IPA Symbols for English

The IPA is an alphabetic system of phonetic notation based primarily on the Latin alphabet, even though certain symbols are taken from other alphabets. It represents oral language and it can be used to represent any oral language: English, Galician or Chinese, for instance. The IPA is particularly valuable for learners of languages which do not have a perfect letter-sound correspondence.

These are the symbols used to represent standard British English. Other varieties might require other symbols.

Reading Comprehension exercise: Back Together

Read the text and answer the following questions:

Back Together

Tamara Rabi had no idea Adriana Scott existed until students at a university in Long Island began confusing her with the other girl. The girls were born in Mexico and then adopted by different sets of parents in the US. Tamara grew up with Jewish parents on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Adriana was raised a Catholic in a Long Island suburb of the city. But each girl had no idea she had a twin until Tamara moved to Long Island.  

In 2003 a friend of Adriana's turned up at Tamara's 20th birthday party and could not believe his eyes. Tamara had already noticed how some people on her university campus smiled and said hello, clearly mistaking her for somebody else.

In 2004 they decided to meet so Tamara contacted Adriana by email and soon afterwards they met in a car park. "I didn't know what to say, except hi. I was just in shock to see myself", says Adriana. The funny thing is that they grew up just 20 miles apart.

“We have the same mannerisms, the same interests, the same grades in school," Adriana says.

"We had the same dream when we were younger. It was a nightmare... A really loud noise, followed by a real quiet one," adds Tamara.

Adriana's mother was the only family member on either side who knew she had a twin, but she had no idea where she might be. After agonising over it, she kept it secret to avoid the pain of a possibly fruitless search - a judgement which Adriana agrees with.

"In some ways it's the best of both worlds, as I have a sister but I haven't grown up in a state of sibling rivalry," she says.  

From http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3343763.stm

1. True or false:
• In 2004, Tamara met Adriana.
• Tamara met Adriana at a party.
• Tamara and Adriana are similar.
• Adriana knew she had a twin even before she met Tamara.
• The two girls grew up in different countries.
• They want to be rivals.
2. Answer the following questions:
• Why did people at university stare at them?
• How did Tamara contact Adriana?
• How are Tamara and Adriana similar? Give two examples.
• Why didn't Adriana's mother tell her about her sister?
• How do the girls feel about each other today?
3. Key to this exercise

The best websites for EFL learners

• News in levels will help you read news in English at your own level. Once you've understood it you might try a higher level, or the other way round, try the most difficult level and then an easier one.
• Activities for Esl/EFL students offers a wide range of activities, particularly quizzes, which are always fun.
• The English Page focuses on grammar points that you may study in class.
• Isabel Pérez is probably one of the most interesting Spanish websites. You'll find all sorts of grammar and vocabulary exercises but also interesting texts on a variety of topics. It is also a good website for ESL teachers.
• Lyrics Training will let you listen to your favourite songs and learn English at the same time. Our former assistant, Sam, recommended it.
• Five minute English has short articles on different topics that will be useful for language learners, such as the difference between hear and listen to.
• ESL America has lots of activities with audio files so that you can focus on difficult aspects of pronunciation.

Passive sentences

WHAT IS A PASSIVE STRUCTURE?
Active sentences usually focus on who did the action:

• My sister broke the window.

Whereas passive sentences usually focus on who or what suffered the effects of the action:

• The window was broken.

On most occassions the agent (who did the action) is not mentioned but, if relevant, it can be mentioned after the preposition by.

• The window was broken by my sister.
• Don Quixote was written by Cervantes.

HOW IS IT MADE?
Passive structures have these elements:

1. the passive subject (my sister)
2. verb be in the right tense (the same tense that would be used in the corresponding active structure)
3. the past participle of the lexical verb
4. only if necessary, the agent (by + ______)

CHANGING ACTIVE SENTENCES  INTO THE PASSIVE

1. the object of the active sentence becomes the subject in the passive structure
2. verb be in the same tense as the active verb in the active structure
3. past participle of the main verb
4. the subjet of the active sentence becames the object in the passive structure (by + agent)
• Peter builds a house. -> A house is built by Peter.
• They were cooking dinner when we arrived. -> Dinner was being cooked when we arrived.
• I will finish it tomorrow. -> It will be finished tomorrow.

PASSIVE SENTENCES WITH TWO SUBJECTS (ONLY ESO-4)
Some active sentences have both a direct and an indirect object. In English both can be the subject in a passive structure. The indirect object is introduced by to in the passive sentence.

• ACTIVE: My sister asked me a question.
• PASSIVE 1: A question was asked to me.
• PASSIVE 2: I was asked a question.

• ACTIVE. The teacher explained the exercise to the students.
• PASSIVE 1: The exercise was explained to the students.
• PASSIVE 2: The studens were explained the exercise.

EXERCISES

• Exercise 1 (www.isabelperez.com)
• Exercise 2 (www.isabelperez.com)
• Exercise 3 (www.isabelperez.com)
• Exercises 4 (www.englisch-hilfen.de)

Comparatives and superlatives

These last weeks we have been studying comparative and superlative structures in our classes.  This chart summarizes the main points that you have to keep in mind:

If you want to download the worksheet used in class, click here and if you want to check if you already know this grammar structure, you may try this Hot Potatoes exercise.

ESL / EFL prepositions of time: on, in, at

On, in and at are the most important prepositions of time as they are frquently used in every day communication.
This chart contains the most common cases that you should learn:

If you want to download it, here you are the link.
An this is the Hot Potatoes exercise that you may try in order to check if you know how to use them.

Prepositions of time: ON-IN-AT - Hot Potatoes exercise

This is a new Hot Potatoes exercise for you to text if you have already learnt how to use these commonly used prepositions. 

Audio-lingua

www.audio-lingua.eu looks like a perfect place to find interesting audio files to practise listening skills and comprehension about everyday topics: myself, my house, my routines, etc.

Files are classified according to the Common European Framework levels: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2. Levels A1 and A2 are those that correspond to ESO levels even though some of you might be able to understand certain B1 audios.

Just have a try!

Tips for learning English

by Luana Fischer-Banco Imágenes ITE

It is always a good time to try and improve the way you are learning a language. There is some advice that you might find useful in "10 Tips for Language Learning success". This is a summary of these 10 important tips:   

1. Set realistic expectations . Don't try to learn more than it is reasonable to do. Be realistic and set goals that you can finally achieve.    
2. Break study time into smaller chunks. Shorter periods of study time are more effective than longer periods, so try to find short periods for your study time several times a day or between other school subjects you have to study.    
3. Learn vocabulary effectively. Vocabulary is essential in any language, use different techniques that might help you: flash cards, a notebok, dictionaries, etc.    
4. Practice language actively, read texts and vocabulary orally or aloud because speaking helps a lot.    
5. Do homework conscientiously. Homework can be useful if you spend some extra time, look up new words, pay attention, etc.    
6. Form study groups. Work with your classmates to practice the language. All of you will benefit from one another.    
7. Identify your learning style. Every person learns differently, maybe you are better at grammar, learning vocabulary... or you remember things that you see better than those that you hear. Just identify your style and make the most of it. This website provides a questionnaire that might help you find your learning style.    
8. Maximaze your language exposure. Be in contact with English as much as possible: DVDs, television, songs, speaking to foreigners...    
9. Spend time on task, don't waste any time, try to do extra activities for learning English whenever you have finished the activity you are supposed to do.    
10. Communicate with your instructor. If you have a teacher, make the most of it. Don't concentrate on marks, try to learn