Category: Class

Songwriting Pages on Spotify

B2 – Upper Intermediate

The popular music streaming platform Spotify is launching a new feature for songwriters. These pages would have a list of songs that composers have written. This will help musicians showcase their music and for users to discover more songs they may enjoy.

Read this article and be ready to answer

https://techcrunch.com/2020/02/12/spotify-is-giving-songwriters-their-own-pages-and-playlists/

Discussion Questions:

  1. What do you know about Spotify?
  2. How can this new feature help songwriters in the future?
  3. Are streaming music services harming piracy more than they’re harming music sales?
  4. What is the most unique feature that Spotify has?
  5. What other music streaming applications do you enjoy using?

Maternity Leave

B1 – Intermediate

Parents in Finland can now enjoy seven months of parental leave. This new law will help new parents spend more time with their babies and enjoy this family benefit.

Let’s read the article and be ready to answer the discussion questions.

https://breakingnewsenglish.com/2002/200209-maternity-leave-2.html

Discussion Questions :

1. What do you think of seven months of paid leave for new parents?

2. How much leave should parents get?

3. Should parental leave be paid?

4. What are the laws on parental leaves in Spain?

5. How can governments reverse the problem with falling birthrate?

Babysitting

B1 – Intermediate

A babysitter is a person who takes care of children temporarily with the parents’ approval. There are different terms used for babysitters such as nannies and mother’s helpers. What do you think of a babysitter’s job?

Listen to the audio below and be ready to answer the discussion questions.

https://listenaminute.com/b/babysitting.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. Is babysitting a common job in your country? Why or why not?
  2. Do you think a babysitter should have training for child care too? Explain why.
  3. Do babysitters receive good salary in your country? Why do you think this is the case?
  4. Do you agree that babysitting is an easy way to make money? Explain.
  5. Is getting a babysitter to take care of your children part of the culture in your country? Share about this.

Test 689

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Intensifiers with Comparatives and Superlatives

Level: Intermediate-Advanced

The following intensifiers often go together with comparative adjectives:

much a great deal
far a good deal
a lot a good bit
quite a lot a fair bit

They are much richer than us.
This pair of shoes is far more expensive than that bag.
Madrid is a lot bigger than Sevilla.
It’s quite a lot calmer now after the storm has passed.

The intensifiers much and far are used with comparative adjectives before a noun.

The UK is a much bigger country than Japan.
He is a far better tennis player than Federer.

The intensifiers easily and by far are used with superlative adjectives.

She is easily the greatest singer of all time.
This was by far the most challenging thing I’ve ever had to do.

Test 668

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Make or Do (Advanced)

Level: Intermediate-Advanced

MAKE

MAKE is used when you create or construct something.

The company based in Madrid makes the most modern computers.
She needs to make more verses for her new song.
Did she really make that dress herself?

DO

DO is used for activities in general. In this case, do is usually followed by something, nothing, anything or everything.

It is so frustrating that they did not do anything about the issue.
Carla is sick of doing everything at work.
Is he doing anything interesting during his vacation?

NOTE: What do you do? = What’s your job?

There are a lot of collocations with make and do. Unfortunately, there are no specific rules that can help you remember how to use both words correctly. All you can do is to familiarize yourself with all of them. Below is a list of words that come with either make or do.

DO

do xx kph (miles per hour) Most motorists do more than 30 mph through the city. It’s beyond the speed limit.
do badly They did very badly at the preliminaries, so they’ll have to do better next game.
do your best It’s alright if you make mistakes in your sentences. Just do your best.
do business It’s been great doing business with this company. Everyone’s just very efficient and professional.
do chores I’m going to spend the weekend doing chores at home.
do a course After losing his job, Sam decided to do a course in German at a local language institute.
do a crossword One of her favorite activities is doing crosswords.
do damage His PR team couldn’t do much after the scandal he got involved in. The damage to his image has been done.
do the dishes / the washing up Everyone I know hates doing the dishes.
do a drawing She was able to have many things accomplished because her kids spent hours doing their drawings.
do your duty/responsibility Do your duty as a citizen, go out and vote this election.
do an exam She’s going to have to do a certification exam to get the job promotion.
do exercise How long have you been doing this exercise?
do an exercise To improve your English skills, make sure to do grammar exercises in your free time.
do someone a favor Do me a big favor and clean your room!
do the gardening My grandparents who live in the countryside spend most of their days doing the gardening.
do good She tries to good by donating blood for sick children at that hospital.
do you good Take a lot of rest this weekend. This will do you good for sure.
do your hair/your nails Hurry up and do your hair already! We’re late!
do harm He is so gentle, you wouldn’t think he’d do any harm on others.
do homework I have so much homework to do this afternoon. I can’t go out with you.
do a job I thought they did an excellent job in this film.
do the laundry / the washing I have no other plans but to do the laundry this weekend.
do paperwork It’s so tedious doing all this paperwork.
do research Do not just believe everything you read online. Do your research too.
do the shopping I do all the shopping for my grandmother ever since she became bed-ridden.
do time (in prison) It was hard for him to find a job after he’d done some time in prison.
do well My children are doing well at their new school.
do work Do you have a lot of work today?

MAKE

make amends In order to achieve peace on earth, nations should amend their differences.
make an appointment/arrangements I have to make an appointment with my doctor for tomorrow.
make an attempt She made an attempt in wining him back.
make believe A lot of children likes to play make believe. It lets them think more creatively.
make certain You have to make certain that they are going to sign this deal.
make a decision/change/choice/comment/complaint/confession The couple needs to make a decision on whether they are going to get a divorce or not.
make a difference She tries her best to be good and to make a difference in her community.
make an effort You need to make an effort in practicing your speaking skills.
make an error/a mistake I think they made an error on my bill. I’ve already paid for everything this month.
make an excuse Stop making an excuse on doing things that make you happy. Just do it.
make  a face She didn’t like what he said so she made a face.
make a fool of someone If you continue with this project, you’re only going to make a fool of yourself in front of the board of directors.
make a fortune His family made a fortune from selling old cars.
make fun of Stop making fun of his accent.
make one’s mind up John and Mary need to make their mind up about buying this house.
make a scene My greatest worry is for her to make a scene at the event if she gets too drunk again.
make progress The scientists are proud to announce that they have made progress in coming up with a vaccine against the virus.

Test 640

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Past Continuous Tense (Advanced)

Level: Intermediate-Advanced

The past continuous is formed by combining the past tense of the be-verb and the –ing form of a verb.

was/were + -ing (was/were doing)

This tense is used when speaking about something that happened before and after another past action.

The students were revising for their test when the teacher entered the room.

COMPARE: The student revised when (= after) the teacher entered the room.

It is also very typical to use it at the beginning of a story.

Two days ago, he was fixing the roof when …
Last month, as she was starting to learn Chinese, …

It can also be used for something that happened before and after a definite time.

It was 10 o’clock. I was reading a book.

COMPARE: At 10 o’clock, I read (= started reading) a book.

Another use of this tense is to express that something continued to happen for a period of time.

My back was aching.
The team was losing.

It is also used for talking about something that happened repeatedly.

I was practicing my speech every day, three times a day.
The members were organizing a protest against their leader.
Dan and Selena were always bickering.

It can also be used with verbs to express change or growth.

The company was growing sluggishly.
Her French was improving.
His hair was turning grey.
The climate was changing adversely.

The past continuous is NEVER used with stative verbs. The past simple is used instead.

CORRECT: When they decided to get a divorce, they really needed a lawyer.

WRONG: When they decided to get a divorce, they really was needing a lawyer.

Test 291

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