Common problems when learning English.

When learning any new skill ,there will always be a sticky point - an area you just can't master no matter how hard you try ,how many times its explained or illustrated for you - it just won't go in . Learning English is no different....

Articles - easy enough ,basic English skill BUT knowing the rules is one thing .Applying those rules consistently is a different 'kettle of fish'. Even the most advanced learner has errors in this area .

Prepositions - so many to choose from !! So easy to make mistakes....students need to learn which verbs are followed by which prepositions ...
depends  is always followed by on for example ...
here are some more to learn...
argue with /about
ask for
believe in
belong to
care for /about
insist on
know about
object to
retire from
suffer from
talk to /about
vote for
worry about
the list is almost endless.....

Adjectives - used to describe nouns but can be 'tricky' if using more than one in the same sentence.
They have an order to follow...general opinion / specific opinion /size /shape /age /colour /nationality /material
for example - Chinese food delicious becomes delicious Chinese food -
The second issue with adjectives is the 'endings' when it comes to describing how we feel about something -when to use the 'ing' and when to use the 'ed' endings? Its a fairly straight forward answer really which is good news for the student!
I am bored - how I feel
This film is boring - the reason I feel the way I do.
A task! Classify the following adjectives into descriptive /general opinion and specific opinion....

good ,French ,silly ,red ,clever ,horrible,green ,awful ,
old ,lovely ,friendly ,beautiful ,delicious ,bad ,intelligent


Plural nouns - another area where students often get 'mixed up' . As a teacher I often hear ,for example , childrens when I should be hearing child .Or persons rather than people.

Comparatives and superlatives -  some things just have to be learned - using the rules and knowing the irregular verbs is an important part of being able to use both comparative and superlative structures.
In everyday life ,a non native speaker making mistakes in the above areas will almost always be understood so its not a huge problem.However ,if a student is planning and preparing for an exam its a different matter.These areas are of importance in any exam situation.
As a teacher , I keep a focus on these parts of English regardless of the students intentions with their learning . Business ,General , Conversation or exam English - I want my students to be fluent confident users of the language .

7 reasons to learn English

English is a popular language to learn and around the world it is included in the normal classroom timetable of subjects taken.Why is it so popular and why is it an important second language to have?

1-English is the most popular language to learn -more than 20% of the worlds population either speak or understand some English.
2-English is the established language of science ,technology,tourism and much more.Learning English could help improve your job prospects ...
3-English is actually the official language of 53 countries!
4-It is the first language of over 400 million people worldwide-speak English and there are a lot of people to communicate with.
5-English is based on a simple alphabet and is a lot easier to learn than many other languages.
6-By learning English you are not just studying a language.Its impossible to learn the language without getting an insight into the culture of the UK.
7-If you learn English then you can READ all the fantastic English language novels ,plays and poetry in the language they were written in-translation often misses the fine points of such works.

why are you learning English?

Entertaining with your writing skills

I love to read.I read on a daily basis .I have to have a book on the go.It needs to be interesting but more importantly it needs to entertain me -its my main form of relaxation particularly in the winter months.Summer is different-thats when I am busy in my garden.But what makes a book entertaining?

I suppose this depends on each individual BUT a good book has to engage with the reader.Like any piece of writing.

Writing to entertain:

So ,as non native speakers ,how can you improve your writing so that its fit for purpose?

If its a story you wish to tell then it helps to use a lot of adjectives including the extremes (tired-exhausted../cold -freezing) to set the tone.Add in some adverbs here and there ,but not too many , to enhance the use of the adjectives and the story begins to take on greater depth.Compare the following...,

He was tired after working all day followed by the walk home in the snow

He was completely exhausted after working all day followed by the trek home through the freezing snowy landscape.

Which attracts more interest?

The use of the active voice rather than the passive is better for story telling -much better when writing fiction to use the Subject-Verb-Object style (The dog bit the child)..in the Passive this becomes (The child was bitten by the dog) which appears a little awkward to the reader who just wants to be entertained.

Use 'strong' words and try not to repeat yourself.Metaphors and similes have a place but use sparingly in fiction writing.

Academic Writing:

Academic writing is usually required in order for the writer to put accross his or her points on a particular topic.This style of writing is more formal.It needs to be clear ,concise and well constructed.The text must also be grammatically sound with no spelling errors.Colloquial phrases ,contractions and verbosity are not really acceptable for this style of writing.The text needs a clear structure with an introduction ,a main body and a clear conclusion.

When non native speakers take tests such as IELTS or CAE they are required to write in an academic style.

The first and most important part of these tasks is to read the question.And read it again to ensure you understand exactly what you need to write about.Usually there is a tight word count so the ability to answer the question while being concise is essential.

The next step is to plan what you will write-do not just launch in to it-remember the structure and word count -include this in the plan.

Now that you have your plan and structure organised its time to put pen to paper and start writing.Think about what linking words (used for giving examples,listing,highlighting points,showing results,generalising etc)can be used and which are more appropriate for your particular writing.Search your brain for synonymous words so that you avoid repeating yourself.

Here is a fairly recent Academic IELTS essay question.

Recently the freedom to work and live anywhere has become the main trend due to the development of communication technology and transportation. Do the advantages of these developments outweigh the disadvantages? Discuss.

Why not have a go -remember to stick to the word count and time limits -250 words and complete ,including planning ,within 40 minutes.

Good luck!

January 2016

The new academic year has begun and its been a quiet start for me as the majority of my students come from the former states of the USSR and celebrate at a slightly different time to us in the UK.By next Monday all should be back to normal.Which is good news.

I have decided that I will produce a weekly update on this blog on a variety of topics and include vocabulary and phrases in common use among native speakers.

the end of 2015 up to now

Its been a long time since my last post and many things have happened in this time.
Christmas came and went in the blink of an eye and the New Year was literally a washout.

Like many people in the UK last year ,the moorland valley where I am based experienced a disaster on a grand scale on Boxing Day -the 26th of December.It rained and rained ,water flowed down the steep sided valley hills ,the river became more and more swollen ,the canal filled until finally the only place for the water to go was onto the roads and into homes and businesses.We had mountain rescue trying to assist our most vunerable people and even a coast guard helicopter team was involved in this inland rescue operation.

When the water recedded it left behind a scene of devasation that shocked the inhabitants of this lovely valley despite floods being relatively common here.Nothing that had happened before had prepared us for this.The landscape was different- bare and bleaker.Moving through the valley towns all one could see were peoples belongings  on the streets ,now contaminated with sewage laden water.Businesses were closed and roads damaged.River walls were broken and trees were down.People were without power and for a period of time -cut off.

Then the clean up process began.Homes and businesses had to empty properties of their belongings and possessions onto the streets.

Donations and voluteers began to pour into the area in many forms - physical help ,food ,cleaning equipment,drying equipment,lifts,use of phones/electricty and even offers of a warm dry bed.We had people come from far and wide -individuals ,families ,charitable organisations ,religious groups ,bikers ...the list goes on.Communities helped each other.And continue to help each other.

Two weeks after the floods and recovery continues.Many homes are receiving help with building and electrical work and some businesses have managed to re open though mainly in a 'popup' fashion.It will be many months before homes can be made safely habitable again ,road works are completed ,schools opened to pupils and business returns to 'normal'.There are plans afoot to have a celebration in June of this year...life goes on.We are in Yorkshire and Yorkshire folk are known for their refusal to be knocked down ...they get back up again.Always.

None of the photos used above are mine and taken from yahoo but published by local people whom I have been unable to credit.

Friday fun..

Some jokes...funny or not funny?

Roger left for work on Friday morning.  Friday was payday, so instead of going home, he stayed out the entire weekend partying with the boys and spending his entire pay packet.

Finally, Roger appeared at home on Sunday night, and obviously he was confronted by his angry wife, Martha who castigated Roger for nearly two hours with a tirade befitting his actions.  Finally, Martha stopped the nagging and said to Roger, 'How would you like it if you didn't see me for two or three days?'

Roger replied grimly, 'That would be fine with me.'

Monday went by and he didn't see his Martha. Tuesday and Wednesday came and went with the same results.

By the Thursday, the swelling had gone down just enough so that Roger he could see Martha a little out of the corner of his left eye.....

Myra Rhodes, a little old lady living in Great Baddow, Essex, answered a knock on the door one Friday, to be confronted by a well-dressed young man carrying a vacuum cleaner.

'Good morning, Ma'am,' said the young man. 'If I could take a couple minutes of your time, I would like to demonstrate the very latest in high-powered vacuum cleaners.'

'Go away!' said Myra brusquely. 'I'm broke and haven't got any money,' and she proceeded to close the door.

Quick as a flash, the young man wedged his foot in the door and pushed it wide open. 'Don't be too hasty,' he commanded. 'Not until you have at least seen my demonstration.' And with that, he emptied a bucket of horse manure onto her hallway carpet.

'Now, if this vacuum cleaner does not remove all traces of this horse manure from your carpet, Madam, I will personally eat the remainder.'

Myra stepped back and said with a smile, 'Well let me get you a spoon, young man because they cut off my electricity this morning.'

this is my dog after hearing another cat joke ....

What's a good price for a lesson?

Or to put it another way-what's a good lesson worth? In financial terms.And what's a fair price for the teacher to make a decent enough living?These seem like fairly simple questions but when you live between two countries which have two different currencies ,as I do , and your students pay you in a third or fourth currency because of where they are based it actually becomes quite complicated -unless you work with a company or agent who collects fee's ,takes their cut and sends the balance to you in a single currency which you then convert or not.
If you work for yourself in this area then  its up to you to decide a pricing scheme which is suitable for all nationalities while continuing to provide you with a living wage.
I am not greedy but I do have expenses ,like everyone,although as someone who is self employed my over heads are low.I try to be honest in my pricing.I know what I need to make on a monthly basis to cover my lifestyle but I also know what the average income is in a lot of other countries and this is what helps me decide on a fair price for the student and a fair rate for my work.
When working with people from around the globe I have found the best and safest method of payment for both students and myself  is Paypal.Its simple to use and quick to show payments.I rarely offer credit to students-there is the odd exception -so Paypal is a swift way to remedy a zero balance for lesson credits .
I have put together a package of lessons at Sterling ,Euro and Dollar rates.Please contact me on Skype at michelesenglish or via email at sheridanmichele@hotmail.com if you are interested in more information.