Rephrasings

Hi guys! as you are VERY GOOD students and I know you are going to study a lot, here you have the key to the rephrasings. Study a lot, but don't focus only on grammar and vocabulary, you should revise your opinion essays, connectors, practise writing and listening as well. Remember everything is important, not only grammar.


Infinitivo Activo > Pasivo

1. I don't like to be criticised (by people)
2. He expects to be paid for the CDs.
3. Helen expects to be invited (by me).
4. I want to be accepted by Oxford University.
5. I am waiting to be helped by the manager.
6. Nothing is there to be done

OI Activo > Sujeto Pasivo

1. I was sent to an English-speaking school by my parents.
2. Sally was given a computer for her birhtday by her parents.
3. I wasn't allowed to stay in the country.

OI Activo > Sujeto Pasivo

1. Sally is expected to arrive at 5.
2. She is thought to be a good singer.
3. He is considered to be a genious.
4. GS is said to be giving a concert next month.
5. The President is expected to resign.
6. (this was already in the passive)

Pasiva>Activa

1. A thermometer measures temperature.
2. They prohibit children to speak Spanish.
3. Encouraging can alleviate problems of old age.
4. They arrested, imprisoned and tortured E. Sánchez in 1974.

Verbos Modales en Pasiva
1. Americans will have to be convinced (by doctors) to eat less.
2. A book would be needed to attempt a good definition of culture.
3. We will enabled to withstand extreme theories by language science.
4. Windsor Castle can be only seen from the air.
5. The Persian cat couldn't be afforded by her.
6. The roof ought to be mended.
7. The plants must be watered at least once a week.

Causative Have & Get

1. The King had/got the chapel decorated (by Italian artists)
2. I am having/getting my car serviced on Monday.
3. Do you have/get your car serviced very often?
4. I have/get my nails varnished by that woman.

Useful links

Hi class! Here you have some links to webs where you can practise English by doing rephrasings. Remember that apart from being a good way to practise grammar, it is the type of exercise included in the Selectividad test. So... here you are

http://perso.wanadoo.es/autoEnglish/gr.havdon.i.htm
http://www.xtec.es/~ogodoy/sac/index.htm

Composition written by a ten-year-old English boy

Hi guys! here you have a composition written by an English child of ten when he was asked to write an essay on a bird or a beast. He had something to say and he said it as clearly as he could.

The bird that I am going to write about is the owl. The owl cannot see at all by day and at night is as blind as a bat. I do not know much about the owl, so I will go on to the beast which I am going to choose. It is the cow. The cow is a mammal. It has six sides : right, left, an upper and below. At the back it has a tail on which hangs a brush. With this it sends the flies away so that they do not fall into the milk. The head is for the purpose of growing horns and so that the mouth can be somewhere. The horns are to butt with, and the mouth is to moo with. Under the cow hangs the milk. It is arranged for milking. When people milk, the milk comes and there is never an end to the supply. How the cow does it I have not yet realised, but it makes more and more. The cow has a fine sense of smell; one can smell it far away. This is the reason for the fresh air in the country. The man cow is called an ox. It is not a mammal. The cow does not eat much, but what it eats it eats twice, so that it gets enough. When it is hungry it moos, and when it says nothing it is because its inside is all full up with grass.

Is it morally correct to kill killers?

Hello again class! this time I'd like you to think on justice, particularly, on the death penalty or capital punishment.

I think an image is worth a thousand words, so... let's look at some pictures

I saw these devices in the "Museo de la Tortura" in Santillana del Mar. I was really impressed with the methods the Inquisition used to kill the offenders. You can take a look at some other pics in Google images, they are very shocking.

However, inquisitors were not the only ones to kill people declared guilty; you may have heard about the USA controversy on death penalty, but did you know if it isn't legal in all the states, or that it has been abolished in some others? did you know the method used to execute prisoners change from state to state? Well, you should investigate, get information and real facts about the subject before posting your opinion on this blog.

Blue: No current death penalty statute
Orange: Death penalty statute declared unconstitutional (New York Court of Appeals declared statute unconstitutional June 24, 2004)
Green: No one executed since 1976
Red: Has performed execution since 1976

Be prepared to answer the following questions:

1. How many people have been executed in Florida?

2. How many inmates are waiting for execution in Wyoming?

3. Name 3 states in which capital punishment is banned.

4. Name 3 capital crimes.

5. Which methods were used in the past and which ones are used now?

Do you think is it morally correct to kill killers? What do you think of life imprisonment? Post your comment on the blog.

First task!

As you know, in Unit 1 of your student's book, you have read some information about British customs and conventions. Now I'd like you to watch videos about some of the British customs you read about in your textbook.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDMnBjoWpi0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSBuir3NeTA

Is there any similar celebration in Spain? Post your comments about this on the blog.

Now, it's time to investigate and read more about this topic. Follow these steps to complete the final task:

1. Visit the following site about British culture http://projectbritain.com/ and have a look at the headings on the right.
2. Clic on "etiquette" and carefully read the information it gives about social norms in Britain. Note down the things which are similar or different to Spanish social customs and tell us about some of them
3. Finally, in pairs make a similar list for visitors to your country and hand it to me before Octuber 14.

Post your comments on the blog, and don't forget to include your name in the entry, otherwise, it will be anonymous, and therefore, not evaluated.

Be careful with spelling, vocabulary, grammar, etc.

Welcome to this English blog!

Hello class!

I've always wanted to have a space on the web so that you can do online activites and post your comments on different subjects and that's the reason why I've decided to design this blog.

And because this is my and your blog, you can give suggestions, providing songs, videos or any idea you have and you would like to share with your classmates.

Of course, this is part of the subject, and your comments will be given the importance of class work and compositions, so follow the rules (pay attention to spelling, vocabulary, etc) and always USE ENGLISH.

I hope you enjoy the experience of having an English blog.