Personal Profile, by Clara ( 2ºD-NB )

Hello!!

My name is Clara. I am sixteen years old , I am Spanish and I live in Pillarno, a little village next to Avilés. I live in a house with my parents . My mother's name is Mª Fe and my father's name is Juan Manuel. I live with my two brothers too : my elder brother, whose name is Juan Manuel, and my little brother, whose name is Pedro. I have a dog , whose name is Luna.
I am a student in my fourth year at the high school and and I like it there.
I have long brown hair and pale green eyes. I wear glasses, but I want to get contact lenses soon. I am of medium height and rather brown skin.
I think, I am a very happy person with a lot of energy and lively. I am friendly, extrovert and very sportive. I am also a bit shy and a little talkative.
In my free time, I love dancing and I like going out with my friends. We go to the cinema, to the disco, etc. I love dancing because it helps me relax and forget everything. I go dancing to a private academy in Avilés. I also go to English classes on Tuesday, on Wednesday and on Thursday, because I don't study English at the high school, I study French.
I decided to study French because I like it a bit more than English.

Bye,
Clara

Personal Profile, by Emilia ( 2ºA-NB )

My name is Emilia. I 've been married for 23 years and I’ve got a daughter, her name is Marina and she is 13 years old.
I live in Avilés , a small city in the north of Spain.
I’ve got a pet whose name is Lucas. He is 8 years old and he is a Yorkshire Terrier that barks a lot.
I am a secretary but I haven’t got a job, so I'm learning English at the Official School of Languages. I have got wavy black hair and my eyes are brown. I am very friendly and sociable. I don’t like staying at home and I prefer going out with my friends.
I like swimming with dolphins as you can see in these photos. When the picture was taken we were in the Caribbean sea.

Personal Profile, by Paco ( 2º D-NB )

Hi, everyone!

My name is Francisco González, but my family and friends call me Paco. I work for a telephone company in Avilés. I have been living in Avilés for 25 years. Before that, I used to live in Madrid. I like living in Avilés, which is a small town, because here I have all that I need without the inconvenients of a big city.

This year I have begun to study English at the Official School of Languages in Aviles, I'm a second year basic level student.

I’m married and I have one son. He is 12 years old.
We like trekking and last summer we began to walk along Camino de Santiago ( Saint James' way ) . It’s a long way that goes from the Pyrenees to the city of Santiago de Compostela in the northwest of Spain. We walked for six days and next year we’ll continue from the place where we have finished this year. We hope to have gone along the whole way in five or six years.

I also like ski and every winter I go skiing with my son, who loves this sport. My wife prefers walking with her snow racquets. This is one of our favourite hobbies because we like a lot the places where it’s practised. The scenary in those places is always spectacular and that makes me feel very, very good.

In the photo you can see me and my son Javier last winter in Candanchú.

Travel to Poland !

Have a look at these two interesting ppt and get to know something more about Poland :

VIAJA A POLONIA Y CONOCE A NUESTROS ETWINNERS

La Polonia por descubrir, de Belén Álvarez Galán

Personal Profile, by Adrián ( 2º D-NB )

Hi everyone!


My name's Adrián, I'm Spanish, and I'm in my fourth year at the high school. I'm studying English in Avilés' Official Languages School too, so I'm glad to write about myself on this blog.

I'm sixteen years old, I'm quite tall and dark (so I have brown eyes and brown hair). I wear glasses and I usually wear sweaters, jeans and trainers.

I think that I'm a smart, responsible person. I think I'm friendly, but a bit shy too. I'm a very hard-working person, who doesn't like leaving things without doing them.
I live in a flat in a small town near Avilés called Las Vegas, with my parents and Samuel, my little 8-year-old brother. My brother and I share a lot of hobbies: we both like video games and building games, like LEGOs. When I was a child, I didn't want to have a brother, but now I wouldn't know how to live without him.

I have a lot of hobbies but my favourite one is Manga and Japanese animation (anime). I started a fansub (a project to subtitle anime or manga done by fans) last summer, and I used to translate a lot of anime chapters, but now I don't have enough time to translate. Fansubs take a lot of free time, and I spend a lot of time studying and doing my homework. Next holidays I'm going to subtitle more!

Well, I 'd like to add just one thing: welcome to Twinblog, everyone! I've never entered a project like this, and I think this is going to be great fun.

Bye,

Adrián Rodríguez Ares (EOI Avilés)

Writing

19th November, 2008
Writing Test for 2nd year Basic Level students

When you say nothing at all.

'When You Say Nothing at All' is a country song written by Paul Overstreett and Don Schlitz. It is among the best-known hit songs for three different performers: Keith Whitley, Alison Krauss , and Irish pop singer Ronan Keating, whose version was his first solo single and a chart-topper in the UK in 1999.

'When You Say Nothing at All' was Keating's first solo single apart from popular Irish group Boyzone. He recorded it in 1999 for the soundtrack of the film Notting Hill. The song would also appear on Keating's solo debut album Ronan the following year.

In 2003, Keating re-recorded the single as a duet with Mexican singer Paulina Rubio, which was released in Mexico and Latin America to promote a hits compilation.

If you want to practice your English with this song, click here.

Murphy ' s Law

Murphy's Law ("If anything can go wrong, it will") was born at Edwards Air Force Base in 1949.
It was named after Capt. Edward A. Murphy, an engineer working on Air Force Project MX981, (a project) designed to see how much sudden deceleration a person can stand in a crash.

Click on the title below and do some exercises taken from Groove to English.

The alien and the underdog.

Who is Barak Obama?

Presidential candidate Barak Obama showed his sense of humour joking about his identity at a white-tie charity dinner in New York city. Obama was not the only one to tell jokes and prove he has a great sense of humour . As you will see, candidate McCain can also be really funny. I found the videos hilarious and enjoyed them a great deal. Why don't you watch and see?

You can also do the following activity to check your understanding:

McCain's 'underdog' joke

(When someone is considered the 'underdog' at a competition or political election, this means they are at a disadvantage or expected to lose.)

At the same charity dinner the Republican candidate didn't waste the opportunity to make some jokes. Who did candidate John McCain thank for giving him support? Can you guess?

Are you surprised? He thanked no other than ... Hillary Clinton!

Can you imagine Zapatero and Rajoy joking like this? Would you like them to do so ?

Hints and tips for the oral exam.

You know you'll have to take a final exam at the end of the year and there is a speaking part you should prepare with special care. I have found the slide show below at Mª José's Blog . There she gives you very useful tips to help you get ready for the test.

Tips for the oral exam

View more presentations from macose.

Every Breath You Take.

I've always had a special weakness for 'Every Breath You Take', which has been one of my favourite songs since the very first time I heard it. I was in London then, and it was a long , long time ago!
The song was written by Sting , originally performed by The Police and released on the band's 1983 album Synchronicity. It became a hit in the 80's and ranks as one of the best songs of all time on several lists, like Rolling Stones'.
The song also had a remarkable music video, whose black-and-white cinematography was widely praised. Both MTV and VH1 named it as one of the greatest music videos ever.
Although the lyrics may seem highly romantic, they weren't originally intended as such. On second thought they make you think of a sinister controlling character watching your every move.
Anyway, I'll always prefer my naive first impression of something romantic.
What do you think? Does it sound romantic to you , or does it sound unnerving , even scary?

'Yes,We can' ; Barak Obama's song.

Will-I-Am of the Black Eyed Peas brought together a cast full of 'stars' to put Barack Obama’s speech to music in a powerful show of support for the Obama campaign.
Obama's oration is quite impressive and his message rings clear:

Change, Hope, Yes We Can.

But do you think he can? Do you think he will win the election and become the next USA president? If he wins, will he bring the promised change to his country?
Who would you prefer for president: Obama or McCain? Why?
I'm really interested in your opinions. You can send a comment just by clicking on the comments link below the song's lyrics.

Song's lyrics:

It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation.
Yes we can.
It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail toward freedom.
Yes we can. Yes we can.
It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores
and pioneers who pushed westward against an unforgiving wilderness.
Yes we can. Yes we can.
It was the call of workers who organized;
women who reached for the ballots;
a President who chose the moon as our new frontier;
and a King who took us to the mountain-top and pointed the way to the Promised Land.
Yes we can to justice and equality.
(yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can…)

Yes we can to opportunity and prosperity.
Yes we can to opportunity and prosperity.
Yes we can heal this nation.
Yes we can repair this world.
Yes we can. Si Se Puede
(yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can…)

We know the battle ahead will be long,
but always remember that no matter what obstacles stand in our way,
nothing can stand in the way of the power of millions of voices calling for change.
We want change!
(We want change! We want change! We want change…)

We have been told we cannot do this by a chorus of cynics who will only grow louder and more dissonant.
We’ve been asked to pause for a reality check.
We’ve been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope.
But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope. We want change!
(We want change! I want change! We want change! I want change…)

The hopes of the little girl who goes to a crumbling school in Dillon are the same as the dreams of the boy who learns on the streets of LA;
we will remember that there is something happening in America;
that we are not as divided as our politics suggests;
that we are one people;
we are one nation;
and together, we will begin the next great chapter in America’s story with three words that will ring from coast to coast;
from sea to shining sea - Yes. We. Can.
(yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can, yes we can…)

Students' Introductions.

Listen to four adult students introducing themselves. You have to find the mistakes in the texts and correct them.

Motions are Cool !

Last week, while I was surfing the Net, I came across this original technique to learn phonetics. It's called Motion Phonics. I found it very surprising but I really think it may work.
Motion Phonics is a registered methodology system. Free use of the concept and materials is granted by the author, Angel Castaño, except for profitable purposes.

Why don't you give it a try? There's nothing to lose and much to gain!

The Bluest Eyes.

Paul Newman, one of the last great 20th-century movie stars has left us for ever.
He was a stunningly handsome man. His features were so perfect that he could be described as beautiful and he had the most striking blue gaze on the screen. However, He was much more than mere good looks, he was a talented actor, starring in unforgettable films like 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof' , 'Cool hand Luke', 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' or 'The Long Hot Summer'.
On September 26 , 2008, the world lost , not only a screen legend but a good decent person, a devoted family man and philanthropist.
His main motto was, 'If you do not exploit your success in order to improve things in the world, then you are really wasting it'.
His death at the age of 83 after a long struggle against cancer has been a great loss indeed.

We'll miss you, 'Blue Eyes'.

Bleeding Love

Name_Leona Louise Lewis

Born_1985-04-03
Hackney, London, England

Genre(s)_R&B, pop, neo soul

Occupation_Singer,songwriter

Website_http://www.leonalewismusic.co.uk/

Leona Louise Lewis is a British singer, songwriter, and winner of the third series of UK television talent show The X Factor. Her UK debut single, 'A Moment Like This', broke a world record after it was downloaded over 50,000 times within 30 minutes.
Her second single, 'Bleeding Love', was the biggest-selling single of 2007 in the UK, topped over thirty national singles charts and became a number one single on the first week in France and number one in the US.
Her debut album, Spirit, was released in Europe in November 2007, and became the fastest-selling debut album ever in both the United Kingdom and Ireland. Released in North America in April 2008, Spirit debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart and made Lewis the first British solo artist to top the chart with a debut album.

(Information taken from Wikipedia)

If you like Leona Lewis as much as I do, you'll enjoy this sort of karaoke video. Whenever I watch it, I can't help singing along with her. Why don't you do the same? Just for fun!

Bleeding Love

Video by Hayzz

Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word

'Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word' is a song written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin. It’s a ballad about unrequited love.
In 2002, Blue released a version of this song, and Elton John appeared in both the recording and the music video as 'Featured Artist'. Ray Charles and Elton John also recorded this song as a 'duet' in Ray's 2004 posthumous release ‘Genius Loves Company'.

If you want to do some listening activities based on this song, click here.

Activities

In this blog you can find interactive activities sorted by their level of difficulty or the language skills they deal with. There is also a section with activities for children, under the heading Kids.
I hope you find them useful to improve your English.

• Listening
• Reading
• Writing
• Use of English
• Pronunciation

• Listening
• Reading
• Writing
• Use of English
• Pronunciation
• Speaking

• 
  

• Listening

• Reading

• Writing

• Use of English

• Pronunciation

• Listening
• Reading

Cambio de Grupo.

CAMBIO DE GRUPO.

Los alumnos que deseen cambiar de grupo deberán solicitarlo en Secretaría, desde el 29 de septiembre hasta el día 17 de octubre (último día para solicitar cambios)

Solo se concederá cambio de grupo en los siguientes casos:

- si hay plaza disponible.

- o si se permuta con otro alumno del grupo solicitado – en este caso, ambos alumnos deberán solicitarlo simultáneamente en Secretaría.

NOTA: En los tablones de anuncios de la entrada, frente a la Conserjería, existen hojas de PERMUTAS. Allí los alumnos podrán anunciarse para contactar entre sí y poder simultáneamente presentar la solicitud de cambio de grupo.

La Jefatura de Estudios atenderá a cualquier alumno que a lo largo del curso tenga problemas para asistir a clase con su grupo, y analizará la posibilidad de efectuar un cambio.

El impreso para solicitar cambio de grupo se puede descargar en la web y entregarlo en la jefatura de estudios junto con el carné de la Escuela (no el de la biblioteca)

Es responsabilidad del profesor evaluar solamente a los alumnos que configuran sus grupos con el fin de evitar problemas a la hora de emitir actas con los resultados finales por lo que no se podrá admitir en clase alumnos que no figuren en las listas.

Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh

Javier Bardem´s English has improved an awful lot. In this video he talks about his role in the Cohen brothers' film 'No Country for Old Men', where he plays the role of psycho-killer Anton Chigurh. A nice character indeed!

and do the activity.

Come on! It's not difficult.