1 DESCRIBING A PERSON

Read Charlie's email. The computer has found ten mistakes. They
are gI3{!gel, pgnS.tuaUog, or seJ:tlAg mistakes. Can you correct
them?

From:
To:

Charlie [barcacarlos@hotmail.com]
Lucy Iucyathome1989@yahoo.com]
Subiect: Hi from Spain

Hi Lucy
My name's Charlie. Well, it's really Carlos but everyone calls me Charlie.
l'm from Barcelona and I live at home with my parents and my dog.
l-baVS:--?lyegn_pld, and l'm at university. l'm studing physics. l'm in my last
year and I really like it.

l'm going to tell you about myself. As you can see from the foto, I have black
hair and blgyrt4g eyes. My father always says I have a big nose, but I don't
think so, I think it's a Roman nose!
I think l'm a positive person. My frCLnQg say l'm funny and it's true, I like
making people laugh. But I cAl O Qg serious too when I need to be!
I dgn! have egey free time bgc{grsg when l'm not in class I have to do
projects or write reports. But when I can, I like watching TV series, especially
science fiction series and comedies. I watch them in e{gXa! with subtitles.
I also like playing computer games like World of Warcraft and Starcraft.

Please write soon and tell me about you and your life.
Best wishes
Charlie

Read the email again from the beginning. Then cover it and

answer the questions from memory.

1 Where's Charlie from?

2 What's his real name?

3 Who does he live with?
4 What does he do?
5 What does he look like?
6 What's he like?
7 What are his favourite free time activities?

Write a similar email about you or a person

you know. Write four paragraphs.
Paragraph

name, nationatity, age, famity,

work / study

Paragraph 2

physicat appearance

Paragraph 3

personaIity

Paragraph 4

hobbies and interests

Check your email for mistakes (ggagtuq!.

RqAqugagg, and

1p.7

sE{iqg

).

MY FAVOURITE PHOTO

One of my favourite photos

friend Anna.
I took the photo
when I was

is

this one of my

the summer of 2011

holiday with some friends

We were at a place called Tara. lt's a hill

- because there's a big stone
which is famous
top of it, and people say that the old
kings of lreland were crowned there. Anna was
telling us all about the history of the stone,
and she put her arms _
it. When I took
the photo we thought she was meditating, but
in fact we later realised she was sleepingl She
woke up after a few minutes and she said the
magic of the place made her sleepy!
I love this photo because it's mysterious, like

the place, and it reminds me of a lovely holiday.

I have the photo _
my phone and
my computer with other photos
lreland.

Match the questions wirh paragraphs 1-5.

!
I
E
!
I

Wtrat was happening when you took the photo?

where do you keep it?
WhV do you like it?

Wtrat's your favourite photo?

Who took it? When? Where?

Complete the text within, of, on, or round.

,

I
i
I
]
LLz

*";;; pr,ot'in an album. on

the wa[t.
a tabte.

yorr bedroom.

your phone.
your computer.

frame.

d Check your description for mistakes

(grammar, punctuation, and spelling).
Attach a copy ofthe photo ifyou can. Show
your description to another student. Is the
photo similar in any way to yours?

vou.",

yorr wa[[et.

Write about your favourite photo. Answer

the questions in a in the right order.

by

your bed.

p.15

AN INFORMAL EMAIL
Goran is a student from Croatia who's
going to study English in the UK. He's
going to stay with a family. Read the email
from Mrs Barnes and complete it with
expressions from the list.
Best

wishes

PS

Looking forward to hearing from you

Dear Goran

Read the email again and answer the

questions.

1 When

is Goran coming to the UK?

2 How is he travelling?
3 Who is going to meet him at the airport?
4 Does Goran have to share a room?
5 Does Lookingforward to hearingfrom 1ou
mean...?

a
b
6
7

write again soon.

I'm going to write to you again soon.
I hope you

DoesPSmean...?
a This isn't very important information.
b I forgot to say this before.
Why does Mrs Barnes send Goran a
photo?

Imagine you are going to stay with Mrs

Barnes. Answer her email using your own
information. Write three paragraphs. End
the email withBestwishes and your name.
Paragraph

Thank her for her email.

Paragraph 2

Say when you are arriving, etc

Paragraph 3

Answer her other questions.

Check your email for mistakes (grammar,

punctuation, and spelling).

p.23

From:
To:

SallyBarnes[Barnes@hotmail.com]
Goran [gorangrec@yahoo.com]
Subiect: Your trip

Thank you for your email. We're very happy that you're coming
to stay with us this summer, and we're sure you're going to enjoy
your stay with us.
What time are you arriving at Stansted airport? lf you send us your
flight number and arrival time, we can all meet you in Arrivals. Can
you send us your mobile number too?
Could you also give us some other information? What day are you
going back to Croatia? ls there anything you can't eat or drink?
Do you want your own room, or do you prefer to share a room with
another student? ls there anything special you would like to do or

see in the UK?

2
3

DESCRIBING WHERE YOU LIVE

Read rhe texr and complete it with these words.

notes on the questions in b.

area aty food historic modern

nature population rivers weather

Match the questions with paragraphs 1-5.

l=l

Wf,at's it famous for?

!
I
!
!

What's the weather

Like?

Wf,at's the besr thing abour ir? Do you Like Living there?
What's your home town Like? What is there to see there?
Where do you

I Live

Live?

Write a description of the place where you

live. Write five paragraphs. Answer the
questions in b in the right order. First, make
Check your email for mistakes (grammar,
punctuation, and spelling). Show your
description to other students in your class.
Which place that you read about would you
mosr like to visit?

<p3e

Where is it? How big is ir?

tqty__

in Kayseri, which is an important

in Central Anatolia in Turkey. lt has a

of over 1,000,000 people. lt's near the famous
2

Cappadocia 3so there are a Lot of

tourists in the summer.
Kayseri is one of the richest cities in Turkey

because it has a Lot of industry. lt is a university

town, and there are also many
buildin$s, for example Kayseri Castle, Hunat
Hatun Mosque, and the Grand Bazaar around
Cumhuriyet Square, with its famous statue
of Ataturk. But Kayseri aLso has 5--residentiaL areas fuLL of Luxury blocks of fLats,
shopping centres, and stylish restaurants.

The 6in Kayseri is typical of the MiddLe Anatolia

Region. Winters are cold and snowy - great for skiing - and
summers are hot and dry. lt sometimes rains in the spring and

autumn.
Kayseri is famous for its mountains. Mount Erciyes is the
symbol of the city and it has a well-known ski resort, and on
Mount Ali there are nationaL and internationaL paragliding
championships. ltt aLso famous for its 7_
and has many
LocaL speciaLities Like postirmo,which is dried beef with spices,
and monti, which is a kind of Turkish ravioli.They're deLicious!

What

best about Kayseri is that we are so close to

When l'm tired of city Life, I can easily get out
and enjoy the mountains, e_,
waterfaLLs, and thermaL
spas, which are only a short distance away.

8-.

I Like

A FORMAL EMAIL

From:

Antonio Ricci [antonior@tiscali.net]

ThePrioryLanguageSchool[enquiries@prioryedinburgh]
Subject: lnformation about courses

To:

Dear Sir / Madam,

I am writing to ask for information about your language
courses. I am especially interested in an intensive course
of two or three weeks. I am 31 and I work in the library at
Milan University. I can read English quite well, but I need
to improve my listening and speaking. The book I am
currently studying is'pre-intermediate' (Common European

Framework level A2).

I have looked at your website, but there is no information
about intensive courses next summer. Could you please
send me information about dates and prices? I would also
like some information about accommodation. lf possible
I would like to stay with a family. My wife is going to visit me
for a weekend when I am at the school. Could she stay with
me in the same family?
I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully,

Antonio Ricci

Read the email to a language school. Tick

(/)

the

questions that Antonio wants the school to answer.

!
!
!
!
!
I

How much do the courses cost?

Wh.,

do the courses start and finish?

Uow many students are there in

Rr. there Business English

a class?

classes?

Read the advertisements and choose a course.

Where can I stay?

Wh...

are the teachers from?

Look at the highlighted expressions. How would they be

different in an informal email (or letter)?

Dear Sir

Write a formal email asking for information.

Write two paragraphs.
Exp[ain why you are writing
and give some personal

lnformal

Formal

Madam,

information.

lam writing

Ask your questions, and ask

them to send you information.

lwoutd [ike
I [ook forward to hearing
from you.

Think of

two or three questions you would like to ask.

Checkyour email for mistakes (grammar, punctuarion.

and spelling).

Yours faithfu[[y,

p.s7

writing

A BIOGRAPHY
Read the biography of Norah |ones. Then
cover the text and try to remember three
things about her.

Norah Jones

Put the verbs in brackets in the past simple

or present perfect.

p
-

writing a biography - use of tenses

lf you write a biography of a person who is
dead, the verbs wittatt be in the past simple.

I
i
I
I
I
I
i
I
I
I

tf tne person is ative, attfinished actions witt

b" in the past simple (such as the person's
earty tife, e.g. was born, went to university,
etc. or specific actions in their tife, e.g. got

married, moved to another town, etc.).

I
I
I
I

However, you must use the present perfect

for unfinished actions which started in the
past and are stilttrue now (and which might
change), e.g. She has won nine Grammy
awards. She has appeared in several films.
Use the present simple (or present
continuous) to talk about the present day,
e.g. She lives in New York. She's working on a

new album.

Write a biography of someone you know, or

of a famous person, who is still alive. Write
three paragraphs. Make notes before you
begin.
Paragraph

Paragraph 2

where and when they were

born, their earty tife
(past simpte)

their tife as a young adult

(mostty past simpte)

Paragraph 3

their later life and their life now

(past simpte, present perfect,
present simple / present
continuous)

Check your biography for mistakes

(grammar, punctuation, and spelling).

Show your biography to other students
in the class. Which of your classmates'
biographies is the most interesting?
p.73

an American singer-songwrlter and

\ lorah Jones islwas
I \ actress. She
born (Ue Uorn) in 1979 in New York

Her father is Ravi Shankar, a famous lndian sitar playel and

her mother is the concert producer Sue Jones. ln 1986 her
parents 2-(separate)
and Later got divorced, and

Norah went to Live in Texas with her mother.

3-

Norah

(be) interested in music

aLL

her Life. When

she was young she played the saxophone and she was in
(go) to the University
two different choirs. She a_
of North Texas to study jazz piano, and while she was there

s-

(meet) Jesse Harris. She started

with him a year Later, and since then they6_
together on many different projects.
she

a band

(work)

7-

(move) to New York,

and in 2001 she signed a contract with
BLue Note records. Since then she

ln 1999 she

8-

(make) five albums, and

they have aLL been very successfuL.
(win) nine Grammy
She eawards and has sold over 37 million
aLbums worldwide. She has aLso
appeared in severaL fiLms, including
My BLueberry Nights.
She has been in only one

relationship, with Lee

Alexander, but they

10-

up) in

(break
ZOOZ.

,/

She stiLL

Lives in New York.

At the moment
she is working
on a new
aLbum.

7 AN OPINION ESSAY
a

Read the article once. Do you agree with what it says?

Read the article again and complete the gaps

with a word or phrase from the list. Use capital
letters where necessary.

finatty firstty for examp[e thirdty

in-my.epinien instead to conclude
You are going to write an article

called'There

are too many reality shows on TV'. Do you

agree? With a partner decide if you agree or not,
Every time I turn on the television, l'm sure to find a football
match on one of the channels. lf I change channels, there
will probably be football on other channels too, especially
at the weeke nd. tln my opinion there is def in itely too m uch
football on TV for the following reasons.

2_,

and think ofthree

Write the article. Write four or five paragraphs.

Paragraph

if you compare football with other sports, football

completely dominates. The only place where you can watch

other sports is on special sports channels, which you usually
have to pay for. This is not fair for people who like other
tennis, basketball, or athletics.
sports, 3Secondly, the football matches on TV are not only the
important matches. Every week they show boring matches
from the second or third divisions.

4_,1

also believe that, at weekends, most people

want to relax in front of the television. Many people,
including me, don't like football and prefer to see good films
or funny series.

s_,

I think that even on news programmes there is

too much football. lt is very annoying when they talk about
football for hours every day, especially when there are more

important things happening in the world.

I think TV should show fewer football matches
and programmes about football, especially at the weekend.
7
it should show other sports too, and more films.
On news programmes they should talk about important

things that are happening in the world, not about football.

offour reasons.

Write an introduction. You can

adapt the introduction in the model
artic[e. Say if you agree or not.

Middte
paragraphs

Give your reasons. Begin the

paragraphs with Firstly, Secondly,
(T hi r d ly,) and F i n a lly.

Last

Write a conc[usion (this shoutd be a

summary of what you write in the
middte paragraphs).

paragraph

Check your article for mistakes (grammar,

punctuation, and spelling). Show your article to
other students in the class. How many of your
classmates agree with you? How many disagree?
p.B5