Monday, 6 June 2016

Scissor poems

Scissor poems are made by taking words and phrases from existing pieces of writing and reassembling them to create a new piece. Follow the presentation below to write your own.


Source: Florencia Mantoan

Thursday, 28 April 2016

Cut yourself a bit of slack

BBC Radio 1 DJ Gemma Cairney has never forgotten the E she got in GCSE maths. But, she says, it didn’t hold her back – and your life is not decided by that slip of paper with your exam results on. If you’re waiting anxiously for your results, she urges you to cut yourself a bit of slack; prepare for all eventualities; and look forward to the future.

What do the following words mean in the video? 





Think of three questions for an interview to students who are about to finish the course. Get into pairs and act out the interview.

Gemma advises students to put their armour on and to let off steam. How can you do that?

Tuesday, 5 April 2016

Old books reborn as art

What do you do with an outdated encyclopedia in the information age?  Artist Brian Dettmer remixes them into beautiful, unexpected sculptures.

 
Art&books from iccic

Watch his talk and think of your own remix.

Source: Ted Talks


Tuesday, 23 February 2016

What book would you be?

Fahrenheit 451 describes a society where people are not allowed to read. The novel and its film version still hold present day values and ideas. To what extent is that so? 


Tuesday, 5 January 2016

A treat for man's best friend

Musician and visual artist Laurie Anderson held a concert especially for dogs in New York’s Times Square on Monday evening, performed to be registered at a frequency that dogs hear best.



After watching the video, get into pairs and prepare a brief presentation of the story as if you were a newsreader. You can use the words below.


After presenting, you can read The Guardian's story here.  

What kind of music would your dog enjoy?

Here's a trailer to  Laurie Anderson's film Heart of a Dog, about her terrier Lolabelle. 

What do you think is Laurie's main message in it? What can we learn from animals?

 

Monday, 15 June 2015

On the beach


Do you ever take photos on the beach?Talk to each other about your favourite photograph, describing it in detail.

Imagine yourself in the picture below.

  • Where are you? Are you lying face down or on your back?
  • Are you waiting for someone or getting away from something?
  • Are you starting your holidays, having a break or just chilling?

Gray Malin, Bondi Beach


Get into groups of 3-4 and create a facebook update about it.




Use the QR code or the link below to upload your story to the noticeboard.

qr code

http://padlet.com/apussacq/beach

Source: Ceri Jones, Innovate ELT

Tuesday, 26 May 2015

How to do well at the Speaking Test

What makes a good Speaking test candidate? In this video three examiners give their advice and tips for the Cambridge English First and Cambridge English Advanced Speaking tests. We think you'll find it useful, no matter which exam you are taking.

Monday, 20 April 2015

What to read when you are locked in a bookshop

Get into pairs, A and B. Close your eyes. Your teacher will call A or B when it's time for you to look. 

Describe the pictures you see to your partner. They illustrate a story, can you guess what happens in it?



This is what happened to David Willis. He had been browsing in Waterstones in Trafalgar Square on Thursday night, but went downstairs shortly after 9pm to find the lights out and the shop deserted. Despite calls to the shop’s security and police, he spent two hours trapped inside the darkened store – and was only rescued when he used Twitter to alert the world to his predicament. 

You can read the whole story here

Here is a short video of what happened.

 

Think about what you would like to read if you got locked.
  • a poem
  • a comic book
  • a detective story
  • a ghost story 
  • a cookery book
  • a science fiction story 

What's your favourite book ever?
 

Where else could you find yourself locked?

Choose your ideal place to get locked and write a short story about it.

 
Lost from iccic

Tuesday, 9 December 2014

Charles Dickens

Click on the picture below to find out about the life of Charles Dickens.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/bleakhouse/animation.shtml

Use the scene selector to research key scenes and discover more about Dickens' life, and what influenced his work. 

Now, answer the quiz below.



Get into pairs and create your own quiz about a famous person and his or her work. You can use ESLvideo.com to build your quiz.

Tuesday, 6 May 2014

Although or in spite of?

How do you revise for exams? Here's a way to remember language points with rules and examples.

Get into groups and agree on which points you each want to revise.

Create your speaking avatar on Voki and pick up a point from your notebook, reference section in your course book, or  corrected writing tasks. Write the explanation and examples in the box you will find on the website and save.

Present the language point to your classmates for group revision. 

Friday, 11 April 2014

The life of books

Do you have a favourite bookshop?
What do you like about bookshops?
What happens in a bookshop when it is closed at night?
Do you think books have a life of their own?

This short film shows what happens in a bookshop at night. How many types of books can you spot?

 

Now, discuss five of the following questions in groups.




Watch the film The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr Morris Lessmore. After you watch it, be ready to say what the message of the film is.



Short Film - The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr... per videosonlytube

Watch the film again at home and write a story based on it. You can use the sentences below to get started.



Source: Film English, by Kieran Donaghy
http://film-english.com/2012/02/05/the-joy-of-books/

Tuesday, 4 February 2014

Staying safe on the net

What's the best way to enjoy the Internet without getting into trouble? 

What would you do in the following situations? 





Look at the ideas below and give your opinion. Next, create a poster with your own tips.


Source: Dudeny, Hocky and Pegrum. Digital Literacies.

Wednesday, 30 October 2013

Halloween Trivia

How much do you know about Halloween?



source: Marina

Tuesday, 21 May 2013

Social Networks

What's your favourite social net and how often do you visit? What other nets do you know? Who are they used by and what for?

Create your poster on Piktochart 





Tuesday, 14 May 2013

What's an app?

'App' is short for 'application', which is another name for a computer program. Apps can let your phone or tablet do almost anything that the programmers can imagine, within the technical limitations of the device. This means that you can turn your phone into a remote control for a toy helicopter, your tablet into a turbo-charged drawing pad, and much else besides.

In short, they're a way to perform almost any task on your phone, and in just a few years they've become a phenomenon.

source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/guides/what-are-apps

How many apps are mentioned in the video? What are they for?