Busy week - listening, listening........

This week, I've signed up for two webinars on the subject of listening.  

Today, I'll be connecting my computer at 3pm to watch:

Then, on Wednesday at 4, I'll be online again to take part in another webinar on Listening:

It's a shame that they are taking place this week because last Friday, I was in San Sebastian, giving 2 seminars on ...... Listening!  For Cambridge English: First and Cambridge English:  Advanced in my case!

Maybe some of you will also be connecting today or Wednesday :·))

I'll be uploading some activities that I prepared for the Cambridge English: Advanced Listening session in my next post!

2 weeks ago, I wrote a post about the collaboration between Nissan and Amazon and how the secret got out before it was due to.

I said I'd keep an eye out for the advert when it came out and share, so here is the link!

Even more teaching material on this story I felt when I saw it!

There is no talking, just images.
You could do an ordering activity - what are the stages of buying something online and then actually getting it and using it?

You could get students to think about what each person in the video is saying or thinking - the man taking the small box out of the mailbox, the woman and the boy watching out of the window, the buyer when he sees the lorry pull up and then when he gets into the car to drive it for the first time.


And then, at the end, there's a brilliant question for discussion:

It'll be interesting to see what suggestions people come up with!

This story and the video provide discussion material about how much our shopping habits have changed and what things you would/wouldn't buy online.


Enjoy!  And enjoy the weekend too!

Anne

Speaking Test videos for Starters, Movers and Flyers

Back in October, I sang the praises of Cambridge English TV.

In my previous post, a link to some new speaking test videos was mentioned in the January 'Enseñamos Juntos' newsletter.

I have just watched the Starters video on the Cambridge English TV youtube channel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHAnqjI4cU8&feature=youtu.be

It's a great way of showing students and teachers what to expect in the test and Olivier's answers and the examiner's reactions and responses really illustrate how candidates need to respond in each part of the test.

For example, if they have to put a small picture next to something in the big picture, then it should be next to that thing, not on it.  In that part of the test, candidates' understanding of prepositions of place is tested and the examiner can really see if they understand them well.

We can also see how the Starters Speaking Test moves from understanding and doing (pointing to things in the picture, identifying the small picture and placing it somewhere in the big picture) to speaking more about things related and familiar to the candidates (eg  What colour are the buses in Luxembourg?) to questions about the candidates themselves (eg  How old are you?, Who do you play with at school?)

And seeing the new visuals for the speaking tests, I'm impressed!  Very attractive and colourful!!