Past Simple: Irregular verbs

When learning English, sooner or later you have to study the irregular verb list. It may seem a bit difficult at first but it is basic for storytelling, anecdotes or just talking about your past weekend!
Click on the links below for some very complete exercises. Try them and leave me your results as usual!

Irregular Verbs 1
Irregular Verbs 2
Irregular Verbs 3
Easy story: The Princess and the pea.
Song:The man who sold the world

Weather

This is a very common topic when learning English at basic levels, but I usually come across students who don't know much about advanced weather vocabulary and natural phenomena. Click on the links below and check your knowledge. Leave me your results in a comment as usual!

Basic Review

Weather and seasons
Weather and Natural Phenomena

Writing: My best friend

In this post I suggest you to write a short composition about your best friend. Here are some ideas to help you:

1. Introduce your friend : name, age, physical appearance, interests and hobbies.

2. How, when, where you met.

3. An important experience that you have shared.

4. Problems in your relationship.

5. Future plans together.

Recipes

English people are not very good at cooking, however it is worth having a look at the two recipes I want to share with you today. The first one is salty and more complicated, but the second one is sweet and very easy.  Do the exercises and leave the results as usual! Enjoy your meal!

Chicken and pork pie
Apple Crumble

Bioparc

Next week we'll be visiting this special zoo in Fuengirola. But first , I want you to have a look at its web site and search for the answer to these questions.Remember to leave your answers in a comment!

Bioparc Fuengirola

1. How much is a ticket for a child? And for an adult?
2. Are there family/group discounts available?
3. Are there any restaurants in the park?
4.How many habitats can you find there?
5. What is the EAZA?
6. Are there any exhibitions or special activities at the moment?

A Famous Pirate

Henry Morgan was a famous pirate from the seventeenth century. He fought in many battles, was in prison and received the title of "Sir" during his life. Click on the link below to learn more and answer the following questions.

Henry Morgan
- Who gave Henry Morgan the title of " Sir" ?
- Where was he born?
- Why did he become so famous?
- How did he go out from prison?
- What place is named after him?

Writing: My town

Writing about your town, village or city is a very common topic. It will be very easy if you follow the guidelines below. In this post I ask you to write a composition of about 80-100 words.

1. Introduce your town: location, inhabitants, climate, important festivals
2. Important places: tourist sights, relevant buildings, natural environment
3. Recommendations: restaurants, shops, special events
4. Opinion: positive and negative aspects

Merry Christmas,Mr. Bean!

In only a few days, we´ll be celebrating Chritmas again! If you want to learn about the different British traditions, click on the link below and get ready to have fun with Mr. Bean. Leave your result in your comments as usual. Merry Christmas to you all!

Merry Christmas Mr. Bean

The Great Houdini

Do you like magic? If so, you may have heard about " The Great Houdini". He was the first escapist ever. To know more about his life and career, click on the link below and then answer the questions in your comments.

The Great Houdini

1. What was Harry Houdini real name? Why did he choose that name?
2. What were his jobs to help his family?
3. What were the most famous escape tricks?
4. Apart from magic, what other interests did he have?
5. How did he die?

Trinity College Exam

If you are thinking about doing the Trinity College Exam this year, you will have to take some practice. In the link below there are examples of exams for B1 and B2, both for the Reading and Writing test and for the Speaking and Listening test. I hope you find this useful. Good luck with your exam!

Trinity Exam Samples

The Lord of the Rings

The Lord of the Rings is one of the most famous stories of English literature, but how much you really know about this fantastic books. Click on the link below and answer the questions you will find about the books, the films and other curious details.

The Lord of the Rings

Phrasal verbs

Phrasal verbs are a nightmare for anyone learning English. Some of them are easy because you can guess the meaning but for most of them you will need to check the meaning in a dictionary. I suggest you to have a look at the list below and then try the exercises. Leave your results as usual in your comments.

Phrasal verbs List

Exercises:
Easy Common Phrasal verbs
Difficult Phrasal verbs
Advanced Phrasal verbs

Questions in English

Making questions in English is essential for oral communication. First of all, you need to know the appropriate question words, then you have to be careful with word order and, finally, you should distinguish between subject and object questions. In this post, we are going to revise these grammar points. Are you ready to begin? Click on the links below and leave your results in a comment as usual.

Question words
Making questions

Subject and Object Questions

Back to School

Next week most secondary students will be back to school. There are some differences between the schoolday in Britain and in Spain. Click on the video below and watch Jamie's routine. Then leave the answer to the questions in a comment.

1.  Who is Annette? What does she do?

2. What time does lesson one start? What two other school routines happen before lesson one?

3. How long is the break?

4. What subject is ICT?

5. Does Jamie go home for lunch? What does he eat?

6. What time does school finish?

Do and Make

A lot of students make mistakes when using the verbs "do" and "make". Therefore, it is a good idea to revise the most common expressions that go with them. Click on the video below  and them do the exercises in the links. Remember to leave your results in a comment.

Do and make - Basic level
Do and Make - Medium level
Do and Make - Advanced level

Learning English with apps

In this post I want to recommend you some apps for learning English. Most of them are free but you can find as well a premium version that you will have to pay for. Have a look at them and give me your opinion. Have you ever used other apps for learning English that don't appear here? Please share them!

1. WordReference: This is a dictionary app. It is very useful for translations and synonyms.
2. MosaLingua Lite: It is a basic vocabulary app related to specific situations.
3. Busuu: It is a complete language course with different levels.
4. LearnEnglish Grammar: It is an app from the British Council with lots of grammar exercises.
5. Vaughan Radio: This app is for developing your listening.
6. Sounds: Pronunciation App: It is a good Macmillan app for relating spelling and pronunciation.

Huckleberry Finn

This novel written by Mark Twain is the story of two teenagers who live in a world where slavery, racism and injustice are acceptable. This satirical story is one of the most famous books of American Literature. Therefore, I suggest you to follow the link below and answer five out of the nine questions you'll find there. Leave the answers in your comments as usual.

Huckleberry Finn

Confusing Words

For English learners, using some words correctly can be a real problem. In this video lesson, you can learn about some of the most confusing words for English learners, and you can see how to use the words correctly so that you don't make more mistakes.

After watching the video, do the quiz in the link below and leave your results in a comment.

Quiz: Confusing Words

Travelling

Travelling is one of my favourite activities during the summer and I guess I'm not the only one. It could be a good idea to check how much travel vocabulary you are familiar with. Click on the links below, do the exercises and leave your results in a comment. Enjoy your travel!

Travel Vocabulary 1
Travel Vocabulary 2
Travel Vocabulary 3
Travel Vocabulary 4

Writing: A Film Review

Writing a film review can be really easy if you follow the steps below:

1. Gather important information ( original title, type of film, stars, director's name, year )
2. Make a short summary about the story. Include when and where the story takes place,what happens to the main characters and how the story ends.
3. Give your personal opinion about the actors, the story, the music, the visual effects and so on. Recommend it to the audience or not, but don't forget to justify your critics.
4. Finally, revise your spelling, grammar and vocabulary in search for mistakes.

And now that you know how to do it, it's your turn to prove it. Choose a film and make a good or bad critic. Write about 40-70 words  and leave them in your comments.