Listening

Here are some links to online listening practice

number one

number two

number 3

number 4

Present Simple

The Present Simple is for usual actions

I usually play tennis on Saturdays

The Present Simple is for things that are always true

I have black hair and I am Irish.

The Present Simple is for permanent jobs.

I work in a bank. I am a teacher.

The 1st song uses lots of Present Simple (I am) for things that are always true.

Right Said Fred ~ I'm too sexy

I'm too sexy for my love too sexy for my love
Love's going to leave me

I'm too sexy for my shirt too sexy for my shirt
So sexy it hurts
And I'm too sexy for Milan too sexy for Milan
New York and Japan

And I'm too sexy for your party
Too sexy for your party
No way I'm disco dancing

I'm a model you know what I mean
And I do my little turn on the catwalk
Yeah on the catwalk on the catwalk yeah
I do my little turn on the catwalk

I'm too sexy for my car too sexy for my car
Too sexy by far
And I'm too sexy for my hat
Too sexy for my hat what do you think about that

I'm a model you know what I mean
And I do my little turn on the catwalk
Yeah on the catwalk on the catwalk yeah
I shake my little tushy on the catwalk

I'm too sexy for my too sexy for my too sexy for my

'Cos I'm a model you know what I mean
And I do my little turn on the catwalk
Yeah on the catwalk on the catwalk yeah
I shake my little tushy on the catwalk

I'm too sexy for my cat too sexy for my cat
Poor pussy poor pussy cat
I'm too sexy for my love too sexy for my love
Love's going to leave me

And I'm too sexy for this song

The second song uses a lot of Present Simple for usual actions. (It also has a very young Monica from friends in the video).

Bruce Springsteen ~ Dancing in the Dark

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PoBgFxNl41g

I get up in the evening, and I aint got nothing to say
I come home in the morning, I go to bed feeling the same way
I aint nothing but tired, man Im just tired and bored with myself
Hey there baby, I could use just a little help

You cant start a fire, you cant start a fire without a spark
This guns for hire even if were just dancing in the dark

Message keeps getting clearer, radios on and Im moving round the place
I check myself out in the mirror I wanna change my clothes my hair my face
Man I aint getting nowhere just sitting in a dump like this
Theres something happening somewhere baby I just know that there is

You cant start a fire...

You sit around getting older theres a joke here somewhere and its on me
Ill shake this world off my shoulders come baby this laughs on me

Stay on the streets of this town and theyll be carving you up alright
They say you got to stay hungry hey baby Im just about starving tonight
Im dying for some action Im sick of sitting round here trying to write
This book
I need a love reaction come on now baby give me just one look

Recipes

Here is a nice simple recipe I used recently for a little bit of a spicy dish.

Bombay Chicken Masala

Ingredients

-1 chopped onion
-6 fresh green chillies, chopped, take out the seeds
-6 chopped garlic cloves
-2 teaspoons grated ginger
-1 tablespoon ground coriander
-2 teaspoons of cumin
-large bunch of coriander leaves chopped
-150ml of water
-2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
-400g of chicken, cut up
-250ml of vegetable or chicken stock
-salt and pepper

Step One

Put the onion, chillies, garlic, ginger, ground coriander, cumin, fresh coriander and water into a blender and blend it until it is a smooth, green mixture.

Step Two

Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Add the green mixture. Fry for 1 min, stirring all the time. Then add the chicken. Fry for 2-3 minutes. Then add the stock. Mix together. Then cover the frying pan and cook gently for 12 minutes. Make sure chicken is cooked properly and then add salt and pepper. You can serve with rice and its gorgeous.

Lovely Photos

What a suspicious group!
The joy of learning English
Surprisingly, the youngest looking person in this photo is actually the teacher!
The teacher's perspective

Irish Music

Here are some nice videos of Irish music. I hope you enjoy them.

1st video is the song Galway Girl in Irish by Mundy.

The 2nd video is by Mundy again and is a song called Mexico.

The 3rd video is hip hop in Irish.

The 4th video is a song called The Little Musgrave by Planxty. It is hundreds of years old.

The 5th video is a demonstration of the uilleann pipes, a traditional Irish musical instrument, similar to the bagpipes from Scotland but more musical. It is played here by Liam Og O Flynn.

The last video is the Dubliners and a song called The Monto about a street in Dublin 100 years ago that was a famous red light district.

Important Information for FCE

When is the exam?

The exam is December 6th or 9th. The closing date for applications is October 17th(UCD) and October 16th (DCU). You will need two days to do the exam. One day for the speaking and another day for the other parts.

Where is the exam held?

There are two places. The first place is UCD. You can take a look at their webpage here and their application forms by clicking here.The other place is DCU and you can take a look at their webpage by clicking here.

How much is the exam?

It costs €149 (DCU) and €150 (UCD).

Check out this video to get an idea of what the exam centre will look like.

Opinions Wanted

Here's an idea!

I know most of you enjoy reading, watching movies, listening to movies, stealing cars and going to restaurants. So I thought, wouldn't it be a great idea if after watching a movie, or reading a book, or watching a TV show you wrote your opinion of that show and emailed it to me and I could put it on the blog.

Advantages

1. You get to practise your English.

2. You become famous on the Internet. Who knows, maybe you could get a job as a reviewer!

3. You could save your classmates some money if the movie or book is really rubbish.

4. We might all find out about things we wouldn't know about otherwise.

5. It could be fun ~ you can show off to your family and friends back home.

So let me know if you're interested. Email me, leave a comment. It doesn't have to be very long. It could be ten lines, a page, or just two words. Anything is welcome.

Get writing!

Emmm, Chocolate!!

Not sure what to do this weekend?

Maybe you might go along to Temple Bar where they are having the very first Irish Chocolate Festival. There should be a lot of free things (especially early Saturday). On Friday they are showing the original Charlie and the Chocolate movie and there are some talks about chocolate. I should be there on Saturday for I might see some of you there stuffing your faces with lovely chocolate. If you go, make sure and let us know what you thought in class on Monday.

Also, in class the other day I was talking to some of you about a funny chat show on British TV called Jonathan Ross. There is a clip below.

Photos

Serious Students!
The very first book club discussion group, talking about the Dog in the Night Time.
Marcio, Vanessa and Jaime discuss literature.
Sae Kyoung teaches Vanessa how to eat
Delicious Korean sushi! And only 2 students had explosive diarrhoea after eating it.
The fantastic chef!
Which camera?
Sae Kyoung, Jully, Do Kyung, Vanessa and Maria. Where are all the boys hiding?

Get out!

Hi! A lot of students ask me how they can meet Irish people. I came across a fantastic idea that I think would be a great way to do 3 things that every student should do. What are these three fantastic things?

1. Get some exercise.

2. Meet some Irish people.

3. Get to see some of the natural beauty of Ireland.

I found this webpage for a hill walking club in Dublin. The basic idea is that you meet a group on Sunday in the city centre, get on a bus and go to some part of Dublin where you can walk through mountains with lots of other people. It takes about 6 hours and they have three levels. Begineer, Inter and Advanced. It sounds like a good idea and a nice way to meet Irish people who are not drunk! Check out their webpage Hill Walkers Club to see if it is something that might be interesting for you. I think it could be great fun, especially if you went with another classmate or friend, or even alone.

By the way, I hope all is going well with the book of the month, I hope you are enjoying Bridget Jones.

Also, I was quite shocked that nobody had heard of The Clash in today's class so here are two Clash videos. Leave a comment and let us know what you think.

Temple Bar

I just got an email from Temple Bar telling me about some fantastic things that are happening in July. In Temple Bar Meeting House Square, there are FREE movies being shown outdoors as part of some festival. This Friday and Saturday they are showing The Commitments, a great Irish movie about a soul band. There is also going to be a chocolate festival at the end of July. Some sort of circus as well. Lots of interesting things, which should be really cool, especially if the weather decides to get a little better. Click here for more details.

Oh and I forgot to mention but congratulations to Ian who was the first person to correctly send in the answer Helen Fielding for our Bridget Jones Competition #2. Well done Ian, a lovely free copy of the book is yours!

Another Free Book!!!!

Incredibly I have another copy of Bridget Jones to give away completely free to the first student to send me the answer to this question.

Who wrote the book, Bridget Jones's Diary?

Send your answer to me, along with your name and email, using the box at the bottom of the webpage and the first person with the correct answer will get this lovely book, completely free!

Bridget Jones's Diary

So this month, July, the book we are going to read for our book of the month club is Bridget Jones's Diary. It is a very interesting and funny book and of course I am sure most of you saw the movie.

An interesting point about the book is that it has contributed a lot of new vocabulary to the English language. For example, Smug Marrieds are people who are married and think there is something wrong with you because you are not.

I think this one should be easy enough to read as it is in diary form although there could be a lot of slang. Make sure to get yourself a copy of the book. If you go to Chapters on Parnell Street they should have lots of cheap copies or try any second hand or charity book shop.

Vikings

Hi. I just got a great suggestion from Jin Yeong. Today and tomorrow there seems to be a festival on in the city centre about Vikings. I think it is connected to a ship sailing. There seems to be a lot to do. Check out the webpage by clicking here.

Don't forget about the writing competition for this Monday. And we will be discussing the book on Tuesday.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Bridget Jones Winners

The competition for the three Bridget Jones books is now closed and we have three winners.

Congratulations to the following 3 lovely students who all answered the question correctly:

Vanessa

Jin Yeong

Sae Kyoung

Well done. The answer was Renee Zellwegger by the way. For those of you who didn't win, sorry but you should manage to find a cheap copy of the book if you go to Chapters on Parnell Street. Next week we will have the discussion of The Curious Dog in the Night-Time on Tuesday which should be a lot of fun.

Bridget Jones Book Competition

Ok, so the poll is finished. You had 3 choices for next months book of the month. The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas came a close 2nd but the book that most people voted for was Bridget Jones Diary.

So we are going to have a competition. I have 3 copies of the book free to give to 3 students. All you have to do is answer the question below. Send your answer with your name and email (using the suggestion/ideas boxes at the very bottom of this page. Don't put the answer in the comments on this post!) and the first three people will get the books. Here is the question.

Who played the part of Bridget Jones in the movie?

Best of luck.

Writing Competition for June 30th 2008

Congratulations to Sae Kyoung for winning the writing competition for the 2nd time with her review of the movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, an interesting movie about memory and that nature of reality (I think!). If you want to check out the movie I think Sae Kyoung said she would be more than happy to lend it to anyone.

Because we did a movie review this week (and because we have our book discussion next week) I thought it would be a good idea to do a book review this time. So here is the question. This type of writing is very typical in the Cambridge exams.

Write a review of a book that really impressed you. Your review should give details of the book, a short summary of the plot and why you were impressed by the book.

Write 200 words.

This review is due for next Monday, the 30th of June, 2008.

Good luck with the writing.

Glengarry Glen Ross

I have included a little review of a movie I like as I thought it might help or give you a few ideas.

There are certain ingredients which a movie must have if it is to be successful. A good cast. A well written script and a director who understands the world he is trying to present. Glengarry Glen Ross is such a movie.

Directed by James Foley in 1992 and starring Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Kevin Spacey, Ed Harris and Alec Baldwin the movie is based on a David Mamet play. The action takes place over the space of one day and concerns a group of real estate salesmen. They move between their dingey office, a sleazy bar and public payphones as they try to sell to people who don't want to buy.

The central character Shelley Levene (played by Jack Lemmon) is an aging salesman who is finding it difficult to compete with his younger colleagues. Al Pacino plays Ricky Roma, the successful salesman who the others envy, even though he is dishonest, brutal and exploits the weaknesses of his customers to persuade them to buy. At the start of the movie, in a wonderful scene, Alec Baldwin's character warns the salesmen that either they make some sales or they lose their jobs. From here the pressure on the men builds and builds.

What strikes the viewer first is the claustrophobic atmosphere of the movie. The action takes place on a rainy night and the men seem trapped, unable to escape their life and the increasing pressure, as they desperately make phone calls to uninterested customers in their office.

Another wonderful point is the acting. Each actor perfectly captures the emotions of their character and you can feel their desperation. You really feel you are watching men being destroyed by their hunger for success. Al Pacino is, as usual, dramatic and steals many scenes, but it is Jack Lemmon's quiet and subtle depiction of a man facing the end of his life, with nothing to show for it, that really captures the imagination.

This movie is not for everyone. It is dark and there is a lot of strong language. However, it is one of the few movies I could sit down and watch again and again.

Writing 20th June 2008

Ok guys here is the writing for this Friday's competition. It is a review. It is similar to one of the writings that you could get in the CAE.

Write a review of a movie you have seen. Your review should include details about the plot, characters, actors or director and your opinion.

200 words

So that is the writing for this week. I hope you enjoy it. I think it is a good chance to use some nice grammar:

Modals: Should/Must/Might (e.g. This movie should please people who enjoy straightforward action. This movie might not be everyone's cup of tea.)

Passive:Be + Past Participle (e.g. This movie was directed by Steven Spielberg. It was shot in Ireland.)

If you want to see some reviews here is the Rotten Tomatoes webpage which has lots of reviews. Also you can check out the Metro and Herald on Thursdays or Fridays, I can't remember which. Plus there is the Event Guide which is free and you can find all over Dublin in coffee shops and internet cafes.

I have two suggestions. The first one is this. Do you think it would be better to have the writing competition on Monday or Friday? The second is that maybe we can put the best review up onto a webpage so other people can read it!. Let me know what you think.

Mario Queen of the Circus

I hope you are all having a great weekend. Hopefully most of you will have had the chance to go and see the festival this weekend. I went yesterday and today and it is absolutely fantastic. If you haven't had a chance, go on Sunday. It is wonderful. Here is a video of Mario, Queen of the Circus, who Michael, Rene, Jaime, Rodrigo and I watched on Friday. In my opinion he was the best act there. Enjoy!

Oh and by the way, if you went, let us know in the comments box what you thought was the best.

Street Festival

This weekend (June 13th, 14th and 15th) there will be a big festival in Merrion Square, from Friday to Sunday, all day. It is a competition for street performers so there will be lots of cool things to see, like jugglers, musicians, fire eaters, acrobats etc. It should be good fun, especially if the weather keeps up.

Thanks a million to those students who joined us for Once, it was great fun. I hope you enjoyed it. The IFI will be showing two more Irish films this summer, Garage and The Wind that Shakes the Barley. Make sure and let us know if you are interested in seeing either of these.

Writing Competition June 9th 2008

Congratulations to Sae Kyoung for winning our first writing competition with her wonderful piece on stress. Good job.

Today in class we looked at the 3rd conditional so for those people who didn't write something just think, if you had written something you could have won a prize!!

Here is the writing for this Friday, 13th of June.

You should spend about 40 minutes on this task. Present a written argument or case to an educated reader with no specialist knowledge of the following topic.

The ease of international travel and the spread of various kinds of mass media all over the world have made it more possible than ever for people to know how other people live in other countries.

Do the advantages of this development outweigh the disadvantages?

You should use your own ideas, knowledge and experience and support your arguments with examples and relevant evidence. Write at least 250 words.

This writing is taken from the IELTS exam.

Comments

Hi. Thanks Sae K for telling me about the comments problem. I think I've fixed it now. Let me know if there are any other problems. Thanks for all the offers for photographers. If anyone wants to bring a camera on Monday that would be cool, or even Tuesday so we can get some nice photos from the Once movie.

Here is a youtube clip I hope you enjoy. It is THE best Irish traditional group, Planxty. The video is from the 1960s. Hope you enjoy. Have a nice weekend and see you on Monday.

Photographer Wanted!

As you can see I have some photos on the blog. However, they're pretty old. I thought it might be a good idea to get some new photos of some of the lovely people we have in the class so if any of you have a camera and are able to teach me how to put photos on the blog then talk to Stephen.

Once

Tuesday, 10th June, at 10:30 am we are going to go see the movie Once at the IFI. The movie was made in Ireland and is about a musician and a girl falling in love (I think, I've never seen it).

Before the movie there will be a talk about Irish film culture, so it should be really interesting. Make sure and tell Michael or Stephen that you want to go so we can keep a place for you.

Tickets are €6. Come to the school at 9:30am so we can all go together.

Writing for June 9th 2008

Every Friday we are going to have a writing competition. You will be given the subject to write about at the start of the week and then on Friday all the writings will be taken and there will be a class vote on the best one. To keep it interesting the writing assignments that I give you will be from different exams (Cambridge or IELTS) so that you will get an idea about what to expect if you choose to take these exams.

This time the writing is on the subject of stress. This writing is typical of a writing for the IELTS exam.

Present a written argument to an educated reader with no specialist knowledge of the following topic.

In some societies, stress is now regarded as a major problem, and it is thought that people suffer from more stress than they did in the past.

However, others feel that the amount of stress people have today is exaggerated. They say that previous generations were under more pressure, but the idea of suffering from stress did not exist.

Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Because we started late this week the writing competition will be on Monday, 9th of June, so finish your writing over the weekend and have it ready for Monday.

Best of luck

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time

This is the first book in our new book club. You should finish reading the book by June 24th.It is written by Mark Haddon and was published a few years ago, I think 2003. It is the story of a young boy with autism, written from his perspective.

Assignments

If you have read the book, please write a 200 word review of the book. There will be a wonderful prize for the best review.

We will have a classroom discussion of the book and subjects related to the book on June 24th.

Enjoy