Please revise the compositions you've done so far and that you and I have corrected together. Analyze your mistakes in the first version of your texts and see how you managed to correct them in the second version, or how I corrected them if you didn't know how to do it.
Before you write, remember that planning is paramount:
1 - Understand the task well: Which type of text is it? Who is your reader? What is/are the function/s of your text (convince, explain, arrange something, compare, give your opinion, etc.)
2 - Make an outline of the text (how may paragraphs you're going to write and what info you're going to put in each)
3 - Think of the exam as an opportunity to show your teacher how much you've learnt (vocabulary and grammar) and show off (as long as you do that in a pertinent way)
3 - Revise the verb tenses and forms (past - present perfect - present / singular - plural, etc.)
4 - Revise your spelling (there are many mistakes you can avoid by simply carefully revising)
In other words, successful writing is about clear planning, good writing, and careful revision. Easy, isn't it? ;-)
Here's a video of one of the cooks mentioned below. How many ingredients, cooking verbs and kitchen utensils can you understand?
LAMB CURRY GIVE IT TO ME HOT! Words & music by Leigh Haggerwood Performed by Jamie Oliver Back vocals by Haggerwood / Brannan
Get yourself a pan and get it hot, Get your lovely lamb and slice it up, Whop in with some mustard seeds, two teaspoons will do Wait until they pop and they spit at you.
Then a teaspoon of Fenugreek is nice, You need three hot chillies; red or green, De-seed them and finely slice, give a stir once or twice, Oh my god its so nice, so nice!
I’ve found this new revelation its called curry leaves, Get yourself a handful and throw them in with ease, Got my friend ginger just give him a peel, Its so damn juicy, the flavour is unreal,
Skin three sweet onions and give them a chop, I use the food processor saves time a lot. Whack ‘em in, throw ‘em in, Give it a shake; we start to make great curry, why ay ay ah.
CHORUS
Lamb Curry, you give it to me hot, Ain’t no worries when you cook it from your heart, Lamb Curry, you give it to me hot, Ain’t no worries when you cook it from your heart.
Gonna give it to my brothers and sisters, Gonna give it to the Mrs and the Mrs, Gonna give it to my brothers and sisters, Why ay a yeah.
Now back to the pan where all the action happens, Just one teaspoon of chilli powder for a little extra passion, One teaspoon of turmeric that lovely yellow stuff, Using the same processor add six ripe tomatoes
Give ‘em a pulse to make some sauce, lovely lovely sauce Now find a tin of coconut milk and open it up, But mind your bloomin’ fingers they’re so easy to cut! You can smell the sweet aroma as it hits your face, With a good pinch of salt you should season to taste,
Throw ‘em in, whack it in, Give it a shake, we start to make great curry, Why ay ay ah.
Last weekend I saw "Katmandu: a mirror in the sky", the new film by Icíar Bollaín, and I cannot recommend it enough. Here's the trailer (of course you have to see the film in English), and some exercises for you to learn a bit about the woman who inspired the movie: Vicky Sherpa.
Various exercises (You have to go to "Index" to access all the exercises)
Here's a little exercise on idioms that have to do with books: match the phrases from 1 to 8 with the meanings from A to H below. And remember: try to use the new vocabulary in a personal context that you can remember well!
1. to speak volumes of somebody/something
2. to be an open book
3. to do something by the book / to go by the book
4. to have one's nose in a book
5. not in my book
6. judge a book by its cover
7. not to crack a book
8. one for the books
A. not according to my views
B. a record-breaking or remarkable act
C. easy to know what they are thinking and feeling
D. to read a book
E. not to open a book to study
F. as the rules demand
G. prejudge the worth or value of something
H. to make a situation very clear without the use of words
Readers read for a variety of reasons and every reader has his own individual style of reading. There are efficient readers who read efficiently and with great speed and then there are inefficient readers who read too slowly. According to J.A. O'Brien, an expert in the field of reading instruction, there are essentially three types of readers. In this article, we will identify different kind of readers.
Motor Readers- Motor readers are lip movers or vocalizers. Such readers are extremely slow readers as they accompany their reading with various movements of the muscles of articulation. As a result, their speed of reading slows down because they artificially keep their speed down to the rate at which they can pronounce words. Moreover, since there is so much muscular activity involved in their reading, motor readers tire quickly. Motor readers make frequent regressions, for their eyes tend to rush ahead and their voice stays behind. These readers often take the help of their finger to keep a track of their reading and to stay where on the word where there voice is. All this leads to poor comprehension for their mind is as much involved with the mechanics of reading as it is with ideas.
Auditory Readers- Auditory readers "hear" the words they read, but they do not sub-vocalize to themselves. They are very much aware of saying words in their mind, although their speech organs are completely at rest. This means, that they do not actually pronounce each word aloud but only imagine the pronunciation. Auditory readers are much more skillful and rapid. Auditory reading is faster than motor reading.
Visual Readers- Visual reading is the fastest. Visual readers do not "hear" what they are reading. They simply see a word and understand its meaning. Visual readers understand words and phrases without saying and hearing them. They read with their eyes and mind, not with their mouths or ears.
