English in Alpens

Hi Everyone, Here is a version of Bob Marley's song One Love. It has been released as a collaboration between UNICEF and Bob Marley's family to raise money for children affected by the COVID 19 pandemic. It also provides a most enjoyable way to learn a bit of vocabulary for the English language learners of Alpens 😊 One Love (in support of UNICEF) And here is a link to UNICEF's Website in case you would like to know more: UNICEF Here is a message from Bob Marley's daugther, Cedella: “Over 40 years ago, my father wrote One Love about unity, peace and universal love during a time when there was much trouble in the world. Even in a time when we aren’t able to get together, his message remains true today, we can get through this global crisis if we come together through one love and one heart.” Cedella Marley And here are the lyrics of the song. What is the meaning of the line, " Let's get together and feel alright "? Leave you answer i...

 Hello Everybody! Here is something that is useful for all groups and all levels- an on-line pronunciation chart!  One thing about learning English that a lot of people find difficult is pronunciation. In my classes I like to practice pronunciation and I use phonetic symbols ( letras fonéticas ) to highlight ( recalcar ) the sounds. Here is a link to a Webpage where you can listen to every phonetic symbol or phoneme in English. Click on the phoneme and it will give you the sound and the sound in a word. for example- if you click on the phoneme /I/, which is made to look like a fish, a voice will say the sound /I/ and say the word fish. I hope that you will start to become familiar with the different sounds as we do more classes, and that you become more familiar with the phonetic letters used to represent them. You can use this webpage as a reference! English File: Pronunciation chart

  Here is an interesting article in The Guardian for you higher level students. It is about the plan to transform Les Rambles in Barcelona from a centre for tourism to a centre for culture. I think it's an excellent idea- the city needs to re-imagine itself with the decline of the tourist industry and re-appropriating public space in general and Les Rambles in particular seems like a good place to start! La Rambla: plans to transform Barcelona's tourist rat run into a cultural hub  Do you think this will work? Have you got any questions about the language that is being used? Leave a comment below! 

Hi Everybody, Here's a song for the Activation class. You probably know it. It's You're Beautiful by James Blunt. First, click on the link to listen to the song and then read the lyrics (les letras). When you read the lyrics try to find each of of these things: One example of the present tense One example of the past tense One example of the future tense One negative verb form One modal verb ( verb auxiliar ) that is used to express deduction ( que alguna cosa deu ser veritat ). We will look at it in class on Tuesday! James Blunt - You're Beautiful My life is brilliant My love is pure I saw an angel Of that I'm sure She smiled at me on the subway She was with another man But I won't lose no sleep on that 'Cause I've got a plan You're beautiful You're beautiful You're beautiful, it's true I saw your face in a crowded place And I don't know what to do 'Cause I'll never be with you Yes, she caught my eye As we walked on by S...

Hi Everyone, and especially the Chatterbox class! Here is a link to the opening pages of the novel The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Have you read it? Read the beginning and see if you like it. It hasn't been modified in any way for learners of English, but it is written in a simple style so it shouldn't be too difficult for higher level students. Perhaps intermediate level students in the Workout class might like to give it a try also?! The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Chatterboxes, can you read the extract before Wednesday's class? Here are some questions for you to answer while you read- we can discuss the answers in class on Monday. If you like it, we could perhaps order the book and read it together, what do you think?   In the title, "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency", does Ladies' refer to Mma Ramotswe or her clients?  (Paragraph 1) What qualities make Mma Ramotswe a good detective? (Paragraph 2) Describe what you can see from Mma Ramo...

Hello Everyone,  Here is an interesting '6 minute English' episode about the environmentalist Jane Goodall. As well as listening to the radio programme, you can also read the transcript if you scroll down the page. Do chimps have the same emotions as us? For the Wednesday Workout class, I will ask you the following questions in class, so have your answers ready! Jane Goodall was an expert in the behaviour of chimpanzees. Where did she study chimpanzees? The chimpanzees that she studied used a stick to get ants out of a hole in the ground. Why was this significant? Why did Jane think that chimpanzees and humans have many of the same emotions? Have you ever seen a great ape in real life?

Hi Everybody, Here is something fun and familiar for low level learners- it's the song by Bobby McFerrin, Don't Worry, Be Happy- I'm sure you know it! After you have listened to the song and watched the video once, listen again while reading the lyrics (below). Try to guess which word goes in each gap!   Don't Worry Be Happy   Here's a little song I 1. _________ You might want to sing it note for note Don't worry, be happy In every life we have some 2. ________ But when you worry you make it double Don't worry, be happy Don't worry, be happy now don't worry   (Ooh, ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh) be happy (Ooh, ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh) don't worry, be happy (Ooh, ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh) don't worry (Ooh, ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh) be happy (Ooh, ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh) don't worry, be happy   Ain't got no place to lay your 3. _________ Somebody came and took your bed Don't worry, be happy The landlord say yo...

 Hello Everyone, Here is a little English practice for the weekend. It is an interesting radio programme about a policy that has been introduced in Zimbabwe called Grandmother Therapy. What do you think Grandmother therapy is? Follow the link and see if you are right.   6 Minute English; Grandma therapy in Zimbabwe 6 minute English is a radio show that is a part of the BBC's Learning English Website. Every week there is a new episode that has been made easier for English language learners. On the Web page for each episode, you will find the episode itself, which you can either stream or download, a transcript of the entire episode, which you can also download, and useful vocabulary that appears in the episode. I hope you find it interesting- perhaps you can tell us what you think in the comments section below. Do you think Alpens could benefit from some Grandma benches...? Also, for those of you who like to listen to music in English, here is a link to a very touching and bea...

 Hello everyone! Here is an article from The Week magazine about the death of Johnny Nash. Nash wrote the song I can see clearly now , which is a very beautiful song about overcoming adversity and personal renewal. The article also contains a video of Nash performing the song. Do you know the song? Do you like it? Have you ever felt the way that Nash is describing in the song? Tell us about it in the comments section below! For those of you who like a challenge, here are some questions to answer- the first three are about the article, the rest are missing words from the song which you have to fill in while you are listening to the song. Good luck- see if you can be the first to leave the answers in the comments below! The Week is a very good magazine for short summaries of the week's news stories- you might like to practice your English by looking at it from time to time... Johnny Nash, singer-songwriter of 'I Can See Clearly Now,' has died at 80  Questions: First read the...