Oral Mock exam - 27th & 29th April

Please, check date and time for the Oral Mock when you come to class.

Unit 6. Power

- Useful vocabulary related to power (check worksheet!)

- Grammar: Articles (p. 77 & Handout with exercises)

- Homework: Multiple choice grammar and vocabulary worksheet

Unit 5. Progress

- Check worksheet revision on sentence adverbials & conditionals (check with a partner if you couldn't come to class!)

- Listening p. 70: "A Recruitment Agency"

- Vocabulary: expressing quantity p. 70
Useful expressions: a little bit more, a great deal of, plenty of, not much of, an awful lot of, the vast majority, quite a few, a handful of

Unit 5. Composition (Deadline 30th March)

- Choose one of the topics in p. 69 (exercise 8) and write a discursive essay exposing your points on the issue. (Remember to use the adverbial phrases checked over this unit!)
Proposed structure:

Introduction - Expose the state of the question
Main Body (2 paragraphs) - Reasons why you believe it to be a good idea or not
Conclusion - Conclude your exposition in a few words

Unit 5. Fortunes

- Grammar revision: worksheet

- Video Listening: “Business Venture”

- Grammar: Sentence adverbials p. 69
. Adverbials show the speaker’s attitude and feelings:
Basic ideas: fundamentally, essentially
Unexpected points: surprisingly enough, believe it or not
Generalisations: by and large, broadly speaking
How something appears: seemingly, apparently
Contrast: however, on the other hand
Reflection on the past: looking back, with hindsight
Partial agreement: to a certain extent, up to a point

Activities: exercise 7, p. 69; Worksheet (as homework)

- Vocabulary: Money idioms (p. 71)
to be a bargain = to be dirt chip
to cost a fortune
to be worth a fortune = to be rolling in it
to be able to live on = not to be well off
to be a bit hard up
to be broke = to be skint = to be on the red
to cost an arm and a leg
to go halves = to split the bill
to treat oneself to something

Homework - review & check unit 4

- Exercises 2-5 from the Review & Check (p. 60). Useful to practice and revise grammatical structures and vocabulary!

Homework - Unit 5 (Deadline 18-03-09)

- Worksheet: Conditionals review

- Grammar & Reading (past mock exam)

- Writing: Formal letter. Choose one of the following options and write a formal letter (or both!!):
. You went on holiday and stayed in a four star hotel. However, neither the service nor the staff you received were up to the standards. Write a letter of complaint to the manager explaining the problems you had and requesting compensation.
. You have decided to apply for a post as marketing manager of an important company in their new office in Edinburgh.

Letters of Complaint / Letters of Application

Letters of complaint
. Structure
- Introduction: state reasons for writing
- Main body: State complaint with justification / Suggest what should be done
- Conclusion: closing remarks

. Examples:
- Mild complaint:
I am writing to complain about a factual error in yesterday’s newspaper.
I hope that you will give this matter your prompt attention.
- Strong complaint:
I am writing to express my strong disapproval concerning the offensive behaviour of an employee at your company’s Winchester Road branch.
I demand a full, written apology or I will be forced to take legal action.

. Useful Language:
- To begin letters:
I am writing to complain about/ draw your attention to (the problem of)…
I am writing to express my disappointment / dissatisfaction with…
I am writing to express my annoyance / extreme dissatisfaction with / protest about
I regret to / feel I must inform you how appalled / shocked I was…
- To end letters:
I hope this matter will be dealt with / resolved as soon as possible.
I trust this matter will receive immediate attention.
I hope this matter will not be treated lightly.
I feel that you should … / I am entitled to compensation / a refund / a replacement.


Letters of application
. Structure
- Introduction: state reasons for writing
- Main body: education & qualifications; previous experience; personal qualitites; suitability
- Conclusion: closing remarks

. Useful language
- To begin letters:
I am writing to apply for the post/position of…advertised in yesterday’s…
I am writing in connection with/with regard to the vacancy in your Sales Department as advertised in…
- To end letters:
I enclose / Please find enclosed my CV / references from…
I would appreciate a reply at your earliest convenience/as soon as possible.
I would be available for an interview at any time…
Please contact me should you have any further questions/queries

- Experience / Qualifications:
I am currently/ At present I am employed / working as…
During this time, I held the position of…/ was responsible for…/my duties included
I have received training in…/ completed an apprenticeship…
My qualifications include…/ I am presently studying/attending a course…
I am due to take my final examination in June….
I have/hold/obtained/was awarded a degree/certificate in…
I have successfully complete a course… at (place)

Unit 5. Fortunes (continuation)

- Grammar: Conditional review
. Mixed conditional: If + past perfect + would/could/may/might/should
To express a hypothetical present result in a past action
If we hadn’t answered the phone, we wouldn’t be here now.

. Instead of if, we can use
a) Happen to / Should happen to can be used with First Conditional sentences to emphasise that something is unlikely to occur.
b) Provided that / as long as to show that specific conditions should be met for something to happen.
c) Supposing to emphasise the imaginary, in informal speech.
d) If it hadn’t been for to express how a negative result would have occurred without a certain person or event happening.
e) If you will / would can be used as a polite form.
d) Should you is used in formal business communication.

. I wish / If only: to express hope and regret respectively
a) To talk about the present: I wish / If only + past simple
I wish I passed the exam with a good mark.
b) To talk about the past: I wish / If only + past perfect
If only I had studied harder.

- Listening: “Starting up a business” (p. 64)

5. Fortunes

- Vocabulary: Fortunes (p. 61)
Useful expressions: come into a fortune, haggle, the stock market, ask for a rise, high-income, pay on commission, go bankrupt.

- Grammar: emphasis (p. 63)
. Emphasis can be expressed by adding certain words:
own: He cooks his own bread.
very / indeed: She’s the best in the class, indeed.
in the least bit / at all: Keith wasn’t annoyed with us in the least bit.
actually / by no means / even: He didn’t even stop at the red light.

. Cleft sentences:
The reason why we left the party early is…
The thing that most annoys me about it is …
The person who I most admire is…

. It clauses:
It was Simon who asked…

. What clauses:
What you need is a cup of coffee

- Activities to practice inversion:
. ex. 7; p. 63
. oral activity in pairs

- Video Listening: “Progress” (news from CNN and ABC)

Unit 4. Progress (continuation)

- Grammar: Inversion (p.55)
. It is used to... emphasise the adverbial phrase in a sentence/ add variety to a text/ mainly in formal contexts.
. It is set at the start of a sentence followed by auxiliary verb + subject + infinitive:
He arrived and we left immediately – No sooner did he arrive than we left.
. Used with:
1. Negative adverbials - sentences with 'no' / 'not'
Not only does he play the guitar, but also the violin.
Not once has the child cried while being in the park.
Not until I go home did I notice that I had the wrong umbrella.
On no condition are they to open fire without a warning.
Under no circumstances is he leaving the children alone.
No way am I going to sing in public (informal speech). / In no way am I going to sind in public.
2. Time expressions: never, rarely, seldom
Never has he told me to go round his house.
Rarely has a minister been faced with such a problem.
Seldom has the team given a worse performance.
3. Time expressions: hardly, scarcely, no sooner
Hardly had the train left the station, when there was an explosion.
Scarcely had I entered the room when the phone rang.
No sooner had I reached the door than I realised it was locked.
4. Only after, only when, only then
Only after posting the letter did I remember that I had forgotten to put on a stamp.
5. Little
Little does the government appreciate what the results will be.
6. So / Such
So devastating were the floods that some areas may never recover.
Such was the force of the storm that the trees were uprooted.

- Activities to practice inversion:
. worksheet (to be finished on Monday)
. oral practice in pairs
. activity 8, p. 55

- Listening: taking notes "Gifted children" (p. 56)

Unit 4. Progress (continuation)

- Grammar: future forms (p. 52)
. revision: ex. 7
. oral activities in groups: personal contract / future predictions

- Vocabulary: two-part expressions (p.57)
Check the following expressions and try to memorise them (useful!):
law and order, facts and figures, trial and error, rules and regulations, aches and pains, tried and tested, out and about, by and large, once and for all, now and again, ready and waiting, sick and tired

- Video listening (not in book): "Barbie vs. Bratz" & "London 2010"