Wednesday, August 25, 2010

I Want to be Elected



The 2010 Federal Election is over! But still we do not have a Government. What happened? Watch the video above. Click here to read the transcript and find more stories and videos about the election result.

What is a hung parliament?
Who has the most seats in the House of Representatives?
Who has most of the seats in the new Senate?
What are independents?
What is a minority government?
Should we have another election?

Discuss these questions with your teacher.

GRAMMAR GAME - Giving Advice

Should / Shouldn't / Ought to / had better / Why don't you ... / What you can do is ...

Click here for a board game. You will need a dice. (Get your teacher to blow up a copy on the photocopier)

Level 2 and 3 : 'D BETTER vs. 'D RATHER

What is the difference?

I'd better go now / I'd rather go now

Complete this online exercise

LEVEL 3 : Either or / Neither nor ...

Neither the Coalition nor the Labor Party are able to form a government.

Try this online exercise




Watch the Mr. Bean video, I Want to be Elected ... maybe Mr.Bean should become our next Prime Minister?

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Sunday, August 22, 2010

Making Stuff



Origami - paper folding - is a very old Japanese art. Can you follow Tavin's instructions? Can you make this jumping frog? All you need is a piece of square paper ... and a little patience!

Here is a simple diagram and set of instructions to help you. (Many other great origami models to make here too!)

With a friend or family member choose another piece of Origami to make from Tavin's site on YouTube (click here). Stop and start the video as many times as you like. Have fun!



Watch the Mr. Bean video. How did he make his sandwich? What ingredients did he use?

Print this worksheet about the Mr. Bean video from ESL Galaxy.com. Watch the video again and complete the worksheet

Listening ... My Favourite Sandwich



1. What are the two types of sandwich the speaker likes most?
2. What does a Foccacia have in the middle?
3. How do you heat up a Foccacia?
4. What is good to drink with a Foccacia?
5. What type of bread do use to make a Lebanese roll?
6. What is the speaker's opinion of the Lebanese roll?



My Friend's Favourite Sandwich

What is your favourite sandwich? What ingredients do you need? How do you make it? Share your sandwich recipe with a friend. Tell the rest of the class or another person about your friend's favourite sandwich.

Speaking : Level 2 and 3

Use your mobile or home phone to tell the world about your friend's favourite sandwich recipe(use the 1800 number and codes I gave you in class to make a phonecast on ipadio.com)



Speaking : Level 1 - What would you like?

Practice ordering a sandwich. Use your mobile or home phone. Order your sandwich at ipadio.com!

eg. Give me a chicken sandwich with Mayonnaise, please. / I'd like a salad roll, thanks.


Ordering in a restaurant

In class we put the conversation between a waiter and customer in correct order:



Waiter: Are you ready to order?
Customer: Yes, I'd like soup to start, please.
Waiter: And what would you like for your main course?
Customer: Can I have the fish, please?
Waiter: The fish. Very good. And what would you like to drink?
Customer: Can I have a glass of white wine, please?
Waiter: Certainly. A glass of white wine.
Customer: And I'd like a bottle of mineral water, too.
Waiter: Yes, of course. Thank you.




Listen to some Level 3 examples of Ordering in a Restaurant at our Voxopop Talk Site (Click here)


Level 3 : Ordering a Coffee at Starbucks



This American teacher gives advice about ordering a coffee at Starbucks. Do you think her advice is helpful? Are cafes like this in Australia? What type of coffee does she order? Do you think she is "culturally biased" (or is she just trying to help?)

To look at the script of this video click here. (Also explanations of vocab and American slang)







Level 2 and 3 : Writing ...Taking care of a neighbour's house

In class we listened to someone asking a neighbour to feed the cat while he was away for the weekend. Imagine you are going on holiday for two weeks. Here are some things that need to be taken care of:

*garden
*pets
*mail and newspapers
*rubbish bin
*security


Sunday, August 8, 2010

Up, Up and Away ...

Online Forms, Schedules, Timetables and Itineraries

Make your own air ticket online! Click here to go to Ticket-O-Matic, a very simple online form where you can create a pretend boarding pass ... up, up and away!





Last week we used the Air Asia website to look for cheap flights between Melbourne and other cities in our region. All flights from Melbourne go to Kuala Lumpur (KL). From KL you can look for flights to other parts of Asia.











Let's find some flights ...go to Airasia's flight search by clicking here



Level 1 - Can you find a return flight between Melbourne and Kuala Lumpur in August for two adult passengers? What time do the flights depart? When do they arrive? What are the dates? What are the flight numbers? How much will it cost?

Level 2 - Search for a return flight from Melbourne to Kuala Lumpur for two people. Also search for a flight from Kuala Lumpur to another destination. Make sure the flight connections are okay. What time do the flights depart? When do they arrive? What are the dates? What are the flight numbers? How much will it cost all together?

Level 3 - A. Search for a return flight from Melbourne to Kuala Lumpur for two people. Also search for a flight from Kuala Lumpur to another destination. Make sure the flight connections are okay. What time do the flights depart? When do they arrive? What are the dates? What are the flight numbers? How much will it cost all together?

B. Continue to the next part of the booking process. Fill out the online form for Booking Contact, Guest 1 and Guest 2. Print out the information. NOTE : DO NOT GO ANY FURTHER.


Listening and Speaking - Inquiry about an airline ticket

Many people prefer to book tickets through a travel agent. This week in class we heard a man making inquiries about a return trip to Darwin.

Exercise: Use the tapescript to write a new dialogue. This time you want to inquire about a return flight to Kuala Lumpur.

Here is some good examples from the Level 3 class:






Exercise: With a class mate, friend or family member phone in your dialogue to the Duke Street Student site on ipadio.com (Click to view)

(You already have the phone instructions and FREE 1800 number and codes ... ps. remember to switch on 'speaker phone' to use your mobile or home phone like a microphone)

General - Australian Government Elective


Download information about the 2010 Federal Election in your language. Click here.



Search these pages to find out where you can vote. Remember: if you live in the Sunshine area you are in the Gellibrand electorate.

Use the polling place locator. Click here to do your search.



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