Hop along, Peter,

Old Uncle Peter, he got tight,

Started up to heaven on a stormy night.

The road being rough and him not well,

He lost his way and he went... to...

CHORUS:
     Hop along, Peter, where you going?

     Hop along, Peter, where you going?

     Hop along, Peter, won't you bear in mind

      I ain 't comin' back till the gooseberry time.

Old mother Hubbard and her dog were Dutch,

A bow-legged rooster and he hobbled on a crutch.

Hen chewed tobacco and the duck drank wine;

The goose played the fiddle on the pumpkin vine.

Down in the barnyard playing seven-up,

The old tom cat and the little yellow pup,

The old mother Hubbard, she's a-pickin' out the fleas,

Rooster in the cream jar up to his knees.

I've got a sweet gal in this here town,

If she weighs an ounce, she weighs seven hundred pounds,

Every time my sweet gal turns once around,

The heel of her shoe makes a hole in the ground.

Book review NI1

Book review

Introduction: give the title and author of the book.

• Body:
  1. Summarize the plot in a few sentences.
  2. Mention the setting: the place and time of the plot.
  3. Say something about the main characters.
  4. Say something about the content.
  Conclusion:
  1. Comment on the book.
  2. Let others know why you liked the book.
  3. Is the author's style good or bad, is the book interesting?.
  4. Would you recommend the book to certain people (fans of romance, horror, history)?

Write about 150 – 200 words about the book

Deadline for this assignment: November 22, 2016

Cat on the Moon?

You may want to know more about our new cat song. Please search in the box provided (above) for the song. You need to enter a key word. That is all. 

Cat Came Back!

ROVING GAMBLER

ROVING GAMBLER

(Cisco Houston)

I am a roving gambler, I gamble all around
Whenever I meet with a deck of cards I lay my money down.

I've gambled down in Washington, I've gambled over in Spain
I'm on my way to Georgia to gamble my last game.

I had not been in Washington not many more weeks than three
When I fell in love with a pretty little gal, she fell in love with me.

She took me to her parlor, she cooled me with her fan
She whispered low in her mother's ear, "I love that gambling man."

"Oh daughter, Oh dear daughter, how can you treat me so?
To leave your dear old mother, and with a gambler go?"

"Oh mother, Oh dear mother, you know I love you well
But the love I have for this gambling man, no human tongue can tell."

"I hear that train a-coming, it's a-coming 'round the curve
A-whistling and a-blowing and a-straining every nerve"

"Oh mother, Oh dear mother, I'll tell you if I can
If you ever see me back again, it'll be with that gambling man."

The Ballad of Jesse James

The Ballad of Jesse James

Jesse James was a lad that killed many a man

He robbed the Danville train

He stole from the rich and he gave to the poor

He'd a hand, a heart, and a brain

(Chorus)

(Poor ) Jesse had a wife, to mourn for his life

And three children, they were so brave

But that dirty little coward that shot Mr. Howard

Has laid poor Jesse in his grave

Jesse was a man, a friend to the poor

He couldn't see a brother suffer pain

And with his brother Frank

he robbed the Springfield bank

And he stopped the Glendale train

(Chorus)

It was Robert Ford, the dirty little coward

And I wonder how he feels

For he slept in Jesse's bed and he ate o' Jesse's bread

But he laid Jesse James in his grave

(Chorus)

It was with his brother Frank that he robbed the Gallatin Bank

An' carried the money from the town

It was at that very place that they had a little chase

For they shot ol' Captain Sheets to the ground

(Chorus)

They went to a crossing, not very far from there

And there they did the same

For the agent on his knees delivered up the keys

To the outlaws, Frank an' Jesse James

(Chorus)

It was on a Wednesday night, not a star was in sight

When they robbed the Glendale train

Those people, they did say for many miles away

It was robbed by Frank an' Jesse James

(Chorus)

It was on a Saturday night,

When Jesse was at home

Just talking with his family brave

Robert Ford came along like a thief in the night

And laid poor Jesse in his grave

(Chorus)

Now, the people held their breath

When they heard of Jesse's death

They wondered how he ever came to die

It was one of his own gang called little Robert Ford

An' he shot Jesse James on the sly

(Chorus)

Jesse went to his rest with his hand upon his breast

And there are many who never saw his face

He was born one day in the County of Clay

And he came from a solitary race

(Chorus)

This song was made by Billy Gashade

As soon as the news did arrive

He said there's no one man with the law in his hand

Could ever take ol' Jesse James alive

Into the Holler (by D Shea and Katy Hooper)

This is a song I wrote with my friend Katy Hooper who sings with me on this recording. We were pleased to have the able accompaniment of Diego Torres on the flute. I hope you like it. 

Questions, a key language learning technique (for all my students)

For the last few academic years, I have been considering different strategies to stimulate conversation in my classes. One fairly simple method of getting people talking is to propose topics of interest. For each topic, the students are presented with a series of questions to share with a partner or in small groups. 

This idea is not original, it actually dates backs to the Greeks, but more recently, I have been taken by the work of Larry Pitts who teaches English language and culture in Korea. His book has been a valuable resource for me. I do not use all his listed questions, but rather choose a few that I hope the students will appreciate. In future postings here, you will find some of my lists.

Advice

What three pieces of advice will you give your children?

Whose advice do you follow more, your parents’ or your friends’ advice?

If you could give the leader of your country some advice, what would it be?

If you could go back in time and give yourself some advice, what would you
tell your younger self?

Who was the wisest person in your country’s history? 

What kind of advice did that person give?

Where do you go to get good advice?

Now it’s your turn to give some advice:

1) 

2) 

3)

What are some things students should do to improve their English?

What should I do to make more money?

How can I get more free time?

What should people do when first meeting their boyfriend/girlfriend’s parents?

What should someone do to be happy?

( Adapted from the following source materials: http://iteslj.org/questions/)

CLIL students

Welcome to all my CLIL students who want to improve their communication skills, achieve better speaking skills. 
Here are our first questions: 

1) How useful is English to you?

2) How often do you use it?

3) What are your strengths in English?

4) What English speaking countries have your visited?

5) Do you have any strategies for improving your spoken English?

Huddie Ledbetter, great American singer, songwriter and the king of the 12-street guitar

Huddie Ledbetter, as known as Leadbelly, is one of my favorite singers. I am going to include two of his songs in the next few classes. I hope you like them and find them interesting and fun to sing!

biographical data for Huddie Ledbetter

On a Monday (by Huddie Ledbetter, aka Leadbelly)

For Leadbelly Song, Click here  

On a Monday (by Huddie Ledbetter, aka Leadbelly)

On a Monday
I was arrested
And on a Tuesday,

I got locked up in jail
And on a Wednesday
My trial was attested
And on a Thursday
Nobody would go my bail

Yes I'm gone
Aaaalmost most gone (3x)
And I ain't going to be seein' them pretty women no more

Take these stripes
These stripes from off my shoulder
Take these chains
These chains from off-a my leg
Well these stripes,
You know that they don't bother me
But these chains
These chains are killin' me dead

Yes I'm gone…

Now on a Friday
My baby went out walking
And on a Saturday
You know she locked up the door
And on a Sunday
She must have done some talkin'
Cause on a Monday
She had sold all o my clothes.

Yes I'm gone …

Speaking Test Tips

RULE ONE: BE POLITE

“Good afternoon, my name is Fabio BL…. (entire name) and I am very happy to have this opportunity to share my thoughts today. “

THEN enter into your topic:

“In this photo, we can see ….” or “I can see “ or “There are many people dancing ...”

RULE TWO: LOOK BEYOND THE IMAGE

“I also notice that many of the people in the picture are in a hurry, they are walking along the road toward the port, perhaps they are going to take a boat to another island or maybe they will meet someone who is arriving at the port of Las Palmas.”

RULE THREE (IMPORTANT): Finish off with a flourish!

Examiner: “Okay, excuse me, your time is up, the exam is finished.”

You: “Well, that's all I would like to say, thank you for listening to me and have a great afternoon.”

Another Interesting Link

To my EOI Students of English at any level, 

Here is another  link 

which you may find of interest.

Best wishes!

NI1 Speaking titles for May 2016

Speaking Titles for the May Exams

Monologue (2 minutes)

1 Talk about what you consider to be a balanced diet.

2 Describe an old post card of Gran Canaria, photos taken in the early 20^th  

century. Use extensive vocabulary and interesting expressions.

3 Why are stereotypes so common in our society?

4 Talk about how you manage your income.

5 Talk about how you spend your free time.

Dialogues (4-5 minutes)

1 Interview with a difficult public figure (politician, pop star, actor and so on). One journalist 

and one person being interviewed.

2 Give advice to a person who is looking for work. Candidate A is the unemployed person, 

candidate B is the career counselor.

3 Greeting the good news. Candidate A has just had a baby and candidate B must give the 

congratulations and get all the details of the birth (what name they are going to give the 

baby, size, weight and hair color).

4 Giving advice to a friend with a problem. Candidate A has a son/daughter who is 

addicted   to the WWW, surfing all day and all night long. Candidate B has to give A some 

advice on how to deal with this unpleasant situation.

5 Managing our money. Candidate A always spends money on shopping, gambling, music 

and so forth. Candidate B is more thrifty and advises A to be careful with his/her funds.

Improve your listening skills in English

Here is a terrific resource for all my students, intermediate and advanced, to improve your listening skills.

Just click on the link and do as many listening tests as you can. They are well-ordered and graded.

Randall's Listening Page


Good luck! 

Writing paper for final exams NI1 level

Writing Paper for NI1

1. Describe a sport or hobby that you enjoy.

       How long have you done this activity? (Present perfect)

 Why did you take up this activity? ( simple past)

 Have you made friends through it?

2. Imagine you have won a contest with a travel company.

They have awarded (given) you a trip around the world.

You have one year to travel and can visit 6 countries.

What countries are you going to include and why?

Both essays should be 130 – 150 words.

You will be graded on

• Expression
• Grammar
• Spelling
• Vocabulary (adjectives)
• Register
• Content

Email me with your essay if you

would like to practice: davidsshea@gmail.com

NI 1 CD 3 Track answers

NI1

CD3

1.

1. A long dress with short sleeves

2. At the coffee house

3. 21^st March

4. One video and a couple of novels

5. On the radio

6. Channel 4 news

7. Horse riding

2.

1B

2C

3A

4C

5B

6C

3.

1. gym

2. Saturday

3. 215

4. lessons

5. age

6. Reysall

4.

1F

2T

3F

4T

5T

6F

5.

1. 11:15

2. A salad, a bowl of soup and a roll

3. Under her chair

4. By bus

5. A sofa

6. Going to the cinema

7. Cloudy

6.

1B

2A

3B

4C

5A

6C

7.

1. The dining room

2. 9:15

3. forest

4. village

5. boat

6. (sun) hat

8.

1F

2F

3T

4T

5F

6T

9.

1. A lamp for his desk

2. No glasses and blond hair

3. In a house

4. Computer World

5. An opera evening

6. 8:15

7. Making himself some supper

10.

1C

2A

3B

4A

5C

6B

11.

1. Monday(s)

2. post office

3. 18 February

4. violin

5. photograph

6. (course) books

12.

1F

2T

3F

4T

5F

6F

13.

1. The music

2. A piano concert

3. A beach bag

4. Cloudy

5. On the dining room table

6. At the bookshop

7. 3:15

14.

1B

2B

3C

4A

5A

6C

15.

1. (sandy) beaches

2. 70

3. fan

4. teabags

5. owner

6. flight(s)

16.

1T

2F

3F

4F

5T

6T

Leisure Vocabulary

The topic of leisure activities brought out lots of interesting vocabulary in our NI1 sessions

1. Tiempo de ocio = leisure time (free time, spare time)
2. hacerse socio de un club = sign up for a club, join
3. mantenerse en forma = keeping fit
4. patinar sobre hielo = ice skating
5. practicar deporte = play sport (tennis, football)
6. bricolaje = DIY (do it yourself)
7. hacer ejercicio = do exercise
8. meterse en clases de spinning = take up spinning
9. abandonar clases = give up classes
10. dibujar = draw
11. jugador = player
12. arbitro = referee
13. cancha de tenis = tennis court
14. piscina = swimming pool
15. barco de vela = sailing-boat (yacht, ship)
16. campo de futbol = football pitch (UK) field (US)
17. coleccionista de sellos = stamp collector (philatelist)
18. natación = swimming
19. pesca = fishing
20. lucha libre = wrestling
21. boxeo = boxing
22. voley playa = beach volleyball
23. lectura = reading
24. patchwork = quilting
25. jardinería = gardening
26. caminar, senderismo = walking
27. hacer caminatas = hiking
28. escalar = climbing mountains
29. paracaidismo = sky-diving
30. playing the lute = tocar el laúd (o timple)
31. ciclismo = cycling
32. esnorkeling de tubo = snorkeling
33. buceo = scuba diving
34. ver la tele = watch TV
35. ir al cine = go to the cinema
36. esquiar = skiing
37. esqui acuatico = water skiing
38. snow boarding
39. surfismo = surfing
40. baile = dancing

Post Card Speaking Activity

Post Card Speaking Activity 

In pairs, look at a post card from the collection.

 

One partner must speak for a 90 seconds, describing what they can see in the post 

card. The other partner should not speak during this first step.

 

Then the second partner speaks for a further 60 seconds (1 min).

Here are suggested commentaries:

• “In this picture, I can see …” “There are many birds in the trees ...”
• “The people in the picture are dressed in ...”
• “In the foreground there is (are) ...” “In the background, I can see ...”
• “Underneath the trees, we can see ...”
• “There is snow on the mountain tops.”

• narrow and wide /tall buildings
• cobbled streets (adoquines)
• taxi rank (parada de taxis)
• wharf, pier, harbor (muelle)

• town hall, city hall = ayuntamiento
• fountain (fuente)
• tram tracks
• arches (arcos)
• statue (estatua)
• street lamps (faroles)
• roundabout (rotonda)
• clay pot (vasija de barro)
• carriage = carruaje
• ravine = barranco
• river = rio
• it dates back to = data a
• married couple = matrimonio
• roof = tejado
• cave = cueva
• tattered flag = bandera en harapos
• nostalgic = nostálgico/a
• oven = horno
• fishing boat = barquilla
• peasants = campesinos

• on top of her head (encima de su cabeza)
• big waves on the ocean (crash)
• the cross on the church steeple (campanario a dos aguas)
• terraced (row house) = casa terrera
• quaint, typical houses of the period = casa típica de la época
• sea weed = algas 
   
• sidewalks on both sides of the street= aceras a los 2 lados de la calle
• ornate, wooden balconies

Good Advice

Don't make a mountain out of molehill! 
                                                  - Ana (La Calzada)

STEREOTYPES: Opinion Essay N1

Opinion Essay about Stereotypes

Choose one of these titles to write a 100-word essay.

• Do gender stereotypes annoy you?
• Why do people use stereotypes?
• What are the stereotypes about people in your country?

Remember to :

1. Start your essay with a brief introduction
2. Then write a body of two paragraphs
3. Include a conclusion

Useful language

In my opinion,

I am inclined to believe that …

From my point of view,

Generally speaking,

Personally, I believe that…

It seems to me that …

As far as I am concerned …

I feel very strongly that …

However,

I would say that …

I do not have any problem with ...

In conclusion,

We recommend "Reverso.net"

An advanced (NA2) student Raquel recommended a translation web page called 

http://diccionario.reverso.net/ 

which she uses to get a better understanding of expressions in English.

I queried this site recently regarding "keen on" as in 

My friend is not keen on vegetables. = A mi amigo, no le gustan las verduras.

Reverso.net gave me this 

he's a keen cook      le gusta mucho or le encanta cocinar 

and 

I'm not very keen on him      no es santo de mi devoción, no me cae demasiado bien 

Thank you, Raquel!