WHAT KIND OF MOVIE

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GRAMMAR

Present Continuous

FORM

[am/is/are + present participle]

Examples:

• You are watching TV.
• Are you watching TV?
• You are not watching TV.  

USE 1 Now

Use the Present Continuous with Normal Verbs to express the idea that something is happening now, at this very moment. It can also be used to show that something is not happening now.

Examples:

• You are learning English now.
• You are not swimming now.
• Are you sleeping?
• I am sitting.
• I am not standing.
• Is he sitting or standing?
• They are reading their books.
• They are not watching television.
• What are you doing?
• Why aren’t you doing your homework?

USE 2 Longer Actions in Progress Now

In English, “now” can mean: this second, today, this month, this year, this century, and so on. Sometimes, we use the Present Continuous to say that we are in the process of doing a longer action which is in progress; however, we might not be doing it at this exact second.

Examples: (All of these sentences can be said while eating dinner in a restaurant.)

• I am studying to become a doctor.
• I am not studying to become a dentist.
• I am reading the book Tom Sawyer.
• I am not reading any books right now.
• Are you working on any special projects at work?
• Aren’t you teaching at the university now?

USE 3 Near Future

Sometimes, speakers use the Present Continuous to indicate that something will or will not happen in the near future.

Examples:

• I am meeting some friends after work.
• I am not going to the party tonight.
• Is he visiting his parents next weekend?
• Isn’t he coming with us tonight?

USE 4 Repetition and Irritation with “Always”

The Present Continuous with words such as “always” or “constantly” expresses the idea that something irritating or shocking often happens. Notice that the meaning is like Simple Present, but with negative emotion. Remember to put the words “always” or “constantly” between “be” and “verb+ing.”

Examples:

• She is always coming to class late.
• He is constantly talking. I wish he would shut up.
• I don’t like them because they are always complaining.

REMEMBER Non-Continuous Verbs/ Mixed Verbs

It is important to remember that Non-Continuous Verbs cannot be used in any continuous tenses. Also, certain non-continuous meanings for Mixed Verbs cannot be used in continuous tenses. Instead of using Present Continuous with these verbs, you must use Simple Present.

Examples:

• She is loving this chocolate ice cream. Not Correct
• She loves this chocolate ice cream. Correct

ADVERB PLACEMENT

The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.

Examples:

• You are still watching TV.
• Are you still watching TV?

ACTIVE / PASSIVE

Examples:

• Right now, Tom is writing the letter. Active
• Right now, the letter is being written by Tom. Passive

LISTENING

Listening: A good way to learn English

Weena Kanadpon

Everyone knows that there are four skills in learning a language, namely listening, speaking, reading and writing. They are always related in terms of usage, and speaking is viewed by learners as the most desirable skill in face-to-face communication in the globalization era. However, what is the answer to the following questions?

• What do you have to do before you can speak?
• What does a child learn before he talks?
• What do we do before chatting?

Listen, of course!

Naturally, children begin listening to their parents when they are babies. They are often greeted, spoken to and admired without any response expected. Though nobody knows if the baby understands the spoken words, the process continues. Children automatically acquire such language over some time, and later on gradually produce it through actual experience. The production may be incomplete at first, but successful at last. That leads to speaking skill which is quite applicable to daily conversation.

In learning English, listening can help improve speaking considerably. Although it is the first of all skills, it is neither the easiest nor the most meaningless. We need to hear various types of English repeatedly and continuously if we want to communicate properly, meaningfully and naturally.

Why is listening good?

1. When listening, we are reviewing a lot of English usage such as vocabulary, grammatical structures, intonation, accent and our own interpretation.
2. We can learn new words and expressions by hearing them frequently.
3. Besides the English revision, general knowledge from news, features, or even advertising spots is certainly beneficial for regular listeners.
4. We can imitate what we hear and apply it with great confidence.
5. Listening can be a good “hobby” while we do other things such as cooking, ironing, exercising, relaxing etc. In other words, we have no wasted time at all.
6. Listening is also a great way to train our attention.

How can we listen to English?

Nowadays, radio cassette recorders are household appliances, but we often overlook their radio function. We can experience English language radio programmes almost anywhere in the world. They are usually picked up on FM bands and aired particularly for foreigners. Short wave radio programmes are another option. Two of the most easily found English language broadcasters are the BBC and Voice of America. Today, you can even access them by internet. You’ll find some useful links for listening to the radio by internet, including “News in Easy English”.

www.bbc.com                                                           

JUST KIDDING

 

TEN TIPS

10 Tips to Jump Start your Language Learning 

By annalaura brown 

So you recently started learning a foreign language or you would like to learn one but you are stuck in a rut or you are frustrated because you don’t seem to be going anywhere fast. Here are 10 tips to help you along the way and to make it easier for you to get a quick start.

1. Get some Disney or other movies, which you have already seen and watch them in the language, or with subtitles. If you are learning French or Spanish this will be easy since most DVD’s have subtitles and voice overs in these languages. However, if you have chosen a different language you will need to do some searching and possibly purchase an international DVD player which allows you to play DVD’s in Pal format. Another alternative is to seek out movie theaters in your city, which play foreign films, or to rent foreign DVD’s. Most larger cities have at least one theater, which plays foreign films on a regular basis.

2. Go to the library. Look for easy reader books in the language and begin reading. Some larger libraries also have foreign language easy reading books or Disney books in foreign languages. Begin reading and you will be surprised at how much of it you will understand.

3. Get some children’s music in the foreign language. It will be easy to sing along and it will help you to internalize the language. Just like reading you will understand more than you realize.

4. Do an Internet search. The Internet has an abundance of foreign language learning sites. Focus specifically on those, which offer basic explanations of grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary.

5. Try to find a pen pal with whom you can communicate in the language via email. To get in touch with someone, try posting to the forums for the about.com site for the language you are learning.

6. Try reading the news or magazines online. Although they are obviously more advanced. You can go through and write down all of the words you understand and using the pictures, you will surprise yourself at how much you will understand.

7. Take advantage of AltaVista’s Babel fish translation feature. Although the translations are not perfect, it is a fun tool. Use it to translate one of your favorite sites and then read the translation to find patterns in the language.

8. If you are lucky enough to know someone who already speaks the language, practice with him or her. Don’t be embarrassed by your lack of knowledge. Chances are the person will be happy to help you.

9. Take advantage of online language learning forums. Use them to post your questions. Write down sentences then post them and ask for help in correcting them.

10. Practice speaking with your dog. This may seem weird, but it is perfect because dogs can’t tell the difference and it gives you a chance to voice your language out loud without embarrassment.

THIS WEEK

WORKING ON THE WEB SPACE

CREATING AN ARTICLE AND POST IT

JOKES

Who designed Noah’s ark?
An ark-itect !

What was the greatest accomplishment of the early Romans ?
Speaking Latin !

Why did Eve want to move to New York ?
She fell for the Big Apple !

LEMON TREE

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