Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for English

Looking for Alaska — Summary and Exercises

Grammar

1

1. shown
2. wanted
3. opening
4. arriving
5. sitting
6. sent
7. using
8. bought

2

1. 1 C
2. 2 B
3. 3 A
4. 4 B
5. 5 A
6. 6 B

3

1. What I want is lots of sun on my holiday.
2. What I’m looking forward to is meeting my sister’s boyfriend.
3. What I need is some time to finish this work.
4. What I’d like is to go shopping tomorrow.
5. What Sam enjoys is playing in football matches.
6. What she wants is a dog.

Vocabulary

4

1. jugglers
2. composer
3. painter
4. playwright
5. buskers

5

1. stage
2. concert
3. still
4. performance
5. gallery

Listening

1 A, 2 B, 3 A, B, 4 A, 5 A, B

Reading

1 T, 2 F, 3 F, 4 F, 5 T

Looking for Alaska — John Green Novel

In his first novel, Looking for Alaska, John Green captures that feeling with freshness, candor and heart. Miles Halter is a rising junior in a boarding school in rural Alabama.... Continue reading "Looking for Alaska: Summary, Characters & Exercises" »

Health Vocabulary and Grammar Exercises

1. Find the Words to the Description

A.        B

1. Bandage  D  ....a. what covers the body
2. Food poisoning  C  ....b. what you get from a bee
3. Pills  G  ....c. caused by something you eat
4. Skin  A  ....d. a piece of cloth that covers an injury
5. Neck  F  ....e. a photograph showing the inside of the body
6. Sting  B  ....f. the part of the body that holds the head
7. X-RAY  E  ....g. a type of medicine a doctor may give you

2. Complete the Sentences

1. Dylan can't join the army because he's got a problem with his heart.
2. The doctor said that the boy's temperature was too high.
3. I stayed in the sun too long at the beach and I burnt my back.
4. Liam began to CHEST.
5. Many people didn't come to work last week

A News Report: Stormy Day in Villahermosa

On July 4th, 2015, my friend and I were in a park when suddenly the wind surprised us. We were on our way to a party at Voladero disco when the wind broke a large tree branch and some bottles. The local police in Villahermosa arrived to assess the damages.

However, my friends and I went to our houses with some dust on our clothes. Later, my friend Rosa and I went to the pub in the square, and after a while, more people started to arrive. People were a little scared at first, but as time passed, they calmed down.

In conclusion, the party ended at the same time that the storm finished.

Informal Email to Anna

Hi Anna,

It's been a long time since we've seen or spoken to each other. I hope you are doing well in... Continue reading "A Stormy Day in Villahermosa and Other Stories" »

Mental Processes: Participants and Subtypes

Mental processes are constructed with main participants: the Experiencer (or Senser), the mental process itself, and the Phenomenon. These are processes of experiencing or sensing.

Subtypes of Mental Processes

• Perception: (see, hear, feel). Behavioural processes distinguish between non-volitional acts (see, hear) and volitional acts (look, watch, listen).
• Cognition: (know, understand, believe).
• Affection: (like, love, admire, miss).
• Desideration: (hope, desire, fear, want, wish).

There is always a conscious participant, the Experiencer or Senser, who perceives, knows, or likes. There is usually a second participant, the Phenomenon—that which is perceived, known, or wanted.

Present Progressive and Lexical

Reported Speech Practice and Sentence Transformation

Section 1: Commands, Requests, and Statements

• Tony reminded me not to forget to post the letter.
• The teacher told me to revise the vocabulary pages.
• The police officer ordered me to show my identity card.
• The IT operator explained that I needed to press 'Control' and 'F8'.
• Lydia asked if we should try the lobster.

Section 2: Complaints, Recommendations, and Promises

• Peter complained about revising for his exams.
• I recommend speaking to the manager at once.
• She promised to call at six o'clock.

Correct Examples

• He explained he would stay there that night.

Section 3: Dialogue and Suggestions

• Joe invited Eve to go to a restaurant that evening.
• Eve decided that was a good idea.
• Joe asked Eve what kind of food

This list includes the base form, past simple, and past participle of some common irregular verbs in English.

Verb Forms

Base Form - Past Simple - Past Participle

be - was/were - been (ser, estar)

become - became - become (convertirse en, hacerse)

begin - began - begun (empezar, comenzar)

bite - bit - bitten (morder)

blow - blew - blown (soplar)

break - broke - broken (romper)

bring - brought - brought (llevar, traer)

build - built - built (construir)

buy - bought - bought (comprar)

can - could - been able (poder)

catch - caught - caught (coger, atrapar, tomar)

choose - chose - chosen (elegir, escoger)

come - came - come (venir)

cost - cost - cost (costar)

cut - cut - cut (cortar)

do - did - done (hacer)

draw - drew - drawn (dibujar)

drink - drank - drunk (beber)... Continue reading "English Irregular Verbs" »

Each person has their own preferences for life in the country and in the city. It is obvious that both have advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages of Rural Living

• Nature: This includes uncontaminated air, picturesque landscapes, animals, and much more.
• Slower Pace of Life: You do not worry that you will not do something in time but work at your own pace.
• Strong Community Bonds: The relationships between the inhabitants of the countryside are generally very good. People know each other well enough to help one another.

Disadvantages of Rural Living

• Limited Access to Healthcare: There is often no medical center in the countryside, and to consult a doctor, one has to go to the city, which can be quite far.
• Limited Access to Amenities: The same goes

Brat Farrar: A Tale of Deception

The Ashby Family and Latchetts

The story centers on the Ashbys, an English country-squire family residing at their centuries-old estate, Latchetts, in the fictional village of Clare near the south coast of England. The narrative is set in the 1940s, in the aftermath of World War II.

Family Dynamics and Financial Struggles

The Ashby family consists of Beatrice Ashby ("Aunt Bee"), a spinster in her fifties, and the four children of her late brother, Bill: Simon (20), Eleanor (18–19), and twins Jane and Ruth (9). Following the deaths of Bill and his wife, Nora, eight years prior, the family has faced financial hardship. Bee has maintained the estate by transforming the family stable into a profitable business, focusing... Continue reading "Brat Farrar: A Classic Mystery of Identity and Deception" »

Winston and the Mysterious Note

1. How does Winston think the girl with dark hair probably got her injury?
   Winston thinks she probably crushed her hand while turning one of the kaleidoscopes used to produce novels in the Fiction Department.
2. What two possibilities does Winston consider before opening the note given to him by the girl with dark hair?
   Winston thinks the note must be a message either from the Thought Police or from an underground organization like the Brotherhood.
3. What does the note actually say?
   The note says, “I love you.”
4. Why doesn’t Winston shirk his evening at the Community Center even though he desperately wants to be alone?
   Winston’s will to live has been revived by the girl’s note, and he decides not to take any unnecessary

Analysis of Burning Bright

The ironies in this book continue to multiply as Montag discovers that Millie was the one who turned in the fire alarm. In fact, it's interesting to note that as Millie makes her abrupt departure, her worries and concern focus only on her television family and not her husband (Montag). Although Beatty feels some remorse over what will happen to Montag, he continues to ridicule him: "Old Montag wanted to fly near the sun and now that he's burnt his damn wings, he wonders why. Didn't I hint enough when I sent the Hound around your place?" Though one's sympathies are, rightly so, with Montag, Beatty is revealed here as a man torn between duty and conscience, which makes him more of an individual and less a villain, less... Continue reading "The Ironies of Burning Bright" »