Cambridge exams info

Follow the link for information on the different exam formats with contents, duration of each part, assessment and sample exams.
-FCE (aka First)
-PET (Preliminary)
-CAE (Advanced)

We should all be feminists (4ºB)

Here you are the TED talk the essay We should all be feminists is based on.

Holes reading plan (4ºB)

The Literary Circles will take place as usual on Thursdays following the plan below. Remember that day you have to hand in the Literary Circle worksheet about the chapters we will deal with in the LC:

Dec. 13: chapters 1-7

Dec. 20: chapters 8-15

Jan 10: ch.16-23

Jan 17: ch. 24-29

Jan. 24: ch. 30-35

Jan. 31: ch. 36-42

Feb. 7: ch. 43-end

Feb. 11 (Monday): exam

Singing for Mrs Pettigrew reading plan (3ºB&C)

Below you can find a list with the Literary circles dates (on Thursdays 3ºC, Tuesdays 3ºB).  That day you have to hand in the Literary Circle worksheet of the story/stories whose LC is scheduled for that day. You can find info on what a literary circle worksheet should include HERE. I recommend reading the introduction by the author to each story, but the LC (and the LC worksheet) will only deal with the story itself. 

December 11 (3ºB) / December 13 (3ºC): MEETING CEZANNE 

Dec. 18 (3ºB) / December 20 (3ºC):  I BELIEVE IN UNICORNS

January 8 (3ºB) / Jan. 10 (3ºC): THE GIANT´S NECKLACE

Jan. 15 (3ºB) / Jan. 17 (3ºC): MY ONE AND ONLY GREAT ESCAPE
Jan. 22 (3ºB) / Jan 24 (3ºC): MY FATHER IS A POLAR BEAR + THE SILVER SWAN

January 29 (3ºB) /Jan. 31 (3ºC): THE MOZART QUESTION

February 5 (3ºB) / Feb. 7 (3ºC): WHAT DOES IT FEEL LIKE?

Feb. 12 (3ºB) / Feb. 14 (3ºC):  HALF A MAN + FOR CARLOS, A LETTER FROM YOUR FATHER

Feb. 19 (3ºB) / Feb. 21 (3ºC): SINGING FOR MRS PETTIGREW

Feb. 22: exam. 

Grammar review (3ºB, 3ºC)

Click on the links for extra online grammar practice.

Tenses practice:
-Past Simple/Past Continuous.
-Simple Past vs Present Perfect 
-Simple Past vs Present Perfect(2)
-Present Perfect Continuous
-Present Perfect Simple vs Present Perfect Continuous
-Past Simple vs Past Perfect 
 -Past Perfect Simple 

Irregular verb practice (are you sure you know them well?)
-Irregular verb forms 
-More irregular verbs 
-A crossword now. 

Conditionals: 
-Type 1 
-Type 2
-Mixed

-Comparatives and Superlatives:
-Comparative and Superlative mix (easy warm-up).
-More like the previous one (multiple choice) 
-Still another dead easy one.
-Comparative gap-filling exercise 
-Comparative matching exercise  
-A crossword  now
-Only Superlatives here. 
-A Superlative quiz 
-A Comparative/Superlative mix 
-Correlative comparatives 
-A bit more difficult mix now (including Correlative Comparatives).
 -Irregular comparative and superlative forms.

-Relative clauses:
-Relative pronouns.
-More practice on relative pronouns
-Can these relative pronous be omitted?
-More practice on this.
-Who or whose?
-Non-defining relative clauses.
-Defining or Non-defining? 
-More practice on defining and non-defining relative clauses.

End of term plan (3ºB, 3ºC, 4ºB)

As agreed in class, these are the exam dates for this term (I have also included reminders about other activities):

3ºB/3ºC

-November 5 (Mon.): The Last Leaf activities (do them in the Literacy booklet). 
-Nov. 9 (Fri.): Literary circle (5 stories), you must bring the worksheet done, check the instructions in a previous entry in this blog. 
-Nov. 12 (Mon.): Reading exam (6 stories in the Literacy booklet). 10% of the total term mark. (30% min. correct to pass the term).
-Nov. 16 (Fri.): Reading and Writing exam. 15% of the total term mark. (The other 10% of your writing mark will be obtained from the written activities carried out for the Global Classrooms project)
-Nov.19 (Mon.): Grammar and vocabulary exam. 20% of term mark. 
-Nov.20 (Tue.): Listening exam (15% of term mark). 

The speaking mark (20% of total mark) will be obtained from your participation in the Global Classrooms project and in the literary circles. 

The remaining 10% is for homework. 

4ºB

-November. 5 (Mon): Pros and cons essay. 
-Nov. 6 (Tue.): First grammar and vocabulary exam.
-Nov.8 (Thurs.): Literary Circle (Ch.25-28)
-Nov.12&13 (Mon&Tue): Presentations in pairs.
-Nov.15 (Thurs.): Literary Circle (Ch.29-end)
-Nov. 19 (Mon.): 2nd grammar and vocabulary exam (together with the first exam it will account for a 20% of your total term mark).
-Nov. 21 (Fri): Writing exam  (essay). 20% of total term mark. 
-Nov. 22 (Thurs.): Listening exam (15% of total term mark).
-Nov. 23 (Fri.): How I live now exam. 10% of the total term mark. (30% min. correct to pass the term).
-Nov 26 (Mon.): Reading exam. 5% of term mark. 

The speaking mark (20% of total term mark) will be obtained from your participation in the literary circles and your presentations. 

The remaining 10% is for homework. 

Schedule (4ºB)

So a recap of the activities you have to work on in the following days:

-Do the activities in the booklet about how to improve your essays. Discover how your essay should look like a hamburger! Next Monday (Oct 29) we'll have a look at it in class.

-On October 30 we will not do a literary circle but a literary workshop. Consequently, you don't have to turn in the literary circle worksheet, it will be done in class with the usual format and teams, anyway don't forget to read previously the chapters for that day (21-24).

-On November 5 (Monday) you have to hand in the pros and cons essay (150 w. min). Below you will find some possible topics. Use the guidelines in the essay booklet to do it. Don´t forget the following aspects:
-Paragraph distribution.
-Organization of paragraphs.
-Linking devices. Use at least 4 "difficult" linkers. But and and are nor allowed. Check also the previous entry in this blog (scroll down to find it) where you can practice different linkers online.
-Powerful introduction and conclusion.

-Later, working with your usual speaking practice pair you have to prepare a presentation about EITHER of the topics you have chosen (but NOT BOTH) to be given on November 12. One will defend the pros, the other the cons of the issue. In the trio, two will defend the pros and the third one the cons (or vice-versa).

So, the suggested topics:

-Abortion.
-Legalization of marijuana.
-Euthanasia.
-Free use of mobile phones at school.
-Homework.
-Exams.
-External exams.
-School uniforms.
-Monarchy.
-Catalonia, an independent country.
-Social networking sites (Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram...).
-Bilingual education (The Comunidad de Madrid model).
-Divorce.
-Marriage.
-Immigration.
-Footballers´ exorbitant earnings.
-Death penalty.


-Nov. 7 (Wed): First grammar and vocabulary exam (intro unit, unit 1 and unit 2 up to infinitive and gerunds). SYMUN students will take it on Nov. 12.

More linkers (4ºB)

In case you didn´t have enough with the exercises done in class, here you are some online drills on linkers and connectors (click on the numbers -each number is a different exercise):

-Contrast linkers.
#1
#2
#3
#4


-Addition linkers.
#1

-Purpose or reason.
#1

-Time
#1

-Result (explanations and a gap-filling exercise below, scroll down for it).
#1

-Mix (all types)
#1
#2
#3

3ºB&C first term readings plan

-October 15: You have to hand in the activity about The Squire's tale from The Canterbury Tales (150 word writing in the template I have given to you). Read the story first!

-October 19: Hand in the activities about The Franklin's Tale (from The Canterbury Tales).

-October 26: There will be a test about The Lady or the Tiger story. Do the vocabulary activity before! You also have to hand in the activities about The Gift of the Magi. You have an example of how the PQE method works HERE.

-November 5: Deadline for your activities about The Last Leaf. 

-November 9: We will do a literary circle about all the stories.You have to bring to class a literary circle worksheet with the usual contents but including the 5 stories:
1. Choose 5 words (one per story)
2. Write a summary of each story (20 words max. per story).
3. Quotation (and reason why you chose it): Choose 1 quotation from any of the 5 stories.
4. Question (with the answer): again only 1 question about any of the 5 stories.
5. Instead of the prediction,explain which story you liked most and why (70 words min.)

-November 12: Exam about the readings (including The Wife of Bath Tale). Remember you need a 30% min. correct to pass the term.

How I live Now reading plan (4ºB)

This is the reading plan for How I live now. The literary circles will take place on Thursdays (except for the last week of October,  when it will be on Tuesday 30). The day the circle takes place you have to hand in the LC worksheet (with the same format as in 3º).

October 4: chapters 1-6 (Literary workshop: you don´t have to bring the LC worksheet done but you are supposed to read those chapters to be ready to do different activities on them in class).
Oct. 11: chapters 7-11
Oct. 18: ch.12-16
Oct. 25: ch. 17-20
Oct. 30 (Tuesday): ch. 21-24
November 8: ch. 25-28
Nov. 15: ch. 29 to the end. 

The exam (10% of the total term mark, 30% min. to pass the term) will be on Nov. 19 (Monday). 

Gender topics for Friday´s presentation (3ºB&C)

Hi all, here you are the topics for Friday 5 presentations. Pick the one you like most:

1.How would you have punished the knight of The Wife of Bath Tale?

2.What is what women most desire? Do you agree with the hag in The Wife of Bath Tale?

3.What is what men most desire?

4.Females and the “glass ceiling”

5. The gender pay gap.

6.Power roles in marriages

7.Woman as victim

8.Toys and play of boys and girls

9.Progress in women's careers

10.Gender and sports

11.Gender violence

12.How appearance affects success: for men and women alike?

13.Gender and leadership

14.Does gender condition the careers we choose?

15. Are we raising sexist sons and men?

Remember the presentation is to be done in pairs (there will be a trio) and must last 1.30 minutes! All of you will do it that day. 

Preparing your literary circle worksheets (3ºB&C)

Hi all, welcome to my blog. Here you are some guidelines on how to make your literary circle worksheets, they are a bit different to the ones you did in 2ºESO (the first one is about The Wife of Bath Tale and it´s for next Wednesday). The better you prepare them, the more interesting the literary circle will be!

-Vocabulary: write five words you didn´t know the meaning of. Write the page where the word is to be found and a definition (if several, choose the definition that applies in the context).

-Summary: no more than 60 words. 

-Quotation: don´t forget to write the page where it is and explain the reason why you chose it (the quotation should be meaningful and significant).

-Question about the story and the answer: again, come up with interesting questions that can trigger a discussion, not simple understanding questions such as Who is the protagonist of the story? or How old is she? but questions like If you were in the same situation as the protagonist, would you do the same as him/her? or What´s the moral of the story?

-Prediction: either develop the story further or think of a new ending . Write at least 80 words. 

And remember:  it´s you who makes the literary circles interesting! 

Stephen Hawking has a message for you

Stephen Hawking’s voice has been beamed into a black hole following the internment of his ashes at Westminster Abbey in London.
The message recorded by the British physicist, which is set to music by Greek composer Vangelis, speaks about the importance of peace and hope. It was sent by the European Space Agency from an antenna at Cebreros near Madrid towards the nearest black hole. According to his daughter, Lucy Hawking, “it is a message of peace and hope, about unity and the need for us to live together in harmony on this planet”.

“This is a beautiful and symbolic gesture that creates a link between our father’s presence on this planet, his wish to go into space and his explorations of the universe in his mind.” (from  The Independent).

Listen to the message here. 

Beowulf film

Grammar review (B1B/C)

This entry is for my students of Bachillerato (Programa) B1B/C

Click on the links, you´ll find useful online exercises and explanations on part of the contents for next Grammmar exam (for vocabulary and the rest of the contents please use your handbook and the exercises in hard copy). Remember the exam is cumulative (units 1-8).

-Tenses practice:
-Past Simple/Past Continuous.
-Simple Past vs Present Perfect 
-Simple Past vs Present Perfect(2)
-Past Simple vs Past Perfect 
-Present Perfect Continuous
-Present Perfect Simple vs Present Perfect Continuous 
-Past Perfect Simple 
-Future tenses: Will vs going to
-Another drill on the future tenses
-Irregular verbs forms 
-More irregular verbs 
-A crossword now. 

-Comparative forms:
-Check this link

-Superlative forms:
-Have a look here.

-Modal verbs (obligation, necessity, advice, ability, permission)
#1
#2
#3

-Passive forms: click on these links.
#1
#2
#3 
#4
#5
#6

-Conditionals:
-Type 1
-Type 2
-Another link to Type 2
-Type 3
-Type 3 again.
-Conditionals mix 
-Another Conditionals mix drill.

-Causative have/get exercises:
#1
#2
#3
#4

Grammar review (4ºD)

This entry is for the students of 4ºD

Click on the links, you´ll find useful online exercises and explanations on part of the contents for next Grammmar exam (for vocabulary and the rest of the contents please use your handbook and the exercises in hard copy). Remember the exam is cumulative (units 1-10).

-Causative have/get exercises:
#1
#2
#3
#4

-Conditionals:
-Type 1
-Type 2
-Another link to Type 2
-Type 3
-Type 3 again.
-Conditionals mix 
-Another Conditionals mix drill.

-Reported Speech:
-Statements
-More statements
-Questions
-More questions
-Order/requests (Imperative)
-More requests, now in the negative form.
-Mixed sentences

-Modal Perfects:
#0 (Explanation)
#1
#2
#3 (Contrast Modals in the Present vs modals in the Past)

-Try this link for a practice of tenses. 

Are you for or against homeschooling? (3ºB, 3ºC)

As you know Mina in Skellig champions the idea of  homeschooling inspired by William Blake´s The School Boy. But what´s your opinion? Let´s have a look at a couple of ideas from your essays.

About having your parents as teachers...

"It is very strange to have your fatther or mother as a teacher, isn´t it? Your parents have other jobs and they can´t stay with you all the time, but a teacher´s job is to make you learn and they can teach you more things than your parents can". (Mar R.)

"One of the factors we should take into account is if children would like to have their parents as teachers. If parents are very strict, children wouldn´t like to have them as a teacher because they couldn´t have a break or relax. But if they are no so strict, the freedom to relax while studying would help the children to concentrate". (Alba M. R.)

"Firstly I would like to write about having a parent as a teacher, some people think this can be better for the child to learn because your parents know you well, but parents can´t know everything, that´s why in schools there is a teacher for a specific subject. There is also another problem with homeschooling because not every parent can stay with their children if they have to work". (Adrián G.)

"On the one hand if your father or mother is your teacher you can stay at home and it won´t be necessary for you to wake up early. Furthermore you could study wherever you want. We should also remember that you will be alone during the lessons, so you will learn faster. Moreover you won´t have to worry about exams". (Diego B.)

"Besides in schools you have more than one or two teachers so it´s less boring than listening to the same person for hours". (Ana R.)

"Moreover it´s common that students hate their teachers or think they have it in for them, so just imagine how it´d be having them as satellites around you all day... How stressing!" .(Ana Mª S.)

"In my opinion, teachers and parents are very different people. Having your mum or dad as a teacher can be good or bad depending on how good your relationship with your parents is. It would be amazing to have your teacher at home because all the doubts would be solved immediately." (Marta G.)

"On the one hand, I would like to be homeschooled because if you are at home you can establish your own rules so you can choose your timetable, the subjects you have and the way the lessons would be (for example learning with fun games)". (Alejandro M.)

"Firstly, who wants their parents as teachers? When we go to school we learn to be independent from them. When we are older we prefer them not to see what we do at school! If a child goes to school he/she will develop his/her abilities to be without their family in a comfortable way". (Marta O.)

About making friends...

"However, a kid who is homeschooled hasn´t got the same opportunities to meet and know different people or to work, cooperate and socialize with them, which by the way is an essential requirement for the future". (Ana Mª S.)

"Homeschooled kids are more free, emotionally speaking. Sadly, peer pressure, competition, bullies,,,, are all part of a typical school day. Kids are no longer pressured to try to fit in when they are homeschooled and so they can be themselves". (Clara P.)

"School makes you who you are and in most cases you will be able to make friends. (...) You will also take the risk of not being accepted, but that will make you stronger". (Ainhoa M.)

"Probably most of the friends you have you met them at school". (Ana R.)

"Let´s not forget that when it´s time to socialize with other children it would be more difficult [for homeschooled kids], Because in school you also learn to get along with others. However, it´s important to bear in mind that the way to communicate of a child depends on their parents, because he´ll do what he or she observes at home". (Patricia H.)

"Furthermore, children your age could see you [homeschooled kids] as a weird thing, so it´s very possible that they ignore you". (Daniel G.)

"I think a child who is homeschooled would have more problems when working in a team because he would only be used to working with his or her parents and not with other people who can have different ideas to his". (Adrián G.)

"A boy or girl who has been educated at home tends to be shier as adults and have problems when communicating with others or making friends, but this also depends on the child". (Ariadna F.)

Other aspects to consider...

"How about the time for each class? If your parents think that for example Maths is a subject you are not good at they could teach you more hours". (Alba M.T.)

"It´s a good idea to go to a state school because people pay taxes in order to get an education for their children". (Marius R.)

"Thirdly, with this type of education it could be very difficult to have a job nowadays. Imagine a CV where it said "homeschooled". It wouldn´t be very helpful for your future". (Daniel G.)

"I strongly believe that evaluating each work a child does with a number could affect the child more than what teachers think. Having said that I know it´s not the teachers´ fault because it´s the only way they know to assess if we have learnt something". (Patricia H.)

"On the other hand, being homeschooled you would go over the syllabus faster, as there would be no need for continuously stopping the class because some classmates are talking or bothering. Moreover, there would be no need for repeating the same thing once and again if you already understand it, and your parents would be more focused on trying to explain what you still don´t understand". (Ana Mª S.)

"Finally in school you not only learn contents but also how to live. How to solve problems, how to talk in public, how to work with people you don´t like, how to learn from mistakes. You learn from teachers that don´t teach in an ideal way. You develop skills at school that you couldn´t develop at home". (Marta O.)

More Gulliver´s Travels

In Gleich people are created in factories. "(...) Gleich was a small but beautiful island full of natives who were called Gargeois and had found out the way to build high skyscrapers without damaging the environment. Gulliver loved that place, however, there was a problem: all Gargeois were identical. (...) They had a unique personality: they were kind and competitive  at the same time. They could be jealous and ambitious and finally, they were extremely reserved. There weren´t women in the island so babies were created in a factory. (...) Gulliver was going to abandon the city when some men captured him and took him to a prison where many people were caged. The mysterious men were actually the police and called the prisoners "nicht identisch". An old man told Gulliver that the factory where they were created had a virus and sometimes it created someone different. Those babies must be in a special jail until they die because they are defective. Gulliver couldn´t believe what the man told him. (...) They ran away and destroyed the factory so that everyone from that moment on could be different. In his last journey Gulliver learned something unforgettable. He learnt that our world is made up by millions of people who are different and that is possible because our differences make us unique and special. Trying to be another person won´t make us happy, because how would the world be if we were all the same? In my opinion, boring". (Marta G.)

Gulliver´s last voyage. "(...) Gulliver soon found out that the poor and misunderstood people were the ones who ruled while the rich and reasonable people were slaves who spent most of their time in cages. Long ago there had been a war and the rich people, called "Unfogians" drowned the misunderstood ones, called "Disongians". The Disongians survived and adapted themselves to live underwater. Then there was a tornado and the island where the Unfogians lived sank. They were captured by the Disongians and lost the war. The queen taught Gulliver their language and explained him everything, but he didn´t like the idea of of people living in cages. So, one night he set the Unfogians free. That choice was the mistake of his life, because they had been living in cages so long that the Unfogians had gone mad and wild. The second they left the cages they devoured him to death. That´s how Gulliver´s life and voyages ended". (Ana R.)

In Lisistrata women rule.  "(...) 'Lisistrata', said an inhabitant of the island to Gulliver, 'is the name of a woman who lived many years ago. She was really intelligent. In those days, there were hundreds of wars and nobody knew what to do to stop them. (...) She said that those MEN in charge of goverments were the ones responsible for everything and they should be dead. She started a strike: women won´t allow any men to sleep with them until wars finished. I don´t know if it worked, but she influenced a lot of people and she was finally killed. (...) [Following her example] in our towns mayors started to be changed by mayoresses and little by little things have been changing until nowadays, where every important position is occupied by a woman'.
-'But', argued Gulliver, 'do they work properly? I mean, men are better qualified for important jobs and they know how things must be done'. 
-(...)'Scientific research shows that women have the ability to retain more information in their brains than men. They know how to optimise their time and they are able to coordinate better than men (...)'. 
-'Well, but who is going to take care of children all day if women are in such important positions? Who cleans the house? Who cooks?'
-'We both have short working periods and we alternate to do the chores and take the kids where they need'.(...)
And Gulliver left thinking how could such an amazing country be ruled by women. It was so strange for him. But finally he decided to stay. (...)
Sometimes you just need to give second chances and be open-minded, you may discover that women are almost superheroes. Everything thanks to Lisistrata". (Marta O.)

In Wh173 everything is perfect... (or not?). "Gulliver arrived to an island called Wh173 where everywhere he looked he could see how everyone was just exactly alike the rest. It was as if there was a huge printer which made more and more copies of a single design, one for men and another for women. (...) Considering that he would surely get lost in that place where everything was the same, he decided to ask for some information about it. (...) Gulliver was told that they were in a place in which people didn´t have names, they were just designed by numbers, as if it was a new videogame set in a future where robots ruled, they were also born with an already assigned job and couple for their future, as well as the house where they would stay. This was an idea of a ruler who thought that this way conflicts, poverty and inequalities would disappear, and they did, but people were unhappy. They had evolved to become also physically equal, and that had turned them into who they were, robot-like humans whose creativity and abstract thinking was in levels below zero, but whose greatest ambition was to be like "the originals". The "originals" were people like Gulliver and the couple he was talking to, the ones who had ideas, creativity and different ways of thinking and being. (...)
Gulliver had an idea, they would splash the whole island with the brightest and most beautiful colours they had ever seen, so that instead of walking through white streets and sleeping in white rooms, people would be able to see hapier colours which might spark their hidden imagination. (...) The results were better than anyone expected and people started making progresses in every field: science, art, literature, architecture, etc. Because in a world without differences, how could we progress?"  (Ana Mª S.)

Fantastic work!