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

Lord Jim

Captain Marlow, a professional sailor and amateur narrator, decides to tell the public all about the tragic story of Jim. Back in the day, Jim left his sinking ship, the Patna, along with other crew members. Although publicly disgraced, Jim found a sympathetic partner in Marlow.

After hearing Jim's whole, sad story, Marlow tried to help him over the coming years. Marlow found Jim jobs, but Jim always gave up and ran back in an effort to escape the humiliation and shame.

After Jim makes his way to the island of Patusán, he becomes a leader among local residents and even finds a girlfriend. Good times do not last, because a man named Gentleman Brown appears and wreaks havoc on the island, and Jim makes some bad judgment calls that result... Continue reading "Summaries and Characters: Joseph Conrad Novels" »

Face Masks and the Pandemic

Let's analyze some statements about face masks and their relation to the pandemic:

1. According to some, wearing a face mask can be beneficial. True (if we accept what some authors claim).
2. Distress has increased during the pandemic, acting as an alarm system. True (during the pandemic, distress has acted as an alarm system).
3. Taking off masks is recommended for everyone. False (those with certain conditions should avoid wearing masks in closed spaces).
4. If we continue wearing masks, we might appreciate the gift of living more. True (beyond the pandemic, masks might help us appreciate the gift of living).

Vocabulary: Synonyms

• Saying hello - greeting
• Anxiety, agony - distress
• Continue - remain
• Afflictions, dysfunctions - disorders

Grammar:

Syntactic Functions of Subordinate Clauses

Functional Classes

Nominal Subordinate Clauses

• More restricted than noun phrases
• No function as subject, object, complement, or prepositional complement
• Abstract
• Can be adjective complementation without preposition (e.g., I am not sure that...)
• Types:
  • That-zero that
  • Wh interrogative
  • Yes-no alternative interrogative clause
  • Exclamative
  • Relative
  • To infinitive
  • Ing
  • Bare infinitive
  • Verbless

Adverbial Subordinate Clauses

• Usually adjuncts, subjuncts, conjuncts, or disjuncts
• Adverb phrase or preposition phrase
• Types:
  • Time (finite adverbial, ing-until, to infinitive duration verb)
  • Place (where, wherever)
  • Conditional
    • Direct (if, unless)
    • Open or hypothetical
  • Concessive (though, while)
  • Contrast (while)
  • Rhetorical if (condition but obvious)

My Best Friend Carlos

Carlos is a really good friend of mine. He is English, but he has lived in Spain since 2012. He is seventeen years old and has been my best friend since this year. Carlos is tall, well-built, and has shoulder-length hair. He has short, fair hair and big blue eyes. He likes sports; he goes to the gym two days a week, and at the weekend, he plays football and hockey. Sometimes, we play on the Wii and have a really good time.

He is very generous and shy, and he has a great sense of humor. Sometimes, he can be bossy, but I don't mind because he is very intelligent, and I know that he is usually right. He is a very good friend. Carlos is a lot of fun. He is one of my favorite people, and I hope that he will continue to be my... Continue reading "Remarkable Stories: Friendship, Sports, Icons, and Animal Welfare" »

Language Practice and Film Review

Practice Sentences

• India is poorer than Germany.
• That he didn’t know it.
• She wasn’t so busy; she could come to the party.
• I may call you on your birthday.
• Where is the nearest cinema, please?
• If he had revised for the test, he wouldn’t have failed it.
• She has her eyes tested by the ophthalmologist every year.
• The Da Vinci Code, which was written by Dan Brown, is a best-seller.
• Who goes swimming twice a week?
• I apologize for not remembering your birthday.
• He told us that we didn’t make so much noise.
• It is thought that Susan lives in London.
• This is the most interesting book I have ever read.
• Unless you hurry up, you won’t get tickets for the concert.
• When do you have to wear a uniform?
• I’m having my room painted

Unit 6: Reading in English

Developing Reading Skills

This unit explores effective reading activities that emphasize meaning and demonstrate how the printed word serves as a valuable source of language input.

Key Priorities in Reading and Writing Instruction

When teaching reading and writing, prioritize meaning, word recognition, and letter identification. Predicting pronunciation is also important. Children don't need to grasp every detail; understanding keywords and the general meaning is sufficient.

6.1. Beginning Reading

Children must connect what they hear with what they read. Learning to read in English is easier if children can already read in their native language. Two primary approaches facilitate English reading instruction.

Look and Say

The... Continue reading "Enhancing English Reading Skills in Young Learners" »

Ottawa (Description of a Place)

Holiday

English Grammar Cheat Sheet

Word Formation

Prefixes

• semi-
• under-
• over-
• re-
• co-
• inter-
• un-

Suffixes

• -ism
• -er
• -or
• -ly
• -able
• -fy
• -ty

Past Simple

• Positive: -ed or irregular verbs
• Negative: didn't + infinitive
• Questions: did + person + infinitive
• Specific situations in the past: last year; at 8:00; in 1990

Present Perfect

• Positive: has/have + -ed/irregular verbs
• Negative: haven't/hasn't + -ed/irregular verbs
• Questions: have/has + person + -ed/irregular verbs
• Have: I, you, we, they
• Has: he, she, it

Future Forms

Present Simple (for facts or generalizations)

• Positive: verb + -es/-s (3rd person)
• Negative: don't + verb + -es/-s (3rd person)
• Questions: do + person + verb + -es/-s (3rd person)

Present Continuous (for ongoing actions)

• Positive: am/is/are + verb + -ing
• Negative: am/is/are

Verbs: A

• Arise - arose - arisen - surgir

Verbs: B

• Be - was/were - been - ser/estar
• Be able - could - been able - poder
• Bear - bore - borne - soportar
• Be born - nacer
• Beat - beat - beaten - golpear
• Become - became - become - llegar a ser
• Begin - began - begun - empezar
• Bend - bent - bent - doblar
• Bet - bet - bet - apostar
• Bind - bound - bound - atar
• Bite - bit - bitten - morder
• Bleed - bled - bled - sangrar
• Blow - blew - blown - soplar
• Break - broke - broken - romper
• Bring - brought - brought - traer
• Broadcast - broadcast - broadcast - emitir
• Build - built - built - construir
• Burn - burnt - burnt - quemar
• Burst - burst - burst - estallar
• Buy - bought - bought - comprar

Verbs: C

• Catch - caught - caught - coger
• Choose - chose - chosen - elegir
• Come - came - come - venir
• Cost

Idioms with "Come"

Comes easily – not be difficult

Comes across – seems

Came off – happen successfully

Came across – find by chance

Coming down with – start feeling ill

Come along – arrive

Come under – experiencing something bad

Come up – a problem arises

Came up – an opportunity becomes available

Come to mind - occurred to me

Came first – win/be the most important

Comes across – seems

When it comes – on the subject of

How come? - why?

Idioms with "Take"

Take care of – look after

Taken to – started to like

Take them on board – accept them

Take time out – stop and rest

Taken on – agreed to

Take it from me – believe me

Take your time - don’t rush

Take note of – pay attention

Take things personally – be offended

Take your mind