Tag: C1

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #7: Do wonders for

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is….

to do wonders for

Introduce it to your students with a personalised example:

“Getting away from the city for a couple of days did wonders for my mental health.”

Show them some more examples to help them grasp the meaning:

All that sunshine does wonders for your mood.

Yoga will do wonders for his fitness.

Fresh vegetables and pure water can do wonders for the liver.

Get a pet – my dog has done wonders for my soul.

The expression means to have a big positive effect on something. It’s most often used to describe positive impacts on physical or mental health, but can also be used to describe improvements to relationships or reputations.

The couples therapy did wonders for their marriage.

The announcement of the ceasefire did wonders for the country’s standing on the world stage.

Put students in pairs or small groups and have them think of some examples:

  1. A product or activity that has had a positive impact on their mental or physical health.
  2. Some advice you could give a couple who are going through a rough patch.
  3. Something that a celebrity did that had a really good impact on their career or reputation.
Posted in Advanced C1, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #6: Spare a Thought for…

Posted on by Tim Warre

The phrase of the day today is…

Spare a thought for someone.

As we’re over a year into the horrific war in Ukraine, we should spare a thought for all of the people who have been killed, injured or displaced as a result of Russia’s brutal invasion.

The expression means to stop and think about that group of people. The expression often appears like this:

Spare a thought for those less fortunate than you.

Encourage your students to think of other marginalised groups who need more support and attention at the moment. Perhaps consider creating a poster display with all your students’ messages of support for different groups.

Have them discuss the following questions in pairs:

  1. How often do you think people spare a thought for those less fortunate than them these days?
  2. What else can be done to raise awareness of the plight of marginalised groups?
  3. Do you know anyone who has taken in refugees or offered support in other ways?
  4. Would you be willing to do it?

Use this Quizlet set to practice past phrases of the day.

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #5: Contrary to Popular Belief, …

Posted on by Tim Warre

The phrase of the day today is….

“Contrary to popular belief,….”

Introduce it to your students with some examples:

“Contrary to popular belief, you can’t catch a cold just from being cold.”

“Contrary to popular belief, gorillas are shy and gentle creatures.”

“Contrary to popular belief, British cuisine is actually quite good.”

The expression is used to introduce a fact or statement that is the opposite of what most ordinary people think

Challenge students to be stereotype/myth busters. They can either choose to disprove a stereotype about people from their country/region using the expression, or they can disprove a commonly held theory or “old wives’ tale”.

Please post some of their example sentences in the comments!

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #4: To Draw the Line at

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is….

“To draw the line at something”

Introduce it to your students in a personalised example:

“I like scary movies but I draw the line at the Saw films, they’re too gory for me.”

Ask them to guess the meaning with their partner. The expression means to set a limit on what you’re willing to do or accept. You could show them more examples:

“I like exotic pizza toppings, but I draw the line at pineapple.”

“She’s all for her daughter expressing herself but she draws the line at her getting a nose ring.”

First have students consider the three examples. When it comes to horror films, where do they draw the line? What about pizza toppings? Where did their parents draw the line when they were growing up?

Encourage them to write 2 or 3 personalised examples and share them with the class.

Here’s the quizlet set with all of the phrases of the day so far.

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #3: Keep your options open

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is…

“To keep one’s options open”

Introduce it to your students in a personalised sentence, for example:

“When I chose my A-Level subjects, I wanted to keep my options open so I picked psychology, English literature, history and media studies.”

The expression means to wait before making a final decision in case a different option arises.

You could show them some more examples:

“I thought maybe I’d keep my options open, maybe I’d go on a skiing trip, camping trip or something later.”

Film star: “At this stage, I’m just keeping my options open and I’ll sit down with my agent and see what comes along.”

“I’ve had offers from two different colleges but I’m keeping my options open just for now.”

Ask students to discuss the following questions in pairs:

  1. Have you made a final decision about….
    • What you want to study at uni/as a masters?
    • What career you want to go into?
    • Where you’re going on your next holidays?
  2. What are the pros and cons of keeping your options open?
  3. Are you a decisive person?
    • What is your process for making big decisions?
Posted in Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #2: Try as I might…

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase of the day is….

“Try as I might…”

Introduce it to your student by confessing about your inability to stick to a new resolution of healthy habit. You could say:

“Try as I might, I just can’t get out of bed in the morning to go to the gym. What should I do?”

Encourage students to come up with their own confessional sentences about their lives:

“Try as I might, I just can’t seem to find the time to….”

Encourage feedback on their issues from their classmates. Each student should leave with an action plan on how they can get over their issue. Be sure to check back in on their progress in the following class.

I’ll be adding all the phrases of the day to this quizlet set.

Posted in Advanced C1, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #1: Strange as it may seem…

Posted on by Tim Warre

I’m trying to introduce some micro-learning to my proficiency class by starting a “phrase of the day” system. I’ll collect them in a Quizlet set so I can revisit them.

The first one is:

Strange as it may seem, ….

OR

Strange as it may sound, ….

I’ll introduce it to my students in a sentence about myself:

“Strange as it may sound for someone who is petrified of heights, I actually love rollercoasters.”

You can also use corpus websites like Skell, to show students more examples, though personalised sentences are always more effective.

Allow students to react to the meaning of the sentence. Do they think it’s strange that I like rollercoasters as Simeone who is scared of heights? How do I rationalise it?

Then have students come up with three examples about their own life. Encourage them to think carefully about some interesting or contradictory facts about themselves.

Have them read their sentences to each other and use it as a jumping off point for a short conversation. Can they find common ground? Who has the strangest fact?

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Proficiency, Writing Classes

C1+ A Video Game Review

Posted on by Tim Warre

This is a lesson plan for C1+ students who are preparing for Cambridge exams in which they have to write reviews of video games. Students will learn about the storytelling technique “in media res” and analyse a model text of an informal video game review. Download the handout, PowerPoint and key below:

C1_-A-Video-Game-Review-Student-Handout-1Download
C1_-A-Video-Game-Review-Student-HandoutDownload
C1_-A-Video-Game-Review-KEYDownload
C1_-A-Video-Game-Review-KEYDownload
Storytelling-Techniques_-In-media-resDownload

Overcooked: Cooperative Cooking Chaos

A bead of sweat rolls down your forehead as you frantically rush from chopping board to frying pan. “Two cheeseburgers with everything, then a pepperoni pizza, then two sushi rolls.” You hear your colleague, a raccoon in a wheelchair, shout. “Ok, we’ve got this” you shout back. Then, out of the blue, the kitchen splits in two, and a giant rat steals your tomato! Don’t worry, you’re not having a nightmare, it’s the new, chaos-filled cooking extravaganza that is Overcooked! If you’re a fan of fast-paced teamwork, hilarious mishaps, and delicious meals, this is the game for you.

In Overcooked, you and your pals take on the role of chefs working frantically to prepare and serve up tasty dishes. But it’s not as simple as just tossing some ingredients together and throwing them on a plate. Oh no, no, no. You’ll be tasked with all kinds of crazy challenges, from cooking on a pirate ship to dodging traffic on a busy street.

Now, here’s the real kicker: you have to work together to get it done. That’s right, it’s a co-op game, which means you’ll need to communicate, delegate tasks, and keep an eye on the clock if you want to succeed. But never fear, even if you burn the soup or accidentally set the kitchen on fire, it’s all in good fun.

The mechanics of the game are simple enough for anyone to pick up, but the challenges quickly become more and more demanding. You’ll need to chop, fry, boil, and plate dishes as fast as you can while avoiding obstacles. It’s easier said than done, but trust me, when you finally manage to serve up that perfectly cooked sushi roll, the sense of satisfaction is unbeatable.

Overall, I’d say Overcooked is an absolute blast to play with friends. It’s the kind of game that will have you shouting and laughing and high-fiving each other (or apologising profusely for dropping the pizza on the floor). I’d recommend it to anyone who loves a good party game or just wants to bond with their buddies over some virtual cooking chaos. So fire up the grill and get ready to serve up some culinary mayhem!

Read the text and answer the questions:

  1. What type of game is it?
  2. What cooperative elements does it have?
  3. Why is it fun?
  4. Who does the writer recommend the game to?
Posted in Advanced C1, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

C1+: Teaching Idioms & Expressions Through Contrastive Analysis

Posted on by Tim Warre

This is a lesson plan for C1+ Spanish speaking students. Students use contrastive analysis to compare Spanish idioms and expressions with their English equivalent. It was inspired by an activity in Leo Selivan’s book Lexical Grammar. Download the student handout and key below:

Contrastive-Analysis-Expressions-Student-HandoutDownload
Contrastive-Analysis-Expressions-Student-HandoutDownload
KEY-Contrastive-Analysis-ExpressionsDownload
KEY-Contrastive-Analysis-ExpressionsDownload
Posted in Advanced C1, B2 First, Conversation Classes, Guest Posts, Vocabulary Classes

Guest post: “A Long Time Coming” – Vocabulary/collocations related to national identity and obtaining dual citizenship – B2+

Posted on by Tim Warre

This is a guest post by Steve Krajewski from English Coach Online on the topic of national identity and gaining dual citizenship.

Steve writes texts based on his own life experiences and shares them with students. His texts are packed with phrases and collocations that are common in spoken English.

For this post, Steve decided to focus on a text called ‘A long time coming’. This text will enable students to discuss whether they’ve ever done a family tree, what they know about their ancestors and to what extent gaining dual citizenship would have an impact on their lives.

Skills practiced include listening for gist, guessing the meanings of words from context and scanning the text for details.

__________

Download the teacher’s notes and the student handout below:

Students-handout-A-long-time-comingDownload
Students-handout-A-long-time-comingDownload
Teachers-notes-Answer-keyDownload
Teachers-notes-Answer-keyDownload

Download the audio file for the text here:

Long time coming audio.

Student Handout

A long time coming

As I have the right to obtain Polish citizenship by descent, I’ve been spending a great deal of time getting to grips with the Law on Polish citizenship and asking specialists for advice about which documents I need to submit for my application.

Obtaining Polish citizenship by descent is relatively straightforward. Considering the uncertainty surrounding Brexit, and the future rights of British citizens who wish to travel, live and work in the EU, holding dual citizenship might be very useful down the line. My father will apply for a Polish passport as well.

A few weeks ago, I hired a genealogist to carry out research on my Polish ancestors. I’ve learned some revealing things about my grandfather, such as the fact that the Soviets deported him and his family to Arkhangelsk, Russia, in 1940. My researcher has also discovered the names, birthplaces and educational backgrounds of my grandfather’s siblings and parents.

Applying for Polish citizenship has made me wonder why so many people don’t take an interest in their roots and ancestors. I certainly feel a little guilty for not visiting the villages connected with my ancestors when I lived in Poland on and off between 2006 and 2013.

So – what do you think? Should families research their family history and start a family tree together?

WORDS AND PHRASES

– a long time coming – arriving or happening after a lot of time has passed

(here I refer to my regrets that it took such a long time to learn about my

relatives)

– citizenship – the position or status of being a citizen of a particular

country

– (by) descent – the origin or background of a person in terms of family or

nationality

– get to grips (with something) – to start to deal with a problem, situation, or job that you have to do

– submit – to give or offer something for a decision to be made by others

– straightforward – uncomplicated and easy to do or understand

– uncertainty – a situation in which something is not known for sure

– surrounding – related to; around; involved with

– rights – a moral or legal entitlement to have or do something

– dual citizenship – the status of a person who is a legal citizen of two or more countries

– down the line – in the future

– genealogist – a person who traces or studies lines of family descent

– carry out research (on something) – a careful study of a subject (e.g. medical/historical/scientific), especially in order to discover new facts or information about it

– revealing – showing something that was not previously known or seen

– educational background – your educational background refers to all of the education you have received

– take an interest (in something) – be concerned or curious

– roots – family origins, or the particular place you come from and the experiences you have had living there

– ancestor – a person related to you who lived a long time ago (usually

before grandparents)

– (feel) guilty – to feel intense regret for something

– on and off – only for part of a period of time; not in a regular or

continuous way

– family tree – a diagram showing the relationship between people in several generations of a family

Read Steve’s posts related to ELT and language learning here: https://englishcoachonline.com/blog/