Describe an Imaginary Place or Strange Land Summer is a season of travel, a time of sandy beaches, hypnotic sunshine, stamped tickets, and the excited laughter of children visiting out-of-the-ordinary places. Summer vacations—and the summer months—fill our minds with those moments of wonder and imagination so natural to childhood and keep us connected to our own children. But sometimes the household budget doesn’t stretch quite far enough for exotic adventures. What to do? Go anyway! Here’s how! Start with a Map Gather your family around the kitchen table with paper, pencils, pens, and an atlas. Set Your Imagination Loose It’s time to describe an imaginary place! What color is the sky? Are there trees or flowering plants? Place yourself there. What kind of person—or wonderful being—could you allow yourself to be there? Create Your World As ideas shape themselves around your kitchen table, have your children create colorful maps and illustrated “travel guides” of their visionary worlds. Enjoy your magical travels this summer!
Let's talk about the UK (still with Scotland) At the beginning of the new school year teachers usually explain to their students what they are going to study. Sometimes efl teachers not only teach grammar but also British culture, so one of the first cultural topics they discuss with their students are the geography of the UK and its form of government. Here you can find an interactive mindmap, a digital poster and a collection of useful websites, just to simplify the work. Click on the Glogster digital poster below, you will find general information about the United Kingdom and some videos. Now take a look at my Cacoo mindmap below about the UK form of government. You can also click on the following link to enlarge the above image: Last September, 18th Scottish people voted for Scotland independence. Scottish referendum explained for non-Brits If you want more general information about the Uk government, the Queen and the Royal Family, open my Blendspace lesson.
Love English: 10 things to see in London (magazine article) 'I love English': magazines designed for language learners that can be used in classroom as extra activities to add colour and motivated students. - talk about London - read about the 'top 10 things to see in London' - complete the activities Discussion: 1. 2. If the answer is yes proceed with the following questions: 3. 4. Reading: Scanning (tell students they have 2 minutes to quickly scan the pages and list the 10 things to see in London) Question: List the top 10 things to see in London? You can download the magazine's pages here:London 1London 2 London 3London 4 Reading for information ( Skimming :ask students to read again and complete the following activities. Vocabulary activities: 1. 2. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 3. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. or download the worksheet here:Closing the lesson:1.
Scotland Travel Cheat Sheet Story Starters: Creative Writing Prompts for Kids If you’re looking to inspire your students’ writing and creativity, turn to these fun and exciting writing prompts. Perfect for overcoming writer’s block or even starting a brand-new short story in a different narrative, creative writing prompts can help students begin a new piece with confidence. Plus, these story starters can also encourage students to explore different genres while honing their writing skills. There are a lot of ways you can use writing prompts in your classroom. Try: Reading a book in a genre, then having students use a story starter in that same genre. Take inspiration from classics like Treasure Island and newer popular series like The Bad Guys to explore how to write thrilling adventure stories. You’re part of a pirate crew in search of a long-lost storied treasure trove. Get students excited about adventure stories with these great books:
Geography of the UK The official title of the UK is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland . Great Britain (the formerly separate realms of England and Scotland, and the principality of Wales. ) Northern Ireland (also known as Ulster) Numerous smaller islands including the Isle of Wight, Anglesey, and the Scilly, Orkney, Shetland, and Hebridean archipelagos. The UK is an island nation in Western Europe just off the coast of France. The mainland areas lie between latitudes 49°N and 59°N and longitudes 8°W to 2°E. The UK lies between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, and comes within 35 km (22 miles) of the northwest coast of France, from which it is separated by the English Channel. The UK has a total area of approximately 245,000 km², almost a quarter-of-a-million square kilometres. The UK is made up of several islands. The UK is bordered by four seas: Scotland and Wales are the most mountainous parts of the UK. Lakes Find out more about the landscape of England
Listening: A Tour of London Tower Bridge, London (Copyright: Getty) When you visit a city for the first time, a good way to explore it is to go on an organised sightseeing tour. The tour will give you an overview of what there is to see and also provide you with some historical background. A popular way of seeing London is to go in one of the red double deck buses. This tour will take you around London by bus. Listen to the guide, and then do the activity below. Activity Check how well you know London. a Madame Tussaud’s is a famous wax museum. b Bond Street is where the detective, Sherlock Holmes, once lived. c Marble Arch is a gate which was built in 1827. d Hyde Park used to be the royal hunting grounds. e Buckingham Palace is the London home of the Queen. f Piccadilly Circus is the largest circus in the world. g Fleet Street once housed the national newspapers. h St Paul’s Cathedral is a small but beautiful church. i The Tower of London is more than 900 years old. j The Globe is the world’s oldest restaurant.
Teenagers and UK culture Why bring UK culture to the teen classroom? We can introduce UK culture into the English classroom to help our students improve their English and at the same time learn about values and ways of doing things which may be different to theirs. Learning about life and culture in the UK can be very motivating as it brings the language alive for learners and creates a link between language and real life. See if you agree with these comments from teachers on teaching UK culture to their teenage learners: ‘We need to avoid reinforcing erroneous British stereotypes to our teenagers. ‘Culture is the fifth skill in addition to reading, writing, listening and speaking. ‘I try to make British culture "real" to my students. What materials can I use to introduce UK culture? Life in the UK In this section teenagers can read about topics with a British connection. Before you read or watch you could focus on vocabulary to help prepare students for the text or video. By Sally Trowbridge
Metric Conversion charts and calculators Stonehenge - Tour around Britain Stonehenge is a mystical place. Its stone circles are probably more than 4,000 years old. The huge stones come from an area about 30 km north of Stonehenge. The smaller stones possibly are from the Preseli Mountains in Wales, almost 400 km away from Stonehenge. Nobody knows for sure what the function of Stonehenge was. Maybe it was a druid temple. The City of London This is the River Thames. It is almost 346 kilometres long, and is the second longest river in Great Britain. It flows through London, and it’s this part of the river that most tourists see. But there’s more to the Thames than a trip down the river. The Romans built a settlement on the River Thames, and over the centuries it grew into the City of London, with a huge port. But by the 1980s, most of the docks had closed and the area became run-down. A lot of money has been invested in this huge riverside area. The old warehouses are now attractive apartments. People also enjoy living on the water! Nick: Hi, Alistair. Alistair: Hey, Nick, welcome aboard. Nick: Thank you. Alistair: I love being close to the water. Nick: What’s it like to live on a boat? Alistair: In the summer, it’s beautiful. Nick: Could you give me a tour? Alistair: Please. Nick: I like it. Alistair: For me, it’s being so close to nature. Nick: Is there anything you miss about living on dry land? Didier: Nobody really knows.
Wales Travel Cheat Sheet