ESL Games!

Hi Class!

Today we will review for our test on the Present Perfect Progressive (Continuous) by playing a game.  The game is on a website or app called Kahoot.

Kahoot game link

1) You can log in simply by going to Kahoot.it

2) You will be asked for a PIN number which will show on our screen when you begin.

3) You can log in individually or as a team. We will discuss your options as a class.

Please note that you can play these games by yourself, you don't need to be in class to play.  I'll show you how.

When you play outside of class, you simply search for the topic that you want to practice.  If you're studying your grammar, it's a good idea to write "ESL" before each grammar point that you want to study.  For example, write "ESL Present Perfect Progressive" in the search box.

You can also download the Kahoot app.!

Let's have fun!!!

Your teacher,
Bonnie

Conditionals: Would you, could you, study this?

Hi Class,

Today we're going to talk about Conditionals specifically to communicate Present Unreal situations.

In this lesson we're using would when we're 100% sure of something. And, we're using could when we are less sure.

Let's start with would:

Example:  If everyone used energy efficient appliances, we would use less electricity.

OR

We would use less electricity if everyone used energy efficient appliances in their home.

Using could:

If they wanted to save energy, they could use energy efficient appliances in their home.

OR

They could use energy efficient appliances if they wanted to use less electricity.

Let's practice: Use the verbs in parentheses to complete the sentence, using would or could.

1.  It’s Thursday today, but if it _______ Saturday, I __________to the movies. (be) (go)

2.  I don’t have any candy now, but if I ____________some, I ___________ some to the class.  (have) (give)

3.  I am busy tomorrow, but if I ____________ available, I ___________ to the museum with you.  (be) (visit)

4.  Your teacher can only speak one language, but if she ______________two languages fluently, she _____________for a job as a translator.  (can speak) (apply)

5.  Maria doesn’t know how to drive a car. If she ____________ how to drive, she _______________ you home. (know) (drive)

Note: This is a picture of one of the neighbor's chickens. Hahaha!  


I'm sure if I _____________ my neighbor, I'm sure he _______________ me some eggs. (ask) (give)


Tonight:  Work on Conditionals and your Final Presentations. 

present unreal conditionals - practice

And, remember, it's the Lunar New Year this weekend, the Chinese New Year. It's the Year of the Pig!  Follow the link to learn more about this year's celebration:

Happy New Year!!! 

Chinese New Year

As always, ask me if you have any questions.

Good luck!
Teacher Bonnie

Final Project & More!

Hello Students,

Tonight we have a lot to do:

1) Please review the lesson on Present Perfect Progressive and Present Perfect, complete the exercises.

2) Please review the lessons on Participle Adjectives.

3)  Remember we have a Final Presentation in 2 weeks!  Please review the outline for this project.

Also, here's a link on how to do PowerPoint Presentations:

How to Create a PowerPoint Presentation - 20 min Lesson


As always, I am here to help!

Best,

Teacher Bonnie

Present Perfect and Present Perfect Progressive

Hi Students;

Welcome back to online ESL class.  Today we are studying an advanced grammar point: 

Click here for additional Exericises

Present Perfect and Present Perfect Progressive

Here's the grammar overview and explanation:

The present perfect usually describes an activity that has ended while the present perfect progressive, also called present perfect continuous, usually describes something that is unfinished.

Present Perfect vs. Present Perfect Progressive

We use the present perfect tense to communicate a connection to a past action where the 

• Maria's been to Disneyland 20 times.

This sentence states that Maria has been to Disneyland many times in the past, however, she may go again, we don't know. 

Additionally, we can use the present perfect and present perfect progressive to communicate about actions and activities that relate to the present.

Part 1. Let's review these 2 sentences:

• I’ve been working in the garden this spring. The focus is on the action – working – and the action is unfinished.

• I’ve planted rose bushes. The focus is on the finished result. The activity is finished but we can see the result now.

We use the present perfect progressive when the focus is on an unfinished or incomplete action or activity.

Part 2. Now, review these two sentences.

• I’ve watched that movie that I recorded on my DVR. I watched it last night.
• I’ve been watching that movie that I recorded last night. I’ve got about 30 more minutes to watch.

The present perfect (I’ve watched) shows that the action has ended, but the present perfect progressive form (I’ve been watching) communicates that the action is not yet finished.

Part 3. Review these two sentences.

• She’s been texting her friends during class.
• She’s texted several messages.

The present perfect progressive (has been texting) talks about how long something has been happening. The present perfect (has texted) talks about how much/how many have been completed.

Part 4. And, lastly, review these two more sentences.

• I’ve studied at PCC CEC for two years.
• I've completed a degree in engineering in my native country, additionally, I've been studying English in the United States for the past 2 years.

We can use the present perfect to communicate a completed or permanent action, however, we use the present perfect progressive to show that something is in progress or temporary.

Complete the following sentences using the present perfect.  Use: start, be, see, arrive, stop.

• Tony is waiting on the corner for his friend, Jose, but he _____________  yet.
• My best friend lives in a different state. I __________her for two months. 
• Deborah and Michael got married twenty-five years ago. They ____________apart since then.
• It is only 5:25pm. The class _____________yet.
• It started to rain last night, and it ___________ yet.

Rewrite the following sentences using the present perfect progressive (continuous).

Write a sentence using the present perfect progressive tense and for or since. 

• It is raining. It began to rain last night.
  
• The students are studying now. They started to study an hour ago.
  
• Joe smokes. He started to smoke when he was a young
  
• Maria works in a store. She got her retail sales position last year.
  
• I teach ESL. I started to teach ESL 25 years ago. 

NEXT WEEK:

We are studying...

PARTICIPLE ADJECTIVES

Here's a review of the -ed and -ing adjectives that we've been studying.  Enjoy!

Vocabulary Review:

Lesson: –ED and –ING Adjective Forms.

Directions: Use the –ed form when you are talking about feelings. 

Use the -ing form when you talk about things or situations.

VERB	ADJ (-ed)	ADJ (-ing)
Bore	Bored	Boring
Tire	Tired	Tiring
Interest	Interested	Interesting
Relax	Relaxed	Relaxing
Surprise	Surprised	Surprising
Excite	Excited	Exciting

Example:

Studying English bores some students; they think English is boring;

these students often feel bored.

Practice and Discussion:

        Directions: Discuss these questions with a partner, follow the example:

Example:  Student 1: What bores you?

                  Student 2: Waiting in traffic bores me because it’s boring.

                              What interests you?

What relaxes you?

What excites you?

What tires you?

     What disgusts you?

Present perfect & present perfect progressive exercises

Today's Lesson: MLK, Adjective Clauses, Reading Comprehension & Writing, OH MY!

Hello My Fabulous Class,

Here we are again in the Learning Lab, and we have lots to do!

We will be reviewing adjective clauses, working on our reading comprehension, writing, and learning about the legacy of legendary Civil Rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK).

Here's our lesson:

Adjective Clauses:

Some rules about Adjective Clauses:

1.  Whose is only used to show possession, it's a possessive pronoun.
2.  That is not used to begin an adjective clause after a comma is placed after the noun, you need to use which.  Example:  George used to exercise at the local gym, which is very expensive. 
3.  In and adjective clause the verb must agree in number with the noun it modifies.
4.  When and where are always followed by a noun, and are never used as the subject of an adjective clause.  Example: Maria used to dance everyday when she was young. 
5.  An adjective clause is placed directly after the noun it modifies (changes).  Example: Tom Brady, who is the quarterback for the New England Patriots, has won 5 Super Bowls.

Here's a video lesson on adjective clauses

Reading:  

We're using our membership to Burlington English to chose a novel to read and write a report to the class on what you've read.  We will discuss more about this during class.

Writing:

We've been discussing the pros and cons of online shopping.  Now, we will write a paragraph about our experiences with online shopping.  What is the best thing that you've ever bought online?  What was good about it?  Was it inexpensive? Was it unique?  Did you get it quickly? Was it something you needed or a treat for yourself or for someone special?  Explain.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday:

Monday we celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  He was a powerful civil rights leader and activist. He believed in peaceful protest. His leadership changed America by advancing equal rights in the US. Without the actions of the civil rights movement under his leadership, you would not be in this ESL class today, there probably would not be ESL classes at community colleges for free if it were not for MLK.

Here is a short video on his life and great work.

http://www.biography.com/people/martin-luther-king-jr-9365086

What do you think about his leadership?  How does the civil rights movement of the 1960s affect you today? Think about it...

Best,
Teacher Bonnie

Hello Level 4 Class,

We are busy, busy today! 

In the computer lab, we're going to be focusing on the following lessons:

1. Writing!  We are going to review the fundamentals of writing and what makes an excellent paragraph.

Remember: the key to any great paragraph is a clear introduction, 3 supporting examples, and a conclusion.

Think about a hamburger:  The top part of the bun is your introduction, "the meat" is the support, the bottom of the bun is your conclusion. 

2. We are going to use online resources for reading.  Many classic books are in ebook version for free on the internet and you can download them to your computer or electronic device. 

Here is the link for finding public domain (free) books online to download to your e-reader:

https://www.digitalbook.io/blog/free-ebooks-for-english-learners/

Here is the link to audio versions of the book you choose:

https://www.digitalbook.io 


3.  We're going to talk about our final project so that you can start working on it now.

FINAL PROJECT

On Monday, February 11th and Tuesday February 12th, you will give your Final Presentation to the class.

Your final project should be of interest and importance to you and this should reflect in your presentation. Use your speaking skills learned in Level 4B 

►You may work with a partner or in a team as long as you commit to do your part of the assignment.

Choose one of the following activities to present to your class:

►Possible Topics and Activities:   

1) Tell us about your country.

2) Tell us about your career choice.

3) Tell us about your favorite hero, musician, singer, actor, writer, friend, or….?

4) Tell us about your favorite hobby.

5) Show us your talent: dance, sing, jump, talk, perform, or….?

►Possible Presentation Materials:

You can and should use pictures, music, maps, PowerPoint, or some kind of realia (something to show) to enhance your presentation.

►Time:  5 Minutes

GOOD LUCK!

ESL Level 2 Study Tips for Final Exams!

Hi Class,

Here are some study tips for your high beginning/low intermediate Level 2 NC ESL class final exams. 

Good luck! 

These are the grammar points that you need to understand to pass the exam:

Sounds like a lot?  You know this!  You got this! 

If you need practice, do a google search for ESL + grammar point.  There will be many websites that appear and choose one that contains exercises for the grammar point that you are studying. Also, there are many great youtube.com instructional videos, again - search for the grammar lesson that you are studying.   Or, email me!  

Adjectives Comparatives
Superlatives
Equitives (as . . . as) Adverbs of Manner
Comparatives Connectors (because, so)
Count and Non-Count Nouns
Partitives (a can of, two glasses of, etc.) Quantifiers (much, many, some, a few, a little, etc.)
Directions
Future Tense with “Will” Indirect Object Pronouns “Like” vs. “Would Like” Modals
be able to
can’t (for prohibition) could
don’t have to
have got to
might
must (for necessity) mustn’t
should
Past Continuous Tense
Real Conditional (“if” clauses) Possessive Pronouns Reflexive Pronouns
Simple Past Tense
Regular Verbs Irregular Verbs

Tag Questions Simple Past
Simple Present Present Continuous Future
Time Clauses (before, after, when)
Time Expressions (just, in, on, at)
“Too,” “Enough,” “Very” + Adjective
Verb + Infinitive (want to, have to, need to, like to) WH-Questions