Motivation is a great force

This short video is not just an advert for an English course, it's an illustration of what great force motivation can be on our way to achieving something. It's especially important in learning foreign languages.

Watch these UK children speak about their reasons to learn a foreign language. They already see its role in their future. What about you?

Why do you learn English? What is your motivation? I'll be delighted to read your comments.

If you need some inspiration for learning a foreign language, here are some stories about famous polyglots including Audrey Hepburn and J.R.R.Tolkien:

The Language Secrets of Prolific Language Learners

50 States of the USA Song

Learn the correct pronunciation of all the names of American states with this wonderful Kids TV song by A.J.Jenkins. Sing along!

Which of the states would you like to visit? Why? Write your answers in the comments below.

People Work Song

Watch the video and do the activities.

Lyrics

Nigel Naylor, he's a tailor
He makes trousers, suits and shirts
Penny Proctor, she's a doctor
Comes to see you when it hurts.
Peter Palmer, he's a farmer
He's got cows and pigs and sheep
Wendy Witter, babysitter
Minds the kids when they're asleep.

People work in the country
People work in the town
People work day and night
To make the world go round.

Mabel Meacher, language teacher
Teaches English, French and Greek
Gary Gummer, he's a plumber
Call him when you've got a leak.
Patty Prentice, she's a dentist
Keeps your teeth both clean and white
Ronnie Ryman, he's a fireman
Comes when there's a fire to fight.

People work in the country
People work in the town
People work day and night
To make the world go round.

Activity 1

Play a game

Model: -Is it a man or a woman?

-It’s a man.

-Does he keep cows?
-No, he doesn’t.
-Does he make clothes?
-Yes, he does.
-Is he Nigel Naylor?
-Yes, he is.

Activity 2

Make up sentences about professions using the cues given below.
Model: A doctor helps sick people.

Professions

A doctor
An architect
A babysitter
A plumber
A teacher
A shopkeeper
A bus driver
An interpreter
A journalist
A postman
A fireman

Cues

•to mend waterpipes
•to help sick people
•to teach children
•to design buildings
•to translate
•to deliver post
•to look after kids
•to sell things in shops
•to drive a bus
•to fight fires
•to write for newspapers

Personality types

I'm sure you've heard about 16 personality types. In English this classification is often referred to as Myers-Briggs typology. Knowing your Myers-Briggs type helps to choose your way in life and to take yourself as you are. So I strongly recommend that you should take this little test www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test and find out.

Education in Great Britain

Complete the sentences

1.    Before schooling children in Britain go to…

2.    From the age of 5 till 11 kids get…

3.    Children go to infant school at the …, and at 7 they transfer to…

4.    At 11 pupils…

5.    Secondary education is provided in such schools as…

6.    Comprehensive schools are… and they are run by…

7.    Grammar schools offer… Children enter them on the basis of…

8.    Secondary modern schools provide…

9.    Some parents prefer to send their kids to…

10. Private schools for children aged 13-18 are called…

11. A lot of public schools are… where pupils live as well as study.

12. The most famous public schools include…

13. These schools are attended by…

14. At the age of 16 pupils take… and they may…

15. Those who stay at school prepare for…

16. To enter a British university you need good “A” level results in…

17. The oldest universities in Britain are…

18. Universities award…

19. Post-secondary education in England is also provided by…

20. City Technology Colleges operate in… and they are… .

Shopping

Read the text and make a mind map "Shopping"

When we want to buy something, we go to a shop. There are many kinds of shops in every town or city, but most of them have a food supermarket, a department store, men's and women's clothing stores, grocery, a bakery and a butchery.

I like to do my shopping at big department stores and supermarkets. They sell various goods under one roof and this is very convenient. A department store, for example, true to its name, is composed of many departments: readymade clothes, fabrics, shoes, sports goods, toys, china and glass, electric appliances, cosmetics, linen, curtains, cameras, records, etc. You can buy everything you like there.

There are also escalators in big stores which take customers to different floors. The things for sale are on the counters so that they can be easily seen. In the women's clothing department you can find dresses, costumes, blouses, skirts, coats, beautiful underwear and many other things. In the men's clothing department you can choose suits, trousers, overcoats, ties, etc. In the knitwear department one can buy sweaters, cardigans, short-sleeved and long-sleeved pullovers, woolen jackets. In the perfumery they sell face cream and powder, lipstick, lotions and shampoos.

In a food supermarket we can also buy many different things at once: sausages, fish, sugar, macaroni, flour, cereals, tea. At the butcher's there is a wide choice of meat and poultry. At the bakery you buy brown and white bread, rolls, biscuits. Another shop we frequently go to is the greengrocery which is stocked by cabbage, potatoes, onions, cucumbers, carrots, beetroots, green peas etc. Everything is sold here ready-weighed and packed. If you call round at a dairy you can buy milk, cream, cheese, butter and many other products.

The methods of shopping may vary. It may be a self service shop where the customer goes from counter to counter selecting and putting into a basket what he wishes to buy. Then he takes the basket to the check-out counter, where the prices of the purchases are added up. If it is not a self-service shop, and most small shops are not, the shop-assistant helps the customer in finding what he wants. You pay money to the cashier and he gives you back the change.

To read about mind-mapping, click here. You can use online mind-mapping services, for example http://mindmapfree.com/

Window on Britain - Homes

Now watch the episode which we worked with at the lesson with subtitles.

U.S.System of Education

Watch a video about U.S. system of education and make a mind map on this topic. Remember a mind map is a diagram used to visually organize information. To read about mind-mapping, click here. You can use online mind-mapping services, for example http://mindmapfree.com/

You can start with making the list of key words on the topic. Post them in the comments here.

Technologies in Education

Today we are having a lesson in our linguophonic classroom and unfortunately the overhead projector doesn't work so I'll be using my blog as a substitute for the whiteboard. I thought I would comment on these posts as they are parts of a lesson on "Technologies in Education".

The aim of the first activity is to introduce the topic and to create motivation. The students must look at the list and try to guess which of these we'll be using at the lesson.

•Internet connection

•Computers or laptops for learners

•Laptop and projector

•TV or DVD player

•Interactive whiteboard

•Digital applications for learning

•Mobile phones or tablets

•Overhead projector

•CD or tape player

Of course, I'm going to ask the students to compare their expectations with the reality at the end of the lesson (and to complete the list with some uses of technologies not mentioned above - online dictionary, Youtube video, seach engine etc.).

Songs and Grammar: Tom's Diner

Listen to the song by Susan Vega and write down all the verbs in Present Continuous. 

The focus is on the meaning of the present continuous tense - it expresses an action which is going on at the present moment.
Students use the word processor to type their answers.

Wee Willie Winkie Nursery Rhyme

"Wee Willie Winkie" is a Scottish nursery rhyme whose titular figure has become popular the world over as a personification of sleep. The poem was written by William Miller and titled "Willie Winkie", first published in Whistle-binkie: Stories for the Fireside in 1841.

Lyrics

Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town, 

Upstairs and downstairs in his nightgown; 

Rapping at the window, crying through the lock, 

"Are the children all in bed, for now it's eight o'clock?"

Primary School Teacher Halloween Kit

1. Learn the Halloween Song about going trick-or-treat with the children in your class (don't forget about the movements). They are sure to enjoy it.

2. Watch the cartoon about this cute little witch. Your pupils will like the chants and songs after the story. Moreover, it's a good chance to revise House, Furniture and Parts of Body vocabulary.

Winnie the Witch

3. Watch a series about Wizadora with your pupils.

Wizadora

Appearance and Personality - Vocabulary Exercises

1. Read and learn the new words. Write down them into your vocabulary.

ordinary pleasant pleasant-looking a beard moustache athletic distinguished generous moderate resolute tactful sociable

звичайний приємний приємної зовнішності борода вуса спортивний видний щедрий стриманий рішучий тактовний товариський

talkative qualified honest stubborn kind gentle clever practical impractical full of common sense

балакучий кваліфікований чесний впертий добрий м’який розумний практичний непрактичний сповнений здорового глузду

2. Complete the story with ‘m, am, ‘s, is, are. Translate the story about Helen’s  family.

Hi, I__ Helen. I__ an ordinary schoolgirl. People say I__ a pretty girl. I__ slim and tall. I go in for sports and I have a very good figure. My hair __long and fair, my eyes __blue. I have a snub nose and full lips. I took after my father in character that’s why I’d like to start telling you about my family with my Dad.

My Dad __42. He has got dark hair and grey eyes. He looks both athletic and distinguished. He __generous and moderate, though resolute, he’s tactful. My father __always busy.

I’m very happy to look like my mother. She __a beautiful woman and she doesn’t look her age. My mother is a doctor and is very qualified for her job. My Mum __very sociable but not talkative and has beautiful manners.

Then, I have an elder brother. His name __ Alex. He __a nice guy, very honest. He __a student. Sometimes I think that my brother __a bit stubborn. Nevertheless he __pleasant to deal with. We get along very well. We __ friends. Alex looks like our father. He __handsome, neither slim nor stout. He wears a beard and moustache. He has a straight nose and thin lips. He isn’t married yet.

And finally my Granny. Her name __Helen too. I took my name after my grandmother. She __a pleasant-looking woman in her sixties, with soft brown hair and warm dark-brown eyes. She __kind and gentle. My mother __a clever woman but a bit impractical, and she needs my granny’s advice. My granny __practical and full of common sense.

3. Look through the text and find the English equivalents to the phrases.

Кирпатий ніс, мати гарну фігуру, бути звичайною школяркою, світле волосся, наслідувати характер тата, бути щедрим, виглядати спортивним, видний, виглядати як мама (тато), привабливий, приваблива, не виглядати на свій вік, мати гарні манери, трохи впертий, прямий ніс, не стрункий і не товстий, носити вуса та бороду, з ним приємно мати справу, за 60, тонкі губи, повні губи, карі очі, потребувати поради, трохи непрактична, бути дуже практичним, мати здоровий глузд.

4. Complete the sentences with the words from the box.

practical  brother  sense  deal   character   look   straight   age  ordinary   snub   married   qualified   wears   distinguished   stubborn   moustache

1.         I want to say that I am an ________ school-girl.

2.         I took after my father in ________ and I _______ like my mother.

3.         I have a ______ nose but my brother has a ________ nose.

4.         People say my father looks ________ and my mother doesn’t look her _____ .

5.         My ______ is pleasant to deal with.

6.         He is a bit ________ .

7.         My brother wears a beard and ________ .

8.         He isn’t ________ yet.

9.         My mother is very _______ and full of common _______ .

10.     She is very _______ for the job.

5. Complete with the correct preposition:

1. I took … my father in character.

2. Nevertheless he is pleasant to deal … .

3. I go … … sports because I want to have a nice figure.

4. I’d like to start telling you … my family.

5. Certainly I have a lot … interests.

6. My grandmother is a pleasant-looking woman … her sixties, … brown hair and dark-brown eyes.

7. Her colleagues say that my mother is qualified … for the job.

6. Complete the sentences about yourself.

ABOUT MY FAMILY AND MYSELF

Hi, I am … (name).  I am a student of … .

People say I am … (pretty/ good-looking/ beautiful…). I am … (tall/ average height/ short) and … (slim/ neither slim nor stout/ stout). My hair is … (long/ shoulder-length/ short) and … (blond/ fair/ dark/ red). My eyes are … (blue/ grey/ brown/ green). I have a … (snub/straight) nose and … (full/thin) lips. I took after my … (father/ mother/ grandfather/ grandmother) in character.

My Dad … (how old?). He is a …(businessman/ miner/ lawyer/ driver/ farmer/ doctor/ worker/ teacher/ builder/ …). My father has got …. hair and … eyes. He is… (риси характеру: generous/ moderate/ clever/ honest/ resolute/ …).

I’m very happy to look like my mother. Her name is… She is a …(beautiful/good-looking) woman. She has … hair and … eyes. My mother is a … (doctor/ teacher/ shop-assistant/ businesswoman/ housewife/ bookkeeper) and is very qualified for her job. She is … (риси характеру: full of common sense/ a bit unpractical/ a clever woman/ kind and gentle/ …).

Then, I have a/an …(elder/younger) … (brother/ sister). His/Her name is… . He (she) is …(риси характеру). Sometimes I think that my … (brother/ sister) is a bit …(stubborn/ talkative/ lazy). He (she) looks like my …(father/ mother). He (she) is … (handsome/ good-looking) and …(tall/ short/ average height). His (her) hair is… and his (her) eyes are… . He (she) has a …(straight/snub/small) nose and … (thin/full) lips. He (she)…(is/isn’t) married.

Our family is (friendly/ nice/ wonderful). 

The United Kingdom - Video and Wordlist

This episode of the famous BBC programme offers you a very clear introduction to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. For my third year students and all those who are interested.

The United Kingdom (Wordlist)

across

aircraft

Angles

arrive

Atlantic Ocean

automobile

beautiful
beans
beanstalk

British Isles

Jack and Beanstalk (Home Reading)

Завдання до позааудиторного читання

 PRE-READING.

1. Match the words to their translation:

1)    magic beans 2)    beanstalk 3)    cow 4)    price 5)    climb 6)    castle 7)    giant 8)    golden hen 9)    harp 10) axe

a) лізти b) корова c) замок d) велетень e) чарівні боби f) сокира g) стовбур боба h) ціна i) золота курка j) арфа

READING

2. Read the tale and answer the questions:

1) Why did Jack take the cow to the market?

2) Who did Jack meet on his way to the market?

3) What price did the old man offer for the cow?

4) What did Jack’s mother do with the beans?

5) What did they see in the morning?

6) Who lived in the castle?

7) What things did Jack steal from the giant?

8) How did he escape?

 POST-READING

3. Put the sentences into the correct order:

1) A huge beanstalk grows up into the sky and Jack climbs it.

2) Jack climbs up again to get the giant’s magic harp.

3) Jack goes to the market and meets a strange old man.

4) The boy enters a castle of a giant and steals a golden hen.

5) Jack returns home with the beans and his mother throws them away.

6) The giant runs after Jack and the boy cuts the beanstalk with an axe.

7) The old man offers seven magic beans for Jack’s cow.

8) Jack and his mother become rich, but Jack gets bored soon.

4. Look through the text again and find who said these words:

-        That’s a nice cow!

-        How stupid! Oh you silly boy!

-        I’m going to climb it.

-        Come in, before my husband arrives home.

-        I smell the blood of an Englishman.

-        Master! Master! Help me!

5. Transform direct speech into indirect speech:

Remember: Present Indefinite – Past Indefinite

                     Future Indefinite – Future-in-the-Past

                     Present Continuous – Past Continuous

Example: “I’ll buy the cow”, - said the man.

                The man said that he would buy the cow.

1)    Jack’s mother said: “We need money to buy food”.

2)    The strange man said: “That is a nice cow”.

3)    Jack said: “I’m off to market to sell it”.

4)    The old man said: “I’ll give you a good price for her”.

5)    Jack said: “I’ll take the beans”.

6)    Jack said: “I’m going to climb the beanstalk”.

7)    The giant said: “I’ll grind his bones to make my bread”.

8)    The giant’s wife said: “You are imagining things”.

9)    She added: “There is no Englishman here”.

Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush

"Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush" (also titled "Mulberry Bush" or "This is the Way") is an English language nursery rhyme and singing game. The rhyme was first recorded by James Orchard Halliwell as an English children's game in the mid-19th century. He noted that there was a similar game with the lyrics 'Here we go round the bramble bush'. The bramble bush may be an earlier version, possibly changed because of the difficulty of the alliteration, since mulberries do not grow on bushes.

Mulberry

Halliwell said subsequent verses included: 'This is the way we wash our clothes', 'This is the way we dry our clothes', 'This is the way we mend our shoes', 'This is the way the gentlemen walk' and 'This is the way the ladies walk'.

Digraph Song

The Digragh Song will help you to revise such diagraph as sh, wh, ch, th, ph, gh, ng.

Task: Write the transcription of the consonant sounds that these diagraphs make. Copy out the examples from the song.

Happy Birthday, Hermione Granger!

Today Harry Potter series fans celebrate Hermione Granger's birthday :)

This is the Key to the Kingdom

Get ready for school practice! Watch and learn!

Inspired by the British Classic Films

Have a look at these beautiful drawings by Victoria Mokrush. I can't help admiring her talent.

Elizabeth Bennet (from Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" adaptation, 1995 TV series)

You won't fail to recognize the main characters of  Charlotte Brontë's "Jane Eyre" performed by Timothy Dalton and Zelah Clarke (1983 TV series)

The Months by Sara Coleridge

This beautiful poem will help you to memorise lots of seasons vocabulary so it's really worth to learn it by heart.

Before-reading activity: Matching

The Months

by Sara Coleridge

January brings the snow,
makes our feet and fingers glow.

February brings the rain,
Thaws the frozen lake again.

March brings breezes loud and shrill,
stirs the dancing daffodil.

April brings the primrose sweet,
Scatters daisies at our feet.

May brings flocks of pretty lambs,
Skipping by their fleecy dams.

June brings tulips, lilies, roses,
Fills the children’s hand with posies.

Hot July brings cooling showers,
Apricots and gillyflowers.

August brings the sheaves of corn,
Then the Harvest home is borne.

Warm September brings the fruit,
Sportsmen then begin to shoot.

Fresh October brings the pheasant;
Then to gather nuts is pleasant.

Dull November brings the blast,
Then the leaves are falling fast.

Chill December brings the sleet,
Blazing fire and Christmas treat.

Vocabulary Practice

Seasons, an interactive worksheet by nataliabielova
liveworksheets.com

Англійська література для дітей 20 ст. - Семінар

Семінар 9-10

Англійська література для дітей 20 ст.

План

1. Поезія Алана Мілна для дітей - неповторне явище англійської дитячої літератури. Різноманітність перекладів віршів Мілна українською та російською мовами.

2. Світ дилогії А.Мілна про Вінні Пуха. Мовна гра, каламбури та абсурдні вірші як характерна риса казок про Вінні Пуха.

3. Образ Доктора Дулітла в казках Хью Лофтінга як прототип Лікара Айболить. Спільне та відмінне в творах Х.Лофтінга та К.Чуковського.

4. Міфологічна система повісті-казки "Хоббіт" Джона Рональда Рейєла Толкіна.

Корисні посилання

Аналіз казки-повісті А.Мілна

State Exam in English 2016

Here's the list of the topics for conversation at the state exam in English for groups 42-Ш, 43-Ш:

1.    About my family and myself.

2.    My future profession.

3.    My working day and my day off.

4.    Food and drink. Traditional British Meals.

5.    My flat and my room.

6.    My friend’s appearance and personality.

7.    My favourite book for children by an English writer.

8.    Seasons and weather.

9.    Travelling. Different means of travelling.

10. Sports in our life.

11. My plans for future.

12. We study English.

13. My pastime. Hobbies.

14. Environmental protection in Ukraine.

15. The country I live in – Ukraine.

16. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

17. The USA.

18. Kyiv is the capital of Ukraine.

19. London is the capital of Great Britain.

20. The life of youth in Ukraine.

21. Education in Ukraine.

22. Education in the U.K.

23. At the shop.

24. English poetry for children.

25. What I think about the teaching profession.

26. Children’s toys and games. My favourite toy.

27. Cinema. My favourite film.

28. English is the language of international communication.

29. My pedagogical school.

30. Secondary education in Ukraine and the UK.