               Alison isn´t listening to the radio

• The question is formed with the present simple of be + subject + verb + ing

          Ex: Is Carlos reading? Yes, he is/ No he isn´t

               Are the girls having lunch? Yes, they are/ No, they aren´t

Order of adjectives

Sometimes we use more than one adjective in front of a noun:

          He was a nice intelligent young man.
          She had a small round black wooden box.

Opinion adjectives:

Some adjectives give a general opinion. We can use these adjectives to describe almost any noun:

good	bad	lovely	strange
beautiful	nice	brilliant	excellent
awful	important	wonderful	nasty

   

Some adjectives give a specific opinion. We only use these adjectives to describe particular kinds of noun:

          Food: tasty; delicious

          Furniture, buildings: comfortable; uncomfortable

          People, animals: clever; intelligent; friendly

Conditional sentences

There are three types of the if-clauses.

type	condition
I	condition possible to fulfill
II	condition in theory possible to fulfill
III	condition not possible to fulfill (too late)

Form

type	if clause	main clause
I	Simple Present	will-future (or Modal + infinitive)
II	Simple Past	would + infinitive *
III	Past Perfect	would + have + past participle *

So, such, too, enough

So + Adjective

USE

"So" can be combined with adjectives to show extremes. This form is often used in exclamations.

Examples:

• The music is so loud! I wish they would turn it down.
• The meal was so good! It was worth the money.

USE with "That"

The above form can be combined with "that" to show extremes which lead to certain results. The "that" is usually optional.

Examples:

• The music is so loud that I can't sleep.
• The music is so loud I can't sleep.
• The meal was so good that we decided to have dinner at the same restaurant again tonight.
• The meal was so good we decided to have dinner at the same restaurant again tonight.

Grammar Unit Comparative - Superlative

	Adjectives	Comparative form	Superlative form
Short adjectives (one syllable)	Long Short Small	Longer than Shorter than Smaller than	The longest The shortest The smallest
Short adjectives ending in one vowel + one consonant	Fat Big Sad Thin	Fatter than Bigger than Sadder than Thinner than	The fattest The biggest The saddest The thinnest
Adjectives ending in –y	Easy Early Happy	Easier than Earlier than Happier than	The easiest The earliest The happiest
Longer adjectives (two or more syllables)	Frequent Expensive Difficult Interesting	More frequent than More expensive than  More difficult than More interesting than	The most frequent The most expensive The most difficult The most interesting
Irregular adjectives	Bad Good Many Far	Worse than Better than More than Further than	The worst The best The most The furthest

Collocations Lists

On this page you can find a few short lists of collocations to give you more of an idea about them.

Some common verbs

have	do	make
have a bath have a drink have a good time have a haircut have a holiday have a problem have a relationship have a rest have lunch have sympathy	do business do nothing do someone a favour do the cooking do the housework do the shopping do the washing up do your best do your hair do your homework	make a difference make a mess make a mistake make a noise make an effort make furniture make money make progress make room make trouble
take	break	catch
take a break take a chance take a look take a rest take a seat take a taxi take an exam take notes take someone's place take someone's temperature	break a habit break a leg break a promise break a record break a window break someone's heart break the ice break the law break the news to someone break the rules	catch a ball catch a bus catch a chill catch a cold catch a thief catch fire catch sight of catch someone's attention catch someone's eye catch the flu
pay	save	keep
pay save keep pay a fine pay attention pay by credit card pay cash pay interest pay someone a compliment pay someone a visit pay the bill pay the price pay your respects	save electricity save energy save money save one's strength save someone a seat save someone's life save something to a disk save space save time save yourself the trouble	keep a diary keep a promise keep a secret keep an appointment keep calm keep control keep in touch keep quiet keep someone's place keep the change
come	go	get
come close come complete with come direct come early come first come into view come last come late come on time come prepared come right back come second come to a compromise come to a decision come to an agreement come to an end come to a standstill come to terms with come to a total of come under attack	go abroad go astray go bad go bald go bankrupt go blind go crazy go dark go deaf go fishing go mad go missing go on foot go online go out of business go overseas go quiet go sailing go to war go yellow	get a job get a shock get angry get divorced get drunk get frightened get home get lost get married get nowhere get permission get pregnant get ready get started get the impression get the message get the sack get upset get wet get worried