Thursday, December 31, 2009

World's Citizens Express Concerns, Hopes for New Year



VOAVideo: World's Citizens Express Concerns, Hopes for New Year

As the new year approaches, VOA interviewed people around the world to find out about their hopes and concerns. Here is a sampling.

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Lesson 3b - Prepositions - English Grammar

JenniferESL: Lesson 3b - Prepositions - English Grammar

This is part 2 of a lesson on prepositions of location and direction. The list of prepositions is long, so this is meant to be a review and not an introduction. Level: high beginner - intermediate.

Monday, December 28, 2009

US Holiday Sales Rise

VOAVideo: US Holiday Sales Rise

New figures released Monday show that holiday shoppers in the U.S. spent a little more compared to last year. Mastercard, which compiled the data, says retail sales rose 3.6 percent from November until Christmas day, up sharply from a 2.3 percent drop for the same time last year. VOA's Mil Arcega reports. (Read more...)

ESL Podcast 542 – Renting a Movie



Go rent a movie tonight in English. Find out how in this episode. Download Podcast

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Saturday, December 26, 2009

Lesson 3a - Prepositions - English Grammar

JenniferESL: Lesson 3a - Prepositions - English Grammar

This is a lesson in 3 parts. The topic is prepositions of location and direction. The list of prepositions is long, so this is meant to be a review and not an introduction. Level: high beginner - intermediate.

Thursday, December 24, 2009

The First Lady Reads "The Night Before Christmas"

WH.gov: The First Lady Reads "The Night Before Christmas"

First Lady Michelle Obama visits Children's National Medial Center in Washington D.C. to read "The Night Before Christmas". Joined by daughters Malia and Sasha, along with dog Bo, the First Lady continues this tradition of visiting with patients which dates back to Bess Truman. December 22, 2009

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Lesson 2e - Conditionals - English Grammar




JenniferESL: Lesson 2e - Conditionals - English Grammar

This is the fifth lesson on conditionals. It will be presented in 2 parts. This first part is mainly explanation of form and use of unreal conditionals in the past. Level: high intermediate - adavanced.

Check out JenniferESL's other lessons on Conditionals:

Also check JenniferESL's Blog.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Meifeng's Restaurant and Karoke Bar!




Today, the ESL 5 Ladies went to Meifeng's home to learn more recipes and sing karaoke. Like all good cooks, Meifeng has a kitchen garden in her backyard.
You can download the pictures from Flickr.

Monday, December 21, 2009

Cindy Lam's Cooking School!



Milpitas Adult School is out, but the learning never ends. Some of the ESL 5 students and their friends got together at Cindy's house to teach each other their favorite recipes and EAT--we're stuffed!

You can download the pictures from Flickr.

Sunday, December 20, 2009

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Lesson 2d - Conditionals - English Grammar



JenniferESL: Lesson 2d - Conditionals - English Grammar

This is the fourth lesson on conditionals. In this lesson we turn our attention to unreal conditional statements in the present time. Level: high intermediate - advanced.

Check out JenniferESL's other lessons on Conditionals:

Also check JenniferESL's Blog.

Friday, December 18, 2009

ESL 5 @ Happy Buffet!




ESL 5 students, family, and friends celebrated Christmas and New Year at Happy Buffet! You can download the pictures from Flickr.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

ESL Podcast 538 – Finding the Perfect Gift



It’s time to go shopping for holiday gifts. Learn more in this episode. Download Podcast Tags: Shopping

ESL Podcast 314 – Buying a Digital Audio (MP3) Player
Oct 22, 2007 ... Sandy: I'm looking for an MP3 player, but I don't know a lot about them. Clerk: We have a large selection, as you can see. Download Podcast

JenniferESL: Lesson 2c - Conditionals - English Grammar



JenniferESL: Lesson 2c - Conditionals - English Grammar

This is the third lesson on conditionals. In this segment we look at conditional statements with "unless." Level: high intermediate.

Check out JenniferESL's other two lessons on Conditionals:

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

ESL Podcast 270 – Airport Announcements



May 21, 2007 ... I was walking through the airport to Gate 11 to catch my flight when I heard this announcement: “Attention passengers on English Air flight ...Download Podcast


Monday, December 14, 2009

ESL 5 Students!


You can download the pictures from Flickr.

Here are the directions:

Family Portraits of all 56 ethnic groups in China

China are inhabited by an indigenous population
of ethnic Vietnamese people (or Kinh).
They are referred to in Chinese as the Jīng (京族)

Family Portraits of all 56 ethnic groups in China (reposted from ChinaHush and ChinaGate])

[ChinaGate] This is a “Family Portrait” of China’s 56 ethnic groups. Chen Haiwen, a photographer, recently lead a team of 14 photographers to create a book entitled, “Harmonious China: A Sketch of China’s 56 Ethnicities.” The team spent one year travelling all over China to complete the project. They ended up taking over 5.7 million photographs.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Vietnam Fights Rising Sea Levels, Protects Economic Growth



VOAVideo: Vietnam Fights Rising Sea Levels, Protects Economic Growth

Vietnam is one of the world's fastest growing economies. But the country is also experiencing the effects of climate change. Scientists say parts of the country would be inundated within 40 years because of rising sea levels. Daniel Schearf tells us how a community in Ca Mau province grapples with the threat to its environment and livelihood. (Read more...)

Saturday, December 12, 2009

JenniferESL: Lesson 2b - Conditionals - English Grammar



JenniferESL: Lesson 2b - Conditionals - English Grammar
This is the second lesson on conditionals. There is a review and expansion on present factual conditionals, and then we move on to look at factual conditionals in the future.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

'Gelotophobia' Is No Laughing Matter



On HEALTH REPORT: Researchers find that people in some countries worry much more than others about being laughed at.

Obama Outlines Job Creation Strategy

Obama Outlines Job Creation Strategy

Mr. Obama proposes tax rebates for consumers who make their homes more energy-efficient, outlines plans for more work on roads, broadband networks, clean energy projects and other infrastructure Video

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

JenniferESL: Lesson 2a - Conditionals



JenniferESL: Lesson 2a - Conditionals - English Grammar

A Factural or Real Conditional Sentence:

(1) the dependent conditional clause (IF + subject + present tense verb)

(2) the independent result clause (subject + present tense verb)

Monday, December 7, 2009

So Where Are the Jobs?



VOA Special English Video: So Where Are the Jobs?

Credit remains tight even as the U.S. economy has returned to growth, with government support. The job market took a long time to recover after the last two recessions.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

ESL Podcast 140 - Buying on the Internet


ESL Discussions: Internet

  • What do you think of the idea of Internet shopping or online dating?

Saturday, December 5, 2009

JenniferESL: Lesson 1 - Preferences



JenniferESL: Lesson 1 - Preferences - English Grammar

  • Which would you rather have ______?
  • Which would you prefer (infinitive / gerund) _______ or _______?
  • I prefer ______.

Friday, December 4, 2009

ESL 5 Summary of Vocabulary and Idioms Nov 30-Dec 04, 2009


Ch 6: Shopping for Clothes in a Mall

a last resort
bargain basement prices
bittersweet chocolate / dark chocolate
clash
dressed to kill / dressed to the nines
first thing in the morning
for the time being
full of oneself
get a load of s/t or s/o
jam-packed
Lady Godiva / Godiva Chocolate
long gone
milk chocolate / light chocolate
rack
right up one’s alley
steep
There’s no accounting for taste!
to break the bank
to browse
to clash
to go overboard
to have one’s name on it
to hit s/w
to hit the spot
to knock off $$$ off the price
to mark down / marked down
to melt in one’s mouth
to run (cost)
to sell oneself short
to shell out
to shoot one’s mouth off
to snap up s/t
to take in

for more, see ESL 5 Summary of Vocabulary/Idioms Nov 23-25, 2009 (Ch 5: Eating Dinner with a Roommate)

Tuesday, December 1, 2009