Making Headway

Dear Students and Fellow Teachers,

I am writing this post from my new place of residence - London. I have started doing a bit of supply teaching in local schools but looking for work is always a struggle. The other day I was given the link to a video that would be great for my CV if only I could embed it :)

This is a Headway advertisement made by the OUP team and featuring the lucky teachers who participated in the 2012 Oxford Teachers' Academy and in it you will find 'yours truly'.

Have you used this coursebook? I used it many years ago when I was a secondary school student and  have been using it ever since I started my teaching career. I find it has all the necessary ingredients but more importanly it is still fresh as it is regularly revised and revamped. What do you think?

Valentine's Day Idioms

Dear Students

Because February is the month of love - here is a Valentine's day activity for Advanced Learners:

Match the idiom with the correct definition and then use them in the table bellow.

1. blind date	A. To not show any interest in the other person even though you may be interested
2. double date	B. To have a romantic relationship with another person when you are married
3. to go dutch	C. To innocently like someone
4. to break up	D. To accept someone's proposal of marriage
5. to go steady	E. To use a cliché without really meaning it, with the hopes of gaining someone's interest
6. to get engaged	F. A date arranged by a third party for two people who have not met
7. to be stood up	G. A date where two couples go out together
8. to have a crush on someone	H. To date only one person.
9. to get to know someone	I. A date where each person pays his or her own way
10. to feed someone a line	J. To tease another person with your body or by what you say
11. to play hard to get	K. To have your date fail to appear at the appointed time or even to call to cancel the date
12. to have an affair	L. To slowly get familiar with a person before getting into a serious relationship
13. to flirt	M. To end a relationship

Use the idioms from the table above in these sentences (in the appropriate tense and form)

1. “She hasn’t called me back all day, I thought she liked me”.

              “Don’t worry, I think she’s just ___________________________.

2. I’ve always liked Joey...as I matter of fact I’ve had a  _________________ him since primary school.
3. I don’t believe men should always pay for everything, it makes more sense to me to ___________.

4. He must have had an accident…I don’t believe he would____________ by not showing up at all.

5. First we got __________ each other, then we decided to go_______, and after a year we got_________.

My Visit to Oxford

What I Brought Back from Oxford

As the new academic year approaches, I can’t help thinking that every time I look at a course book, or my eager-to-learn students’ faces, a memory will pop up briefly in my head. This memory is bound to last for years but it only encompasses three short, sunny and spectacular days in Oxford. Ever since May this year, when I learned that I would be given the opportunity to attend an Oxford Teachers’ Academy seminar for winning a OUP competition, I had been dreaming about spending time in the centre of English Language Teaching, surrounded by fellow teachers from around the world.

How to boost your vocabulary:

Always have your pocket dictionary ready.

1st Prize from Oxford University Press

English File Competition

Your Blog author won 1st place in the competition for the most original speaking based lesson plan : English File Competition


The prize is a seminar at the Oxford Teachers' Academyentitled Teaching Adults, and a stay at   Keble College in Oxfordu from 25th to 27th July 2012.

My Skype Italian Lesson

Skype lessons - what's that all about?

Earlier this year, I decided to start taking Italian lessons. I have done an Italian course in the past, but it was a long time ago and I have forgotten a lot of the vocabulary and all the grammar rules. I asked around and found someone I judged to be the best Italian teacher in my city, Olja Andric. She has her own blog, and to me that says a lot . It turned out also that this teacher does something called Skype lessons! Shortly after, I learned my younger sister (also an English teacher) had been taking lessons from the same teacher and she was doing it on Skype. “What are these Skype lessons” I wondered, “and are others really doing that?” My sister told me it was not really much different than an ordinary lesson “in real life”, but I admit I was baffled. And interested! So, I contacted the Italian teacher and we agreed to have our first Skype Italian lesson 

It was 10 pm, quite late but it was actually the only time I was free. I was pretty tired and very happy about

Writing Business Letters

Business English Exercise: Formal/ Informal letter writing

LEVEL: Upper Intermediate (B2)

Match the informal phrases with their formal equivalents

see the comment for correct answers:

1  If you need me to explain more...	A I enclose my CV and one photograph.
2  Sorry, we made a mistake.	B I would appreciate it if you could provide me with all the relevant documentation?
3   We’ll tell you when we get your forms.	C You will be sent a confirmation upon receipt of the completed forms.
4 I put my cv and my photo in the envelope.	D Should you need any further clarification...
5. Please give me the papers!	E There has been an oversight on our part, and we  would like to apologize