Monday, 2 October 2023

2 NB 2 Topic 1 Back to Routine

The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine. (Mike Murdock)


Grammar

Questions  

Language Function

Describing people & places 

Listening

A musician's day : audio 

Reading

A special day 

Speaking

A restless night 

Vocabulary

Travel 

Writing

Letter to a friend 

Sunday, 1 October 2023

1 NB 1 Topic 1 Introductions

If you think it's hard to meet new people, try picking up the wrong golf ball. (Jack Lemmon)

Grammar

To be or not to be    

Language Function

   Identifying people     

Listening

     Introducing a friend : audio    

Reading

    Family members     

Speaking  

   Pronunciation     

Vocabulary

   Work        

Writing

     Introductions          

Sunday, 24 September 2023

Book 10 2023 The Lost Notebook by Louise Douglas

Mila didn't smile. Carter was heading back to the office, no doubt to upload the pictures he'd taken of Professor Perry and the girl. What he'd just done, at Cecil's bidding, felt wrong on every level to Mila. It was cheap and voyeuristic and heavy-handed. A picture was no more or less than a moment in time. it never told the whole story. it did not allow for nuance.     


For our tenth book of the year I recommend The Lost Notebook by Louise Douglas. We find ourselves once again in the role of amateur sleuth as . Here is the worksheet. 

Wednesday, 23 August 2023

Book 9 2023 This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub

Mothering seemed like downhill skiing, or cooking elaborate meals from scratch - sure, anyone could learn how to do it, but it was much easier for the people who had seen other people do it first, and well, and from a very young age.    


My recommendation for our ninth book of the year is Emma Straub's This Time Tomorrow. We follow Alice as she moves through time in an attempt to save her dying father. This is not, however, your typical time travel novel where a protagonist has the capacity to change the future, but rather a reflection on the significance of the tiny minor details of life which make up and modify the whole. Here is the worksheet.

Saturday, 29 July 2023

Book 8 2023 Noah's Compass by Anne Tyler

Funny, it used to be so simple to sum his mother up, but now that he looked back he seemed to be ambushed by complexities. He saw again the frightened look in her eyes when she was going through her last illness, and her tiny, curled hands. It struck him that life in general was heartbreaking - a word he didn't toss off lightly.    


My recommendation for our eighth book of the year is Noah's Compass by Anne Tyler and deals with a man's attempts to come to terms with his own life. Here is the worksheet.

Tuesday, 27 June 2023

Book 7 2023 How to Build a Boat by Elaine Feeney

Somewhere in the boy's mind was a mortal fear that culminated in planning each day at great length, and not leaving things to chance, because losing one parent was a tragedy, losing two would be careless. 


My recommendation for our seventh book of the year is How to Build a Boat by Elaine Feeley - the review provides you with plenty of practice for the Irish accent! You may find the syntax a bit challenging at first, but this is a truly beautiful book. Here is the worksheet.

Tuesday, 30 May 2023

Book 6 2023 The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith

Other people his age had houses and washing machines, cars and television sets, furniture and gardens and mountain bikes and lawnmowers: he had four boxes of crap, and a set of matchless memories.    


My recommendation for our sixth book of the year is The Cuckoo's Calling written under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith - no prizes for identifying the true identity of the author. Here is the worksheet.

Monday, 22 May 2023

7 NA C1 2 Topic 12 Free Time & the Summer

Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability. (Sam Keen)


Grammar

     Television     

Language Function

      Evaluating      

Listening

       Reality shows + audio 

Reading 

      Reality TV        

Speaking

          Planning a trip           

Vocabulary

      Travelling      

Writing

           TV shows           

Sunday, 21 May 2023

6 NA C1 1 Topic 12 Free Time & the Summer

Aaah, summer - that long anticipated stretch of lazy, lingering days, free of responsibility and rife with possibility. It's a time to hunt for insects, master handstands, practise swimming strokes, conquer trees, explore nooks and crannies, and make new friends. (Darell Hammond)

Grammar

       Reporting verbs         

Language Function

  Explaining  

Listening

       Holidays audio

Reading 

       A letter of protest          

Speaking

       Silent retreat        

Vocabulary

      Television        

Writing

       Leisure time          

Saturday, 20 May 2023

5 NI B2 2 Topic 12 Free Time & the Summer

The summer night is like a perfection of thought . (Wallace Stevens). 

Grammar

      The Longest Day        

Language Function

   Relating Past Events    

Listening

       Singapore + audio

Reading  

      Summer 2021          

Speaking

      On the move          

Vocabulary 

    Driving       

Writing

     A complaint    

 

Friday, 19 May 2023

4 NI B2 1 Topic 12 Free Time & the Summer

Summer break: the time when parents realise teachers are grossly underpaid. (Unknown)

Grammar 

        Sentence transfer        

Language Function

       Making arrangements  

Listening

     Flying + audio  

Reading

      Fun in Spain        

Speaking

      Travelling   

Vocabulary

      Holidays    

Writing 

      A letter    

 

Thursday, 18 May 2023

3 NI B1 Topic 12 Fee Time & the Summer

Do what we can, summer will have its flies. (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Grammar

  Say & tell   

Language Function

      Reporting       

Listening

      Bad service + audio 

Reading

      Travelling by train      

Speaking  

      Travelling        

Vocabulary

      Travelling by plane        

Writing

       An interesting trip