LEARN ENGLISH THROUGH SONGS AND MUSIC

Do you like music? Would you like to practise your English skills using songs?

🎼 THIS is a great tool to learn English and other languages through music and the lyrics of your favourite songs.

🎼 You can practise your listening skills and enjoy listening to your favourite music videos at the same time. (Of course, it's free, and you don't need to sign up (if you don't want to) to be able to play! ⇒ Lyrics Training)

🎼 JUST FOLLOW THESE 3 EASY STEPS: 

• Step 1 ⇒ Choose a language and a video. Then, click on “Play now” (you can browse for songs/singers you like as well) 
• Step 2 ⇒ Choose you level: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced or Expert 
• Step 3 ⇒ Decide whether you want to “click on” or “type in” the missing words, and PLAY!

🎼 Keep in mind that the language used in songs is informal, and HAVE FUN!

WEEKLY PICKS - 4

This post offers you a selection of recommended free online exercises, games, videos and resources so that you can improve your English language skills while having fun! ENJOY!

📜 READING PICKS – Articles, blog posts, quizzes and more:

Article from Mind Tools: 10 Common Time Management Mistakes
Avoiding Common Pitfalls - How well do you manage your time? If you're like many people, your answer may not be completely positive! Perhaps you feel overloaded, and you often have to work late to hit your deadlines. Or maybe your days seem to go from one crisis to another, and this is stressful and demoralizing. (Continue reading)

❓ QUIZ from Mind Tools ⇒ How Good Is Your Time Management?
Discover Time Management Tools That can Help you Excel

Article from BBC CULTURE: The writers who defied Soviet censors 

Underground publishers in the USSR broke rules in ingenious ways – such as hiding books in fake binding and making records on X-ray film, writes Benjamin Ramm.

In anticipation of the poet’s arrest, his creations were concealed by inventive means – sewn into the insides of cushions and shoes, or hidden in mattresses and saucepans. The police confiscated most of his papers, but others were smuggled out, or hidden surreptitiously in obscure locations. The most important poems were inscribed where even the wiliest investigator could not find them – in the memory of a devoted reader, who would pass them on.  (Continue reading)

🎬 VIDEO PICKS – Short and fun videos:

LESS-THAN-5-MINUTE VIDEOS

• Why Do We Blush? (1:46 minutes)
• Why Do We Get Nervous? (2:28 minutes)
• How Much Sleep Do You Actually Need? (3:23 minutes)
• The Science of Heartbreak (2:48 minutes)
• Introverts vs. Extroverts (4:17 minutes)
• Amazing Facts to Blow Your Mind Pt. 1 (2:08 minutes)

5-TO-10-MINUTE VIDEOS:

• Vocabulary - LIVE, LIFE, ALIVE, LIVING (7:53 minutes)
• Learn Vocabulary - look, look like, look alike, look as if... (6:43 minutes)
• English Grammar - comparing with LIKE & AS (9 minutes)
• The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery ► Animated Book Summary (5:35 minutes)
• ALL or WHOLE? (9:23 minutes.)

A LITTLE LONGER BUT WORTH IT!

• How to increase your vocabulary (It only takes 13:29 minutes!)

💬 VOCABULARY PICKS:

• Verb + Adverb Games (1) ⇒ Which adverb best goes with which verb? (When you finish, click on “Next Game” and get a full new set of pairs! There are 10 games.)
• Verb + Adverb Games (2) ⇒ Which adverb best goes with which verb? (When you finish, click on “Next Game” and get a full new set of pairs! There are 10 games.)
• Sustainable development 
• Bed / Home / Work / Town Exercise 1
• Feelings and Emotions

💡 GRAMMAR PICKS – Assorted exercises and games:

• Comparative and Superlative Quiz with Adverbs
• Question tags – Exercise 3
• Questions in Passive – Word order – Click Exercise 1 – MIX
• Questions in Passive – Word order – Click Exercise 2 – MIX
• Prepositions Exercise 7
• Prepositions Exercise 8
• If or Unless
• Conditional sentences type 2 exercise
• Conditional sentences type 3 exercise
• A Little / A Few Exercise 1
• Because or because of
• Although, even though, in spite of...
• Mixed Past Tenses Games 1-10 – Practise talking about time with past tense forms. These games practise 4 past tense forms from Past Simple to Past Perfect Continuous.

MORE PICKS NEXT WEEK!

WEEKLY PICKS - 3

This post offers you a selection of recommended free online exercises, games, videos and resources so that you can improve your English language skills while having fun! ENJOY!

📜 READING PICKS – Articles, blog posts, quizzes and more:

Article from BBC CAPITAL: The science of being charming, by Tiffanie Wen
From the first moment you walk into a room people are making judgements about how much they like you. Fortunately, there are ways to improve your chances.
Charmers. What makes these lucky individuals so effortlessly likeable when many of us have to work so hard at it? While many would have you believe social grace or winning people over is something of an artform, there is a surprising amount of science behind it, too. (Continue reading)

Article from BBC TRAVEL: We may have cracked the mystery of Stonehenge, by Vivien Cumming

The more archaeologists study Stonehenge, the more mysteries unfold. But a coherent story is beginning to emerge. (Continue reading)

🎬 VIDEO PICKS – Short and fun videos:

LESS-THAN-5-MINUTE VIDEOS

• Born to Learn (4:55 minutes)
• Why Do We Cry? (2:29 minutes)
• Should You Trust Your Gut Instinct? (4:25 minutes)
• Susan Cain on Introversion (2:48 minutes)
• Where Do Your Texts Go? (3:43 minutes)
• Early Birds vs Night Owls (3:08 minutes)
• Can Money Buy Happiness? (2:49 minutes)
• An untranslatable word (2:03 minutes)

5-TO-10-MINUTE VIDEOS:

• EITHER, NEITHER, SO, TOO - How to agree and disagree in English (7:39 minutes)
• Do you dare to dream? (7:34 minutes)
• Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman ► Animated Book Summary (7:28 minutes)

A LITTLE LONGER BUT WORTH IT!

• The Passive: When, why, and how to use it (It only takes 11:37 minutes!)

💬 VOCABULARY PICKS:

• Synonym Adverbs Games ⇒ Can you find the adverbs that mean the same? (When you finish, click on “Next Game” and get a full new set of pairs! There are 10 games.)
• Opposite Adverbs Games ⇒ Pair up the adverbs with opposite meanings. (When you finish, click on “Next Game” and get a full new set of pairs! There are 10 games.)
• Science and technology
• Feelings /emotions
• 'Say' and 'Tell'
• Make or Do Exercise 4
• Make or Do Exercise 3
• Make or Do Exercise 2
• Make or Do Exercise 1

💡 GRAMMAR PICKS – Assorted exercises and games:

• Embedded Questions in Statements
• Adjective or Adverb
• Adjective or Adverb-2
• Superlatives with The and No ArticleExercise 1
• Prepositions Exercise 1 
• Prepositions Exercise 2 
• Prepositions Exercise 3 
• USED TO: Affirmative-Interrogative-Negative
• USED TO or WOULD
• BE USED TO
• Word order in English sentences – Mixed Exercise
• Phrasal Verbs in English – Fill-in Exercise
• Gerund and Infinitive – Exercise 1
• Gerund and Infinitive – Exercise 2

MORE PICKS NEXT WEEK!

WEEKLY PICKS - 2

This post offers you a selection of recommended free online exercises, games, videos and resources so that you can improve your English language skills while having fun! ENJOY!

📜READING PICKS – Articles, blog posts, quizzes and more:

Article from BBC news: How it feels to have many personalities
Severe trauma can cause a unique kind of mental breakdown - dissociative identity disorder (DID), which creates multiple personalities. What is it like trying to live with this condition? (Continue reading)

Article from Mind Tools: Active Listening: Hear What People are Really Saying
Listening is one of the most important skills you can have. How well you listen has a major impact on the quality of your relationships with others.

🎬 VIDEO PICKS – Short and fun videos:

LESS-THAN-5-MINUTE VIDEOS

• Active Listening (1:46 minutes)
• Improve Your Listening Skills with Active Listening (2:39 minutes)
• 6 Tips for Active Listening #LittleThings (2:13 minutes)
• Learn English Grammar: EACH OTHER & ONE ANOTHER (4:59 minutes) ⇒ Then, you can take a free quiz HERE
• WHERE GOOD IDEAS COME FROM by Steven Johnson (4:06 minutes)
• Brené Brown on Empathy (2:53 minutes)
• Brené Brown on Blame (3:25 minutes)
• The Reframing Matrix: Put Your Problem Into Perspective (2:41 minutes. This may be applied not only to professional but also to personal problems. Link to the article)
• Matthew Taylor on The Power to Create (4:15 minutes)

5-TO-10-MINUTE VIDEOS:

• The Future of Learning (7:49 minutes)
• RSA ANIMATE: Re-Imagining Work (9:05 minutes)
• Grammar: How to use IF & WHETHER properly (6:57 minutes) ⇒ Then, take a free quiz HERE
• Learn 6 Body Idioms in English: get cold feet, play by ear... (6:26 minutes) ⇒ Then, take a free quiz HERE

A LITTLE LONGER BUT WORTH IT!

• Learn English Grammar: How to use SO and SO THAT (11:50 minutes) ⇒ Then, take a free quiz HERE

💬 VOCABULARY PICKS – Confusing words:

• big, great, high, large or tall – Exercise
• Confusing Pairs of Words Exercise (You can play this game several times, and you’ll get different sentences)
• Compounds in English – Exercise
• card, map, menu or ticket – Exercise
• country or land – Exercise
• do, have, make or take – Exercise
• Make or do?
• Clothing Idioms Quiz

💡 GRAMMAR PICKS – Assorted exercises and games:

• Gerund after prepositions – Exercise 1
• Gerund after prepositions – Exercise 2
• Gerund after prepositions – Exercise 3
• Gerund after prepositions – Exercise 4
• Verbs + prepositions exercise 1
• Verbs + prepositions exercise 2
• Adjectives + prepositions exercise 1
• Mixed Conditionals
• Conditional sentences type (Mixed)

MORE PICKS NEXT WEEK!

GRAMMAR PILLS: MID-POSITION ADVERBS

By Georgina Jacobs

¿Qué es un mid-position adverb?

Es un adverbio que se coloca en medio en una clause.

💡 ¿Qué es un adverbio?
Es una palabra o frase que describe un verbo (nos dice cómo, dónde, cuándo, por qué, etc. se realiza la acción del verbo). Los adverbios también describen adjetivos y otros adverbios, pero en este post nos concentraremos en los que describen verbos.

Los adverbios se pueden colocar en 3 posiciones:

FRONT POSITION ⇒ Unfortunately, I can't help you.

MID-POSITION ⇒ I always get up at 7 a.m.

END POSITION ⇒ Have you read that report yet?

💡 TIP: Según el tipo de adverbio, puede colocarse en una u otra posición. Algunos pueden colocarse en distintas posiciones para dar énfasis, hacer contraste o evitar ambigüedad.

¿Qué adverbios se colocan en mid-position?

Los adverbs of frequency (always, sometimes, usually, often, seldom, rarely, hardly ever, never, etc.) y otros como really, quite, probably, possibly, certainly, also, only, just, already, etc.

¿Cómo se colocan los mid-position adverbs en la clause?

Entre el sujeto y el verbo, y es muy sencillo ⇒ hay solo 3 posibilidades: 

1) BEFORE THE MAIN VERB (ANTES del VERBO principal):

→ SUBJECT + ADVERB + MAIN VERB

→ I always get up at 7 a.m.

2) AFTER THE VERB “TO BE” (DESPUÉS de “TO BE”):

→ SUBJECT + TO BE + ADVERB

→ Peter is always late.

🔺 EMPHASIS ⇒ Cuando el adverbio es enfático, se puede colocar ANTES de “to be”: Why should Peter be early today? He never is early for anything. (La entonación también cambia para marcar el énfasis.)

3) VERB PHRASE: if the verb contains auxiliaries and/or modals, the adverb comes AFTER THE FIRST auxiliary or modal (si el verbo tiene auxiliares o modales, el adverbio se coloca DESPUÉS de la primera palabra):

→ SUBJECT + 1st aux./modal + ADVERB + MAIN VERB

→ You should never have told anyone my secret.

❓ En las preguntas, el adverbio se coloca DESPUÉS del sujeto:

Do you usually work at weekends?

Have you already finished your exam? (surprised)

🔺 IMPORTANTE: En inglés, NO poner el adverbio entre verbo y objeto:

En español podemos decir: Me gusta mucho el chocolate. Mary habla muy bien inglés.

En inglés: ❌ I like a lot chocolate.       [verb + adverb + object] ✅ I like chocolate a lot.       [verb + object] + adverb ❌ Mary speaks very well English.                 [verb + adverb + object] ✅ Mary speaks English very well.                 [verb + object] + adverb

From BBC 6 Minute Grammar - Adverb Position 1

From BBC 6 Minute Grammar - Adverb Position 2

🔗 Recommended links:

• Adverbs and adverb phrases: position de Cambridge English Grammar Today
• Position of adverbs: difference between British and American English

💡 PRACTICE:

• Adverbs of frequency (position) 1
• Adverbs of frequency (position) 2
• Adverbs ofFrequency - Word Order
• Positionof adverbs – Exercise

Georgina Jacobs

WEEKLY PICKS - 1

This post offers you a selection of recommended free online exercises, games, videos and resources so that you can improve your English language skills while having fun! ENJOY!

📜 READING PICKS – Articles, blog posts, quizzes and more:

Article from MindTools: What’s Empathy Got to Do with It?, by Bruna Martinuzzi
Indeed, empathy is valued currency. It allows us to create bonds of trust, it gives us insights into what others may be feeling or thinking; it helps us understand how or why others are reacting to situations, it sharpens our "people acumen" and it informs our decisions. (Continue reading)

❓QUIZ: Index of Learning Styles Questionnaire (Richard M. Felder and Barbara A. Soloman) North Carolina State University

🎬 VIDEO PICKS – Short and fun videos:

LESS-THAN-5-MINUTE VIDEOS

• Daniel Goleman: What makes a leader? (3:45 minutes)
• Create Slides People Will Remember (2:34 minutes)
• Discover Different Styles of Learning (3:34 minutes)
• Body Language at Work and in Business: Tips for Better Communication (2:08 minutes)
• Born to Learn (4:55 minutes)

5-TO-10-MINUTE VIDEOS:

• Man's Search For Meaning by Viktor Frankl ► Animated Book Summary (8:11 minutes)
• EITHER, NEITHER, SO, TOO - How to agree and disagree in English (7:39 minutes)
• Vocabulary - Talking about MOVIES in English (10:06 minutes)
• Grammar: How to use IF & WHETHER properly (6:57 minutes)
• Everyday or every day? (5:18 minutes.)

A LITTLE LONGER BUT WORTH IT!

• 6 tips for dealing with speaking anxiety (14 minutes)
• Phrasal Verbs for TRAVEL:"drop off", "get in", "check out"... (11:49 minutes)
• Learn English - OTHER, ANOTHER, OTHERS, THE OTHER, OTHERWISE (13:28 minutes. Please, notice that when he says: “Others / The other(s) / Another” may be used as “nouns” he means “pronouns”, which actually replace nouns)
• Who Moved My Cheese [Original] - Spencer Johnson (12:53 minutes)

💬 VOCAB PICKS – Confusing words:

• borrow or lend – Exercise
• bring or take – Exercise
• do, go or play – Exercise
• life, live or lives – Exercise
• life, live, lives or lived – Exercise
• make or do – Exercise 1
• make or do – Exercise 2
• say or tell – Exercise

💡 GRAMMAR PICKS – Assorted exercises and games:

• what or which – Exercise
• while or during– Exercise
• Time prepositions exercise 1 
• Time prepositions exercise 2
• Place prepositions exercise 1
• Place prepositions exercise 2
• Exercise on Prepositions – Buses
• Compound adjectives (1)
• Compound adjectives (2)

MORE PICKS NEXT WEEK!