How was it for you dear?

How was your UChile English learning experience?
What did you enjoy most?
What did you find most interesting?
What was most boring?
What was most difficult?

Tell us what you think.

Try to write at least 200 words.
Comment on at least 3 of your classmates' blogs.

Best Blog

I'm not going to write a text today - Sorry Palomita:)- as I'm not allowed to show favouritism (Ha!Ha!). However, ........... I think my blog is the best!

Which of your classmate's blogs do you like best?

Say:

Why you like it,
What elements it has,
Which post you enjoyed most,
What could be done to improve the blog.

Mention anything else you feel is important.

Write 250 words (minimum) and leave comments on 3 of your classmates' blogs.

A Childhood Game

What was your favourite game when you were a child?

Say:

What it was called,
How you play the game,
How often you played it,
Who you played it with,
Why you liked it.

Mention anything else you think is important. Write 250 words & leave comments on at least 3 of your classmates' blogs.

The Best Chilean

In your opinion, who is the greatest Chilean of all time?
Say:
Who it is,
What he/she did,
Why this person's deeds are important,
What question you would like to ask this person if you met them.
Mention anything else you think is important.

Write 250 words. Comment on at least 4 of your classmate's blogs.

A Good Job

If you could choose any job, what job would you choose and why?
Why do you think you would enjoy this job?
Why would it be a satisfying job to do?
Do you know anybody who has this kind of job?

Mention anything else you think is important or interesting.
Write 250 words. Post a comment on 3 of your classmates' blogs.

One to One

Write about a famous person or a historical figure you would like to meet.

Say:
Why you would like to meet them,
What you would like to talk about with them,
Why you think meeting this person would be interesting.

Write at least 250 words. Comment on 3 of your classmates' blogs.

Learning English

Do you like learning English? Is it difficult or easy? Why? Is it useful to know English? Why? Why not? Will English be useful in your future profession?

Tell us what you think.

Write about 250 words and leave a comment on at least 3 of your classmates' blogs.

A Perfect Day

Listenen to the song Perfect day by Lou Reed.

Think about your idea of a perfect day.

Say:
Who you would spend it with and why,
Where you would go and why,
What you would do and why.

Say whether or not you have ever spent a day like this. Mention anything else you think is important. Write at least 250 words. Leave comments for your teacher & at least 3 classmates.

A shop you like

I'm not a big fan of shopping, but I love going to second-hand shops. I don’t always buy anything but I still like looking. When I was younger, in my Punk days, I used to buy a lot of second-hand clothes. When I first started to live on my own I bought a lot of second-hand furniture or things for my apartment. I also used to love buying second hand records (vinyl) and found a lot of bargains and rare records. Nowadays, I buy a lot of second-hand books, especially when I travel back to Britain. There is a big culture of second-hand shops in Britain and this is one of the things I miss about not living there any longer. I can spend hours and hours looking for books or other things that people had decided they don’t need any more. If you look carefully you can find some wonderful things.
Write about a shop you like to visit.
Say:
What it sells,
Why you like it,
When you went there for the first time,
How often you buy something,
What the last thing you bought there was.
Also say why you think you like this kind of shop.

Include any other information you think is important.

Write about 250 words, Don't forget to write comments on at least 3 of your classmates' blogs!

Childhood Memories of Fiestas Patrias

Hi there blogheads,

Although there's no class we agreed that you would blog. Here's today's task:

Write about your favourite Fiestas Patrias memory from when you were a child.

Say:

What you did
Where you went,
Who you spent the day with,
Why it was so memorable.

Finally, compare your view of Fiestas Patrias as a child with how you feel about Fiestas Patrias today.

Write at least 250 words and leave comments on your teacher's blog and the blogs of 3 of your classmates.

I don't really have much of a politcal past. As a teenager, My band played a Rock Against Racism gig, I demonstrated against Apartheid outside the South African Embassy in London, and I also went to lots of benefit concerts (I saw some great bands! The Smiths, The Style Council, Ms Dynamite, Manic Street Preachers and lots more). The last demonstration I took part in was in 2003 when an estimated 1,000,000 people marched through London to protest against the invasion of Iraq (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2765041.stm).
Unfortunately, Bush & Blair didn't listen to the voice of the people who they were elected to serve.

So much for modern politics!

Write about the student demonstrations from your point of view.
Say:
Why students were demonstrating,
Whether or not you agree with the demonstrations,
Whether or not you took part in the demonstrations.

Mention anything else you think is important. Write at least 250 words. Leave a comment on your teacher's

A Good Book

I've read quite a few good books this year. Over the summer holidays I read "Snow" by Orhan Pamuk, "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini, Haruki Murakami’s "What I Think About When I Think About Running" and two novels by J.M.Coetzee ("Disgrace" and "Slow Man"). Since then I haven't had that much time to read but I managed to work my way through "The Time traveller's Wife" by Audrey Niffenegger, the epic "Underworld" by Don Delilio, a couple of novels by Kurt Vonnegut (The Sirens of Titan" and "Bluebeard"), "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larsson and "The Travelling Hornplayer" by Barbara Trapido.

Nevertheless, none of them compare with the book I'm currently reading: "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob De Zoet" by David Mitchell. I'm about 2/5ths through and I'm loving every minute. I read whenever I can, even if it's for a couple of minutes. On the Underground, on the toilet, at work, between classes, first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Mitchell is my favourite living author and this is his 5th novel. I've been a huge fan of his since I read his first novel "Ghostwritten" 6 or 7 years ago. He's a young writer (younger than me!) but he has already been nominated for a number of awards. His second book "Number 9 Dream" is a crazy, daydream of a book that is like a manga without the pictures. His 3rd novel "Cloud Atlas" starts in the past (1800's) goes to the future and then goes all the way back. "Black Swan Green" is about a schoolboy with a stutter in the 1970s. It doesn't sound that interesting but Mitchell creates an incredible tension that makes reading the story a joy. His latest novel, the one I'm reading now, is about Dutch traders in Japan 300 years ago. It's fab!

Write about a book you've read recently.
Say:
What it was called and who it was by,
Why you choose to read this book,
Whether or not you enjoyed it,
Where you like to read,
Whether or not you think reading is a good hobby.

Write at least 250 words. Leave a comment on your teacher's blog and on at least 3 of your classmates' blogs.

An Exhibition, Concert or Sporting Event

One of the most memorable gigs (concerts) I ever went to was the first time I saw David Bowie live. It was 1978 and I was 17 years old. I'd been a Bowie fan since I was 12 so seeing him live was one of the highlights of my teenage years.
The concert was in an old farm type complex near Birmingham (UK). I went with my girlfriend (Pauline), my sister (Moe)and her boyfriend (Ollie). The concert was at 8pm but we arrived at midday and there was already a big queue of hardcore fans.
The doors opened at 4pm and we got a great place right at the front of the building. The concert was all standing which was why I wanted to arrive so early.

When Bowie came on stage the crowd when beserk. It was an amazing feeling to actually see my hero in person. The whole concert was amazing from start to finish. Most of the material came from Heroes & Low, Bowie's most recent albums, but he also played songs from The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars and Station to Station.

The first 2 songs were quiet electronic songs but the 3 one was faster. At the point the place exploded with energy and I danced myself from the second row to about 8 rows back. The crowd was like a sea of bodies and you just had to flow with the current. Everything about the show was brilliant. The sound quality, the light show, the musicians and most of all Bowie's voice.

Obviously, I really enjoyed this event and even though I've seen Bowie in concert 5 or 6 times since then nothing can beat the sensation of that first concert. I think I spent the rest of the year with a smile on my face just thinking about it.



Write about an Exhibition, Concert or Sporting Event that you went to.

Say:

What, when & where it was,
Whether you enjoyed or not & why,
Why you decided to go to this event.

Mention anything else you think is important.

Write at least 250 words then leave a message on your teacher's blog and at least 3 of your classmates' blogs.

Oral Interaction Language

Giving your opinion

Giving your opinion neutrally

"I think…."


"I feel that…."


"In my opinion…."


"As far as I'm concerned…."


"As I see it…."


"In my view…"

Giving a strong opinion


"I'm absolutely convinced that…."


"I'm sure that….."


"I strongly believe that…."


"I have no doubt that…"


ASKING SOMEONE'S OPINION

"What do you think?"


"What's your view?"


"How do you see the situation?"

Agreeing and disagreeing
Agreeing

"I think you're right."
"I agree with you."


Strong agreement

"I couldn't agree with you more."
"You're absolutely right."
"I agree entirely."
"I totally agree."


Agreeing in part

"I agree with you up to a point, but..."
"That's quite true, but..."
"I agree with you in principle, but..."


Disagreeing

"I'm not sure I agree with you."
"(I'm afraid) I don't agree."
"(I'm afraid) I disagree."
"(I'm afraid) I can't agree with you."
"(I'm afraid) I don't share your opinion."

Note that when you disagree with someone, you can often sound
more polite by using a phrase such as "I'm afraid..."

Disagreeing strongly

"I don't agree at all."
"I totally disagree."
"I couldn't agree with you less."

Keeping a conversation going
Making comments

"No!" - to show surprise
"I don't believe it!" - to show surprise
"Wow!" - to show admiration or surprise
"That's incredible / amazing / unbelievable" - to show great
interest in the subject of conversation
"How awful / terrible" - to show sympathy with someone else's bad
news

Asking questions

"Really?" - to show surprise
"And you?" - when someone asks you how you are
"Did you?" - can be used to encourage someone to tell their story.

For example, "I saw her last night" "Did you?" "Yes, she was with one of her friends, and she...."

Have fun!!

Your Favourite Website

I think my favourite website is The Guardian (www.guardian.co.uk). I normally visit this page at least 2 or 3 times a day. When I lived in Britain I used to buy the Guardian newspaper every day (except Sunday as it's only published form Monday to Saturday). I've been reading the Guardian since I was a teenager but I didn't start buying it until I was about 25 years old. When I first came to live in Chile I used to buy it in Paseo Ahumada but it was always a couple of days old and very expensive (about 2 lucas!!). Anyway, I've been very happy since it appeared online.
My favourite section is about football. The news coverage is very good and there is a section called The Rumour Mill which is sometimes quite funny. I also manage to keep up to date with everything that's happening around the world and back in the UK. Unfortunately, there aren't any Chilean newspapers that I like and the evening news on TV rarely comments on international news. Luckily, the Guardian keeps me informed.

Write about your favourite website.
Say:
What it's called,
How often you visit it,
What it's about,
How you found it,
Why you like it,
The best thing about it,
Anything you don't like about it,
Whether or not your friends like it.

Write at least 250 words and leave on at least 3 comments of your classmates' blogs.

A Great Holiday

Maybe the best holiday I ever had was a trip my wife and I took in 2001. We visited Southern Peru and Bolivia (near La Paz) for about 3 weeks.

We took a fight from Santiago to Arica and spent the night in a little hostel. The next day we took a mini-bus to Tagna and caught a coach to Arequipa. We spent a couple of days in Arequipa and then went to stay in Colca Canyon which is one of the deepest canyons in the world. You have to travel 5 or 6 hours to get there but it is well worth it. After another day in Arequipa, we took a short flight to Cuzco. The flight took 30 minutes and cost 55 US dollars. The coach would have been much cheaper (about 2 or 3 dollars) but it takes 17 hours. However, it was the rainy season and some of the roads were blocked so, the plane was the best form of transport. Cuzco was amazing. Machu Picchu was the highlight and we visited it twice. Once as part of a tour and the following day on our own.
Next we travelled to Copaquebana were we visited the Island of the Sun & The Island of the moon. We walked across the first island (which took about 4 hours). It was really beautiful. Then we went to La Paz, which is a weird city. Actually, we didn't say very long because travelled down "the road of death" in order to visit Coroico.
This was an amazing journey, very scary but a great experience.
The village of Coroico is at the start of the Bolivian jungle and it's has spectacular scenery and beautiful walks.

This was a wonderful holiday!

Tell me about one of your holidays.

Say:
Where and when you went,
What you did there,
Why you remember this holiday.

Write at least 250 and leave comments on 3 of your classmates' blogs.

Free Post

Okay Thursday bloggers!

250 words (minimum) on the topic of your choice.

Once you've posted your post, don't forget to comment on 6 of your classmates'blogs.

A country you would like to visit

I've always wanted to visit China. I read a lot of stories that were set in China when I was younger and I imagined China to be a mysterious country and interesting country. One of my first teachers at primary school taught in China and she used to tell us lots of stories about how different it was to Europe. People thought differently, ate different food and wore different clothes. Later, I read about my favourite author Mervyn Peake who grew up in China because his parents were missionaries. He was amazed at how big China was. While some of the capitol cities may have facilities and institutions that are similar to those in Western cultures, the way they operate may be very different.
If I visited China I would like to see the Great Wall of China and sail down the Yantzee River. There are also some interesting ghost towns in the Northern desert areas that would be fascinating to visit.

What country would you like to visit?
Write at least 200 words.
Say:
Why you would like to visit this country,
What you would like to do there,
What places you would visit,
Why you think it would be an interesting place to visit,
What things would be different to Chile.

Later, leave comments on at least 3 of your classmates' blogs.

A photograph

This photo of me was taken in 1980 outside the Tate Gallery in London. I had hitch-hiked from Chester to London with an old school friend, Anne Parkins (the postwoman!) to see a Salvador Dali exhibition. Anne took the photo. I really like it because it reminds me of what I was like as a teenager. The exhibition was amazing and we had a really great time. People often find the photograph funny because they have never seen me with long hair. The fact that my hair is a different colour also suprises them too.

Write at least 200 words about a photograph you like.

Say:

Why you like it
Who took it
What it shows
When it was taken

Include any other information you think is important.

Don't forget to write comments on at least 3 of your classmates' blogs!

Review and Revise

Dear blogheads,
Today you have to review the blog of the classmate below you on my blog list (right hand side of this page).

Write at least 150 words about there blog.
Mention:
How many posts they have written,
photographs, videos, etc.
Blog design (colour,gadgets, etc)
Your first impression of the blog.

Then you have to revise one of the post on this blog and correct their English using a marking key. Post (copy/paste) the original post and your corrections on your blog.

Write messages on at least 3 of your classmates' blogs.

An Activity You Enjoy Doing in Your Free Time.

Hi all you groovy blogsters. Today I'd like you to write about ONE free time activity you like to do. For example, I have lots of hobbies, I love to read, watch movies, take photos, play games like cards and chess, play football, watch football and a million things more. However, today I'd like to talk about making music.

I started playing guitar when I was about 14 years old. I taught myself and picked things up from friends and schoolmates. My first guitar was secondhand but it wasn't very good. Later, after about 6 months, I bought a new EKO acoustic guitar. It wasn't expensive but it was very good value. A few years later, I bought an electric guitar off my cousin. It was very good but very heavy. When I started playing more seriously I invested in a Fender Telecastor and a good amplifier. After learning to play guitar, I became interested in other instruments. I liked saxophone but it was too complicated to learn. One year I lived in a house with a piano and I started to teach myself the basics. I then spent some money on a synthesizer and started making electronic music.
The main reason I like making music is that it allows me to be creative. I wrote my first song when I could play two chords and nowadays, I still enjoy writing and playing my own songs.

I’ve make lots of friends through this hobby and it’s one of the few things that the majority of people have an interest in.
Frankly, I couldn’t live without music!!

So, write about an activity you enjoy doing in your free time.
Say;
What the activity is,
How often you do it,
How long you've been doing it and why you started,
Why you enjoy doing this activity.

Write at least 200 words. Leave a comment on your teachers blog and on 3 classmates' blogs.

Favourite Movie

Although it's not easy to pick one favourite film, one of the first films that springs to mind when people mention this subject is Brazil by British director Terry Giliam. The film came out in 1985 and I remember going to see it in the Rio Arts Cinema in North London with a friend, Martin, who was the drummer in a band we had together. We were both amazed by the film. It may look at little dated now but at the time the special effects were innovative and the creativity and black humour was something special. The cast was also very impressive with many cameo roles by well known actors or minor celebrities. I especially like the parts with Robert De Niro and Bob Hoskins.

The story was originally meant to be called 1984 and a half, as a play on the book by George Orwell but it had to be changed for legal reasons. The title Brazil comes from the song Aquarela do Brazil which is used repeatedly throughout the film. Many of the actors also worked in other Terry Giliam movies like Time Bandits and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.

If you haven't seen this film I really recommend it however, be warned, it's not a typical kind of film. I really love the ending. This is a very dark film in more ways than one!

Write about one of your favourite movie
Say:

Who it's by,

When you saw it for the first time,

Why you like it,

What makes it better than other movies.

Write at least 200 words. Leave comments on the blogs of at least 3 of your classmates and a comment on your teachers blog too.

27/02/2010 3:34

This week I'd like you to write about your earthquake experience.

Say:

Where you were

What you were doing

How you reacted

What you think about the way Chile reacted as a country.

Write at least 150 words and comment on the blogs of at least 3 of your classmates.

Favourite Place in Chile

Happy Monday Bloggers!!

Today we're going to write about a place to go to escape from the smog and noise of Santiasco.

One of my favourite places for a quick get away is Maitencillo. I only like to go there out of season when there aren't any tourists. It is a quiet place where you can relax and forget about the stress of Santiago. I first went there a few years ago with my wife and 2 friends. Now I go about 3 or 4 times a year. I like the walk from Maitencillo to Cachaqua along the coast. It takes about 2 and a half hours. The scenery is beautiful, even when the weather isn't so good. You can also go horse-riding on the beach or in the hills near the village.
What about you?

Write about a place in Chile that you enjoyed visiting frequently.
Say:

When you went there

Who you went with

What you did there (150 words Minimum)

Then write at least three comments on your classmates' blogs

Better Late Than Never

Dear Students,

My blog was created late due to a technological problem . Anyway, welcome to cyberspace in English. Each week I will ask you to write about a different topic. I hope you have fun and enjoy your blogging experience.