Speaking recently with our students at Carole Brown Idiomas, we have been asked how to advance learning outside the classroom.
There is no doubt that there are many language tools available but we have chosen three in particular to share with you.
1) Podcasts
2) Series
3) Graded Readers
American English began to deviate from British English as soon as the United States won its independence from Great Britain in 1776.
There is no doubt at all that the power of the social media is taking away the art of conversation. We find it easier and quicker to send a Whatsapp or SMS to confirm a meeting or relay a piece of news.
This is a question our students ask us a lot in Carole Brown Idiomas and we feel that it is a valuable topic to blog about. For those working in companies and studying Business English, we recommend the Cambridge BEC (Business English Certificate) Vantage exam
Going to an interview is one of the most nerve wracking moments we have to face in life. None of us likes being grilled about our skills and work experience. We feel vulnerable and on show and beads of perspiration can break out on our foreheads making us feel uncomfortable. How can we calm our nerves and feel more relaxed? These tried and tested tips can help
We all know how difficult it is to start a conversation with someone we don’t know but it is even more challenging in another language! At the best of times, we can be slightly nervous, but when we let those nerves take over, our brain shuts down and we cannot think of a word to say to the person sitting or standing next to us!
TV Series are a popular way to broaden vocabulary and advance in Listening skills. What better way to learn a language than watching your favourite TV series!
When you are busy in the office and you have to send a number of urgent emails and don’t have time to use Google Translate, here is a useful template that should help you. These are general guidelines and can be adapted to any context.
Linkers and Connectors are the glue that holds our sentences together. Some examples are: consequently, as a result, although, in spite of, furthermore, moreover, as well as etc.
Learning how to speak in the future can be tricky and confusing at times for English language learners.. Our teachers at Carole Brown Idiomas have been trying to simplify this to make it more accessible.. We have found that giving examples in context can help our learners understand its different uses better.
Reported Speech is also known as Indirect Speech. It basically means that you report on what another person has said. Changing Direct Speech to Reported Speech can be complicated at times as verb tenses and subject pronouns have to be changed.
The indefinite pronouns can be confusing for English Language Learners. Sometimes it can help to hear how they sound rather than be given a grammar explanation.
‘Language is context-sensitive. This means that, in the absence of context, it is very difficult to recover the intended meaning of a single word or phrase.’ (Thornbury, S, 1999). At Carole Brown Idiomas, we use newspapers and soap operas to teach language through real contexts.
Our English teachers at Carole Brown Idiomas help our learners use and understand question tags in conversation. This helps them sound and speak more fluently
Learning chunks of natural language saves ‘processing time’. Learners don’t have to build a sentence from grammatical beginnings to help them sound more natural. For example the question ‘How are you?’ does not need to be broken down grammatically for learners to use it.
In this blog we’ll find out what we need to be aware of when it comes to the English language. There are four terms or categories we use when talking about language. 1. Grammar This is the most commonly known term for describing language, yet for English Language Learners it is probably the least-well understood! Essentially words can be categorised
According to the teaching philosophy called Dogme, yes it is! Scott Thornbury invented Dogme to put the learner back into learning. He found that too many lesson plans, textbooks and workbooks invaded the lesson where the learner no longer remained the focus of the lesson. Conversation is seen as central to language learning within the Dogme framework. The thinking behind
A very warm welcome to Carole Brown Idiomas. We hope that you will enjoy your learning experience with us. We aim to make your lessons not only enjoyable but also memorable. We want you to leave your lesson having learned something useful. We will be with you every step of the way to help you attain the level of fluency