Level 3 Work

As mentioned in class, here is the video about unusual vacations, a business created to satisfy people's fantasies about ideal jobs. Watch the video again and try to catch the most important ideas. You may also want to see two videos on outside jobs posted in September, 2013 archives.

Level 4 Money and more..

Today in class we were talking about how some people have become successful entrepreneurs, that is, people who have started their own business in the internet. We talked about Google founders and here are the links to the full BBC Programme "The World According Google":

Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mW9v9jzealM

Part 2:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVqMJllyBjQ

Part 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lagGJAiPOgM

You might also be interested in watching two videos about outside jobs. Look for them in the September 2013 archives.

I look forward to read your posts!

My New Experience

One thing that has really changed in my life, is my insecurity with the people. I decided know more people. So that, when I started the University and I didn´t met nobody, I started to talk with strange people for me. Before that, I used to be very quiet and lonely.

At first, I was difficult because I was very nervous, But I met new people and made new friends. In the end one of the girls that I met that day, became to be a of the my best friends.

by Isaac Loeza Alcocer

One thing that has really changed in my life ...
Is when i went in to preparatory, it changed my form of study. I decided study very hard all days. So that sleep a few hours before that reproved the gree. At first was very difficult because was boring but accustomed me (:

When I moved to Mérida

 by Maria Antonia Aguilar Ramírez

One thing that has really changed in my life is when I moved to Mérida in August 2010 to go to the university. I was excited because there was a new experience. But it wasn´t good, my mother and me didn´t have a house and my father was living in a small town named Buctzots, near the city. First week, we were alone because my father returned to his work, we didn´t know anyone and all things were different, Mérida was bigger than Celaya, people speak strange, spicy food didn´t like us and we missed my brothers.
Fortunately, a father´s friend lent us his house because he moved two years before and he had on sale. It was a big house and we were just two people, but my father accepted because he wouldn´t pay rent. After two years my mom was looking for a house, and she found one that she likes. She bought a small house north of the city and we moved. This house is the place where I live now.

A too young mom

     One thing that has really changed my life was when my boyfriend graduated. I went to Guadalajara, Jalisco, for the celebration. But I went with Nick, my son. He was just 5 months old and I was 17 years.  This experience was very hard for me, because my mom used to help me taking care of Nicolas. In Guadalajara, I was alone in a different city, with different weather, in a small apartment. I had to go shopping with Nick, I had to go to the laundry, cook baby food… everything by myself as my boyfriend was doing in internship.
     We were very young parents and even nowadays after we’ve got divorced, we have too many challenges relative to our paternhood. 
     This happened 13 years ago. I went through this experience without problems and since then, I am a better mom.

                                                 Susana Campos

One thing that has really changed in my life 2.0

One thing that has really changed in my life is my acttitude and my physical appearance. I decided to change this things but that wasn't easy however it was rewarding. Before that, used to be so skinny and insecure. At first I was short and skinny and I thought that it was never going to change, because of my insecurity. I grew up, and starded to doing exercise. In the end I'm became confident and a papasito sensualón. :) #YOLO

One thing that has really changed in my life

One thing that has really changed in my life

By Diana Anabel Vera Canché

One thing that has really changed in my life was when i became be independent because i missed my mom and her food.
I decided to moved away to my parent´s home because they live in Motul and I work in Mérida so I rented a small apartament here. 
Before that I used to enjoy longs chats whith my mom when I arrived from work and i used to enjoy her food. 
At  first it was so difficult because i didn´t have anything, no fridge, no bed, no tv!!!! and I had to go to the supermarket and buy my own foodstuffs and the worst? cook it!!! 
I didn´t know how to cook and my meals were horribles,  But i wanted be independet.
Now I finally learn to cook and If I don´t want to cook I buy my food cooked or My mom comes once a week to visit me and she cooks for me, i love her!

One thing that has really changed my life Is:

One thing that has really changed my life Is:

When I started the university because I didn’t have money to pay my school expenditures, so I decided to work in a beauty parlor to continue with my career. Before that I used to be very lazy and I hated the housework, however, I always have loved to go to the school, then I didn´t mind to have to work. At first, I was excited because I wanted to know how to make up the girls, make hair styles, etc. but it wasn’t what I expected, I always did pedicure, washed the dishes, swept the floor, etc.  My boss was really nice but I didn’t felt good because she was eating junk food all the time and I started to gain weight so I gave up that job and I started to look for another one. In the end I got a job in my university, in that place I learned many things and I increased my aspirations, I got a scholarship at school and I finished my career without problems,  nowadays I can say that it was the best job that I have had.

Cute experiences

The thing that has changed my life when i was studying in the high school and the last day was very complicated to me because i had so much friends there and my boyfriend too, In the last day i was in the cafeteria with all my friends talking about those 3 years of class, i felt very sad so i started to cry. then my friends started to hug me. I met a lot of people and friends and they helped me when i had some problems with my homework and i helped them too. In the end my friends and i did a party and that was the goodbye.

One thing that has really changed in my life is:

One thing that has really changed in my life is:

When I went for the first time to Brazil, I felt very nervous but I decided to enjoy and take advantage. I had problems with a communication, because I didn´t speak Portuguese. So that I tried to learn the language for all the available means. Before that, my only knowledge of the Brazilian culture are by the soccer, specifically by Pelé. I used to listen music, and so I listened very much Brazilian music. When I left Brazil the first thing that I did was take a course of Portuguese. In the end I think I learned the language, because I got to write my dissertation totally in Portuguese.

Manuel A. Valenzuela J.

My new experience.

One thing that has really changed in my life is my work. One year ago I decided to look for a job. So I left my C.V. in schools and colleges because I wanted to be a professor. Before that, I used to think that it would be easy, I was wrong. At first, the students thought the history class was boring because they hated reading. So, I showed them documentaries and movies about Mexican history to motivate them. They liked it. Now they want to learn more, so my students look for books to read and know new things about their own country. In the end they think: "History can be more interesting".

Level 4 - Invitation to post your articles

I hope everyone received the invitation to post your blog articles. Don't forget it is important you revise them, correct them and post them. In the invitation you must get a link to access the page. I hope to see all your works published!

Unit 7 - Additional Activities

To have some extra practice on Unit 7 in which we learned about changes, here is a link to an interesting article about the happiest place on Earth:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/5172254.stm

Also watch the following video which provides information about Butan, also considered the happiest country on Earth

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivomu5DJvqQ

How to Learn Vocabulary

I think that one of the most useful tools to become a competent user of a foreign language is a wide vocabulary. Vocabulary learning is not only about words, it is also about the correct way to use the words, it involves semantics (meaning) and also syntax (correct combination of words). As we learn vocabulary, we are also learning which word is a verb, a noun, an adjective, an adverb, etc.

As I mentioned in class, it is a good idea to create a vocabulary log, or diary, to note all the new words you learn, what you think they mean, the actual meaning from an English-English Dictionary, other word forms, possible use in a sentence, synonyms, antonym, play with the word, etc.

Here is also a link to an article which I found and I think could be very useful for you. 

http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/vocabulary_tips.htm

Have fun with words!

Past Tense - Regular and Irregular Verbs / English Pronunciation

Past Tense - Regular and Irregular verbs

Hi everyone!
The simple past tense in English refers to completed actions. We use the simple past with time expressions such as yesterday, a minute ago, last week, in 1930, etc.

The regular verbs in English are those formed by adding "ed" or "d" to the base form of the verb. When verbs end in CONSONANT + "Y", it is necessary to drop the "Y", change it to "I" and add "ed", for example: carry - carried. However, if a verb ends in VOWEL + "Y", you only add "ed" like in the verb "play" which becomes played in the past. Here is a link where you can find a Word document with a list of regular verbs.
 cefire.edu.gva.es/mod/resource/view.php?id...
 
Another important thing you have to consider when learning about regular verbs is the pronunciation of the final "ed". When a verb ends in a "t" or a "d" sound, the final "ed" is pronounced as a separate syllable, for example: start - start-ed, accept - accept-ed, while arrive - arrived  (ə-rīvd′).
 
You also NEED to learn the irregular verbs, here is a link for you to practice:

http://www.englishpage.com/irregularverbs/irregularverbs.html

This link has a list of irregular verbs in alphabetical order, flashcards for study and practice and excersises.

You may also want to try this game. You can either play alone or with a partner.

http://www.quia.com/cb/8111.html

Pronunciation 
It is important to get familiar with the Phonetic Alphabet. You can find it in the Active Disc included at the end of your book.

Here is an excellent free resource where you can check the meaning of words as well as their pronunciation. It will be of great help to start using it:

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/

If you are interested in learning more about the Phonetic Alphabet, try this link which will provide you with more useful information:

http://www.antimoon.com/how/pronunc-soundsipa.htm

Here is a very useful video which explains in an easy and clear way how the English alphabet has different sounds. The title is "Why are phonetics important?"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhIUePCepL8

Finally, here is a page by the BBC which I think is great, visit it, 

 http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/pron/

Good luck during this course and don't forget that hard work beats talent, when talent doesn't work hard!