A refernce

A reference for a friend

1.What should you not include?
- how long you have known your friend-------------------YES
- what you and your friend have done together-----------NO
- your friend's character-------------------------------yes
- reasons why you like your friend----------------------NO
- your friend's skills and interests--------------------YES
- details of previous experience your friend has--------YES
- reasons why your friend is suitable for the job-------YES
- informal and colourful language-----------------------YES

2.Plan the reference by stating the number of paragraphs you will need, what information you will include in each paragraph and how you will end it. Jot down the different ideas for each paragraph and how you will develop them.
First paragraph saying how long I´ve know my friend, so the person who is going to read it see that I know him or her very well, and haw my friend is, so that I say good thing of his or her character.
Second paragraph in which I say what are the skills my friend has and the esperience he or she has related to the job he or she has applied for.
In a third paragraph, linking with what I´ve said in the other one, I would explain why I think my friend is suitable for the job, concluding with this.

3. What style will you use in the reference?
I would use a formal style because it´s a serious issue what I´m writing about, as it´s going to be read by the possible boss of my friend.

Letter writing

Regarding the extracts, and how formal or informal they are, I think that:

Extract A: 5
Extract B: 2
Extract C: 4
Extract D: 3
Extract E: 1

1. What is the purpose of the letter each extract is from?
2. What can you deduce about the writers and recipients of each letter?
In "Extract A" I think that the porpuse is to meet some people that the writer of the letter already knows.
In "Extract B" it seems an announcement from a bank to a customer about the transactions they have made on his or her bank account.
"Extract C" is an announcement of a meeting of all the people working in a place which seems a school. They try to be all people together in a party. As it is a lot of people, maybe they don´t know each other in all the cases, but at least they are colleagues.
"Extract D" seems to be a note written to somebody to thank him or her for his or her rehearsal the night before. But it seems like both people are not friends, but they only know each other
Finally, the last extract is an apologice, probably from a company to acustomer who has received a product broken.

3. What features of informal language does each extract include?
Extract A:It uses contractions, and the vocabulary express a near relationship. It also uses phrasal verbs
Extract B: I don´t think there is any sign of informal language in this one.
Extract C: Also contractions, and the last suggestion made to people.
Extract D: SOme phrasal verbs, but appart from that, nothing else.
Extract E: There isn´t any use of formal language here.

Rewrite thesew formal expressions from the extracts in more informal English.
1. We can now confirm that
Let´s say what definitivley
2. your forthcoming vacation

3. will be debited from your credit card
we will take from your credit card
4. the week following your departure
after you leave
5. Please accept my apologies for this
I´d like you to accept my apologies
6. We do make every effort
We always try


Work in pairs.
Read the following writing task, then discuss and list some indoor and outdoor activities in your town that you could suggest in your reply to the letter.
Indoor activities
- Go to the cinema so he can pratice the language
- Go to some goos restaurants in the city
- Visit the science and the sculpture museum
Outdoor activites
- Visit the Cathedral, tha "Antigua", San Pablo and other buildings
- Go shoping
- Go for a walk through "Campo Grande"
- Visit the city centre; Plaza Mayor, Santiago street, Gamazo street, Recoletos...

Discuss the beginning and end of your letter. Which of these ideas would you include at the beginning and which at the end?
At the beggining:
comment on the fact that your friend is planning to learn your language
give some general information about your town
ask about the language course your friend is attending
At the end:
say you're looking forward to seeing your penfriend
suggest meeting during the friend's stay

Writing a report

The first point of the task talks about some points that may, or may not be in a report. Here is my opinion:
1. ..DO..begin by stating the purpose of the report
2. ..DO..summarise given information succinctly
3. ..DON´T..use adjectives and adverbs for effect
4. ..DO..use bullet points where appropriate
5. ..DON´T..include all the words from the input texts
6. ..DO..divide the report into sections with headings if appropriate
7. ..DON´T..develop ideas in task input with your own details
8. ..DO..use an impersonal semi-formal/formal style
9. ..DON´T..give your own opinion throughout
10. ..DO..use appropriate linking words
11. ..DO..use all the information from the input

The next step is to decide which is the best structure for a report. I think it is Plan B:
1. Reason for writing
2. Survey results
3. Recommendations for the day
4. COnclusion
The reason why I think this is the best, it´s because with tha Plan A you are including your own opinion, because you have to say what things haven´t been included in the survey, which I think is something subjective. And, as I wrote on the first part of this task, the personal opinion shouldn´t appear in a report. Also, if you choose Plan A, you have to write the survey questions and answers, and this involves writing all the words from the input texts, and what has to be done is to express that with your own words. And regarding Plan C, if you choose this one, you´ll have to write information about environmental issues, so you´ll have to develope an idea with your details, as if you were writing an article. And this also shouldn´t be included in a report.
But with Plan B you start sayiong why you are writing, which is correct. Then you give a general idea, with your own words, of the survey results, and you give recommendations based on that. And finally you include a conclusion summarazing what you mean with all you´ve said.

This task is about a proposal, which I think is a text in which you try to persuade somebody to do something, giving reasons about why do you want that, and why should be done.
How should you end a proposal? Why?It should be finished with a conclusion where you summarised what you exposed before and saying that you think that all that suggested will improve whatever the situation is, or will have good effects.

Which of the following statements are usually true of a proposal? * It is written in informal language.--FALSE
* It includes suggestions and recommendations.--TRUE
* It includes direct speech.--FALSE
* It may use headings or bullet points if appropriate.--TRUE
* It uses a lot of linking words to promote clarity.--TRUE
* It proposes a new idea and tries to persuade the reader of its value.--TRUE
* It uses a range of colourful language.--FALSE


Regarding to the best organisation for a proposal, in my opinion the bes is the A:
Introduction
Main issues identified
Recommendations with reasons
Conclusion

And the last point:
Discuss with a partner or partners your ideas for
* possible reasons for the situation:
- A reason could be that it is given much more time to other subjets than what is given to English, French or other languages.
- There isn't too many books in the library in foreign languages; neither grammatical books nor novels.
- Every year teachers spend a lot of time repating what was learnt last year, so they just study a few new things.
- Students have never seen a film in the foreign language, so they've only listened to the listenings of the book
* recommendations for improving it:
- To have more practical clases, in which students discuss practical issues, so they can get a bit of fluency.
- Watch a film in that language per term, or at least have some in the library.
- Buy some books for students, making it possible to borrow them from the library.
- Teachers should be concienciate of the fact that what has been taught the yaer before should be already learnt, so they can start the new year with new material.

Review

In this task about writing a review, we have to answer to different questions, so I'm going to differenciete them.

First of all, two questions are posted:
1. What kinds of things are reviewed in newspapers and magazines?
I think that the kind of information reviewed is what's related to the activities we usually do in our free time. I mean that we find reviews about movies in the cinema, books, restaurants...
2. How much are you influenced by a review? Would a good review encourage you to go and see a film? Would a bad review stop you buying a book?
I must recognise that I'm usually influenced by this reviews. Specially regarding to films. For example, if I'm not too interested in going to see a new film in the cinema, but I read two or three good reviews about it, I'll surely go. And the other way is the same; if I want to go to see something but I read bad opinions...I'll probably renunce to it. Maybe it´s different with books, as I don't pay much attention to that reviews, but I also like to read some opinions before I definitevly buy a book that I think I'll like.


Now I'll talk abut the review made about Eduard Simpson.
I think that the part missing on it, is the introduction that should catch the reader's interest. I'd say that the first paragraph starts telling where Edward comes from, so it gives the background information. In the second paragraph it talks about what Edwaurd's paintings are about, so it gives a description of what's being reviewed. And in the same paragrph, I'd say that it´s giving some general comments about his paintings. FInally, for me it´s clear that the last paragraph give the writer's personal opinion.


I'll end my entry with the answers to the questions posted about reviwes:
1. How would you describe the style of the review - formal, informal or a mixture?
I'd decribe the style as a mixture. The reviewer never uses contractions, which is a characteristic of the formal style. But the expressions used sounds near to the reader; he or she means to approach to the reader by using simple sentences and making questions.
2. Why does the the reviewer include direct speech?
This could be a sign of the informal part of the style. I also think that it's a way of explaining where he or she takes the information he or she has written about.
3. How does the reviewer catch the reader's interest in the beginning?
I have said that this is the part missing in the review,as the first sentence of it starts saying tha Edward comes from a family with a lot of artists. And for me, this is making a review of the background of the artist.
4. In which part of the review does the reviewer include
a. a description of the painting?
In the second paragraph, when it's described the colours used and what the paintings are about.
b. his own opinion?
In the last paragraph, when he talks about his or her feelings when he or she first saw an Edward's painting.
c. general comments?

In the last part of the second paragraph, when it tallks about the effect the paintings have on some people.

Competition Entry

This competition sounds very interesting to me, so the writing must be very well planified, to make the judges see that you are really interested, because there may be a lot of candidates.

I would say that I´m a very good candidate for the prize, as I´ve always taken English very seriously, and because it´s something important for my future job. This could be the introduction of my competition entry.

Then I would write a first paragraph in which I would answer the two first questions of the announcement: I will say that I find English something enjoyable to study, and the reasons why, and then I would link this with the ways I learn it and put it in practise. The reason why I would answer these two questions in the same paragraph is because if I like studying English, then it´s normal to think that I don´t just study it as something compulsory at school, but I also use my free time to learn it.

Finally, I will explain how I expect to use English in my future job and personal life. This may give a general vision of why I want to be a good English speaker, with which I would definitively try to persuade to the judges of the competition.

Article

Regarding to the topic of the article we have to write about, it´s clear that internet has had an influence in language learning, as it´s something that makes possible to communicate with people from all over the world.

The plan of my article would consist in making an introduction about the issue of it, and then I'll talk about the need of learning another language if we want to understand most of the things that are on line. But I may focus my writing in learning english, because I think this is the most important language if we talk about internet.
Then I will explain my view in the way I think the future will be for us with a more globalised world in which internet has a big place.


The target reader of the article may be anyone, as it´s an international magazine.There won´t be children reading it, but adults of all ages.

I think it's done

I think I have already created my blog without any problem...