Saint Patrick's Day

On March 17th Irish people all over the world celebrate St Patrick's Day (Patron Saint of Ireland). Here you can find information about St Patrick's Day 2010.

Our dear friend Ana, from Estepona, has sent us a PPS with plenty of interesting things about this special day. Enjoy it.

And of course a video, this time recommended by our colleague Tim, a true Irishman. Hard to follow? Have a look at the lyrics here. Don't forget to pay a visit to Tim's blog where you'll find the "real Irish thing". (Thanks Tim. Happy St Patrick's Day! We'll miss last year's concert!)

Comparatives and superlatives

Using comparatives and superlatives properly in English can be quite a challenge. However there are some rules which are not difficult to follow if you are careful. Here are some notes that might help you.

Have a look at this pps (remember: powerpoint slideshow) that my colleague Ana has sent us from Estepona (Thank you, Ana) and you will see it all very clearly.

If you want to do some further practice here are some good links offering you lots of exercises. Enjoy yourself!

• usingenglish.com
• englishexercises.org
• better-english.com

Still another pps to go a little further into the comparatives. Don't miss it!

Strong adjectives

When we speak or write we can make a story more dramatic by using strong adjectives (exhausted instead of tired, delighted instead of pleased). We can also make adjectives even stronger by adding an adverb (absolutely, very, really), e.g. The weather was absolutely freezing! (Careful how we use these adverbs!!)

Here's a silly game that will help you to remember some of the most common strong adjectives. Try this link for further practice. How about a pps (powerpoint slideshow) to test how much you have learnt about strong adjectives?

I promise a crossword for the weekend. Too late now. Good night!

Hallowe'en 2009

Well, once again, Hallowe'en is just round the corner. Let's have a quick look to a nice presentation to have an idea of the origin of this celebration. Some more ideas can be found in this lesson plan; there's some reading comprehension, vocabulary and idioms that you can work on your own; the rest of the activities are better to be done in class. Visit this website to find extra information about how Hallowe'en is celebrated in England.

Here's the clip "This is Hallowe'en", from Tim Burton's "The Nightmare Before Christmas". Enjoy it.

Hallowe'en has a lot to do with superstition. Are you superstitious? What strange or special habits do you have that you consider superstitious?

For information on the Hallowe'en celebration in our Language School, click here.

Row, row, row your boat

Why not try learning a well known nursery rhyme. It's fun and soon you will be able to sing it to your children.