Welcome back from spring break! I hope you enjoyed the time off and are ready to get back into your English routine!

This week we discussed questions.  Often, English learners shy away from using proper grammar construction for questions, so we practiced the form and focused specifically on question tags.

Listening:
Learners should check out an overview of question tags.

For original version listening, try a Youtube video about Effective Questioning or a segment from a radio program called Rosie's Paradox or an episode from The Big Questions Podcast.

Reading:
Learners can check their grammar with an exercise here and then some reading with comprehension questions, take your pick from this site.

For original version, explore some of the columns from The Guardian based on questions, Leading Questions or The Q and A.

Writing:
This week for writing, you have two options!  You can write an essay about how to ask good questions in a conversation. Or, think about someone you would love to meet (a famous person, artist, leader, ancestor) and write down your questions for them.
Best,
Kelly

This week's topic is water!

Listening:
Learners should try an activity from British Council about World Water Crisis.

For original version listening, try an episode from Fresh Air, Water Crisis in the American West.

Reading:
Learners can try a reading comprehension activity in the style of B2 Use of English about Drinking Water.

For original version, try Letter from the Southwest:How Native Americans Will Shape the Future of Water in the West.

Writing:
This week for writing, write an essay about water use in Logroño. What do you think are some of the problems or difficulties we face with water locally? What are some possible solutions?

Don't forget that we have holidays next week for Easter! Enjoy the break!
Best,
Kelly

This week we used two interesting tools, Google Trends and Google NGram to discuss different changes throughout history in a variety of topics: trends in culture, fashion, and what we care about.

Listening:
Learners should try listening about Vacation Trends or an episode from 6 Minute English about The decluttering trend.

For original version listening, try an episode from The Ezra Klein Show about changing attitudes about gender.

Reading:
Learners can try an activity from Breaking News English about fad diets and how to lose weight, or something more difficult about the rise and fall of the shopping mall.

For original version, reading some articles from The Guardian's Social Trends section, such as Fewer People are Marrying, or Baby Boomers Reflect on Past Times and Future Fears.

Writing:
This week for writing, write a report about changing attitudes and opinions in your country. Here are some topics to consider:

• getting married
• mental health
• building cities for the future

Describe how commonly held beliefs have shifted over the years.
Best,
Kelly

This week we discussed the way our brains work and different styles of thinking.  Some of you have an internal monologue, or dialogue, some of you have images and are more visual. 

Listening:
Learners should try an episode from 6 Minute English about the brain, such as Meditation and your brain, Brain training or Are artistic brains different?

For original version listening, try a podcast episode from This American Life called Penny for Your Non-Thoughts?

Reading:
Learners can try an activity from Breaking News English about Why thinking makes us feel tired -

For original version, try an article from the New Yorker about How We Should Think about Our Different Thinking Styles.

Writing:
This week for writing, imagine you are writing an article for a magazine explaining how to be polite in civil society in Spain.  Think about a few contexts (work, nightlife, social contexts, transport) and some important dos and don'ts.
Best,
Kelly

This week we used a card game called Ikonikus to creatively ask and answer questions like, "How would you feel if you won the lottery?" "How would you feel if Beyonce came to your house for dinner?" It was a great chance to practice the conditional form and discuss emotions.

Listening:
Learners should try an easy activity from Cambridge English about How do you feel?

For original version listening, check out any of the videos on this playlists from TED Talks called What are emotions?

Reading:
Learners can try an activity from Breaking News English about a wearable device that can detect your mood.

For original version, try an article called What Pigeons Teach Us About Love about the science of emotions.

Writing:
This week for writing, we are going to continue using conditionals!  Start by writing how you felt in a particular situation. Be descriptive with your adjectives about emotions!  Then try using the third conditional form thinking about how you could have felt different if the circumstances had been otherwise.
Best,
Kelly

This week we discussed etiquette, what is the appropriate or most respectful way to behave in a variety of situations.  The article that we used as a baseline for our discussion was Do You Know How to Behave? Are You Sure? How to text, tip, ghost, host, and generally exist in polite society today.

Listening:
Learners should try a B2 level activity about manners.

For original version listening, try a podcast episode from Emily Post called Awesome Etiquette or from Were You Raised By Wolves? Etiquette, Manners, and Beyond!

Reading:
Learners can try an activity from Breaking News English about Train Etiquette.

For original version, try an article describing typical etiquette in Spain. Do you agree with these guidelines?

Writing:
This week for writing, imagine you are writing an article for a magazine explaining how to be polite in civil society in Spain.  Think about a few contexts (work, nightlife, social contexts, transport) and some important dos and don'ts.
Best,
Kelly

This week we took a moment to talk about a year of war in Europe and the situations of different people caught up in the conflict.  It was a great chance to practice the grammatical form of the 3rd conditional!

Listening:
Learners should check out an activity about War's Silver Lining or for something a bit harder, try an activity about Battle at the Front.

For original version listening, check out the daily NPR podcast, State of Ukraine, for example 
War in Ukraine: One Year Later.

Reading:
Learners can try an activity about the future of a historica air base.

For original version, try any of the following articles: What lies ahead for Ukraine? or about The Flying Tigers.

Writing:
This week for writing, you have a couple of options.  You could tell a story that takes place in a war, from the perspective of a soldier, a civilian, an aviator, a journalist, a spy, a president, a child.  Or, give a summary of the current state of Ukraine and your predictions for what will happen next, trying to use a variety of conditional forms.
Best,
Kelly

This week we talked about what makes a great song (lyrics, chord progression, hook, etc) and took turns playing DJ to share our favorite hits and to try to decipher the lyrics.  Don't forget a great general resources is the website LyricsTraining.

Listening:
Learners should check out an activity about Boy bands,  or for something a bit harder, try a gap fill activity about breaking into the music business.

For original version listening, I highly recommend the podcasts Strong Songs and Switched on Pop when it comes to talking about what makes music work!

Reading:
Learners can try an easy reading activity about Music, or about Beyoncé breaking the record for Grammy awards last week.

For original version, try one of these articles: The Education of a Part-Time Punk , or Islands in the Stream. Obviously another option is to read the lyrics of some of your favorite songs!

Writing:
This week for writing, please choose a song that you adore to analyze. How would you describe the mood? The beat? The message? The way it builds? What makes it so good? How did you first come across it and what does it mean to you?
Best,
Kelly

First off, don't forget we have an extra activity scheduled for this week!  We are going to see the film The Whale on Thursday February 9th at 19:45 at the 7 Infantes Cinema.  If you would like to go, please confirm your attendance before Wednesday!

This week we talked about sleep! Our habits, frustrations, our dreams and sleepwalking. Sweet dreams, everyone!

Listening:
Learners try watching a video about different sleep disorders and answer comprehension questions. Or from British Council, an activity about sleeping for exam success.

For original version listening, listen to the excellent radio show Fear of Sleep, which is truly hilarious.  It is available with transcript.

Reading:
Learners can try an activity about scientists being able to read dreams or about if we can control our dreams.

For original version, try one of these articles: The Global Dream Lab  or While We Sleep, Our Mind Goes on an Amazing Journey .

Writing:
This week for writing, please write an article about how to improve sleep hygiene.  Consider using some expressions related to sleep such as hit the hay, toss and turn, sleep like a log, to sleep on it.
Best,
Kelly

This week we talked about tourism and travelling, specific about the local tourism industry here in Logroño and how it has grown over the years. 

Listening:
Learners can try a B2 level comprehension activity about the effects of tourism on a local community.

For original version listening, check out an episode of a BBC radio program called Thinking Allowed - Tourism and Travel.

Reading:
Learners can try a C1 reading comprehension activity about an anti-tourism march in Barcelona.

For original version, check out the article about how to do a pinchos crawl in Calle Laurel. Obviously, you already possess this expertise, but it might be interesting to see it from a foreigner's eyes.

Writing:
This week for writing, try one of the following prompts:

• Travel can be an adventure that you remember for a lifetime. Write about an interesting travel experience you’ve had, or want to have one day.
• Many people find that travelling to different countries allows them to understand different people’s beliefs and points of view better. Why do you think that is?
• How does traveling to another city differ from traveling to another country?

Best,
Kelly