EOI_IN4_Tema 1.1: So, what´s your deal?

:
Welcome to CEOLS!

So, what's your deal?: Welcome to CEOLS!

Inglés 1º de Nivel Intermedio B2

Enseñanzas
Oficiales de Lesson
Idiomas

What's your deal?

Welcome to CEOLS!

Culture counts

There are many online language schools. We will be visiting

some of them to increase our knowledge of the English
speaking world and culture.

Perhaps the most famous of them all is BBC Learning English. It is brought to us from
the United Kingdom and, therefore, of course, deals with British English.

However, there are many different English accents; at Poetry Out Loud, you can listen
to, as well as get to know, Canadian accents and at the same time practise your
pronunciation through poetry.

Focus on
Read about how our online language school was founded.

00:00 01:18

CEOLS /si:ɒlz/ was created in 2005 by a young couple, Serena and Blake Walkers, who
were going to Turkey to teach English to youngsters. They wanted to know the basics
before they arrived, so they decided to search the Internet and find the survival
language they needed to understand and make themselves understood the minute they
set foot on what was going to be their new home for the next three years.

The enormous amount of information and courses they found online, together with the
online record of activities they were producing, sparked the idea of starting their own
website to help their learners.

The school began as a free online resource. However, it was soon spotted by
entrepreneur James Pengelly who saw the potential in the young couple and offered to
fund a European Online Language School. Pengelly got in touch with the young couple,
making them an offer they couldn't resist which brought them back to the UK
immediately after they finished their obligations in Turkey.

Do it yourself

Choose the correct answer.

1.The original idea for the company came from Mr. Pengelly.
Hint

True False

False

It was created by Serena and Blake but funded by Mr. Pengelly.

2."Set foot on"  literally means put your feet somewhere.

Hint

True False

True

Well done! It is an idiom and it means "to step on".

3. "For" is a preposition of time but can also indicate a purpose.
Hint

True False

True

Excellent. When "for" indicates a purpose it is usually followed by "-ing": "for

making/using/playing/writing..."

4.The UK (United Kingdom) includes the Republic of Ireland.

True False

False

I'm afraid not. Look at the video and find out why. "The difference between the UK,
Great Britain...".

5. English is an official language in Turkey.

Hint

True False

False

Sorry, that isn't right. Turkey's official language is Turkish.

1. About CEOLS

Focus on

Where and who we are.

Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 2

00:00 02:10

The company offices are located in Falmouth, a well-known harbour on the south coast
of Cornwall.

CEOLS is currently comprised of a team of eleven experts who know that every student
calls for a different amount of help and time to improve the language they are learning.
They carry out individual placement tests if the student has previous knowledge to
ascertain the level. They also study the appropriate learning styles and strategies each
learner requires. This individual needs analysis takes place during the first three weeks.
During that time, students are guaranteed results and, if they are not satisfied, they will
be fully refunded.

CEOLS carefully selects their staff which is why they can guarantee that the staff will be
with you right from start to finish. CEOLS' students define their teachers as keen,
innovative and dedicated. The CEOLS research programme entails constantly
researching how to improve spoken languages by helping students develop the skills
they need in order to communicate effectively.

CEOLS is flexible and convenient. Students can learn at their convenience, at any time
of day or night. They can fit your schedule and you do not need to travel because you
can follow their courses from the comfort of your own home.
All you need is a headset and high speed Internet. CEOLS will provide a selection of
tools for online conversation with as many as 15 simultaneous partners. Students will
have the classroom available in the comfort of their own home, in their hotel room,
plane or train during their travels.

Wherever you are, whenever you need us, we are just a click away.

 
 1. Do you know Falmouth?

2. Why is Falmouth a good place to visit?

3. What can you see and do in Falmouth?

4. What famous chocolate store has been

open in Falmouth for almost a hundred
years?
Image de David Stowell en
Wikimedia Commons . 
These are a few of the questions you can Licencia CC.

answer by visiting the Official Town

website.

1. (Your own answer).

2. Falmouth is a good place to visit because... (Your own answer).

3. There are many things you can see and do in Falmouth. There is a great variety
of activities such as walking, cycling, visiting the sights, you can even get married
in Falmouth! (You may complete this answer with your own activities).

4. If you found "Thorntons", you are right!

Watch the video at England Southwest about Cornwall:

Enlace a recurso reproducible >> http://www.youtube.com/embed/t1HtnuMUIyM

Video alojado en Youtube

How much did you understand? Study the table, match the beginning of a sentence in
Column A with its ending in Column B.:

Column A Column B

1. The trip starts in a. the last person who spoke

Devon Cornish as a native tongue.

2. Tintagel castle is b. gave name to an operetta.

 3. The Pirates of c. small oily fish.
Penzance

4. Mousehole’s d. was an important port for

pronunciation nearly a thousand years.

5. Mousehole was also e. which is just over border from

home to Cornwall.

6. St. Michael’s mount f. is in the middle of a moor.

7. Pilchards are g. related to the legend of King

Arthur.

8. The Jamaica Inn h. has nothing to do with the

spelling.

The correct answers are:

1. e

2. g

3. b

4. h

5. a

6. d

7. c

8. f
1.1. Teaching and Learning

Focus on

Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 3

00:00 01:50

In order to achieve these rewarding results, CEOLS asks students to sign a class
contract in which they commit to follow the CEOLS method as well as dedicate a
stipulated amount of time in accordance with the level and experience.

Some of the techniques include:

- Interaction between teachers and learners in a way that knowledge is co-constructed
in learning rather than simply being transmitted by the teacher.

- Students learn through communication and conversation. Language use develops the
learner's voice, his or her beliefs, previous knowledge and experiences are valid content
in the lesson.

- The content is frequently reviewed, evaluated and updated so that it engages the
learners.

- The teacher enables the emergence of language and guides students toward it.

- Our staff encourages making mistakes because it means students are producing.
Accuracy stems from error correction. One of our mottos is: "you can't correct what you
don't produce."

Finally, if students would like a more hands on approach, they can also apply for a
homestay at CEOLS centre in Falmouth.

Are you having trouble with your English? Apply now and get all the information for free.

Reading Activity

Now that you have finished reading about CEOLS, try the comprehension test. You may
want to read the full text again. In order to do that, you may click here >> Documento de descarga.
 Do it yourself

2. Two reasons that motivated the set up of their initial website were ___.
a) earning extra money and lots of free time.

b) interest in travelling and knowing the culture.

c) plentiful online information as well as their own production.

Wrong

Wrong

The correct answer is "c" because the text reads: "the enormous amount of
information...together with...they were producing..."

Solution

. Wrong
. Wrong
. Correct Option

3. From the information in the text we can understand that the Blakes _____.
a) reached the end of their previous agreement and then left.
b) left Turkey before finishing their time there.

a) the correct answer is "a" because the text says: "...after they finished their
obligations in Turkey."

Wrong

Solution

. Correct Option
. Wrong
4. According to the text, _____.
a) anyone can work for CEOLS.
b) there must be a professional selection process.

Wrong

The correct answer is "b" because the story says, "carefully selects their staff."

Solution

. Wrong
. Correct Option

5. The study schedule at CEOLS ____.

a) is adaptable to individual student needs.
b) isn't adaptable to individual student needs.

This is the correct option because the text says that the school caters for
"individual needs analysis."

Wrong

Solution

. Correct Option
. Wrong

6. CEOLS also calls for an effor on behalf of their students as they will have to _____.
a) come to classes every day.
b) be online for at least three hours a day.
c) comply with or meet certain requirements.

Wrong
Wrong

This is the correct answer because students have to sign a contract and commit to
the CEOLS method.

Solution

. Wrong
. Wrong
. Correct Option
1.2. Bringing it all together

Study the following words taken from our story about the online language
school:

WORD BUILDING

Prefix Root Suffix

young ster

in form ation

on line

web site

place ment

re fund ed

head set

wher(e) ever

when ever

re ward ing

co- constructed
 re view ed

en able s

home stay

Notice that there are several word building categories on the

list.

1. We have examples of suffixes, for instance: youngsters. The "-ster" ending means:
"associated with". Other examples are:

prankster = associated with a prank

gangster = associated with a gang

teamster = associated with a team.

2. The "-ment" is added to the end of a word to indicate an action or resulting state,
also a product (fragment) or means (ornament).

3. You may also find words which are made up of both a "prefix" and a "suffix":

in   form   ation.

4. Another way of building words is by putting two words together. In the current era of
technological advancement, many new words have appeared in this field, for instance:

white   board

fire   wire.

5. However, we can also find "grammatical compounds", in other words, two words that
belong to different categories but that are written together:

when   ever

wher(e)   ever (it loses the final "e" before adding "ever").

6. Other suffixes also belong to the "grammar" category, for example:

re   fund   ed ("-ed" is a regular verb past ending)

re   ward   ing ("-ing" is a present participle ending)

en   able   s ("-s" is a third person singular, verb ending).

Do it yourself

Now look at the words in the box. Can you put them under the correct heading?

mountaineer     jokestar    basement 

privatize    anticlockwise     literacy

biotechnology     readiness

 Prefix  Root  Suffix

     

 Prefix Root Suffix

   mountain  eer
   joke  star
   base  ment
   privat  ize (AmE)/ise (BrE)*
 anti  clock  wise
   liter  acy
   readi  ness
 bio  techn  ology
   social  ism

Do it yourself

Finally, look at these words:

  flashcard        somewhat        homeschool        vodcast       

 skateboard

 Can you divide them? Do you know what they mean?

flash - card

some -what

home - school

vod - cast

skate - board
1.3 Let's review our verb tenses

Focus on

 Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 4

00:00 02:06

Throughout this lesson we have been learning about a new online school, some of its
staff members, the products it has to offer and its organization. Now, let's have a look
at the language that has been used and why.

The story of CEOLS is a piece of narrative writing, as such, it is written to entertain, but
also, of course, to teach and inform. Some features include:

- Characters with defined identities: Mr. Pengelly, Serena and Blake...

- Narrative (or dialogue) with tenses which vary from past to present to future: CEOLS
was created...The company offices are located...CEOLS will provide...

- Descriptive language to create images in the reader's mind and enhance the story: a
well-known harbour on the south coast of Cornwall...entrepreneur James
Pengelly...young couple... teachers are keen, innovative and dedicated...

The structure includes an introduction or orientation in which the characters, the

setting and the time of the story are established by answering questions such as: Who?
When? Where? And so on: CEOLS was created in 2005 by a young couple...

The introduction is followed by a complication or problem which involves the main

characters: ...spotted by entrepreneur...

To wrap a narrative up there is a resolution: Wherever you are, whenever you need us,
we are just a click away.

Having established the general layout, let's take a closer look at the story.

Do it yourself

Go back to "Welcome to CEOLS!" Look at the first paragraph again, it begins: "CEOLS
was created..." and ends: "for the next three years." Can you list examples of verbs in the
past?

Verbs in the past:

were going to

wanted to

arrived

decided

needed to 

understood

Do it yourself

Now, look at the section "About CEOLS" and more specifically at the first paragraph
beginning: "CEOLS is currently..." and ending: "...fully refunded." Can you identify verbs in
the present tenses?

Do it yourself

Finally, in the two sections there are two verbs which refer to the future. Can you find
them?

The two verbs are:

- was going to be (it is the "going to" future we are accustomed to but in the past
tense because it is speaking of an intention in the past);

- will be fully refunded (it is a passive with the "will" future).

Reading activity
 In order to review verb tenses in English, read through this presentation:

https://docs.google.com/present/embed?id=a3twhpj7cc9_54fbjm839w
2. Angela and Serena

                                                                                                                             Imagen de Openclipartvectors  en Pixabay bajo licencia CC

Angela is calling to ask for information. Listen to the conversation between her and
Serena.

 Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 5

00:00 03:55

Remember to look at the audioscript >> Documento de

descargaAFTER you carry out the activity!

Do it yourself

This is your first listening activity. First of all, read the sentences. Secondly, play the
recording. Thirdly, decide which sentences are true and which are false. After the first
listening, re-read the sentences and make any necessary changes. After doing the
activity you may check your comprehension with the audioscript.
Example: Angela used a landline to call the language school.
Hint

True False

False
 False, because she used Skype.

1. Angela would like to become an online language teacher.

Hint

True False

False

False, she is calling to ask about they have to offer.

2. If you miss the registration period in September, you may register later on in the
year.
Hint

True False

True

True, "We have two options."

3. This language school can help you obtain a formal qualification.

Hint

True False

True

True, "we are a private institution...many of our students have successfully

completed well-known exams..."

4. Serena offers Angela some encouragement.

Hint

True False

True

True, she doesn't say it directly but it deduced from her words: "The fact that you
are asking questions in English is a step in the right direction."

5. In order to register, Angela must pay and register immediately.

 Hint

True False

False

False, "if you would like to think it over."

Do it yourself

How good is your memory? Read the next two activities.

Activity 1

Did you pick up any of the nationalities the speakers refered to?

You are right if you thought of Spanish, Chinese, Egyptian and Turkish. In the last
15 years, there has been a massive change in the world map, check Nation Master
and see how many of the nationalities you knew.

Do it yourself

Activity 2

Can you remember what language Angela uses to ask for information?

Can you remember how Serena responds to those questions?

To ask for information:

- Question words: When? Where? How much/many/often/far?

- Modal verbs: Can, Could, Would, May...?

- I'd like...

 
In order to give information we can use:

- There is/are/was/were/will...

- It is/was/will/can/could...

- I'll/We'll...

- That would...

- We/I can/could/have/give/deal with/cater for...

Some expressions that keep the conversation going and link the questions and
answers are:

That depends on....

Uh, excuse me...

Oh, that...

Excellent...

I'm afraid...

Well, in fact...

Thank you.

Of course,...

Sure...
2.1 Short and Long vowel sounds

Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 6

  00:00 01:07

 Long  Short
vowels vowels

/hɪt/

/ˈeɡzət/

/pet/
/hiːt/
/cæt/
/cɑːt/
/hɒt/
Image de Salvor en openclipart.org . Licencia CC.
/buːt/
/bʌd/
Easy and difficult vowel sounds in English. As
/hɔːs/
you may recall from former years, English /bʊk/
vowel sounds can be long /i:/ (heat, neat, /pɜːs/
reach) or short /I/ (hit, knit, rich). Look at the  
chart below, the sounds are divided into long
 
and short. Can you distinguish them
correctly? Listen to the speaker and then try it  
yourself.
 

 
Can you distinguish between a long vowel and a short vowel? Read on and then try our
exercise.

According to experts, the English vowel sounds that are hard for Spanish students
are:

seek/sick (/iː/ - /ɪ/),

cart/cot (/ɑː /- /ɒ/),

pool/pull (/uː/ - /ʊ/),

or,

part/pat/putt (/ɑː / - /æ/ - /ʌ/).

The reason is because Spanish has five pure vowels and five diphthongs, whereas,
English has twelve pure vowels and eight diphthongs.

Share your pronunciation problems with your coursemates. Which sounds do you
find easy? Which sounds do you find difficult? Go to the forum and share your
opinion and difficulties with the group. Are you all having trouble with the same
vowel sounds?

Do it yourself

Now, listen to the speaker. In the following list, what word do you hear?

Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 7 1.

00:00 00:33
sleep
- slip

2.
short
-
shot

3.
heart
 - hat
- hut

4.
stack
-
start

5.
spool
- spill

6.
four -
full

7.
pour
-
pool

8.
sheet
-
shirt

The answers are:

1. slip

2. shot

3. heart

4. stack

5. spool

6. full

7. pour

8. shirt
 How did you do? Don't worry, practise makes perfect! You'll get better in not
time!

Moving on

Perhaps you would like an explanation as well as the prounciation. Visit the BBC
Pronunciation website and follow along with their videos.

Mastering sounds, rhythm and intonation will help you with your listening activities so
take your time with these sections.
2.2 England, Spain and Turkey

Focus on

Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 8

00:00 00:36

During this lesson, at least three countries have been mentioned: Serena and Blake in
Turkey, CEOLS in Cornwall (England) and Angela in Toledo (Spain).

What cultural differences would you expect to find in these countries, for instance,
regarding food and eating habits? Would you expect to find anything similar between
such different countries? 

Watch the videos below and be surprised!

You are going to watch two videos:

 Delicious food in Istanbul    Delicious food in Mullion Cove

Enlace a recurso reproducible >>   Enlace a recurso reproducible >>

http://www.youtube.com/embed/6RuhMkAHoDs http://www.youtube.com/embed/8dQOVstv8To

Videos alojado en Youtube

You have a friend who is going on a vacation to Turkey and England. He is very
interested in sampling the food in both countries. You found these two videos that may
be very interesting to him. Write him an email encouraging him to watch the videos.
Include a summary of what the two videos say.
3. Create your study group

Focus on

 Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 9

00:00 02:05

You have to be part of a study group.

The objective is to practice your English as often as you can. We suggest you find two
or three people you can comfortably meet up with (you should preferably have the same
online working schedule). Another good idea is, to visit an online open community
which will help you find a partner and/or partners who will be willing to speak English
with you, more often than not, they will also like to speak Spanish, but that isn't a
problem. The advantages are: you have one or several "native" speakers to
communicate with, and it is free. A drawback may be that you have to spend some time
speaking Spanish, too, or that people you communicate with have other intentions in
mind, if so, knock them off sooner than later!

Some of these free online places are:

- The Mixxer language exchange community for everybody

- Babbel

- English, baby!

- Speaking 24

Before you rush into a conversation, remember Internet safety rules:

1. Never give out personal details regarding where you live, telephone number, bank
details... Your best bet in this regard is, to create an invented personality who wants to
speak English, you may even create an e-mail address exclusively for this purpose.

2. You are a student and you have a goal: you want to speak English. so, an exchange is
an exchange, if you speak English for 15 minutes, expect to speak Spanish for 15
minutes, and definitely demand the opposite.
  

1. Go to the forum and create your study group. (You may belong to more than one if
you have the time!).

2. Prepare the information you are going to ask and give your prospective exchange:

- personal details

- objectives

- schedule online

- learning and studying strategies

- you are good at

- you are not so good at

- interests

Good luck! Have fun learning!

Here are some questions which might be useful when asking partners to participate in
your study group:

Would you like to join our study group?

Can I join your study group?
Can I be a part of your study group?
Could you tell me when you are available?
Do you know what the time difference is?
Do you happen to know when the chat starts?
I'd like to know if you would be interested in chatting with me.
Could you find out when the chat starts?
I'm interested in creating a study group.
I'm looking for partners for a study group.

 
 

Some of the answers could be:

Yes, of course. I'd love to.

Sure, I'd like that.
Certainly.
On weekdays from 6 to 8 and on weekends from 11 to 1.
Yes, I believe you are eight hours ahead of us.
Yeah, at three.

Some of the answers could be:

Yes, of course. I'd love to.

Sure, I'd like that.
Certainly.
On weekdays from 6 to 8 and on weekends from 11 to 1.
Yes, I believe you are eight hours ahead of us.
Yeah, at three.
4. Writing: Thinking about my school days

Focus on

 Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 10

  00:00 01:49

Congratulations! We are coming to the end of our lesson now, you have learned and/or
reviewed many different aspects of the English language, and have learned and
compared some cultural aspects as well. Now, it is time to put it down on paper (if we
were using a traditional method :), or rather, store it in a file (we may need it again
some day...).

Our written task is going to allow us to go back and think about our school days. 

Some questions which will help us to organize our written

  piece are:

What period in time were you at school?

Where did you go to school?

What was your school like?

What did you like best about it?

What didn't you like about it?

Did you have lunch at school?

How did you get to it?

What were your teachers like? 

 
Did the teachers make the classes interesting?
Image de Maoriveros en  openclipart.org  .
Licencia CC. How many people were in the class?

Did you get along with all of them?

Did you make any really good friends?

Are you still in touch with any of them?

What do you miss from your school days?

Remember that our written piece should have at least three paragraphs:

1. An introduction.

2. The development of the storyline.

3. A conclusion.

Answering the questions above should help you with that organization. Read our
example:

Thinking about my school days.

I was at school from 1992 to 2012. 

I went to school in Billings, Montana.

It was a large school with a lot of students. There were two gyms, a cafeteria where
we used to have lunch and an assembly room where we used to act out our plays.
The classes were spacious and bright. It was always clean and fresh.  What I liked
most about it was that the teachers were friendly and kind. 

One thing I didn't like about it was the fact that it was a long way from my house. I
had to get up very early to take the school bus. It was often cold and snowy and I
had to wait outside. 

My mother would always pack my lunch in my metal lunch box and give my some
money for milk or a juice.

I remember we listened a lot and we had to be very quiet, at the same time, we
often worked on projects and in pairs or goups, the class would get very noisy
then. 

My class was very big, there were 35 boys and girls in it.

For the most part, my classmates were friendly. I have to admit that I was very shy
and usually kept to myself.
 I had one very good friend, his name was Donald. His father was in the army so he
was transferred. We are still in touch through Facebook!

I guess what I most miss about my school days is not having reponsibilities. 

So, what conclusion can you draw from the above activity?

If you ask yourself some questions about the topic your are going to write about,
they will help you organize your writing
Bite size

Unidad 1 - Tema 1 - Podcast número 11

  00:00 01:42

reviewing the English verb tenses >> Documento de descarga (present, past, simple and future
some uses and formation);

long and short vowels (beat - bit - bet - bat - bought - book - born - burst - barn - bun);

word building by adding prefixes (in-, re-, co-, en-: incorrect, research, coproduce,
enrich), suffixes (-ster, -ation, -ment, -ed, -ing, -s: enlister, animation, predicament,
learning, runs/hides/bands) and compounding on+going, foot+ball);

asking and giving information: Can/Could...? / Certainly.; Sure.; Of course....  

 
similarities and differences between countries; different accents; poetry readings. 
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