HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE ...?

If we are talking about time, we use the phrase “How long does it take…?”

When we are wondering about the time needed to travel (from place A) to place B, we can ask “How long does it take to get (from A) to B?”:

How long does it take to get from London to Oxford? —It takes about one hour by car.
How long does it take to get from the library to the museum? —It’s about a ten-minute walk.
How long does it take to get to the airport?—About twenty minutes.

We can also use “How long does it take…?” if we are asking about doing something:

How long does it take to bake a cake?
How long does it take to build a house?

The questions can be personalized, as well:  How long does it take you to do something?

How long does it take you to do your homework?
How long will it take Tom to clean his room?
It took me forever to finish that project.

And you can watch this video. There are two parts. The second part is the same but with subtitles.

ITCHY FEET

 VOCABULARY

Go to these links and do the exercises to reinforce your vocabulary about travelling and tourism.


related to means of transport

travel related vocabulary

travelling, planning a trip

tourism related vocabulary

more tourism related vocabulary

travel related terms and expressions

WRITING: AN INFORMAL EMAIL

Remember you have homework, you have to write an informal email to thank your British friends with whom you stayed for a week last month and to tell them what you have been doing recently.

These are some tips to help you with your writing. If you want to get a document with some useful expressions, go to 'Writing' to see, download and/or print it.

1. Apologize for not writing before
2. Thank them for your stay and say how much you enjoyed it
3. Talk about the nice things that happened while you were with them.
4. Talk about what you have been doing recently.
5. Promise to send some photos
6. Thank them again and invite them to stay. 

CHRISTMAS SOLIDARITY MARKET AT THE EOI

WE NEED YOU!!!

Like every year our school is holding a second-hand charity market before Christmas. This year's market will take place on December 10, 11 and 12 from 17.00 to 20.00. but, how does it work?

You, the students, bring anything you have at home but you no longer need, from books to jewellery, decorations, gadgets, accesories, ... anything that is sellable EXCEPT clothes! provided that it is in good conditions, and we sell it at the market at no fixed price, which means we can pay whatever we want for them. So, we bring our stuff to be sold and we buy other's stuff. And now the question is, what do we do with the money we raise?

All the money we raise is given to an organization to help those in need. This year the organization is Proyecto Juntos, the organization that struggles to improve quality of life of children hospitalised, in Can Misses in our case.

Do you want more information about this organization? Have a look at their site - proyecto juntos

Or you can download a PDF document with information about them.

If you're spoiling yourself, why not do it in a way that also helps others? We need your help and cooperation!!

STRONG ADJECTIVES

Watch this video to learn about strong adjectives. You can also go to Vocabulary to get a document with an explanation and a list of strong adjectives.


And now you can practise:

Exercise 1

Exercise 2 (A page by the Brisitsh Council with a series of exersises)

Exercise 3 (Includes an explanation)

FOR-SINCE-AGO

You seem to have some problems using for, since or ago. Ok, not a problem anymore! This is an explanation on how to use them.
You can also go to "Grammar" to download it as a document. Below the explanation you will find some exercises to practise.

For, since and ago are used to talk about time.

FOR      

For is used to indicate a period of time.

        How long are staying in London? I'm staying for a week.

For is often used with the Present Perfect.

        I have been waiting at the bus stop for 10 minutes.

        I have lived in this country for 5 years.

For can be used with other verb tenses :

        Present : I go on holidays for two weeks every summer.

        Past : When I was sixteen, I stayed in London for two months.

        Future :While I am in the USA , I will be in New York for two days.

SINCE

Since is used to refer to the starting point of actions or situations. It is generally used with the Present Perfect.

        I have been waiting for the bus since 8 o'clock.

        I live in Tokyo. I have lived in Tokyo since January 2010.

        I have been learning English since the beginning of the year.

AGO    

Ago is used to say when past events happened, going back from today towards the past. The verb is in the Past Tense.

        I came to Tokyo two years ago.

        I arrived at the bus stop 10 minutes ago.

        The company was founded 30 years ago.

You can also watch this video:

And now you can try these exercises:

- Exercise 1

- Exercise 2

- Exercise 3

- Exercise 4

- Exercise 5

THE LITTLE GIRL AND THE BISCUIT

Let's get used to the Present Perfect and stories are a good way to learn English. Why don't you watch the video below and listen to the story "The Little Girl and the Biscuit" to practise the present perfect? You can follow the story either through the subtitles (you have to activate them) or through the images on the video. Also, at the end of the video, you have a list of irregular verbs which are read aloud. This is good practice since you learn vocabulary as well as you improve your listening skills and this leads to better speaking skills!

PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

We have been studying when to use the 'Present Perfect Continuous' of verbs. If you still have problems, go to 'Grammar' to see, download and/or print a document with a more extensive explanation.
 

TENSE		USE	EXAMPLE
Present Perfect Simple	-	when the result of the action is important	I’ve written a play
Present Perfect Continuous	1	to describe how somebody or something has been occupying his/her or its time	I have been writing a play
	2	for repeated actions and actions of a continuous nature	I’ve been going to a new café a lot

And here you have some more practice!

Exercise 1

Exercise 2

Exercise 3

Exercise 4

Exercise 5

Exercise 6

PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

This is the presentation we saw in class, now you can watch it again, why don't you have a look at it again? It will help you understand when and how to use the present perfect continuous.



Present Perfect Continuous - Created with Haiku Deck, presentation software that inspires;

THE PRESENT PERFECT IN FILMS

Why don't you watch these videos with short clips from films where the present perfect is used? Don't worry, they have subtitles! It's a good way to get used to the present perfect tense.




Video 2

PAST SIMPLE vs PRESENT PERFECT II

Why don't you watch this video to revise the use of the past simple and the present perfect in English? Remember that grammar has meaning! And that different grammar tenses are used in different situations or contexts and they carry different meanings.

And now, time to practise!

- Exercise 1

- Exercise 2

- Exercise 3

- Exercise 4

- Exercise 5

- Exercise 6

PAST SIMPLE vs PRESENT PERFECT - Grammar

Use

In British English, the use of Simple Past and Present Perfect is quite strict. As soon as a time expression in the past is given, you have to use Simple Past. If there are no signal words, you must decide if we just talk about an action in the past or if its consequence in the present is important.

Certain time in the past or just / already / yet?

Do you want to express that an action happened at a certain time in the past (even if it was just a few seconds ago) or that an action has just / already / not yet happened?

Simple Past	Present Perfect Simple
certain time in the past Example: I phoned Mary 2 minutes ago.	just / already / not yet Example: I have just phoned Mary.

Certain event in the past or how often so far?

Do you want to express when a certain action took place or whether / how often an action has happened till now?

Simple Past	Present Perfect Simple
certain event in the past Example: He went to Canada last summer.	whether / how often till now Example: Have you ever been to Canada? / I have been to Canada twice.

Emphasis on action or result?

Do you just want to express what happened in the past? Or do you want to emphasise the result (a past action's consequence in the present)?

Simple Past	Present Perfect Simple
Emphasis on action Example: I bought a new bike. (just telling what  I did in the past.)	Emphasis on result Example: I have bought a new bike. (With this sentence  I actually want to express that I have a  new bike now.)

Signal Words

Simple Past	Present Perfect Simple
yesterday ... ago in 1990 the other day last ...	just already up to now until now / till now ever (not) yet so far lately / recently

 Remember, you can go to "Grammar" to download as a document.