Writing. An informal email.

Hi Jim

How 's it going? Sorry I haven’t written sooner. I’ve been quite busy because I’ve got exams

and stuff at school. Sorry! Things have been pretty quiet since you moved to California.

School’s a bit boring without you! Anyway, I’m writing as promised, to keep you up to date

with all the latest news.

Swimming is going really well. I’m still on the school team and I’m training really hard at the

moment because of the national competition next month. We’ve got a new coach, Mr Wilks.

He’s great, but he’s really into healthy diets, so no pizza or burgers for me. Check out the

photo attached!

Do you remember Mark Smith? He goes to Brighton College, but his sister’s in my class.

Anyway, I’m going out with him now. He plays in a band, so I’ve been to a few of their gigs.

They play in the Blue Bar every Friday night and they’re really good. I’ll send you the link to

their website.

What’s your news? What are you up to? Can’t wait to hear! Have you met any cool American

girls? How’s your family getting on in California? Do your brother and sister like living there

too?

Write soon

Love Ellen

1. Read and Translate the email. Why is Ellen writing to Jim? (30 words)

2. Find words and expressions in the email that mean…

a. How are you?

b. apologies for not writing

c. other things

d. look at

e. What are you doing at the moment?

f. I really want to know.

3. Match the connectors in the box to the categories.

because     and     because of     but     so

● to join ideas

● to give reasons

● to contrast ideas

● to talk about results

4. Use words from Ex 3 to complete the sentences:

● The party was fun _____________ I met a cool girl there.

● I like the photos, _____________ you aren’t in any of them.

● I’ve got to go now _____________ my girlfriend’s just arrived!

● I didn’t know many people _____________ I invited everyone in my class to my party.

● I’m studying hard at the moment _____________ my exam next week.

5. Write an email (100-120 words)

Ten en cuenta:

● Primer Párrafo: Explica el motivo del mensaje: empieza disculpándote por no haber

escrito antes, y después describe el lugar y la gente con quien estás.

● Segundo Párrafo: Empieza a contar tus noticias con alguna pregunta retórica.

Háblale a tu amigo de los sitios donde has ido y la gente que has conocido.

● Tercer Párrafo: Pregúntale sobre sus novedades y pídele que te las cuente.

Interésate por cómo le va e insiste en que te conteste a tu correo electrónico.

● Despedida: De manera informal.

SOLUCIONES

Vocabulary. Stories.

 

WORDS Adventure: Anger: Angry: Aristocrat: Assemble: Author: Bestseller: Blockbuster: Central: Character: Cinematic: Come out: Comic: Comical: Common: Concentrate: Conventional: Courage: Courageous: Coward: Cowardly: Creation: Crime: Detective: Digital: Eventually: Extensively: Faithful: Fan: Fantasy: Fictional: Frontman: Genre: Respectable: Romance: Scarecrow: Sceptical: Science: Screen: Screenwriter: Script: Scriptwriter: Sentiment: Sentimental: Servant: Soldier: Solve: Thriller: Thunderstorm: Trilogy: Version: Writer:

Graduate: Graphic novel: Hero: Heroine: Humanity: Initially: Innovative: Inspiration: Insult: Invent: Legend:  Look up: Mystery: Novel: Novellist: Obsessively: Opportunity: Page-turner: Play: Playwright: Plot: Poem: Popular: Produce: Publish: Put something down: Queen: Recommend: Relationship: Reluctant: Resource: Resourceful: Respect: Respectful: Sonnet: Speech: Spite: Spiteful: Stage: Stepmother: Story: Successful: Summary: Suspense: Take back: Theme: Theory: Villain: Visualization: Wealthy: Wizard: Write down:

Exercises

1. Match the genres in the box to the definitions:

romance     play     thriller     adventure     fantasy     science fiction     detective     legend

• Performed on a stage:

• Set in space:

• Exciting and often involves danger:

• Involves wizards and dragons:

• Solving a crime:

• An exciting suspense story:

• Fictional and about people from the past:

• A love story:

2. Complete the text with the correct form of the words in the box:

thrillers   put down   sentimental   romance    come out    fantasy    legends     courageous

There are lots of different genres of books, but which are the real bestsellers? Obviously the success of JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series has made ______________ books very popular with teenagers. Recent film versions of myths and ______________ telling stories of ______________ heroes have also put these two book genres on the map. Another best-selling author is John Grisham. His legal ______________ like The Client , have made him a very rich man. But the most popular genre is perhaps surprisingly ______________ - stories about love. Thousands of romantic novels ______________ every year. Harlequin, the world’s largest publisher of romances publishes over 1000 novels annually. Critics may say the stories are extremely ______________ but fans love them and they can’t ______________ them ______________. It’s lucky there are so many to choose from.

3. Complete the definitions with the words in the box.

detective     heroine     servant     soldier     villain     wizard

• a female hero:

• someone who can do magic:

• a member of an army:

• the opposite of a hero:

• someone who solves crimes:

• someone who works for someone else:

4. Read the texts about literary characters. Label them with three of genres in the box.

detective story     fantasy     romance     science fiction     thriller

_____________________

Elizabeth Bennet is the heroine who meets the proud and rather cold Mr Darcy and at first finds it unbearable to be with him. She is an independent girl who likes to say what she thinks, even in her polite 19th-century world. And, of course, Mr Darcy falls in love with her!

_____________________

Lucy Pevensie is the heroine who discovers a magical new world at the back of a wardrobe. Together with her brothers and sister, she has many exciting adventures, and eventually liberates Narnia from the tyranny of the White Witch.

_____________________

Sherlock Holmes is the ingenious investigator who lives at 221b Baker Street, London. With his assistant, Dr Watson, always at his side, Holmes helps the local police to solve hundreds of crimes, thanks to his world-famous powers of deductions.

5. Complete the sentences with the literary genres in the box.

adventures     legend     play     science fiction     thriller

• The story of Robin Hood is an old English _______________ that still fascinates people today.

• If an author writes a good _______________, it is often made into a film, like the Bourne Identity.

• I love classic _______________ stories like Robinson Crusoe, where people survive in impossible situations.

• I’ve never read a _______________, but I like seeing them performed in the theatre.

• Tony said he saw an alien yesterday. I think he’s read too many _______________ books!

6. Complete the essay with the words in the box.

angry     came out     courageous     fantasy     heroine     put down     sentimental     spiteful     villain

Today, I’d like to tell you about my literary  _______________  Katniss Everdeen. She is a character in the exciting The Hunger Games novels. The first of these _______________ in 2008, but I read it last year. From the very first page, I couldn’t _______________  it _______________ .

Katniss is a very _______________  character - she’s never cowardly. She has to make difficult choices. The books deal with emotional issues, but Katniss is not too _______________ . There’s a _______________  in the books, President Snow, who is _______________  and kills people who rebel against him.

I won’t say more than that because you’ll be _______________  with me if you know the story before you read the books!

I highly recommend The Hunger Games books. If you like adventure or _______________  novels, you’ll love them!

SOLUCIONES

Practica Vocabulario: Work and Play

 

Words:

• Agent:
  

• Always:

• Annoyed:

• Attached:

• Audition:

• Backing dancer:

• Bake a cake:

• Ballet:

• Be up to:

• Buzz:

• Cast:

• Charity:

• Check out:

• Cheerful:

• Choreographer:

• Cool:

• Dancer:

• Diet:

• Dull:

• Earnings:

• Enjoyable:

• Entertainer:

• Exciting:

• Expert:

• Factor:

• Free time:

• Frustrating:

• Fun:

• Go skating:

• Go to the theatre:

• Hang out:

• Have a hobby:

• Healthy:

• Hobby:

• Impatient:

• Impoverished:

• In- line skating:

• Interesting:

• Listen to music:

• Meet:

• Musical:

• Never:

• Often:

• Pastime:
  

• Play a musical instrument:

• Polluted:

• Practice:

• Professional:

• Rarely:

• Read a magazine:

• Rehearsal:

• Relax at home:

• Relaxing:

• Sanitation:

• Set up:

• Sewage:

• Shoot:

• Sometimes:

• Spend money:

• Spend time:

• Stressful:

• Surf the net:

• Take a dance class:

• Take photos:

• Take place:

• Talented:

• Tense:

• Tough:

• Train:

• Uninteresting:

• Usually:

• Visit a museum:

• Wannabee:

• Waste money:

• Waste time:

• Watch sport on TV:

EXERCISES

1. Match the words to make free:

bake     go     meet     play     surf     take     read     visit     watch

friends magazines the net a cake a museum

sport on TV a dance class skating a musical instrument

2. Match the verbs and phrases to form collocations. You can use the verbs more than once.

go to have listen to relax spend take waste

a great time a hobby at home music photos the theatre / a club time / money time with family or friends

      3.  Complete the sentences with collocations from Ex 2.

• I sometimes ____________________ on my MP· player when I’m doing my homework.

• We ____________________ at the capoeira club. I really enjoy it.

• Would you like to ____________________ next week? The musical Chicago is on.

• Pete never goes out on Fridays. He prefers ____________________.

• I enjoy ____________________ at my granny's house. She’s teaching me to knit.

• She doesn’t like ____________________ watching TV for hours.

        4. Complete the definitions with the adjectives in the box.

dull     enjoyable     exciting     frustrating     interesting     relaxing

• Something that makes you feel annoyed and impatient is ____________________.

• Something that makes you feel less tense is ____________________.

• Something pleasurable and fun, like meeting friends, is ____________________.

• When something is ____________________ you want to know  more about it. 

• The opposite of question 4 is ____________________.

• Going on a rollercoaster is ____________________.

       5. Use the adjectives in Ex 4 to describe free-time activities:

• ________________________________________________________________

• ________________________________________________________________

• ________________________________________________________________

• ________________________________________________________________

• ________________________________________________________________

        6. Cross out the incorrect alternative:

• go skating / sports / to the theatre

• take photos / a dance class / a museum

• have the net / a great time / a party

• watch a film / a laugh / sport

• play the piano / the theatre / the guitar

• read the newspaper / the net / a magazine

• surf the web / the net / TV

• listen to the radio / music / at home

          7. Translate in to english:

• No siempre es fácil cocinar un pastel.

• 
  

• No me gusta que mi hermana pierda el tiempo en frente de la tele.

• 
  

• Siempre pasamos un buen rato cuando estamos juntos.

• 
  

• Yo quiero estar en casa y oír música.

• 
  

        8. Complete the table with the words in the box:

dull   enjoyable   exciting   frustrating   interesting   relaxing

Positive	Negative

         9. Answer the questions. Write full sentences:

What’s the most enjoyable book you’ve ever read?

-

What’s the most exciting sport you have ever tried?

-

What’s the best place you’ve ever been to?

-

What’s the most interesting city7 you’ve ever visited?

-

What’s the most frustrating experience you’ve ever had?

SOLUCIONES