Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Greetings in English
From a Facebook conversation:
Tiffany: Native English Speakers, When you greet someone on a day to day basis, what words do you say? And what is the typical answer? Be honest, variety helps!
Laurie: Hello or Hi.......then i tell them that my Nan thinks i'm wonderful ;) hehehe
Angus: Howdy!
Tiffany: Laurie, you never use ''g'day"?
Laurie: maybe only sometimes.......Grandpa Bill says it & i also know a few others that use it all the time too :) another one I & other people i know say is "Hey"......Mum says Hello too....Oh & Nan says "G'day" too :)
Sevika: Hey, how's it going? Or simply the very South African, howzit!
Vance: For telephones I always use "Ahoy", as Alexander Graham Bell would have wanted. In real life, theres no telling what you'll get when you see me. Any thing from me pretending to tie my shoes to avoid talking to you, to a loud and disingenuous "HEY, HOW YOU DOIN' BUDDY!"
Joe: If I saw you this morning I would say "Hey Tiffany"
Sarah: hey, how are you/how was your day?
reply: good/quite good/ok/busy/the usual
Sarah: @Vance: what do you do if you bend down to tie your shoes, and you realise you have no laces, or velcro?
Vance:
I've many tactics for avoiding talking to insipid fools. shoelaces are just one.
Alicia: We always say "good morning" and reply "good morning" at work - everyone.
Barb: I say hiya which is very british
Lisa: If it is someone I know well, I usually say "Hey" or "Hey there!". If it is more an acquaintance (that I'd see on a day-to-day basis), I us "Hi" or "Hello". The reply is usually a repeat of the greeting I used. (Beyond this is the very typical but meaningless "How are you doing?" to which the reply is a very non-committal "Fine", "Good" or a plea-for-connection-through-shared-misery, "Tired", "Exhausted".)
Let's try to use these every day expressions the next time we meet.
Tiffany: Native English Speakers, When you greet someone on a day to day basis, what words do you say? And what is the typical answer? Be honest, variety helps!
Laurie: Hello or Hi.......then i tell them that my Nan thinks i'm wonderful ;) hehehe
Angus: Howdy!
Tiffany: Laurie, you never use ''g'day"?
Laurie: maybe only sometimes.......Grandpa Bill says it & i also know a few others that use it all the time too :) another one I & other people i know say is "Hey"......Mum says Hello too....Oh & Nan says "G'day" too :)
Sevika: Hey, how's it going? Or simply the very South African, howzit!
Vance: For telephones I always use "Ahoy", as Alexander Graham Bell would have wanted. In real life, theres no telling what you'll get when you see me. Any thing from me pretending to tie my shoes to avoid talking to you, to a loud and disingenuous "HEY, HOW YOU DOIN' BUDDY!"
Joe: If I saw you this morning I would say "Hey Tiffany"
Sarah: hey, how are you/how was your day?
reply: good/quite good/ok/busy/the usual
Sarah: @Vance: what do you do if you bend down to tie your shoes, and you realise you have no laces, or velcro?
Vance:
I've many tactics for avoiding talking to insipid fools. shoelaces are just one.
Alicia: We always say "good morning" and reply "good morning" at work - everyone.
Barb: I say hiya which is very british
Lisa: If it is someone I know well, I usually say "Hey" or "Hey there!". If it is more an acquaintance (that I'd see on a day-to-day basis), I us "Hi" or "Hello". The reply is usually a repeat of the greeting I used. (Beyond this is the very typical but meaningless "How are you doing?" to which the reply is a very non-committal "Fine", "Good" or a plea-for-connection-through-shared-misery, "Tired", "Exhausted".)
Let's try to use these every day expressions the next time we meet.
Friday, September 24, 2010
New English File
This is a link to many activities for English students of all levels. New English File, part of Oxford University Press.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Write Your Shopping List in English!
We're always looking for new ways to integrate English into our life and make it more 'natural'. Try writing your shopping list in English. Try writing in your diary in English.
Have you turned your mobile to 'English' yet?
Photo: Albert Vila (India, 2008)
Photo: Albert Vila (India, 2008)
Cambridge School Blog
Hello everyone,
I came across the Cambridge School Blog and it has some interesting pieces. Take a look when you have time.
Photo: Tiffany Jones (Sumatra, 2009)
Monday, September 20, 2010
September Theme: Self Introductions
This month we'll be concentrating on giving brief self-introductions. What is appropriate information, and what isn't? If I am the listener, what questions can I ask?
Write up a self-introduction including your name, country of birth, some family details, your work and your hobbies. You can also add more personal information, for example, if you own a pet, or your favourite books/movies and how you spend your leisure time.
Take a look at the the two videos below. The first one is short and to the point. The second one may take some more time to understand.
Write up a self-introduction including your name, country of birth, some family details, your work and your hobbies. You can also add more personal information, for example, if you own a pet, or your favourite books/movies and how you spend your leisure time.
Take a look at the the two videos below. The first one is short and to the point. The second one may take some more time to understand.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Power English
I just stumbled across this Ted Power website with some great information for English learners. Take a look!
Remember, for all the links and information that one accumulates, it all means nothing if you don't apply it. Simply spoken: study for results!
Photo: Tiffany Jones (Lake Toba, Sumatra)
Monday, September 6, 2010
Typical Problems for Spanish Learners
This was an excellent PDF for Vocabulary Problems for Spanish Learners. From what I can tell, it costs money to down load it. Intermediate or Advanced.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Body Parts
See if you can name all of the parts of the face.
See if you can name all of the parts of the body. Write them down.
Here is a Spanish/English word game. Click on the 'new game' for news to appear.
The following is a rather slow video, but you can use it for pronunciation practice. Good luck!
Prepositions
Prepositions are locators in time and place.
Read the following:
You can sit before the desk (or in front of the desk). The professor can sit on the desk (when he's being informal) or behind the desk, and then his feet are under the desk or beneath the desk. He can stand beside the desk (meaning next to the desk), before the desk, between the desk and you, or even on the desk (if he's really strange). If he's clumsy, he can bump into the desk or try to walk through the desk (and stuff would fall off the desk). Passing his hands over the desk or resting his elbows upon the desk, he often looks across the desk and speaks of the desk or concerning the desk as if there were nothing else like the desk. Because he thinks of nothing except the desk, sometimes you wonder about the desk, what's in the desk, what he paid for the desk, and if he could live without the desk. You can walk toward the desk, to the desk, around the desk, by the desk, and even past the desk while he sits at the desk or leans against the desk.
For more information, visit Grammar.
The following is a very simple and quite boring video I found on Youtube. However, it is simple and clear and not too long.
Read the following:
You can sit before the desk (or in front of the desk). The professor can sit on the desk (when he's being informal) or behind the desk, and then his feet are under the desk or beneath the desk. He can stand beside the desk (meaning next to the desk), before the desk, between the desk and you, or even on the desk (if he's really strange). If he's clumsy, he can bump into the desk or try to walk through the desk (and stuff would fall off the desk). Passing his hands over the desk or resting his elbows upon the desk, he often looks across the desk and speaks of the desk or concerning the desk as if there were nothing else like the desk. Because he thinks of nothing except the desk, sometimes you wonder about the desk, what's in the desk, what he paid for the desk, and if he could live without the desk. You can walk toward the desk, to the desk, around the desk, by the desk, and even past the desk while he sits at the desk or leans against the desk.
For more information, visit Grammar.
The following is a very simple and quite boring video I found on Youtube. However, it is simple and clear and not too long.
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