Tuesday we started a new unit.

We are learning to use the following types of questions, which non English speakers tend to mistake, as some of them include the word like. But remember, sometimes like is a preposition, sometimes is a verb. Sometimes the verb like must be followed by an infinitive, sometime by the verb in the ing form. We have already been using all these questions, but it is interesting to see them together so as to make sure we know the difference and learn when to use which.

1.What is she/he like?
2.What does he/she look like?
3.What does he/she like doing?
4.What would he/she like to do?
5.How is she?

Those questions can be used with any subject, of course.Possible answers are:

1. She is very nice and fun to be with.
2. He is really good looking. He´s got beautiful black eyes and and a nice Greek nose.
3. She loves travelling to remote places.
4. I am sure he would enjoy going to the races.
5. She is feeling better now that her is back.

In the lesson we were listening to a conversation between two girls who were talking about a foreign student one of them was hosting. The foreign student had just arrived so the other girl had not met her yet and wanted to know some things about her.
We also practiced those questions asking a partner about a friend.
Homework
Imagine you are looking for a boyfriend or a girlfriend and have requested the services of a mating agency. You have been given the name and telephone number of a prospective date. You call that person to establish a first contact. You have never seen him or her. Write the conversation. You must ask some of the questions above. The other person will probably ask the same questions.

Hello,

Today it was the last lesson about food and meals. Mostly because after a while everybody gets tired of talking about food. But the truth is that this topic includes a lot of things and a lot of vocabulary. It is not easy to talk properly about food.

This is a list of the main things we have studied:

Names of the Meals

Breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper. Supper is a light meal in the night. Dinner is usually the main meal.
 A snack: small portion of food you eat when you are hungry but it´s not time for a meal.

Dinner usually has three parts:
A Starter or appetizer, the main course and dessert.

Words to describe food are:

Tender and tough for meat. If you ask for a steak in a restaurant they´ll probably ask you: How do you want your steak? You´ll have to reply: rare, medium rare or well done.

Sweet, sour, spicy, greasy, oily, tasteless, tasty, crispy (poptaoe chips), soggy (overcooked vegetables), crunchy (bread), creamy, salty, etc.

Cooking methods

Bake (potaoes, bread, cakes), fry, boil, steam, roast ( meats), barbacue, grilling.

Verbs or actions related to cooking

Cut, chop, spread, mash, sprinkle, roll out, add, squeeze, peel off, pour, bread, etc.


Sentences we may use to talk about food

I have never tried....
Have you ever tried...?
The most unusual thing I have ever eaten....
What ingredients do you need to make it?
How do you make it?
Well, first you..., after that you..., then you..., next you... Finally you...

Remember that in English you use You to speak in a general manner.

When we give recipes we use the imperative: Chop the tomatoes, mix them with the peppers...,

In the last lesson we were working on the text Eating for Energy. For the students that were not here, you can find the text in the Aula Virtual. Have you ever logged in? You need your DNI number as a password. So, please, do read the text and do the exercises. For homework: give your own advise. Write 5 sentences like this one:
You should eat more often
And 5 sentences like this:
You shouldn´t eat foods that are high in carbohydrates.

Hope to see you next Tuesday.

Welcome Adrian, it´s nice to have a new student in the group.

Today we spent most of the class practicing the Present Perfect and the Past Simple. And we continued talking about food.

We listened to a recording of a simple conversation, the one about snails and fried brains and students read it and rope pleyed it.

Homework
Write a conversation about food following the model: pg. 20. Use both tenses: the present perfect and the past simple.

Can you cook anything? Tell us how to do it.

Here is a recipe to help you write yours in English.

When you write your own, use the imperative as in the model.

Ingredients 

• 1 (12 ounce) package egg noodles, cooked and drained
• 6 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2 pounds lean ground beef

• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 cup sour cream
• salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook egg noodles in boiling water until done, about 8 minutes. Drain.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. In a large skillet, cook mushrooms and onions in 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat until soft; remove from pan.
3. Using the same pan, melt remaining butter. Cook ground beef in melted butter until browned. Mix in flour. Stir in beef broth, and cook until slightly thickened. Add mushroom and onion mixture; stir in sour cream. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Continue cooking until sauce is hot, but not boiling. Serve sauce over egg noodles.

Hi, it was nice to see everybody.

We started the lesson with a drill. Students had to reply to a negative sentence saying things like:
I don´t either or Neither did I, or I can´t either or Neither can I.
We shall repeat the exercise next day. I´m sure you´ll find it easier.

We were working on the text My Ideal Holiday: words, pronunciation and some structures.

Remember that when you make the plural of words like place, space, church, spice, face, glass, sentence,  you must add a syllable. Church has only one syllable, churches has two.

Students had to write 3 questions that could be answered with the information given in the text. Then they asked each other the questions and replied.

Homework

Write 5 sentences of this kind:

I travel so much in my job that just waking up in my own bed is heaven.

Answer the questions in Ex. 3, page 42.


See you Thursday,