THANKSGIVING

Thursday, 27th November 2008

It's THANKSGIVING DAY!

It is a harvest festival. Traditionally, it is a time to give thanks for the harvest and express gratitude in general. It is primarily a North American holiday which has generally become a national secular holiday with religious origins.
Today, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. Thanksgiving dinner is held on this day, usually as a gathering of family members.

If you want to learn more about Thanksgiving, go to this website.

AFTER-SCHOOL JOBS

WARM-UP

1. What are the most popular jobs students normally take?

LISTENING

Listen to this recording and answer the following questions:

1. How old was she when she took her first job?
2. Where did she work?
3. How long did she work there?
4. Why did she look for a job?
5. Where was her next job? How old was she?
6. Why did she have to work so much?
7. When she was a senior at high school, where did she start working?
8. Why was this job better?
9. When did she work as a waiter?
10. Why was this job OK for her?

WHAT DO YOU DO FOR A LIVING?

WARMING-UP

1. How many different jobs can you list in English? I'm sure there are some jobs you don't know how to say in English, so look them up in the dictionary!

LISTENING

1. Now watch the following video and write down all the different jobs mentioned in the video. Then check them with the subtitles.



FOLLOW-UP
1. Now click on this link and do the follow-up activities.

WHAT DID YOU DO YESTERDAY?

LEAD-IN

What did you do yesterday? Do you remember? I went to the beach to walk my dog. It was a really nice day so I really enjoyed it.

Now listen to the following video (www.real-english.com) and write down what each of the speaker says.

What did you do yesterday? A Real English Classic
by realdogswimming

Then check your answers (I'll send you the script).

JOBS

Do you want to widen your vocabulary on jobs? Here's a good link where you can work on your own. Notice that it gets harder and harder as you complete each link.

IT'S REMEMBRANCE DAY

Remembrance day is on 11th November. It is a special day set aside to remember all those men and women who were killed during the two World Wars and other conflicts. People wear a red poppy in memory of those who sacrificed their lives during the wars.

STORY: The fox and the crow

Dear students,

Here's a good link where you can listen to (and read) a story mainly told in the past simple, although there are other tenses used.

Before you start reading it, think about the title, The Fox and the Crow. Do you know these two animals? Do you know this story? If so, what is it about?. Then listen to it and answer these questions:

1. Where did the crow get the piece of cheese from?
2. How did the fox notice the piece of cheese?
3. How did the crow react when the fox praised him?
4. What did the fox ask the crow to do?
5. In the end, who is the clever one? Why?

Finally, read it again and identify those verbs in the past simple and past continuous.

JOKE (past simple)

There was a man who wanted to prove his love to his wife. So he climbed the highest mountain, swam the deepest ocean and walked the biggest desert.
What do you think his wife said?

She didn't! She divorced him for never being at home.

GUY FAWKES DAY!

November 5th marks the anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot, a conspiracy to blow up the English Parliament and King James I in 1605, the day set for the king to open Parliament. The anniversary was named after Guy Fawkes, the most famous of the conspirators.
The story is remembered each 5th November when 'Guys' are burned in a celebration known as 'Bonfire Night'.

New link

Hi everybody,

I have just added a new link for you to practise vocabulary, grammar and reading and pronunciation. It's called VOCABULARY & GRAMMAR.

Hope you like it!

The regular past -ed ending

Dear students,
Here's a link where you can practise the -ed ending or regular verbs in the past.

I hope it helps.

NB I've just found another link which might help you.